Sonic 4 Episode 1

October 18th, 2010 at 6:43 am -

I have a long history with Sonic Games. Along with Super Mario All Stars and Toe Jam and Earl, the original Sonic remains firmly in my mind as one of the very first games I ever played. I know for a fact that I am not alone.

So it was with excitement that I downloaded Sonic 4 Episode 1. From the very get go, it is obvious that this game was made for people like me. From the Sonic Adventure confirmation sound as you close the “This game autosaves, do not turn off” pop-up to the original Sega logo, complete with that beautiful choir opening that adorned so many of those games we loved too long ago.

The opening menu starts as you’d expect as well. The logo shows and Sonic pops from within the hoop, finger (thankfully not middle) thrust forward. This time though, it’s in HD. The blue is perfect and clear and the nostalgia is firmly released onto your brain.

This is only built upon when you begin the game. The first 10 seconds of the first level is identical to the first 10 seconds of Sonic 1. A ladybird robot comes at you, so you take the higher path and are rewarded with a TV to jump on. Then you attack some robot fish jumping from below the bridge you have to walk upon.

When reviewing this first part of Sonic 4, it must be said that the developers certainly looked to the older games for reference before daring to add anything of their own. Depending on your stance, this might be a good thing, it might be a bad thing. For me, it simply seems odd. If it weren’t for the beautiful graphics, you could almost believe that these were levels designed in the early 1990s. Despite the best part of two decades, there is very little there that couldn’t have been done in 1994.

I can understand why, as well. With every new Sonic game further dividing the fan base, the developers have obviously decided to play it safe and go right back to basics – Sonic the Hedgehog hunting down Dr Robotnik.

Graphics are spectacular, as was expected. The trailers, unless you have some sort of fancy HD computer motitor, really did not do it justice. All the way through the game, I couldn’t help but long for a HD remake of the original games with this engine. Colours leap from the screen, robots look better than they ever did and the team have captured the feel of each level type without a hitch.

I’m going to make a rather overdone complaint, but one that I feel I must make anyway. The Sonic model is perhaps the only weak link in this new-look shinier Sonic game. I’m not going to complain that the legs are too long or that our hedgehog hero is the wrong shade of blue, both are rather anorak complaints and can be dismissed when considering that this is a high-def version of the original games.

My complaint is simply with how odd Sonic seems to move at times. If you are falling to your death, for instance, then Sonic has a smile on his face all the way down. If you charge the spin, Sonic turns into a 2D spinning ball that would not look out of place in a flash animation. While none of these things will bother you too much when you’re playing what is, effectively, a very good game, they bothered me on repeat play-throughs once the excitement of a new Sonic had worn off.

The best compliment that I can give 4 is that is is a worthy sequel to the original games. It really is. Other than in a few small things, you play this in the same way you would the original Sonic. With that said, this is definitely a sequel to Sonic 1. Not having Tails as a potential co-op partner may have ruined the ‘back-to-basics’ thing that the developers have gone for, but playing without him makes it feel like an obvious omission. Similarly, there were improvements made on Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles that would not have been amiss in Sonic 4.

Instead, I feel they’ve taken a step backwards. To an avid Sonic fan, almost everything here will feel familiar. At first, seeing references to older levels is exciting, but by the end of the game you don’t feel like you own anything new, just a greatest hits collection in the same vein as the recent XBLA Castlevania outing.

Even the boss fights are variations on the classic boss fights. They start off identical, in fact, and then are twisted up a little bit. Since they decided to bring back the classic bosses, I can think of no better way to do it than the way in which they chose to. It allows for a brief burst of Nostalgia, something this game preys upon, and catches you off guard with a new move. You must learn to adapt quickly.

As with the original games, your objective is to get from A to B as quickly as possible. Playing as Sonic, you can get from A to B very quickly – the element of speed is presented very well. The Homing Attack, from Sonic Adventure onwards, is also represented very well, but makes some of the game a little too easy. The spin is in the game, of course, but I can safely say I have only ever used it two or three times and I’m not sure there’s ever a time when using the spin would be a better option than using some other move in Sonic’s arsenal.

A special mention must be made of the Special Stages. A Sonic staple, they of course make a showing this time round. At first glance you would be forgiven for mistaking them for the Special Stages from Sonic 1. They are fundamentally different, in that you move the stage instead of moving Sonic.

When I heard this, all sort of alarm bells went off in my head. Why would they change that? Sure, controlling Sonic in those mazes could get a little awkward at times, but there was a real skill behind it that never failed to amaze the person who you were doing it for.

There is a whole new element of skill in controlling the stage itself, rather than Sonic and it doesn’t suffer for the change at all. It takes away the element of panic that I used to feel every time I was within a screen and a half of one of the red exit balls in the original Sonic, but it adds an element of exploration, almost.

Musically, there is nothing that is as memorable as from the glory days of the Megadrive. Everything seems like pure background. What is nice is hearing the occasional snippet of music that we’ve heard before. When you’re about to drown, once you’ve collected a life or in the background of the Special Stage.

Sonic 4 Episode 1 was always going to split critics and fans alike. It’s a Sonic game, a classic series that people feel very defensive of. I admit to feeling surprised that Sega would risk reviving the old series, if only because they could never have pleased everybody.

I’m feeling fairly pleased, and I think the vast majority of people who play will as well.

I’d like to think that Episode 1 is the hook that Sega is using to grab interest and that Episode 2 will be a far more experimental game. We shall have to wait and see.

8/10