While this may be the fastest Sonic game to date, the inclusion of the Werehog pins this game down from being as good.
Well, to start, Sega did manage to make the hedgehog extremely fast. So much so that he is actually able to go up to 300 miles per hour. That is achieved through an ability Sonic has, known as the Sonic Boost. If your Ring Meter is filled, which is done by collecting Rings or defeating enemies, you will dash forward with greater speed and be able to destroy anything that stands in your path. Though this may sound like a great idea, it is actually what presents many of the games problems. When you're going too fast, you're more than likely to run into a wall of spikes or accidently fall off course. This will happen to you many times throughout the game, so you'll have to be patient and memorize the level layout.
Sonic also has many other new abilities as well as some of his old ones. Sonic can still grind rails and dash across rings as well as Homing Attack off of aligned enemies. Sonic can now drift across corners known as the Sonic Drift. By pressing either one of the two triggers on the controller, you'll be able to sharply turn a corner as well as fill up the Ring Meter while doing so. It's a great addition, as it's really fun to watch Sonic sharply ride along corners. He can also do something known as the Quick Step, which, by using the bumpers of the controller, allows Sonic to quickly step aside, which helps him to quickly move aside from incoming attacks or barriers. He can also do a Wall Jump now, which is starting to become more common these days in platformers.
One of the biggest issues with this game is the fact that the Homing Attack, which used to simply be done by pressing the jump button while in the air, has become a separate button. Many people used to playing traditional 3-D Sonic iterations will take a while to get used to it, but it isn't before a second problem occurs. Once you get the Air Boost item somewhere near the middle of the game, the Homing Attack gets somewhat replaced with the Boost. There will be many times where you come across a small gap you'd like to simply get across with a simple Homing Attack, but you'll end up boosting across and many times will fall to your death below. It simply isn't right and it isn't fair that you should die due to the excuse of the Air Boost replacing the Homing Attack.
Sonic games were never really known for their story, and this one is no exception. It starts off with an untold adventure where Sonic has already started raiding on Eggman's fleet of ships, and just as it looks bleak for Sonic when he gets captured by Eggman, he turns into Super Sonic with the seven Chaos Emeralds and continues his assault on the fleet. Eggman begs for mercy, but it was mearly a trick as he captures Super Sonic, and using the energy from him, fires it from a cannon straight into the Earth, unleashing Dark Gaia, a being that was in slumber for millions of years. At the same time the cannon was firing, Sonic was transformed into Sonic the Werehog, and gets blasted to Earth by Eggman. Now it's up to Sonic to put the continents of the planet back together.
Though you will have some fun playing as Sonic in the daytime, nighttime is where the game starts to fall into a slump. Whenever night strikes, you will revert into the Werehog, who in place of speed, has some very boring combat. It's not till nearly the end of the game does the Werehog actually get some interesting combos, but you'll have to fight relentless enemies which become bland and repetitive by the second level using just your extendable fists and claws. The Werehog can also use his extendable arms to get to hard-to-reach places. He can grab onto poles and certain ledges as well as balance on some narrow paths. The platforming is fun at times, but it's bogged down by constant enemy battles that you rarely ever get to just go into a room and just do some simple platforming.
The game has also incorporated a leveling-up system, which is done by defeating enemies and picking up the yellow orbs left behind them. It can be used to either level up Sonic's speed or increase the Werehog's strength as well as getting new combos, though the question lies, "Why are you playing a Sonic game where you have to level up his speed to get the real blue blur out?" It resembles the system used in Sonic and the Secret Rings, though it's less irritating.
The level design is mixed. While all of the daytime stages may be really fast and fun to breeze through, you will die a lot of times during the first run-throughs of many levels. That, in turn, makes just about most of the game based on memorization and a bit of luck on some parts. There are also many quick-time events placed in each level, which is initiated by going onto a specific ramp, and if you screw one up, you'll fall to your death right away. It's fine when at the beginning of the game, it's used to get to secret paths of the levels, but it's a problem when it's the only way to get through the level. The Werehog levels are bland. It's the same process over and over: defeat some enemies, platform for a minute or two, more enemies, and the process repeats. It's rather annoying and makes you wish you could see the light of day again, especially since the levels tend to last 10-15 minutes each.
The presentation, though, is one of the biggest highlights of the game. It utilizes the brand new Hedgehog Engine, which was said to be in makings for three years. The game looks absolutely gorgeous, and the prerendered cutscenes are some of the best out there in the business. In the sound department, in turn of the rock music seen in previous Sonic titles, we now get a soothing sountrack which all fit in well with many of the levels. On the other hand, the voice acting could've used some work, especially with Chip, your new sidekick, who actually becomes more irritating than help to you.
While this may be the fastest Sonic game to date, the inclusion of the Werehog pins this game down from being as good.This game is definitely not for everyone, but if you're in the mood for some of the best speed levels ever, then you should check this game out, but just remember that you'll have to deal with the bad to get to the good.