Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24012316-20141018203948

             At this rate, the blue hedgehog was finally coming back to grace. Sure, I didn’t like any of those games in their entirety, but they overall represent in my opinion, a climb back to goodness. However, Sonic had not completely won many, including me, people’s trust. The games still had many flaws, and some of them made the game downright unplayable at times. However, that’s when Sega decided to BLOW US AWAY with something INCREDIBLY AWESOME. As the final game of the 2010 revitalization, Sonic Colors was announced. I actually was caught off guard a bit. I was certain Sega was just gonna stick to the Sonic 4 saga, but hey, a new mainstay 3D Sonic game? I’m game.

 This is actually amongst the first Sonic games I owned, and the first I fell in love with. But that was all before I had to take the bar exams, especially the damn 5th bar exam, and at that rate, I completely forgot I OWNWED a Nintendo Wii. No joke, and that’s where my gaming renascence begun, where I actually started from ground up in terms of Sonic. But enough of the love-y dove-y schmuck, let’s get into it. This is

 SONIC COLORS

 Story Resort;

 I love it, I love it, and I love it

 Sonic Colors takes any amount of seriousness in a Sonic game prior and kicks it out of the f*cking window. Sonic Colors actually has new voice actors! And in this game, they do a great job. Roger Craig Smith is a great Sonic, and really reminds me of the classic days when Sonic was all upbeat and cocky. He makes the most of the HILARIOUS script, and I think he is so much fun here. Kate Higgins is actually the voice of Sakurai of Naruto Shippuden. Frankly, I absolutely hate that anime, but that doesn’t drag down her performance at all! She is really damn good at making Tails sound like a boy. While I DO prefer the older voice, this is sweet stuff right here. Eggman THANKFULLY retains his older voice actor, Mike Polleck. I think this is his best performance yet, as he reads all his line with such gusto and bravado that I absolutely love it.

 The story’s plot is pretty simple. Sonic and Tails learn of Eggman’s “remorse”, as he builds an interstellar amusement park to apologize. Sonic is wary, but Tails is already fooled. However, after encountering some Lisps-

 “No, Wisps, with a W”

 Oh, you mean Crisps?

 “No, with a W”

 F*CK you Tails, F*CK you. Kudos to Maniac Reviews, that was awesome.

 The plot itself is pretty cool, and the cutscenes HILARIOUS. BALDY McNOSEHAIR FTW! However, I can’t help but feel this was a missed opportunity for an EPIC story. The climax of this point is when Sonic and Tails take a small stroll in Planet Wisp, and Sonic says it feels familiar. Of course it’s familiar! But it’s not the fact that it’s “Eggman-ish”, it’s the green hills! The wildlife! It’s familiar because it’s like Green Hill Zone! I’m once again gonna give a shout to a friend of mine, NickonAquaMagna, for making one hell of a script. Go check out his review on Colors. Anyhow though, this is certainly one of the better stories out there. While it IS a bit disappointing, for what it is, it’s amazing stuff, certainly better than the mellow-dramatic stories of before.

 Presentation Mountain

 No Words

 Sonic Color’s presentation blows me away. The game’s graphics are just so polished and gorgeous. This belongs on the Xbox 360, done deal. The characters look detailed and animate very smoothly, I love the environments, which take me into the worlds, and overall, I can gush over and over about the game’s graphics. The Wii is certainly a great system, and this looks great, whether it is the standard 480p, the optimized 720p, or even when maximized at 1080p. Sega always made their games look outstanding, and this game is no exception.

 The music for the game is however, not really that great. I still like it, but it simply doesn’t compare too many of the other soundtracks. I like techno and all, but I can’t help but feel something about is just a tad off. I enjoyed a lot of the tracks, but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the weaker soundtracks of the series.

<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;text-indent:.5in"> Gameplay Carnival

<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;text-indent:.5in"> A flawless 3D game… MAGIC!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> You JUST read that correctly. This is the first game since Sonic’s first steps in 3D to actually make me love the entire adventure. EVERYTHING about this game was fun beginning to end. I will say this right now, the first impression of the game has not been so positive since the likes of the Genesis classics. Guess I better break it down.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Ok, one of the most important aspects of a platformer is control. How does Colors control? LIKE A DREAM! Sonic’s movement first, as that has always been what made him so unique. Sonic is SO MUCH TIGHTER than his Unleashed counterpart, which is a good thing. Even at top speed, I never felt as if the game was running Sonic, and he reacts to terrain much more appropriately than even the lukewarm Sonic the Hedgehog 4; Episode 1. When you run off a ramp, Sonic’s collected momentum will carry with him, and with the half-pipes here and there, it FEELS GOOD!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Another improvement has to be his move set. The Sonic Boost retains its formula from Sonic Unleashed for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. With that said, I dunno, but the boost really didn’t bother me that much here. You don’t need it for the most part, heck; I’d advise you NOT to use it many areas. I’ll get into that later. The boost is now much more balanced, as it seems more like an attack you use, an extension of the game. The game doesn’t revolve around the boost anymore, and as a result, using the boost correctly is so much more satisfying. Not only that, but you fill it up by collecting white wisps, so it’s NOWHERE as spam able as in Unleashed.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> THIS is how I think the boost should be handled to me. It feels more of an extension of Sonic’s ability, a sort of last resort or special attack. It doesn’t detract from the other fine qualities of the game. In fact, lemme get this out of the way RIGHT NOW. THIS is the best use of the boost in the trilogy.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Moving on, the other moves return from Sonic’s past. One, Sonic can still slide to drift under tight corners, but due to perfected control, this is also a very quick and efficient attack. Sliding into enemies doesn’t negate Sonic’s momentum prior to the attack, and when going down slopes, Sonic will gain more speed. The homing attack is back, which is handy for attacking enemies from a distance, as well as being the quickest method to take out enemies in a 3D environment, especially when they are scattered across the room. Sonic can wall jump any time as he so pleases, but I honestly couldn’t find a lot to do with it outside mandatory segments. Stomping is almost unnecessarily put in at least, until I found out you could use it to help your platforming if you time it just right.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Quickstepping is now a playstyle more so than ability. In certain parts of the stage, Sonic will lock into a quick-step mode, where you must dodge obstacles to exist the section. These are what I call good reflex tests, unlike the horribly boring segments in Unleashed HD. There is just so much to do, unlike the dumb and retarded quicksteps in Unleashed, where I am given so much time to prepare, and even then, there’s only two stages I recall that actually would’ve passed the QC. Here, enemies are littered everywhere, you walk across a narrow beam, where instant death is inevitable, jumps needed to be made, all the while as up to three gunners spit lasers at you. THAT is a challenge, not the mindless challenges of tap the LB and RB to avoid a wall you see a full half minute ahead. They even made the quick-step trickier, as not only do you have to jam forward on the analog stick, you also have to turn, so it’s a little more demanding here.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> The main gimmicks of the game are the little aliens known as Wisps. To me, these are perhaps the best parts of the game. Each is incredibly creative, broadening level design in many different ways. The white wisp, as stated earlier, allow you to use the Sonic Boost. The next is the Cyan Wisp. This wisp lets Sonic transform into a laser, and shoots him off as a light beam. It bounces off walls, reflects of crystals, travels through certain portals, and kills enemies. I love this one. Next is the Drill Wisp. THIS wisp allows Sonic to drill into the ground, as well as giving him superb water capabilities. If you ever played a NiGHTS game, just imagine that, but with much tighter controls than either NiGHTS into Dreams or NiGHTS Journey of Dreams. Let’s hope NiGHTS Wanderer of Dreams takes a note from Colors.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Continuing on, we have the Orange Wisp. This turns Sonic into a rocket, and launches him straight up, where Sonic will go into free fall mode, slowing down or speeding up as he pleases. Isaac Newton, anything to say to that? The Blue Wisp is the wisp to grant Sonic a massive stomp, as well as witching certain blue rings to platforms, and vice versa. This is just flat out pointless, and I overall felt it unnecessary. The Green Wisp grants Sonic temporary hovering. Kinda like Tails from Sonic 3&Knuckles, only MUCH slower. In this form Sonic can do… the… light-speed-dash. Wait, WHAT?!? They couldn’t just give that to Sonic as a natural ability? That’s just flat out lame.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> The next wisp is the Pink Wisp, which turns Sonic into a… spiky… ball. COULDN’T SONIC DO THAT NATURALLY?!? Anyway, it clings to walls and grants Sonic the… Spindash… OKAY, I GIVE UP ON YOU SONIC TEAM!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Finally, there is the Frenzy Wisp, which is Pac-Man on steroids. In 2D, THIS THING IS SUCH A BEAST! The more you eat, the bigger it grows, to the point it begins SUCKING THINGS IN! However, in 3D, its control is awful; I normally have a rather miserable time.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> You wanna know the best part of these wisps? None of them are all around horrible. Sure, two of them get on my nerves, but never did I feel bored, neither did I ever rage quit. That is certainly more than I could say for a lot of Sonic games. Each of them feel like an add-on to an already kickass game, and never did they interfere with my overall enjoyment. Well then, all that’s nice, but what about the levels? Well…

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Tropical Resort; this is a lobby for guests to sign in, but in its whole is just a wonderful starter stages. It gets you familiar with the gameplay fast, and overall, while not the best, it certainly is a great stage regardless. THE MUSIC THOUGH!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Sweet Mountain; THIS is awesome. Wholesome level design, kickass music, wonderful visuals, seriously, this is very cool, almost perfect. I love just about every single aspect of the stage. The level design is creative and never a chore to replay.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Starlight Carnival is quite possibly the worst zone of the game. It has incredibly bland level design that overall is just too block-like. I still like certain stages, and I LOVE some of them, but for the most part, it’s just underwhelming. The presentation MORE than blows my mind though.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Planet Wisp is certainly one of my favorites in the game. It has so much great level design that puts up a challenge, but a fun and fair challenge. The world is just full of creative platforming, and overall, is just so beautiful when combined with its visuals and GORGEOUS soundtrack.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Aquarium Park is the OTHER stage I can’t get enough of. It’s got lots of water though, so you know what that means. It’s the hardest out of them all because Sonic can’t swim- wait, what’s that? WHAT?!? Sonic can jump infinitely underwater! Wow… even more reasons why this game is just incredibly kickass… its incredible level design that is thoughtful and creative, amazing visuals (the best in the game), and maybe even the best soundtrack of the entire game!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Asteroid Coaster; The final generator stage in the game, and it’s a FREAKING ROLLER COASTER IN SPACE! I love it when Sega goes all out creative. Its level design however, leans a bit on the cheap and boring side too often. I can count the good acts with my right hand. Least the visuals and music are awesome, but we all knew that.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Terminal Velocity; this is the final act of the game, which is just a quick-step stage in its entirety, as it’s honestly pretty boring sadly, but the final boss? Hoo-boy, THAT was epic, especially with re-orchestration of Reach for the Stars.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"> Overall, Sonic Colors is what many consider the first great Sonic game in a very, very long time. The accolades for this game are certainly well-earned. I haven’t had this much with a Sonic game since pre-dark age, maybe even more! I love the game quite a lot, and in the end, this is one of the highest recommendations I have for a Sonic fan. Scratch that, to ANY Wii owners. This is a must have for any person owning a Wii. With that said, I’m Turnabout Dreamer of Sonic News Network, and you guys, have a good night, and take care.

<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;text-indent:.5in">   <ac_metadata title="Reviewed; Sonic Colors"> </ac_metadata>