Check out the Sonic Generations launch trailer, not long to wait now!
The game is generally scoring in the 8/10 region, which I think is well deserved.
Of course there is always one isn’t there? This time Tim Turi of Game Informer was the culprit. He took all but 4 minutes out of his life to write four paragraphs and call it a professional review. He gave Sonic Generations 6.75/10, I won’t provide a link to the ‘review’ because he decided to spoil the ending in it.
His reason for giving the game a mediocre rating? Apparently all post Dreamcast era levels ruin the game for him! Yep, somehow the aesthetic alone or perhaps simply knowing they are from post Dreamcast era has made the level design terrible. I suspect that Tim didn’t get the memo that they aren’t actually the SAME levels, they simply share the same aesthetic as the original levels.
GETTA LOADA THIS:
“Why would Sega pass up full level tributes to Sonic 3 or Sonic CD in favor of a remixed version of a stage from Sonic Colors, which released only a year ago?”
Game Informer.
I’m actually convinced that some critics wouldn’t know what made a good Sonic game if it hit them in the face. Was the concept of celebrating 20 years of Sonic lost on this guy? And why pick Planet Wisp of all levels to take out his misguided anger on? One of the best Sonic Levels in recent memory… There used to be something very wrong with Sonic games, now there is something wrong with videogame critics. I can’t believe they get paid for this shit- what a Joke.
In contrast, GameTrailers’ review was fantastic, it not only highlighted the best parts of the game, it mentioned the real issues too and does so in a truly professional manor. My hat is off to you GameTrailers!
You can see it HERE
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When do people actually think that reviewers are actually right? Except for clueless people. Well actually lotta people are but you get my point… reviewers are dumb and or oblivious
*shrug* I think he makes a good point. Let’s celebrate 20 years of Sonic by playing stages that are only a couple years old? Gimme a break. I want redone classic stages. If I want to play Sonic Colors stages in 3D I’ll go buy Sonic Colors an play them in 3D.
But it isn’t a remake of a Sonic Colours level. His ‘point’ doesn’t make a lot of sense. You won’t find that level in Sonic Colours.
And why WOULDN’T you use Planet Wisp when celebrating 20 years of Sonic? Sonic Colours was (IMO) a fantastic game and was well received by critics and fans alike and Planet Wisp was widely praised as the best level of the game.
If this was ‘celebrating the first 5 years of Sonic’ he’d have a point. But it isn’t and if they can create a good level out of it I don’t see how using the aesthetic of recent games makes a lick of difference.
If you’re going to complain about Sonic Generations complain about the less than perfect roll in classic game play or perhaps the automated ramp physics… Those are real complaints- funnily enough he seemed to have missed those, I wonder why?
Can’t believe everything you read on paper!
Honestly Sharky? This IS Game Informer. This is how they’ve always reviewed Sonic games, even going back to Sonic and Knuckles. They were the only magazine to give both of the Adventure games a seven, and the only Sonic game they’ve ever given a 9 to is Sonic Mega Collection.
They have long been giving Sonic games fairly short reviews that almost always hit around the 6-7 range, and they’ve only been getting more misinformed and silly as time has gone on. THis is one of the primary reasons I specifically ask Game Informer to NOT be sent to my house everytime I renew my GameStop card. This is just how the magazine is, and it’s really nothing new for them.
Nuckles I haven’t been a Sonic fan for quite a few years now, I only jumped back on the wagon with Sonic Colours and Sonic 4 and haven’t exactly kept up with which critics are good or bad. Frankly I would probably say MOST of the recent Sonic games deserved harsh scores but as far as Sonic Colours and Sonic Generations are concerned I would say they are both really fantastic games well deserving of 8/10 scores.
I don’t think the fact that Game Informer does this often makes it excusable. I’m not usually a conspiracy theorist but I get the feeling many critics simply don’t have the faintest clue what makes a good Sonic game and simply jump on the ‘Sonic Sucks’ band wagon picking on any little thing they can find.
I can’t think of many other series which are scrutinized so harshly on such petty things.
I’m with mengles and I agree with it too.
Having 1 stage per game was a choice, but they didn’t have to make that choice with good reasons. Sonic 06 for instance could have best been forgotten if not only from a marketng point of view, since it almost killed off the franchise(allthough the outcome may not be bad from what i’ve heard), and unleashed being too recent resulting in a too far from unique experience in generations.(compared to other picks).
Replace that with a sonic 3 and sonic cd stage and we would have gotten something better. Yeah it’s an old subject and I can’t wait till the game comes out. I just felt like giving my 2 cents.
Personally from day one I didn’t even expect them to celebrate the last 2 games at all. They just seemed to recent for me personally. 06 I didn’t expect for obvious reasons(quoting from my previous post: “almost killing off the franchise”.)
Sharky – I am with you on this. I think we are at a point where bashing the hedgehog is a trendy behavior. Unacceptable. Won’t keep us from enjoying SG greatness. Cheers !
i would be pissed about a sonic colours level in the game IF it wasnt for the fact that the game was a wii exlusive. seeing the level in HD is kick ass. just as much as it is to see city escape in HD.
lool GI … nothing’s new here!
I dislike the choice of stages more than the choice of games to use in Generations.
As I’ve said before – rather than a “Greatest Hits” collection of stages, we instead got a collection of mediocre B-Sides. =P
this game deserve a 9.0 because how sonic colors whit the same ps2 and wii sonic unleashed engine gets a 9.0 and sonic generation whit the hedgehog engine plus play as classic sonic plus replay level in hd plus
great kick ass old classical remasterd music gets an 8.5 i think that its ridiculous
you’re ignoring the fact that he actually complained about a legitimate issue:
“Traversing the burning ruins of Crisis City from the awful 2006 Sonic the Hedgehog reboot is an exercise in frustration packed with unfair drop-offs and annoying gales.”
“wonky platforming and poorly communicated pitfalls, plague these later levels.”
These are the reasons he docked points. And I’m sure all that stuff about being dissatisfied with the level selection in the latter half of the game wouldn’t have bothered him nearly as much had said levels actually been designed well. Unfortunately according to him they weren’t. You know how Sonic team operates. That they’d release a game that begins to show its seams near the end. It’s totally in character. So no need to attack this guy for giving the game a 6/10. Especially when gamesreactor gave the same title a 4/10. Now there’s an issue.
For reference, I don’t believe that this game deserves some kind of perfect score. It has its faults, but this review is a joke in every respect.
Like them or not having references to bad games doesn’t make THIS game bad. Review a game on its own merits or not at all.
I stand by the notion that many critics are not fit to review Sonic games and don’t really know what makes a good Sonic game and what doesn’t. So many of them gave Sonic 4 a great score of 8’s and 9’s simply because it appeared to fit the criteria of what Sonic Fans had been asking for. I think that shows many critics are following the crowd or at least trying too, not leading it.
If a good critic can properly convince me that Sonic Generations deserves a 6/10 with real reasons then I’ll agree with it. But this review is- terrible at best.
his complaints about level design aren’t convincing?
“I stand by the notion that many critics are not fit to review Sonic games and don’t really know what makes a good Sonic game and what doesn’t.”
So because Sonic games have been so piss poor over the recent years, reviewers can’t hold them to the same standard as other games that the general public purchases and enjoys? Things that are bad are no longer bad because they’re Sonic?
“Like them or not having references to bad games doesn’t make THIS game bad. Review a game on its own merits or not at all.”
Uh HELLO! The entire game is made up of references to other games. It’s the whole point of it. It’s a completely acceptable review point.
All I’m saying is the guy’s entitled to review the game however he wants. He clearly played through the entire game, which I’m assuming you haven’t. Last I checked, SegaBits reviews Sega games, and to go and slam other sites doing the same thing just because they don’t have inexplicable hard-ons for the mediocre crap Sega publishes lately is just unprofessional.
Copying and pasting what I said on the forums;
This is not really fair unless you know the history of Game Informer.
They have, which you probably did not known, given multiple Nintendo games low scores and not just any, ranging from Paper Mario 2 to Mario & Luigi. It is not because they dislike the games, it is because they believe that those games will not be enjoyable to their audience, this is how they rate the games. A reviewer could enjoy the game tenfolds, however if Game Informer feels that the game will not be enjoyed by a mass audience, then the game will get low marks. Its why a lot of gritty games get high marks from them and low marks for stuff like Sonic, Mario etc. And yes I agree its a bad way to review games, but not fair to beat all reviewers with the same brush.
“I think he makes a good point. Let’s celebrate 20 years of Sonic by playing stages that are only a couple years old? Gimme a break”
I do not see what is wrong with that, if you are celebrating the series history, why exclude stuff only because they are recent? It is a celebration after all and certainly they have a new take on it thanks to classic Sonic. Not that I am defending attacking a single review, especially when the majority has given the game 8 or higher, seems strange to single out one reviewer.
“Uh HELLO! The entire game is made up of references to other games. It’s the whole point of it. It’s a completely acceptable review point”
I could spoil a bit of the game for you so I’ll try not to, but they certainly reference Sonic CD more than just the Metal Sonic boss battle, Sonic Spinball and Sonic R has remixed songs, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 has more than just a stage in there etc so whilst it is a fine review point, would it be fair unless its reviewed by a big Sonic fan? Needs to be taken into consideration.
“Last I checked, SegaBits reviews Sega games, and to go and slam other sites doing the same thing just because they don’t have inexplicable hard-ons for the mediocre crap Sega publishes lately is just unprofessional”
Now just hold a second. Two things, first of all SEGA publishes mediocre crap lately? Recently with the exception of Captain America, Thor and Rise of Nightmare, they’ve been releasing stuff like Daytona (Which I am sure you know is arcade perfect) Guardian Heroes, Yakuza 4, Virtua Tennis 4, Renegade Ops etc, they have had a huge improvement in quality control. Furthermore Sonic Generations has been getting mostly 8, is it fair to consider that mediocre crap?
Secondly, profession would imply we have received some form of formal training and/or would be benefitted through financial gains. I adhere to the same principles I would apply to my business (Hence why something like my Captain America review is so long for such a bad game) but no one else on this site openly acts as if they are professional journalists regardless.
@redrappy I kinda feel like you have some beefs with the stage design yourself. Mind telling me how you feel about it personally?
“Now just hold a second. Two things, first of all SEGA publishes mediocre crap lately? Recently with the exception of Captain America, Thor and Rise of Nightmare, they’ve been releasing stuff like Daytona (Which I am sure you know is arcade perfect) Guardian Heroes, Yakuza 4, Virtua Tennis 4, Renegade Ops”
I’m summing up the past 5 years or so. Of course there are some good games. But there are soooo many bad ones.
“Last I checked, SegaBits reviews Sega games, and to go and slam other sites doing the same thing just because they don’t have inexplicable hard-ons for the mediocre crap Sega publishes lately is just unprofessional.”
Way to sound like a douche whilst missing the point completely. Yes, I am calling out that terrible review. Nobody on Segabits is making a profit for our reviews yet you wouldn’t see anyone here throwing together four paragraphs, spoiling the end of the game in the process and calling it a review… The Game Informer review barely touched on any real issues with the game, instead lambasted it for some really straw-man reasons.
Oh and I’m weak willed and have spoiled the entire game for myself pretty much, I’ve watched MOST levels there are only 3 post-Dreamcast era levels and whilst I haven’t seen much of the Sonic 06 level I’ve watched as much as I can find of Planet Wisp, the FINAL level and the one he complained about and I can flat out tell you I didn’t see a SINGLE cheap death or pit fall in the classic game play and whilst there are pits in the modern game play they don’t look easy to fall into. The Planet Wisp levels genuinely look like the most fun level in the entire game in my opinion.
The reviewer my well dislike recent Sonic games but does referencing them really mean the game deserves a 6/10? Most reviews I’ve seen so far have given the game somewhere in the 8/10 region. So tell me, is everyone else singing out of tune, or just him?
Also, do find me one person working on this site that “has inexplicable hard-ons for the mediocre crap Sega publishes lately”. I dare you. But if you do feel that way you’re always welcome to stop visiting the site!
Also, if I come across as ‘unprofessional’ I suspect it’s because I am. This is a blog, not a vanilla videogame news website. Posting our own opinions is what sets it aside.
“I’m summing up the past 5 years or so. Of course there are some good games. But there are soooo many bad ones.”
Sooo pretty much like every gaming publisher these days? The amount of bad games and shovelware SEGA produces is not more than EA or Ubisoft.
In the past few years SEGA has released a lot of genre defining games.
In contrast, THIS was a fantastic review which not only highlighted the best parts of the game it mentioned the real issues too and does it so in a truly professional manor.
My hat is off to you GameTrailers!
http://www.gametrailers.com/video/review-sonic-generations/723398
I wasn’t saying it was EXCUSABLE, Sharky, I was just saying that Game Informer has a long history of this.
It’s not even that they necessarily underrate Sonic games either. They’ve just always treated them as an afterthought.
Sonic 06 actually got a 7 from Game Informer. It basically read like one of their Sonic Adventure reviews, ignoring all of the numerous bugs the game had that practically lead to it destroying the franchise.
It’s not “Sonic < 2002", it's "Sonic Generations",
Sonic Generations is meant to include all Sonic games. The complaint about recent games is baseless. I'm actually glad that they are included as I:
1. Don't own a Wii – can now experience HD Planet Wisp
2. Don't mind experiencing Unleashed levels as Classic Sonic
2. Didn't purchase 2006 due to game style, but have nothing against the game's aesthetics.
Final point, platforming games should only be judged against other platforming games.
I hate how people just bash Sonic in general. What’s the point? If you don’t like the character, just ignore it.
There’s one comment on that gametrailers link that just blows my mind for its level of hate. Claiming Sonic 1 to be in his words “sh!te”.
Is it that people are just carrying their biases over from the Nintendo vs Sega vs Sony days? I don’t know.
@Randroid, i agree with you. No joke, i saw a nintendo fanboy bashing Generations because of the sound that Sonic makes when he jumps. Eurogamer from England gave the game a 7 and complained about the bottomless pits. Edge gave 5, complaining about the “childish story”. Personally, i will not care anymore for reviews or for the haters, i will just support the game and hope it sells well. At the end of day, if the game sells well and the fans are happy, thats whats matter.
I agree with that review to an extent. That was the most disappointing part of Generations for me too, not enough classic levels. After Green Hill, Chemical Plant and Sky Sanctuary I was wondering what Mega Drive-era stage would be next, but we’re on Dreamcast already?! And I too found the latter 2/3rds of the game not as fun as the first 1/3rd. The later levels were OK, but when they’re based on levels that were ranging from fairly uninspired (Dreamcast) to awful (everything later) in the first place, what can they do really? The first half of the game was definitely superior to the latter half imo.
I enjoyed Generations overall, still the best Sonic game in many years and I hope they make a sequel, but it was too short and could have done with at least double the amount of Mega Drive stages. I would love to see Sonic 1, 2, 3 and S&K remade in the Generations engine and given one big over-arching storyline, though I doubt that will ever happen.