As it turns out, a mysterious new creature comes into play and starts creating “time holes,” which take Sonic and with his friend Tails back in time, just as they were celebrating his birthday. Encountering the younger, classic version of Sonic, they both start on a quest to find the source of these time holes and save their friends.
As if one Dr. Eggman (also known as Dr. Robotnik) wasn’t enough, the future Eggman, using the powers of this creature, summons the classic version of himself to double the trouble, and try to defeat Sonic once and for all.
Gameplay
Sonic is all about speed, collecting rings and occasionally avoid being killed to get that S rating on every stage, just to brag about it to your friends. Sonic Generations continues the legacy of the famous hedgehog bringing the best of both worlds.
For this tile, Sega made almost exact replicas of various classic levels from other Sonic titles, instead of recreating them. The Nintendo 3DS version is slightly modified and plays differently than the PC version. You won’t even find levels like Sky Sanctuary, City Escape or Speed Highway from its PC iteration, these being replaced with classic stages as Mushroom Hill, Emerald Coast and Radical Highway.
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As most classic Sonic fans must know, the blue hedgehog can only run or do the Spin Dash trick, but this changes in Sonic Generations.
The modern Sonic, faster and with a bunch of cool moves up his sleeve (Sonic Boost, slide under obstacles, jump off walls) will teach the classic version of himself some of his tricks, including the homing attack that you will be able to use in every stage (even in Green Hill) from the moment you learn it. Hardcore fans looking for that vintage Sonic experience will surely disapprove of this.
It’s been a long time since I last played Sonic, so this game was for me quite a challenge as regards awareness and reaction speed, especially when moving through the levels with supersonic speed.
This is not a game where you can master a stage from the first run. Getting that S grade on every level will prove to be a challenge even for the more experienced players because levels get increasingly more difficult.
Every level features two acts, one for each Sonic, designed to showcase the unique features of both, and a special stage where you’ll have to catch a Chaos Emerald that will be useful to you at a later time. These stages are very fun, but they get harder and harder, as you will need to dodge bombs and maintain your speed boost.
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As you progress, the levels are more challenging. More than once I found myself going crazy over a missed jump, ending between shortcuts or running into the same enemy over and over, every time I played an act. Practice makes perfect and Sonic Generations offers good replay value of any stage if you want to get that S grade or just finish it using an alternate path.
Apart from the story, the 3DS version of the game comes with some enhancements. You can unlock special content and new challenges using the StreetPass feature of the console. Keeping your 3DS in sleep modes earns you Playcoins that can be exchanged for new Sonic challenges, which adds to its replay value.
Time Attack is another mode featured on the 3DS that challenges you to finish every level as fast as you can. Your time can be submitted to leader boards, where you can compare it to results from other players around the world.
Video and Audio
Believe it or not, but activating the 3D feature of the Nintendo console will make Sonic Generations loose that PSP graphic look and give it a boost in terms of gameplay. Turning on the 3D will actually help by bringing depth to the stages, and thus taking Sonic to a whole new level.
In terms of sound, Sonic Generations doesn’t excel. Classic Sonic is silent the entire game and will only perform some basic actions or gestures, while the other characters (modern Sonic, Tails) have only brief exclamations.
The 3DS version also features 50 unlockable songs, which can be played from the collection room even when your console is in sleep mode (if your headphones are connected).
Multiplayer
Playing with a friend in a Wi-Fi 2-player race or challenging the world using a Wi-Fi connection can also be done from your 3DS console. You can upload your scores to online leader boards and compare them to those of your friends. By playing online races, you can unlock new content in the collection room and earn points for your profile card.
Conclusion
If you are truly a Sonic fan, you will probably love this game. Playing many of the classic levels will bring back childhood memories to all you hedgehog lovers. I'm a little disappointed that modern Sonic doesn’t get a full 3D stage to show the real power of the 3DS. At most, you will get a 45 degree shift to show what’s ahead of you.
