Friday, April 8, 2016

How I Rank Sonic Cartoons by Jack Red (Part 2 of Sonic 25th Anniversary Blog Series)

Hi everyone I'm Jack Red, today I continue my celebration of the upcoming 25th anniversary of Sonic series. I figured because in the last part I reviewed so many Sonic games. It would be nice to go in an different direction. So why talk about Sonic cartoons right?

Not counting the ova series aka first movie. There are five cartoons based on Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. Starting as early as 1993 to more recently 2014. All five of them present very different takes on Sonic. Each brings something new to the table.

I could do five long detailed reviews on all of them. But that isn't the point of this blog. Of course not the point is which should be the definitive Sonic cartoon. So I will try my best to say most of what needs to be said. In the end this is my opinion alone not inspired or based on opinions of others.

5. Sonic Underground (1999) 1 Season
Just like Part 1, I'm starting from the worst. In this case I would rather play Sonic 4 Episode Metal than watch an episode of this. I am not kidding nothing really screams Sonic in any possible way. Sonic takes on Dr. Robotnik with an brother & sister on an quest that's confusing. Why because on one end it's clear they must Dr. Robotnik for good. But on the other they're constantly searching for their mom for answers. Which seems to not be done well affecting the overall theme. Sonic doesn't act like him as you expect him. Of course we can't ignore this is partly an musical show. I can understand three different people voicing each hedgehog. What I don't understand is why one guy voices all three as their regular voices. Dr. Robotnik was also horribly portrayed that easily could be it's own blog.

4. Sonic X (2003-2004) 3 Seasons
Easily the most mixed Sonic show for many reasons. The original Japanese version is an great show. Sadly when brought to the United States. 4Kids ruined it's dub so hilariously bad. The only good thing was Dr. Robotnik's voice actor. Hands down this was the closest adaptation to the games. All the characters, chaos emeralds, rings, stories, everything nailed very well. I wasn't an big fan of most new characters. Basically we have an great anime horribly altered & dubbed. I will give them credit for recreating Sonic Adventure 1 & 2.3. Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1993-1995) 1 SeasonThe original Sonic cartoon that almost didn't happen. Around this time we been getting great Sonic games. This brought a lot of things from the games which was surprising at the time. Maybe not perfect but Sonic, Tails & Dr. Robotnik are still done well. This was meant to be an slap stick comedy show. Most don't get it's jokes or wacky animation choices personally I love it. This show does embodies which Sonic's rivalry with Dr. Robotnik is so legendary. Interesting enough some facts originally in this show became actual character traits. For example Tails' fear of thunder & Sonic liking Chili Dogs. Also for being the first Sonic cartoon. I was amazed how good it actually was. Yes like Sonic X, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog are also mixed. But thanks to being an huge part of memes. People constantly come up with mess up jokes in both pictures & videos. Another reason to love this show.

2. Sonic Boom (2014-Ongoing) 2 Seasons

The more recent Sonic cartoon is done in CGI that meant to be it's own franchise. Yes I might not be able to judge it to most of the series because of that. Yet it still does pull things from those games. Each episode may be short but well thought out. Each Sonic character is done very well especially Dr. Robotnik. Sonic with his friends takes on Dr. Robotnik very often as it should be. I actually really enjoy watching this show. However I have two major problems relating to it. So far up to Sonic Boom, games based on shows were great. The same can't be said for Sonic Boom with the Wii U game be really bad. My biggest problem is how different Knuckles between regular Sonic & Sonic Boom. I really hate Knuckles in Sonic Boom with an passion.

1. Sonic the Hedgehog aka Sonic SatAM (1993-1994) 2 Seasons
If you're an Sonic fan then you should already what number 1 is. Hands down the definitive Sonic cartoon without an doubt has to be Sonic the Hedgehog aka Sonic SatAm. This was quickly made by another team within DIC Entertainment as an deal to allow the first two Sonic cartoons to air. This meant Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog got week days with Sonic SatAM got only Saturdays. It's true this doesn't pull much from the games. But damn everything else in this show is really good. Every episode is worth watching with such great stories. In my opinion this had the best Dr. Robotnik in any Sonic cartoon. Sonic is done a lot better from Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. In fact it's so good this actually inspired an long standing world record holding comic book series. The demand was very high for years until it got release in it's entirely on DVD. I only had one problem with this show keeping it from being flawless. In some Sonic cartoons, Tails would help out as Sonic's side kick & best friend. In this show, he was an little kid being protected by the rebels. Despite that issue, Sonic SatAM has such an great opening theme. I highly recommend it to every Sega fan.

I hope everyone enjoys Part 2 of my celebration for the upcoming 25th Anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog. Please keep on gaming, I shall be back soon with Part 3. I want to the spirit of Sonic the Hedgehog to be alive & well in all our hearts. So I'm Jack Red & I'll see all of you later.

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Jack Red reviews Sonic Games Collection (Part 1 of Sonic 25th Anniversary Blog Series)


Hi everyone I'm Jack Red, I owned an couple of Sonic compilations over the years. Officially I played over fifty Sonic games in my life. As an kid Sonic was one of those game series I always held dare. Even now it's very hard for me to not play Sonic nonstop with so many great games. Yes I know many lost interest due to several Sonic games. Yet I felt they are getting more on track than Mario series. Which is clearly moving away further from what old fans loved.

I am here to officially kick off the first of many parts tribute blogs to such an amazing series for it's time. What better way to go about it then reviewing the games themselves. Very recently thanks to an great limited time price reduction deal. I bought all the Sonic games on Steam in mid March of this year. Honestly this is my dream Sonic collection I always wanted. It's so good that even Sonic Mega Collection can't compete with it.

All games included in Sonic Games Collection on Steam as they follow down below...
1. Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)
2. Sonic the Hedgehog 2
3. Sonic 3 & Knuckles (lock-on version of both games combined into one)
4. Sonic CD
5. Sonic Adventure DX
6. Sonic Adventure 2
7. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1
8. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2
9. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode Metal (free game because it requires having both Sonic 4 games)
10. Sonic Generations
11. Sonic Lost World
12. Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
13. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
14. Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
15. Sonic Spinball
16. Sonic 3D Blast

DLCs included to help give you the true Sonic experience
1. Sonic Adventure 2 Battle
2. Metal Sonic Pack (Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed)
3. Casino Nights (Sonic Generations)
4. Metal Sonic Armor (Spiral Knights)

Now I thought of an more difficult yet interesting way to go about reviewing each Sonic game. I will review my least favorite leading up to the one I love the most. I will take my time fully explaining my reasons as I review each one. No body said it would be easy but Sonic prefers danger than an safe route. So why not do that angle for fellow Sonic fans and Sega employees that do read my blog.

1. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode Metal

At the bottom of the barrel is the only free Sonic game in this collection. You must own both Sonic 4 games in order to play this lock-on game. After getting an save in Sonic 4 Episode 1, go into Sonic 4 Episode 2. For some reason requires you to do the first level of it before Sonic 4 Episode Metal is unlocked. Now think back at Sonic & Knuckles with it's lock-on technology. Most were surprised by having Sonic 1, 2 & 3 on top of Sonic & Knuckles. Allows you to play one of three lock-on games. Which I recommend Knuckles in Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 & Knuckles. Sadly I can't say the same about Sonic 4 Episode Metal. This game is really short of only four levels. There are no boss fights or anything we haven't seen. You play as Metal Sonic, one of the most popular villains in the series. This was meant to tie CD's events to Sonic 4 games on how he returned. All the levels aren't that different from Sonic 4 levels. Now you could say that about Knuckles in Sonic 2 but at least there's clear differences with an twist that actually works. Yes Metal Sonic does move faster than Sonic but that's about it. Also there aren't any achievements in this game at all. None of it's hype went further than throwing an baseball at your neighbor's windows. In Blue Sphere's case, it can be boring & repetitive fast. But you can switch between two characters with plenty of passwords. There is no excuse for this why did Sega do this to Metal Sonic of all people.

2. Sonic 3D Blast

One of the first spin off Sonic games that got a lot of bad reviews over the years. Honestly I do agree with some points. I still played worse Sonic games that could make an room full of grown men crying. I like some sound effects from the earlier games are still present. I don't think the controls are the reason why it gets so much hate. Some camera angle especially those you have to jump are difficult to judge. Sonic 3D Blast doesn't add anything we haven't seen before. The bosses are okay but felt they could've been done a little better. Special stages are way too easy that it makes getting every chaos emerald not worth attempting. This game has an strong similarities to an early Sega game called Flicky because in both games you rescue birds. Sonic 3D Blast actually was created to replace an canned Sonic game. An particular Christmas special for the first cartoon had an deal related to this. At the last minute Sonic 3D Blast despite being an spin off took Sonic Extreme's place. They made an Sega Saturn port in shorter amount of time while making Genesis version. Yet Saturn version is considered to be the best version of Sonic 3D Blast. Most hated Sega attempted early 3D on Sega Genesis. Honestly removing collecting birds would've helped the game a lot. I do enjoy Sonic 3D Blast to some degree. But I can't recommend it until you're an Sonic fan.

3. Sonic Spinball

Another early spin off Sonic game from my child hood. The only Sonic game entirely made in the United States. In this game Sonic must get through Dr. Robotnik's fortress pinball style. This also was the first licensed Sonic game as it took elements of the first two cartoons. Surprisingly there's only four levels but all of them are very large in size. All the boss fights are easier than Sonic 3D Blast. In every level your goal is collect all the chaos emerald & beat the boss. Your controls are somewhat limited that's hard to get use to at first. I do like the soundtrack but terrible sound effects. This Sonic game requires a lot of luck. Most cartoon references are actually in all the special stages. Unlike most Sonic games, the only way to die is fall to your death. You can play this for hours with no real penalty of any kind. Some levels will take an while to figure out where to go. I do like the intro & ending of this game. In later ports changed Dr. Robotnik from Genesis era to that of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon. Again I can't recommend it until you're an Sonic fan or that of pinball action.

4. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1

Shortly after Capcom released Mega Man 9 on many platforms. Sega decided to do their take with Sonic series. A lot of questionable decisions occur that ultimately led to it getting ignored by many fans. Such as Sega refused to change the character's appearances to their classic selves. They decided in advance to break Sonic 4 up in several games. Personally The Walking Dead games by Telltale are worth playing over this. I do agree the physics of Sonic 4 Episode 1 are horribly off. They got Dimps the same team behind Sonic Advance trilogy on GBA to make this game. I felt going too classic in design did hurt the game. It's okay to have some clever references but paying close attention to every zone. We're basically replaying zones we played before from Sonic 1 and 2 with some changes. This decision also affected all the bosses who were from those games. Can I be honest does E.G.G. Station seem familiar to an rom hack called Robotnik's Revenge. Virtually identical in many ways I wonder if they stole that idea. By having the jump attack automatic does ruin several areas. As an whole I do enjoy a lot of these levels. I felt other levels mostly some Act 3 & 4 were either rushed or forced. I also like they broke the record of lives with 99 to 999. Honestly Casino Street Zone came off the most official & fun zone of the entire game. You can become Super Sonic but only in boss levels. If you collect all of them, you also get an hint of whose coming back in Sonic 4 Episode 2. I don't care for the special stages as they look out of place & too similar to those of Sonic 1. This would be on borders of recommending it or not. Only an Sonic fan would play this.

5. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2

Most fans agreed Sonic 4 Episode 2 was better than Sonic 4 Episode 1. I like how it told the story similar to Sonic 3 & Knuckles. The physics were closer with better controls. Tails comes back playing similar to Sonic 2 & 3. Except they added some areas you need to use team moves. Which I do like but I felt they should've worked on it a little more. Why is this such an major issue you're wondering? It's no secret Sonic series gets ridiculous speed runs. It's very difficult to attempt Sonic 4 Episode 2 on your own. It's even worse playing with someone else due to how broken the coop system. I mean if one of you keeps moving fast, very quickly the other player loses footing. You can go an entire level with your partner stuck in the air most of the time. What's worse is by playing coop it's the only way to play as Tails. Are you kidding me until now this never was an issue. So why Sonic 4 do we have to do this just to play as Tails. I do enjoy most levels over those of Sonic 4 Episode 1. I enjoy most bosses especially the final boss. What's weird is in both Sonic 4 games, Super Sonic gets limited. Everything stays the same but in Sonic 4 Episode 1 only in boss levels play as him. But in Sonic 4 Episode 2 they did fix that. I do prefer the special stages inspired by Sonic 2 with some changes. An huge improvement over Sonic 4 Episode 1's special stages. You can collect red star rings which in this game is way too easy to do. Metal Sonic appears a lot in this game with most of it being good. The only time I minded him being there was during Sky Fortress Zone. I will say this for both Sonic 4 games at least Dr. Robotnik has the most boss fights like the first couple games. I do prefer zones in this game over those of Sonic 4 Episode 1. In conclusion I'm more likely to recommend this game.

6. Sonic Lost World

I never played this before buying Sonic Games Collection. I took my sweet time playing as much of it as I can. I do like a lot of level designs with some I hated. Most of the bosses are easy & very obvious what to do. Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way right now. As soon as you start playing right now you'll notice Sonic is noticeably slower. This is mixed to me because the game does an great job of going fast when it needs to. In some areas however spin dash won't work much. Sometimes it's difficult to stop when you need to. Either going too fast or slow you could die a lot from this. I do like items are placed at random on your map screen. I also like you can use items during levels to help you out which was carried over from Sonic Generations. It will take some time getting use to the controls but they're far from the worst. I do like this story but I felt they tried making it funny too often. I did like the addition of the Deadly Six. Hidden Zone is unlocked after beating the game. It's weird all four levels in that zone are more different than the last one. I can understand the third act of Desert Ruins being Dessert Ruins. Simply an clever reference to Sonic Colors. They all suck in their own not worth playing unless you need birds. My big problem actually cause confusion with many people who bought it on Steam. For an while even after beating Hidden Zone. I still didn't get any achievements until I looked it up online. You need to talk to Omochao first to start those challenges. What an fatal flaw that ruins the entire process of doing achievements. Basically the best way to fix this problem is start an new game. But it took an few hours to get it where I'm at right now. It's stupid Sega decided to do that with this game's achievement system. Especially the other Sonic games with achievements doesn't do that. I do like Sonic Lost World more than I thought I would. Easily the single best part has to be it's soundtrack hands down. The second best part was Nightmare Zone which originally was an dlc for Wii U version. In this level you're going through several parts of Nights Into Dreams. An interesting fact an very rare Saturn game called Christmas Nights. You can unlock an mini game based one level from the actual game with an twist. You play as Sonic in Nights' world to face Dr. Robotnik as the boss. Basically an totally reversal just happened with Sonic Lost World. I am not sure if I could recommend it unless to another Sonic fan.

7. Sonic Adventure 2

Now we're getting to the good Sonic games. Sonic Adventure 2 was one of the last Dreamcast games in US released. It built on some things introduced from Sonic Adventure. For example Team Hero & Team Dark has three playable characters with each having their own game play style. Tails & Dr. Robotnik's portions are successors to E-102 Gamma's from Sonic Adventure. Knuckles & Rouge's portions are continuing off Knuckles' story in Sonic Adventure. Sonic & Shadow kept Sonic Adventure platformer style alive. In my opinion Sonic Adventure 2 has one of the best soundtracks. A lot of great boss fights with many upgrades for every character. You may lose walking around the real world. In place of that is Chao World that has several areas to work on them. Originally an few distant areas being hidden in Sonic Adventure. One of my favorite stories of the entire series. Also included with kart racing and multiplayer of an few game play styles. After getting Battle dlc, it adds more in it's multiplayer including more characters. I really enjoy most of these levels with an select few I don't like. Sonic Adventure 2 was good that it was recreated in Sonic X both an good & bad thing. Damn you 4Kids for ruining that final battle from that game on the anime. If you get all the emblems, you'll unlock an 3D version of Green Hill Zone. Honestly this is an very good Sonic game more people need to play.

8. Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)

Sonic 1 was one of the first Sonic games I played as an kid. I have a lot of great memories playing this game. Some of my favorite Sonic songs originated in this game. Such as Green Hill Zone & Sonic 1 theme. It had great boss fights for it's time with the final boss to keep your senses up. I do enjoy playing the special stages but I really can't get enough of it's song. Most zones are in three parts usually ending with an boss fight. Some parts of it, you'll need to take your time especially late in the game. Sonic 1 had great sound effects for an early Genesis game. Originally chaos emeralds were six before with Sonic 2, Sega made it seven. Some spikes can kill you shortly after you get hit by them right afterwards. I really can't stand Labyrinth Zone it's an nightmare. Most of it is underwater, filled with traps & enemies. You have to go slow most of the way but fast when you need to. Honestly everything including it's boss fight was the worst part of Sonic 1. I wasn't happy with Scrap Brain Zone Act 3 being another Labyrinth Zone level. But hey no boss until the final level. Sonic 1 is an Genesis classic that even to my knowledge not a lot of people still haven't play it yet. Keep on guys you want to see why so many of us love Sonic go play games like this one.

9. Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine

Oh hell yeah I love playing this game. Originally Puyo Puyo in Japan, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine marked an few things. First an Puyo Puyo game gets release in the United States. Second an licensed game based directly on Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Surprisingly better than the actual show which wasn't common at the time. Every character you face appeared in the original aired episode. Everything about this puzzle game is so good for it's time. It's SNES counterpart is Kirby's Avalanche which was based on Super Puyo Puyo. People in Japan didn't get to play this until Sonic Mega Collection in 2002. It's not clear who you're playing as in the main game. I love it's sound effect with the soundtrack even more. Easily the only spin off game on Genesis with an good enough soundtrack to be compared to Sonic 1-3's. You get passwords for all difficulties from level 2 to level 13. One weird fact actually an mistake Dr. Robotnik's eyes & mustache are the wrong color. In the cartoon he had an orange mustache with red pupils which is also present on this game's cover. However in the game itself Dr. Robotnik has white eyes with an yellow mustache. The entire goal of the game is beat all thirteen opponents including Dr. Robotnik to stop his evil plans of world domination. There is no sign of Sonic anywhere in the game. It's an very addicting puzzle game that will constantly challenge you especially on hardest difficulty. I highly recommend checking this game out.

10. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed

An follow up to one of my favorite racing games. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed kept a lot of game play features. But changed a lot of the key stuff to push the limits of gamers in an good way. Instead of unlocking everything with miles. You have to play world tour & grand prix to unlock levels as well as characters. Honestly I prefer this game's roster pc version included over the original racing game's. They changed all your weapons with some being similar to those of the previous games. You can play as your avatar or mii after winning half the total grand prix cups. Which their versions an huge improvement over the original's. One weird thing is half your levels are mirrored version of those you have on top. Usually in Mario Kart, after beating every grand prix cups. You unlock mirror mode that affects every level. So I felt keeping it an option instead of adding mirror versions as their own levels a bit out of place. Don't get wrong some mirror tracks are better than their normal counterparts especially Race of Ages. Unless you have this on Steam, good luck with the controls. They aren't bad but I could see some struggling with them. Plus in most versions it doesn't let you change the controls the way you want. Thank god you can in the pc version. I do enjoy this game a lot but some flaws does make it hard to come back to play more.

11. Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing

Personally I always enjoyed Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing. You can keep on driving to earn Sega Miles to buy everything. A lot of great tracks based on several Sega franchises. I do prefer most vehicles over Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed's. You can select your songs on every track adding more replay value. Some of the best racing game controls with plenty of fun achievements. I also prefer weapons in this over Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. In Wii version you can drive as Mii & in Xbox 360 version it's your avatar. What's also interesting is in Xbox 360 version Banjo & Kazooie are guest characters. I always enjoy playing every single mission more so than World Tour of it's successor. Not only it nails everything together so well but an great level of challenge & creativity. I honestly can't get enough of this amazing game. In comparison to Mario Kart series, this fixes some issues that Mario Kart surprisingly haven't yet. Such as if you fall off the track, you're back on it in seconds instead of minutes in Mario Kart. Every character has an all star move that helps get them as close to first place as possible. Each one perfectly fits with every character more so than in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. I can't help I simply like this more than it's successor. You really can't go wrong with both these awesome racing games.

12. Sonic Adventure DX

I remember as an kid how impressive these graphics for their time. The very game that made me get an Sega Dreamcast. Sonic Adventure is still one of the greatest Sonic games ever made. Technically Sonic 5, you get six playable characters with each having their own game play style. Sonic obviously platformer, Tails racing, Knuckles treasure hunting, E-102 Gamma's shooting, Big's fishing & Amy's chases. If you beat all their stories, you'll unlock the final story under Super Sonic. Some of my favorite boss fights & levels are in this game. So is some of my favorite Sonic songs including it's theme song. Again 4Kids ruined such an epic moment in Sonic X simply because that song wasn't there. You can unlock mini games that does help if you're attempting to collect every emblems. In later ports in Sonic Adventure DX. You can unlock Metal Sonic in Sonic's levels for trial. There is mission mode which is okay compared to Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing's. They improved the graphics with in Xbox 360 & PS3 version having achievements/trophies. Sadly in the newer pc's release, for some reason. You can't see anything after starting up the game. I clearly had the sounds & did confirm if everything else was working. From what I'm aware it's an graphic issue that Sega never fixed. Do I need to say the single worst thing about this Dreamcast classic? Big the Cat sucks all he does even in his boss fight is fishing. Are they high to think this might work? Sega Bass Fishing is an great Dreamcast fishing with better controls. It just seems like an waste of space as well as your time. Sonic Adventure DX is an amazing 3D game. I highly recommend this to anyone trying to get into the Sonic series.

13. Sonic Generations

One of my favorite Sonic games ever made. Sonic Generations like Sonic 06 & Sonic Adventure 2 was created to tie in an anniversary. You get to play as both classic & modern Sonic as you fix time by revising classic levels. Easily one of the best boss roster in the entire series. Hands down one of the absolute best Sonic soundtracks. You get plenty for just Sonic Generations but having so many classic ones. Just makes having this an treasure to keep to yourself with an huge smile on your faces. Also one of the best level rosters most done both 2D & 3D. Easily my favorite Sonic game when it comes to achievements. I really enjoy going the distance getting as many as I can. Among collecting chaos emeralds by defeating bosses. You can play as Super Sonic both classic & modern anywhere in the game. If you keep collecting Red Star Rings, you'll unlock everything Sonic fans would love. There exists an secret room to input an long list of codes to complete your private museum. Everything about Sonic Generations just work. You can even unlock Sonic 1 to play it through Sonic Generations.

14. Sonic CD

Oh hell yeah Sonic CD could've got over looked an few times by many people. Sonic CD is an main console Sonic game that blew so many away by it's sheer awesomeness. You can go into the past, present & future in most levels. Some of the best special stages with impressive graphics. Even stated by the team behind it, Sonic CD took the best of Sonic 1 & 2. In order to deliver one of the absolute greatest Sonic games. Yes I do like it's US soundtrack but like most fans stick with the original Japanese version. I really can game for hours just by listening to it's songs in comparison to what we originally got. Sonic CD has great sound effects with some of my favorite levels. Even the bosses were very well designed especially Metal Sonic's. In later versions since Xbox 360 & PS3 version. After beating the game, you can play it again as Tails. Which is strikingly similar to Tails in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. Here's an fact most Sonic fans wouldn't know. There exist not including Steam version, two different original pc ports. The original pc port were on simple computers you use to see at school. Probably the rarest version of Sonic CD in existence. As an kid briefly in school I did play that version. The later pc port was directly based on Sega CD version with slight differences. Sonic CD is an very good Sonic game in it's own right. Instead of chaos emeralds, you collect time stones being one of the few expectations. Where you don't collect chaos emeralds in the series. This game marks the debut of both Amy Rose & Metal Sonic. Another interesting fact is Spiral Knights an free game on Steam. If you bought Sonic CD, after downloading & starting Spiral Knights up. You should receive in your mail, an Metal Sonic armor. Now isn't that awesome, if you still haven't played Sonic CD. What the hell is wrong with you this game is cheap, well worth your money and impressive. You couldn't ask for an Sega game this original & being really good at the same time.

15. Sonic 3 & Knuckles

Officially this lock-on game is combining both halves of Sonic 3. Sonic 3 & Knuckles as widely stated all over the internet. Originally going to be one big Sonic game. But due to time, pressure of release and Michael Jackson backing out. This left to Sonic 3 getting delayed an year in two releases. In it's place was Sonic Spinball as the team split into two at this point. The American side worked on Sonic Spinball while the Japanese side worked on Sonic 3. Everything about this is really good even better than Sonic CD at it's best. You get plenty of great levels, bosses & three playable characters. They did alter how to input codes a little bit. You can collect chaos emeralds but true fans collect every super emeralds. After collecting every chaos emerald, Sonic & Knuckles gets super forms. After collecting every super emerald, Tails gets an super form while Sonic & Knuckles goes hyper. Both their hyper forms are mind blowing awesomeness. If you selected one of many slots, after beating an zone. Your game automatically saves your process just like Sonic CD currently does more recently. Honestly I'm not much for it's multiplayer. I am not an big fan of Death Egg Zone unless it's Sonic 2's. Sega confirmed with some fans shown every level maps to further prove this. Most levels are roughly three times better than those of the first two Sonic games. You can do more bonus games after hitting your check points. Sometimes it helps out when you need more rings or an particular power up. I love how this game tells it's story & without any words of any kind. Sonic 3 & Knuckles is an very unique Sonic game that so many people need to play. There is so much you can do in this you'll be busy for hours I'm not kidding. Also Sonic 3 was the first Sonic game to save your game & on an cartridge. Another interesting fact I discovered an few years ago. No one has ever attempted Sega's lock-on technology concept. Which makes Sonic 3 & Knuckles an rather interesting rare case. The more reason you need to buy & play this game as soon as you can.

Update: Sega added mod support for their Genesis games on Steam. You now can get the complete Sonic 3 experience.

16. Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Not only my favorite Sonic game in this collection, but the entire series as well. As an kid I had such great memories of Sonic 2. My passion for it led to me becoming the Sonic fan I am today. It improved on Sonic 1 in every possible way just like Mortal Kombat II did to Mortal Kombat 1. Some of my favorite levels with great boss fights. Easily my favorite soundtrack on Genesis & possibly the series. You can play as Sonic & Tails or both of them separately. I love this game's codes as you input them in your options under audio categories. Which was common in some games at the time. Most Sonic games you cheat enter do an trick or input an code or two to get what you want. Sonic 2 introduces the spin dash, Tails & multiplayer. OMG I love Sonic 2's multiplayer as it still one of the best in the series. I am not kidding it's so addicting taking three particular levels with special stages. It works so well that it brings my mind how good it actually is. Most fans can get every chaos emeralds in most games. Even they would tell you, Sonic 2 has the hardest special stages. Yet they are also some of the best you ever experience. Personally I don't like Metropolis Zone for many reasons. Sonic 2 is such an amazing Genesis game. At the time Sonic 2 was the highest selling Genesis game. Which did affected Nintendo's sells for an short period being the only Sonic game to do that. If it didn't do that most of my reasons still stand on their own. I really like the sound effects especially those from enemies. To me as surprising this may be for people. This so happens to be my favorite game of all time for all these reasons. Yes Sonic 3 & Knuckles, Sonic CD, Generations & Adventure DX are very good games. But Sonic 2 was so good that many people bought an Genesis game just to play it. For an while Sega bundled it with Genesis to get those numbers I hinted at being 7 million copies sold. Sonic 2 sold the most, still addicting to play, built very well on Sonic's concept with many other things. I could go about how much I love Sonic 2. There really isn't an Sonic game as good in my opinion. If you had to randomly choose an Sonic game but you never played any of them. Chances are Sonic 2 is the most likely to get pick.

I hope you like part 1 of 25th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog series. I will be making an few more Sonic blogs all connecting together just like their main comic book series. I am so honored to make something like this about one of my favorite things. Please wait patiently as I start working on the next few. But Sonic should get more fans than he has right now. So I'm Jack Red & I'll see all of you later.

Update: Every five Sonic games added since my review of this bundle will get their own blog reviews.

Saturday, March 26, 2016

The Beginning of My Celebration of 25th Anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog series.

Hi everyone I'm Jack Red, I recently bought Sonic Games Collection on Steam. This not only reminded me of what I loved so much about the series. It got me to become an Sonic fan once again seriously it's that good. I figured I should do something for the upcoming 25th anniversary of Sonic series. After much needed thought I decided to do several top 5 lists. Majority of these will be main console games theme. I will cover other Sonic related lists in this lengthy yet fun felt blog.

Rules for every list featured in this blog are as followed below...

1. Must have played that game to count stuff from it
2. This blog only has my opinion and no one else
3. Only levels so bad as an whole can overwrite my rule on excluding final levels

Now we got that out of the way I just wanted to throw one more thing in before I get started. As an kid Sonic had such an strong impression on my life. I played over fifty Sonic games with an great mix of both good & bad games. I am honored to make this blog for Sega as well as this was meant for the fan base as an whole. I will be going all out simply because this is Sonic we're talking about. It's time to start speeding through several lists for one special day in this franchise's history.

Part 1 Worst Sonic Levels

Top 5 Worst Zones/Levels (Overall, Excluding Final Levels)
5. Sky Fortress Zone (Sonic 4 Episode 2)
This was inspired by Sky Chase, Fortress & Flying Battery Zone. Which are all great air theme zones in their respective games. I got to be honest Sky Fortress Zone has major issues. Partly for some reason you are more likely to die on Tails' Tornado. The game doesn't keep up with your speed & attacks. Which means you are more likely to fall to your death then back safety on the plane. Some areas require you to quickly learn how to get from one end to another in such an short amount of time. Majority of it's level design is largely ripped of those zones I named. Honestly this zone doesn't add anything we haven't seen before. Two times during this zone you face Metal Sonic. Instead of fighting on top of Tornado against him, you have to painfully learn his attack patterns. He goes through several of them especially in the later one that can hours to learn. Plus at the end of it, you really got to be on top of where you're going. Why is all of this an major problem? First you have no choice but defeat him otherwise the levels keep going. Finally you need to be patient with every possible chance of hitting him. Especially for the last hit because you got really fast. Missiles constantly in your path while you're team attack. You need to take your time with so little room to move. If you don't you have to keep going or likely die right afterwards. They made hitting it for the win so frustrating. Also I'm positive most of you know how bad this game's coop is. Just imagine attempting do this on coop it's not possible.

4. Security Hall (Sonic Adventure 2)
I always hated this level from Sonic Adventure 2. Most Knuckles & Rouge's levels in both Sonic Adventure games have the same concept. Regardless you need three of whatever item to beat the levels. But this particular level of Rouge always pisses me off. You have five minutes to collect three Chaos Emeralds. Which is easier than being done for many reasons. This level requires you to alter which section is unlocked for you to search. The area itself is one of the tightest, smallest levels. Unlike most of their levels, it isn't obvious where to search. Very likely the entire process will require many hours of playing it. You don't have to worry about the enemies. They don't do much except trying to stop you. But in comparison to Rouge's levels, they felt not used right. You could go the entire level without killing any of them which isn't fun. It's frustrating even if you know all the possible places to search. It still eats up time to search as many of them as possible. You need to find switches clearly hidden to open some areas. Keep in mind every time you hit the same switch or an different one. This constantly alters where you can search which is very annoying. I am not an fan of the song playing in this level either. The only reason Sky Fortress Zone didn't get any higher was because parts of it are more fun.

3. Metropolis Zone & Labyrinth Zone (Sonic 1 & 2)
An tie because two of the most hated classic zones from the first two Sonic games. Both sharing most of the same problems that I couldn't decide which was worse over the other. So I figured to put both of them in one spot together. Both zones are long, difficult, confusing, filled with traps, annoying enemy placements & horrible bosses. You can't rush an single act of both these zones or you'll end up getting an continue screen or game over. You can barely speed through without something that stops not only the flow but also alters what you're used to. These levels take time, patience & great memory to survive. Yes Labyrinth Zone is filled mostly of water. Metropolis Zone is filled with over sized nuts & enemies. I felt those in both zones had the same affect on me. Both constantly pissing me off with so little I can do about it. Both their boss fights are very annoying, lengthy & very likely to get hit. You could argue Labyrinth Zone has an worse boss due to Dr. Robotnik not actually fighting. I can argue both these boss fights are so strict on how to go about it that I don't which is worse. In the end both these zones are just so bad in their own right.

2. Hidden Zone (Sonic Lost World)
OMG I do enjoy most of Sonic Lost World's levels. I got to be honest I hated Hidden Zone. For hidden levels you speak them to be one of their respective games's best. In this rare case, they're the worst levels in the entire game I'm not kidding. The first level is an weird rubix cube planet. At first you would think keep hitting the boxes until the level ends right no. Then you would think maybe I survive for an few minutes I'll die to beat the level. Nope after looking online you aren't going to believe if I told you. By hitting these boxes you keep increasing your time with the max allowed time being almost thirty seconds. This level was actually meant to help you get birds you need for the last level of Hidden Zone. Why couldn't we get this zone before this point because it would've helped a lot. The entire point of this level is getting birds & letting the time to stop. In most levels when time stops you'll lose an life. How insane would they be by programming it like this? By the way unlike most zones in the game. All four levels within Hidden Zone aren't the same theme or even in the category of game play. You heard me correctly each level within this particular zone is more different than the last. The second level is an flying level where Sonic moving on top of Tails' Tornado. Yet you can't attack anything with strict movements. The third level was surprisingly the longest of the four levels. You are on an weird satellite with most of what you can step on. Very likely falls with again strict areas to move. Especially near the end where you jump on fast moving platforms. The only level to end like most of them. What's also weird is this was the only level in this zone to have check points. The final level in this zone is you jump on bubbles. Most either have spiked balls or weird pac-man like creatures. Oh guess what those creatures has an even stranger boss fight at the end. Let me sum this level up in an nut shell. You can't attack directly instead you must place yourself on an particular angle on bubbles. If done correct with those having spiked balls will get enemies killed. Which is this so important you asked? Simple this is how you defeat the boss whose right behind you. Also all four sides of your screen will kill you instantly. There is no constantly at all in Hidden Zone. It's hilariously bad that I barely was able to find something even worse.

1. Big the Cat's Levels (Sonic Adventure)
Most Sonic fans would agree with Big the Cat's levels. I understand Sonic Adventure allowed each character to have their own genre style. But let's be frank here his levels are really boring, repetitive & kinda pointless. You heard me right even if we included his only boss fight. All Big does is goes fishing which was done horribly. Every goal regardless of which emblem you're going for. All must end with Big fishing Froggy out. His levels are really small in comparison to most characters. Enemies are pointless as they don't come after you at all. You can lose an life over losing your hook really Sega. Oh ok I could excuse Sega Bass Fishing because that's an great fishing game. But this is small fishing game attempted in an great Sonic game. Clearly it didn't work at all even with every upgrade. You could be spending hours trying to beat his levels. It's majority to do so to unlock Super Sonic's story aka the last story of Sonic Adventure. Honestly there isn't anything good I could say about any of those levels. Yes folks they are that bad in comparison to Hidden Zone.

Stay close by because I'm not done as I'm covering each list in their own blog. Until the next one I'm Jack Red & I'll see all of you later.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Jack Red reviews Xbox 360

Hi everyone this is Jack Red, I know it's been a while ever since my girl friend came over for two weeks. Honestly it was better then going to Otakon since that's just an weekend while she gets to be over longer. So along with that I got a lot of stuff for my Xbox 360 that it's the most I spent in an month. I want to start reviewing game consoles that I really like enough to give them their own reviews to show  my passion toward them.

Today I will be reviewing Xbox 360 now what a great console I been doing some hardcore gaming nailing some of the hardest achievements. It's following the original Xbox that I have spent a lot of time playing though I hate the fat controller. I did get my hands on the newer. smaller controller now why didn't we get that in the first place. Anyway thank god they nail the Xbox 360 controllers even better despite starting out with batteries.

I did get the Xbox 360 Play & Charge Kit which will save you money plus you can play games longer. Usually buying an Xbox 360 you get an head set that the cord goes in the bottom of your controller. I really like this idea because who wants to keep holding it on their ears while they play. The console itself has Xbox Live as we speak which is an great service I can plan around their point system quite well.

I got a good number of games on the consoles either the main games or downloaded. I am surprised games like SoulCalibur and Perfect Dark are only ported to the Xbox 360 now that's awesome. Not too long ago give Indie Games a try to enjoy some of these games. You can only play them online with no achievements to get. That's right I haven't got to the achievements yet I got a lot to talk about.

Achievements can be unlock by doing some tasks of any difficulty. A lot of games do beating an level or the game itself on several difficulties. The main games usually have about fifty some achievements that can go up though downloadable contents. The arcade titles usually have twelve achievements with two exceptions. Sonic Adventure because you got to download an upgrade that will add more to the game itself.

The other to my surprise was Perfect Dark an game I had for a while on the Nintendo 64 which has twenty. It's an incredibly big game that will take hours to get every single achievements. Other achievements are either getting 100% for an game or doing some random like step in dog shit. The last couple for many games are play online that will take a lot of time as well as patience to do them. I love going for achievements because it makes your game score go up as well as getting mad skills.

You can also buy downloadable contents which I am going to do my best to describe as many types of it as I can. Fighting games usually has a few characters worth five dollars each like Mortal Kombat. A couple of games has a few levels you can download that can be a lot of fun to play. A lot of them also add more directly to the game play like Fallout 3 is an good example of this. Some games add more songs to the games usually rhythm ones like Guitar Hero games.

Buying a couple of these downloadable contents will add more achievements for you to get. If you are one of those people that really want an challenge doing them that I take my hat off to you. I barely had any real problems with my Xbox 360 except the original one. My brother broken the disc thing you need to buy many games. I don't own that one anymore with my new one doing really good.

I just realized that you can also buy Xbox original games though the service. If you still own your Xbox original games then you can play them with no problem. As far as I know you do need Xbox Live to update your console to play several games. You won't be able to go in parties if you are playing one of these games. I still own my PlayStation 2 that plays PlayStation 1 games with nothing needed at all.

I guess it isn't that bad look up the first couple PlayStation 3 playing PlayStation 2 games. They no longer do that yet kept it's backward compatibility with PlayStation 1. I did own an PlayStation 3 which I don't like very much. Back to the Xbox 360 I believe it has a bright future ahead of it especially having Rare on their side. I see the console being one of my favorites ever made for so many reasons.

In conclusion please go out and buy yourself an Xbox 360 as soon as you can.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Jack Red reviews Gunstar Heroes

Hi everyone this is Jack Red, I got so many Sega games to review that it's a long list of games that many enjoy playing. I am going to review Gunstar Heroes on Xbox 360 now this was one of Genesis best games ever made. I recently got all the achievements of this game unlock within an week that's how much I love it.

You can play as Gunstar Red or Blue with your choice of weapon functions. Like Golden Axe on Xbox Live Arcade you can use the save feature at any given time. This game has some of the best graphics I ever seen in an hit and run game hell I would've love this game as an kid. You get a great variety of enemies as well as some unique bosses like Seven Force first time or Golden Silver.

Like Mega Man games you can pick which level you want to play until the last three levels. Most levels you must run as well keep firing at them with many explosions. Level 2 has you switching between rails with only one boss with many forms to fight. Depending on your difficulty levels you don't have to fight all seven forms.

I got to say thank god there wasn't that bullshit of beating the game on it's hardest setting to see an okay ending. Level 4 is my favorite level because it starts out like most levels then you must play through a board game. I have experience something similar in Devil May Cry 4 though a few levels used it.

I recommend playing level 4 of Gunstar Heroes over Devil May Cry 4 board games. I say that because here you will know what to expect unlike Devil May Cry 4. A good number of these spots have bosses waiting to fight you. If you are lucky you might be able to land on item spots that gives you health. You can also change your firing function if you want to though I usually don't at all.

Once you land on the last spot it's time to fight the boss of the stage. He has a couple of attacks that can take awhile to memorize like The Wheel of Fate. Thankfully he isn't as close as hard as that final boss though watch out for the first orb he throws. If you completed those levels at this point you can't select the last couple of levels.

This game has one of the best soundtracks I heard from an Genesis game. There's a level where you fly a ship with a couple of bosses. Surprisingly you end up fighting Seven Force again though this time it's smaller with one life. It can still transform into all of it's forms unlike the previous encounter. The last level makes you fight a couple of bosses again though they won't be the same.

You will fight the other Gunstars as well as some of the bad guys. As soon as you get to the leader he gets taken out by Golden Silver. Here it is the final boss now it starts out easy then it starts attacking back. Holy shit he isn't holding back it's like fighting Shredder in the original arcade game minus the clones.

At first I was wondering why I wasn't hurting it much then I found out you aren't suppose to shoot at it. You are aiming to shoot at it's power supply that's reminds me of Super Mecha Sonic in Sonic & Knuckles. Both these bosses are using limitless power that are known to be challenging. The big difference here is you can hit Super Mecha Sonic once it used up the emeralds.

If you are able to beat the final boss then congratulations because I know he is an pain in the ass. The ending is one of the best I seen in Sega games to date. Please Sega give us Bio-Hazard Battle on Xbox Live Arcade soon that would be awesome. In conclusion this brings so much to the table that it shouldn't be over looked by anyone.

I thank everyone for reading and I will see all of you later.

Jack Red reviews Golden Axe (Arcade)

Hi everyone this is Jack Red, today I will be reviewing Golden Axe on Xbox 360 now what a great game. Despite the cover of it showing the Genesis version it's actually the original Arcade version. Surprisingly they also did that to Altered Beast though I don't know the reason behind them. That seems like a dirty trick to do to your customers especially the loyal ones like myself.

It has great graphics that are similar to Altered Beast with limited continues. You play as Ax Battler, Gilius or Tyris on their journey to hunt down the man who cause all of them pain. The story of this reminds me of an anime called Inuyasha though that's long as hell with a sequel coming here soon. You attack thieves to get potions which you can use them at any time.

You get a couple of bonus stages to collect potions as well as some food. This might be hard to believe but outside those bonus stage there aren't any health. Altered Beast doesn't even have that yet it's a shorter game made by the same man who made Golden Axe. You heard me right the same guy made both these Sega classics that I love.

I can play Golden Axe quite good that if you can find me I can guarantee most of your achievements will be unlock. You get a good variety of enemies with the cheapiest being the knights and skeletons. I used to lose most of my continues playing the game by now I will only lose at least two of them. I love the music of this game it truly one of the best I ever heard for beat em up games.

You can ride on creatures though my personal favorite only appears once in the entire game. The red dragon that shoots fire balls that kills more enemies in few hits. You do see the other kind of dragons a lot though nothing can top that red one. That one creature you can ride also appears in Altered Beast as an enemy I'm not kidding.

You can save your game at any given time while if you want to reload it then you must go back to the main menu. The final boss Death Adder has a couple of enemies that makes it the hardest of the game. You fight one giant with a few regular enemies followed by skeletons that are stronger than the boss.

I recommend trying to save as much potions as you can as Tyris since her magic is the highest. It should kill the first couple of enemies just using it. I also recommend patiently wait for Death Adder to appear then once he starts moving use that spell. Sometimes getting hit by him he will use a spell to get extra damage on you.

After beating him enjoy the ending where kids are playing Great Axe at the arcades. Then you will see a lot of characters come out of it with a song you won't hear any where else. I got to say Sega knows how to make great arcade classics such as this. In conclusion I love playing this game from time to time well I will see all of you later.

Jack Red reviews The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return Part 2

Hi everyone this is Jack Red, I just reviewed The House of the Dead 2 for my blog though I noticed that I missed just one point. Considering that this is 2 in 1 game that I believe I have the right to bring it up here. You can rescue civilians that can give you more health at times though if you shoot them you will lose it.

That's right shoot any of the civilians and you will lose health yet nothing really happens if the zombies do it. There is a trick that can be tricky to pull off but if you are able to then right at the end you should see Goldman as an zombie. This is my favorite Sega light gun that originated in the arcades though I did say The House of the Dead: Overkill does top it.

I do plan to review that in the near future but right now it's time to review The House of the Dead 3. I believe this currently at the end of the time line like Street Fighter 3. Unlike the first two you get shotguns this time around that works good. You can play three variation of the same game with slight differences.

Arcade Mode like the one in The House of the Dead 2 was the game right out of the arcades. Extreme Mode takes a lot to unlock but you will get something worth wild from trying your best. You will have a smaller aim symbol while the games doesn't let you know how many continues you have.

Time Attack like many games is beating the game while being timed. Try beating the game many times with a couple adding credits which is the game's continues. If you played just enough of Extreme Mode you can unlock Free Play. I am glad they actually put that in there because you can run out of lifes fast.

Similar to The House of the Dead 2 you can go multiple paths but it will tell you when you can. That's one good thing that should've been in the second one though I still prefer it over this. As I said in my previous blog entry there isn't as many bosses as The House of the Dead 2. I think it's easier to pick up on these bosses weakness with only Death fights two whole times.

Sometimes selecting the second game you should see a quick mini game that counts down the years back to the release of it. That originated in The House of the Dead 3 Xbox port which I used to own for a while. You can skip that mini game if you choose to though you can get stuff in for The House of the Dead 2.

If you fought The Emperor then you should know that The Wheel of Fate is really hard. I barely beat him on limited credits since he keeps changing his attacks. He has the same weakness as The Emperor just harder to learn his attack patterns. He even looks like him though they were made by different people.

Goldman made The Emperor while Curien made The Magician and The Wheel of Fate. Here's a shocker to those who love the games still learning the stories Curien is The Wheel of Fate. Holy shit right how can anyone be that mad to turn themselves into that kind of an being. Oh by the way player 1 plays as Lisa while player is G who gets replaced by Daniel Curien.

That's right briefly at the end of this game you can play as the first main villain of the games son. I am glad Sega brought this to the Wii because I love light gun games. I also enjoy playing good Sega games that most of them I won't forget in years to come. I got to say I had a change of heart with this one after unlocking infinite lifes.

That makes it more like the arcade light gun games which I really like. You can get that two ways in The House of the Dead 2 if you really want it. I believe one way to get it is master the boss fights mode. The other way I know of to getting infinite lifes is keep replaying Original Mode until you find it.

I have gotten it before in Original Mode though if you use it then the next time you play it won't be available. In conclusion another master piece from Sega that deserves to be played. I hope you all enjoy my review and come back some time.