I have to say that while I am still not sure what a "Sonic" game is, this is quite fun.
It is exactly what I was hoping it to be, i.e. the opening level of Secret Rings over and over again, but they've added the pseudo 2D bits too for variety and some platform skill/pad throwing.
The title music is quite Mario Galaxy-y and some of the other elements in the game have an inspired by quality to it.
Generally though, you buzz through levels, on rails, not on rails, 2d bits, its totally inoffensive and actually quite entertaining. The 2d bits are a little "My Platform Toolkit", there isn't much finesse to the aesthetic quality of these sections, its just literally the building blocks of 2d platforming for you to navigate... one level consisted of using the floaty powerup to float though and around spikey balls in the most classic/or well tested piece of 2d level design you can ever see.
Speaking of powerups, they are one use, or drain a bar. The format seems to be, and it hasn't really gone to much trouble to explain itself, to just be introduced to a powerup... at.. some.. point.. in a completely in the flow of the level kind of way. Get past this obstacle, oh here is a powerup to do it.
The Lazer one is cool, you just use it point at something and bounce off it, as a laser, and if there are any crystals to bounce into you are then dragged around a little route. Floaty one works like Balloon Fight, in 3d or 2d. There is a generic one that fills a speed bar. And there are a few more that I've not been introduced to... once you have been introduced they then become available in all the level in the places where they are ghosted, the ghosting exactly like Mario ? Blocks.
So, so far so good. Some slightly cack 2d sections so far, but as a 2d exercise totally valid.
Wii version, right? Was there any connectivity with the DS?
Wii version... although there are some strange 3d bits in the DS version, which doesn't link. On the Wii at least, there are Online L3@DB0@RDZ for time trialing the levels which could be interesting.
Generally enjoying this... Sonic has two moves that might be new, the slide tackle and the running across water thing.
Slide tackle means you can slide under things and slide through lumps of enemies and it really helps maintain the flow through a level, when its speed level.
Sonic also has drift... which is "cool" but difficult to manage.
It is suffering from having too many levels for my tastes... about half so far could be culled, that way you could feel more focused on getting better ranks and the red ring unlock things... but with the volume of levels we have... they also vary in scale completely form a mega speed run with technical level madness or flowing long things with different routes.
What it needs is tighter level design, the base mechanics are quite entertaining.
They have quantity over quality.