HIGH First character maker in a Sonic game? Sweet!

LOW The level design, story, and gameplay are shockingly underwhelming.

WTF Avatars can wear a hat that says “Gamer”.

Sonic Forces has many interesting gameplay ideas and a dynamic character creation feature in this visually stylish package, but is constantly held back by a lack of creative level design, a lack of polish in its controls, and a story that fails to engage.

Shockingly, Dr. Eggman has defeated and imprisoned Sonic with his new mysteriously masked jackal comrade, Infinite, who bends reality using the Phantom Ruby. Now, with Eggman’s tyranny throwing the world into an apocalyptic state, a resistance team of Sonic’s friends must rescue our hero and save the world, with help from a Classic Sonic from another dimension and a rookie soldier — the Custom Avatar.

While this seems like a more mature premise than Sonic usually offers, the storytelling jarringly flip-flops between upbeat and serious, with tone-killing one-liners making things even worse. This incoherence shows that the story doesn’t know how to make players feel about the characters and story.

Additionally, many potentially interesting and dramatic plot points feel underdeveloped, and Infinite, the new enemy, lacks character development and any interesting use of his powers – are they real or just an illusion? It seems like even the writers don’t know the answer. In terms of play, Sonic Forces combines mechanics from previous entries – Modern Sonic’s fast-paced 3D “boost formula” and Classic Sonic’s 2D side-scrolling with the addition of Sonic Mania’s Drop Dash.

All of these elements are easy to pick up, and it can be entertaining to speed through stages while destroying hordes of enemies. Unfortunately, it all feels too simplistic too soon, making the gameplay loop feel repetitive.

Offering some variety, the Custom Avatar character wields “wispons” — weapons containing the superpowered aliens from Sonic Colors, which have various special attacks and powers. Occasionally, the Custom Avatar even teams up with Sonic in tag team stages.

Creating a character is a cute novelty with hundreds of pieces of clothing to be unlocked and seven species options, each with their own benefits (the bird species has a double jump, and so forth). Each Wispon has its own strengths and weaknesses, as well. A favorite was gaining insane speed from the Drill Wispon after mashing the trigger button.

Unfortunately, no matter what character the player chooses, the controls feel noticeably stiff, the running buildup too quick, and the jump too floaty – it all feels rushed and lacks the momentum and fluidity that made the classic 2D games rewarding to master. The stages, while linear, have some interesting obstacles – things like platforms that zoom forward when landing on them. A few even have alternate pathways, encouraging replayability with different Wispons that can aid in saving time or rewarding players with
hidden Red Star Rings.

But yet, it’s another mixed bag!

Most levels are much too short and don’t space out obstacles well. Excessive automated sequences remove player control and agency, and the potential of 3D gameplay is undercut in favor of basic, blocky 2D sections. Despite having 30 main stages, the the experience feel short-lived and repetitive. A smaller number of longer, more developed stages with fully fleshed-out mechanics would be a vast improvement. Visually, Sonic Forces again lurches one way, and then the other. The graphics and art style blend both cartoony and realistic, and the slick animations are a feast for the eyes while embodying Sonic’s cool, fast, and stylish qualities.

On the other hand, the animation during cutscenes gives characters wooden expressions and static movement, which is off-putting and immediately disengaged me from any potential drama. There’s also been a decent effort made to convey the world’s apocalyptic state through its original levels, with giant Death Egg Robots tearing up the city in Sunset Heights and flames burning around Luminous Forest. I wish the whole adventure was as original as these bits though, instead of otherwise mostly reusing past levels to pander for nostalgia — if Green Hill Zone is absolutely required as a level, it could have at least been altered to fit with the rest of the world in turmoil.

Overall, Sonic Forces’ potential for interesting storytelling, gameplay and level design are undercut by a lack of length, depth, and polish. Younger or casual players may enjoy Forces’ simplicity, but die-hard Sonic fans are better off playing Sonic Generations or Mania instead.

Rating: 4.5 out of 10

— Thomas Greeney

Disclosures: This game is developed by Sonic Team and Hardlight Studios and published
by Sega. It is currently available on PS4, XBO, Switch and PC. This copy was purchased as a
paid download and reviewed on PC. Approximately 4 hours of play were
devoted to the single-player mode and the game was completed. An extra 3 hours were spent
on the side content, from a total of 7 hours of gameplay to review the title. There are no
multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E10+ and contains Fantasy Violence.
According to the site: Sonic Forces is an adventure platformer in which players help Sonic
and his friend defeat Dr. Eggman and his evil plans. As players speed through different
landscapes, they collect items (e.g., gold rings), avoid hazards, and use spin attacks to defeat
robotic foes and bosses. Players can also use a created character to fire grappling hooks and
other cartoony weapons (e.g., fire blasters, electric whip) to defeat enemies. During some boss encounters, players can perform close-up finishing blows that knock opponents out in dramatic fashion.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf and Hard of Hearing Gamers: Sonic Forces offers subtitles for cutscenes and
gameplay, and there are hints players can read. Text cannot be resized or altered. Other visual
elements will guide players through levels like button prompts and markers to indicate
enemies. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, Sonic Forces offers fully remappable controls.

The post Sonic Forces Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Tight platforming

LOW The combat isn’t as good as the platforming.

WTF Why can’t I skip these cutscenes?

There are many good small-scale 3D platformers in the genre, including ones we have just recently reviewed, and it seems that Effie has decided to cast its hand in.

The game is a combination of 3D action platforming and limited open-world exploration, with the title character, Galand, using his trusty magic shield to jump, smash and air-surf his way through the world of Oblena.

The premise appears to be Galand telling the story of this adventure to his daughter, explaining that at one time he was cursed for being selfish. The curse caused him to age prematurely, and Galand is seeking to reverse this, as well as to redeem himself by defeating an evil witch.

Effie starts off as a very basic experience, but is immediately accessible due to the very precise jump controls and good feedback for landing on platforms. Soon, a shield is unlocked and combat and exploration follows.

Unfortunately, the combat is in stark contrast to the platforming as the first set of light and heavy combos don’t always connect and the auto-lock that is supposed to line Galland up with foes feels unreliable, with several instances of him being launched off a platform to his death. There is a block, but it’s easier to ignore this in favor of buttonmashing since blocking uses up a meter that can also be used for unlocked special abilities like dashing or a boomerang. These help to lessen the combat frustration, but I found myself reliant on them over the basic attacks.

On the other hand, exploration in Effie is actually a joy since the compact open world has plenty of nooks and crannies to dig around in, as well as bigger levels that give flavor to the world — places like a giant lumbermill that builds weapons and a vineyard that towers over the terrain. Everything has a pastel hue that is reminiscent of ‘90s European cartoon’ aesthetics — solid colors that allow for expressive art, but muted tones in a way that US cartoons favored brightness.

Effie‘s running time is quite brief. There are four chapters, and none of them outstay their welcome. Some might find this a turn-off, but being able to finish a game over the course of a week felt refreshing.

Effie is a short, enjoyable 3D platformer that needs more polish on the combat. That said, it’s a kid-friendly alternative to pick up and enjoy for those who’ve already been through the others in the genre.

Disclosures: This game is developed by Inverge Studios and published by Klabater.  It is currently available on XBO, XBX/S, PS4, Switch, and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the XBX. Approximately 6 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed.  There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Violence. This T rating feels utterly unearned as the violence in question is incredibly mild and all of the targets are ghosts or monsters. The tone is very light and even the vineyard in the game makes ‘grape juice’ and not wine.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. The game is fully playable without sound. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Certain functions are remappable. The Y and X Axis can be inverted.

The post Effie Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.