Welcome back Sonic, but I believe you forgot something
So Sonic 4 launched today on PSN and XBLA. I downloaded it eagerly to see the return of the 2D Sonic of old and it all seems to be there, gorgeous to look at, runs super smooth and some classic music/sound effects. But something is missing. The game just doesn’t feel right to play.
Before playing Sonic 4, I turned on Sonic 1 on XBLA and had a quick blast, everything flows and feels great. Yet once I started Sonic 4 it quickly becomes apparent that even though the game is fun, it just isn’t right. The missing ingredient in this gaming pie is…….physics. Sonic in Sonic 4 is not the Sonic from the previous 2D home console Sonic games, his moves are sluggish, he takes longer to shift into gear and stops dead when you let go of the d-pad. It feels so wrong and unnatural.
I’m not saying this is a bad game by any stretch but you can really feel how big of a part the physics of Sonic the Hedgehog played in making the original games so special.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
