Sonic Generations

Yes, this might be complete and utter nostalgiabait. But, damn, this is nostalgiabait done right!

-0.5 stars for planet wisp lol

My childhood games must've not aged well, because there's something about Sonic games that I just cannot get fully into and have fun with. I'll try to explain.

This is probably the best 3D Sonic game in the franchise, but it still has big issues that irk me.

Specifically, the way Sonic games transition from speed to platforming is an incredibly discombobulating experience. Going from Mach 5, hitting a wall, and then being forced to start precisely jumping plays very strange from a modern POV.

Speaking of the jumping, the jumping in this game just randomly doesn't respond - causing me to fall to death. On top of the jumping, the movement in general in all Sonic games is slippery to say the least. It feels as if I'm playing Luigi from Smash Bros Melee sometimes.

To go from such a fast speed to platforming with slippery, non-tactile controls doesn't sit well with me. This isn't an issue with this game directly, but more targeted at Sonic games as a whole.

Despite my ranting, I would recommend this to anyone wanting to play a 3D Sonic game.

The music is usually really good, the environments are great, the story is pretty bad (not like that matters), and the gameplay is prime 3D Sonic (for better or for worse).

For 2D Sonic, try Mania (didn't have fun with that one either for the same issues as before, but oh well).

2.5/5

Sonic Generations serves as a reminder to both old and new players that Sonic The Hedgehog was distinctive. It is one of the most fun Sonic games to play in ages. Widely considered to be just as good as if not better than the legendary Genesis Games. And I'm all up for it.

Back in 2011, Sonic was turning 20 years old. SEGA obviously didn't want to make the same mistake they made with Sonic '06 for his 15th Anniversary. So SEGA took this project a lot slower and tried not to rush it out. And it shows. Sonic Generations is the ultimate tribute to the franchise's 20-year history and it makes it even better that the game plays beautifully.

This tribute of Sonic is tied to the narrative as well. Sonic is celebrating his birthday with the majority of the cast of characters. Until an evil creature known as the Time Eater ruins the birthday, and sends Sonic's friends to different points in time. It's up to Sonic, Tails, and their "Classic" counterparts, Classic Sonic, and Classic Tails to save their friends, collect the Chaos Emeralds, and stop the Time Eater.

Unfortunately, this is the weakest part of the game. The story works in giving a reason why we are traveling through time. But the writing, acting, and much of a story progression are almost nonexistent. As with most modern Sonic games to have come out after 2010 unfortunately. The Cast that Sonic has to rescue only serves as cheerleaders for the end which is underwhelming.

That said, the presentation and levels are amazing. Each level goes through a different stage in Sonic's history. You got 3 Genesis Era Levels that represent Sonic The Hedgehog (1991), Sonic The Hedgehog 2 and Sonic & Knuckles. You got 3 Adventure Era Levels that represent Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes. And finally you got 3 levels from the Modern Era which are represented with Sonic '06, Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors. Making up 9 total levels, as well as bosses from throughout the series. The music is a great remix of older games. The design of these levels looks incredible and I had a smile from ear to ear. It feels cool playing this as I've played the previous games in this retrospective and to see them all represented reminds me how much work I've put in. I do wish there were more Game Representation. But for what we have, I'm satisfied.

The gameplay is split into two which is great. Each of the 9 levels has a total of 2 Acts in them. The 1st Act is Classic Sonic. It's traditional 2D platforming like the Genesis games of old but with a fresh coat of paint over it. Act 2 is Modern Sonic. The boost gameplay is carried over from Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors and it's been perfected in my eyes. Playing as Modern Sonic just feels fun and I never felt like I was being screwed. The glitches in this game are so minor that I'm not bothered by them. Seeing 2D Sonic in a 3D Sonic Level and vise versa is so cool and it is one of the most satisfying to play in the series because of it. Unfortunately, it takes almost no effort to get an S rank which should be challenging. It's a shame. There are 5 Red Rings on each level and collecting them unlocks concept art from older titles, you get character bios from saving others, you even get music from older games. And in a secret room, you can use secret codes to unlock statues of characters from the series.

The best part about Sonic Generations is that while the game is supposed to be a reminder of Sonic's history, It also doesn't feel like that. It doesn't pander you with the old imagery. And I respect that. It still feels like a new Sonic game.

Sonic Generations is the best possible tribute SEGA could've come up with. And even though the story is very lackluster and way too short. The gameplay is fantastic, the music is amazing, and it is an overall great celebration of the 20 Year Long History of the Blue Blur.

At Sonic’s birthday party, a monster emerges from a portal and kidnaps his friends. The portal seems to bring retro Sonic and Tails along with it. So old Sonic and modern Sonic team up to restore the timeline and save their friends.

I’m not a Sonic fan by any means: I tend to find the 2D Sonics overrated, and the 3D ones I have played have been plagued with issues; poor level design, obvious bugs, terrible camera and woeful voice acting.

Generations is a celebration of all things Sonic, but it does so by taking the best elements and improving on the general gameplay. It’s not perfect, but it’s one of the better games in the series.

Each stage is split into 2 acts; the first is played with classic Sonic, and the second is played with modern Sonic, but you can do them in any order. The first act has moments where you can go fast, and some visual spectacles, but there is a higher focus on platforming. The second act has plenty of opportunities to go fast, and lots of visual spectacle. The second act does have some 2D sections which is probably an admission that Sonic tends to work much better in 2D.

The different Sonics have slightly different abilities which can make it slightly confusing. The modern Sonic has dash, can slide, quickstep. He also has his homing attack, whereas you need to spin into enemies manually with classic Sonic. Some levels have unique mechanics for modern Sonic, so there’s one where you can do the dash through certain lines of rings, and another allows you to wall jump.

Each level is a reimagining of a level from the old main-line console games. So there’s one level from each game. I only recognised a few moments, like the Sonic Adventure 2 level where you are fleeing from an out-of-control truck. I felt the improved control, camera and new ideas made it much more fun this time around. The levels are actually really well designed with lots of branching paths to encourage you to replay them to discover everything the level has to offer. It’s generally quite easy though. Like many Sonic games, the final levels get annoying. They seemed longer and had a few moments where it wasn’t clear where to go.

There’s loads of challenge levels where you have different objectives. Racing your doppleganger can be quite tense, then there’s treasure hunts, collecting a certain number of rings, and more. You are forced to play a selection of these in order to unlock a battle with a boss, which then leads to the next set of levels.

The boss battles aren’t that great - most of them seem boring and sometimes it’s unclear what to do, even if Omochao is giving you tips. The final boss is very boring since you mainly just keep taping to boost and randomly move about.

I felt it was awkward to recollect your rings. They seem to have an awkward bounce to them, and disappear quite quickly. There are several red tokens to find which unlock concept art and other bonuses. You are scored which gives you skill points to unlock extra perks in the shop. Some perks are for both characters, but many are for a specific Sonic.

You can also buy extra lives in the shop, earn them by collecting over 100 rings, or finding them in the stage. The life system seems pointless anyway. When you lose all lives then you are given 5, so if you start a new level with less than that, then you are putting yourself at a disadvantage.

The voice acting is much better than the Sonic Adventure games I have played. There’s also some funny self-aware dialog .

The graphics are bright and colourful, the gameplay contains great variety and plays to the series’ strengths. It definitely has the best 3D Sonic gameplay I’ve seen. There’s not many levels compared to other platforming games, and it does seem to be padded out with the challenge levels. So overall it is decent, and I’m sure will please Sonic fans.