Sonic 4 Leaked Gameplay Video Breakdown

Back on February 16th, 1UP received an anonymous leak of Sonic the Hedgehog 4 gameplay.  While the video was taken down at Sega’s request,  there are still some sites that have been able to keep the video accessible.  Predictably, it has also appeared on (Edit: and been continually removed from) Youtube.

I’m actually quite excited by the content of the video.  The game looks better than I’d expected, with plenty of retro throwbacks shown in a short time. I’ll go ahead and list some highlights from the footage after the jump.  Keep in mind, however, that this is an alpha build, so the gameplay of the final product might work somewhat differently.

0:10 – we see Sonic zoom across the screen, and then zip back in the other direction, right before the famous “Se-ga!” tune is sung.  This is a direct homage to the beginning of Sonic 2.

0:21 – Sonic is seen wagging his finger over an ocean background, as a reference to Sonic 1.

0:32 – we can see a level select screen showing the progress that has been made so far.  There are four Zones shown: Splash Hill Zone, which is based on Green Hill from Sonic 1, Casino Street Zone, based on Casino Night from Sonic 2, Lost Labyrinth Zone, which is based on… well,  Labyrinth Zone from Sonic 1 (you know, the level that constantly tried to drown you), and finally, there’s Mad Gear Zone, based off of Metropolis Zone from Sonic 2 (and thankfully named more creatively than the other levels).

In the center of the screen, the Special Stage can be selected.  Judging by the screenshot, the Special Stages in this game are based on the rotating, psychedelic “spinball mazes” from Sonic 1.

A counter at the bottom of the screen shows the amount of Chaos Emeralds that the player has collected.  Hopefully, once all Emeralds are collected, Super Sonic will be enabled to make the player invincible while moving through the levels.

0:34 – we can see how the Acts of the Zones will be organized.  Interestingly, the developers have chosen to go back to the “three Acts per Zone” format from Sonic 1, which is actually a pretty good idea since it gives players more gameplay for their money.  The development team even went the extra mile and gave an individual name to each Act. In a change of pace from the usual, the boss battle with Robotnik is treated as its own separate level, rather than occurring at the end of the third Act.

0:36 – we see classic pot-bellied Sonic running through the loading screen. Not as good as having him playable, but it is nice to see the developers acknowledging Sonic”s old look within the game.

0:41 – we see the title card for the first level. It’s yet another homage to Sonic 2, as the title cards in that game would cover up the screen and then slide away in the exact same way.

0:47 – Sonic bumps a monitor from its underside.  Just like in the old games, he’ll have to hit it from the top or the sides to destroy it and collect the item.

0:49 – pinball physics are confirmed!  Sonic effortlessly rolls into a ball as he hits the slope, and propels himself high in the air.

0:54 – Sonic slams right into a Motobug before defeating it with his spin attack.  I’ll admit, this had me worried at first. It brought back bad memories of playing Sonic Rush and slamming into enemies because I moving too fast to see where I was going.  However, I eventually realized that, unlike Rush, this game actually gives you a kind of warning.  Before encountering the enemy, Sonic lands on a downward slope, subtly signaling the player to hit down to roll into a ball, thus taking advantage of the game’s physics in order to both speed Sonic up and roll through the Badnik unscathed.

It’s also interesting to note that Sonic’s damage animation is exactly the same as it was in the classic games, with his hands thrown back and his mouth agape in cartoonish surprise.  In another retro homage, the Motobug explodes in a puff of smoke, with a bird being released, and a “100 points” symbol appearing above the explosion.  The presence of the animal is a subtle indication that the environmentalism of the classic games is seeping back in.  While many modern Badniks were purely mechanical, Sonic spent much of his time in the Genesis games trying to turn his forest friends from killer cyborgs back into normal organic beings.  Once again, Sonic is called upon to reverse Robotnik’s technological domination of the world one step at a time.

Moving on,

0:57 – another classic Badnik, Newtron, reappears.  Just like in Sonic 1, it appears out of nowhere to shoot at Sonic.

Shortly afterward,

0:59 – we hear a revving noise as Sonic quickly performs the charged spin dash that debuted in Sonic 2.

1:01 – the players experimentation with the controls gives us the first glimpse of the homing attack, which has been imported from the 3D games.

And now for my personal favorite part of the video:

1:03 – Sonic runs into a loop, finally reaching his top speed and turning his feet into the “blurry wheels” which have been sorely missing for the past decade.

1:06 – Sonic walks through a wall to find a hidden pathway, just like in Sonic 2′s Emerald Hill Zone.

1:10 – we get our first direct reference to Sonic 3 as the player activates Sonic’s “Insta-shield” ability.

And finally,

1:21 – the footage ends with player incidentally stuck on a wall, signaling that they either need to back up and pick up momentum, or charge a spin dash.

Another crucial element that I should mentioned is the way the music has gone back to the charming synth style of the Genesis originals.

Overall, I’m very impressed and optimistic.  The only thing that really bugged me was Sonic slamming his face into an enemy, but it didn’t bug me so much after I considered it in the larger context of the level’s design.  Sonic definitely accelerated faster than the old games, but he thankfully wasn’t reaching the same ludicrous “I can’t see where I’m going at all” speeds of some of the more recent games.  The idea that Sonic needs to build momentum to reach his top speed has thankfully returned, and the level design feels a bit smarter and more complex than many modern designs.  And, somehow, despite the use of the modern Sonic design, the game has managed to be chock full of little call-backs to the 16-bit era.  Sonic 4 still looks a little strange, I’ll admit, but it’s exceeded my expectations so far, and it looks like it has great potential to be a true successor to the platformers of old.