Three Play Styles, Including New “Hero Mode”
As in other 3D Sonic games such as Generations and Colors, Sonic Forces will feature Modern and Classic modes, complemented by the all-new “Hero Mode”. As a result, Sonic Forces boasts some of the most varied gameplay ever seen in a 3D Sonic game.
Hero Mode is a character creation mode where players will be able to customize their very own Sonic design from the ground up. Not only will players be able to hone to its visual design, they will also be able to equip their character with a unique Wispon — elemental wisp- powered weapons with individual effects.
Wisps are still present in the third play style, but instead of facilitating extra speed, in Hero mode, their collection fills an orange gauge in the bottom left-hand corner which powers the equipped wispon weapon. Wispons have a dual functionality in that they can be used both for attack and also to facilitate traversal to different platforms.
Speaking to Sega Europe product manager Jim Dyer, we were told that Hero characters have been designed with the community in mind: “The Sonic community is vast and awesome. A lot of guys make their own fanfiction with characters they create, and this is the first time that you will be able to do that in a Sonic game.”
Dyer’s own design was a Fox-looking character wielding a flame wisp called Burst. Burst was used like a flamethrower in offense, but was also able to be charged by holding triangle on PS4 to push the character around the level. We didn’t see any other wispons in action but Dyer told us that we can expect other elemental types such as electrical wispons available in the full game.
In total, there are seven character types that players can use as a base for their design. Each of these comes with their own special ability:
- Bear — homing attack
- Bird — double jump ability
- Wolf — Attacks rings when near
- Rabbit — Longer invincible time after taking damage
- Hedgehog — Collects rings when getting damaged
- Cat — Keeps one ring after being hit
- Dog — Restarts with five rings after the player dies
Importantly, when asked whether character designs and wisps were just reskinned assets, Dyer assured us that customization was deep and varied. He went on to suggest that Hero Mode characters differing abilities would offer completely separate gameplay experiences. Sonic, we were told, cannot access certain areas in levels that Hero Mode characters will be able to traverse to using a wispon.
