Yes, Sega, a company I've already talked about as among my favorites. This will be a deviation from the usual intro post as this is a company that should need no introduction. Their competition with Nintendo in the 80s and 90s is still legendary (only for Sony to best them both with the Playstation line), to this day they are masters in the arcade scene, and their original franchises are nothing short of memorable.
Of all the gaming companies covered so far in this blog Sega is the oldest, founded in Japan by an American veteran who had been deployed there for the Korean War. Their history and the technical specifics of their games and hardware is not something I'll go in-depth about, instead referring to all the other superb sources of information on that realm. Rather, Sega being a company dedicated to games and entertainment, it'll be all about the experience. Particularly with today's power of emulation the rich Sega library is accessible to just about anyone to enjoy in some forms not even possible back in the day.
Even with how far today's emulation scene has come (and the fact that Sega is much friendlier to it than Nintendo), some experiences are still best-enjoyed in their original form. Of the 7th generation home consoles only the Wii is well-emulated (because it's really just a Gamecube with a few extras). In any case either the Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 (or both) are still worth owning for each of their unique libraries, limited backwards compatibility of successor consoles, and that each is still able to stand on its own as a disc and streaming set-top box.
A bout of sickness meant I couldn't join my family on a Labor Day weekend getaway, so the extra time was passed tackling Sonic the Hedgehog for Xbox 360. I have a Playstation 3 also but there was never doubt about my preferred version of this game since PS3 development difficulties plagued the console with inferior ports until the early 2010s. The differences are subtle (this game hardly taxes either system) but the Xbox version is both supreme and definitive as well as the original target platform.
This game was badly-panned and for understandable reasons, yet looking at just the sales figures would tell a different story. Re-released on Xbox 360 as part of the Platinum Family Hits line and offering the sort of downloadable content that would help define optional expansion of Sonic games in the new generation, for its unfinished state and questionable design decisions it would be a stretch to call this game a failure. The gameplay glitches and long loading times are things that just have to be tolerated (unless you opt for the PC fan remake, but I haven't and can't comment on it), but beyond that there's plenty of hours of enjoyment that builds on previous Sonic games and has unique properties of its own.
So far I have only played Sonic's story and the rest of this post will focus on that. He (as well as Tails and Knuckles) feel different and it's impossible to tell whether this was due to design choice or the game's unfinished state. Trying to play this like Sonic Heroes or either Sonic Adventure results in quick demise, yet adjusting to the new (albeit generally more difficult) gameplay doesn't take that long. The biggest factor (and I personally believe this to be an oversight due to rushed development since it doesn't repeat itself in subsequent games) is that Sonic's spin and Knuckles' glide damage the characters rather than enemies, so the first thing to adjust is sticking to attacks (homing or punch) around enemies and avoiding contact otherwise.
Quite a few elements shout out to previous games, not even referring to standard Sonic game staples. Some stages are handled by team characters Tails and Knuckles in a Sonic Heroes-esque fashion minus the capacity to switch on command. Tails has an improved dummy ring attack and Knuckles by default hits hard enough to spawn fire. As for Sonic, he can purchase crystal upgrades (very easy as they only cost rings which are easy to acquire in bulk) that give him new powers, some similar to effects of items in previous games and others which are one-of-a-kind. In one of the few positive elements of the game not being finished, these crystal upgrades can be active continually since the power drain from their use never got implemented.
As for new elements, the top one for Team Sonic is definitely the high speed sequences. Shadow has vehicle use and chaos powers while Silver is the showcase for his telekinesis; Sonic's known for his fast feet and the high speed sequences are the only regular part of gameplay that portrays this, for better or worse. And it is both: while Radical Train (except on Hard) and Kingdom Valley's high speed sequences aren't that difficult once you get to know them, Wave Ocean is still too easy to trip up while Crisis City is so unfair it defines both frustration and reliance on chance. Nevertheless, going high speed is one of the most exhilarating parts of Sonic's game and is the reason why Sonic games are worth playing.
As with any modern 3D Sonic gaming starting with Sonic Adventure 2 the replay value of added mission challenges is here in spades. After quite a while yours truly is close to not just finishing but mastering Sonic's game by getting all gold medals (DLC aside, but that offers no medals anyway). Yet after it's all done, due to the long loading times and occasional glitch effects it'll likely be all one-and-done once all the boxes are ticked. The DLC presents new and unique challenges as well thus is also recommended. Note: no need to pay any of your own money for Xbox 360 DLC if you build Microsoft Rewards points through Bing and cash them in for Xbox gift cards.
In conclusion, while on one hand I understand the criticisms of this "lowest point in Sonic history" at the same time I'm having lots of fun with it. After I finish with Sonic I plan to start with Silver and expect a similar spectrum of frustration to thrill. Some unnecessary tangents aside, the story is thrilling (as is the soundtrack, but that is par for the course when it comes to the Sonic franchise) and needs to be heard through its varied perspectives as with any mainline Sonic game since the first Sonic Adventure. Finally, in regard to Sonic's gameplay I appreciate how lessons learned were taken to heart and set the stage for the first "good" 3D Sonic game for HD consoles: Sonic Unleashed.
SegaRetro, definitive wiki-style resource on Sega history and technical elements of their hardware and software: https://segaretro.org/
Sega Does, a recommended (work in progress) emulation-based evaluation of Sega's console history, from SG-1000 to Dreamcast one game at a time: https://segadoes.com/
Sonic the Hedgehog entry in the Sonic News Network, a fan wiki with special focus on gameplay and behind-the-scenes design: https://sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_(2006)
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