Sonic R

"Sonic R gets two Tails up!"

Sonic R features really hot graphics, some classic characters, gorgeous (and complicated!) tracks, and a number of other interesting tricks and goodies. However, the game designers have apparently never heard of Character Balance. The graphics are incredible. The backgrounds don't simply 'pop' into view ... they gradually 'ghost' in; much less distracting. The only bad news is that it's hard to see how gorgeous the graphics are when you're bolting around the track at high speeds! I suggest you play in Time Attack mode and just explore sometime. You'll get to enjoy the soundtrack, too.

You have a wide variety of characters to choose from, including perennial good-guys Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Sonic's 'girlfriend' Amy Rose. On top of these four, there are a small horde of hidden characters, including Dr. Robotnik, Metal Sonic, Metal Tails, Metal Knuckles, a robot I just call Chromedome, and, of course, Super Sonic! Each character has a special power; Sonic double-jumps, Tails and Knuckles fly, Amy's car can go across water, and more. This variety can keep a racing fan occupied for a LONG while.

The bad news is, well, if you're just racing to win, there's no reason to choose any character but Sonic (or Super Sonic). He has the best overall abilities in the game. I know that the title character gets preferential treatment ... but could it be a little less blatant?

Getting the hidden characters is probably the most challenging part of the game ... to get Super Sonic, you have to get all seven Chaos Emeralds, and you only keep an Emerald if you come in first in the race. Tricky, but doable. To get the other hidden characters, you have to find all FIVE Sonic Tokens on a track, finish in the top 3, AND beat the hidden character in a race. You'll NEVER do this with anybody but Sonic (MAYBE Tails. Maybe). Amy and Dr. Robotnik can't even get to all five tokens in the Regal Ruin track ... something else that rankles me.

Despite the shoddy character balance (read 'Sonic Is God'), Sonic R is a solid racer. It's got a LOT of options, and up to three players can keep separate 'files' in memory, to keep track of who has which secret characters, which is great if you've got multiple players to one Saturn. This one will keep your eyes glued to the screen for many, many hours.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99