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Sonic R .:: Sonic R

Name: Sonic R - Al three nations

Other Names (Nicknames): N/A

Release Dates:
November 18th, 1997- North America
November 21st, 1997 - Europe
December 4th, 1997 - Japan

Quality: 32-Bit, 3D gameplay platformer

Game System(s): Sega Saturn

Also released on:
(1). PC - Sonic R PC Version
(2). Gamecube - Sonic Gems Collection

Developer(s): Sonic Team, and Traveller's Tales

Character Introductions: Metal Knuckles and Tails Doll.

Region Game Takes Place On: The World Grand Prix.

Concept Introductions: Sonic R is a Sonic racing game. So the main concept introduction was the gameplay style, centered entirely around the premise of racing. The gameplay replicates any generic racing game regimen, but with all of the Sonic tinges added: jumping, ring collecting, and spring hoppin'.

Concept Deductions: Chaos Emeralds must be collected in Sonic R (if you want to unlock Super Sonic), however, not through means of a Special Stage. They lie hidden along the courses, and getting to them requires going waaaay off course. The Chaos Emerald is hidden in a gateway that requires 50 rings. Other than that, pretty much all generic Sonic game components are deducted because of the limitations and differences of the gameplay style.

Storyline:

          Their adventure had continued on, but soon our heroes Sonic & Tails would come across a monitor on a building. The monitor was displaying footage of a recruit advertisement for the World Grand Prix, the race to figure out just WHO was the fastest of them all. Surprisingly, Sonic was not all too wild about the event, even with Tails incentive convincing. Alas, Dr. Eggman's name shows up on the list of racers who have already signed up. Sonic's decline just as quickly turned into an acceptance.

          After hearing Sonic joined up, Knuckles joins to rival the blue blur while Amy joins for reasons obvious to the knowledgeable at heart. Eggman joined because he found out that the Chaos Emeralds were hidden along the routes of the World Grand Prix. While he is ready to dispatch some of his newest devices of disaster, he decides to let Sonic find the gems for him. A risky course of action and more than likely ineffective in the end.

Personal Criticism/Opinion:

           Sonic R: A Sonic racing game! The idea of a racing game and Sonic the Hedgehog go together just as well as Salt & Pepper, or Ketchup & Mustard, don't they? Sonic R, like all Sonic games (or all video games in general), had its ups and downs. The PC version of the game is enhanced so dramatically that half of the flaws the Saturn version had were completely compensated for… in fact, most of them were fixed.

          It was a racing game (duh) with Sonic as its theme. In spite of the norm of racing games, only two of the characters actually drove vehicles, namely Amy Rose and Dr. Eggman. The rest of them either ran on foot or hover along the surface. Like all racing games, each character has different statistics ranging from speed to grip; Metal Sonic is the fastest character, but has the worse grip and traction, while Amy is the slowest, but has the best handling.

          The characters include: Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy. Eggman, Metal Sonic, Metal Knuckles, Egg Robo, Tails Doll, and Super Sonic have to be unlocked. Super Sonic is basically the biggest prize there is, which is why he usually isn't compared to the rest concerning skill. He has the fastest speed, best acceleration, and even good handling (which I don't see how they were able to program). The five courses included: Resort Island, Radical City, Reactive Factory, Regal Ruin, and Radiant Emerald. Each course starts with an 'R' to obviously emphasize the game's title.

          As for the character introductions? Metal Knuckles and Tails Doll, much like Bean and Bark, were characters that were used once, then scrapped, more than likely never to return. Metal Knuckles has the same interface as Metal Sonic from an appearance standpoint. Except it conforms more to… well… Knuckles. Tails Doll is just weird. Not something a true fan would really expect out of a Sonic game. Tails Doll was basically a knitted Tails plush with a small red crystal coming out of the head. If you use the character, it just hovers along the ground like some possessed marionette. Metal Knuckles definitely would've gone places if theyd've kept him. As for Tails Doll, well, no biggie that he was scrapped.

Let's see some GAMER'S PERSPECTIVE:

Replay value? Eh, it's not that good. If you have to just kill 3 hours or so, then you can fully beat this game; all characters unlocked and courses beaten.

Graphics? With today's standards, Sonic R's graphics would obviously be considered crapola. But back then, in-game graphics of this quality were almost as good as it could get for a 32-bit system. Notice I said almost, though. The graphics were pretty good, of course. But maybe if they would have added some texture shading on the models instead of just element coloring, since that's what most of it is. The textures on the race courses are impressive — very cartoony. Other than that, the graphics are typical for a 32-bit game, especially on a Saturn. The much better PC version of the game had some minor graphical enhancements along with simulated weather effects (which don't look that good).

Music & Sound Effects? By far, the most notorious soundtrack of all Sonic games. Known infamously for the cheesy lyrics. Good thing is, that's pretty much it. The songs themselves aren't really bad at all. Super Sonic Racing is known today as one of the icon Sonic game tracks, in fact. As expected with Traveller's Tales, the songs were composed once again by the Saturn era's music man, Richard Jacques, while the lyrics were sung by European singer T.J. Davis, who was later involved with the Spice Girls — that alone should tell you how bunk the singing is.

Storyline? Storyline is typical for a racing game. The competitors jizz in their undergarments at the site of the race advertisement and there is always that one dude who is hesitant (Sonic, in this case). Nothing big here. I'd say its average, which is never a bad thing.

OVERALL RATING? I rate Sonic R as a 6/10