Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II Review (XBLA)
When Sonic 4 Episode 1 was announced many gamers were excited, but when it came time for release it was greeted with very mixed reviews. I think that the game was ok, but far from great. Sega wanted to make amends with Sonic 4 Episode 2 and for the most part I feel that they did that.
In terms of the visuals Sonic 4 Episode I felt just looked plain odd in many places. With Sonic 4 Episode 2 however I think that Sega really have gone all out. Sonic, Tails and co are all 3D models and they look great. The level design I think is really good. Like before there are only a handful of zones for you to play as, but I really do dig the games level design.
I think that Sega managed to capture a pretty good balance of making the levels look like classic Sonic ones. However at the same time they still are clearly brand new and they are far more detailed than the levels that were in Sonic 4 Episode 1.
Of course the big selling point for Sonic 4 Episode 2 was the inclusion of Sonics’ best buddy Tails. Tails is really fun and as I am sure you have guessed enables a 2 player co op mode which is fun. As well as this Sonic and Tails can join together for co op attacks. Tails can pick up and carry Sonic to a high area. Or they can merge together and do a super spin attacks that can damage enemies as well as let them climb up walls. These are nice little touches that do a good job in making Sonic 4 Episode 2 stand out.
One cool thing is that if you already had Sonic 4 Episode 1 downloaded from the Xbox Live Arcade you got a bonus game called Episode Metal that let you play as Metal Sonic. These levels are really tough.
In all while it was a great improvement over Sonic 4 Episode 1. There is still just something a little off about Sonic 4 Episode 2. Is it a bad game? Well no it is not, but it is still just missing some of that classic Sonic charm. If you liked the game then I would recommend trying out the demo of Sonic Fan Remix. SFR plays like butter and in my opinion, is what Sega should be aiming for in a Sonic game.
