And I mean that in the nicest way possible.
But seriously, when the new Sonic title was unvieled by the former Naughty Dog developers at Big Red Button, I couldn’t remember an Internet hatestorm as big as that in a very long time. Despite the change in appearance for some of our favorite characters, (like whatever the hell happened to Knuckles), some of that anger was quelled when it was revealed that Sonic Boom would be its own series as opposed to being part of the core Sonic universe. Considering we’ve survived the blue hedgehog turning into a warewolf, becoming a medivil knight and falling in love with an underage human girl, I’d say fresh hands on the franchise with no effect on the main timeline can’t be too bad, right?
So when you take away the jarring character designs, all that’s left is the game play, right? Well, game play is king as they say, (who they are I have no idea). After trying my hand at the console exclusive Rise of Lyric, it’s safe to say that Sonic Boom is aiming high where it counts, to the point where I wasn’t even thinking of the hedgehog of old when the controller was in my hands.
During my playthrough, the influence of games like Uncharted was immediately noticable, placing this version of Sonic and friends in the roles of treasure hunters. The demo gave me the ability to switch between Sonic and Knuckles on the fly with both characters on screen at all times. Certain areas can only be accessed by using a particular character’s special ability, (like Sonic’s spin dash or Knuckle’s knuckles). Yes, there are still core mechanics synonymous with the franchise, so each cast member will have a distinctive role in how the adventure proceeds. You might be reading this and think, “Hey, that sounds great for co-op!” Well, I’ve got good news on that front, because full jump in/jump out co-op play is confirmed for the title as well. Now all I need to do is find some friends…
With a much bigger emphasis on exploration and platforming over speed, much of the demo was spent fighting enemies and solving puzzles, most of which needed the crew’s new tether called the Enerbeam. The beam was used for pulling and throwing enemies with a spin of the control stick as well as pulling far away platforms towards you to advance. Combined with actual attack combos that consist of more than just jumping on things and a health bar that’s tied to how many rings you collect, and you’re looking at a huge departure in Sonic’s standard game play to go with the visual change.
And as they say, change is scary, but it can also be a good thing. So far, Rise Of Lyric is looking to be a VERY good thing, breathing some fresh life into an on again off again series. I wish I could say the same for the 3DS version, Shattered Crystal, but the brief moments that I had with it made the portable version feel inferior. Developed by Sanzaru Games, (the team behind The Sly Collection and Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time), the 3DS game acts as a 2D side scrolling maze. Four of the playable characters were available to switch between at once with the tap of the touch screen, including series newcomer Sticks the Badger, using their unique abilities to reach areas that the others cannot. Compared to its console counterpart, the puzzles, action and stages felt much more one dimensional, and felt more like a chore than fresh. When you take away Sonic’s trademark speed, you have to have a solid bag of tricks to back the game up. So far, Shattered Crystal has some catching up to do.
With months left before the release though, there’s plenty of time to do just that. When reflecting on my play time, I feel like Sonic Boom just might be the right direction for the franchise to go in after all. The new ideas that the console version introduced made me excited for what the future holds, but we’ll have to wait until November to see if it avoids the Sonic Cycle.