"The Best Sonic Game in a Long Time."

In early 2006, Sega announced that their long time mascot Sonic the Hedgehog would be returning in his next-generation debut. The game, simply named “Sonic the Hedgehog”, was to be a return to the classic gameplay style the fans of the series had been asking for since the launch of the Dreamcast. With 2006 drawing to a close, Sonic the Hedgehog was finally released to awaiting fans, but does it live up to Sega's promises of a return to glory?

The first noticeable thing about Sonic 2006 is that Sonic Team has listened to the fan's demands to play as their favourite characters, offering up the largest selection of controllable characters to date. This allows people to take control of no fewer than nine different characters, from mainstay Miles “Tails” Prower to the recently created Blaze the Cat.

The three main characters, Sonic, Shadow and Silver all control in similar ways, but have very different play styles that seem like homages to other classic 3D platformers. For example, when you take control of the cold, mysterious Shadow, levels usually revolve around vehicle platform and combat in a similar way to the excellent Jak series. The nervous but lovable Silver has levels that revolve around his psychic abilities, reminiscent of Tim Schafer's cult classic Psychonauts. Silver has to solve puzzles to progress, with the game pulling many tricks to keep you guessing. For example, in one desert level, the sand between platforms goes from being solid in one room, to deadly quicksand in another without any warning. It is elements like this that requiring a keen memory at all times, and help make this one of the most challenging Sonic games ever made. It goes without saying that fans of either Jak or Psychonauts will feel extremely at home with this game, which will surely help bring in new fans of the blue wind.

Sonic's gameplay remains virtually untouched from the previous entries in the series, the only difference being that he both runs and jumps more slowly, in order to finally solve the longstanding complaints that Sonic's speed makes precision control hard in a 3D world. Fans of speed will not be disappointed, however, as when Sonic needs to be somewhere fast, he lets out a cry of “I GOTTA SPEED UP”, triggering a kind of mini-game where Sonic runs automatically. In these sections players must direct him left and right to avoid obstacles. To add to the feeling of extreme speed, Sonic becomes wildly uncontrollable, and one wrong move can send him crashing into a wall or plummeting to his death.

The Adventure Fields from Sonic Adventure make a triumphant return in Sonic 06, with impressive, wide open cities for Sonic to explore between missions. As finding your way around these large areas to find your next goal can be tricky, a mini-map appears in the top right corner, showing the locations of NPCs and level warps in the close vicinity of your character. Should you need to see an overall map, one is displayed on every loading screen, giving you plenty of time to work out where you need to go to start the next level.

Further adding to the nostalgic theme of the game, Sega has made it so that the different sections of levels abruptly end, and new sections begin with little or no explanation of the transition. This will surely appeal to fans of the early Sonic games, where he would seem to travel instantly from green hills to water ruins.

Sonic 06 boasts breathtaking cutscenes that wouldn't seem out of place in a Final Fantasy game, showcasing smooth animation with explosive action. The cutscenes also serve to develop the characters to levels unseen in previous entries in the series, showing that underneath Sonic's carefree exterior is a caring person who just wants to help the world. Scenes such as Sonic and Princess Elise running hand in hand through a meadow are so beautiful that they must be seen to be believed.

In summary:

Sonic the Hedgehog marks a fantastic return to form for our favourite blue blur. After several games criticised by fans for their declining quality, Sega have finally listened to complaints and created a game worthy of being called an instant classic. Though some feared that this game would just be a further slip into mediocrity, those fears have been avoided. In fact, it is possible that Sonic 2006 is one of the best Sonic games ever made, boasting simple but effective gameplay with a huge lifespan. Rewards, from Xbox Gamerpoints, to hidden option menus will keep you coming back for more for months to come.

Every fan of Sonic the Hedgehog should own this game.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 01/02/07