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The new Sonic is here on Wii!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 58
Date: February 21, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I don't know how to say this but, this game will rock the set for all I know! Even though, this Sonic game will be a different feel from the other Sonic games but who cares right? As long as it's Sonic the Hedgehog, everything will be fascinating! This title of Sonic was originally gonna be called Sonic Wild Fire, just so you know.

P.S. But I must say, Sonic & The Secret Rings is gonna be a must buy, especially if you've seen it in commercials so much! I'll be looking to getting it when it comes out, so will you!

It's fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 15 / 21
Date: February 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I missed out on every single sonic game since the first two for the sega genesis. I was a pretty big fan of the first Sonic game but the novelty wore off even by the second one. I think playing Sonic in the 3D world is really a breath of fresh air. This game seems like a very natural extension of the original 2D platformer, where you really get excited about sonic reaching breakneck speeds, but you have to watch out for numerous obstacles and enemies. Some people criticize the fact that sonic has a preset path, but it's unclear to me how well the game would work if he didn't. He has less of a preset path now than in the 2D world, and free roaming would totally lose the original sonic feel. Additionally, this "preset path" is somewhat overstated, as you are able to veer off onto multiple paths on some levels to find different items or complete tasks. The whole interface is very intuitive, and the controls for sonic are very responsive. The story is lame, but please don't tell me anyone thinks the megaman stories, the mario stories, or the original sonic stories are not lame. It's also really cool being able to get new skills for sonic and adds depth to the game. However, I still feel that sonic does not accelerate fast enough. Once you get hit by an object while running, you will be walking for several seconds and jogging for several more seconds. Acceleration upgrades become available throughout the game so I assume he will get faster as I progress further. Finally, the graphics are pretty good. They are as good or better than any other Wii game. Ironically, my main criticism is that sometimes the colors look washed out, which you would think would be one of the easiest things to get right in a game these days. This is just the kind of game the Wii needs right now and I highly recommend it.

HOW DEPREASING...

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 5 / 69
Date: February 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I'VE BEEN WAITING 2 YEARS NOW...I GET THE GAME AND WONDER,"WHICH IS WORSE?SONIC RIDERS?,OR THIS ONE?HMMM.IT'S GOTTA BE A TIE!"SERIOUSLY,IT'S THAT BAD!WHEN THEY REVEALED THE STORYLINE,I HAD A BAD FEELING ABOUT THIS ONE.YEAH SURE,WE SEE SONIC,TAILS,KNUCKLES,EGGMAN,AMY,CREAM,BIG (CAMEOS ONLY.),SILVER,BLAZE,ERAZOR,SHAHRA,AND SOME OTHERS.BIG STINKIN DEAL!THE STORLINE IS LIKE THIS.SONIC IS NAPPING WHEN SOMEONE WAKES HIM UP.SONIC FINDS A MYSTERIOUS RING,AND SHAHRA THE GENIE OF THE RING EXPLAINS WHAT'S GOING ON.SHE TELLS SONIC THAT SHE CAME OUT OF THE BOOK OF ARABIAN NIGHTS.(HOW BORING COULD THIS GET?)NEXT,SHE SAYS THAT AN EVIL GENIE KNOWN AS THE ERAZOR DIJINN IS TRYING TO DESTROY THE BOOK SO HE CAN RULE THE REAL WORLD.(SOOO...I WOULDN'T MIND A GENIE IN THE REAL WORLD...AS LONG AS HE FORCES NINTENDO AND SEGA TO PUT SONIC IN S.S.B.B..)ANYHOW...SONIC REALIZES WHAT HE MUST DO...MUST I TYPE IT?SAVE THE BOOK.(ONE LESS BOOK IN THE WORLD.THAT'S FINE WITH ME.HOW ABOUT YOU?)WELL,SONIC AND SHAHRA ENTER THE BOOK TO STOP ERAZOR.SONIC'S FRIENDS AND FOES PLAY THE ROLES OF THE BOOKS CHARACTERS.(THEY EVEN GO BY THE BOOK'S NAMES.)AS FOR THE GRAPHICS,LET'S JUST SAY IT LOOKS LIKE A BABY DREW THE GRAPHICS FOR THE CUTSCENES,AND GAMEPLAY GRAPHICS ARE WORSE THAN SONIC HEROES.I'D MUCH RATHER BE IN THE BATHROOM ALL DAY.(TRUST ME,IT'S MORE FUN.)EVEN THE CONTROLS ARE DUMB.YOU CAN BARELY DO HOMING ATTACK WITHOUT PLUMITING TO YOUR DEMISE.SEGA...YOU COULD HAVE DONE SO MUCH MORE WITH THIS GAME.WOW...2 SONIC GAMES I DON'T LIKE.SONIC RIDERS,AND NOW THIS ONE.WHAT HAPPENED SEGA?PLEASE,BELIEVE ME.I'M A SONIC-MEGA-FAN.THE MEGA-FANS SEEM TO BE THE ONLY ONES WHO DON'T LIKE SONIC RIDERS,AND THIS AS WELL.

P.S.

SONIC ON P.S.3 ROXZ MY SOXZ!IT'S THE BEST SONIC GAME SEGA EVER MADE.

coming from someone who plays video games, ALOT...

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 50
Date: February 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

All the 3d Sonics have been hideous. This game is no exception to that trend. Sonic the Hedgehog should have died with the Sega hardware. Instead greedy money hungry individuals drag what was once a great franchise through the mud, in an attempt to turn prophet off horrendously made sequels and spin offs.

Good Game With Flaws

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 15 / 23
Date: February 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I was worried when this game came closer to release. I got even more worried once the reviews started rolling in. Still, I went ahead and bought it.
The whole Sonic in 3D problem seems to never go away. There have been plenty of chances for Sonic Team to get it right, but for some reason they always make major missteps.
I will say, though, this is a very promising step forward.
The plus side, this isn't a port of the Sonic games from PS3 and Xbox 360, which was the original plan. I think everyone can be grateful of that.
The entire play mechanic has Sonic running down a predetermined course. You tilt the Wiimote to steer, pretty much in the same way as Excite Truck. The 2 button makes you jump, the 1 button makes you stop.
One of the most enjoyable control elements is the homing attack, which you perform by jumping into the air, waiting for the enemy lock on to activate, and then shaking the controller. This causes Sonic to blast forward and slam into his opponent. This definitely takes some getting used to, as a mistimed jump will do nothing but send you leaping into the arms of your enemy, causing you to lose rings.
This brings up one of the shortcomings of this game. Anything but a quick small jump causes Sonic to stop and charge up. This takes away from the whole "breakneck speed" feel of the 2D Sonic games. You should be able to charge your jump while running.
Also, the amount of time it takes Sonic to get to full speed is far too long. When you get hit or run into an obstacle, the energy gets completely sucked out of the moment as you have to wait to build up a full head of steam to be on your way again. In missions where you have to finish in a certain time limit, this can be more than aggravating.

I don't mind the storyline. As a matter of fact, I think it's a nice change of pace. The other characters make cameo appearances, which I'm very much in favor of. I don't want to have to punch, fly over, or shoot anything in a Sonic game. I want to get going as fast as I can and just let my reflexes take over.

You will need to get used to the camera, though, which is very different in terms of platforming games. There is no player control to it, and the developers have set it up to have an almost cinematic feel. There were a couple of times where I thought I was watching a brief cut-scene only to realize I still had control of the action. Once you get used to it, though, it's not too bad.

I'm looking at Sonic and the Secret Rings as Sonic Teams first step towards righting the capsized ship. Future games need to utilize what this game has done right and work to correct the flaws. All in all, I'm not upset with my purchase.

I will say this, though- I docked a point on the overall rating because, damnit, I'M TIRED OF WII TITLES HAVING STUPID PARTY GAMES! GIVE IT UP, ALREADY! If I want party games, I'll play Warioware.

Great game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 9
Date: February 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I loved this sonic title. It doesn't have the level selection that other games have, but it does what it does greatly. With unlockables, this game has some replay value. Not to metion the fun party games.

Best Sonic in a while

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 13
Date: February 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I would give this an overall rating of 4.5, but since they don't have it, I will round up. That being said, if you have a WII and like Sonic, this is a great game to get. I bought it the day it came out and have played for about 4 or 5 hours so far. At first, I was a little disappointed; it seemed slow and the controls a bit "wonky", but after getting the multiple power ups I really liked the idea of building up your character and the gameplay became smoother. The camera does pull you somewhat and I felt as if I wanted to have more control... But when I look at it and say, is this s fun game? the answer is a resounding yes! And that is what the WII is so good at doing; taking a simplistic approach and making it fun as hell.

On the road to recovery

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 9
Date: February 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Sonic is back...sort of. While this game is infinitely better than the last few attempts at Sonic in 3-D, I'm becoming more and more convinced that the furry blue hedgehog just doesn't belong in that world. It's simply too hard to combine speed and control with a "behind the hedgehog" camera.

Sonic and the Secret Rings does a lot of things right. That is, this game contains more 2-D elements from the good 'ol Genesis days (ahh, remember those times?) than any 3-D version so far. Sonic's pretty much on a track and can't break free, save for a few areas where he can hit a switch or can be led along a different path. The environments are lush, the graphics look fantastic (the first Wii game that really looks "next gen," I would say), and the basic goal while playing is (most of the time) similar to the 2-D games. Collect rings, beat up enemies, go really fast, etc.

However, there are some attempts to mix it up and give you "goals" to work on, such as collecting 99 rings, finishing a stage without killing an enemy, and collecting dinosaur eggs. Yes, dinosaur eggs. Depending on how well you do, you can "power up" and gain new abilities with which you can equip your hedgehog (heh, I like the sound of that: "Equip your Hedgehog!"). The abilities aren't really that impressive, and one wishes that some of them, like being able to more smoothly move left and right or accelerate more quickly, could have just been Sonic's default condition at the beginning of the game. Nevertheless, it gives the gamer something to shoot for, and that's not a bad thing.

The controls, however, are a mixed bag. When moving forward, Sonic's pretty great. Like many have said, it feels fantastic to lurch the Wii-mote forward and attack enemies. Jumping takes some getting used to and is not really intuitive at all. You can do a little jump by tapping the 2 button, but if you want to make a big jump, you have to give yourself some room, hold the button down and wait for Sonic to screech to a near halt, and then let go of the button to make him leap. You will die many, many times trying to perfect this move. Furthermore, What I miss in this game is the simple ability to TURN AROUND. Sonic can't turn himself. I don't know if it's because of the fixed camera they decided to use, but if you fly past something you need (which will happen often, especially during the challenge rounds), you need to completely stop and then literally put the hedgehog in reverse. The camera doesn't assist you in this, causing you to blindly walk or jump backwards into enemies, barriers, or worst of all, off of cliffs.

These camera issues, while not as bad as Sonic Adventure or the awful steaming pile that is Sonic for 360 and PS3, are the root cause of frustration many times during the game. In the old 2-D games, Sonic can turn around, move up and down, and pretty much turn in any which way without the player having to worry about losing track of where he is. As of yet the 3-D Sonic games have yet to figure out how to do this. That's why I just WISH that Sega would give up on the "total 3-D" Sonic and make one heck of a killer 2-D Sonic. Think Sonic 3 and Knuckles but ten times the size, next-gen graphics, and music like that of Sonic CD (the American OR Japanese version! I don't care!) Just imagine if Sonic singlehandedly was able to save the side-scrolling adventure from extinction on next-gen systems. He could do it. Just give him a chance!

Oh, really quick: the music is of the "so bad it's good" variety, with bad 80's hair band rock ridiculously mixed with Arabian music. The story would be passable if the voices weren't so laughably bad. And, be prepared to throw up in your mouth a little bit (as another reviewer for an online games site has said) when Sonic makes a "pinky promise" with someone. Gag me with a shovel. The multiplayer part of the game is mildly entertaining, but one wishes that the programmers had spent more time on perfecting the main game than making a sorry Mario Party clone.

Very long story short, if you like Sonic, buy the game. It's the closest you can yet get to the Genesis days, but still not nearly close enough.

Fun but has a few issues

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: February 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game is fun overall. The storyline is kinda lame but it opens up the Sonic universe to more then fuzzy animal saving so I cant complain. The feel of the game is great, I really enjoy it most of the time. My issues stem from game controls. Most of the time game control is fine, but issues do arise in some levels that cause me to die in the same place over and over again. The upside is it usually hones my ability in the skill to mastry so any time I use it after it's easy. But the downside is I spend 25 minutes dieing at the same part where usually the restart point is far away. If you get annoyed quickly and are prone to throwing the controller at your TV I would not recommend this game. If your in it for the challenge of getting everything JUST right, you should love it. All in all it will either improve my patience or destroy my TV.

How Sonic got most of his groove back.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 45 / 60
Date: February 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Call me crazy, call me a fan of deep gameplay, but I've just never understood this whole Sonic the Hedgehog hullaballoo. Back when Sonic made his console debut in the early 90s he immediately separated himself from his biggest competitor, a chubby plumber, and in doing so, set himself apart as the "cool" console mascot. And cool he was. While Mario was busy breaking bricks and lollygagging his way through pipes, Sonic was flying through worlds with ease, doing all sorts of cool tricks in the process. However, what Mario lacked in "coolness" he always made up for with deep, addictive gameplay. Sonic was cool, yeah, but when it came down to the quality of the gaming experience, he just never could gain ground on that chubby guy.

This flaw of Sonic followed him into the 3D era as well. The arrival of the Sega Dreamcast brought Sonic fans the Sonic Adventure series, which often slowed down the speedy hedgehog in favor of more traditional 3D platforming. In a way, it worked. But this was Sonic, and you can't very well have Sonic and not have speed! So Sonic the Hedgehog has been in sort of a drought over the better part of a decade, trying his best to keep up in his old age. Often plagued by poor camera control and even poorer character control, Sega's mascot is no longer the poster child for "cool" gaming, but the perfect example of what a video game shouldn't be.

The light at the end of the tunnel for Sonic was supposed to be his latest adventure, Sonic and the Secret Rings, and at first look, it seems like a pretty solid idea. Bring Sonic back to his roots, make him fast, recreate the 2D Sonic experience in 3D. So the folks over at Sega have Sonic constantly moving in this game along a set path, the player steers him left and right by tilting the Wii remote accordingly. To jump, simply hit the 2 button. Shove the remote forward mid-air to perform a homing attack (a gesture that really feels quite solid).

So far so good. Sonic is once again running through worlds, collecting rings and other valuables while blasting into enemies. But then the core flaw of Sonic the Hedgehog once again becomes apparant. The gameplay is still pretty shallow. Sega has tried to paint over this problem by allowing Sonic to gain experience points throughout his adventure, making him faster, stronger, and more cocky. Still, this is 2007. Running fast and collecting rings may have been compelling, or jaw dropping in 1991, but we've come to expect more from our games nowadays, especially when they're platformers. Sadly, Sonic and the Secret Rings does not recreate the excitement and experience of the traditional Sonic game, nor does it create a new experience to get excited about. It's simply disappointing.

However, from a visual standpoint, Sonic and the Secret Rings does not disappoint. You won't find the benefits of high definition gaming as you would Sonic's other current-generation endeavors. But what Sonic and the Secret Rings lacks in polish and shine, it makes up for in beauty and detail. The worlds that Sonic speeds through are beautifully and meticulously created, often giving players something to gawk at when the game slows its pace occasionally. Having played Sonic the Hedgehog on Xbox 360, I can safely say that Sonic and the Secret Rings is a much more satisfying game where both visuals and gameplay are concerned.

In the end, the gamers will decide if Sonic and the Secret Rings is a hit or a miss. Sonic fans of old may enjoy the new twist on the old gameplay, but fans who never really latched on to the series will most likely be disappointed again. Is it the best 3D Sonic game? It really depends on what you're looking for. As a traditional 3D platformer it fails, but in recreating the 2D world of Sonic in 3D it at least comes close. Sonic may not be as cool as he used to be, but at least he's trying.

6.0 Presentation
Menus and cutscenes are artistically created, and work in setting the environment of the world of the Arabian Nights. But the story is a little silly, and largely unnecessary.

8.9 Graphics
Some of the best graphics available on the Wii, and the level design is often meticulously crafted to enhance the experience.

4.9 Sound
The music in the game is worse than Excite Truck, but unfortunately the game does not offer the custom sountrack option. As always, Sonic is better when he's not talking, but he still won't shut up.

4.5 Gameplay
Going fast is fun for a while, but then it wears off. The game suffers from the same follies of the original Sonic games, with the added problem of going backwards which is neither intuitive nor fun.

6.0 Lasting Appeal
RPG fans may find some saving grace in the experience points, but the tacked-on party games are just lame and poorly presented.

6.2 OVERALL
(out of 10 / not an average)

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