"Sonic's Debut on the Nintendo DS: Excellent"

So the blue blur has finally come to the DS with a brand new design and attitude. With all the previews of this game, people have suspected it to be "the best since Sonic 3 & Knuckles", and fanboys have donned it as "Sonic Advance 2 all over again." So which is it?

The face of the game plainly shows that the game stars two characters, the familiar "Sonic the Hedgehog", and the newly introduced "Blaze the Cat." They both have nearly exact playing styles, so don't expect Blaze to suddenly fly into the air and shoot rockets or something.

This is quite good for the level design too; they don't have to cater to 5 particular characters at once, they can just focus on playing as Sonic. Each level has some sort of interesting object that will send you someplace like in the Genesis games, for example the second level has a water pressure jet that will send you flying upwards quite a bit. This adventure is also not just a "hold right and press A a few times" game; you'll be all over the place in this game. The game also designs the level so you will have to use "tricks" to get to certain places. They're actually helpful too; sudden boosts of speed to keep the action moving.

The newly introduced "Rush Meter" works quite well in the game. As long as you're on the ground, you can press X to blast forward through obstacles and enemies. The mechanic also adds worth to defeating enemies now since it will fill up the meter.

There are a few bad parts though to the level design though. For one, they could have blocked off a few sections that lead just to completely endless pits so you don't decide to go exploring and end up in one. They don't exactly give you clear hints that you should stop before a platforming segment occurs, either. Rushing through a wall only to find that there was a switch you had to press on the ceiling AND that there's an endless pit after the ledge is pretty lame.

One really appeasing part of the game is the graphics, to be honest. The 2D sprite work for the levels is magnificent, and the 3D models for the characters are great combined with them. The boss fights are something to really take notice of though, since they completely go 3D. I would say that all of the bosses are completely original, if it weren't for one boss being "repeated and given some other attack", but otherwise, they're a completely awesome part of the game. The Final Zone's fight'll keep you hyped the entire fight.

There's something to be said about the music of the game too. I personally like the old Sonic-style of music, but the game's Jet Set Radio style music is pretty good too. Most of the tracks sound original, and it's a pretty good alternative to the past music that's been in the platformer Sonic games. (I still think OYH from SA is the best though.) I won't comment on the voice acting because my bias would be apparent.

If you're reading this review to discern whether or not this game is exactly like Advance 2/3 or not, then let me spell it out for you: This game is NOT Sonic Advance 2/3. Yes, there's a lot of speed. BUT, it isn't all just speeding through some random base of Eggman's that makes this game enjoyable. Aside from the speed, the originality, style, reminiscence, and difficulty are going to aid in the player enjoying this game. I repeat, this is not just some "hold right and press A a few times" game.

As for replay value, the usual Chaos Emeralds are there for Sonic to collect, and Blaze will collect the Sol Emeralds. Once you're done with the results there, you can race for S ranks on your favorite levels in the game. (I personally like level 5 :D)

Overall, this is an excellent game. If you're a platformer lover, action/speed type, a Sonic the Hedgehog fan that isn't regarding Sonic 3 & Knuckles as "the only good Sonic game", or need a good time-killer game that is pretty difficult the first time through, then this game is for you.

Lastly, as a random comment, I find it amusing that gamefaqs spellcheck wants to change "Eggman's" to Germans.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/18/05