Sonic Gems Collection

Sonic Gems Collection--a game that will be ultimately overlooked. Most Gamecube and Sonic fans will remember Sonic Mega Collection, a game that contained Sonic's 2-D roots, allowing hardcore Sonic addicts to play the big titles and some of the lesser-known Game Gear ones on the Gamecube (and later the PS2 and X-Box). Interestingly enough, despite the fact that Mega Collection was just a compilation, it sold better than many brand new Gamecube games.

Sonic Gems Collection is another of Sega's attempts to cash in on previously released titles. Its main attractions are three of the lesser-known Sonic games. The first one is Sonic the Fighters, a lackluster 3-D arcade fighter never released on a console anywhere. The second is Sonic CD, a great high-speed platformer that resembles Sonic's other 2-D ventures, particularly the first game in the franchise, Sonic the Hedgehog. The reason it was released in this collection of outcast titles was because it was originally released for the ill-fated Sega CD, one of the company's many failed consoles. The third feature game in the collection is Sonic R, a doomed racing title released for the doomed Sega Saturn and, soon afterwards, in a buggy version for the PC. In my opinion, it's the best game on the disc, if a little short.

Most of the other games were released for the Game Gear, Sega's only successful attempt at a handheld. Yes, Sega did release a portable version of the Mega Drive/Genesis called the Nomad, but it was one more trophy for their collection of failures. The 'portable' giant Game Gear was also largely a failure, peppered with bad Sonic titles. Ones included in this collection are Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic Spinball, Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble, Sonic Drift 2, Tails' Skypatrol, and Tails Adventures. Lastly, there are two unlockable games contained within: Vectorman and Vectorman 2. Both were decent games released for the Sega Genesis, probably Sega's only success in the hardware business. Though, one most ask why Sega decided to include these two games in the collection--they have nothing to do with Sonic. At all.

One of the game's more unique aspects is that you can unlock game artwork, music remixes, movies, and cheats with various methods: starting a game a certain amount of times, playing for so long, or actually finishing the game. However, none of these are really worth going out of your way for, so unless you're a perfectionist like me, you don't need to worry about it.

And without further ado, here's the actual review.

Gameplay

Sega wouldn't just release a bunch of crappy games into one title, right? The answer to that is yes. In my opinion, nine of the eleven games aren't worth any real devotion; and the two games that are good are just way too short.

I'll start with Sonic the Fighters. It, as previously stated, is the first three-dimensional Sonic game never released, and it was only in arcades. With the release of Sonic Gems Collection, it can finally be played at home...not that that's anything to have a party over. The game is mundanity to the extreme; the controls are sluggish, and some characters have obvious advantages. (For example, playing through the game with Sonic is a joy ride, but going through it as Tails takes practice). The fighting system comes down to something like Rock, Paper, Scissors, where certain attacks work well against certain characters, and others don't. It's primitive compared to the fighters of these days (Smash Bros. Melee, Soul Calibur II), but it'd probably be better to judge this game compared to the same games of its time (Tekken 2). It was originally released in 1996.

The story consists of Dr. Eggman building a doomsday machine known as the Death Egg II. To stop him, Tails builds a one-seater rocket to get there. The rocket is powered by the eight Chaos Emeralds. (Eight? Where'd the extra one come from?). Deciding that the most powerful warrior should go to stop Eggman, Sonic and his pals decide to hold a tournament to see who is most fit to handle Eggman. Playable characters include Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy Rose, Fang the Sniper, Espio the Chameleon, and newcomers Bark the Polarbear and Bean the Dynamite. Also, during the final fight, it's possible to transform into Super Sonic.

To finish the one-player mode, you must defeat all eight characters (including a clone of your own character) and two bosses at the end (Metal Sonic and Eggman, no spoilers there). Also available is a two-player mode for you and a friend, though that's to be expected. You can control the game's difficulty based on what character you play as; some are easy to beat the game with, while others are headache-inducing.

Next on the hit list is Sonic CD, a 2-D sidescrolling platformer released for the failed Sega CD (and later, the PC). It is a single-player adventure just like the original Sonic the Hedgehog. While it's missing familiar pals Knuckles and Tails, Eggman makes a return. Interestingly enough, this was the first game Metal Sonic and Amy Rose made an appearance in. The story? There exists a rock called the Little Planet that orbits Sonic's world. Time flunctuates wildly on the Little Planet. There are also mystical gems known as the Timestones on this planet that allow whoever collects all of them to control the passage of time. When Eggman finds out about these stones, he chains the Little Planet to the surface of his own world to prevent it from escaping. He then sets up many bases across the planet's surface. When Sonic finds out about Little Planet being nearby, he decides to check it out, accompanied by his number-one fan, Amy Rose. However, it doesn't take long for Metal Sonic, a metallic clone of Sonic created by Eggman, to kidnap her. If Sonic wants to save Amy, he'll have to find a way to stop Eggman's nefarious plans!

As far as gameplay goes, Sonic CD is chock-full of good times. You just run to the right, getting dizzy from Sonic's high speed. Occasionally, you'll have to slow down to get past some of the obstacles, but otherwise, you'll enjoy not even being able to tell where you're going. Enemies require a simple jumping into (not on, a'la Mario). Some bosses may take a specific technique, but you'll never really find yourself having any trouble with them. Exlusive to this title is the feature to travel through time; there are four versions of each stage: past, present, a good future, and a bad future. You actually have control on what sort of future the Little Planet has. Overall, it's probably the easiest 2-D game in the main series ever released. And that is the game's main downside.

Most of the other Game Gear games aren't worth mentioning. There are one or two of them that aren't bad, such as Tails Adventures, but the rest are mainly fillers. Unless you're a hardcore Sonic fan, you won't be spending much time with these. They're tedious, boring, and an assault on the ears.

The Vectorman games actually aren't half bad. Think Donkey Kong Country plus Contra. You're going through sidescrolling levels, shooting in five directions (none of them including any angle below you, which is a detraction in my opinion). You kill enemies, pick up power-ups, rack up points, and face your occasional boss. None of them are really hard, but the game itself will take you a few tries to finish, especially the more complex levels.

Gameplay Scores:
Sonic the Fighters: 6 out of 10
Sonic CD: 7 out of 10
Sonic R: 8.5 out of 10
GameGear Titles: 4 out of 10
Vectorman Titles: 7 out of 10
Overall: 8.5 out of 10

Graphics

You can't really expect a good score here, since three-dimensional games were a relatively new concept when the main attractions here were released.

I'll begin with, again, Sonic the Fighters. The graphics aren't bad, per se, unless you compare them to today's high-resolution, thousand-particle games like Resident Evil 4. The water effects leave you with a taste in your throat. However, they did a good job with controlling light, though the only dark arena is the Death Egg. The characters all have sharp edges, and look like you might be impaled in several points if you bumped into any of them.

Sonic CD's graphics actually won't bother anyone who has ever played a 2-D Sonic game; they're composed mainly of pixel backgrounds and characters. They used the same sprites of Sonic from the past games, although he now has a different shading because of the hardware the game was originally released for. At least none of the other characters have been re-used.

Sonic R's visuals are virtually the same as those from Sonic the Fighters. The characters could all be used as blades, though they did do a good job with the tracks themselves. The scenery will change depending on the time of day (day, sunset, night) and weather (clear, raining, and snowing). The water even freezes over when it's snowing, allowing it to be walked on. However, I have to complain about the giant bubbles they call rain: you would probably be floored to the ground and drowned if you got hit with these fist-sized droplets. I do remember, however, that the game's graphics were great for their time.

The Game Gear titles, again, aren't anything special. The sprites are small, the screen doesn't fit yours, and most of the backgrounds seem to be used in other Sonic games. Again, these don't make the cut, even for their day and age.

Vectorman's graphics are friggin' sweet. It was released for the Sega Mega Drive (Genesis), and the visuals are truly astonishing for their time. Of course, this series was made to counter Rareware's popular Donkey Kong Country franchise, which also featured great graphics.

Graphics Scores:
Sonic the Fighters: 7.5 out of 10
Sonic CD: 8 out of 10
Sonic R: 9 out of 10
GameGear Titles: 5.5 out of 10
Vectorman Titles: 10 out of 10
Overall: 8 out of 10

Sound

Sonic Gem Collections does not disappoint. The music is great, except for the GameGear titles. Read on:

Sonic the Fighters actually has quite a few catchy tunes, including its main theme and several tracks for the different stages. It maintains classic sounds, such as the spin dash, jump, and ring effect featured in nearly every Sonic game since the first. However, fighting games aren't really notorious for SOUND. After all, you're just beating some victim to a pulp, right?

Sonic CD is great when it comes to music as well. From its vocal theme 'Sonic Boom' to nearly every stage, you'll find yourself opening your ears to listen to the tunes. The sound effects aren't much, but hey, it's a 2-D sidescroller. Like fighting games, that wasn't important way back when.

Sonic R's music is AWESOME! Every single stage theme has vocals, though there is an option to turn them off. However, without actually playing the game, most of the tunes sound remarkably similar. The game's sound isn't too bad either. The worst thing about it, however, is the noise of your characters moving. If you're playing as Sonic, you'll hear a repetitive tap-tap noise every time he takes a step. And we all know Sonic likes taking steps--lots of them, in fact. Amy's car sputters and whirls. And worst of all is Tails; no matter whether you're flying or running, you'll hear his trademark chop-chop sound through the whole race.

The Game Gear--again, not worth mentioning. All the music is boring and repetitive to the point where you want to turn the volume down for your sake and everyone's around you. It consists of mainly bleeps and bloops. Yes, the 'handheld' machine was more advanced than the Game Boy, but at least the GB had the occasional tune you could listen to by itself.

Vectorman finally gets a point against him--none of the music is notable. None of the tunes stand out in your head, and you won't find yourself browsing the Internet looking for downloads or being able to recall the tunes at all.

Sound Scores:
Sonic the Fighters: 8 out of 10
Sonic CD: 7 out of 10
Sonic R: 9.5 out of 10
GameGear Titles: 2 out of 10
Vectorman Titles: 5.5 out of 10
Overall: 8 out of 10

Closing Comments:
All in all, Sonic Gems Collection is a solid title. You're not going to want to rent it; after all, you're probably only interested in this game for the nostalgia and convenience. Unfortunately, you'll find yourself only playing the main feature titles over and over. Since all but the most pointless Sonic titles are now available for the GameCube, save Knuckles Chaotix, we probably won't see another collection from Sega for a long time. If you don't have it yet, Sonic Mega Collection is the clear choice over this game.

Overall Scores:
Sonic the Fighters: 7 out of 10
Sonic CD: 8 out of 10
Sonic R: 9 out of 10
GameGear Titles: 4 out of 10
Vectorman Titles: 6 out of 10