Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing

This is a great game. I can't stress how great of a game this is-- it functions as a wonderful stroll through memory lane (it is especially Dreamcast centric with characters, but there's a couple of oldies in there) and as a competent competitor to Mario Kart. Fantastic game.
 
I haven't played this yet, but I checked out your review to give me an idea if it's worth picking up.

When you're taking on the best, why not borrow a few ideas (or ten) from them? That's exactly what developer Sumo Digital did with Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing. This is most apparent when it comes to the assortment of items used. Nearly every item in All-Stars Racing has an equivalent in Mario Kart Wii. K.O. Gloves and homing rockets? Green and red shells. Traffic cones? Banana peels. Pocket Rainbow? Blooper ink. What other items there are-are taken from other racing games such as MySims Racing turn-the-entire-screen-upside-down item.
Click to expand...
What are the other items? With the way that karters work anymore, items win the race. Listing all weapons and providing full detail on the non-trivial additions would help the reader.

However, there is something new put onto the figurative table, and that's the All-Star ability.
Click to expand...
Just a note, this is NOT something new. MKDD used the character specific special item. And I wouldn't say that the idea originated there: there are a few other karters that are 10+ years old that used specialized weapons for each racer.

Another issue with some of the tracks is the inability to tell where you're supposed to be going. This is particularly problematic on the more colorful tracks with lots of lights and doodads going on. Not a big issue, but it will be one's first time tackling one of these tracks.
Click to expand...
Dare I say that it's better than Mario Kart Wii? I'd definitely say so. The track design is just as brilliant, and you can tell that Sumo Digital studied the design of the Mario Kart series.
Click to expand...
I've been particularly critical of Nintendo over the direction they've taken the Mario Kart series, but one thing I'll give them credit for is that their track design always manages to surprise yet be navigable from the first playthrough forward. MK tracks may be tough, but they won't confuse a racer entirely no matter the skill level. So I question your conclusion that All-stars Racing is better than MKW simply on this basis: a good karter won't lose racers based on track design. It is one of the karting fundamentals, to me at least, and for this reason getting the racer lost is a "big issue."

I may come off as a bit of a fanboy here, and all I can say is, believe me, I am not a big fan of MKW. It's not that you're maligning MKW, anyhow. It's the idea that maybe you've given Sonic All-Stars more credit than they deserve, whether in track design or the "innovative" use of character-specific special weapons.
 
Hi all new bloke here :) im a good 6 hours in on sonic allstars and loveing it, bought all the courses up and unlocked all of the charas (i think) sweet game online, go buy it you wont be disapointed.

Well back to work on the graveyard shift, been a long time listener of cag and thought it's about time i hooked up, cya all laters byee.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
bread's done
Back
Top