New Sonic Fan Game based on SatAM/Archie comics Thread

Hi everyone.

I am new to this forum and would like to start by saying that I am not a game developer nor do I have the knowledge or equipment or software necessary to create video games. I heard that this is a website where I can share my ideas to other game developers out there, so I thought I'd pitch my idea here to see if we can get something going here.

My idea is for a fan made, free, rom game to create for the sega genesis emulators out there. Due to copyright being an issue, this would not be a game to sell for profit purposes, but instead a labor of love for the franchise to give to the fans out there of this series.

The game I am looking for help to create is a Sonic the Hedgehog game that is based off the lore from the old Sonic SatAM TV show as well as the events from the Sonic and Knuckles comics written by the Archie comics company as well as including the fan made continuation comics of the stories.

My vision for the game is to maintain the 2D sprites from the original games as well as some of the level layouts, but instead of splitting each stage into multiple Acts, make the stages into one massive map, Metroid/Castlevania style with various "road blocks" scattered throughout that can only be bypassed with specific character abilities or items obtained from bosses.

There would be a world map that unlocks locations as you progress and take you into different stages and locations. The maps will be the entirety of planet Mobius as well as the entirety of the Floating Island. There would be some locations, such as Knothole village, that are not actual stages, but are instead towns where players can talk to NPCs, get quests and shop with rings or gems they've obtained from stages or enemies. Players would also be able to level up their characters and get stronger through stats and equipment they find.

The game should have 2 different perspectives to choose from at the start of the game. One being Sonic the Hedgehog, the other being Knuckles the Echidna. Sonic would start at Knothole village whereas Knuckles would start somewhere on the floating island. Perhaps the chaos chamber would be the best place for him to start.

As the game progresses, these characters will recruit the allies of their team one by one. Sonic recruiting the Freedom Fighters whereas Knuckles recruits members of the Chaotix. Each character they recruit will have a new ability for players to use them to unlock new areas in the stages. For example, Tails could access locations that require flight. Rotor Walrus could repair mechanical objects and modify equipment for the others. Sally could use Nicole to hack into computer terminals to open locks, etc.

The game would essentially be a Sonic themed Metroidvania game that has a world map to explore new stages and locations. There would be a lot of back tracking, lots of secrets and secret bosses, all while the game tries to tell a similar story that is on par with some of the Sonic SatAM story mixed with the entirety of the Archie Sonic comics. This would include events such as the death of Robotnik, the rise of Eggman, the multiverse and Scourge, the Dark Legion and Dingo Army, etc etc. This game would also include events from special issues such as Mecha Madness and Battle Royale. There should be a lot of love and nods to the fans of the series in here, which unfortunately, I have a poor memory of and would need to collab with someone who is an expert on the lore of the SatAM show as well as the Sonic Archie comics to help out with the story of the game.

I want this game to be a true labor of love and hoping to find a talented game designer who is equally as passionate as I am to get this game started. I hardly have any free time and don't have enough money to pay a salary for someone to create this for me. Just looking for someone to help make this happen for fun.