Sonic Lost World - Nintendo Wii U

This was one of my first purchases as a game to play for my Wii U when the Wii U first released. I vividly remember enjoying the game despite the massive amount of hate for it online. Recently I was feeling nostalgic, so I re-bought a Wii U and this game. I can safely say this game is incredibly fun. While yes, the gameplay is slow and the levels are somewhat un-inspired, there's some diamonds in the dirt in this game. First thing I have to praise is the graphics, even though this game runs at 30 fps on the Wii U, the colors are extremely vivid and pop off the screen. Most of Sonic's moveset is also here, with some new additions. The super peel out from Sonic CD is here, a reworked spin dash ( it goes infinitely now and if you hold down the spin dash button, automatically resumes the spin dash if you jump and land, similar to the drop dash in Sonic Mania ) and the bounce from SA2. Along with some new moves, a kick variation of the homing attack which unironically "kicks" the enemy you hit into surrounding enemies, a new run button, ( if you're used to the boost formula its basically the boost but it lasts infinitely ) some new wisps: eagle, asteroid, and rhythm are the new ones off the top of my head. Just fyi, if you purchase the 3ds version, the wisps will be slightly different, along with level design. Obviously the elephant in the room is the controversial parkour system. I personally love it, but I wish it wasn't so limiting. While there is techs to infinite wall run/scale walls, most of the time the sections the levels implement to coax the player into using the parkour system are so brief you can't really use the new system to its full potential. One thing that is annoying though is when Sonic vaults over obstacles when you don't want him to, but this happens so rarely it isn't a big problem. A unique thing this game does is lock levels based upon how many animals you've rescued, a feature I didn't find annoying at all since 90% of the time you get enough animals simply by playing and exploring the levels, but if you want to NEVER deal with this problem, simply go to the first level. There's an area with multiple animal capsules which you can open and then die to reset them, as your animal count in a level saves even if you die. The most amount of animals you'll need to unlock everything in the game is 5,000, so you can just abuse that until you have enough. Another criticism of the game I see people throw around is the game is too easy, and while I can admit the game isn't all that challenging, there were still several times I found myself needing to grind lives to avoid a game over, so take that how you will. All in all, I definitely recommend this game, and while it does have some strange design choices and glitches, I still got a lot of enjoyment out of this game.

I'm going to try and keep this short and sweet and let you make up your mind. It seems that many fans and critics are 'up in the air' about Sonic: Lost World. People either love it, hate it, think its a failure, think its a step in the right direction, etc. etc.Here are a few things that are trueGraphics: The game looks and plays great. I'm primarily a PC gamer so I do love my graphics but even with the 'slightly' limited Wii U graphics card everything in Sonic and the Wii U usually looks great (HD, colorful, very enjoyable)Sound: Some very very catchy tunes. Some music is energetic and some other tunes are very serene, tranquil, and atmospheric. There were even some music in there that gave me a big 'Super Mario Sunshine' vibe.Gameplay: This is where it goes all over the place for most people. I think Sonic fans are a bit too loyal for their own good (because most of them seem to have some 'set' expectations on what makes a great sonic game). And critics are way too picky about games in general. Coming from your run-of-the-mill gamer, this game is GREAT. Very easy to pick up and get use to. The controls arent as 'wonky' as people explained to me. There are times you do lose some momentum but once you figure out how to work things its great.A big complaint is that the game is too slow. And I say "GOOD". Sonic games were getting to be too much of a blur anyways. I loved Sonic Generations (and a few other previous titles) but the levels are quick and then its over. They were always exciting but you dont remember much about it. This game brings it back to the original Sonic game when it was still a platformer. The game also has some vibes of Super Mario 64. You get to explore different options and paths and where you want to go. You mix in some fun 2D stages and 2D rail stages, it is alot of fun. If you also add in the HD graphics and great music, you get a pretty good experience over all.Now there are a few stages that are bad at the end, and there are times when the controls (especally when you are learning them) can be a bit of a pain. But trust me, if you arent a totally new gamer then you should be able to handle yourself. I have played way worse games and overall I like the control scheme (and parkour controls as well!).Last thing, people said this game is TOO EASY, and yes at times it is, but not every game has to be super difficult. There are plenty of times you will crash into enemies or fall off platforms and die. And its pretty fun to have that challenge. The bosses are simple sometimes but you will still mess up a little bit (at least I did).Overall Sonic: Lost World is a simple good-looking easy experience. One that is easy to jump in-and-out of. If you are a Wii U owner, I would suggest this game as one of the few exclusives to nab up.5/5 - Don't believe the crap. Go into it with an open mind. You will love it.