What’s this, two reviews in one day? Well, I needed to put out the continuation of my Sonic 3 review pronto, so look no further. The Sonic and Knuckles re review has arrived (I’ll only be doing these for a handful of games)! Here’s the original: Sonic and Knuckles review.
Sound: If there’s anything Sonic 3 didn’t do for my earbuds, S&K does. The soundtrack is just as impressive but covers a much wider array of vibes and tunes. The sound effects are fun and quirky as ever. Sound: 9/10
Presentation: The exact same graphical style as Sonic 3, complete with gimmicks and level traps for their respective new stages. The one thing S&K does even better is presenting the story. This would start the trend of deep (or attempting to be) and involved plots, except for instead of poor voice acting this one conveys its story through a sort of sign language and context clues; something the Sonic series should really go back to… Presentation: 9.5/10
Gameplay: Sonic and Tails play exactly the same as they did in S3, but level design as a whole is a lot different. There’s a little less speed, a few more gimmicks and just a little bit less of what makes Sonic unique. But don’t let that deter you, the gameplay is still fast, furious and reflex-oriented. The major gameplay twist of S&K is the ability to play as Knuckles through an entirely seperate story and completely remade Sonic levels. These levels cater to Knuckles’ gliding and wall-climbing abilities, providing an interesting if a little slow change of pace. An important thing to note is that it’s fairly difficult compared to Sonic’s levels, so the learning curve of the new playstyle is steep. Gameplay: 9/10
Multiplayer: Same splitscreen (or co-op) racing gameplay as S3, only now with Knuckles and different stages. It’s cool, but still not enough to be a major feature of the game. Multiplayer: 6.5/10
Length: The twist with S&K is that it acts as both a stand alone title AND a DLC. It’s got three totally seperate campaigns for Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, but also allows you to play through S2 and S3’s levels as Knuckles. It can even link together the campaigns of S3 and S&K, forming a giant combiner game. Impressive, SEGA! Length: 10/10
Overall: Sonic and Knuckles gets an 8.8 out of 10. If you own Sonic 3, this is a must buy, no questions about it. If you don’t, it’s still a great adventure on its own.
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