Sonic Generations (Hands-On) (Nintendo 3DS) Preview

The demo on offer for Sonic Generations was only a small one, with two main stages and a boss encounter. Not one to break the mould too often, it was a case of working through methodically, tackling each level in turn and then facing off against one of the most mind-numbingly boring enemy fights ever.

Considering Dimps has worked with the Sonic series in the portable space for many years now, it was no surprise to see faithful recreations of the Sonic world that has been entertaining fans since originally appearing on the Mega Drive in 1991. First up was Green Hill, Act 1, which is the classic stage that any followers of the platform series will know about. For those in the dark for the past 20 years, however, Sonic must dash from one end to the other, collecting golden rings along the way, leaping over or through enemies, bounding over platforms, working up into a blurred dash and even zooming around loop-de-loops. Should he happen to slam into a crab, wasp, flying fish, or any of the other critters in the general vicinity, all rings collected so far fly outwards, leaving Sonic exposed and prone to death if hit again, so re-collecting as many as possible is imperative. Unfortunately, and this was one of the major drawbacks of early Sonic games in general, this stage of Sonic Generations is over in about 40 seconds due to the speed at which the lead character flies at for its entirety.

Moving onto Green Hill, Act 2, though, definitely improved matters, despite some chronic slowdown and the level length not exactly being considerable in length, despite being long than Act 1. This is where the use of the Nintendo 3DS system’s added depth was well utilised, though. It all started off rather similar to Act 1, with the exception of a rockier edge to the music and a greater level of detail on the visual side, but there was a slight change after about 15-20 seconds when Sonic came to a loop and the distinction in background and foreground was quite clear. This is exemplified by the next section, where the camera angle shifted almost to the over-the-shoulder view from Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition, then quickly flicked back to the standard 2D action, followed by even more impressive isometric views as Sonic jumped aboard a rail and started skating along towards the next obstacle, which required the hedgehog to slide beneath, appearing slightly in the background, before being pushed back to the foreground in an instance. More rail sliding gave way to some level layering, as was found in Donkey Kong Country Returns where play progresses to the scenery in the far distance. Finally, the last section saw Sonic ram into a totem pole, only for it to fall towards him, leading to a mad dash to the finish line for fear of being crushed.

Green Hill, Act 2, definitely showed the potential of Sonic Generations, but there was a heavy bout of slowdown noticed when Sonic was launched into the air and travelled airborne in the test version. What also helped to drag the whole experience down, however, was the tedious boss encounter that had no challenge, nor any real thrill. Fighting against ‘Big Arm’ involved letting the large beast clunk one of its claws into the ground before hitting its soft underbelly, then eventually having to wait until it slowly trundled around the area, whilst you try to avoid its deadly grip or thorn-covered arm. Once truly angered, after a couple of hits, the pattern of swiping changed completely to the contraption hunting Sonic down directly, patrolling outside and then swooping in for the kill, trying to hit Sonic with one of its armoured apparel. Unfortunately, though, waiting around for a boss to come closer, only then to miss the weak spot and wait even longer proved to be a deal breaker and any enthusiasm built up from Green Hill, Act 2, was completely wiped out.