It's been a while since we had a Sonic game this good. And all Sega needed to do was to listen to its fans.
Story 7/10
We've all seen what Sonic games will become if Sega tries to make a story too complicated for itself. So they decided to over-simplify things a bit. Over-simplifying being the keyword here.
Sonic's friends have arranged a surprise party for the blue blur. But some odd force sucks the whole bunch, including Sonic, into a weird universe of nothingness. Sonic rescues his friends one by one... by running through levels at top speed. Remember, anything works in Sega's world.Soon he runs into his younger self, the Classic Sonic, who helps sonic by, of course, running through levels at top speed. When the two Sonics have ran through all the levels and thus, rescued all of their friends, they move onwards to face the two Robotniks, the classic and the modern one. The eggheads use the power of the Time Eater, who was the origin of this mess in the first place, to get rid of the Sonics. But the hedgehogs use the Chaos Emeralds to turn super and whoop the Time Eater, along with the doctors. Sonic and his friends are returned to present, while Classic Sonic returns to his own era.
In a nutshell, Sonic's friends are in trouble, he rescues them by running fast, and gets revenge on the ones who caused such an event. It's simple, but at least it doesn't try to be what it's not.
Gameplay 8/10
The refined gameplay of the recent Sonic games and the classic sidescrolling of the Genesis games. No matter whether you loved the original games, or had something you liked in the more recent games, you're going to find something likeable in here, if you're into Sonic games. Modern Sonic's levels are lightning fast and mix together both 3D and 2D sections. You have a wide variety of moves in your disposal, ranging from boosting to sliding to air stomping. Classic Sonic's levels are pure 2D platforming in which most of us fell in love with back in the 90's. Classic Sonic can't do nothing but jump and spin dash, but that's just fine with us.
Modern Sonic's mechanics have been used in Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors already and they've been refined in here and feel better than ever. The sense of speed is incredible and the level designs are mostly pretty good. You're going to need quick reflexes to avoid the obstacles thrown in his way, but nothing a human couldn't possibly respond to in time.
Classic Sonic feels just like the original games did for the most part, but somehow the controls feel slightly more slippery here. And the spin dash is ridiculously buffed up. You can clear some levels in a couple of spin dashes when used correctly. It literally blasts Sonic into unknown dangers at a frightening speed. So unless you know whether or not there's a bottomless pit coming up, using the spin dash is a pretty risky choice.
There really isn't much more to the gameplay, except for a few bosses, which are great, except for the very last one. The Time Eater will be one of the most frustrating bosses you've fought in a long time.
Graphics 9/10
The visual world of Sonic Generations is really colorful and good-looking. All the models and levels have been nicely detailed. Some special effects do seem pretty decent, particularly the ones the Time Eater splurges around, but overall the game looks very pretty. Especially when you're dashing through all that beautiful scenery without getting a chance to stop and marvel at the sights.
Sound 9/10
Whether a Sonic game is great or anything but that, the soundtracks have always been brilliant, and Generations is no exception. All of the tracks in the game are remixes of the catchy tunes from previous games, and others have been left as their original selves. There are over 80 unlockable tracks in the game, and you can customize which tracks play on which levels. It's a really nice gesture from Sega and we all should appreciate it.
The voice acting in the previous games has always been pretty decent or plain bad, but ever since they changed a majority of the actors, the cutscenes have been actually pretty enjoyable to watch. They crack a joke or two here and there, but I don't think Sonic should earn his lunchmoney through comedy.
The sound effects are a mix of the original weird noises and the dynamic wooshes and splashes of the modern games, and they blend in real nicely.
Length 7/10
9 modern levels and 9 classic levels, a total of 7 bosses and a truckload of unique missions. In order to clear the game, you'll have to clear all the levels, beat all of the bosses, and complete a minority of the missions. You can easily do all this in a couple of hours, but that would mean you'd miss the rest of the missions. For once, the missions aren't just hassles of "Get from point A to point B in a level you've already cleared, but with a time limit" or "Collect this and that many rings before time runs out". Well, there are a bunch of those too, but most of the missions are unique and take place in largely modified versions of the actual levels. Clearing those missions unlock you artwork of the game and pieces of the ever-so-large-soundtrack. After you've done all that, you can go online and set your record times for each level in the leaderboards. Sorry, no multiplayer racing mode or anything like that. The game lasts just as long as you can find enjoyment in mindless running.
I really enjoyed Generations and I have played it every now and then when I've had the time, and I think it's worth the 30€ it's being sold in the PSN. Whether you're a newcomer to the Sonic- series or a long-time fan, Generations delivers the magic touch.
Pros and cons:
+ The game is just fun to play
+ A huge soundtrack of great tunes
+ Looks very pretty
- Classic Sonic's controls might take some time to get used to
- The game could've been slightly longer