Sonic’s wild ride

I liked the 3D Sonic games more than most people. Sonic Adventure is etched in my mind as a great game, even though I know it has numerous problems. With Sonic Colors my experience was always fuzzy. I didn’t care for the Wii controls in most games, so this is one I really didn’t play much when it was originally released. Thanks to Sega though I can now experience it with a proper control scheme, and I have to say, Sonic Colors is one of the better 3D games in the series. That doesn’t mean it comes without issues, as there are certainly plenty of things it fails to excel at.

Shocking I know, but Eggman is at it again. This time he has opened an amusement park and Sonic is about to take on all the attractions inside. Sonic and his lifelong sidekick Tails go to investigate only to discover that the amusement park is indeed a ruse setup by Eggman to try and collect a host of aliens known as Wisps. That name will sound familiar to longtime Sonic fans and while trite, it does serve as a decent catalyst to move the levels forward. The cut scenes are pure cheese, and the music is downright eye-rolling and I loved it.

MSRP: $39.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PlayStation, Switch, PC
Price I’d Pay: $29.99

Sonic Colors is of an era when Sonic games switched back and forth between styles. Some levels are full 3D going full force, while others switch to the 2D perspective for frenetic movement. There are also the side-to-side levels where players switch tracks to collect coins and avoid obstacles. It is a pretty straightforward Sonic affair and for the most part it works. Revisiting levels to collect the five red coins makes for solid replay and the themes here are visually interesting enough to keep players going forward.

The hook with colors is the aforementioned Wisps. Each of these grant new abilities to use during game play that can spice up the action. Like charging and dashing through enemies. By the end of the game there are so many abilities it makes revisiting levels feel fresh. I appreciated that as I missed a ton of stuff on the first go around. Revisiting levels was not a chore as I felt more prepared to collect items instead of aiming to move the story forward. This is a great design choice for a game focused on levels.

Visually the game looks great both in motion and not. I loved the themes of the levels and it runs at a brisk pace and rarely has issues with slowdown. The loading times on a standard hard drive are disappointing though. For a game based around speed it can be deflating to watch the level card just sit and sit before getting into the action. The cosmetics unlocked in the game also feel arbitrary as Sonic moves so fast you rarely see them. I do love the music though, as dumb as it is, I simply adored it.

Sonic Colors Ultimate is definitely conjuring up memories of the 3D Sonic era in its execution. This game was considered a hidden gem back in the day, but really is just one of the better 3D Sonic games. It still doesn’t come close to matching the excitement of the classic style or even the more recent Sonic Mania. Sonic just works best in 2D and while Colors does some interesting things with its game play, it still only serves as the best of a worse situation.

Review copy of game provided by publisher.