Sonic 3D: Flickie's Island isn't really Sonic and it isn't really 3D. Let me explain what I mean.
Sonic 3D marked a significant departure away from the usual Sonic side-scrolling formula. Instead, Sonic 3D is an isometric game that tasks Sonic with scouring levels to find and rescue flickies. In truth, Sonic 3D is a spiritual successor to SEGA arcade classic Flicky, where the premise is also that of rescuing flickies. Taking a franchise in a new direction isn't always a bad thing but in this case so much about the premise just doesn't compliment Sonic the Hedgehog.
The isometric view doesn't play well with Sonic's speed; he feels unruly and floaty to control, as if he's running on ice the entire game. The top-down view also puts too much focus on the floor, rendering the game visually bland. Search Google for Sonic 3D screenshots and you'll see nothing but endless checkered floors. It's pretty drab. All of the flickies are trapped inside badniks but again the new perspective works against you because jumping into badniks is tricky and imprecise. The game just fundamentally doesn't really work.
I said that Sonic 3D isn't really 3D because, well, games with this faux 3D presentation are as old as Q*bert. To frame this game in a historical context, it felt like this game contributed to Sonic losing a lot of his edge and coolness in the mid 1990s. It felt a little like SEGA were trying to pull the wool over the eyes of fans and convince them that Sonic had crossed over into a new realm. Keep in mind that this game was a contemporary of Super Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot. Compared to those two, Sonic 3D felt totally antiquated and inadequate.
I do have a couple of positive things to say about the game. I like the music a lot, it's an underrated Sonic soundtrack. The Saturn version of the game does look slightly visually richer as well but sadly it's never been re-released or included in subsequent Sonic compilation collections. Ultimately though, if we ignore all of the Master System games, I think Sonic 3D was the Sonic franchise's first true, major misstep.
Sonic 3D marked a significant departure away from the usual Sonic side-scrolling formula. Instead, Sonic 3D is an isometric game that tasks Sonic with scouring levels to find and rescue flickies. In truth, Sonic 3D is a spiritual successor to SEGA arcade classic Flicky, where the premise is also that of rescuing flickies. Taking a franchise in a new direction isn't always a bad thing but in this case so much about the premise just doesn't compliment Sonic the Hedgehog.
The isometric view doesn't play well with Sonic's speed; he feels unruly and floaty to control, as if he's running on ice the entire game. The top-down view also puts too much focus on the floor, rendering the game visually bland. Search Google for Sonic 3D screenshots and you'll see nothing but endless checkered floors. It's pretty drab. All of the flickies are trapped inside badniks but again the new perspective works against you because jumping into badniks is tricky and imprecise. The game just fundamentally doesn't really work.
I said that Sonic 3D isn't really 3D because, well, games with this faux 3D presentation are as old as Q*bert. To frame this game in a historical context, it felt like this game contributed to Sonic losing a lot of his edge and coolness in the mid 1990s. It felt a little like SEGA were trying to pull the wool over the eyes of fans and convince them that Sonic had crossed over into a new realm. Keep in mind that this game was a contemporary of Super Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot. Compared to those two, Sonic 3D felt totally antiquated and inadequate.
I do have a couple of positive things to say about the game. I like the music a lot, it's an underrated Sonic soundtrack. The Saturn version of the game does look slightly visually richer as well but sadly it's never been re-released or included in subsequent Sonic compilation collections. Ultimately though, if we ignore all of the Master System games, I think Sonic 3D was the Sonic franchise's first true, major misstep.