E3 2010: Sonic Colors Hands-On
By:
Andre Segers
|
June 15, 2010, 8:35 pm

I had a chance to play through a few levels of Sonic Color, and found myself somewhat impressed--for the first time in years--with a 3D(ish) Sonic title.

Sonic Colors is a platformer in the same vein as older Sonic titles, with a focus on speed and is mercilessly void of Sonic’s gameplay-hampering friends. However, a new crew of energy-based beings has been introduced, known as wisps. They’re really more power-ups than characters, as grabbing them throughout each level endows Sonic with certain powers.
 

These wisps play a large part in Sonic’s latest adventure, as their abilities grant Sonic the ability to navigate the environment in new and unique ways. One such power, known as the yellow drill, allowed us to tunnel through the earth at high-speed, which was somewhat reminiscent of the drill ability seen in the recent Mario Galaxy 2. Another power we saw was the Cyan Laser, which allows Sonic to rocket-off in a specified direction at super-sonic speeds. Although we saw three in total, Sega hinted that several more await in the final version.

The wisps do a great job of adding diversity to Sonic’s staple run and jump gameplay without slowing down the pace. Speaking of pace, this game is fast and controls tighter than most previous 3D Sonic outings, resulting in a very pleasant experience. Motion-controls are used almost exclusively for activating the whisps--a smart implementation considering the problems that could have arose if used for the platforming itself.
 


The demo concluded with a boss fight that took place in a circular arena, forcing us to run up the sides then back down to gain enough momentum to hit his weak spot. However, another option became apparent as soon as we located the Cyan Laser whisp, allowing us to rocket directly into him for a near instant victory.

All in all, Sonic Colors is a surprising game coming from Sega. It competently combines 2D and 3D gameplay while throwing in some rather cool additions that result in a fresh, but still familiar Sonic outing. Keep an eye out for this--seriously. It has the potential to be the best Sonic game in years.
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Background Check: Andre
I’m certainly not the world’s biggest Sonic fan. I never completely finished any of the Genesis originals, though I did finish several of his 3D adventures, most of which felt extremely lackluster (to be fair I did enjoy some portions of Secret Rings and the first two Sonic Adventure titles).

Similar Experiences:
Sonics 1-4: Liked ‘em
Most 3D Sonics: Kill ‘em with fire
Mario Games: Love ‘em