Retro|Spective 061R: Sonic the Hedgehog

[Neon Ignition]

Game 43 - Sonic Free Riders
The legacy of Kinect, summed up like so many reinterpretations of game types with the third and final hoverboard entry. The game is a sequel to the prior two entries but uses body movement to control character movement which represented the main change here. It failed hard, killing this run of entries with a poor reaction to the game.







Free to Walk Away?

[wakka]

Actually we did get more fun out of Mortal Kombat 9's 4 player mode on the 360, too!

[Dogg Thang]

We played a fair chunk of this in 4 player on the 360 but it just didn't stand up to MK

Comparing it to Mortal Kombat is unfair, I think.

[wakka]

I'll be the party pooper here and say that I never got on with this. I know everyone loves it and it's all funky dory and has a more fulsome single player from Mario Kart and all the rest of it, but when this dropped I lived with my three best mates and we were in the depths of a powerful, daily, years-long Mario Kart Wii addiction.

We played a fair chunk of this in 4 player on the 360 but it just didn't stand up to MK, and had no sticking power for us compared to that mighty game (which isn't even remotely the best Mario Kart). I did work my way through the single player as well, but I never really fully got the hype on this one.

The graphics were great though, much better than MK Wii's basic ass horrible graphics, and the way they delivered the fan service was well done. It's just so completely in the shadow of MK Wii for me that it's not really a game I have a lot of affection for.

[Dogg Thang]

Loved this. It's honestly a shame that these two games haven't shown up on new platforms, and instead Team Sonic Racing is still going despite being the worst of the trilogy.

Yep. This exactly.

This is such a fun racing game and uses the classic Sega IP beautifully. It's a real journey through some great worlds and it actually plays really well too. It's a very enjoyable game.

[Asura]

Game 42 - Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
Was this an All-Star affair?

Loved this. It's honestly a shame that these two games haven't shown up on new platforms, and instead Team Sonic Racing is still going despite being the worst of the trilogy.

[Neon Ignition]

Game 42 - Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
Now 12 years old, the first of Sumo's entries took a much more direct Mario Kart approach of having the characters from various Sega franchises race in cars and use power ups against one another. Taking the core Sonic characters and mixing in the likes of Nights, Beat, AiAi and more the game proved a success and was quite well received.








Was this an All-Star affair?

[Asura]

I often forget that there were several of these Sonic hoverboard racing games; like I remember that there was a PS2 game, and one for Kinect etc., but I forgot that these aren't ports but actually different games.

Also the Kinect one was absolute trash, like nearly every Kinect game.

[Neon Ignition]

Game 41 - Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
A sequel came to the prior hoverboard racing entry only this time it added a points system that players could use to pull off additional moves in an effort to thwart rival racers. Critics liked the track designs and other elements though overall it received a mixed response. Arriving on the PS2 and Wii kept sales just about high enough that Riders would see a third attempt down the line.







Did many just not understand the Gravity of the games greatness?

[Dogg Thang]

Yeah I can’t remember which one of these I tried but I didn’t think it was great. For me, we’re well into to the dregs of Sonic now.

[Neon Ignition]

I only lightly played this and I'm not even sure which one of the two it was but I recall not liking it almost immediately. The concept sounds fine but it felt like once again the original gameplay was being bent into something it wasn't suited to

[Neon Ignition]

Game 40 - Sonic Rivals 2
A direct sequel followed that was a bit larger in size than the prior game in addition to a new multiplayer mode. It also added three additional characters to select from but the game was met with the same mixed response as its predecessor and declining sales of the PSP saw this line end here.







Did this Rival its predecessor?

[Neon Ignition]

Game 39 - Sonic Rivals
Hitting PSP, this racer took the action back on foot and into the 2D realm with characters racing from one end of a level to the other. Mixing in power ups and a card system on top of it the game aimed to recreate some of the joy of the earlier games too but had a mixed response due mostly to trial and error level design.







Did this Rival the other 2D entries?

[Hirst]

Sonic R is a technically impressive game, but I agree with the above that the controls are wonky and though I did sort-of get used to them, I think it's a big flaw for a kart racer type title. I do love the soundtrack though, they got TJ Davis in to do the vocals and as we all know she is from Leeds - this means that when she is singing Living In The City she is specifically talking about Leeds. Not sure where exactly, probably Gipton or Hunslet Carr. You've got to keep the dream alive!

[Neon Ignition]

Game 38 - Sonic Riders
In the racing side of the franchise there were three mobile phone games next that were largely unplayed by most. Sonic Racing Shift Up automated the racing and tasked players with shifting gear fast, Sonic Racing Kart was a fairly bland top down affair whilst Sonic Kart 3DX shifted the perspective and used 3D character models on genesis era style race tracks. On console though Sonic Riders came next, it placed the characters on hoverboards racing over 16 tracks and despite weak reviews performed fairly well.







A good Ride?