I’d like to start this review by making it clear this compilation wasn’t, isn’t, and will never be worth the $40 price tag it was released with, I ended up waiting until an eShop sale made it $22 and I suggest you do the same. The way Sega tacked on DLC for something like this is nonsensical too. That being said, this collection was exactly what I was expecting it to be and on that note I can leave it somewhat satisfied.
To get it out of the way, I believe players should be given the choice for whether lives should be limited or not a la Crash Bandicoot 4 and while Origins does this, locking it behind the 4:3 aspect ratio rubs me the wrong way though I won’t lose sleep over it. On the other hand I have issue with the stand-in, Coins. I feel the game doesn’t justify their existence enough with how useless they are once the Museum has been 100%ed and the cost of retrying a Special Stage after failing is such a poultry amount it might as well be unlimited, they’re also ridiculously easy to rack up depending on the game and when playing Mission Mode. I’d rather have taken a total Death Count for these games as a self-imposed incentive for more careful play.
Speaking of Mission Mode, I had quite a bit of fun with it! It’s very reminiscent of Challenges from New Super Mario Bros. U where you’re boxed into portions of a stage to complete a small task as best you can, and be ranked for it at the end. These range from killing enemies while submerged in oil to dodging enemies that move at double speed, it reminds me of NES Remix a bit(?) with how your knowledge of game mechanics is tested. My only complaint is that I wanted more out of it, and I hope a future Sonic collection has a similar kind of successor side mode.
If there’s anything I’m at all disappointed by if anything, it’s likely the Museum but only because of how elaborate they were in previous compilations, Mega Collection especially. More IDW covers to browse through would be nice, but I get it, this collection’s only about Classic Sonic. Still, with how Origins has tidbits of new developer art for games to show off, I would’ve liked watching the commercials for the included games like Sonic Jam did at least, maybe even the Man of the Year short animation from that game? The controls for the Museum itself is a bit finicky too. Unlike Mega and Gems, when reading the instruction manuals you can’t turn pages while in full screen mode. It may be a nitpick but it trips me up having to press B to be able to advance with the right bumper, then press A to zoom and keep reading again. I’m also kind of miffed that there’s no unique gallery theme like Jam/Mega/Gems, you have to arrange your own playlist of existing tracks from the games to play in the background.
Last thing to note is I really love the presentation of this collection, the menus represent the aesthetic of this era rather well and the new animated cutscenes are awesome. The islands for each game acting as a backdrop to the selected title is a welcome visual too, bonus points for Angel Island floating upon completing S3&K. Oh and SONIC CD’S OPENING AND ENDING GOT THEIR VOCALS RESTORED AND NO LONGER IN CROPPED WIDESCREEN. If a sale’s going on and you want the best official version of Sonic CD, this is the one for you.
I think the best way I can describe this collection in a single sentence is, it gets the job done and then some but it could’ve been so much more. I’m glad to have this on my Switch alongside Mania, but a little more put into it could’ve gone a long way. Anything to actually justify $40, and to me Sonic 2 alone is not even worth $10 no matter what you sprinkle on it. If only strict deadlines weren’t a factor…
Maybe expect standalone reviews of each game included here later down the line? They’re more fresh in my mind now thanks to this so I’ll consider it.
To get it out of the way, I believe players should be given the choice for whether lives should be limited or not a la Crash Bandicoot 4 and while Origins does this, locking it behind the 4:3 aspect ratio rubs me the wrong way though I won’t lose sleep over it. On the other hand I have issue with the stand-in, Coins. I feel the game doesn’t justify their existence enough with how useless they are once the Museum has been 100%ed and the cost of retrying a Special Stage after failing is such a poultry amount it might as well be unlimited, they’re also ridiculously easy to rack up depending on the game and when playing Mission Mode. I’d rather have taken a total Death Count for these games as a self-imposed incentive for more careful play.
Speaking of Mission Mode, I had quite a bit of fun with it! It’s very reminiscent of Challenges from New Super Mario Bros. U where you’re boxed into portions of a stage to complete a small task as best you can, and be ranked for it at the end. These range from killing enemies while submerged in oil to dodging enemies that move at double speed, it reminds me of NES Remix a bit(?) with how your knowledge of game mechanics is tested. My only complaint is that I wanted more out of it, and I hope a future Sonic collection has a similar kind of successor side mode.
If there’s anything I’m at all disappointed by if anything, it’s likely the Museum but only because of how elaborate they were in previous compilations, Mega Collection especially. More IDW covers to browse through would be nice, but I get it, this collection’s only about Classic Sonic. Still, with how Origins has tidbits of new developer art for games to show off, I would’ve liked watching the commercials for the included games like Sonic Jam did at least, maybe even the Man of the Year short animation from that game? The controls for the Museum itself is a bit finicky too. Unlike Mega and Gems, when reading the instruction manuals you can’t turn pages while in full screen mode. It may be a nitpick but it trips me up having to press B to be able to advance with the right bumper, then press A to zoom and keep reading again. I’m also kind of miffed that there’s no unique gallery theme like Jam/Mega/Gems, you have to arrange your own playlist of existing tracks from the games to play in the background.
Last thing to note is I really love the presentation of this collection, the menus represent the aesthetic of this era rather well and the new animated cutscenes are awesome. The islands for each game acting as a backdrop to the selected title is a welcome visual too, bonus points for Angel Island floating upon completing S3&K. Oh and SONIC CD’S OPENING AND ENDING GOT THEIR VOCALS RESTORED AND NO LONGER IN CROPPED WIDESCREEN. If a sale’s going on and you want the best official version of Sonic CD, this is the one for you.
I think the best way I can describe this collection in a single sentence is, it gets the job done and then some but it could’ve been so much more. I’m glad to have this on my Switch alongside Mania, but a little more put into it could’ve gone a long way. Anything to actually justify $40, and to me Sonic 2 alone is not even worth $10 no matter what you sprinkle on it. If only strict deadlines weren’t a factor…
Maybe expect standalone reviews of each game included here later down the line? They’re more fresh in my mind now thanks to this so I’ll consider it.