Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 is a wolf in sheep's clothing.
The new downloadable game for Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (reviewed) seems to make all the changes that Sonic's fans have been clamoring for: It brings the series back to 2-D. It gets rid of Sonic's crappy friends and makes the iconic blue critter the only playable character. Cute little birdies even pop out of enemies when they explode, just like in the good old Genesis days.
Sonic 4 nails these superficially nostalgic elements, but crashes and burns when it comes to what's really important.
That's unfortunate, because the quality of Sega's biggest series has declined so much over the past decade that fans like me were pinning their last, best hopes to this game.
Sonic 4's main problem is the same one that has plagued every game since Sonic & Knuckles 15 years ago: Very little player input is required. The levels are designed in such a way that you can easily get by just holding right on the D-pad and occasionally jumping.
The few spots where careful timing is required are mostly ruined by wonky physics. The most glaring example is that Sonic can stop on a dime – even in mid-air. So if you jump forward and then let go of the joystick, Sonic will lose all forward momentum and drop straight down like a lump of lead. This, for me, was the cause of more than a few deaths.
For somebody who can put on the brakes with ease, Sonic takes way too long to get moving. Getting a running start feels like walking through mud. This is mostly a big problem in boss battles, where the playing area is small and confined: You don't have enough room to build up speed, making it much harder to dodge the attacks.
Sonic 4 has also given Sonic the ability to literally walk, not run, up walls at a 90-degree angle.
None of these things are small problems. They all affect the game's controls, the one thing that can make or break a 2-D platform action game.
The running theme of Sonic 4 seems to be: "Surprise – you're dead!"
There are more "gotcha!" moments than in the most brutal Japanese ROM hack. I can't count how many times I found myself running along at a speedy clip, only to fall into a bottomless pit with no prior warning.
The game takes this concept one step further when it introduces a pitch-dark level, forcing Sonic to use a torch that can only illuminate a small circle around him. This meant that I had to slowly inch forward – in a Sonic game! – lest I run smack into an invisible foe.
In the rest of the levels, the camera is so close in on Sonic that even when you're not in an inky cavern, you can only see a few inches ahead of you.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 is more than a below-average platformer. It feels like the last nail in the franchise's coffin. If this game couldn't take the series back to its glory days, it doesn't seem like it'll ever get there.
WIRED Pretty graphics. Will make you feel 10 years old again for a few minutes.
TIRED Terrible physics. Gameplay on autopilot. Evil traps designed to catch you off-guard.
$15, Sega
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