Sonic: That was cool.
Pun entirely intended.
Zavok: Your efforts are impressive, little hedgehog, but you are destined to fail as
the fat fool has failed before you.
Eggman: I'll get fat from eating your black hearts, you Eggman wannabes!
Sonic & Tails: Woah.
Growing up, I was always a bit odd when it came to loyalty to either Nintendo or Sega.
So often you hear about console wars and which was better.
But I grew up with Mario on the NES before checking out Sonic on the Genesis.
And because of that, I love both characters.
But there's no question that Mario's had the more successful career.
However, Sonic has been making a comeback as of late with Sonic Colors and Generations.
It looked like he'd be continuing that trend with Sonic Lost World on the Wii U.
Well, he does...kinda.
Let me explain.
Sonic Lost World's story is typical of the series.
Dr. Eggman is up to no good, and it's up to Sonic and Tails to stop him.
But Eggman has help this time in the form of the Deadly Six though they must be forced
to help him through the use of a specific device.
When Sonic accidentally frees them, they take over Eggman's robot army and set out to destroy
the world.
In desperation, Sonic and Eggman have to team up to take them down.
The story itself is about as basic as it can get, but I still found it enjoyable; mainly
because the interactions between Sonic, Tails, and Eggman made for an interesting dynamic.
It's a nice little bit of character development to see Tails hurt by Sonic's trust in the
doctor over his own mechanical knowhow.
The Deadly Six themselves are kind of one-note though.
Some are fun like the cool threat of leader Zavok or the hilariously over-the-top sadness
of Zor.
But the others are just kind of dull though they do sneak in a few good lines here and
there.
But a game like Sonic Lost World stands or falls based on its gameplay.
Much has been made of the new control scheme.
Sonic only does a light trot when pushing the control stick.
The right trigger launches him into a run.
The left trigger charges his spin dash and can be held down again after releasing it
to keep up the momentum.
While it does take some time to get used to, the control method does work.
But Sonic himself feels a little imprecise.
Sometimes it feels like he stops on a dime, other times it feels like he's sliding on
butter.
And I'm not sure which conditions cause which.
I adapted though because it wasn't that big of a problem.
And the new parkour system is a lot of fun even though it's surprisingly underutilized
except in specific sections that outright require it.
It's a good new mechanic that I hope to see return in future games.
I can't say the same about the Wisps, which is odd to say because I loved the little guys
in Sonic Colors.
They added variety to the game and allowed you to explore inaccessible areas for fun
secrets.
In Lost World, however, they are a complete pace-killer.
The game grinds to a halt to explain to you exactly how to use the Wisp using gimmicky
Game Pad control, and they rarely lead you to anything other than more rings.
And that's pointless as well since earning 100 rings no longer gets you an extra life.
It just gives you the sense that they were added in because they were popular in Sonic
Colors, and they had to cram Game Pad controls in there somewhere.
Maybe it's just me, but I grew even more irritated with them when I realized there was no story
explanation for their return either.
It's just bam, here they are.
And I truly feel that the game didn't need them either.
There's a ton of variety to be found in Lost World.
3D levels, 2D levels, levels that transition between the two, Sonic on rails in a gameplay
style similar to the mine carts in Donkey Kong Country, Sonic in a snowball, Sonic stealth,
Sonic flying through the air, there's just a ton to do here.
The problem is that not all of these work.
In fact, some are so frustrating that I was ready to tear my Game Pad in half.
It's a shame too because when the level designs work, they are truly brilliant.
But when they don't, they're some of the worst level design I've seen in quite some time.
It makes me sad too because I saw so much potential in this game.
I still do.
As I said there are levels where I just had a complete blast.
It was great to see the return of classic Badniks, and I even found Sonic's new kick
move surprisingly useful.
The game is even full of boss encounters, two in each world.
Some are clever and interesting while others are just pretty basic.
But they were never challenging.
In many cases, I actually beat the Deadly Six in less than ten seconds.
It diffused any kind of threat that was being built in the story.
But as with most Sonic games, you can always count on the music being good and the graphics
being gorgeous.
There are some really classic tunes here that just get you pumped for a level or put a smile
on your face.
Surprisingly, there aren't any vocals either, just pure instrumentals that give the game
a vibrant, classic feel without becoming chained to the past.
Voice acting ranges between fantastic like with Sonic, Tails, Eggman, and Zavok to almost
irritating with Zazz and Amy.
Overall though, I did like it.
As I said, the graphics are also brilliant.
Every level is bright and colorful without a hint of slowdown.
And while many compared Lost World to Super Mario Galaxy, they never felt similar to me.
Though the level designs themselves could have been similar, Sonic never played with
gravity the same way that Mario did.
Instead the focus was on interesting geometry for the levels or an excuse to fill the game
with pits.
That underlines perfectly that this isn't a game about Sonic going fast; it has a much
greater focus on Sonic the platformer.
There are alternate paths to find, and you have to be careful as you're navigating certain
sections.
I personally love the style, but I know a lot of people prefer Sonic for his speed.
While it is there, don't expect any levels like those in Sonic Unleashed or Generations.
Like most Sonic games, it's not exactly long with only four levels per world.
There are bonus levels that pop up, but they'll only add an hour to the playtime at most.
Of course, you can challenge each level in Time Attack mode or track down the five red
rings in each stage so there is replayability for those seeking it.
I came into Lost World wanting to love it.
But I found that it lacked focus.
Too often it was preoccupied with trying new things that more often than not didn't work.
When the game concentrated on being a classic Sonic platformer, it was great.
When it didn't, it was pure frustration.
There's a good game in here, but all of the bad ideas make it simply average.
It's for that reason, I'm afraid I have to give it 3 stars out of 5.
If you're a fan of Sonic or platformers in general, try it out for yourself.
Otherwise, I can't recommend it.
Thanks for watching and be sure to keep an eye on GameXplain for more things gaming.