Admit it -- no one wants to hear that a Sonic game could ever be less than decent. Well, the truth hurts but it has to be told. Sonic R shares the same common problems that other less-than-decent games seem to have that hinder gameplay in more than several ways. Sure, it's in 3D but eventually after playing it for awhile you're not going to bother continuing on.
Speaking of 3D, it's better than say, Die Hard Trilogy for the PC, but what happened to the effects, the lighting and full use of 3D technology of the times? It certainly wasn't implemented in this game, unfortunately. When pixels jump at you or clipping problems and graphical glitches block your view, you're going to lose every race! As a matter of fact, you're going to wonder where every player is and why you've mistaken the water for a mirrored floor. The rain and snow effects on the other hand are pretty interesting and appropriately fashioned as big bubbles for a sort of cartoon look. Unfortunately, the game suffers from missing special effects and details like dynamic lighting, gouraud shading, transparency and motion trailing. It also has a horrible-looking map along with the smudged text and numbers on the screen. The graphics overall are just not good enough.
The animation on the other hand is semi-smooth. Unfortunately, the background fades in with obvious trepidation while the camera angles start to produce headaches or disorientation. Speaking of camera angles, you control three different views but there is hardly any difference between them! And how about that big black border surrounding the screen as you shrink the size from full to small? Why couldn't they have made it an actual window under Windows? As well, the speed is not as fast as Sonic should be even though the frame rate isn't totally bad. Being a simple game, you'll find no cut-scenes, intros or any of that jazz, much to the disappointment of those who anticipated such; after all, there's really no excuse for a 1999 game to lack these things.
Another annoying aspect rears its ugly head as you simply play the game with either of the controls, be it keyboard or joystick/joypad. In other words, don't worry about bracing yourself -- flaky turning and overcompensating corners will occur nearly 100-percent of the time. And your attempts to jump over flat polygonal walls will prove futile, as collision detection seems to present itself in places you can't afford to risk having obstacles in the way. When the rain comes pouring down, it's even worse as you appear to skid all over the place and losing total control. Jumping around isn't always used here and there is practically nothing you can do in this game that you can do in the other Sonic titles, namely bopping on top of objects to receive more rings or getting smacked by an enemy. Also, there is no reverse or backward move, so instead there is a ducking move that has no place in this game, as it serves no purpose.
The main issue with this game is that most of the time you won't know what you're doing or where you're supposed to go. The simple fact is that there's no concrete evidence of your goals! What's worse, the path you take isn't always logical. Even collecting enough rings doesn't seem to open up the right paths so you'll basically be stuck in the game (some levels badly obscure items you need). You'll be asking yourself, 'Why am I playing this game?' Some areas are so twisted that it just doesn't make any sense. Sure, it's non-linear but be realistic about it, at least!
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Also, the multi-player mode seems to lack all of the methods of play that is mentioned on the box and on their website. I can't even set up network play or dial out with my modem because there's no way to do it, and without instructions, what's the point? That's right, there isn't any instruction manual in the box for crying out loud! It's just some useless insert that shows you how to insert the CD into the CD-ROM drive and then how to click on the executable file. Other than that, it shows you how to contact them for support... how quaint. Not!
Another pet peeve would be the minor inconveniences that turn into major pains. For instance, you cannot exit the game unless you get to the Options screen! And while you're inside the main menu and all of the submenus, you are only allowed to scroll with the joystick or arrow keys in one direction. As well, there is no way to get past the company logos at the beginning of the game, alluding to a waste of time.
Fortunately, there may be one slight glimmer of hope... or maybe not. Credit is due to the exact replication of the original Sonic the Hedgehog sound effects, including the jumping springs, sparkling rings and bopping bounces. However, the game disregards the use of spatial sound, stereo effects and even background ambience. What's new is the voiceover in the game, not from the characters themselves but from an announcer who hardly has anything to say whatsoever; it's nearly non-existent yet probably better off not even having if anything because no one is going to care anyway.
The music is quite funny, actually. You've got your vocals and maybe three songs at the most. And the ones that exist either cleverly loop themselves or are two hours each! It's okay and sort of similar to the songs in Sonic Adventure, but is rather silly and not particularly appropriate for this kind of game.
Perhaps playing other human players will help enhance the enjoyment, but honestly it doesn't really matter when everyone is having a hard time controlling the game. And with simple graphics and sound, as well as other useless or missing features, Sonic R should stand for Sonic Rest in peace! For those fans of the mighty blue ball, try it but don't buy it. For other action and racing fans, don't even bother with this one. Seriously.
Graphics: The graphics department is left behind in the past, as the developers didn't care about eliminating glitches, clipping problems, horrid camera angles and sloppy textures. The frame rate could have been better as well. There are a ton of effects missing from this game as well as a bad use of 3D hardware acceleration. In fact, it looks like purely software-rendered.
Sound: Despite the accurate Sonic sounds, the rest of the effects or lack thereof are too simple to even care about, save the funny musical score. Although the vocals tend to pump up the pace, the excitement level still suffers to the hands of the game engine, thus rendering the sound department useless.
Enjoyment: There couldn't be a worse rendition of a game that mocks the Sonic franchise as does Sonic R. Poor control, confused goals, weak features and inconvenient navigation makes for an awkward and fruitless experience. Plus, missing multi-player options such as LAN, modem and serial play smacks of deceit on the part of the marketing folks. Perhaps that is why they used Expert Software, leader of 'frugal' products, to churn out this mess onto the public's shoulders. This burden does not fall on deaf ears, however.
Replay Value: Other than playing against one more friend who has to physically be there right next to you with another controller, the replay value is not even a thought when it comes to Sonic R. You wouldn't want to play it in Single Player mode anyway when obviously you'd lose time and time again due to horrible controls.
People who downloaded Sonic R have also downloaded:
Sonic Riders, Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island (a.k.a. Sonic 3D Blast), Sonic Heroes, Sonic CD, Sonic Mega Collection Plus, Sonic & Knuckles Collection, Sonic Adventure DX (Director's Cut), Sonic Robo Blast 2
- Developer: Travelers Tales
- Genre: Racing
- Originally on: Saturn (1997)
- Works on: PC, Windows
- Editor Rating:
- User Rating: 6.7/10 - 9 votes
- Rate this game:
While it did make its way to PC and later consoles, Sonic R was the only exclusive (at the time) Sonic the hedgehog game that the Sega Saturn would get in its lifetime. It is a game that has a very mixed fan base with some enjoying it and others ranking it as one of the worst Sonic games ever to be released. I fall on the side of that this is an ok game, but it does take a lot of dedication in order to get the best out of it.
Fast And Smooth
I want to start by talking about one of the aspects of the game I think is good and that is the presentation. Sonic is all about speed and Sonic R captures that speed very well. The game moves at a fast pace and there is very little pop in compared with other games of this era so I give it props for that.
There are only five tracks in this game! I know that may sound crazy, but to be fair the original Ridge Racer only had one (with variations) and people let that slide. While five tracks is not many. They counter this by making them huge and very non-linear with many ways to get to the end and many secret areas to find. Plus, these tracks capture the Sonic world perfectly. You only have four characters at the start of the game, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, but you can unlock a few more such as the strange, but awesome Metal Knuckles which I do not think has appeared anywhere else.
Super Sonic Racing
Let’s talk about the soundtrack. I think that one of the coolest aspects of Sonic R is the soundtrack, I freaking love the soundtrack. While I can say that I like it, I can see why for some people the soundtrack may not be to their taste. It was not like anything else we had experienced in a Sonic game before and I appreciated that, plus it had that super catchy song…. You know the one I am talking about.
I Wish I Loved You!
I do feel that this is a game that has a lot going for it. I liked the fact that the single-player championship mode has a bit of a story to it. I liked how you unlocked characters in this mode as well. I also liked how you could play with friends to take part in time trials or burst balloons if you want. So, while there are not many tracks, Sega really gets the best out of them.
The problem is that the controls of Sonic R are best described as twitchy. When you are at high speeds, the controls can be very sensitive which can make taking corners really tough. I do think that the controls are manageable once you get the hang of them. It just takes a great deal of time and patience to do that and as I am a huge Sonic fan, I am willing to do this. I can see why others would not want to bother.
I can see why Sonic R is a game that some people do not like. It is a very, very hard game to love and requires a great deal of patience from the player to get to grips with the controls. With that being said, I do feel that this game is nowhere near as bad as some people make out. I for one, would loved to have seen Sega try and make another game like this on the Dreamcast! It may not be perfect, but this is a game I have always managed to have a good time with.
Final Score
Sonic R online, free No Download Games
Pros:
- Features some interesting characters like Metal Knuckles and Tails Doll
- It captures the spirit of the franchise very well
- I love the soundtrack
- The game moves at a fast pace
- The levels are non-linear
Cons:
- The game's controls take a long time to get the hang of
- While I like all five tracks, a couple more would have been great
Download Links
System Requirements
Processor: PC compatible, P-200
Play Sonic R Online
OS: Windows 9x, Windows 2000 Windows XP, Vista, Win 7, Win 8, Win 10.
Game Features:Single game mode Multiplayer (Hotseat)