The 'Shroom:Issue 200/Critic Corner
Director's Notes
Issue 100 feels like yesterday, but is literally 8 years. I feel like saying it's hard to imagine just how long I've been here (around 14 years now), the longevity of this community, and especially The 'Shroom, but it's really not. If you've been lucky enough to spend some time here it becomes obvious how special--and rare--the community we have here is, embracing our Mario roots and transcending that as close friends together, experiencing passion projects together, enjoying life together, and I know personally has become even more. Thank you to all of you, fellow administrators and long-term community members who've been through thick and thin, people who I can confidently call my best friends who have mutually helped guide each other through life's both tough and fun moments, our writers and community contributors who volunteer their time to share their weird quirks and excitement for art and games, and even to our quiet readers who enjoy our work, who now have a lot to read this month!
Regular sections, special sections, returning sections, and of special note is the final section of Shoey (talk)'s A Report on the Effectiveness of Power-Ups. Energetic, silly, and as always passionately thorough; I will surely miss having this section around but will be looking forward to other projects Shoey will have coming in the future!
Whether through here in The 'Shroom, or elsewhere in life, here's to the next 100 months! š„
Thank you for voting Half-Baked Reviews as October's Critic Corner Section of the Month!! Be sure to give your love to all of our sections here, and give a shout out to our writers whether in chat or in their forum threads dedicated to their sections. Be sure to vote vote vote!
And now for my regular announcements: We've decided to implement in Critic Corner, and The 'Shroom in general, something similar to News Flush over in Fake News, where no formal sign-up application process is required for one-time or limited sections. From now on if you just want to send in a single review for something you just read, watched played, tried, whatever, you just have to send me your review privately either to me directly in chat, or in a message to me on the forum at least one week before each 'Shroom is to be released! There's no commitment or obligation to provide a full monthly section (although you absolutely can shift it into one if you so choose), just send us your thoughts on a thing and we'll feature it here! If you have any questions or curiosities about this, please feel free to ask!
As always, if you would like to help Critic Corner, we always have openings for more writers! You are free to write for sections such as Character Review and Movie Review, or really anything you'd like to do! There's no pressure to have a huge section; they can be shorter and concise! The application process is very simple, starting with reading the Sign Up page, and sending your application to Meta Knight on the forum. Any idea you have is welcome, and if you have any questions or need help signing up, please feel free to reach out to myself or other 'Shroom peeps!
Section of the Month
| CRITIC CORNER SECTION OF THE MONTH | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Section | Votes | % | Writer |
| 1st | Anton's Half-Baked Reviews | 31 | 91.18% | Hypnotoad (talk) |
| 2nd | Van Shoeul's House of Ghouls | 2 | 5.88% | Shoey (talk) |
| 3rd | 'Shroom FM | 1 | 2.94% | MCD (talk) |
A Report on the Effectiveness of Power-Ups
Written By: Generalissimo Shoe (talk)
At ease troops, and welcome to another Report on the Effectiveness of Power-Ups. You might have noticed my two-month absence from this paper and wondered where I was. The answer was simple; I was conducting field tests on this month's batch of power-ups. Unfortunately, before I share the results, I'm sad to announce this will be the final power-up report. After this month, I'm being reassigned to an internal department. But anyways, this month's power-ups are the Elephant Fruit, Bubble Flower, and Drill Mushroom, tree power-ups that all made their debut in the campaign against Castle Koopa during the battles for the Flower Kingdom.
Elephant Fruit
Our first power-up is the Elephant Fruit. Eating an Elephant Fruit turns Daisy and co. into an elephant, and, unlike with most power-ups, the user actually becomes an elephant. Usually with the animal-based power-ups, such as Frog Daisy or Raccoon Daisy, the user would just put on a suit, but not here! With this pachyderm fruit, the user actually becomes an elephant, which is really weird! Elephant Mario is kind of the premier power-up of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and what I mean by that is. much like Cape Mario, Mega Mario, and Raccoon Mario, Elephant Mario is by far the form with the most prominence in advertisements, and even appears on the box art!
Elephant Daisy has a fairly large variety of powers that have both combat and utility purposes. Its main powers revolve around the trunk. Using her trunk, Daisy can defeat enemies by smacking them with it. She can also store water in the trunk and use it to water dying flowers, which reveal secrets.
Those are the main powers of Elephant Daisy, but the form also has a few utility powers such as:
- Allowing users to run over gaps that are two bricks long
- Extra weight
- Allows users to break multiple rows of blocks at once
- Allows users to defeat certain enemies, such as Shovas, in one stomp
- Extra strength
- Allows users to lift giant shells
- Allows users to hit all the coins out of a block in one jump
So, as you can see, Elephant Daisy has a lot of powers, more powers than most Daisy power-up forms have. But despite this, I feel like Elephant Daisy is really kind of underwhelming. Like, the utility powers are nice, but they feel niches that rarely seem to come up. The storing water idea is cool in theory, but it's not like Ellie the Elephant where the water is a projectile. It can only be used to revive dying plants, and those mostly only give coins as a reward. The best power is probably the ability to use the trunk to defeat enemies. It's very responsive, and you can easily use it to defeat multiple enemies in a row. Here's the catch, though. Most enemies can be defeated by simple stomping, so how much do you really need the trunk?
The elephant form is fine; it's perfectly usable. I get why Nintendo would advertise it heavily, because it's like "hey, look at this weird-ass power-up, what's going on with this?", but that's part of the reason I think it's underwhelming. It's so prominently advertised that you think it's going to be this amazing power-up like Raccoon Daisy or Cape Daisy, but it's just kind of a standard power-up and it doesn't really have any cool or unique gimmicks. There just isn't a lot in this game that really justifies the elephant power existing. It kind of feels like they had an idea for the form first but they didn't have a lot of really great ideas for using it. Of the really heavily advertised power-ups, it's probably my second-least favorite, only beating out the Wing Cap because the Wing Cap is garbage!
Bubble Flower
A close relative of the more iconic Fire Flower, next we have the Bubble Flower. This purple flower, unique to the Flower Kingdom, is very interesting. When released from a ? Block, the Bubble Flower comes out in a protective bubble that floats along, going across the area. Top Mushroom Kingdom scientists believe this bubble prevents the Bubble Flower from wilting due to lack of water. Consume a Bubble Flower, and Daisy becomes Bubble Daisy.
The Bubble Daisy form only has one power and that's, as the name suggests, shooting bubbles. But you'd be surprised how useful these bubbles are. For starters, the bubbles can defeat the vast majority of enemies, even enemies such as Dry Bones and Buzzy Beetles that can't be defeated by the sizzling might of the Fire Flower. The bubbles can also travel through walls, defeating foes hidden behind protective cover.
The bubbles themselves appear to be made out of some sort of dissolving solvent, because when an enemy such as a Goomba gets trapped in one, they're momentarily stunned before being completely dissolved, leaving only a coin behind. Most of the smaller enemies can be defeated by the bubbles, but a lot of the big ones are immune to them. The bubbles even have a slight homing mechanism and will slightly tilt to trap nearby enemies. You can even jump off of the bubbles! They make an excellent temporary platform if you just need a slight boost, but watch out, because this extra jump ability can be a hindrance if you accidentally bounce off of one!
The Bubble Flower is my favorite power-up in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. It's such a simple concept, because all it does is fire bubbles, but the bubbles are so useful and you can fire so many bubbles at once that it becomes a great power-up. You can basically clear out most enemies with the bubbles without being at risk of getting hit. I'd say the Bubble Flower is one of my favorite power-ups in general, because it takes such a simple concept and executes it perfectly! Of the new power-ups in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, I hope the Bubble Flower becomes a staple of 2D Mario games (even though it probably won't!)
Drill Mushroom
The final new power-up in Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the Drill Mushroom. This mechanical oddity, half-mushroom half-literal drill, is probably the rarest of the three new power-ups. Only showing up on its own in a few levels, it can also be picked up in a number of the KO Arena levels as well as in the Roulette Boxes in a couple levels. The Drill Mushroom is pretty similar to Super Mario Galaxy 2's Spin Drill, and, when consumed, turns Daisy into Drill Daisy.
Drill Daisy is a peculiar form. It's, for the most part, the most situational of the new power-ups or even really of all Mario power-ups. As Drill Daisy, you can burrow underground or into the ceiling, allowing you to avoid enemies and obstacles as well as collect coins placed high up or Wonder Seeds. So that's cool, but it's almost got the P-Wing effect going on, where it makes standard levels kind of redundant. The end result is that It can't really be worked into many levels well.
The stylish drill hat can also be used as a weapon! The top of the drill hat is a functional drill and will defeat enemies it comes in contact with. This means that, if you jump into an enemy with the top of your head, you'll defeat them, and that's pretty cool! You can also use it to sneak up on Skedaddlers by burrowing underground and taking them out from below. This can be done on most enemies and is a pretty neat way to get around or defeat them.
That's really all the Drill Mushroom does. Like I said, it's a peculiar power-up and I'm not sure if it's really suited for 2D gameplay. The power itself worked really well in Super Mario Galaxy 2 where it could be used to drill out items or go through planets, but here in a 2D space, it can only be really used for very situational things, which is why it's not the focus of very many levels. I'm just not sure how many times you could really keep it interesting without just breaking the levels altogether, because that's kind of what happens if you use it on a lot of levels where it's not the main power-up. It can basically be used to skip large portions of a lot of levels and make any obstacles meaningless, so I'm not sure if this power-up will ever be used again in a 2D Mario game.
The power-ups in Super Mario Bros. Wonder are fine. It's a good selection, with some of the new ones having interesting concepts or ideas. I think the power-ups sort of suffer from not really being the focal point of the game. Since a lot of the Wonder Seed level transformations either turn you into something new or don't really require power-ups to beat, the Wonder Flowers steal the thunder of the other power-ups. Of the three new ones, I think the Bubble Flower is the most conventional of all the power-ups and would be the easiest to bring back. The Elephant Fruit is just kind of underwhelming and, unless they're going to stick with animal designs going forward, I don't really see it being a mainstay. The Drill Mushroom I think is kind of like the Red Star in the sense that I think it's a little too situational to make a lot of appearances. But the Bubble Flour, with its mostly conventional power-up gameplay, I think fits right in with the rest of the Mario power-ups and I hope it continues to make appearances in the coming wars against Bowser.
'Shroom FM
Welcome back to 'Shroom FM. This is the ISSUE 200 SPECIAL EDITION. As a special treat, you are not allowed to read my section until you have read all 199 previous issues.
Afterbirth - In But Not Of
betcover!! - 馬 (uma)
Sofia Kourtesis - Madres
Sampha - Lahai ā
Sufjan Stevens - Javelin ā
Further listening
- Ana Frango ElƩtrico - Me chama de gato que eu sou sua is very nice. I thought their previous album had a bit more warmth to it, but there's plenty of great stuff here.
- DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ has released a drumless version of Destiny. I haven't listened to it but if you hate drums but love four-hour long house albums this is probably the optimal listening experience.
- I went to see tricot live this week. They were superb!!
Sonic Origins Ranking
Written by: Meta Knight (talk)
Synopsis
In this section I will be assigning a tier list ranking for every "Zone" throughout classic Sonic games. The entries that will be featured are the following: Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Sonic & Knuckles. I am aware that the definitive way to experience Sonic 3 or Sonic & Knuckles is the combined Sonic 3 & Knuckles, but I'll be giving each their own section.
A zone usually consists of two to three āActsā (some even have only one). The player must go through each level, and at the end of the zone usually features a boss. I will be judging each zone using a variety of factors, including level design, aesthetic, music, cultural impact, etc. Sometimes it just boils down to whether or not I personally enjoy playing through a zone, but generally levels I find fun will rank higher than levels that arenāt. These will be under the assumption that you're playing as Sonic, with Tails tagging along in Sonic 2 and Sonic 3. Iāll also outline the thresholds for what determines each rating.
- S Tier - The absolute best. The cream of the crop. Something in this category has to be perfect, or the flaws are so minimal that it just comes off as a nitpick.
- A Tier - Reserved for things that arenāt quite as polished as things in S Tier, but still an absolute joy to play through.
- B Tier - The baseline for what a decent stage is. Itās not something I have strong feelings about, but generally I would consider it serviceable or good.
- C Tier - Something that I feel nothing about. Itās not good, itās not the worst, but in general pretty mediocre. Something super boring, forgettable, or āmidā as the hip crowd would call it.
- D Tier - Terrible. Things that I dread playing through, and range from bad to the absolute worst.
With all of that out of the way, letās get started with the original Sonic the Hedgehog!
Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)
Sonic 1 was the start of it all; kickstarting a massive franchise and enabling Sega to have an iconic mascot. It also hasn't aged the best. I am somewhat of a Sonic 1 apologist, because despite knowing how genuinely awful some of the levels are, I think I actually end up playing it more than the other games. It doesn't mean I think it's the best, nor is it my favorite, but something keeps pulling me back to it. Perhaps I just "got good", but that doesn't excuse some of the baffling design choices.
Green Hill Zone - S
Do I even need to say anything for Green Hill Zone? Everyone has talked about it to great lengths already. I mean, it's the Sonic level. There's a reason it keeps coming back whenever a Sonic game has some sort of throwback. Everything from the music to the visuals is nothing short of iconic. Beyond that, it is actually the best zone in Sonic 1. In fact, some people would say the most optimal way to play Sonic 1 is to play through Green Hill Zone, then shut the game off. Can't say I blame them. A nice balance of speedy sections, with a few platforming challenges along the way without ever feeling bogged down.
Marble Zone - C
Marble Zone is where Sonic 1 throws its first roadblock. Many people fail to get past Marble Zone, quitting from either boredom, or frustration as a result of continuously dying to poorly placed obstacles. There are several spots where you're just waiting. Green pipes move up and down, and you need to wait for the right opportunity to clear them. However, Sonic 1 doesn't have a Spin Dash, so it's easy to die from getting crushed. There's also blocks you push into lava rivers, so for these you do nothing for a good 10 seconds. As far as awful design goes, you'll do a series of jumps, then a spring or spike pops out to instantly kill your momentum, and make you fall to do it again. Sonic 1 also does not provide invincibility frames for spikes. So if you get hit and land on a spike, that's a death regardless of whether you had rings or not. Ironically enough, the boss is one of the easiest in the game. Despite the objectively flawed aspects of Marble Zone, I can get through it relatively quickly just because of how much I've played Sonic 1, so I don't particularly fear playing through these levels, and I don't think it's the absolute worst. I also like the music, and the color scheme is more vibrant compared to some of the other stages. That won't stop me from empathizing with the countless other players that Marble Zone defeats, such as this person:
Spring Yard Zone - C
Spring Yard Zone for me has a lot of the same problems as Marble Zone. Thankfully, there aren't as many hurdles that are straight-up foul. Unfortunately, there's several points where you're standing still for moving platforms to move vertically, and you want to just keep moving but can't. Additionally, each Act genuinely feels the exact same, and similar subsections within a level give off the impression that they're copy-pasted throughout. At the very least, the branching paths are a bit more interesting with some switches you can toggle. The visuals are a bit boring as well.
Labyrinth Zone - D
This is without a doubt, the single worst zone not only in Sonic 1, but throughout all of the Genesis Sonic games. Imagine having the slow, monotonous pacing of Marble Zone, complete with the unfair hurdles, and then do it again but infinitely worse. The introduction of water is the main culprit. Sonic cannot swim, and he moves incredibly sluggish while sunk. If that wasn't enough, know that unlike other 2D platformers at the time Sonic can drown. The only way to survive is to wait for bubbles to form out of the ground in dedicated spots. There's also several spear objects that extend from the surrounding tiles. They can be tricky to maneuver around, especially when underwater. Other atrocities in Labyrinth Zone come in the form of troublesome design. For instance, a common theme of good game design is to introduce a mechanic in a safe spot, then make it slightly more challenging with a similar one later on. Labyrinth Zone breaks this by having a moving platform on a conveyor belt move you upward into a spike, killing you regardless of ring count. Insultingly, the next time you're on the same sort of conveyor belt, there's no spike. Why couldn't they put the safe one first, and visually indicate that "hey there could be spikes here" to prepare players for future encounters? The reason is simple: Labyrinth Zone is complete trash. The aesthetic is ugly, the music is unappealing, and I hate the Eggman encounter in Act 3. It contains all of the problems of Labyrinth Zone in one concentrated segment.
Star Light Zone - A
If you've managed to make it here in the game, then congratulations! Your reward is the only other zone in Sonic 1 that can be considered "great". The music is pleasant; so calming and a welcome change compared to the hellhole of Labyrinth Zone. Star Light Zone actually allows you to go quickly throughout, which is what classic Sonic is all about. There's everything you'd want in a Sonic level including slopes, loops, and platforming, without any lollygagging. It also features seesaws that are a fun way to propel yourself upwards. The boss is pretty clever too! You can either use the seesaws to hit Eggman directly with spiky bombs, or use the trajectory to bump yourself up into him. Either way is easy, but I appreciate that you have multiple options compared to some of the other bosses.
Scrap Brain Zone - B
Scrap Brain Zone is one continuous death trap after another. By all definitions of the word, it is complete bull crap. Platforms suddenly disappear from underneath when you step on them. Conveyor belts that pull you into saw blades or large crushers. Several rows of bomb enemies, narrow corridors, lighting floors, upward flames, and many more. You would think that makes it the worst, but because it's the last area in the game, I find it a little bit more forgivable. It's the last stretch, it should be difficult. Genuinely, if this was a list of Eggman's smartest plans, Scrap Brain Zone would be near the top. Unfortunately, Act 3 is just more Labyrinth Zone which is a huge detriment. Luckily, you can run quickly at the start and drop down to cut the length significantly. Scrap Brain Zone's level tune and views really sell the idea that you're in a laboratory, Act 3 aside. Despite its level design flaws, I appreciate Scrap Brain Zone for what it is.
Final Zone - B
Final Zone is a singular boss fight. No rings, no nonsense, just you and this one fight. It doesn't have any of the arbitrarily placed obstacles like many of the lesser zones which is a great benefit. The music sets the tension tonally, so it does indeed feel like a Final Zone. The boss fight itself is pretty easy for me though. You jump between some electrical spheres, dodge the crusher, and hit. You do this over and over until you win, and that's it. Overall, Final Zone does the job and once it's over you can stop playing Sonic 1 so there's that.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992)
Sonic 2 improves on the original in every way. The Spin Dash enables a quick boost of speed on the fly, greatly reducing the amount of times anything feels sluggish. Also, most zones are now 2 Acts instead of 3. This means you get involved with the levels for just the right amount. Nothing overstays its welcome, while still providing a memorable experience. That's not to say everything is perfect, but the highs are higher than in Sonic 1, and the lows are not as egregious. Sonic 2 also brings in Tails, who is personally my favorite out of the classic cast of characters. Without any further dawdling, let's get into the rankings.
Emerald Hill Zone - A
Emerald Hill is a great introduction to Sonic 2. It's basically Green Hill Zone, but new and different. That being said, the visuals and music are unique enough, and memorable in their own right, to make Emerald Hill feel more than a direct copy. Emerald Hill isn't quite as iconic as Green Hill Zone, and not even the most popular in Sonic 2, but it's still a really well-made set of stages. There's just some other zones that are better, that's all.
Chemical Plant Zone - S
Many players love Chemical Plant, and it's easy to see why. Firstly, the music is an absolute banger. The stage itself is a nonstop rush throughout all of the loops, ramps, spring boosts, pipe tubes, and more. There's a couple of spots that require some platforming skills, but it never feels like it's slowing things down. Act 2 features some pink fluid that you can drown in, which I got stuck on a lot as a kid, but it's pretty easy to get past. All in all, it's no wonder that Chemical Plant keeps returning to represent anything Sonic 2 related. Simply put, it's a blast.
Aquatic Ruin Zone - B
Aquatic Ruin is certainly a unique stage. Throughout each Act, you can take an upper or lower path. One of them leads you across the surface, and the other underwater. You won't have to worry about drowning on the high ground, but otherwise you'll need to stop for bubbles. Aquatic Ruin is fine, but has some design flaws. For instance, the road above water is pretty speedy, but frequently places Grounders and other enemies that you suddenly get hit by. Conversely, underwater is a bit of a slower route, but is somewhat safer. Navigating water in Sonic 2 isn't as treacherous as it was before thanks to the Spin Dash, so there's that.
Casino Night Zone - A
Casino Night is certainly a vibe. In fact, the appearance and audio all lend themselves to the feeling of being in, well, a casino. Flashy lights and bright colors are at the forefront set upon a crisp nightly backdrop. The level itself contains several mechanics to compliment this, from pinball levers, slot machines that can get you rings, elevators reminiscent of those in a Las Vegas hotel, etc. Unfortunately, Casino Night for me is held back a little mainly because of two factors. I don't like the springs throughout that you have to hold a button before you can get launched, and ricocheting back and forth between bumpers can get annoying if you're stuck. However, that's just a personal preference really and borderline nitpicks. Casino Night is incredibly solid otherwise.
Hill Top Zone - B
Showcasing gondolas, seesaws, and more, Hill Top is good. The melody is pretty groovy too, and I appreciate the way the level naturally weaves from the surface to underground layers. Some segments have you rush through rising lava, which is a good way to create tension. While it is objectively a well-designed set of stages, I don't feel particularly strongly about Hill Top. That doesn't mean it's bad by any means, but it doesn't leave as much of an impact on me as some other levels.
Mystic Cave Zone - S
For me personally, Mystic Cave has some of the best atmosphere throughout Sonic 2. The scenery is dark, with a lot of green and purple creating a locale that's super interesting. There's also plenty of traps, spikes, and other gadgets to help you navigate, but nothing feels out of place. The melody is also pretty catchy, sounding like something out of a rave. I love going through different ways, jumping to different levers for lowering various platforms. Narrowly escaping crushers is super satisfying as well. The one major downside of Mystic Cave is the infamous pit in Act 2 where if you fall down, you're trapped, and the only way out is to die. In Sonic Origins, they actually changed the behavior so that it leads to previously cut content, therefore making it more worthwhile. Either way, the sheer memorability of Mystic Cave outweighs the negatives.
Oil Ocean Zone - C
Sorry Oil Ocean fans, but I don't like Oil Ocean. There are some interesting ideas, like some green pressure plates, wind turbines, etc. Branching paths are present too, and it feels like a bit of a maze at some point. The boss fight, while slow, is a bit more involved compared to earlier levels, so that's a benefit as well. The music, setting, and visuals serve their purpose well enough. I don't know, it's not like there's anything inherently bad with Oil Ocean, but it just doesn't click for me. I'm not sure if it's just the midpoint of the game where I start to get fatigued, or something else, but every time Oil Ocean starts I get bored and want it to end.
Metropolis Zone - B
Metropolis Zone is noteworthy for being the only set of stages in Sonic 2 with 3 Acts instead of the usual 2. Similar to how Emerald Hill is a spiritual successor to Green Hill Zone, Metropolis is the reincarnation of Scrap Brain Zone. One death trap after another, with troublesome enemies that pop out at you at any given moment in this mechanical plant. Metropolis is the closest it gets to reliving the worst aspects of Sonic 1. On an objective level, it's seriously flawed because of that. For some reason though, I love Metropolis. It keeps you on your toes the whole way through, and being under that sort of pressure is exhilarating. I do understand that there is a lot of bull through these stages though.
Sky Chase Zone - A
Sky Chase is pretty simple, and in terms of gameplay is reminiscent of a 2D space shooter. You just stay in one place, dodge lasers, and defeat enemies. The main reason why I rank this highly, is because Sky Chase is in exactly the right spot, serving the precise role it needs to. At this point in Sonic 2, you've just been through the most difficult part of the game, so Sky Chase lends itself as a more calm environment. The music is peaceful, but there's a sense of "this is the end" as well which is exciting. Some might find Sky Chase a bit boring, but I think it's well-rounded enough considering how much shorter it is.
Wing Fortress Zone - C
The reason that Wing Fortress is held with a lower view in my mind, is because of how dull it is. I would much rather have it be skipped entirely. A notable problem with Wing Fortress is a couple of specific elements. For one, there's these monkey bar segments where you're underneath the ship, and the goal is to jump onto a moving platform to the right. However, there's also flaming exhaust ports, so balancing all of that leads to a narrowly tight jump that doesn't feel like it's even possible. A different but more annoying part of Wing Fortress happens right after a particular checkpoint. There's a large gap, and the only way to get across is to step on a certain spot that'll zip you across. Unfortunately, sometimes it just doesn't work, so you just die. In both of these examples, a death happened and it doesn't feel like you as a player made a bad judgment, rather a direct fault of the game. Metropolis has elements like these too, yet most of them just result in a loss of rings, so that isn't as severe of a consequence for failure.
Death Egg Zone - A
The finale of Sonic 2 lies in the Death Egg Zone. Personally, I think it's an upgrade from the Final Zone featured in Sonic 1. There's two phases here: Silver Sonic, and the Death Egg Robot. Both of them require you to be aware, because you're not allowed any rings. Honestly, it would be more stale otherwise because then you could blindly get a hit, take damage, and grab a leftover ring. Fighting Silver Sonic again after dying on the Death Egg Robot can be a bit troublesome, but I got to the point where Silver Sonic was super easy. The music during the Death Egg Robot is emotional too, perfectly conveying the fact that this is the final battle. Learning the correct patterns, to then overcome the challenges ahead are part of what playing a good video game is all about. In that sense, Sonic 2 ends on a high note.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994)
Sonic 3 did not have to do nearly as much refining as its predecessor. Sonic 2 obviously was a critical and financial success, so I imagine a lot of high expectations were placed upon this third entry. Sonic 3 continues the formula laid out from the previous games, but each Zone takes more of an expansive direction in the design. This lends to a lot of them feeling like places in a world, rather than a series of levels. While the Acts are longer, it also means there's less of them. On its own, this makes Sonic 3 seem shorter, which some might see as a bit of a downgrade at the time of its release. I don't really care personally, since I play with Sonic & Knuckles attached, but we'll get to that "second half" later. Sonic 3 did bring in the elemental shields, debuted Knuckles as a character, added a save system, so there is merit to the game as it is. I also appreciate that each song between Act 1 and Act 2 is a different spin on the same overarching theme.
Angel Island Zone - S
I cannot think of a better way to start off Sonic 3 than what already happens through Angel Island. You get an opening cutscene to briefly get you up to speed on what's happening, then off you go! Angel Island is yet another grassland, but feels more distinct than Emerald Hill. This probably is due to the fact that halfway through Act 1, the entire place lights on fire! The entire scenery changes to be burnt yellow instead. Act 2 features an airship sequence where you're running past bombs that are being dropped! Green Hill in Sonic 1 is iconic because of how it represents the Sonic franchise as a whole, but Angel Island does a better job at being memorable for the specific events that happen throughout. An excellent set of stages.
Hydrocity Zone - S
Let's ignore the debate on how to pronounce the name of the area for this segment. Hydrocity is another fantastic set of stages in Sonic 3. Obviously, there's a lot of water in the stage, but it doesn't feel slow like Labyrinth Zone, and the transitions between the surface and sunken areas are intertwined with more fluidity than Aquatic Ruin. You can speed through pipes throughout Hydrocity, and watching Sonic loop back and forth with 3D perspective is impressive for the Genesis. There's moving platforms, a chase sequence, hand spinners that give you a boost, good stuff. The music is phenomenal: Act 1 has a jazz funk to it, with Act 2 picking up the tempo to compliment the faster pace, and is one of my favorite tracks in the entire franchise. Overall, Hydrocity is something I've appreciated more over the years.
Marble Garden Zone - C
I don't even want to talk about Marble Garden because there's nothing to say. In fact, the first time I heard about Marble Garden being a thing I thought someone was referring to Marble Zone with the wrong name by mistake. It's just so boring. I'm not a fan of the color scheme, the music, and there's these awful spinner platforms that you're supposed to use, but they don't control well at all. I mentioned that Sonic 3 has longer levels in general, which feels like they're meant to be explored a bit more. However, Sonic 3 keeps the time limit. Some people don't even realize that there is a time limit, but there is a clock that counts upwards, and if it reaches 10 minutes, you die. What this means is that Marble Garden is trying to have an elaborate layout, but it feels like it takes forever to get through with not much payoff for discovering different pathways. This is a problem throughout Sonic 3, and while Marble Garden is not the only zone to do this, nor is it the worst Sonic 3 has to offer, it's the most boring in the game.
Carnival Night Zone - D
Carnival Night is home to the infamous "drum of doom". There's a particular part in Act 2 where the only way forward is to press down on a spinning drum to lower it, thereby allowing access to a lower corridor. The game never tells you that this is a control mechanism you can do, so many children got stuck at this point, ran out of time, then died. I do know the correct way to get past though, and I still struggle to make it to the end of the stage within the time limit. There's several points where you end up making giant circles, especially when finding the special stage rings. As far as the music, I hate it. It does give off the carnival vibe, but something about it I just find grating. In fact, subsequent releases of the game changed the songs from this zone onward due to licensing issues, but I don't miss the original version of Carnival Night's theme. Carnival Night isn't stupid enough to be a fun-bad, and it is annoying to the point where it's my least favorite set of stages in Sonic 3.
Ice Cap Zone - A
Ice Cap whooshes you down a snowy slope and rewards you with 40 rings just for watching the sequence happen. They say first impressions are vital, and Ice Cap starts off wonderfully. I mentioned that some of the music was changed for various themes, and Ice Cap is the song I missed the most when replaying the game in Sonic Origins. Fun fact: the real song for Ice Cap is called Hard Times by the Jetzons, and is worth a listen for any Sonic fan. There's also ice caverns, sliding blocks, penguins, and so many other fitting obstacles. Mainly it's just rewarding to have something more vibrant, and fun to play, even more so after going through the stale Marble Garden and irritating Carnival Night, but then Ice Cap is great to experience in its own right too.
Launch Base Zone - B
I don't have any particularly strong feelings for Launch Base either way. It does suffer from feeling bloated like Marble Garden, but at least there's some more visually interesting elements here. We've got rotating cylinders, levers that change direction, spinning tea cups, ziplines, and things like that. I cannot stress how much I dislike the fact that the timer in Sonic 3 goes against the level design. Launch Base Zone goes several different directions you could get thrown into, so if you get lost just trying to navigate it feels like a slap in the face when the timer inevitably runs out. In one instance, "I died in a cutscene" which was hilarious, but also really stupid. Also, if you're playing with just Sonic 3, the finale is pretty anticlimactic. Literally, you have a phase 1 fight with Eggman, watch Knuckles fall down a pit, then have a second phase, and it just ends after that. By the way, dying later on means you not only restart the first Eggman segment, but you have to watch the cutscene sequence every time. There's no tension either because you can just bring over some rings. Launch Base is fine, but it's got some flaws holding it back from greatness in my eyes.
Sonic & Knuckles (1994)
Sonic & Knuckles is quite literally Sonic 3 DLC. While sold as its own game, it's clearly meant to be a direct continuation. Since that's the case, I can't really think of much new that this game introduced into the series except for one that I'll mention later. That being said, I like playing through Sonic & Knuckles more. There's still some lows here and there, but the high points make me more excited than anything in Sonic 3. The definitive way to experience this game is Sonic 3 & Knuckles as I said before, but sometimes I find myself thinking "I can't wait to get to the Sonic & Knuckles half".
Mushroom Hill Zone - B
Mushroom Hill isn't as impactful of an opening to Sonic & Knuckles as Angel Island was, but I think it's still a fun enough introduction. As expected there's plenty of mushrooms. Some of them you bounce off of, others you can use as a seesaw to boost yourself further. There's also plenty of loops to keep the layout interesting. Although, one thing I never understood were these mechanical pulleys scattered throughout. By repeatedly pressing the down button, you can pump yourself upward to get to another area of the level. They work fine, but you're never told that it's something you can do, and they look jarring compared to the more natural overworld. Either way, Mushroom Hill is perfectly serviceable, just not super exciting.
Flying Battery Zone - S
Allow me to reminisce for a moment. I got into the Sonic franchise by playing Sonic Mega Collection Plus on the Playstation 2. I tried and failed at various entries as you'd expect. So as I sat there on the title card of Sonic & Knuckles, it showed Mushroom Hill. Standard stuff, after all it was a demo of stuff I'd already played. Another instance of idling on the opening screen goes by, booting up another demo, Flying Battery Zone. The adrenaline-inducing music kicks in, Sonic zips down and around a cylinder, jumps across monkey bars, navigates platforms above an endless sky, and then the demo stops. That left a bigger impression on me than anything else in classic Sonic, and it's safe to say it delivered on my expectations when I eventually got there myself. Flying Battery is my favorite area throughout any of the Genesis games. There's so many cool elements that occur throughout these two Acts. I'm willing to put aside any minor nitpicks for Flying Battery because my personal attachment will outweigh it every time.
Sandopolis Zone - D
As a kid I also saw the Sandopolis demo from the Sonic & Knuckles title. What I witnessed was Sonic pushing blocks that would then float in the air, collapsing platforms, a rope swing to glide across, promising mechanics for sure. However, unlike Flying Battery, I was disappointed with how slow Sandopolis feels, with Act 2 being the biggest offender. Throughout Act 1, you constantly traverse up and down while slowly getting across, but the level design feels like it's just a small segment that was copy-pasted over and over. The Act 1 boss is also laughable. You can literally just jump on the left side, and wait. The rock monster will continuously make his way over, and fall to his death. Act 2 of Sandopolis takes the slowness and increases that emotion tenfold. There's ghosts that spawn, and you need to pick up the pace to continuously hit lanterns. Unfortunately, you can't move quickly, because you need to push switches in order to open a moving platform to narrowly slip through. There's also situations where you need to avoid rising quicksand, but any sense of urgency is canceled out by the fact that you're forced to wait until you can reach certain heights, or some other moving platform. Sandopolis Act 2 gets to a point where it feels like it never ends from the repetitiveness.
Lava Reef Zone - A
Lava Reef is filled with boulders, spiked platforms, and some great music. It's a little bit of a grower because initially I wasn't too impressed, but after giving some thought, I think it's pretty fun to play through. I like rapidly pressing the Spin Dash button on the lifts to make it move faster. There's plenty of points to keep you on your toes too. Whether that be collapsing rock platforms, watching out for fake rock enemies, lava falls, etc. I like the Act 1 boss, and Act 2 also features a chase sequence with Eggman in the background, so that's cool. Act 2 is a little bit too long for my Sonic tastes, but Lava Reef is still an incredibly solid zone.
Hidden Palace Zone - B
It's not fair to rank the Hidden Palace among the other stages. Its sole purpose is story-based, and includes a Knuckles fight. So you aren't doing much other than going through a simple few set of stairs and a hallway. Knuckles himself isn't that much of a threat either, so he's easily defeated. They also give you lots of rings so you can literally just keep jumping into him, get rings if you're hit, and repeat. Hidden Palace is fine for what it sets out to do, but isn't particularly meaty or anything.
Sky Sanctuary Zone - S
Sky Sanctuary kicks off the ending events into motion, and the soundtrack evokes this feeling as well. You start off by watching the Death Egg return to space in the background, and Knuckles hits a bridge to start things off. Interestingly enough, there's only one Act. That's fine with me, since they make the stage bigger to compensate without feeling bloated. There's a lot of neat features here too. You have the teleporters from the Hidden Palace, cloud platforms, and honestly Sky Sanctuary overall just feels like a better Launch Base Zone from Sonic 3. Everyone's favorite forgettable Sonic clone Mecha Sonic also makes an appearance, by recreating a few bosses from previous entries. It's a cool easter egg, yet you can also skip them entirely if you happen to have Tails and fly above a certain platform. Sky Sanctuary is excellent for having all the elements that make a solid experience come together wonderfully.
Death Egg Zone - B
If you ever wanted to feel like you're high without actually getting high, then Death Egg Zone is for you. It has the same name as the finale of Sonic 2, but make no mistake this is completely different. Death Egg boasts a lot of antigravity sections, treacherous threats, and the works. Getting a lightning shield makes things a lot safer because you're protected from certain electrical flooring. I love watching whenever Sonic goes through a transporter, it zooms all around the screen and is pretty trippy. Death Egg is also challenging; sometimes putting you at a checkpoint where you don't get rings until you go through a tough obstacle. The layout can be a bit too confusing though, since a lot of the scenery looks the same and there's so many changing directions. The music is a certified banger too, particularly the percussion. The Act 2 boss is underwhelming. I just wing it with a few rings; not utilizing any strategy whatsoever. Eventually, Death Egg leads right into the final boss sequence. I think that it's better than Sonic 3's Big Arm on Launch Base, but it isn't as memorable as Sonic 2's Death Egg Robot. If you don't have all of the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic & Knuckles just ends after this series of fights.
Doomsday Zone - A
I hinted at one thing that Sonic & Knuckles introduced to the series, and it happens here. Upon getting all seven Chaos Emeralds, then the action doesn't stop at Death Egg, but The Doomsday Zone. Behold, the first Super Sonic fight, and for being the first of its kind, it holds up pretty well. You're basically on the clock, since if you run out of rings, you die, and that creates tension. The Doomsday Zone essentially turns into a 2D space shooter, but without any guns, yet you are incentivized to collect as many rings as possible. If you know what to do, this fight isn't particularly challenging throughout its two phases, but I love the cinematic feeling of how it plays out, and the music is top notch. After which, Sonic & Knuckles and/or Sonic 3 & Knuckles truly comes to an end.
Closure
If you've read this far, you're either a really big fan of classic Sonic, or you just wanted the tldr. Hey, I don't judge! There've been some awful lows, and great highs along the way. There's a reason that I keep coming back to these games though, because I find them fun (even if Sonic 1 has not aged well). I have trouble deciding whether I like Sonic 2 or Sonic 3 & Knuckles the best, because each of them have their own merits. That being said, I'll leave the complete tier list down to summarize all of my rankings. Thanks for reading, and feel free to message me about how wrong I am, I love the engagement!
Graphic Novel Review
| Simone and Ajax: Lemmings and Tigers and Bears, Oh My! | |
|---|---|
| |
| Author | Andrew Pepoy |
| Release date | 2022 |
| Genre | adventure, comedy |
| Pages | 128 |
| Available From | |
Greetings, readers! Welcome back to Graphic Novel Reviews! Today for our Very Special Issue 200, I will be taking a look at Simone and Ajax: Lemmings and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!
If youāve read along with me for a while now, you might recognize the two stars of this tale, Simone and Ajax. Iāve covered them before, waaaay back in Issue 128, but now that there is a new book to review, I decided to save it for our Issue 200 celebration. Back in 2022, Andrew Pepoy put on a Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaign to raise the funds he needed to create another Simone and Ajax book, and late last year, those books were shipped out to backers. Recently this year, another campaign was created to raise the funds to clean up and re-release the first book in the series, a black and white collection that Andrew had created while he was in college and in the early parts of his career. I backed it to pick up the first book in the collection. Iām planning on reviewing it next year after those books ship out, so if you liked this review, watch out for that one in the future! I've actually had a chance to meet Andrew at our local comic-con for a couple years now, and he is absolutely lovely to talk to as well. He's got a lot of experience in the comic book industry and he's very excited to work on his own projects and connect with readers and fans. This year, he mentioned that he wanted to do a proper re-release of the second book (the one I covered back in 128), a new book based on another original character that he has worked on in the past, and in the future, a fourth Simone and Ajax book. Needless to say, I'm very excited to see more of his work, both returning characters and some new ones that I haven't read before as well, and you can look forward to those appearing in this comic as soon as they're released! Hopefully, he gets invited back to the 'con next year so he can give me some more recommendations on what to read next.
Letās move to the book now. Volume 3 is comprised of four stories, one featuring a treasure hunt and pirates, one where Simone and Ajax travel to the Wild West, one where the two tangle with classic horror movie monsters, and one Maltese Falcon-esque parody story. My favorite of the four is probably the pirate story- Andrewās gorgeous lineart is on point and on full display. Simone looks great in a floofy pirateās outfit and Ajax gets a cute little pirate captain hat. Just like the last book, this one is also full of great fashions for Simone, and packed with silly and goofy jokes (although there was one in the Wild West story that I did raise an eyebrow at for being a little insensitive) for all ages. Older readers will enjoy the references to classic movies, and the lovely colors and linework will captivate readers of all ages. As usual, Simone gets a wide lineup of outfits, from the aforementioned pirateās outfit to a cowgirl set to a closet full of slinky black dresses that evoke Morticia Addamsā style.
I honestly cannot recommend Simone and Ajax to you enough. It's a series that I really like, and I'm excited to explore more ground in the coming books. I would recommend that you pick up this book, as indie books can be a little hard to find after the first couple years they're released. If you grab books 1 and 3 right now, 2 will be on the way in the next couple of years, and BOOM, you've got a collection started. Simone and Ajax is one of my favorite series, and I hope you'll give it a try, too!
That's all for me this time, readers! Join me next time as I ring in the new year with a new Book Review!
A Digimon World Soliloquy
| Digimon World | |
|---|---|
| |
| Genres | Virtual Pet, Role-playing. |
| Release date | January 28, 1999 (JP), May 23, 2000 (NA), July 6, 2001 (PAL) |
| Platform | Playstation 1 |
| Publisher | Bandai |
| Runtime | BEC, Flying Tiger Development (US reprogramming) |
Hello, and welcome to a section that's been years in the making. As those of you who read Strategy Wing ā or really people who know me in general ā know, I'm a huge fan of the 1999 original PlayStation game Digimon World. It's probably my favorite game on a non-Nintendo system, and, honestly still in my top ten all-time game list even when counting Nintendo stuff. Digimon World is an odd game! I affectionately refer to i