Sonic Frontiers. Oh man, what a wild ride this game has been. From fans and people feeling mixed about the game to feeling completely different after launch. From sega’s poor marketing to now, it has been interesting.
Sonic Frontiers is an open zone game and not an open world say dark souls, the breath of the wild, and so on. You do get the freedom to run around in these massive areas. And you have cyberspace levels that come as a second option* to clear a zone/island but you still need to explore the island to clear some of the story.
For me, I was worried that this game would be like Sonic forces which is serious at the start but becomes light-hearted. Or how the levels were going to be super short like Sonic forces but while that was not the case, for the most part.
The levels or stages were set up like Sonic Forces, but here, also had level layouts from other Sonic games like Sonic Unleashed, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, Sonic Generations, and more.
You have Green Hill, Chemical Plant, sky sanctuary, And a city stage as level themes. These are short stages but they are meant to be replayed and are not the main focus of the game since that was the open zone. being the selling point. If you were hoping the levels would be longer than Sonic Forces, you will be a bit disappointed here.
When Sega said this was an open zone-based game, I thought they were being fancy but no, they meant it, each area is a zone, meaning there is a load screen, a completely new area. And the zones do not connect like other open-world games.
Things I liked
Here is where I will talk about things I liked or loved.
Hmm, Phantasy Star Online 2. A fun game pre-Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis. Now that Phantasy Star Online 2: New genesis has some more content, I figured I would talk about it again. And another reason to blog about games and talking about Phantasy Star Online 2 New Genesis is very nice.
Looking back, I never made a review for this game, and while back then I love talking about the game. I think I can give some thoughts on this MMORPG.
What’s Phantasy Star Online 2: new genesis?
Phantasy Star Online 2: new genesis and not to be confused with Phantasy Star Online 2, is an open-world MMORPG. And I will say that in Phantasy Star Online 2: new genesis current state, the game is nothing like Phantasy Star Online 2 the base game.
New genesis is made for the casual players who found base Phantasy Star Online 2 to be too hard. And listen, I get it. A lot of players as they say, “sweat” in that game. And I get it you are a master at Phantasy Star Online 2.
It is good for sega and casual players for making this change. It’s how I see it.
Ah, it has been a while since I made a blog post on elsword. When I made blog posts about elsword, it was back then. When I didn’t understand the video game or the community, I was still learning as someone who played Elsword on and off. I thought it was a great game, and there is a great video game* under all the filler or junk.
I want to share my thoughts on this game and the community. And I know I will burn some bridges, but if I do burn any bridges, I know who my friends are. :3 And I saw the elsword community on discord and Twitch tv. And I will get to them later on, much later on.
So, enough stalling. I think I’ll start with this post, no? And to start this review off, I have to add the best question for this post.
Alright. I made some post on this Sonic Adventure DX mod or rather two posts but never done a full on “review” since this mod is still a work in progress (W.I.P) Or early access would be a better term? It’s a public mod but new versions are in the works for beta testers
So, as stated, Sonic Adventure DX Randomizer is a mod created by Sora_yxow that randomizes stages, voices, music, characters (Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Gamma, Big, Super Sonic, and Metal Sonic), bosses, mini games, and more.
With that in mind. Everything is random. You can have the normal stages in the base game with the randomizer stages edited for the mod, and if you wish, you can edit the seed to have custom runs which is cool.
So, it’s time. I have been meaning to make a review on this DLC. In fact, it was not gonna happen but thanks to my kind Best friend, SBCz who got me the DLC on steam. I was able to play it and give my thoughts on it sooner than later.
However, Stardew Valley and Clicker Heroes 2 have been taking up my time. But that aside, I have played the Sonic Mania DLC and beaten it. I am ready to give my opinion on it.
Story?
The DLC “Encore mode” takes place after forces (Assuming), Sonic returns as the Phantom ruby flies off, and Sonic gives chase to find Ray, and Mighty trapped in a capsule. Only to find out later, that Heavy Magician is back in action, and King Heavy use the ruby to send the player back in time, undoing the damage on the hard boiled heavies.
That’s it, really.
So, in encore mode. The game adds “new” level layout to encore mode to give the user some new to playthrough, as well as a new time of day for each zone. Special Stages rings have been hidden in new areas.
I really do feel that encore mode tries to encourage players to explore the level, high and low to find these Special stage rings. The Special stages are brand new and offer a challenge for the player
Encore gets rid of lives, rather, you can have Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Ray, and Mighty as make-shift lives, which can be found in Special Character icon monitors or the pinball bonus stage (50 rings at a checkpoint)
Encore mode character box
You can switch between the characters by hitting a Switch box (Seen above). Or if you wish to use the A.I controlled character, you can press the action button. The idea is neat, but other than, a new mode, new special stages, and minor changes to suit Mighty and ray’s moves.
DLC doesn’t have a whole lot to offer current players. New players of Sonic Mania will get something out of it. If you been playing Mania since it first came out, you will spot the minor edits to the zones.
Bosses are left unchanged and are still the same. Which I felt the mode could have needed the change to keep players on their toes. It would have been nice, at least…
Only two bosses got a change, one was a major change, while the other was very minor. These changes were from the new Sonic Mania patch, which is free.
The “true” ending, while is neat to watch and good to unlock, it was very underwhelming to me. Go through a minor edit version of each zone, get the emeralds, for an ending that could have been bit better. Won’t ruin it for others.
I want to talk about the level layout and time of day for the stages. I just want to nitpick here…
Green Hill at sunset looks nice, and it does make green hill fun to go through for the 100th time
Sonic Mania – Encore Green Hill
Then you look at a well made rom hack that started it all. Megamix 3.0
Sonic Megamix 3.0 – rom hack
Encore green hill is just sunset hill. And most of the zone changes are minor. Some zones do have new shortcuts added just for encore mode.
My final thoughts
For the new Sonic fan who is new to Sonic Mania, and wants more from the game. Sonic Mania will have what you in Sonic Mania Plus.
If you been playing Sonic Mania since it came out, it might be for you. But don’t expect much. It’s 5 dollars, after all. Assuming, you own Sonic Mania, of course. The DLC was pretty fun, but after 2 playthroughs, the magic wore off of me.
I tend to beat games pretty fast, so, this could be the reason why encore mode feels like it could have done so much more, but didn’t. The DLC, for the most part, is great. That part is new special stages and Mighty, and Ray as new characters.
The level layout for the encore, in my opinion, is disappointing. I understand that it’s meant to be for Ray and mighty to use their moves to get to new areas, but after Green Hill…Sunset hill. Mighty and Ray fall into the same trap as Knuckles and Tails, that they feel like Sonic but have a different move.
The level layouts, later on, feel unchanged. it’s like I’m playing without the DLC. I know some levels do have areas where Mighty and Ray can use their moves, but I rarely saw them.
One level felt like it was new. That was the encore Mirage Saloon. This stage was fun. to play as any character. They all had a use here in act 1. Act 2 is the same as others.
Encore mode did offer a good time, and I had fun exploring stages for special stage rings. Again, $5 for DLC. I was hoping for too much. I wanted this DLC to be something else. One can wish.
The DLC adds the following:
Mighty and Ray as new characters
Encore mode
Harder Special Stages in encore
New ending in encore
“New” Level layout in Encore mode
Maybe something I missed?
Do you want to buy Sonic Mania Plus?
Again, if you own Sonic Mania already, the DLC is 5 dollars.
Sonic and Tails catch wind of a “World Grand Prix” when they noticed that Doctor Robotnik has joined the “World Grand Prix” to win the Chaos Emeralds to take over the world. Knuckles and Amy find out about Robotnik’s plan and join up with Sonic to get the Chaos Emeralds before Doctor Robotnik has a chance to get them.
I’m using the Sonic Gems collection port of Sonic R to make this review, as I want to give my take on this, as a heads up.
Sonic R is your run of the mill 3D racing game. The game is basic, you have your “Grand Prix” acting as your main mode, and you have Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy Rose, and Doctor Robotnik to play as, and each character plays a bit different.
Sonic is the fastest, Tails has the best turning but is slow. Knuckles… Can glide but that’s the important thing. Amy has a “boost” power that allows her car to go fast and she can drive on water, and Robotnik can attack.
With these characters, you get five tracks to play through. From Resort Island, Radical City, Regal Ruin, Reactive Factory, and Radiant Emerald. (See a trend here with the R?)
In each course, your goal is to place first but there are other collectibles to get during the race. You have the Chaos Emeralds and the five Sonic Tokens in the four courses. Each course is paired with a pretty catchy and cheesy vocal Soundtrack while it’s not the best, it fits the stages or courses, for the most part. There is another mode, “Time attack” Which holds 3 extra modes but not worth mentioning.
My thoughts
Now, I said each character plays a bit different. The controls are too loose and I feel that the courses were not designed with the loose controls in mind. Over time, you can get used to them but I feel that is awful design.
The tracks are good for what they are. I feel like the tracks were made with a different plan in mind, as the characters run into walls or the water far too easy and it can be annoying.
Sonic R looked nice at the time but like any game, it will age poorly but Sonic R has not aged too bad but the flaws that others had with the game will become more clear to see what has aged poorly.
But is Sonic R a bad game? Due to all the memes around this game, I can’t say it has helped it in any way. Sonic R is not a bad game, it’s just underwhelming for a racing game.
But other racing games back then did offer more but I feel that Sonic R missed the mark. With Sonic R, at best, you will find an average Sonic racing game that offers not much. And at worst, you have an ok Sonic spin-off game that may not be worth your time.
I made a Dungeon Souls review in 2017 and it was long-winded. So I felt like coming back to this game
Dungeon Souls puts the player through a number of unique dungeons to remove the curse, and the core placed in the dungeon. Dungeon masters are cursed to guard the dungeons to keep their leader safe.
The dungeon master has turncoat and you must save them as well or free them. Are you up to the task to save the day? Or will you prey to the Dungeon masters and the redeemer on your way to break the curse?
Gameplay
When starting the main game, you can pick your character, difficulty and hop right into the action.
Your main goal is to activate these marks, that open the way to the next dungeon level. When all marks have been found in a dungeon level, The redeemer will come for you and as I write this, The redeemer can’t be killed.
Akin to toy pop, when you open the door in toy pop, the level begins to summon blocks that kill the player if they stay too long. While The Redeemer won’t kill you on touch, it will drain your HP but it can kill you.
When you go through a new dungeon, the enemies will get stronger which will give you a challenge
the controls for the game are “fine” with a keyboard or gamepad, and the auto-lock on to enemies makes life easy. The player feels nice. The player doesn’t have any weight to them when they move but that’s ok.
Dungeon souls control for handling movement and attacking feel nice good, no delay. Everything works as intended, and it makes me happy to say that you can come into this game and not have to worry.
There is even a tutorial for new players who want to know how to play that will teach them the basics controls for each character of the game, which is a wonderful feature to add to any game.
As you play through every even number level, you have a chance of entering a secret dungeon which holds a secret boss fit or a new set of levels for you to enjoy, within the current dungeon’s level but it’s up to luck if you get to enter or not
The current version of Dungeon souls works on a “lap system”. After you “beat” the boss at “The End 3” You are sent back to the start with all of your items, levels, and skills saved but things have changed. Now you can get the true ending but I don’t want to give away too much.
The game offers a wonderful soundtrack that is fitting for the game’s art style. Each song for each dungeon and dungeon master is great stuff.
Overall Thoughts
Dungeon souls have been a wonderful ride through, so much that I did two playthroughs of this game and I loved every moment of it and this is a game that keeps on giving.
While I loved this game to death, can I say this will be a game that anyone can pick up? I have to say yes. It’s easy to pick up and play but It’s not an easy game and you may die a lot.
BUT with Dungeon Souls, You can play an on a skill level that is for you. It’s hard but in a fair way. When you die, you can feel that it was your fault rather then the game being hard. But if it is your first time playing… How your first experience may go, is down to luck or RNG.
Will the first run show you the game has a lot to offer or will you get a bad run that will make you think otherwise? That’s the thing with rogue-like games. It’s down to luck if you will enjoy this kind of game.
It’s a great game, give it a try. I feel this game can bring you a great experience and this game has so much to offer. Do yourself a favor, and get this game. It’s a treat to be had.
Two months have passed since Dr.Robotnik / Eggman tried to take over the world from his new base, the ring satellite found in space.
Eggman had plans on draining the rings from the planet to keep Sonic at bay. But that plan fell through when Sonic burst into the base to stop him in his tracks.
Sonic, after stopping Eggman’s latest plan, figured that would be the end of his mad plans, but Sonic was wrong as Eggman had planned to return to get his revenge with a new threat and plan in store.
While Eggman is planning, a strange asteroid started hovering around the planet, Eggman, mad at the heroes he curses, plans on making them all.
(Sonic was the only one there…)
The strange asteroid was picked up by Eggman’s scanner, seeing this he shrugged it of as it could have been any rock but later on, he had an idea to use the energy stored within the rock for his latest plan to turn it into a new base to make all that stand against him, beg for mercy.
Eggman, using his new weapon/base targets Greenflower City to show Sonic, he has the power to do what he wants. Sonic is too late to do anything to save the city, Eggman comes to gloat one last time before putting his plan into action.
Sonic and Tails give chase to put a stop to Eggman’s plans and our game begins
Gameplay
Sonic Robo Blast 2 or SRB2 is a Sonic Fangame that goes back to the classic roots of Sonic, using a modified version of the Doom Legacy engine
It’s an FPS but without guns, it works really well. You have your main 3 heroes. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles who all play different, akin to “Sonic 3 & Knuckles”
One new feature to Sonic’s Moveset is the “speedthok” that will send Sonic at high-speeds.
I should talk about the characters and the level difficulty. Sonic is the hard mode, you are fast and quick, but control is something you need to earn.
With Sonic, there is no safety net to catch you if you make a platforming mistake or mistakes
You have speed, and skill on your side.
Tails is the slowest one, while speed is not on your side, you have full control of your character, even while going fast.
Knuckles is faster than Tails but not as fast as Sonic, Knuckles has a low jump like in the classic games but like the classic games, you can climb walls, and glide
You have 7 zones and the final zone. This is version 2.1.19 that I am using
There are stages that level themes akin to the classic games
There are emerald tokens that will warp the player to a special stage that plays akin to “Nights into dreams”
You have the Green Hill themed like stage. all green and full of life, water flowing flowers dancing. For a place that has been wiped out. Greenflower zone looks nice
You have a chemical plant themed stage. Techno Hill, the area outside Greenflower has been turned into a toxic mechanical factory that is pumping out toxic slime.
You have your water-themed zone. Deep Sea, your underground labyrinth with hidden ruins, and flowing waters that lead into a deeper underground labyrinth.
Castle Eggman is one of Eggman’s castle, guarded by his robots, and full of traps to keep you on edge.
Arid Canyon is an open level that has been taken over by Eggman. Hot oil and deep canyons, using Rope pulleys to cross the deep canyons
Red Volcano is your lava/fire stage that is ready to blow. Lava rising and lowering, and falling platforms.
Egg rock, the final zone and the last wall of Eggman’s defense. Low gravity, anti-gravity, and crushers. This stage will test your platforming skills with Metal Sonic.
Egg Rock Core zone, the final fight. It’s you and Eggman.
The game difficulty is based on how well you can control the character, using Sonic for the first time is going to be hard, whereas using Tails or Knuckles may offer a better playing experience.
Final thoughts
SRB2 or Sonic Robo Blast 2 is a fun game, I say it’s pretty stable, the game is still being worked on still.
My issue with the game is the learning curve, for players who played SRB2 to death, this is no issue but to a new player, this is a huge turn-off, and may even turn players away from the game.
I had a few deaths in SRB2 that felt cheap (Questionable) But for the most part, it went well
I didn’t bring this up, but SRB2 has online and a big community of modders and the online is fun when you can get things going without resyncs.
But overall, SRB2 is a fun fan game that does a good job of bringing the classic heroes to 3D well. If you love Sonic and 3D platformers and doom like controls, SRB2 may be for you. if you don’t like doom like controls or 3D platformers but like Sonic. Give SRB2 a try, it’s free, and you may be surprised what this game has to offer
Pantufa the Cat DX is a Sonic Rom hack that has been made into it’s own game. A platformer of sorts. I would say this is more of an fan game than a rom hack. But nevertheless, it’s a rom hack of Sonic the hedgehog 1, and it adds new things to spice things up.
What does Pantufa the Cat DX have to offer players? Trial and error platforming, now this is not so bad, games like cuphead, Wings of vi, and I wanna be the boshy, all have this trial and error theme. It’s in place so some players can’t “hold” Right to win, much like the Sonic games of late. There’s no challenge there in Sonic games, it’s too simple, and has made some players “soft” when a game offers a real challenge, akin to cuphead, wings of vi. They hate it.
Story?
Pantufa the cat offers some good platforming challenge for you to enjoy. play as Pantufa the Cat, and visit the 6 brand new zones with new layouts, new set pieces, and new traps.
Duck hunt dog has turned rouge with his super powered NES, and he is hell bent on taking out Pantufa, it seems but Pantufa has something to say about that.
New to this game is a new move. The parry Jump that allows Pantufa to avoid damage for a few seconds and the new “Infinity shield” that keeps the player safe from everything apart from getting crush..
There is no lives, given the fact that it running with the trial and error theme, and there is a health bar that the player has. It can be re-filled by breaking a monitor with a paw icon or collecting 20 coings will also re-fill part of your health
I guess the only issues I have with this game is that, Hazards and enemies seem to be place in spots where you have no way to react in time. Checkpoints in the later levels are far off, to a point where they are near the end of the stage or boss but that is fair, since it is late game, things ramp up.
Some hazards seem to have a wider hurtbox and there were un-fair deaths, and the game seems to have slowdown when respawning at a checkpoint but these are nitpicks.
The whole trial and error in a Sonic game is a turn off for some.
Overall, Pantufa the Cat DX left a somewhat pleasing feeling after beating a hard game that offered a real challenge and the feeling of overcoming it was even better. I went into this game having very low and mixed feeling towards the game but after playing it, I was wrong, and I’m glad.
Pantufa the Cat DX is the reason why gamers need games like this, When there is a real challenge that the player can’t beat, they forfeit or give up because it’s not easy. Gamers today have gotten weak and soft. If you can hold right, then that is the challenge that THEY want but DON’T need.
Pantufa the Cat DX is a decent platformer that offers a consistent challenge through out the game, and fun can be had here. The game rewards skilled play, instead of speed. As I said, Pantufa the Cat DX is a decent platformer, that is, if, you go into this game knowing that it’s not a sonic game then you will have a better time. If, you go into thinking it is going to be a Sonic game, you are not going to have a fun time.
It’s far from perfect, but if you love trial and error-like games, and like a good platformer with Challenge, Pantufa the Cat DX should suit your needs.
Sonic The Hedgehog Spinball opens up with the game showing off Dr.Robotnik new base, “Veg-O-Fortress” The base of Dr.Robotnik’s robo operations, and much more. Our heroes, Sonic and Tails catch wind of the news, and set out to stop and shut down Dr.Robotnik’s base.
But as they get close to the “Veg-O-Fortress” Sonic and Tails get shot down before they can do anything, Sonic jumps into the water, under the base which allows him to sneak in with Robotnik assuming he got rid of Sonic. Tails flies off to repair the plane. While Sonic is inside. he must deal with the traps, robots, saving others and animals from being roboticized, and dealing with the “Veg-O-Fortress” Pinball defense system in order to get to DR.Robotnik to stop him in his tracks.
After working his way up from Toxic Caves to the machine, Dr.Robotnik finds out that Sonic is alive, and close to stopping him. He takes off in his spaceship to escape Sonic but Sonic managed to catch up and have his “final” battle with Dr.Robotnik and ending the game as Sonic and Tails fly away as Dr.Robotnik blows up in his base.
Fun fact. Sonic spinball has characters based on the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog show.
With the story out of the way, it’s time to talk about the game itself. Sonic The hedgehog Spinball, is a pinball based game that has more focus on Pinball than platforming, more often then not, you will be at the mercy of each table and the gimmicks you must use to get the chaos emeralds to open up the boss room.
With this being a spin-off game, Sonic’s ground control is very basic but Sonic’s main control focus has been placed into Pinball controls, and for the most part, they work well enough to get the job done.
The game has 4 stages, I should talk about them. Might be a good idea.
So it is time to give my review on Sonic Forces and tell you what I think.
I will be using the PS4 version for this review.
Sega and Sonic Team have given us a new game. Is it Good? Let’s find out.
Let’s talk about the story. I will be using the Sonic Forces theater to get a recap on the story
STORY
The game starts off, with Dr. Eggman being fed up losing to that blue blur, Sonic. This has led to him to make his latest creation that will put a stop to Sonic, and friends once and for all.
Eggman has his forces in the city where he now has control, Sonic gets the news from Tails and meets up with them. Being able to stop his robots from causing any more damage.
Hello there. Sonik, here with a new post. I want to give my thoughts on Sonic World R8 but to do that, I will need to play some Sonic World R8 (SWR8) and give my honest opinion on the game.
Sonic World R8
Going to play the game for about a good 30 mins to an hour and say what I feel about the game as a whole. And since the game has extra modes…. I will spend a few mins on those as well.
Let me talk about Dungeon souls, a rogue-like game made by Lamina Studios, Mike Studios.
Dungeon Souls is your run of the mill rogue-like game and what makes it stand out from the rest? I am here to tell you. Maybe. I don’t know but I am going to try anyway. :D
I’m Sonik and I will be your guide.
Dungeon Souls
Story
I will try to give you an idea of a story, though, there is not much here for one.
Sonic Mania. I want to say that Sonic mania is a great-
Damn it Sega. You had one job. Well, let’s ignore the DRM till we get to the end of this post. Going to share my thoughts in this mini like review.
I will say this. If you are “That” person who takes or treats opinions serious. I think you need to go elsewhere. :3 These are my own experience I had with the game.
Sonik the edge-lord, here with this post to share opinion and thoughts :o
I never thought I would make my first Game review after a game I hate. A spinball no less. But I will make this a fair review and give my thoughts on it.
I used to hate spinball but my feelings for the game have changed over time. I dislike the game.
Welcome to my review of Sonic The Hedgehog: Spinball. Sit back, get a snack, a drink and enjoy?
Ony's chaos realm 