Hacking Highlights.

[TheRedStranger]

 

[Some minor language.]

The Good, the bad, and the just plain awkward - what are your noteworthy ROM hack thoughts and experiences?

[WarTraveller]

Oh hey, it's AntDude. I like AntDude. Guy's pretty chill. Also the only Youtuber I know who doesn't attack Sonic on sheer principle.

I do wish Sonic 2 XL wasn't a thing. It's not a good concept, and it only backs up the whole, "The fans are freaks" mentality.

[TheRedStranger]

On 1/20/2018 at 12:31 PM, WarTraveller said:

Oh hey, it's AntDude. I like AntDude. Guy's pretty chill. Also the only Youtuber I know who doesn't attack Sonic on sheer principle.

I do wish Sonic 2 XL wasn't a thing. It's not a good concept, and it only backs up the whole, "The fans are freaks" mentality.

I don’t worry about such things. Someone gets a laugh out of it, it does have a unique gameplay element of avoiding the rings instead. and nothing will change the weirdos of this world. I have seen freakiness in every fandom (for example I cannot look up D20 Resident Evil without getting videos of the “Lustacoplyse” Burlesque in the recommended auto-playlists on YouTube). With that said it would get old (and oddly suspect) quick if you went into obsessive lengths like trying to make an 2006 XL.

Any favorites from the list?

[Mike Arcade]

I have a bunch of stories regarding myself and Romhacks, for one I beta tested one years ago called The S Factor: Sonia & Silver made by Aquaslash. He asked for beta testers and from the footage I saw of it I wanted to really play it and try my hand it testing, so I did. It was a really interesting experience and while I can't remember specifics I did catch a few glitches here and there. Silver's gameplay was by far the most interesting as using that hardware as his Psychokinesis was done very well, Sonia's gameplay was unexpected but accurate with her twirl attack. I'd say check it out as it's aged well, plus there is one secret character that is by default unlocked but he plays exactly as Sonic would in Sonic Megamix, exactly what you would expect for that so-called "King" XP

Speaking of Sonic Megamix, that one is the hack I have the most memories of. It became the standard for Sonic ROM Hacks and saying that is quite accurate. It gave Sonic Adventure-Like gameplay with a Jump Dash, Homing Attack, Light Speed Dash, and even the Light Speed Attack! Adding in Shadow the Hedgehog and Mighty the Armadillo with their own gameplay styles blew my mind back in 2007. While it was updated with a Sega CD version called 4.0 it never really progressed much after that due to internal conflicts from the Team from what I've heard. It's pretty much done as is however with a possible Final Version in the future, either way check out 3.0 or 4.0 is it's a real treat for any Sonic Fan. One of the hackers mind you is Simon/Stealth, who developed with Christian Whitehead/The Taxman the Sonic Android Ports and Sonic Mania.

I also can't forget E-122 Psi's Character ROM Hacks who brought Amy, Sally, Bunnie, and others into Sonic 1, 2, and sometimes S3&K. Seeing Sally and Bunnie be playable in Sonic 1 blew my mind, and I really appreciate the dedication in bringing them in, their sprite work is accurate to Sonic SatAM rather than Archie Sonic which shows you just how much the creator really knows those characters.

Lastly for right now, I'd recommend Lone Devil/Darkon360 ROM Hacks, most of which involve Metal Sonic. The level layouts are top notch and for years have won Sonic Hacking Contest awards whenever he makes them. Metal Sonic Hyperdrive was always a favorite of mine and with what I've seen and played of Metal Sonic Rebooted it's great, there are even custom half-pipe Special Stages which is extremely rare.

I've got other tales regarding ROM Hacks but if anyone else wants a go at it be my guess. I enjoy Rom Hacks and however that goes I'll continue to enjoy them.

[TheRedStranger]

I personally would like to see someone get a hold of Sonic Chronicles and hack into it to make other and more complete Sonic RPG’s. Has there really been any noble attempts at that?

[Mike Arcade]

Not that I know of no, if there ever is a hack of it made I'd say one of the first things someone would do is replace that awful soundtrack.

Most hacks are regarding the Genesis games, the Adventure titles, and Generations.

[WarTraveller]

And Forces. Have to make it tolerable somehow. 

I can't see people hacking Chronicles; partly because it was slapped together and any attempt to modify it would probably set the DS on fire, and partly because no-one really cares about Chronicles beyond a select few. Honestly it'd be less work to Remake the game from scratch in RPG Maker or something. 

[Mike Arcade]

Been awhile since we've had a few highlights, honestly I have way too many to count. But still, I'd like to share a few noticeable Rom hacks today.

http://www.s3complete.org/

Sonic 3 Complete is an extensive Rom hack that gives you Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Blue Spheres, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles all in one game. It's the same game, however there
are a ton of bug fixes and quality of life improvements. You have new Super Sonic sprites for situational moments like those Carnival Barrels, the choice to use Sonic's moves from Sonic CD, change the Zone Order to that of Sonic 3's Level Select screen, change certain music tracks to the PC version, and much more!

On it's website you can download a Rom of the hack with more changes they couldn't fit on the game alone, such as choosing between Sonic Sprites from S1 and S2, changing Mushroom Valley's name back to Mushroom Hill, and even how Bonus Stages work. It's amazing what a group of fans can do and if you want to shake up your next Sonic 3 & Knuckles playthrough I'd highly recommend it.

 https://info.sonicretro.org/Big's_Fishing_Derby

Big's Fishing Derby shows you that hacks of Sonic Games can end up becoming anything. Despite the hilarity of this existing, it's actually a pretty fun game where you try to catch
Froggy before Eggman does. Apparently, Froggy keeps eating every kind of gemstone you can think of. XP

It's kind of like a Puzzle Game, and there are items you can get from catching badniks to either help you or hinder your opponent, it's also a multiplayer game with Player 2 as Eggman. My favorite port of this game is all the different backgrounds and music from previous games (Both from the Genesis and Advance Series). If you got a few minutes with a friend and have a good laugh, I'd say check it out. It's a lot better than you think this concept is.

https://info.sonicretro.org/Knuckles'_Emerald_Hunt

Knuckles' Emerald Hunt is what happens when you take the Hunter Stages of Sonic Adventure 1 & 2, then put it in Sonic 2. It's really cool, as you go through the levels to find Emeralds as fast as you can, this hack even has a ranking system like SA2! You can also play as Tikal, though she does play exactly like Knuckles it's still a nice edition. Much like Big's Fishing Derby, you also have an abundance of music from various Sonic Games, even some Genesis versions of tracks from the Adventure Games and Heroes. It's a great hack, and of course with this one there's Multiplayer as well. Can't recommend this one enough, as long as you like the Treasure Hunter stages anyway.

Do you any of you have some favorite Rom hacks to talk about? Let us know!