RipTen Review: Sonic Colors (DS)
Sonic Colors for DS takes Sonic back to his side scrolling roots unlike the Wii version which mixes side scrolling and 3D elements. This is, however, a good thing and it really makes Sonic Colors feel like a classic Sonic title.
The story is virtually the same in this game as in the Wii version. It is, however, watered down. Basically Dr. Eggman has built a space station amusement park to make up for his wrongdoings. This is all a front though as the space station is really using tractor beams to pull in, and control, other planets.
One planet is home to a species known as the Wisps. These Wisps have tremendous power and Dr. Eggman is trying to capture them to harness their energy. It’s not long before Sonic and Tails come to investigate.
As mentioned earlier, Sonic Colors plays much how an old Sonic title would. The game is fast and there are numerous branching paths to discover. The main twist with this title is the addition of the Wisps. Sonic can run into various Wisps within the game and then use their powers. These powers can turn Sonic into a drill, a laser, a vicious gas cloud, and more. The idea of Wisps may seem like a gimmick but I think they are a great addition to the title.
Most of the Wisps are also not available from the start. Going to a new world for the first time allows the unlocking of a new Wisp. Theses Wisps are then thrown back into previous stages giving the game some replay value. Also adding to the replay value is the addition of Red Rings to find in each Stage. These Rings are hidden throughout each Stage and only the most dedicated of players will get them all. Sadly I didn’t feel compelled to go back and get these Red Rings - viewing them as what I feel is a lame reward for doing so much work.
After completing certain stages players are also given a Bonus Stage where the view is shifted behind Sonic’s back. Players then use the stylus to move Sonic around in an attempt to collect balls of a certain color. Successful completion of these stages awards players with a Chaos Emerald. These stages are fun and remind me of the Bonus Stages from Sonic 2.
Sonic Colors also offers several Challenge Stages. These Stages start off by having Sonic run into various characters from his past. Some of which I’ve never even heard of before and others I just know are obscure. Sonic is then asked to play one of the past regular Stages with a certain condition. These range from beating the level in a certain amount of time, killing X number of enemies before the time runs out, saving X number of Wisps, etc.
While these Challenge Stages are a welcome addition I wish the game had more regular ones. Sonic Colors only has 12 regular Stages. As I went through the game I made sure to complete all of the 18 Challenge Stages as well, but remember they just have you going back to the regular Stages to complete certain conditions. The game also has separate Stages for each boss fight, about seven in all. Completing the game, with Challenge Stages, probably took me three to four hours – so the game is sadly extremely short.
Sonic Colors has an online mode where players can race to complete stages against one other via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. This mode is fun – that is, if you can find an opponent.
Overall I felt that Sonic Colors wasn’t a bad game at all, in fact, it’s great. It just wasn’t very long. If a sequel is to be made I’d love to see more regular Stages and less Challenge Stages. The Challenge Stages are a good addition but they just seemed to be a bigger part of this game than the main Stages. Regardless, Sonic fans should not skip this game.
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Here’s the rundown:
+ Classic Style Sonic Action
+ Wisps Add A Nice Twist To The Formula
- Very Short
- Poor Replay Value
Sonic Colors was developed by Sonic Team and Dimps and was published by Sega for the Nintendo DS. The game was released in North America on November 16, 2010 with an MSRP of $29.99 USD. The reviewer played the game until completion. The publisher provided the copy used for this review.
