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Description
CONCEPT: "MOBIUS" - Game Relations

Name: Sonic Generations – North America and Europe
Sonic Generations: White-Time and Space - Japan

Other Names (Nicknames): Generations

Release Dates:
November 1, 2011 – North America and South Korea
November 3, 2011 - Australia
November 4, 2011 - Europe
December 1, 2011 - Japan

Quality: Seventh generation Action Platformer

Game System(s): Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox 360

Also released on: PC, Nintendo 3DS (as a somewhat different game)

Developer(s): Sonic Team

Publisher(s): SEGA

Character Introductions: None.

Region Game Takes Place On: Various locales in Sonic's past and present timeline.

Concept Introductions: This game is meant to cater to both old and new Sonic fans, so the gameplay was made to reflect this.

Classic Sonic:

His gameplay is strictly sidescrolling with as few camera tricks as Sonic Team could get away with. The Spin Dash and Spin Attack are present and necessary in order to get anywhere. If you're not going at a good clip, the physics won't allow you to move up certain slopes, unless you whip out the Spin Dash.

Also, a few old powerups return as well. The Flame Shield is here, which lets Sonic use the Fireball Spin Dash once more. Yes, it still behaves as a Jump Dash, so any enemies in your way will not be. The Water Shield allows Sonic to Bound and the Lightning Shield still acts like a ring magnet and lets you double jump. The Power Sneakers are back as well, which let Sonic go faster for a while.

You also get a new powerup: the Skateboard. Using this, lets Sonic shred around the zone until he loses it.

All in all, it's the same type of momentum based platforming you remember, with little bits added in for good measure.

Modern Sonic:

The gameplay from Unleashed and Colors is retained, with a few tweaks. Sonic now looks like he's spinning while drifting, and the boost meter can be filled by doing tricks in succession and finishing in a stylish manner. The Homing Attack is back to using the jump button again, too. Lastly, the Light Dash is here again, but you can only use it around specific rows of rings with wind around them.

Misc.:

Returning from past games are missions, but they are done differently here. Both Sonics are stuck in the White Space and have to traverse around the 2D hub in order to locate the gates with the missions. Some require you to beat a ghost, others have the rest of the gang help or challenge you. Whatever the objective, you unlock a song to use in any level. There are also additional skills that you can either unlock or buy with the points you get from playing the game and whooping the bosses. The skills are used like they were in Secret Rings, in that you can equip them to 5 different sets (which you can rename).

Concept Deductions: Every zone here has been changed to suit the perspective of that particular version of Sonic. The Classic levels feature familiar obstacles, enemy patterns and ways to get around, regardless of the era, while the Modern levels feature fresh ways to keep moving forward, while keeping you on your toes.

Main Framework: Differing gameplay styles to represent the three eras of Sonic as best as possible.

Storyline:

It's Sonic's birthday and everyone is invited! As the Blue Blur is enjoying himself with his friends, the party is suddenly crashed by a strange entity, which promptly snatches away the gang and leaves Sonic stranded in an empty world devoid of life and color. Now he has to figure how who hates him enough to ruin his special day!

Along the way, he'll get a little help from a familiar face from the past…

Personal Criticism/Opinion (by Ryan the Game Master):

To be frank, I was expecting this game to do terribly, even amidst the hype. I was expecting everyone to love only half of it (you can guess which half) and slam the rest of it. My fears were valid in some cases, of course, but for the most part, it would seem that Sonic Generations accomplished what it set out to do: a proper celebration of Sonic's 20th anniversary.

Unlike his 15th, Sonic Team had plenty of time to work on this game, as they started right after Unleashed. Of course, they were working on Black Knight, Free Riders and Colors at the same time, but I believe they managed their time well, considering how good this game is. A lot of care and effort was made here, and that shows everywhere you look. The call backs and shout outs are numerous, as one might expect from an anniversary title. Basically, this game has done what Mario does all the damn time: ooze nostalgia every second you play.

Personally, though, there are a few things that seem to be missing. I would have liked it if more levels from other games in the eras had been used, like Chaos, Shuffle, heck even a zone from Shadow or Secret Rings would have been nice. But, you can't have everything you want, can you?

All in all, Sonic Generations is a great game and has served as a fine retrospective of the past two decades Sonic has been around. And let me just say this: if you haven't liked or forgiven Sonic by now...YOU NEVER WILL.

GAMER'S PERSPECTIVE:

Replay value?  Considering all the missions, stuff to unlock and online stuff, it'll be a long time before you'll be done with this game. And let's not get started on the modding PC users are doing…

Graphics?  Sonic Team continues to raise their bar with amazing visuals and detail. Everything looks frickin' sweet and represents their specific era very well.

Music & Sound Effects?  Naturally, one would expect a buttload of epic remixes to an already awesome library of Sonic music. Well, Jun and the gang deliver in style here. From Green Hill to Planet Wisp, it's hard to find a bad song in this game. But, if there's a certain song that you have to have, just use your console's custom soundtrack feature.

Storyline?  And, here is, fittingly, the weakest part about Generations. The story is too compact. They had potential for an epic tale here and it was dropped in favor of simplicity.

*cue level completion jingle*

OVERALL RANK? I give Sonic Generations an A.