3.5/5 - Good
This is a review of Sonic the Hedgehog Forever as a game on it's own, not of how it remakes and improves the original.
The original Sonic the Hedgehog is a game I'll always be very mixed on. It's good at its core, but has many strange and bizzare design really holding it back.
The one thing Sonic the Hedgehog will always have going for it is it's revolutionary physics system. This game to this day handels like almost nothing else in the industry - you gain momentum running down slopes, you can roll into a ball through loop de loops, jump at inclines, to gain increased height - it all combines to create a system that is incredibly dynamic and allows for beautiful skill mastery. Playing Classic Sonic well allows you to abuse the level design in your favor to pull off amazing stunts and go super fast. Sonic levels were full of alternate paths, different ways to play, items to collect, and we're immensly replayable. And who could forget the game's highly creative locations and great catchy music!
Unfortunately, what I was just describing was Classic Sonic at it's best. A skill based, dynamic, highly replayable platforming bliss. Unfortunately, Sonic the Hedgehog is only at it's best in 1 stage - the incredible Green Hill Zone, which actually took up a very large portion of the game's development. It's unfortunate then that they didn't quite use this opportunity to learn enough and apply what makes it truly work to many of the game's other zones. Now don't get me wrong, this game has more zones I enjoy - Spring Yard Zone is a bouncy and fun physics maze, Starlight Zone is a little too simple for me but has a nice vibe, and Scrap Brain Zone is a surprisingly well crafted challenge.
But zones like Marble Zone, Labyrinth Zone especially completely misunderstand what even makes Sonic fun at all. While Marble Zone has many sections that can be skipped by playing well, it can still really drag, and Labyrinth Zone will never be anything but an obnoxious slog with its slow water and poorly designed hazards and geometry.
Now, 3/5 Zones being pretty good at least doesn't sound that bad at all - but this game has a slew of other issues. The 3 act structure can make levels drag even in some of the best zones, and those also often blindside you due to their high speed or frustrate with poor design. The bosses are alright at best (besides Starlight Zone's boss, that one was pretty cool). The special stage and Chaos Emerald system is both annoying to access and to play. And at the end of the day, I just aren't entranced by this one all too much. It's a fine experience but has plenty of issues plaguing it all throughout it's short run.
Now credit where credit is due, the 2013 Retro Engine remake and even moreso the Forever mod for it help to improve it - and make easily the best release of the game. One that helps solidify this as a game I consider good, that I do want to replay. This comes with improvements like widescreen helping with blindsides, the elemental shields which are actually often placed in annoying sections in ways that make them more tolerable, the inclusion of new characters to enhance replayability, and especially the removal of the dreaded roll jump lock and the drop dash move which can allow even the weakest of stages some degree of flow.
This way - I enjoy Sonic the Hedgehog Forever. I do revisit it. But it's core design is still hard to completely fix. I might not have replayed it as often if it were longer - but It's a fun but flawed game.
This is a review of Sonic the Hedgehog Forever as a game on it's own, not of how it remakes and improves the original.
The original Sonic the Hedgehog is a game I'll always be very mixed on. It's good at its core, but has many strange and bizzare design really holding it back.
The one thing Sonic the Hedgehog will always have going for it is it's revolutionary physics system. This game to this day handels like almost nothing else in the industry - you gain momentum running down slopes, you can roll into a ball through loop de loops, jump at inclines, to gain increased height - it all combines to create a system that is incredibly dynamic and allows for beautiful skill mastery. Playing Classic Sonic well allows you to abuse the level design in your favor to pull off amazing stunts and go super fast. Sonic levels were full of alternate paths, different ways to play, items to collect, and we're immensly replayable. And who could forget the game's highly creative locations and great catchy music!
Unfortunately, what I was just describing was Classic Sonic at it's best. A skill based, dynamic, highly replayable platforming bliss. Unfortunately, Sonic the Hedgehog is only at it's best in 1 stage - the incredible Green Hill Zone, which actually took up a very large portion of the game's development. It's unfortunate then that they didn't quite use this opportunity to learn enough and apply what makes it truly work to many of the game's other zones. Now don't get me wrong, this game has more zones I enjoy - Spring Yard Zone is a bouncy and fun physics maze, Starlight Zone is a little too simple for me but has a nice vibe, and Scrap Brain Zone is a surprisingly well crafted challenge.
But zones like Marble Zone, Labyrinth Zone especially completely misunderstand what even makes Sonic fun at all. While Marble Zone has many sections that can be skipped by playing well, it can still really drag, and Labyrinth Zone will never be anything but an obnoxious slog with its slow water and poorly designed hazards and geometry.
Now, 3/5 Zones being pretty good at least doesn't sound that bad at all - but this game has a slew of other issues. The 3 act structure can make levels drag even in some of the best zones, and those also often blindside you due to their high speed or frustrate with poor design. The bosses are alright at best (besides Starlight Zone's boss, that one was pretty cool). The special stage and Chaos Emerald system is both annoying to access and to play. And at the end of the day, I just aren't entranced by this one all too much. It's a fine experience but has plenty of issues plaguing it all throughout it's short run.
Now credit where credit is due, the 2013 Retro Engine remake and even moreso the Forever mod for it help to improve it - and make easily the best release of the game. One that helps solidify this as a game I consider good, that I do want to replay. This comes with improvements like widescreen helping with blindsides, the elemental shields which are actually often placed in annoying sections in ways that make them more tolerable, the inclusion of new characters to enhance replayability, and especially the removal of the dreaded roll jump lock and the drop dash move which can allow even the weakest of stages some degree of flow.
This way - I enjoy Sonic the Hedgehog Forever. I do revisit it. But it's core design is still hard to completely fix. I might not have replayed it as often if it were longer - but It's a fun but flawed game.