[collapse=Ascended's grades]
TheMarioaddict/City Escape
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: Sonic Adventure 2 is my favorite Sonic game, and I think City Escape is one of the best levels in video game history, so good choice for a stage! I like that it's basically the Generations version put into a stage. I would totally play on this, so once again, good job!
SmashRiver64/Chemical Plant Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: I think I speak for everyone when I say that Sonic 2 is the most popular game in the series, and Chemical Plant Zone is definitely an iconic location, what with the music, the water, and being in Sonic Generations. I love what you've done with the stage as you've managed to bring in all the elements of the original Genesis game. Good job!
Kevandre/Pumpkin Hill
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 23/25
Comments: Another SA2 stage, and one of the most popular stages in the game! I like how you incorporated the pumpkins and the ghosts, and I don't think the ghosts would hinder the stage too much. It sounds very playable while being very fun.
Elaith/Star Light Zone
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 20/25
Comments: An interesting choice for a stage. I like that you managed to transplant the boss battle into a Smash Bros stage, as I always think it's cool when a stage captures the essence of its origin. I don't really have a problem with this, just that I would have picked a different location from Sonic 1 for a stage.
ryuu seika/Emerald Chase
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 23/25
Comments: Very cool idea for a stage! When I read the title, I didn't know what this was, but when I realized it was the Sonic 2 special stage I was excited, and you've brought it into Smash Bros perfectly! I would play on this if it was a real stage, and I think your idea of unlocking it is really creative as well. Good job!
Jords2Good/City Escape Tour
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 7/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: Another City Escape stage?! This is what I love about the contest is that two people could enter the same location, but it is executed in a completely different way. I like what you've done here, and I thought it was really cool that the night time version of the stage is Speed Highway. (I'm a huge fan of the Sonic Adventure games in case people couldn't tell). The boss sounds bearable, and it does sound like a balanced stage, but I'm seeing it like an F-Zero stage so I don't know how much the stage would interfere with the fighting. Aside from that, I thought it was a great idea!
TechPowah/Aquarium Park
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: Sonic Colors is the point where I believe Sonic to have made his comeback, and I always thought that Aquarium Park was one of the best stages from that game, so I was happy to see it in this contest. I think you did a great job of bringing it into Smash Bros, and I like the concept of the stage getting flooded and altering the physics of the match. I think it would be fun to play on!
Geoffrey Druyts/Casino Night Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 10/10
Total: 24/25
Comments: Aw yeah, here we go! This is, in my opinion, the most popular stage from Sonic 2 and a Sonic series trademark. I love the simplicity, and with that simplicity you've managed to capture the essence of the stage perfectly. I took a point off of creativity because I would have liked a more in depth explanation, and I'm going to give some kudos to Kevandre for putting it together in sprite form. Great job on this stage![/collapse]
[collapse=BridgesWithTurtles' grades]
City Escape by TheMarioaddict
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 22/25
City Escape is what I would consider to be a great example of a stage that has a hazard, but one which does not compromise the spirit of the actual battle. One of the most beloved and iconic locations in the Sonic series makes for a fitting Smash Bros. stage. You incorporate the Generation's construction architecture as platforms, keeping the stage close to its source series. The use of the truck is to be expected, and it interacts with the stage in a way that is influential without being dominant, as it's easily avoidable and doesn't affect the whole stage. There's a minor problem with this stage's layout, in that being only as wide as WarioWare while only allowing the GUN truck to take up one of two of the street's lanes means that the truck would be very much undersized compared to its appearances in the Sonic series proper.
Chemical Plant Zone by SmashRiver64
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 10/10
Total: 24/25
Another one of the Sonic series' most iconic locations. Chemical Plant seems like an appropriate source for interesting stage features, and because of that reason, I do wish you would've played more with the level's more interesting architecture. The lack of chemical tubes, springs, and copious amounts of twisted, twirling platforms seems to be underutilization of the location's key defining features. That being said, the rising "water" and falling platforms are definitely used to their full extent here, and the water gimmick especially - even incorporating the memorable air bubbles - is played with skillfully. 7 seconds of submersion and 6 seconds of air time allow for those unlucky enough to "drown" to be punished just at the right time.
Pumpkin Hill by Kevandre
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 20/25
"Kevandre, what are you doing here? You know me and you don't get along! I don't think that's the point right now, though." I really love this stage. Pumpkin Hill is one of my favorite levels in Sonic history. Something about the random Halloween theme, smooth rap music, and the sheer expansiveness of the level just made me always love this place. I do wish the stage were as wide and open as the original level, though. The main "platform" is so small, based on your mock-up, that I imagine it'd be difficult to play in 4-player matches. I do like how the spread-out platforms and relative verticality of the stage give it the same feeling of jumping and falling around you get while playing this level in Sonic Adventure 2.
Starlight Zone by Elaith
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 3/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 16/25
I didn't expect this zone to show up, but it's good to see some people remember it. Unfortunately, you didn't really do much to wow me with this one. You didn't alter the original location at all, really. The seesaws are kind of a new concept for a stage, but it's not that creative when you just took a gimmick Sega already came up with, and then didn't expand upon it or adapt it for Smash. I do wish you would've given us more detail here. For example, do the bombs that Eggman drops deal damage when flung with the seesaw? Still, the stage is mostly balanced and in all fairness, you probably did a good thing in not trying to fix what isn't broken. It's a good idea for a stage, but it's not exactly creative. I hope to see you participate in future rounds.
Emerald Chase by ryuu seika
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 22/25
Once again, ryuu shows us an untethered sense of logical zaniness. I feel that Emerald Chase is one of your weaker attempts, despite the high score, in that you make more handwaves in order to make the stage work. Really, it does feel somewhat as if you had to stretch a little too far to make this stage. It's not really explained as to
how the players move with the camera. Similar stages, such as Mute City, also make no sense, but at least have attempts at justification. All that said, however, the Sonic special stages are so trippy that I can actually handwave this flaw pretty easily. The stage is a never before seen half-pipe shape, which is pretty interesting. There's practically no off-stage game thanks to this, however, and that puts a bit of a damper on it for me. Balanced hazards and a unique stage design make this a strong contender for first place.
City Escape Tour by Jords2Good
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 6/10
Total: 18/25
I don't recall you ever participating with us before, Jords2Good. Glad to have new participants this round. It's interesting to compare this stage to TheMarioaddict's. While they're based on the same location, they're as different as night and day. As compared to the prior stage, I like how this concept gives us the high-speed action of the original level. However, I think it has too much going on, and the way it handles going from location to location could use some ironing out. My recommendation is to not cram so much stuff into one stage. It can be done with tact to make a stage sweltering with fanservice, but in many cases, the stage is just biting off more than it can chew. During the truck-riding sections of the stage, it's nothing very interesting, and at stops, there is simply too much congestion and too many hazards to worry about. Why does the truck stop anyway? That thing's in relentless, high-speed pursuit of Sonic. I also think the inclusion of Flying Dog is unnecessary. Stage bosses don't seem to add much to the experience, and Flying Dog never appeared in City Escape anyway. Why not Bigfoot? Overall, I like this stage, but it could use some tweaks. I'd probably prefer if the truck simply never stopped moving, and just passed through different locations that briefly change the layout of the stage, rather than making stops.
Aquarium Park by TechPowah
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 21/25
It's interesting seeing how different people handle water physics. This stage gives us two slightly contradictory interactions with water on its own. Funny how these Sonic stages like to play with water. I do enjoy the "submerged" physics alterations and feel that this is one of the better ways to handle the subject of underwater battling in Smash. Aquarium Park is otherwise interesting for its highly unique location archetype and overall aesthetic. Not sure how I'd describe it. Japanese and aquatic? Unfortunately, that hurts the popularity score a bit. I'm sure it's instantly recognizable to fans of the game, but most people would probably be left scratching their heads as to this stage's origins. Definitely a fun pick for originality. It's really nothing like we've ever seen in Smash before.
Casino Night Zone by Geoffrey Druyts
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 3/10
Playability: 4/10
Total: 12/25
An okay first effort, Casino Night Zone suffers from extreme lack of detail and a questionable understanding of balance. 1-3 minutes is incredibly vague, but any amount of time in that range is incredibly long when you consider how few matches people play that go over 8 minutes. If it were an exceptional level of healing, I could see a minute being justifiable, but that isn't described. It's also quite similar to the SSF2 version of the stage, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. The slot machine gimmick is interesting, but it's disappointing that the stage is so flat and simple, when the level it's based on has such crazy, pinball machine-like terrain. I think choosing a location for a stage should largely play to that location's strengths.[/collapse]
[collapse=Zzuxon's grades]
Themarioaddict - City Escape Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 8/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 20/25
Comments: As one of the more famous modern sonic locations, this gets a perfect popularity score. Playability is also high, you have a balanced layout and a hazard that can be dealt with. The layout is also original, and the stage is faithful to the source.
SmashRiver64 - Chemical Plant Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 8/10
Creativity: 6/10
Total: 19/25
Comments: Chemical Plant Zone is one of the most iconic Sonic locations ever. ‘Nuff said. Also seems highly playable, what with the water not affecting physics. Fairly Creative with the falling platforms and water mechanics. Faithful to the source. Good all around.
Kevandre - Pumpkin Hill Zone
Popularity: 4/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 8/10
Total:19/25
Comments: As a rather well known area, you get a good popularity score. Playability is also good, nice layout, not-too invasive hazard. The layout is also very creative, as is the ghost mechanic. All in all, it is a very nice stage.
Elaith - Star Light Zone
Popularity: 3/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 8/10
Total: 18/25
Comments: I’ve honestly never heard of this stage, but I’m not a huge sonic fan, so I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. Playability looks fairly solid, not much to say here. The stage is very creative; I love the see-saw mechanic, which is apparently also faithful to the source location. Very solid first(I think) entry.
ryuu seika - Emerald Chase Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 5/10
Creativity:9/10
Total: 19/25
Comments: Since this evidently represents a recurring level in Sonic games. I give it a perfect popularity. The playability obviously isn’t great, but it isn’t bad either. Definitely an extremely creative stage what with the anti-grav gem and half pipe shape.
Jords2Good - City Escape Zone Tour
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 19/25
Comments: I love how we can get 2 totally different takes on this iconic level. I like the bigblue approach, but with the twist of not dying if you fall in front of the truck, and how the truck stops occasionally, making it like a combination of Aero Dive/Mute City and Big Blue. A really solid stage all around.
TechPowah - Aquarium Park Zone
Popularity: 3/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 9/10
Total: 19/25
Comments: I will give the benefit of the doubt as to popularity. However, the rest of the stage is quite good, like the water mechanics and the pillars etc. Not a huge amount to say, just a solid stage.
Geoffrey Druyts - Casino Night Zone
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 6/10
Ceativity: 9/10
Total: 20/25
Comments: Casino Night Zone is a classic location, clearly a 5/5 pop is in order. The slot machine and walk-offs obviously meant you had to take a playability hit, but it doesn’t seem annoying. Extremely creative and faithful to the source, bravo.[/collapse]
[collapse=D-idara's grades]
I FIND YOUR LACK OF MODERN SONIC DISTURBING, I would've personally made a stage based on either
Planet Wisp or
Rooftop Run (Best Sonic stage of all time!).
Just listen to those orgasmic violins:
City Escape by
TheMarioaddict
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 10/10
The go-to location for Dreamcast Era Sonic stages, so you get full Popularity! Now, I like the layout and how you used the end of the slope to create a stage, with the truck coming down from time to time, and I also think you did destructible terrain better than Luigi's Mansion, but I think the truck was underutilized, with how frantic the whole truck chase felt, you could've done a lot more with that prop, rather than a stage hazard with one possible attack on either side of the stage. I do appreciate how the match could shift with one set of platforms standing, but I still think it feels a little underwhelming. Now...the truck seems to be pretty telegraphed and I don't think it should lower Playability~!
Total: 22
Chemical Plant Zone by
SmashRiver64
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 7/10
It's Chemical Plant Zone, I don't think I need to say anything else. The way you played with the stage's original and memorable water mechanics looks and sounds really cool and you don't see that many neutral stages with falling platforms. There's something missing here, though, I don't feel like a FD-like layout was the best thing you could do, and I think the water hazard's playing it too safe, I was expecting a slight physics change, or maybe some platforms rising with the water, I don't know, it seems like you had a great concept and didn't flesh it out entirely. Also...I'm gonna take a point from Playability because everything looks and sounds like the ledges aren't grabbable with the falling platforms, and non-grabbable ledges are the bane of any could've-been-good stage
(Summit's still awesome, though, but it could be the best stage on the game!).
Total: 20
Pumpkin Hill by
Kevandre
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 9/10
Out of all the Knuckles levels,
Pumpkin Hill and
Meteor Herd are probably the most memorable. I appreciate the drop-through middle platform, not a lot of stages do that sort of thing and I feel like it could lead to some very cool setups and ambush attacks, and the ghosts are a nice touch, keeping with the Fortree tradition of punishing those who hang on the lower parts of the stage for too long!
(I docked a point off for being so similar to one of your previous entries, though!). On the Playability front, the middle platform seems a little small and the various floating pillar platforms could lead to some serious camping, but the stage looks playable overall.
Total: 20
Starlight Zone by
Elaith
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 5/10
Playability: 8/10
The first one of
Sonic's City Levels, that's a big title, to tell the truth. I'll be clear here, I'm not a fan of ripping the location straight from the game and making it a stage for Smash, AT ALL, especially considering that the seesaw bomb gimmicks could've been done much better to make for a creative, unique stage, you could've touched up the location, added and removed some things to make it more fit for Smash. One of my main gripes with the stage, Playability wise, and one of the common side effects of taking a location straight from the game, would be how claustrophobic everything looks, it'd look like players wouldn't have any room to breathe or maneuver between Eggman and the seesaws, and that's a big no. I'll give a personal opinion here, this stage would've been MUCH, MUCH better without the middle seesaw.
Total: 17
Emerald Chase by
ryuu seika
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 7/10
One of the most frustrating pieces of **** levels ever
(I'm only dissing the Emerald Chases because you insulted one of the best Classic Sonic levels >:U)...but also one of the things from Sonic games engraved into people's minds, the
Sonic 2 versions are especially ridiculous and pretty much unwinnable with their unfair mine placements, but I'm rambling on! I think I've never seen this kind of halfpipe design before, I don't know if it'd be the best for fighting, but it's certainly very unique and could make for some interesting situations, I like the Emerald hazard, because it suddenly makes the battle slightly different for everyone, like
Victini or
Xerneas, and I love those kinds of effects. On the Playability front the stage suffers, though, the halfpipe layout would make for some pretty awkward fighting when the players aren't standing on the dead center of the U shape and I'm not sold on the mines, especially because the way the stage moves seems to be a little weird and disorienting, I dunno, I just feel like I'd start feeling dizzy with the stage actually moving below the character's feet, with the twists and turns.
Total: 22
City Escape Tour by
Jords2Good
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 5/10
It's City Escape, nothing much to say there! I do like how you made a traveling stage a little more exciting with being set on top of a moving truck, and the truck also making stops at several spots makes me think of a combination between Delfino Plaza and Spirit Train...still, I still feel it threads on similar grounds a little too much. I gave you low playability because I feel like there's too much going on at once, you have the front of the truck being able to hit you, buildings breaking and falling on top of the fighters, GUN robots shooting at you AND a stage boss that shoots guns and lasers and then explodes? I think you went a little overboard with the hazards.
Total: 18
Aquarium Park by
TechPowah
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 10/10
MODERN SONIC UP IN HERE! ONE OF THE BEST SONIC LEVELS! Aquarium Park's mainly remembered because of being a water level that doesn't suck ***, and that's a pretty huge achievement. Now, the way the water was handled is a great example of a subtle, non-intrusive stage hazard that's still recognizable and gives the stage some personality, I especially like the fact that the platform layout gets something added when the water rises to accomodate for the physics change, a nice touch. I don't really see anything too disruptive for a match here, so...
Total: 22
Casino Night Zone by
Geoffrey Druyts
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 7/10
Try to make your entry not be all over the place next time, please...on another note, perfect Popularity because Sonic 2, don't need to explain that, really. Although I do like what you did with the bumper and the slot machine, they're gimmicks taken straight from the source level without any tweaking or changing, so I'll have to take points from that category! Even though the layout seems uneventful, I think the overlong walkoff design with a centralizing stage hazard on the middle which can give game-breaking bonuses disrupts the match too much.
Total: 19[/collapse]
TheMarioaddict:
86
SmashRiver64: 85
Kevandre: 82
Elaith: 71
ryuu seika:
86
Jords2Good: 77
TechPowah: 84
Geoffrey Druyts: 75
After an ironically long wait,
TheMarioaddict and
ryuu seika tie for first, with their respective entries of
City Escape and
Emerald Chase. Congrats to the both of you! As always, you can view the winners' entries below.
[collapse=City Escape by TheMarioaddict]
Time to roll around at the speed of sound everyone, for this is one of Sonic's most iconic stages ever.
People, welcome to
City Escape!
Stage Name: City Escape
Game: Sonic Adventure 2
Description:
Ok, so this pic might be a little confusing at first, so let me explain. Firstly, why is there a road going straight up the background? Imagine the stage is situated at the bottom of a hill, with that bottom edge being a kind of drop-off, and you'll hopefully get it. Second, where's the city? I didn't draw it in. Imagine there are buildings lining the sides of the street.
Now the, the stage layout is very similar to that of Warioware from Brawl, just with the upper platforms moved closer in. In fact, the proportions of the stage are identical in my mind, so use that as a base. Just like in Warioware, the base (black line) is non-passable, while the scaffolding (yellow lines) are drop-through. For the most part, the stage is neutral. It will stay this way for much of the match.
However, there is one stage hazard that makes this stage very interesting...
The Truck.
Yeah, you all know the one. That demon truck that chases you down through a good bit of the level. Sometimes, while fighting on this stage, Sonic will appear at the top of the hill, and start running down the road, until he's offscreen (something something alfonso). Shortly after this happens, The truck will appear at the top of the hill. It will come charging down the hill, on either the left lane or the right lane. When it does, get out of the way, because the second it comes into contact with the fighting area proper, anyone it runs over is getting launched. Far. And taking heavy damage to boot.
And if that wasn't ENOUGH, the scaffolding on the side the truck hits will get destroyed when the truck goes flying past, thus making the stage asymmetrical. Don't worry though - after a short while (let's go with... 30 seconds?) the platforms will regenerate.
The truck itself appears at random intervals, although it won't show up while there are currently destroyed platforms. (that is, it cannot appear within 30 seconds of it's last appearance).
Aesthetics: Like I mentioned, there will be city buildings lining the sides of the stage (the white world pic D-idara posted just after my post actually does a pretty good job showing sort of what the stage would look like with the buildings, although the road is a bit thinner than in my version). Beyond that, nothing much in the aesthetic department. Birds will fly around in the background occasionally, but that's just sort of typical bird behavior, nothing noteworthy.
Music:
Awww yeah, time for some sonic music. And in a Wii U round, so that means ALL OF THE SONGS!!!
Escape from the City (Sonic Adventure 2)
City Escape Classic (Sonic Generations)
Metal Harbor (Sonic Adventure 2)
Super Sonic Racing (What's that from, Sonic R?)
Endless Mine (Sonic 3)
G.U.N. Truck (Sonic Adventure 2)
So there you go! The most iconic stage from one of Sonic's most iconic games! I hope you like it![/collapse]
[collapse=Emerald Chase by ryuu seika]
Emerald Chase
Game(s) of Origin: Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic Pocket Adventure, Sonic Rush, Sonic Colours, Sonic 4
Stage Layout:
Description: Emerald Chase is a stage that represents the half pipe special stage found in so many of Sonic's games. Its base design is a rezzed up version of that found in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic Pocket Adventure but it incorporates aspects from the other games too. It takes the straight walls near its edges from the Sega Saturn version of Sonic 3D Blast, keeping their go faster stripes from that game. These walls are slippery and cannot be stood on for more than a fraction of a second, even as the Ice Climbers.
From the non-handheld Sonic Adventure games comes its chaos emerald design, with this appearing at roughly the 50 second mark and staying until the minute. The emerald is a solid object with a short range anti gravity effect preventing players from using it as a platform (it will never push players straight up so no floating atop it either) and, while it is on screen, all attacks from players will do 20% more damage and knockback.
Once the emerald has disappears, the stage will change colour, simulating the effects of picking up an emerald in Sega Superstars' Sonic minigame and showing off the various recoloured stages seen in most of the games where this level is on offer. This will happen a full 6 times, before the 7th emerald returns the stage to its starting colour.
As in many of the games and especially the PC version of Sonic 3D Blast, the stage will twist and turn and go over hills. Do not worry, this is merely a visual effect and will cause no change to the fight since the camera follows the motion perfectly.
You may see traditional spike balls appear in the background. Watch out, these will hurt you if you're in the wrong place when you catch up to them. The way they spawn gives plenty of warning though and, if items are on, the same will happen with them, taking out most of their surprise element and thus making them a little fairer.
The background is a similar starry sky to that seen in the last levels of Sonic Adventure 2 but does not include the earth and is instead overlayed with semi-opaque diamonds in reference to StH2's secret stage. It should look rather pretty in modern graphics.
Overview: This stage is simple and will likely involve a lot of aerial combat due to its structure making ground fights a tad difficult. This skews it in favour of certain characters but, besides the shape itself, there are very few gimmicks. The chaos emerald rewards players for knowing how to time their finisher but contains no bias and the spikes are so well signposted you're unlikely to hit them without your opponent intervening. Even if you do, their damage is around 8-12% with fairly low knockback so it's hardly the end of the world.
Unlockable: Yes
Click the star in the background of the stage select screen to play on this stage. It can be selected normally after the first use.
Music:
Special Stage (Sonic the Hedgehog)
Bonus Stage (Sonic the Hedgehog 2)
Special Stage (Sonic the Hedgehog 3)
Special Stage US (Sonic CD)
Special Stages (Sonic 3D)
Special Stage (Sonic 3D Blast Saturn Ver.)
Special Stage 1 (Sonic Heroes)
Special Stage 2 (Sonic Heroes)
Special Stage (Sonic Advance 3)
Special Stage (Sonic Colours DS)
Special Stage (Sonic Generations 3DS)
Special Stage (Sonic Lost World)[/collapse]
We're going to keep going with this. The next round will be soon.