Portosilva's Sonic Generations Review.

Sonic Generations



Developer: Sonic Team
Publisher: Sega
Genre: Platformer

The first trailer appeared, I clicked it like any Sonic fan would and expected the worst. After a few seconds of blazing through familiar terrain porcupine man leaps into the air spread eagle and someone makes their long awaited return from holiday leave right beside him; you can't blame him he must have made tonnes of cash in his golden days so why not get someone to fill in for you while you enjoy yourself a little?

All jokes aside I must say; the game impressed me beyond belief. The physics still aren't perfect but they weren't as horrible as the second demo, there were definitely many issues that were resolved.

The game is great to say the least, Classic Sonic actually feels like he plays like the originals albeit not perfectly but definitely very much like. The way the system works in Sonic Generations from my observation is once Sonic reaches a certain amount of speed, moderate slopes do not affect his momentum; that big slop from the start of GHZ being an example. Although if you were to approach that slope from the get go it definitely slows you down to the point where you begin sliding back down to the bottom, dynamic physics are present in this game and it is better for it. There are many other issues that I have with the Classic side of the game but they are no where near the same as that with Sonic 4 where the game was just painful to play.

Modern Sonic. Surprised me.

What were we to expect from that gameplay? An ugly porcupine man Bootsing to the end of the stage with just the "X" or "Square" button necessary; it was definitely what I was expecting.

Man was I wrong. Modern Sonic's sections definitely don't provide you with the same gratification that Classic Sonic's does but it is definitely great in it's own way. The amount of exploration that is present in the modern section of the game was shocking to say the least; there are so many different routes to the end with many sections of platforming of which it actually takes skill to complete.

The design of the stages is wonderful, specifically stages like Green Hill, Chemical Plant, Sky Sanctuary, Planet Wisp and Sea Side Hill. Those for me were the most amazingly designed stages in the game; they to me brought back that Classic Sonic feel of amazingly designed wonderland backgrounds and layouts, they were not only out of this world but they we also smart to play through; the little powerup in Planet Wisp was amazingly fun to use and extremely interesting.

The fact that you can change the music of each level and challenge you play through made the experience even more exhilarating; playing Sonic boom in Chemical Plant and Sky Sanctuary is my favourite thing to do.

The stage that I was most impressed with in the modern format was Planet Wisp, the HUGE level design and the atmosphere was excellently crafted; I literally forgot that I was sitting in my room playing a Sonic game many times.

For Classic Sonic I would have to say that Chemical Plant was amazing, the water or "Mega Mack" to those who have more Soniknowledge looks excellent as it pours out the bowels of the the Plant, the design is slick and refined with every inch of the stage looking beautiful.

The Modern Stage that least impressed me was City Escape. It had the least amount of Routes and was pretty much the same as it's original counterpart.

The Classic Stage that didn't impress me was Green Hill Zone. While the visuals were absolutely beautiful the level of exploration was not, in fact it was almost sad to see an all-time Classic being under appreciated like that.

The online capabilities while enjoyable are extremely limited. There is a time trail mode that allows you to post your times from individual stages on the online leaderboards, this proved to be quite enjoyable to get your rank and time. There is also a 30 second run mode of which you have 30 seconds to get as far into the zone as you can before the time is up; once the time elapses a signpost with your respective avatar is posted in the stage at the exact location of the 30th second. The game then stops and asks you if you would like to continue "searching" for your friends signpost.

While these to capabilities are rather nice it leaves a lot to be worked with; a multiplayer race component reminiscent to that of Sonic 2 would have been an excellent addition to the online capabilities of this game, something that Sega definitely needs to look into.

The amount of collectables in the game is ridiculous; music, concept art; cinematics, character profiles and those ever so hard to find red rings make a for a kleptomaniacs ultimate dream.

While the gameplay surpassed my expectations; the story line turned out EXACTLY how I expected it. Many of the cinematics posed Classic as the younger brother to modern, this proved to become annoying to me as this is definitely not what I wanted to see.

The first trailer for the game showed Classic racing against modern down Green Hill Zone; while I knew there was going to be teamwork of some sort, it came to my expectation that the game was going to feature a rivalry between the two, an I can out do you attitude. Unfortunately this just wasn't so. At many points in the game Sonic's attitude is replaced with an overly cheery out of proportion happy attitude.

During one cutscene in the game Classic and Modern race for a chaos emerald only for modern to Booooooots to the emerald; he turns around and says "cool move huh?". At this point I half expected Classic to turn his head away and upwards with his arms crossed but instead he does a spin thumbs up modern and smiles with a derp face; incredibly disappointing.

I would have to say that the most impressive Cinematic was the metal Sonic fight and the least impressive was the transition to Supersonic where all of Moderns friends join together to tell him that he can do it...of course he can do it! I just found that scene dumb.

The one thing that I did enjoy from the story was Robotnik's glorious return to the main antagonist platform. That is all though.

In fact the ending is quite ironic; it ends with Modern yelling out to Classic for him to "Enjoy your future; it's going to be great" unfortunately for Classic and little did he know that apart from the Classic installations he actually did just participate in what was the best Sonic game since the Sonic and knuckles.

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Pro's

~Dynamic Physics (Decent performance)
While not perfect; it's definitely impressive. It leaves a lasting impression that Sega is definitely getting their act together, let's just hope that the rumors that Classic Sonic isn't coming back for the time being is false.

~Alternate Routes
The extensive amount of alternate paths in both Classic and Modern formats is what fans have been asking for since the death of Sonic, I can gladly say that his little hand is waggling through the dirt of the graveyard and out into the air.

~Exploration
The amount of collectables in the game really expresses the grandeur of almost every single zone, the fact that you can return to almost every location you came from; even in the modern section really shows the amount of thought and consideration that was put into making this game.

~Beautiful Visuals
The visuals are wonderfully juicy; it's just a joy to look at and it remains so even after many playthroughs. The wide vistas in the background leave nothing to the imagination, the waterfalling the hidden ravines in the background with those log bridges gaping the distance in between. An all to familiar sight with a brand new and inspirational twist.

~Collectables
Music, Concept Art, Cutscenes, Character Profiles and Rings...so many rings

~Customisation
The ability to not only customise your music to each individual level but to also be able to activate any of the power ups bought from the skill shop makes for an even more professionally crafted game adding to the amount of re-playability.

Con's

~Poorly Written Storyline
The Storyline was expected and cheesy; I think an alternate dimension plot twist at the end would have made for a more shocking experience then just a time travel plot.

~Bad Character Portrayal
The younger older brother character portrayal became annoying very quickly; the character that I expected from Classic was quickly slapped in my face and all I could really think of was that fat guy from Jurassic Park saying "Nuh uh UH!" over and over again. What could have been an insightful look into Classic Sonic's personality was just shallow and not worth my time in concentration.

~City Escape (Modern)
You could have almost taken the original version of this game; did up the visuals and it would have been practically the same.

~Lack of Multiplayer Component
While the time trial leader board and 30 second run game modes are fun; the lack of a true multiplayer mode really leaves space for much more.

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7.5 Presentation
The hubworld layout is actually quite impressive despite it's basic design; it's easy to use and interestingly designed.

9 Graphics
Amazingly detailed and crafted; what a Sonic game SHOULD BE.

7 Sound
The ability to choose music is an impressive feature and the classic sound effects appear as they should but the voice acting became incredibly annoying especially during the one of the last cutscenes.

8.5 Gameplay
The Physics aren't quite what they should be just yet, nevertheless they are still enjoyable and they work where they should relative to Sonic, the modern sections are also enjoyable in their own respect.

8 Lasting Appeal
The campaign isn't the longest I've played but the challenges provide you with a lot of re-playability also there is a massive amount of collectables so whatever.

8 Overall

Sonic Generations is a finely tuned and refined experience; it may not be the true powerhouse game that hardcore fans dream of but it is definitely a must have for any Sonic fan.

That review is surprisingly positive.
I can't say much about it, since I haven't played it yet.
But if what you say is true, then I might be worth trying out.
Dunno if I ever will do that though, since I lost almost all interest in Sonic I must say.


The only thing I say about it though:
As great as the past zones were, I really wish they would've created new zones, instead of reusing older ones.
Of course that doesn't automatically make the zones bad.
But it would've made the zones more interesting IMO.

Like Paragon said, this review is suprizingly positive. I played the demo, and it was TERRIBLE. I dunno if I wanna really try Generations, let alone rent it (I have no plans to buy it), but it might end up being somewhat decent.

There's still some stuff from the modern games that taint it though...

Anon wrote:Like Paragon said, this review is suprizingly positive. I played the demo, and it was TERRIBLE. I dunno if I wanna really try Generations, let alone rent it (I have no plans to buy it), but it might end up being somewhat decent.

There's still some stuff from the modern games that taint it though...

I can assure you that this game is a very good game. Keep in mind; I was a massive anti-modern gameplay person you can ask Nick you can ask Eternal they both know. But the way that they crafted the modern sections for most of the stages really allowed space for enjoyment. There is a massive level of exploration on every single zone in the game (Save GHZ which is more of an introductory level).

Like I said the physics definitely are NOT perfect; but there was definitely a lot of issues that were resolved from the second demo release to the final product.

The demo left Classic Sonic as sluggish to move and annoying to work with. His jumping mechanics were cumbersome and awkward.

The final game just feels more crisp and refined, he moves appropriately dependant on the terrain and his jumps are accurate to the touch and very intuitive to work with. Many jumps I perform in the game don't look possible to begin with but somehow I "feel" that it is and I end up making it happen.

One of my main problems with the demo was the fact that all the original trick jumps that was possible in Sonic 1 and 2 just aren't possible with that builds mechanics; seeing how this was my main style of play in the game I was shattered to see that Sega had destroyed my play style.

Gladly after a few hours spent playing the game I was able to perform two thirds of my traditional skill set; there still is a few issues with the games spindash to jump combo but otherwise most tricks are still possible.

Some minor to major issues I have with the game:

~Uncurling in a roll at moderate speed levels
~Can't get high on the leader boards without Spamdashing
~You don't drop all your rings when your hit

The series has miles of improvement ahead of it; I am excited because of the amount of potential this series has in front of it, I am going to expand on this further in a new thread on how I think the series can be enhanced.

Great review, nice to see the game managed to surprise you. I still wish Green Hill wasn't essentially the shittiest stage in the whole game, but whatever... Seaside Hill is my fave.

NickonAquaMagna wrote:Great review, nice to see the game managed to surprise you. I still wish Green Hill wasn't essentially the shittiest stage in the whole game, but whatever... Seaside Hill is my fave.

Seaside Hill was really impressive to me! It was like Labyrinth+Hydrocity+Sea Side=Awesome. Personally my favourite was Chemical Plant because it has always been my favourite; they made it look amazing in this game as well.

Hey Porto, how'd you unlock "Sonic Boom"? I've been collecting red rings like mad, but I can't find it. I really wanna listen to it in Planet Wisp Modern.

NickonAquaMagna wrote:Hey Porto, how'd you unlock "Sonic Boom"? I've been collecting red rings like mad, but I can't find it. I really wanna listen to it in Planet Wisp Modern.

I am pretty sure I did it through one of the challenges in the classic section. I have gotten "S" rank on all challenges on the first 7 out of 9 stages. I am aiming to get "S" rank plus all red rings to get 100% perfect completion sometime in the next few days.

Oh, man... I just charged through Modern Planet Wisp with that tune playing. It couldn't possibly be more fitting. Sonic CD was on another planet, Sonic Colors is on another planet.... It felt like a "Bad Future" is progress!! LOL! Awesome.

~Bad Character Portrayal
The younger older brother character portrayal became annoying very quickly; the character that I expected from Classic was quickly slapped in my face and all I could really think of was that fat guy from Jurassic Park saying "Nuh uh UH!" over and over again. What could have been an insightful look into Classic Sonic's personality was just shallow and not worth my time in concentration.

I have to agree with this. Sonic is very full of himself and probably wouldn't get along with another him so easily. Or for that matter accept him, he seems to have a slight supierioity complex getting easily jealous when someone can out do him. Ending note why did he act so cutesy? I mean granted his classic form is cute but he never has acted that way. His personality is so contradicting to his apperance most people never accotiate him as "cute" I didn't until Nico and NickonAquaMagna pointed out design to me.

If anyone has found all the Red rings in Modern Planet Wisp please help me I've only managed to get 1 after "3" run throughs of the stage i've almost covered every hidden path and no luck so far.

P.S. the one I've found was resting in a tree.

luiginotafraid wrote:

~Bad Character Portrayal
The younger older brother character portrayal became annoying very quickly; the character that I expected from Classic was quickly slapped in my face and all I could really think of was that fat guy from Jurassic Park saying "Nuh uh UH!" over and over again. What could have been an insightful look into Classic Sonic's personality was just shallow and not worth my time in concentration.

I have to agree with this. Sonic is very full of himself and probably wouldn't get along with another him so easily. Or for that matter accept him, he seems to have a slight supierioity complex getting easily jealous when someone can out do him. Ending note why did he act so cutesy? I mean granted his classic form is cute but he never has acted that way. His personality is so contradicting to his apperance most people never accotiate him as "cute" I didn't until Nico and NickonAquaMagna pointed out design to me.

Agreed. Sonic is the hero of his world, but he has never been the picture of a perfect Hero. While he isn't completely up himself he can't be said to be in the way of humility, he is confident and he does have that touch of arrogance to him but it isn't unjustified. He can be that happy chap sort of guy but when he needs to rise to the occasion (which is pretty much all the time) he takes his role seriously; making sure to thwart Robotnik's sinister plans. Classic Sonic in my opinion was captured perfectly in the Metal Sonic fight cutscenes in Sonic generations, he was cute but charming and the way he finished Metal was just awesome!

This is the cutscene that I am talking about:



In my opinion this is the coolest cutscene in the game; it's not as fantastic as it could have been, but it was still pretty epic.

I quite enjoyed that cutscene. Classic just Hurricane Kicked the crap out of Metal Sonic. XD

I agree that Classic was kinda portrayed in a manner that's a bit too cutesy. Last time I checked, the SatAM theme song went "Sonic, he can really move! Sonic, he's got an attitude!" I was hoping for some humor in the game just poking fun at the series itself. Even though I like Modern Sonic a bit more than Classic, I was waiting for at least one cutscene where Modern is just flapping his mouth smack-talking Eggman and Classic is tapping his foot impatiently with an expression on his face that basically says "Ugh, is he STILL talking?" But the game is still good overall, I find. I'm currently up the Perfect Chaos boss.

The game is good; but no where near as great as it could be. I omitted a lot of the little issues I had with the game from my review just based on the fact that they weren't game breaking problems.

The physics still aren't up the scratch just yet.