Ever since Sonic entered the third dimension, things have not gone well for him. He's starred in a slew of terrible titles which have seen Sega do everything but make the games not suck. But when it comes time for Sonic to hit a handheld, somebody on the development team seems to remember what the fans love, and less of what they don't. Okay, so the GameBoy advance port of Sonic the hedgehog 1 was a complete stinker. But other than that. Sonic on handhelds have been pretty decent affairs. Something which was thankfully continued on with Sonic's debut on the DS.
Sonic rush plays like pretty much every other Sonic game. But as is the case with every new Sonic game, there are some new gameplay altering twists. First off is that the game is played across two screens. Sonic and new playable character Blaze the Cat will zip along the top screen and swoop down into the bottom during their sprints through stages. It's a minor thing, but it really does add to the frantic pace of the game, and the sense of speed and freedom the characters have. Also is the inclusion of a tension gauge. As Sonic and Blaze gather speed and fly through the air they can perform tricks and stunts. Performing these will fill your tension gauge, allowing Sonic and Blaze to perform a dash attack; which gives them a burst of speed and envelops them in field of energy which makes them near invincible. Players will have to use the dash attack wisely. Because if their tension guage runs empty: their speed will drop, they will not being able to use the dash attack, and they will not be able to access the bonus stages to collect chaos emeralds.
The bonus stages are similar to those of Sonic the hedgehog 2, where players must collect a specified number of rings whilst running through a half-pipe. As the bonus stages progress, the number of hazards become more and more plentiful. The bonus stages are where the touch screen comes into play. Players must move Sonic left and right by using the stylus. If players hit a jump spring, numbers will appear which have to tapped in ascending order within a time limit to acquire a bunch of rings. The stylus control doesn't really add to or worsen the experience. It's just there.
A criticism often lobbied at Sonic rush is that it's unforgiving: with the placement of hazards in places that players would not be see coming or be able to avoid on a first play. Whilst this holds true, it does add to the hardcore tenacity of the game. I personally like the whole idea of the stages being like memory tests. Remembering to roll so you can destroy the enemy after the loop-the-loop and not lose your rings. Rembering to fall in the correct place so you don't drop into a bottomless pit. Remebering to stop running when you get onto the platform so you don't run off of the edge. I love it! It's what Sonic games have always been about, and this approach is what's always separated Sonic games from the Super Mario's. You can of course be careful in stages and approach them at a Super Mario style pace, but that's no fun when you know you can kick things into high gear and tear about a zone. Due to how it easy it is to get 100 rings to nab yourself an extra life and the save feature, players won't see the 'Game over' screen all that often. And as punishment, you are only sent back to the first act of the current stage and not right the way back to the beginning of the game as you were in the classics. So there is an eased burden to all of the skankness you may feel the game unfairly lobs your way.
The graphics in Sonic rush are rather spiffy; mixing 2D sprites with 3D character models. Everything blends together seamlessly and runs smoothly. Rush is one of Sonic's better looking 2D outings and showcases the DS's graphical capabilities nicely. Action spreads across both screens without a hint of slow down or a drop in the frame rate. Boss battles show off the 3D graphics to a greater extent as they are displayed and played in complete 3D.
Sonic games are no strangers to solid soundtracks, and Rush rocks! Sonic rush's soundtrack is the funkiest to grace a Sonic game since Sonic CD. Hot beats, vocals samples and quirky instrumentations make for a very memorable soundtrack that will have you play the game with the volume at its highest. As for character speech: Thankfully, Sega limit the characters to the odd word here and there, and restrict long piece of dialogue to text boxes. I got sick of listening to Sonic and his stupid ass friends speak in the Sonic adventure games, so I'm more than glad that everybody is limited to "Aww yeah!!", "Wooo!", "Great!!" and not much else.
Sonic rush is a good game. It sticks to the formula that made Sonic's 2D outings fun and doesn't throw in unnecessary DS related gimmicks which could harm and detract from the classic gameplay. However, the game is far too short and there isn't much to it all. Even with Blaze and Sonic both being playable characters and having their own seperate paths, their stages are exactly the same. The only differences being they're tackled in a different order and that zones are much easier to clear with Blaze. The game also loses steam mid way through. You hit a point where the zones and acts all begin to feel the same. And you find yourself not really having that much fun, but instead just going through the motions of the game for the sake of just wanting to get through it.
Gamers looking for a decent Sonic game with throwbacks to the Mega Drive classics would be wise to look to this game. It's not perfect, and it's not what I'd class as great. But it's a damn sight better than most of Sonic's 3D console outings, and it's a Sonic game that fans can own without feeling dirty and ashamed.
The good
+ Slick graphics
+ A great soundtrack
+ Fun
+ A playable character other than Sonic who doesn't kill the thrill of speed
The bad
- Difficulty spikes pretty highly towards the end
- Boss battles can be a pain in the arse
- The game runs out of steam towards the end
Sonic rush plays like pretty much every other Sonic game. But as is the case with every new Sonic game, there are some new gameplay altering twists. First off is that the game is played across two screens. Sonic and new playable character Blaze the Cat will zip along the top screen and swoop down into the bottom during their sprints through stages. It's a minor thing, but it really does add to the frantic pace of the game, and the sense of speed and freedom the characters have. Also is the inclusion of a tension gauge. As Sonic and Blaze gather speed and fly through the air they can perform tricks and stunts. Performing these will fill your tension gauge, allowing Sonic and Blaze to perform a dash attack; which gives them a burst of speed and envelops them in field of energy which makes them near invincible. Players will have to use the dash attack wisely. Because if their tension guage runs empty: their speed will drop, they will not being able to use the dash attack, and they will not be able to access the bonus stages to collect chaos emeralds.
The bonus stages are similar to those of Sonic the hedgehog 2, where players must collect a specified number of rings whilst running through a half-pipe. As the bonus stages progress, the number of hazards become more and more plentiful. The bonus stages are where the touch screen comes into play. Players must move Sonic left and right by using the stylus. If players hit a jump spring, numbers will appear which have to tapped in ascending order within a time limit to acquire a bunch of rings. The stylus control doesn't really add to or worsen the experience. It's just there.
A criticism often lobbied at Sonic rush is that it's unforgiving: with the placement of hazards in places that players would not be see coming or be able to avoid on a first play. Whilst this holds true, it does add to the hardcore tenacity of the game. I personally like the whole idea of the stages being like memory tests. Remembering to roll so you can destroy the enemy after the loop-the-loop and not lose your rings. Rembering to fall in the correct place so you don't drop into a bottomless pit. Remebering to stop running when you get onto the platform so you don't run off of the edge. I love it! It's what Sonic games have always been about, and this approach is what's always separated Sonic games from the Super Mario's. You can of course be careful in stages and approach them at a Super Mario style pace, but that's no fun when you know you can kick things into high gear and tear about a zone. Due to how it easy it is to get 100 rings to nab yourself an extra life and the save feature, players won't see the 'Game over' screen all that often. And as punishment, you are only sent back to the first act of the current stage and not right the way back to the beginning of the game as you were in the classics. So there is an eased burden to all of the skankness you may feel the game unfairly lobs your way.
The graphics in Sonic rush are rather spiffy; mixing 2D sprites with 3D character models. Everything blends together seamlessly and runs smoothly. Rush is one of Sonic's better looking 2D outings and showcases the DS's graphical capabilities nicely. Action spreads across both screens without a hint of slow down or a drop in the frame rate. Boss battles show off the 3D graphics to a greater extent as they are displayed and played in complete 3D.
Sonic games are no strangers to solid soundtracks, and Rush rocks! Sonic rush's soundtrack is the funkiest to grace a Sonic game since Sonic CD. Hot beats, vocals samples and quirky instrumentations make for a very memorable soundtrack that will have you play the game with the volume at its highest. As for character speech: Thankfully, Sega limit the characters to the odd word here and there, and restrict long piece of dialogue to text boxes. I got sick of listening to Sonic and his stupid ass friends speak in the Sonic adventure games, so I'm more than glad that everybody is limited to "Aww yeah!!", "Wooo!", "Great!!" and not much else.
Sonic rush is a good game. It sticks to the formula that made Sonic's 2D outings fun and doesn't throw in unnecessary DS related gimmicks which could harm and detract from the classic gameplay. However, the game is far too short and there isn't much to it all. Even with Blaze and Sonic both being playable characters and having their own seperate paths, their stages are exactly the same. The only differences being they're tackled in a different order and that zones are much easier to clear with Blaze. The game also loses steam mid way through. You hit a point where the zones and acts all begin to feel the same. And you find yourself not really having that much fun, but instead just going through the motions of the game for the sake of just wanting to get through it.
Gamers looking for a decent Sonic game with throwbacks to the Mega Drive classics would be wise to look to this game. It's not perfect, and it's not what I'd class as great. But it's a damn sight better than most of Sonic's 3D console outings, and it's a Sonic game that fans can own without feeling dirty and ashamed.
The good
+ Slick graphics
+ A great soundtrack
+ Fun
+ A playable character other than Sonic who doesn't kill the thrill of speed
The bad
- Difficulty spikes pretty highly towards the end
- Boss battles can be a pain in the arse
- The game runs out of steam towards the end
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