Sonic R is, if nothing else, a very ambitious game. Released at a time when every development studio with a semi-marketable mascot character was releasing straight up Mario Kart 64 clones, SEGA released something entirely different. Sonic R is an on-foot racing game, a concept which makes perfect sense for the Sonic franchise and a premise that immediately helped Sonic R standout in an environment of derivative kart racing games.
Compared to most contemporary racing games, Sonic R does a lot of other things that are worth complimenting. The courses are fully realised 3D environments with lots of different routes and nooks and crannies to explore; they feel like some of the most sophisticated tracks of the era and are a lot of fun to race through. The soundtrack also eschews the usual video game sound to present your ears with a full Europop soundtrack which, let's face it, is full of absolute bangers. There's also lots of neat mini details too that add to the charm of the game. The little pitter-patter sound the characters make when running is cute, some of the multiplayer modes (like balloon hunt and tag) are unique, enjoyable additions and help the player to appreciate the massive scale of the tracks, the fairly tricky way you unlock characters offers a satisfying challenge and (on the PC version of the game) the weather effects are neat, especially when a the large bodies of water freeze over in the snowy variant of each track. It's for all of these reasons that I find myself enjoying the occasional revisit of Sonic but...it's far from perfect.
There are two huge, glaring issues though that one has to address when one plays Sonic R. First, despite the plethora of modes, Sonic R only includes five tracks. It's just not enough content and limits replayability. To put it into perspective, Mario Kart 64 has 20 tracks (if we include the unique battle arenas), quadruple the amount Sonic R has. Undoubtedly though the biggest issue with the game is the movement and controls. Paradoxically, Sonic and co feel a little bit floaty but they also control extremely stiffly. Turning is a huge issue. There's no way to effectively drift around corners which is a devastating flaw. When faced with a sharp turn you'll find yourself constantly bashing into walls and slowly maneuvering around corners like a hulking tank. The root of the issue here is that Sonic R was built using an engine designed a Formula 1 game but Formula 1 engines aren't really made to handle the kind of dramatic right-angle turns that Sonic R often demands of the player.
I think Sonic R is a fun enough experience to warrant a 3 star rating but the overall package doesn't even begin to approach how much fun can be had from playing Mario Kart 64 or CTR, for example, mainly because the controls and movement really, really get in the way of the game.
Compared to most contemporary racing games, Sonic R does a lot of other things that are worth complimenting. The courses are fully realised 3D environments with lots of different routes and nooks and crannies to explore; they feel like some of the most sophisticated tracks of the era and are a lot of fun to race through. The soundtrack also eschews the usual video game sound to present your ears with a full Europop soundtrack which, let's face it, is full of absolute bangers. There's also lots of neat mini details too that add to the charm of the game. The little pitter-patter sound the characters make when running is cute, some of the multiplayer modes (like balloon hunt and tag) are unique, enjoyable additions and help the player to appreciate the massive scale of the tracks, the fairly tricky way you unlock characters offers a satisfying challenge and (on the PC version of the game) the weather effects are neat, especially when a the large bodies of water freeze over in the snowy variant of each track. It's for all of these reasons that I find myself enjoying the occasional revisit of Sonic but...it's far from perfect.
There are two huge, glaring issues though that one has to address when one plays Sonic R. First, despite the plethora of modes, Sonic R only includes five tracks. It's just not enough content and limits replayability. To put it into perspective, Mario Kart 64 has 20 tracks (if we include the unique battle arenas), quadruple the amount Sonic R has. Undoubtedly though the biggest issue with the game is the movement and controls. Paradoxically, Sonic and co feel a little bit floaty but they also control extremely stiffly. Turning is a huge issue. There's no way to effectively drift around corners which is a devastating flaw. When faced with a sharp turn you'll find yourself constantly bashing into walls and slowly maneuvering around corners like a hulking tank. The root of the issue here is that Sonic R was built using an engine designed a Formula 1 game but Formula 1 engines aren't really made to handle the kind of dramatic right-angle turns that Sonic R often demands of the player.
I think Sonic R is a fun enough experience to warrant a 3 star rating but the overall package doesn't even begin to approach how much fun can be had from playing Mario Kart 64 or CTR, for example, mainly because the controls and movement really, really get in the way of the game.