Sonic Lost World Review

A big blue speed bump. 

Much like a good sports car receives praise for the predictability of its grip and braking performance, the best 3D platformers are similarly praised for the predictability of their jumping and movement, which create a sense of rhythm and control. While 2011’s Sonic Generations understood this perfectly well, Sonic Lost World does not, making the Blue Blur’s latest outing a clumsy, ungainly 3D platformer that doesn’t do Sega’s mascot the justice he deserves.

To its credit, Lost World does look the part. The framerate is hard-locked at 60, and the visual motifs of each act hit all the notes you’d hope for. World one honors Sonic tradition with the trademark “Green Hill” look, and from there it expands to a gamut of familiar themes, from pinball casinos to beachside paradises. Colors are well-saturated but occasionally flat-looking, lacking the depth and vibrancy I expect out of such a varied palette. Though it subdues Lost World’s look ever-so-slightly, it certainly doesn’t keep it from being pleasant to look at.

If only it was equally pleasant to play. Lost World is a strange sort of design feat where no one thing is broken, but everywhere you look there’s a subtle,

but significant tuning decision that conspires to throw a monkeywrench in the works.

Like any other long-time Sonic fan, I’ve grown accustomed to how controlling him feels, and Lost World countermands that comfort in some terribly jarring ways. For one, Sonic doesn’t really accelerate the way he has in the past. Moving the left stick puts him right into a leisurely jog that’s more Italian plumber than blue hedgehog, and even while dashing with the right trigger depressed, his speed felt lacking. What’s more, jumping takes a noticeable chunk out of your forward momentum, resulting in leaps that fall far shorter than you’d expect. Sonic doesn’t accelerate through his jumps anymore either, which means you’ll need to use the double-jump (returning from Sonic Colors) to cross all but the narrowest of gaps.

Wall running has become a much bigger part of Sonic’s repertoire as well, which I’d be all for if not for the fact that he has a tendency to wall run on any vertical surface he’s airborne near, whether I want him to or not. A new secondary lock-on attack has you homing in on foes and punting them forward to clear out their buddies too, but every time you do so, everything jerks to a halt. Its intent is to highlight the impact, but all it really does is interrupt the flow of movement. At nearly every opportunity, Lost World kept me from the speed and precision I craved. I’ve played a lot of Sonic over the years, and the controls have never felt as alien and inconsistent as they do here.

Not as fast as it looks.

There are brief, scripted moments that convey Sonic’s traditional speed, but these mostly amount to mini-cutscenes that take control out of your hands. A handful of levels managed to get out of my way long enough to build up a legitimate head of steam, but for the most part, I was stuck watching Sonic go fast rather than making him go fast.

Compounding these problems are the level designs which feel decidedly Super Mario Galaxy-inspired. I’ll happily give them credit for opening up some welcome exploration possibilities, but placing much of the 3D landscape on cylinders and spheres also necessitates a bunch of lateral movement – a concept that aggressively contradicts my natural hedgehog instinct to sprint towards the horizon.

How do I speed through that again?

In fact, Lost World tries its darndest to make you play it like a Mario game, but it lacks the thoughtful layouts and raw creativity required to pull it off. The throwaway puzzle elements add nothing to the experience, and the methodical, over-long jumping sequences are more tests of patience rather than skill. The same could be said for the gamepad-based mini-games, which come off as desperate attempts to shoehorn a second-screen experience into a game that really doesn’t need one.

You would think that the 2D sections would break free of this design gridlock, but they don’t. The same control issues carry over, and are exacerbated by level designs that lack the rhythm and cohesion that were the franchise’s hallmark in the 16-bit era. There was an opportunity here to breathe some life into the experience with some classic Sonic precision, but alas, Sonic is forced  to stumble along.

It looks familiar, but it doesn't feel familiar.

On top of all of this, Lost World’s roughly eight-hour story is sprinkled with additional little bits of mediocrity. I died more than one cheap death thanks to odd spin-dash and lock-on attack glitches. The main villains serve up some of the most boring battles in the series’ history, while spouting winners like “I’ve been dreaming of pounding your sorry blue butt!” I only wish I were making that up. And I’m here to tell you, whoever signed off on Lost World’s ice act, called Frozen Factory, must hate fun. That’s the only explaination for a five-minute-long level where Sonic encases himself in a giant snowball to slowly and uncontrollably slip and slide across narrow ledges flanked by bottomless pits.