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At set points the party divides into its individual members to go to work on a conundrum as a team. Faced with a broken pipe network, you can send Amy and Tails to channel power into a nearby crane, and move Rouge to hook the pipe before Sonic activates the machine. Hardly taxing, but impressive to see some thought going into aspects that RPGs usually overlook in favor of battling.
Fights begin when you wander into on-screen foes (random battles have been consigned to the RPG cliche bin) and switch to a 3D view not dissimilar to the DS version of Final Fantasy III. The scrapping itself, however, has more in common with the Mario & Luigi RPGs. Although each round begins with a dry menu selection, the action is augmented with timing minigames and reaction tests.
It’s great how Bioware have streamlined the RPG aspects to keep up with our speedy hero without harming the depth we demand from the genre. There’s still a big focus on leveling up stats - speed is particularly useful as it grants extra actions during each battle turn - and item equipment is present in a range of natty trainers for Sonic to wear down into rubber pancakes. And a stint chopping wood shows side quests play a part, earning you rings - the in-game currency.
Perhaps most impressive is how Bioware have tackled the major Sonic hurdle - narrative. Usually composed of inane skater-speak, stories and character work haven’t been Sonic’s strongpoint. Bioware promise to address this with a tale that begins as a simple ‘oh no, Knuckles has disappeared’ but grows into something much darker, with a promised twist that splits the game into two different acts. Possible hint: Tails dies?
If you’ve played Mass Effect or Knights of the Old Republic, you’ll understand Bioware’s dedication to building exciting mythologies (indeed, KOTOR’s Star Wars offering is better written than the films) and we expect them to work wonders with Sonic’s cast. Just 15 minutes of play saw Sonic consider leaving Knuckles to rot - a choice on the conversation tree that can’t, sadly, be acted out - and a bizarrely adult moment in which prim Amy says to mammalian slattern Rouge the Bat, “You’re a tramp!” Late 2008 can’t come soon enough for us. If only to hear what Amy has to say about Vector the crocodile.
Mar 19, 2008
