Actions

Difference between revisions of "Sonic Robo Blast 2"

From Sonic Retro

Line 2: Line 2:
 
|screen=srb2_title.png
 
|screen=srb2_title.png
 
|screenwidth=320px
 
|screenwidth=320px
|version=2.2.0
+
|version=2.2.2
|date=2019-12-07
+
|date=2020-02-22
 
|engine=Doom Legacy
 
|engine=Doom Legacy
 
|credits=[[Sonic Team Junior]]
 
|credits=[[Sonic Team Junior]]

Revision as of 15:22, 1 May 2020

Srb2 title.png
Sonic Robo Blast 2
Latest version: 2.2.2
Latest release date: 2020-02-22
Engine: Doom Legacy
Credits: Sonic Team Junior

Sonic Robo Blast 2, abbreviated as SRB2, is a fan game for Windows and DOS platforms. It is a 3D platformer developed by a group called Sonic Team Junior, using a modified version of the Doom Legacy source port of Doom, to allow for such things as optional analog control and true room-over-room (something not possible in the standard Doom engine), as well as the standard gameplay elements Sonic games are known for. It has been in the works since 1998 and is currently nearing completion, though several parts of the game are still missing.

Sonic Robo Blast 2 is closely inspired by the original 2D Sonic games for the Mega Drive and attempts to recreate a game with this style in 3D, though it also borrows elements from the current Sonic games, such as Sonic's signature Air Spin Attack. Entirely original to SRB2 is its Multiplayer mode, a variation of classic first-person shooter games with Sonic elements. Due to being built with a modified Doom Legacy engine, the game is also very easily customizable. Custom levels, characters and even source code modifications can be created with the help of external editors.

Storyline

GFM.png

Months after Dr. Eggman's defeat in Sonic Robo Blast, the mad doctor took an interest in harnessing energy from a mysterious asteroid that hovers over the planet once every five years. After claiming it as his own battleship, Eggman chose Greenflower Mountain as his first target for obliteration.

Sonic was enjoying a long overdue vacation when he was suddenly alerted by the presence of Eggman's massive fleet. Sonic gazed at the giant battleship aimed toward the mountain , and had already bolted towards it in a blink of an eye. Even though Sonic rushed to save Greenflower Mountain as quickly as possible, it had already been destroyed in by the time he arrived. Now, after a quick reunion with the evil doctor, Sonic and friends journey off onto another quest to save the world from Dr. Eggman.

Playable Characters

Sonic the Hedgehog

SRB2 Sonic Art.png

Sonic is the quickest of the playable characters, but he's the least versatile. Some areas will be inaccessible to him, so he must find other routes around them. He's also somewhat difficult to control, but to adjust to his controls would make him a powerful asset to the player. His ability is the "Speed Thok". The thok gives the player a burst of speed, which is useful for clearing certain gaps and automatically giving acceleration. Sonic also has the added ability of turning into Super Sonic when he has seven Chaos Emeralds; this special ability makes him faster, stronger, and completely invincible for as long as he retains a healthy amount of rings.

More Info...

Miles "Tails" Prower

SRB2 Tails Art.png

Although Tails is the slowest of the playable characters, he does possess the very powerful flying ability. This allows him to clear long jumps and reach new areas at a great convenience. His speed and handling are very easy to control, making him ideal for the beginning player.

More Info...

Knuckles the Echidna

SRB2 Knux Art.png

Knuckles can be considered the "moderate" character of the playable characters. While he's not as fast as Sonic, he is faster than Tails. With this speed, he also has Tails' good handling. He has the ability to glide and climb, allowing him to scale gaps and walls with ease, possibly reaching new areas that Sonic can't reach. His jump height is slightly lower than Sonic's and Tails', however. In multiplayer mode, he can shoot rings twice as fast as other characters. His Super form gives him the ability to glide multiple times in mid-air.

More Info...

A number of additional characters can be unlocked by playing through the game. Look out for when they show up!

Gameplay

Single Player

SRB2's main focus lies in its single player campaign. In its final state, it is supposed to span at least 7 zones, each consisting of three acts. Zones are organized similarly to Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island, with the first two acts being typical Sonic levels with a start, and end, and obstacles in-between, and Act 3 containing a boss. The levels are similar to the classic Sonic games, with each zone having its own theme, featuring distinct enemies and obstacles. Contrary to official 3D Sonic titles like Sonic Adventure, the levels feature multiple paths and are designed openly, with several hidden items encouraging exploration. Unlike official Sonic titles (past and present), SRB2 does not feature loops due to engine limitations, which leads to a different visual and gameplay style. Slopes were added in version 2.1.15, and most of the stages have been updated accordingly as of Version 2.2.

  • Greenflower Zone (abbreviated GFZ) is the first zone. It is stylistically very similar to Green Hill Zone, and is a very basic starting stage, for players to get the grasp of the controls and gameplay mechanisms.
  • Techno Hill Zone (abbreviated THZ) is the second zone in the game. It takes place in one of Eggman's factories and its surrounding outside area. All water is replaced with buoyant slime, similar to the slime found in Chemical Plant Zone, but will not damage players on contact, instead making them slowly rise from the bottom. The zone also introduces the player to obstacles such as electrified floors and gas jets.
  • Deep Sea Zone (abbreviated DSZ) is the third zone in the game. Placing a lot of emphasis on puzzles, players work their way through flooded ancient ruins and need to stop for air periodically.
  • Castle Eggman Zone (abbreviated CEZ) is the fourth zone in the game. The first act takes place in a dense forest that leads to Eggman's castle, which the player enters in Act 2.
  • Arid Canyon Zone (abbreviated ACZ) is the fifth zone in the game, set in a wide canyon. Players must navigate avoid deep pits, hang on to rope pulleys, wade through slippery oil, and avoid sinking into quicksand in order to clear the stage. Act 2 takes place somewhere deep in the canyon, and Act 3 takes place in a train where the player will be fighting Fang the Sniper.
  • Red Volcano Zone (abbreviated RVZ) is the sixth zone in the game, set in a volcano full of dangerous lava. Players have to cross crumbling rocks and avoid suddenly rising lava. Only the first act is included in the most recent version. The second act was once planned to take place on the frozen top of the volcano and be called "Blue Mountain Zone", but the concept was scrapped and act 2 will take place in the volcano as well. A very early version of Blue Mountain Zone is included in version 2.0, but has since been removed in version 2.1.
  • Dark City Zone (abbreviated DCZ) is the planned seventh zone in the game. None of it has been released as of now. If it is made, it will not have a corresponding Special Stage.
  • Grand Eggship Zone (abbreviated GEZ) is the planned eighth zone in the game. None of it has been released as of now, and it might be canned in the future. If it is made, it will not have a corresponding Special Stage.
  • Egg Rock Zone (abbreviated ERZ) is the penultimate zone in the game. Similar to many final zones, various unique obstacles will impede progress in this space station.
  • Black Core Zone is the final zone in the game. In it, the player has to defeat both Metal Sonic and Black Eggman in order to complete the game. The ending that occurs afterwards will depend on whether or not all 7 Chaos Emeralds were collected.

The Single Player mode also features Record Attack, where players are awarded with Score, Time, and Ring Emblems after completing the specified requirements for each stage, except for Act 3, where the player can only get Time Emblems. The Special Stages also have Record Attack, but the player can only get the Score and Rank Emblems.

Record Attack also comes with the ability for players to save their previous runs as ghosts, where they can share them with others.

Throughout the game, the player will come across several monitors that can help them. These being:

  • Super Ring Monitor - Grants players 10 rings upon breaking.
  • Attraction Shield - A shield that pulls in nearby rings. The player can also perform the "Attraction Shot", a Homing Attack-styled move, by pressing the spin button whilst jumping.
  • Force Shield - A shield that gives the player two stages of protection. By pressing the spin button whilst jumping, the player can halt their momentum using "Force Stop".
  • Armageddon Shield - A shield that, when detonated, destroys every enemy in the radius. In Ringslinger gametypes, this damages nearby players.
  • Whirlwind Shield - A shield that grants the player an extra jump when they press the spin button whilst jumping.
  • Elemental Shield - A unique shield that protects the player from fire hazards, harmful slime, asphyxiation, and drowning. By pressing the spin button whilst jumping, the player can perform the "Elemental Stomp", which makes the player quickly dash towards the ground. The shield also allows the player to leave behind a fire trail after spinning, which can destroy enemies or burn opponents in Ringslinger gametypes.
  • Super Sneakers - Doubles the player's speed for 20 seconds.
  • Invincibility - Makes the player invulnerable to all obstacles, except for getting crushed or bottomless pits, for 20 seconds.
  • Golden Monitor - a monitor that contains a specific item, this monitor can not be destroyed, and will re-add the item after hitting it.

Additionally, the Thunder, Fire and Water shields from Sonic the Hedgehog 3 are also available in select levels, functioning similarly to their original appearance, all of which can be performed by pressing the spin button whilst jumping.


Multiplayer

SRB2 features several multiplayer modes that can be played either via splitscreen or over network connection. An official Master Server is provided at the games homepage to organize netplay. Multiplayer modes include Co-Op (which is basically the single player campaign with multiple players allowed), Race and Competition and the gametypes within the "Ringslinger" game mode; Match, Team Match, Capture The Flag, Tag and Hide & Seek.

There are some monitors that are exclusive to this mode. These being:

  • Teleporter - Based on the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 monitor of the same name, it switches around every player's position.
  • Recycler - Swaps the amount of Rings and Weapon Rings held by players with another.

Race

Race is a simple race to the finish, either on the single player levels or on external Circuit levels designed for the gametype. These are short tracks with a circular layout, in which the player have to complete four rounds. There were official circuit levels until version 2.1, where they were removed. Alternatively, Competition is available, in which points are awarded for collecting items as well as finishing quickly, á la Sonic 2. Here, the player with the most points wins.

Match

Match is a variation of a typical first-person shooter Deathmatch game with Sonic elements. Match is played in first person on a set of nine maps designed specifically for that gametype. The players shoot rings at each other, and each shot removes one ring from the ring counter. Since rings fly considerably slower than projectiles, and players are much faster than in regular Match games, rings must be aimed ahead of the opponents to hit them. Hitting a player awards 50 points and drop all of their equipments, hitting an unequipped player awards 100 points and kills them.

In every new round, when players enter the game, they get a Pity Shield, which protects them from one hit. They can also get one if they've been hit too many times.

Team Match is simply a Match game with two teams. The team that scores the most points in total win.

On top of the regular red rings, there are seven weapon rings, each with different effects. To shoot a weapon ring, one must collect the corresponding panels and have enough ammunition for that weapon. Shooting any ring will also take out one ring from the player's ring count. Ammunition pickups are also scattered throughout the stage. The weapon rings include:

  • Infinity Ring - Allows players to throw mobius strip-shaped Rings at other players without depleting Rings from their current amount.
  • Rail Ring - A very powerful single-shot weapon with a very slow firing rate. It has high knockback.
  • Automatic Ring - Allows the player to fire a constant stream of Rings as long as the Fire button is held. True to its name, it has a high firing rate.
  • Bounce Ring - A weapon ring that bounces off walls, making it hard for players to escape from tight corridors. If it doesn't bounce on anything after it's thrown, it will fizzle out.
  • Scatter Ring - A spread-like weapon ring that fires five Scatter Rings in a plus formation, which spreads out the farther it goes. If it hits an opponent at very close range, the opponent will be shot back farther than usual.
  • Grenade Ring - A proximity-based ring that explodes when a player gets near it or is left alone after a few moments. If a player is hit by a Grenade Ring, their knockback distance is determined on how close they were to it.
  • Explosion Ring - behaves like a normal ring, but will detonate when it hits a wall, hitting anyone within its blast radius; similar to most game implementations of rocket launchers. It also knocks players back farther than usual.

Additionally, Chaos Emeralds spawn in Match games on random spots, and collecting all seven grants the player free speed shoes and invincibility for 20 seconds.

CTF

Capture The Flag works just like traditional CTF games in first-person shooters, such as Unreal Tournament. The players are divided into two teams, and each team has a base that contains a flag. The players must try to steal the flag of the opposing team and bring it to their base to score a point (as long as their own flag is in their own base). Apart from that, the setup works like a regular Match game, but is played on its own set of eleven maps.

Tag/Hide & Seek

Tag and Hide & Seek are two closely related gametypes, both played on the Match maps. In Tag, one player is IT and much chases the other players. Once they hit another player, that player becomes IT as well. As long as a player is not IT, their score increases per second, and for every player that is tagged, the Tagger receives 100 points. Hide & Seek works similarly. At the beginning, the players who are not IT have time to hide. Once the hiding time is over, they can't move anymore, and the player who is IT must shoot them. Scoring works exactly as in Tag.

Unlockable Content

SRB2 features a lot of additional content that can be unlocked by various means. This includes several bonus stages, some of which emulate the style and gameplay of other video games. To get a full list of unlockables, one must beat the single player campaign. Bonus content can be unlocked primarily by two things: Collecting either emblems or the Chaos Emeralds.

The seven Chaos Emeralds can be acquired by collecting Special Stage Tokens that are hidden in all non-boss acts. When the player exits a level after collecting these, they are sent to a Special Stage where they originally had to collect a certain number of rings in a certain time to collect an emerald. As of Version 2.1, these special stages have been replaced with stages inspired by the Sega game NiGHTS Into Dreams, similar to the zone the token was found in.

There are 200 Emblems, which are winged logos, in all non-boss act levels that the player has to collect to unlock the bonus content. Other emblems can only be earned by completing certain tasks, and in both Record and NiGHTS Mode.

Customization

Because it is built on top of the Doom engine, SRB2 is easily customizable, and the multitude of user-created addons is a source for the game's popularity. It uses Doom's WAD file format, which allows for custom levels and characters to be made with the help of a WAD Editor. SOCs are a type of text script that allow to change many settings of the game. Source code modifications can also easily be made by altering the openly distributed source code and compiling it. As of version 2.1, Lua scripting is now supported in addons.

Screenshots

(These screenshots are currently outdated. When possible, please update these with screenshots from v2.2 of this game.) (EXTRA INFO: All 3 Mario Koopa Blast stages have been replaced with Pipe Towers as of Version 2.1 of the game, and the SRB1 Remake is no longer in the game. There are also now 3 new NiGHTS stages, with Spring Hill being renamed to Christmas Chime and getting a Christmas-themed redesign. Remove this message when all screenshots are updated.)

Single Player

Extras

Multiplayer

External links

References