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Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
October 14, 2008 | 5:28 PM PST
by: Matt Furtado
Kombo's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.
What the Game's About
After several failed attempts to bring Sonic back into the realm of cool -- and a couple more will surely follow -- Sega decided it was time to outsource their beloved blue hedgehog to renowned RPG developer BioWare. Of course, with Sonic flailing to stay afloat in people's minds as a platformer, who would think that a Sonic RPG would be a good idea? The folks at BioWare thought that and sought to make their dream a reality.
Sonic and company are greeted with another problematic predicament. The series favorite Chaos Emeralds have once again going missing and it's up to Sonic to save the day. Hey! This sounds like nearly every other adventure Sonic has ever been on. But wait, there's more. Along with the power enhanced Emeralds, Sonic's friends have also gone astray. It's time to pull up your red boots and speed through this new RPG adventure with Sonic and company.
What's Hot
BioWare is a master of immersing the players into a lifelike world in their games. Sonic Chronicles is no different. Much like Mass Effect, BioWare has successfully created a living, breathing universe for Sonic fans to thoroughly enjoy and explore. Everything you have seen in Sonic television programs, recently released titles, and classic titles comes to life in Chronicles. With a great amount of character interaction and communication, even with nonessential characters, BioWare puts you in that universe and makes you feel at home. To further the sense of communicating with the characters, BioWare even incorporated their patent dialogue branching tree, but this time with a unique Sonic twist. Unlike Mass Effect, choosing the wrong answer won't ruin your relationship with Amy and negate you from getting to anywhere with her. Then again, this is Sonic and family oriented gameplay is the main attraction.
Now, none of this would be very beneficial if there wasn't a proper way to showcase it all. Veterans of the Sonic franchise will find the anime/comic book style very homey and a perfect way to present the universe of Sonic. By using bright vibrant colors and tones, everything you love about the look of Sonic comes to life in a deeper sense. Seeing as though Sonic is all about speed and upbeat lifestyle, drab colors would have done the title a grave injustice. Thanks to this style, the game is able to portray the classic Sonic attitude that the series has been giving off since its introduction 15 years ago. Even though the 2D animations are highly detailed and look great, the 3D animations are quite solid for the DS. During battles, the game shows off some impressive flash effects and really gives off that "epic" RPG battle type of feel through the graphical presentation.
Instantly, you'll discover that Sonic Chronicles has very player-friendly gameplay. To help push this title into the player-friendly category, BioWare uses tutorials to introduce nearly every gameplay mechanic found within the game. The controls are also easy and as straightforward as they can come. You use the stylus to point on the screen in the direction you wish to send your little blue hedgehog, and slide the stylus to use Sonic's supersonic speed. Thankfully, the control system is also sharp when it comes time to battle. Unlike every RPG before it, Sonic doesn't use the basic menu surfing mechanic. The game uses a series of touch-screen prompts for special attacks and power moves. Despite sounding a little intimidating at first glance, you'll quickly master the attack prompt system and be devastating enemies in no time.
What's Not
Like every Sonic game since the Dreamcast, the game does have some critical problems. Despite being player-friendly and very open for newcomers, the game doesn't do much to keep your attention for long periods of time. The game is very dull and unoriginal. We have seen the Chaos Emeralds taken in nearly every Sonic adventure, and this title holds the same basic premise behind it once again. With so many impressive aspects implemented into the title, it's greatly disheartening to see such a boring storyline find its way in the title.
To further exasperate players, the battle system is dreadfully slow. It can take several minutes to defeat even the most mediocre of enemies. Sadly, there isn't a way to speed up. To make matters even more aggravating, you'll encounter meaningless tasks and fetch quests throughout the title. These really hinder the flow of the title and will test your patience throughout the title. Also, the prompt system can come off as virtually useless in some battles. Even when missing all the battle prompts, you'll still have the opportunity to inflict high amounts of damage. So, what's the point of the prompts?
Aside from those negatives, the controls aren't always responsive. While they do work well in the navigation sequences, they don't work during dodging segments. The controls will stutter for a second and, ultimately, make you miss out on your dodge.
With so much in the title contributing to the Sonic universe, it can come off as a bit overwhelming to those of us not that in tuned with the world of Sonic. A lot of the minuet details will be missed by the lighthearted player and this is detrimental to the overall experience of the game.
Final Word
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is one of the best Sonic titles in recent years. Despite the games problems, for the Sonic faithful this is a solid installment. The game does have several gameplay flaws and can test your patience at times. All-in-all, Sonic Chronicles is a valiant effort to bring new gameplay elements to the stagnant feel of the Sonic franchise. Hopefully, BioWare is able to rework this formula and create a true Sonic RPG marvel in the soon future.
What the Game's About
After several failed attempts to bring Sonic back into the realm of cool -- and a couple more will surely follow -- Sega decided it was time to outsource their beloved blue hedgehog to renowned RPG developer BioWare. Of course, with Sonic flailing to stay afloat in people's minds as a platformer, who would think that a Sonic RPG would be a good idea? The folks at BioWare thought that and sought to make their dream a reality.
Sonic and company are greeted with another problematic predicament. The series favorite Chaos Emeralds have once again going missing and it's up to Sonic to save the day. Hey! This sounds like nearly every other adventure Sonic has ever been on. But wait, there's more. Along with the power enhanced Emeralds, Sonic's friends have also gone astray. It's time to pull up your red boots and speed through this new RPG adventure with Sonic and company.
What's Hot
BioWare is a master of immersing the players into a lifelike world in their games. Sonic Chronicles is no different. Much like Mass Effect, BioWare has successfully created a living, breathing universe for Sonic fans to thoroughly enjoy and explore. Everything you have seen in Sonic television programs, recently released titles, and classic titles comes to life in Chronicles. With a great amount of character interaction and communication, even with nonessential characters, BioWare puts you in that universe and makes you feel at home. To further the sense of communicating with the characters, BioWare even incorporated their patent dialogue branching tree, but this time with a unique Sonic twist. Unlike Mass Effect, choosing the wrong answer won't ruin your relationship with Amy and negate you from getting to anywhere with her. Then again, this is Sonic and family oriented gameplay is the main attraction.
Now, none of this would be very beneficial if there wasn't a proper way to showcase it all. Veterans of the Sonic franchise will find the anime/comic book style very homey and a perfect way to present the universe of Sonic. By using bright vibrant colors and tones, everything you love about the look of Sonic comes to life in a deeper sense. Seeing as though Sonic is all about speed and upbeat lifestyle, drab colors would have done the title a grave injustice. Thanks to this style, the game is able to portray the classic Sonic attitude that the series has been giving off since its introduction 15 years ago. Even though the 2D animations are highly detailed and look great, the 3D animations are quite solid for the DS. During battles, the game shows off some impressive flash effects and really gives off that "epic" RPG battle type of feel through the graphical presentation.
Instantly, you'll discover that Sonic Chronicles has very player-friendly gameplay. To help push this title into the player-friendly category, BioWare uses tutorials to introduce nearly every gameplay mechanic found within the game. The controls are also easy and as straightforward as they can come. You use the stylus to point on the screen in the direction you wish to send your little blue hedgehog, and slide the stylus to use Sonic's supersonic speed. Thankfully, the control system is also sharp when it comes time to battle. Unlike every RPG before it, Sonic doesn't use the basic menu surfing mechanic. The game uses a series of touch-screen prompts for special attacks and power moves. Despite sounding a little intimidating at first glance, you'll quickly master the attack prompt system and be devastating enemies in no time.
What's Not
Like every Sonic game since the Dreamcast, the game does have some critical problems. Despite being player-friendly and very open for newcomers, the game doesn't do much to keep your attention for long periods of time. The game is very dull and unoriginal. We have seen the Chaos Emeralds taken in nearly every Sonic adventure, and this title holds the same basic premise behind it once again. With so many impressive aspects implemented into the title, it's greatly disheartening to see such a boring storyline find its way in the title.
To further exasperate players, the battle system is dreadfully slow. It can take several minutes to defeat even the most mediocre of enemies. Sadly, there isn't a way to speed up. To make matters even more aggravating, you'll encounter meaningless tasks and fetch quests throughout the title. These really hinder the flow of the title and will test your patience throughout the title. Also, the prompt system can come off as virtually useless in some battles. Even when missing all the battle prompts, you'll still have the opportunity to inflict high amounts of damage. So, what's the point of the prompts?
Aside from those negatives, the controls aren't always responsive. While they do work well in the navigation sequences, they don't work during dodging segments. The controls will stutter for a second and, ultimately, make you miss out on your dodge.
With so much in the title contributing to the Sonic universe, it can come off as a bit overwhelming to those of us not that in tuned with the world of Sonic. A lot of the minuet details will be missed by the lighthearted player and this is detrimental to the overall experience of the game.
Final Word
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is one of the best Sonic titles in recent years. Despite the games problems, for the Sonic faithful this is a solid installment. The game does have several gameplay flaws and can test your patience at times. All-in-all, Sonic Chronicles is a valiant effort to bring new gameplay elements to the stagnant feel of the Sonic franchise. Hopefully, BioWare is able to rework this formula and create a true Sonic RPG marvel in the soon future.
November 20, 2009
