Back in early 2017, I was at a bit of a low point in my personal life, and a few games in combination with my discovery of YouTube helped get me out of it. This, Kirby's Return to Dreamland, and Battle for Bikini Bottom were the main games in question, so it'll always hold a special place in my heart for that alone.

But even then, this is a really good Sonic game. It takes the boost gameplay and manages to switch it up without feeling gimmicky thanks to the introduction of the wisps. Not to mention, it looks and sounds amazing to this day. Sure, some levels aren't the greatest, the bosses are lame and the writing sucks, but in spite of all that it manages to be good, great, awesome, outstanding, amazing even.

I played the Wii version.

This was the first 3D Sonic game (first Sonic game being Sonic Genesis lol) I played as a child so I do have nostalgia for it but honestly find it fine ever since this decade, damn just when I thought I was gonna really like this game again. The level design is just fine but the six acts per zone is kind of pushing it but considering the length of the game its just fine. It honestly feels like more of a simple platformer compared to the other games in the franchise which is executed well but it honestly doesn't impress me like the best moments of the Unleashed and Generations. I like the Wisps as well but the story kind of sucks but Generations story also sucked and that game was fire so I don't have much to say on that. This is what the franchise needed at the time but its honestly not for me and its easily the weakest game in the Sonic games that uses the boost formula, wait a minute what's a Sonic Forces?

The DS version looks really cool though so I'll probably check that out sometime afterwards.

I still really enjoy this game despite its reputation these days and its later impact on the series. After several previous gimmicky attempts SEGA finally brought a real 3D Sonic to the Wii that was as close to PS3/360 counterparts as it could go and that was amazing for me in 2011, I played the hell out of it as a child. It's probably the best looking game on the console, I love the space theme park setting so much. It's really depressing to think this is still the most recent Sonic with entirely original zones and concepts. If the main levels hadn't been cut into sections in development to pad the length, I think it would be more highly regarded today

Colours kinda feels like 1 step forward, 1 step back from Unleashed.

Being a Wii game instead of a PS3/360 one, the presentation quality isn't as good. Not that I expect it to be, but it's a bit of whiplash. Still, the stages look pretty and vibrant, particularly Planet Wisp. The music is pretty good too. Not my favourite Sonic soundtrack, but in general Sega games tend to have good OSTs. The cutscenes definitely took a step back though, with the budget obviously being lower, leaving the game to be less cinematic. I wish Ultimate rectified some of these aspects more, but it's fine for what it is. Still a charming game overall.

In story and dialogue, this game is pretty light on both fronts. However, some of the dialogue could get a bit tiresome. Kinda felt like the characters were stripped to their basic traits, and focused more on making (shitty) puns than anything else. I know this series is for kids, but the humour was noticeably juvenile. However, I do think it's ok to have a lighter story every once in a while, and I was ultimately left with a satisfying, bite-sized adventure of saving the Wisps. It ended up being fun and light-hearted, even if I groaned a few times. Nothing grand, but not bad either.

The levels are pretty different. They place a greater emphasis on 2D platforming, which is perfectly fine and shakes things up, although it could get a bit much at times. The core Boost gameplay is fun as ever though, keeping most of what I like from Unleashed and trimming the fat such as excessive QTEs. All in all, it was fun to play, with the Wisps adding an enjoyable new layer to both gameplay and exploration/movement. One area I think this game is weak in though, is the boss fights. They're not very memorable or challenging.

So it's not my favourite Sonic game by any means, but still a perfectly serviceable experience in its own right. Really, my biggest criticisms are that it feels too "sterile" to stick with me + For every issue it fixes, it replaces with another one. 7/10.