Its been a long time in the making, and for the most part very much worth the wait.
On starting the game you are instantly hit with a sense of nostalgia as Sonic whips across the screen and the word "Seeeegaaaa" flies out of the speakers, in a perfect recreation of the start of the Mega Drive classics. From here on it is clear what Sega have intended this game to be, a homage to the games that made Sonic the one time king of the side scroller. The four zones that are present in this episode enhance this feeling as each is clearly inspired by zones from Sonic 1 and 2, going as far as having near identical badniks and boss battles, with little twists. Everything looks clean and sharp on screen and it is clear that a lot of effort has gone into the presentation of the game, and looks exactly as you would imagine Sonic 1 or 2 would look if made today. Graphically this game is definitely well put together, if a little lacking in originality.
In terms of actual gameplay, Sonic doesn't move quite like he used to. The physics are not the same as the older games and it does sometimes feel like he is a little sluggish. This however merely takes a bit of getting used to as once you know how to make Sonic shift about effectively everything seems to flow rather well, with a decent sense of speed when he really gets moving. The homing attack, brought over from the 3D games, actually fits quite well, providing a different way of moving through the levels and also acting as a way to accelerate Sonic from a standing start. The level structure also makes use of this technique, opening up additional paths through them, and whilst they don't have the "instant classic" feel to them like the levels in the older games, they are still fun to navigate through and there are very few irritating sections. It definitely doesn't feel quite like the 16 bit games but is still very fun to play in its own right.
The music for each of the acts is again an attempt at hitting the nostalgia button, moving away from the rock style music of the 3D games and back to the old style. Everything sounds fine and each tune fits the act it plays over well enough but I don't think they will be the kind of tune you will remember as easily as the music from the older games. The sound effects however may well have been lifted straight from the 16 bit games and fit in perfectly, from the jump sound through to the ring collection jingle, they all sound exactly as they did 16 or so years ago, and they really help in making this feel like a true sequel to S3&K.
As this is only the first episode of Sonic 4, it is quite short. I have been able to complete all the zones and collect all the emeralds in only a couple of hours, despite my efforts to string it out a bit by only playing in short bursts. This is compounded by the fact that the game is quite easy, with perhaps only the last boss fight upping the difficulty a bit. You certainly don't get a huge amount of game for your money with this, but I can definitely see myself replaying it quite a bit so in terms of value for money I think it is okay. It would have been nice to have had an extra Zone to play through but £10 isn't a bad asking price for what is here.
All in all, Sonic 4 Episode 1 is a very good side scrolling game, and whilst it doesn't quite live up to the Mega Drive classics, it is a definite return to form for Sega and Sonic, and definitely worth the wait. Bring on Episode 2!