Sonic the Hedgehog, ambiguous gaming mascot for the last 10 years, may finally be making a comeback. Fans have been crying out for a “proper” 2D Sonic game, and Sega has finally listened with not one, but two endeavors that will satiate fans.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4 and Sonic Colors made a huge presence at Sega’s E3 booth… and rightfully so: they were both incredibly fun.
The play area for Sonic 4 was set up as mini-lounges, perfect for a game that was often chaotic and explosive and a gamer that was tired from walking between FPS demonstrations. Sonic 4, for all intents, plays exactly like what you’d hope for. With the simplified controls of the Sega Genesis games, along with added attacks from Sonic Adventure and the GameBoy Advance versions, the first Episode of the latest in the series scratches that missing itch.
The level I played was a Green Hill Zone – style world, with the familiar checkerboard ground and green grass rendered in HD. The loops are here, as are the pogo boards, launching Sonic well into the air and, with the use of the added homing attack, allows Sonic to attack enemies previously unreachable. The level design was so classic, that I found it beckoning for returned exploration, something that Sonic 1-3 did so well. The game’s handler informed me that though there is only one way to beat each stage, there are several branching paths to reach that end.
The game is practically designed for speed runs. As I cleared all 4 sections of the zone, I was treated to a classically-inspired Eggman boss battle, but with a twist. The updated visuals of the game, now rendered in HD and with a mix of pre-renders and cel-shading, the movement was smooth enough to throw me off of my antiquated pixel-bursting Sonic skills. The style was a perfect fit for the downloadable game, as Sonic’s retro-infused style shines through.
The big issue: why make it episodic? Why not have all 4 “Episodes” combined in one game? The game is definitely not too big to do that. Dividing it up only separates the experience. Regardless, for those who like Sonic games and retro gaming, this seems like a perfect fit.
But for those who like their Sonic updated, Sonic Colors comes to the rescue.
Now, this is what I would hope for a true, modern 2D Sonic the Hedgehog game to be like. Created in striking 2.5 D, the levels, although a bit more linear than in Sonic 4, have enough movement and camera shifting to appear massive. The fresh, non-Sonic aesthetic is courtesy of the carnival planet that our hedgehog has arrived on. Bright colors, giant cheeseburgers, ferris wheels, disco lights, and roller coasters fill the scenery. This is a nice contrast to Sonic 4 both in design and scope.
Colors plays like a 2D Sonic, but with specific changes. First, Sonic’s world “rotates” more than it pans, playing like the 2D zones of Mario Galaxy as opposed to the straight-on side view. It works rather well, feeling up-to-date instead of retro. This also causes Sonic to be zoomed out much further, as the series’ focus on speed is secondary to exploration and collection. Sonic seemed just a tad bit too small on the screen.
Second, at what seemed like almost any point, I could move Sonic into the background, forcing a linear path 3D to take place. The transition between side-scrolling and 3D movement was smooth and completely natural. The 3D sequences had Sonic moving further into the distance, as if on a conveyor belt. Sega really wanted to control my experience, instead of allowing free-running all over.
The level I played was Sweet Mountain, designed to mimic a food court, except with giant donuts and candy along the way. The stage’s obstacles were easy to overcome, and felt like simplified versions of what I had just played in Sonic 4. That said, the game was still challenging an entertaining, and the concept of seamless 2D-to-3D shifting has a lot of promise if the rest of the game is executed as swimmingly as the stage I played.
If it wasn’t for the non-Sonic slower speed, and visual size of the character on the screen, I would argue that THIS is the true successor to the Hedgehog series. Either way, Sonic fans can’t go wrong this Summer and Fall, with what seems like two competent games that manage to take classic Sonic gaming in two different yet still fun directions.
As a Wii/DS game, Sonic Colors will be delivered on disk (or cartridge). This means that while I’m waiting for the next installment of Sonic 4 to be released, I can play this game over (and over) again. Winners all around.
[images provided by Sega]
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