SKaT3R
Sonic Made Me Want To Go Boom With This Entry...
Honestly upon booting this game up and playing for the what first 30 minutes to an hour I thought the game was overhated but thats before i spent the extra 6 hours and 30 minutes to finish it then realized what makes this game bad for a quick TL:DR.
Repetitive combat and puzzles,Terrible Dialogue,Mediocre platforming and overall just a miserable experience that overstays its welcome with a nothing narrative/story.
Controls:
Honestly the best aspect of this entry as they dont suck sonic and co. feel pretty good to move but are rather slow and the combat is extremely simple with no depth but outside of combat the platforming feels okay to control but doesn't provide much in the way of challenge.
Gameplay:
The game boils down to Mach Speed Section > Tile Puzzles > Pull Lever With Laser,Combat Section > Character Specific Puzzle > Repeat in any order and towards the end of its runtime becomes mind grating because the puzzles are super easy and the combat is super simple and surface level and the rest isn't much better its fun for the first hour or so but becomes more and more of a chore as you repeat them the 100th time not made better by the games dialogue.
"Level" Design:
It's bad the game either plays itself or is super simple with no real thought needed and the combat is just spongey enemies with only 3 basic combos to choose from per character when combined with the mediocre platforming and mind numbing puzzles it just really sucks and the boss fights last ages and are either extremely annoying or pathetically easy the difficulty curve while nearly non existent is super inconsistent when it does exist and it makes for a super ungratifying game progression.
Replayablity:
Outside of fetch quests? nothing like maybe extreme mode if the game was just that fun for you otherwise... don't even bother its not worth your time.
Soundtrack:
Super generic with nothing too standout if someone held me at gun point and asked me to hum a song from this game or name a track from the OST... am getting shot there is literally nothing memerable about it,it's not terrible but its nothing stand out either basically sums up the experience in this game in general just soulless and boring.
Voice Acting:
If you set aside the dialogue and script for the game? it's okay amy especially had a pretty good performance and its what you'd expect from a meta era sonic entry.But the dialogue... OH MY GOD WHY DOES IT SUCK SO BAD characters have to exclaim even the most simple things to the player that is somewhat corny and charming at first but becomes hell after the 5th time it happens that will be about a minute into the game because characters DON'T SHUT UP and for an example you will be in this very poisoness jungle area and sonic and knuckles will not stop blabbering on about how dangerous the vines are for the full hourish that your in the area and it gets so so so annoying.Easily the reason why I have this game at this rating its just that bad.
Story:
Bad its just bad like I seriously dont remember anything outside of ancients,crystals,lyrik thats it,Basically nothing major ever happens in the narrative and the game ends on a cliffhanger that never gets resolved as its the only boom game that is kinda unfortunate as with better game design there is actually an okay concept here with more varied combat and good puzzles with decent dialogue this could've been great.Honestly there isn't much to say as there is barely a story here to begin with watch the games trailers and you will get the full story from just that.
Characters:
Well honestly there not terrible here I mean heck tails and amy are useful again but sadly the dialogue makes any good traits they have here just meaningless and there designs are actually good in my opinion outside of knuckles not even eggman was really all that charming here its just so empty and soulless.
Overall: Well I kinda did a TL:DR at the beginning but honestly its just a game not worth playing that will have you questioning your sanity and wanting to constantly sidetrack after the first of the 6-9 (hehe) you will be playing this game and honestly should just be forgotten about as it has nothing to offer outside of its world and character designs.The TV show is apparently solid though.
Trivia:
This game was originally going to look and play better but BigRedButton wasn't told it was going to be a Wii U Title until mid-development.
Honestly upon booting this game up and playing for the what first 30 minutes to an hour I thought the game was overhated but thats before i spent the extra 6 hours and 30 minutes to finish it then realized what makes this game bad for a quick TL:DR.
Repetitive combat and puzzles,Terrible Dialogue,Mediocre platforming and overall just a miserable experience that overstays its welcome with a nothing narrative/story.
Controls:
Honestly the best aspect of this entry as they dont suck sonic and co. feel pretty good to move but are rather slow and the combat is extremely simple with no depth but outside of combat the platforming feels okay to control but doesn't provide much in the way of challenge.
Gameplay:
The game boils down to Mach Speed Section > Tile Puzzles > Pull Lever With Laser,Combat Section > Character Specific Puzzle > Repeat in any order and towards the end of its runtime becomes mind grating because the puzzles are super easy and the combat is super simple and surface level and the rest isn't much better its fun for the first hour or so but becomes more and more of a chore as you repeat them the 100th time not made better by the games dialogue.
"Level" Design:
It's bad the game either plays itself or is super simple with no real thought needed and the combat is just spongey enemies with only 3 basic combos to choose from per character when combined with the mediocre platforming and mind numbing puzzles it just really sucks and the boss fights last ages and are either extremely annoying or pathetically easy the difficulty curve while nearly non existent is super inconsistent when it does exist and it makes for a super ungratifying game progression.
Replayablity:
Outside of fetch quests? nothing like maybe extreme mode if the game was just that fun for you otherwise... don't even bother its not worth your time.
Soundtrack:
Super generic with nothing too standout if someone held me at gun point and asked me to hum a song from this game or name a track from the OST... am getting shot there is literally nothing memerable about it,it's not terrible but its nothing stand out either basically sums up the experience in this game in general just soulless and boring.
Voice Acting:
If you set aside the dialogue and script for the game? it's okay amy especially had a pretty good performance and its what you'd expect from a meta era sonic entry.But the dialogue... OH MY GOD WHY DOES IT SUCK SO BAD characters have to exclaim even the most simple things to the player that is somewhat corny and charming at first but becomes hell after the 5th time it happens that will be about a minute into the game because characters DON'T SHUT UP and for an example you will be in this very poisoness jungle area and sonic and knuckles will not stop blabbering on about how dangerous the vines are for the full hourish that your in the area and it gets so so so annoying.Easily the reason why I have this game at this rating its just that bad.
Story:
Bad its just bad like I seriously dont remember anything outside of ancients,crystals,lyrik thats it,Basically nothing major ever happens in the narrative and the game ends on a cliffhanger that never gets resolved as its the only boom game that is kinda unfortunate as with better game design there is actually an okay concept here with more varied combat and good puzzles with decent dialogue this could've been great.Honestly there isn't much to say as there is barely a story here to begin with watch the games trailers and you will get the full story from just that.
Characters:
Well honestly there not terrible here I mean heck tails and amy are useful again but sadly the dialogue makes any good traits they have here just meaningless and there designs are actually good in my opinion outside of knuckles not even eggman was really all that charming here its just so empty and soulless.
Overall: Well I kinda did a TL:DR at the beginning but honestly its just a game not worth playing that will have you questioning your sanity and wanting to constantly sidetrack after the first of the 6-9 (hehe) you will be playing this game and honestly should just be forgotten about as it has nothing to offer outside of its world and character designs.The TV show is apparently solid though.
Trivia:
This game was originally going to look and play better but BigRedButton wasn't told it was going to be a Wii U Title until mid-development.
Chao Garden......
2013
Sonic Lost World Should Just Stay Lost From Our World....
Sonic Lost World is best described by go play the first 4 levels then boot off the game and pretend like the other 24 levels don't exist because what could've been a groundbreaking entry is muddled by 2D sections and bad level design because the foundations set aren't all that bad.
Controls (3D):
Easily the best aspect of this game it actually controls wonderfully in 3D I have next to no issues with how sonic feels to move around in 3D here the run button is whatever,jump feels fine and double jump allows you to instantly snap to another direction,etc it all feels pretty solid and the parkour mechanic especially shines in 3D.Sadly the controls in 3D is basically where everything good about this game comes to a halt because... well you'll see.
Controls (2D):
I don't know why and can't exactly put my finger on it but the way sonic controls in 2D here might just be the worst in the series the jump needs momentum to clear distance but the issue with that is sonic has really bad acceleration in this game and is slow in general in 2D paired with alot of this game making you jump off tiny floating platforms over bottomless pits especially towards the latter half of the game can make 2D sections feel like constant leaps of faith and results in a hair pulling,mind grating,2D experience.This game would've been miles better if they had not shoehorned these terrible sections in.
Graphics:
While not the best on the system it is pretty passable the visuals are very similar to generations but sadly the level environments feel about as generic and corporate as you could get like this game should've been titled "New Sonic The Hedgehog" for how uninspired the level themes are and it's a letdown to the games otherwise solid presentation.
Level Design:
IT SUCKS... straight up the 2D sections are awful and most 3D sections use this weird cylinder level design I know they wanted to be like mario galaxy but the best 3D sections of the game are when they decide to abandon this gimmic entirely and only then does it feel good and all the gimmics SUCK i mean seriously the snow in particular the snowball level is responsible for most of my deaths during this playthrough and I can't spite it enough.
Replayability:
To be honest pretty akin to generations and colors you can time attack to get better ranks maybe even beat your friends if the leaderboards are working and red rings collecting to unlock super sonic so all in all its pretty solid but I don't know why you'd revisit this title over pretty much any other entry....
Soundtrack:
I have to use the word again but... GENERIC it is probably one of the weakest sonic soundtracks aside a few (the opening acts unironically might be the strongest in this department) I really don't have much to say here but ehhh.
Voice Acting:
It's Roger and co's worst outing it feels the most exaggerated and forced in terms of line delivery out of all of the entries yet and the terrible script doesn't do much to compliment it.
Story:
TERRIBLE it feels so soulless and there is literally no impact to it what so ever nothing really changes from the first act to the end credits it basically loops back around and becomes a pointless journey with no soul in it easily the worst of the series in my opinion.
Characters:
Again TERRIBLE sonic doesn't even feel like the same character we have been watching over for the previous 25ish entries he is an asshat and eggman is so surface level its unreal and why is tails so jealous of them teaming up with eggman every character arc in this game also just gets resolved in the same cutscene and any impactful scene gets retconned all in all its just a load of nothing.And not to mention the antagonists I couldn't even tell you what half of there characters were even if I tried they are literally all 1 dimensional and have 1 trope they embody and dont even stray the slightest from even a stick figure has more personality than the "deadly six" they are terrible characters.
Overall:
If I was you and reading this review i'd say don't even bother with this game its not so bad its funny good and its not good either it is the most nothing game ever and it feels as much as of a soulless cash grab sonic game you could get the only save and grace is the sonic brand itself I really couldn't tell you to stay away from this title at all costs any more.
Trivia:
The Wii U Version of the game has some exclusive free to download DLC levels that premote the Zelda and Yoshi Wooly World series respectfully and as of right now the Nintendo EShop for Wii U is closed from my memory and if so how would you play these levels in 2023 you may ask? go to gamebanana and download a DLC restoration mod there short but sweet levels that are actually better designed than the main game.
Sonic Lost World is best described by go play the first 4 levels then boot off the game and pretend like the other 24 levels don't exist because what could've been a groundbreaking entry is muddled by 2D sections and bad level design because the foundations set aren't all that bad.
Controls (3D):
Easily the best aspect of this game it actually controls wonderfully in 3D I have next to no issues with how sonic feels to move around in 3D here the run button is whatever,jump feels fine and double jump allows you to instantly snap to another direction,etc it all feels pretty solid and the parkour mechanic especially shines in 3D.Sadly the controls in 3D is basically where everything good about this game comes to a halt because... well you'll see.
Controls (2D):
I don't know why and can't exactly put my finger on it but the way sonic controls in 2D here might just be the worst in the series the jump needs momentum to clear distance but the issue with that is sonic has really bad acceleration in this game and is slow in general in 2D paired with alot of this game making you jump off tiny floating platforms over bottomless pits especially towards the latter half of the game can make 2D sections feel like constant leaps of faith and results in a hair pulling,mind grating,2D experience.This game would've been miles better if they had not shoehorned these terrible sections in.
Graphics:
While not the best on the system it is pretty passable the visuals are very similar to generations but sadly the level environments feel about as generic and corporate as you could get like this game should've been titled "New Sonic The Hedgehog" for how uninspired the level themes are and it's a letdown to the games otherwise solid presentation.
Level Design:
IT SUCKS... straight up the 2D sections are awful and most 3D sections use this weird cylinder level design I know they wanted to be like mario galaxy but the best 3D sections of the game are when they decide to abandon this gimmic entirely and only then does it feel good and all the gimmics SUCK i mean seriously the snow in particular the snowball level is responsible for most of my deaths during this playthrough and I can't spite it enough.
Replayability:
To be honest pretty akin to generations and colors you can time attack to get better ranks maybe even beat your friends if the leaderboards are working and red rings collecting to unlock super sonic so all in all its pretty solid but I don't know why you'd revisit this title over pretty much any other entry....
Soundtrack:
I have to use the word again but... GENERIC it is probably one of the weakest sonic soundtracks aside a few (the opening acts unironically might be the strongest in this department) I really don't have much to say here but ehhh.
Voice Acting:
It's Roger and co's worst outing it feels the most exaggerated and forced in terms of line delivery out of all of the entries yet and the terrible script doesn't do much to compliment it.
Story:
TERRIBLE it feels so soulless and there is literally no impact to it what so ever nothing really changes from the first act to the end credits it basically loops back around and becomes a pointless journey with no soul in it easily the worst of the series in my opinion.
Characters:
Again TERRIBLE sonic doesn't even feel like the same character we have been watching over for the previous 25ish entries he is an asshat and eggman is so surface level its unreal and why is tails so jealous of them teaming up with eggman every character arc in this game also just gets resolved in the same cutscene and any impactful scene gets retconned all in all its just a load of nothing.And not to mention the antagonists I couldn't even tell you what half of there characters were even if I tried they are literally all 1 dimensional and have 1 trope they embody and dont even stray the slightest from even a stick figure has more personality than the "deadly six" they are terrible characters.
Overall:
If I was you and reading this review i'd say don't even bother with this game its not so bad its funny good and its not good either it is the most nothing game ever and it feels as much as of a soulless cash grab sonic game you could get the only save and grace is the sonic brand itself I really couldn't tell you to stay away from this title at all costs any more.
Trivia:
The Wii U Version of the game has some exclusive free to download DLC levels that premote the Zelda and Yoshi Wooly World series respectfully and as of right now the Nintendo EShop for Wii U is closed from my memory and if so how would you play these levels in 2023 you may ask? go to gamebanana and download a DLC restoration mod there short but sweet levels that are actually better designed than the main game.
2017
A Manic Blast To The Past..
Sonic Mania encapsulates the very idea of the classic trilogy and does pretty much everything perfectly that results in a satisfying short or lengthy experience depending on how much of the games content you want to dive into as there is alot of optional side content with the other characters routes and ending cutscene being pretty different and encore mode,multiplayer,special stages,time attacking the list goes on there is truely alot of love and care that went into this overall solid package.
Visuals: They took the classic's artstyle and just dialed it up by a thousand and beyond every sprite in this game is super details and has animations that brim with character and the stages that are reused look great and better than before and the new stages makes you question was reusing older stages the games only drawback as the new levels are so amazing in so many ways and there is so many cool references and nods that fan of the series can pick up from the stage envoirments and backgrounds.
Gameplay:
Again very akin to the classic trilogy the level design and character control feels closest to 3&K with elements of 2 and CD most of the time and speaking of characters each character feels unique and has pros and cons making none of the 5 downright terrible even sonic gets the dropdash to set himself apart from the other 4 if you enjoyed any of the original trilogy you will most definitely find something in this game to enjoy.
Replayability:
There is so much to chew on in this game from the great level design allowing the levels to feel fresh with each run of the levels each character have exclusive routes that even furthers the replayablity exploring parts of the level unknown to other characters while playing ___ for example and ontop of encore mode,multiplayer and the other plethora of things to do it'd be hard to get bored of this game if your a fan of the classics.
Soundtrack:
CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM
It just bops what can I say all the remixes of old tracks often sound better than the originals and the new tracks go astronomically hard and there is honestly too much to say in terms of how good this is honestly if you don't plan on playing the game atleast listen to a few tracks and it might convince you to give it a shot even if your a new fan.
Story:
While simple follows a similar structure to 3&K with a short sprite based cutscene playing after each level bringing the continuity together and being simple but sweet nothing too mindblowing but not terrible either its also got a nice forces tie in.
Overall:
A fantastic game that any sonic fan should play as it perserves older levels in a inoffensive way by changing it up while still preserving history and the title deserves all the praise it gets and if you haven't played it already I can't advise you enough go check out this game if you have 3-5 hours of spare time as you will not regret it.
Trivia:
This game is made by Christian Whitehead who also made the mobile ports of 1-2 and the modern ports of CD and origins but before that he made a game engine called "Retro Sonic" that was used as a basis for his future titles.
Sonic Mania encapsulates the very idea of the classic trilogy and does pretty much everything perfectly that results in a satisfying short or lengthy experience depending on how much of the games content you want to dive into as there is alot of optional side content with the other characters routes and ending cutscene being pretty different and encore mode,multiplayer,special stages,time attacking the list goes on there is truely alot of love and care that went into this overall solid package.
Visuals: They took the classic's artstyle and just dialed it up by a thousand and beyond every sprite in this game is super details and has animations that brim with character and the stages that are reused look great and better than before and the new stages makes you question was reusing older stages the games only drawback as the new levels are so amazing in so many ways and there is so many cool references and nods that fan of the series can pick up from the stage envoirments and backgrounds.
Gameplay:
Again very akin to the classic trilogy the level design and character control feels closest to 3&K with elements of 2 and CD most of the time and speaking of characters each character feels unique and has pros and cons making none of the 5 downright terrible even sonic gets the dropdash to set himself apart from the other 4 if you enjoyed any of the original trilogy you will most definitely find something in this game to enjoy.
Replayability:
There is so much to chew on in this game from the great level design allowing the levels to feel fresh with each run of the levels each character have exclusive routes that even furthers the replayablity exploring parts of the level unknown to other characters while playing ___ for example and ontop of encore mode,multiplayer and the other plethora of things to do it'd be hard to get bored of this game if your a fan of the classics.
Soundtrack:
CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM CatJAM
It just bops what can I say all the remixes of old tracks often sound better than the originals and the new tracks go astronomically hard and there is honestly too much to say in terms of how good this is honestly if you don't plan on playing the game atleast listen to a few tracks and it might convince you to give it a shot even if your a new fan.
Story:
While simple follows a similar structure to 3&K with a short sprite based cutscene playing after each level bringing the continuity together and being simple but sweet nothing too mindblowing but not terrible either its also got a nice forces tie in.
Overall:
A fantastic game that any sonic fan should play as it perserves older levels in a inoffensive way by changing it up while still preserving history and the title deserves all the praise it gets and if you haven't played it already I can't advise you enough go check out this game if you have 3-5 hours of spare time as you will not regret it.
Trivia:
This game is made by Christian Whitehead who also made the mobile ports of 1-2 and the modern ports of CD and origins but before that he made a game engine called "Retro Sonic" that was used as a basis for his future titles.