Sonic Colors: Is Sonic Back?!

[PorpoiseMuffins]

With all the uncharacteristically positive reviews rolling in for Sonic's latest 3D game, Sonic Colors, I thought it was appropriate to acknowledge:

Sonic is back.

What I'm referring to here isn't the improved gameplay, the level design, or the game mechanics--all of which look pretty great, no doubt--no, I'm talking about the character himself.

Sure, he's still lanky, green-eyed, and long-quilled (although even here Sega's made some improvements--this is no Sonic '06), but he's got character. And attitude. And life. And... well, you just gotta see it for yourself:

[WARNING, massive spoilers if you follow it through until the end]


Chalk it up to Sonic's new voice actor, Roger Craig Smith (who sounds like an ideal combination of Jaleel White, Ryan Drummond, and Jason Griffith with all the expressiveness of White's portrayal) and Kate Higgens as Tails (who actually makes him sound like a boy again), or credit it to the new writing team (all the lighthearted banter and humor of AoStH with less of the cheese factor, combined with SatAM Sonic's sarcastic edge). Either way, this is a side of Sonic we haven't seen like this since 1995.

Sega's been listening, and I think it's finally paying off. So how about you guys, what do you think of Sonic Colors? The new voices? Is this a step in the right direction, or would you guys like to see something different? What's still missing? Let's give Sega some feedback. Sonic 4 discussion is also welcome.

[Spectre907]

Huuuuge step in the right direction. Seriouy, I haven't heard sonic have actual expression in his voice since adventure2. RCS is a great VA, he had me thinking they hired a legitimate Italian to voice Ezio in AC2, turns out he's just that natural with his roles. IRS a real shame that it's nintendo-only though, means I won't get a chance to play it myself

also, baldy mcnosehair = massive win

[PorpoiseMuffins]

I love that Sonic and Tails are just hanging out like they did in AoStH. It's especially fun to see the way they tease each other like old friends often do.

While the story is silly, that has little to do with what makes it work. What makes it work is the fact that Sonic doesn't take it seriously. It was the same in SatAM-- even when Sonic was in a tight spot, he'd turn attention away from the situation and toward either making light of Robotnik or talking about how awesome he was. He stared evil in the face and laughed at it.

Speaking of evil, Mike Pollock also does a great job with Robotnik here. Definitely more AoStH than SatAM, but he's clearly still a respectable threat. And those two robot henchmen... Scratch and Grounder, anyone?


The interesting thing, for me at least, is that Sonic 4--despite trying its best to be nostalgic--seems to have gotten the presentation all wrong: The level environments are a re-hash, the bosses are copies, the character design and animation are unrefined, the physics are quirky, the homing attack is kind of cheap, and they inexplicably allow you to play any level out of order. It's funny-- it's like they took everything we wanted retro and made it new, and took all the stuff we wanted to be new and made it retro (we didn't want a clone of the old games, we wanted a new game that played as well as the old games!).

Yet, I have to say... It's a really good game in spite of its flaws. Why? Because the level design is creative and fun and the pacing is great. It has a good balance of speed, platforming, and puzzles. It's engaging and just plain fun to play. If they could just address a few of those other issues, we'd be all set.

So keep it up, Sega. You're almost there!

[Agent Blaire Fields]

I've watched all the cutscenes already. And I have just one thing to say about Colors regarding it;



Best.

Storyline.


In a Sonic game.


Ever.



Seriously, I loved Adventure, I loved Unleashed, I quite enjoyed Rush and Chronicles. But this? This just takes the cake. The story is like a more serious version of AOSTH; plenty of humor, but without all the...squash and stretch wackiness of that particular show. I have to give credit to the writers - they crafted a very nice little tale for the fans. While I can, say, sit through Adventure 2's halfway boring story almost straight-faced, Colors, on the other hand is actually enjoyable!

I don't think there wasn't a moment where I wasn't cracking a smile or chuckling at the very least, save one or two instances were I was a bit in suspense! And the characters have...character! They aren't simply cardboard cut-out with a few layers of depth. They're 3D, well-rounded characters! They have personality! You can thank the voice actors for that for one. Roger's got Sonic's cockiness down to a T, and Kate makes Tails sound better than he has been in years!

The writing had a hand as well. Occasionally, Sonic and Tails will drop casual remarks to each other that though don't always have anything to do with the threat at hand, give you good insight into the character's personalities. And speaking of Sonic and Tails, the relationship between the two is better than it has been in years!

Speaking of evil, Mike Pollock also does a great job with Robotnik here. Definitely more AoStH than SatAM, but he's clearly still a respectable threat. And those two robot henchmen... Scratch and Grounder, anyone?

Mike Pollock is awesome as Robotnik. He's not Jim Cummings, but he does a great job all the same. And I love Orbot and Cubot. ^_^ Those two are awesome.

All in all, I'm very impressed with how the story came out. ^_^

[PorpoiseMuffins]

Oh yeah, anyone else catch the porpoise remark in the second set of clips?

[Agent Blaire Fields]

Oh yeah, anyone else catch the porpoise remark in the second set of clips?

I did. ;P

[Saber16]

I saw a little bit of the first clip... but I stopped just before Tails's flash back on how they got there, I'm getting the game this Tuesday and I don't really want to spoil it.... in all honesty, from I've seen so far of the story, it seems alright... and Sonic and Tails sound fine.

[Ariakai]

I will start out by saying that I love the new voice actors, they're a huge step in the right direction and I hope they stick around.

As for the game itself, I don't like it. I haven't played it, but that's because it doesn't grab my interest at all. Sonic 2006 did a better job of grabbing my interest than either of the last 3D games have done. This title just looks too short. Unleashed was essentially "hold forward and press a button every so often", the levels were too straightforward and I actually consider Colors to be worse than Unleashed purely for the fact that there appear to be a lot more 2D sections than 3D ones. It makes the 3D feel more like a gimmick than a standard for the genre.

I think this might be a baby step in the right direction, but I hope it doesn't become his permanent standard. Sonic can do better than this. Compared to Adventure or another 3D game with a great story and character development, game play variety, and re-playability, Colors just doesn't live up to that.

I have high standards.

[Spectre907]

I have high standards.

You mustve been crushed by the last decade's sonic releases then

[pacmancdi]

I really don't want to ruin it by watching this.

[Ariakai]

I have high standards.

You mustve been crushed by the last decade's sonic releases then

Only the ones that came out after 2004.

[Elisto Dragonwings]

I'm going to have to watch this later. I'm a little concerned with all the comparisons to AoStH since I really dislike that show, but who knows...maybe that won't bother me. Looks like everyone else likes what they're seeing so far.

[Elisto Dragonwings]

hmm...well it definitely reminds me of AoStH. I'm kind of torn. Personally, I think it's too silly, although not as bad as AoStH. At least the robots are less annoying, not that that's hard. But I really really hate AoStH and don't really want to be reminded of it that much in a game.
And I really dislike the sound Sonic's voice; something about it really grates on me and I have a hard time listening without cringing. Dialog's funny though, and Sonic's more expressive and sarcastic, which I like, so definitely credit to the new VA for that. And Tails has personality! And a great interaction with Sonic! Yay!

Based on the cut-scenes, this game feels like a Sonic game, which is a MAJOR improvement and I'm really glad to see that. It's apparently just not based on the aspects of Sonic I've ever personally liked. *sigh*

[hyperknuckles8000]

Oh Sonic is back.. and BETTER THEN EVER!!!! it has to be my fave 3D sonic game ever!! everything from story, music to gameplay is just wonderful

[PorpoiseMuffins]

I really don't want to ruin it by watching this.

I've so far avoided watching the third set of clips.