Considering Sonic Generations is the game that solidified my interest in the series, it stands to reason I’d have missed a few games between Adventure 2 and Generations. When hunting for the games I’d missed, Colours had passed me by. I could have easily found a copy. After all, I’d done so for Sonic 06 – the game that is considered one of the worst of the series, so why not with Colours?
The Wisps is what it comes down to. Generations had already given me a bad view of them to the point I flat out refused to believe they were returning for Lost World despite the evidence being right in the released screenshots. The Wisps were everything Sonic wasn’t. They paused the flow of gameplay to power up, with one of the two in Generations taking control away from the player. They were powerups that didn’t compliment the gameplay at all, and from what I’d already seen of Colours, the same applied to the rest of the Wisps as well.
Lost World arrived and didn’t really change my opinion all too much of them. Some were fun to use, sure, but they didn’t feel like they belonged within a Sonic game. They did feel like they interrupted the flow of gameplay less, which did start to warm me up to them. But there still remained the gap of playing the game where they were introduced. I wasn’t to get that original release, despite plenty of opportunities to get it. There just seemed to be the thoughts telling me that the Wisps as they were originally presented wouldn’t produce a good Sonic game – especially if they were the focus of said game.
Then came this remaster. Announced as part of the anniversary celebrations earlier this year, it seemed like this would be the perfect opportunity to get on board with it. And I am happy to have finally jumped on board. Even with plenty of Wisps around, it feels like a Sonic game. A back-to-basics 3D (supposedly) Sonic game. And I say supposedly 3D as – just like with all the boost games – it uses hybrid 2D/3D level design. Unlike those other games, this one feels more skewered to 2D than 3D.
The locations are varied enough, with the opening stages of Tropical Resort – a level I’d encountered through Generations’ 3DS release – being bright and colourful and befitting of being the entrance to this interstellar amusement park. Even from just the experience from the two versions of Generations, it was clear to see that there’d be a lot of variety on offer from the level themes. Which is something Sonic games are pretty great at in general – even when they’re similar tropes.
And… I guess I was too harsh on the Wisps in this game. Sure, there’s a bit of a pause on the gameplay as they power up, but it’s nowhere near as bad as I’d convinced myself – even with the Wisp from Generations that had originally convinced me of such. Also contrary to what I’d convinced myself of, they do serve a usefulness in gameplay by allowing enemies to be defeated or accessing other areas of the levels. A lot more use for them than they ever had in Generations – where they were completely one-trick ponies.
With this remaster, I’m experiencing everything I’d missed out on with it. The Egg Shuttle is pretty much a rush mode, allowing you to play every stage in order until you run out of… there’s no lives here. I guess the Tails tokens you can collect keep you safe from a game over with it. Those Tails tokens are used up when you fall from the stage, with Tails placing you close to where you fell off. They aren’t really needed when lives aren’t a thing (and there’s plentiful checkpoints), but it’s still a nice feature to have.
There’s also the Game Land – a cyber space full of more levels to play through. The difference here is that these can be completed with a friend in a multiplayer experience. The first seven are already unlocked, with Red Star Rings found throughout the regular levels needed to unlock the rest. They’re as fun as the rest of the levels within the game – even if they don’t have the variety.
The bosses are also similar in that regard, in that there’s three types of boss, with differences in how they play depending which world they’re part of. Those differences give each their own kind of fun. The final boss – which is a part of Terminal Velocity is on par with these other bosses. No real spectacle like you’d find with Unleashed or the Adventure games, but still a fun one.
There’s a decent challenge with some of these levels, and collecting everything to get the rest of those Game Land levels will take time, but I’m willing to give it a try. The S Ranks… those might take longer. Even if I’m not doing any of that, I’m still having fun replaying my favourite levels for half hour before diving into something else. A perfect arcade experience. And one I could easily recommend to anyone wanting such.
Images Taken From:
Sonic Colours Ultimate (Original Screenshots)
