I've been checking in on Sonic Robo Blast 2 since the early 2000s. It's one of those "computer lab games" that I always tried to stealthily play during class instead of actually learning anything, and the negative trajectory my life took thanks to Sonic the Hedgehog is due in part to fighting with Robo Blast 2's squirrely controls when I should've been preparing for the future. It's fine. If I get an F on this paper I'll speed thok my teacher directly in the nose.

I'm all growed up now, a fully formed man of 30-something years, and yet Sonic Robo Blast 2, which has been in development since 1998 and is recognized as the first 3D Sonic fan game, is still getting updates. The game isn't even complete yet, but it's practically an institution in itself within the fangame community. There are whole mods that build on top of Robo Blast 2 which could be considered games in their own right, like the more recent SRB2Kart. Somehow, after all these years, Sonic Robo Blast 2 is more accomplished than I am, and I'm a wholeass real human being. Incredible stuff.

Robo Blast 2 is constantly evolving and changing shape, and version 2.2 (which released back in 2019) is one of the most extensive overhauls the game has ever received. Whole zones have been rebuilt, new acts and enemies have been added, slopes have been introduced, and new menus give the game a sharper looker. This all results in a far more polished and cohesive experience than previous versions, though some zones feel a little too indulgent and as a result, they drag on a bit too long. Castle Eggman has a lot of interesting gimmicks, but both acts feel like running a marathon, and Egg Rock's challenging platform sequences start to wear thin given how much zone there is.

However, none of these zones are difficult to navigate, and jumps over bottomless pits are generally easy to negotiate thanks to Robo Blast 2's tight controls, which at times feel better than some of Sonic Team's own titles. Even the special stages, which are modeled after NiGHTS into Dreams, feel better to play than the games they're aping.

These motherfuckers must've taken all their online courses at Westwood College, because the controls aren't the only thing that have been tightened up between versions. Graphically, 2.2 is Robo Blast 2 at its peak. It reminds me somewhat of the ill-fated Sonic X-Treme with its clash of 2D sprites against 3D environments, and mechanically it very much feels like a sort of bridge between what would have been had Chris Senn not been driven to the brink of death and the Adventure games, which did not drive Yuji "three hots and a cot" Naka to the brink of death. Anyway, listen to Deep Sea Zone's theme, which is a real jam. Love a good water level track, and this one is up there! Game looks good, sounds good, feels good too.

Robo Blast 2 is surprisingly lengthy, with huge zones, tons of secrets, unlockable levels, and alternate routes that provide a hefty amount of replay value. That's not even getting into all the add-ons and mods that fans have been pumping out over the years. Despite its robustness, it is still an incomplete game, and I'm not in the habit of rating stuff that's in development. I have no idea what version 2.3 will look like, or version 2.5, 2.8, or 3.0. Robo Blast 2 has been kicking around for over twenty years, and in that time there's been a number of constants and an even greater number of variables. This current version is a must play for anyone who enjoys Sonic the Hedgehog and indulges in fan content, and even if you don't, then I think it's still worth checking out to appreciate the effort put in by an incredibly dedicated and hard-working community.

Oh, this is a fan game alright...BECAUSE IT BLOWS! I mean, it controls like it's on ice, and don't even get me started on the thok! Sonic just dashes forward like an impossible to control bullet...but the game still kind of works? I mean...it REALLY works..? How is that possible? This game's appeal is as mysterious as the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman that took hold of all of American culture in the mid 1990s. I don't think OJ did it, he doesn't strike me as a killer. I mean, he's a bit eccentric, but all great figures are. Isaac Newton, despite giving us the laws of classical physics that are still foundational and influential to the science of today, was also an unbelievably crude and unlikeable man. It doesn't mean we should disregard his contributions. SRB2 is a great game precisely BECAUSE it follows so closely to Newton's laws of motion, even with all of the baggage that comes along with them.

Sonic Robo Blast 2 is a love letter to classic sonic games with a new 3D spin.
This game is a fan game that is so fun to play through and experience a new twist on classic sonic in a 3D style.

The game features 6 roster characters to play as in terms of Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Fang the Sniper, and Metal Sonic.

Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles all appear in the base roster with Amy, Fang, and Metal being unlockable.

The game features a bunch of levels that each have 3 individual acts within them, with Acts 1 and 2 serving as your standard Sonic Act but in 3D in a HUGE area to explore and traverse, with collectibles to be found. Act 3 serves as the boss of each stage, with Eggman/Robotnik using different iconic and new machines to try and defeat you.

The game has issues in terms of sometimes not being clear as to where you have to go, and the camera tends to fight you sometimes, but not to the point to where the game becomes unplayable or anything.

The game also features an amazing community that is constantly updating the game, adding new levels and characters to play as.

Personal favorites include:

- Surge the Tenrec
- Mecha Sonic (Sonic 3 & Knuckles)
- Kiryu Kazuma (Yakuza/Like a Dragon/Ryu Ga Gotoku)
- Kirby
- Pacman
- STEVE (MINECRAFT)

Any many more from Sonic characters, to other video game characters! There is even a mod that allows you to play with 3D models.

This is such a love letter to fans, and to Sonic, and while it might have issues, I think you'll all enjoy it.

Dropped after completing Castle Eggman Zone as both Sonic and Tails. I’d like to start off by saying the art style and presentation kick ass and are very faithful to the source material. However I don’t feel the same can be said about the overall control and later level design. Say I have a skill issue all you want but I don’t feel the Speed Thok is a comfortable method of closing gaps/attacking enemies at all in the way the air dash or homing attack in the official 3D games are, combined with how slippery Sonic himself feels to control as is. I’m sorry but these physics do not feel meant for precision platforming period.

Boss fights are also incredibly awkward to get through with the aforementioned control issues along with the uncooperative camera while using the Thok as your only reliable means of attack, and bosses seem even worse trying to attack without it using someone like Tails, who can either only rely on a normal jump or hitting an enemy’s underside with his namesakes.

All in all, Sonic Robo Blast 2 makes me wish I was playing Sonic Adventure instead. Maybe there’s just something I’m not seeing considering how massive the community for this game is and the fact it got an awesome kart racer.

Still fucks me up that this game technically released before Sonic Adventure 1 and still somehow managed to be a more consistently entertaining experience.

I haven't played it in a long time. It's had many updates since my last fair go. But, man.... mastering the stage layout and rocketing through as Sonic without the game EVER taking control away from me is something I wish the official entries offered.

I had my issues with it, but I really can't blame the devteam if they had so few games to take as a reference point. It's lovely. That's all I really have to say, but on top of already being a solid base experience, the modding community is thriving- adding more to this game even to this day. It's so nice!

Fuck Egg Rock though.

Sonic Robo Blast 2 conflicts with me so hard: on the one hand I really do like this fangame's visual style. The pixel art and the general environments are really well made and look very pleasant in motion, and surprisingly I found the music to be pretty good as well. Everything else though...not so much.

For the record, I HIGHLY recommend not playing this with a game controller. This game was just not built for it whatsoever. That's not to say I'm not gonna take points away from it for not designing the game around controller at all, because, like...that's how I primarily play platformers, but KBM is a marginally better alternative. That aside however, I really don't like how this game controls. KBM did make steering your character better overall but no matter what you use, Sonic and co still have incredibly jank acceleration issues. Much like Sonic Forces, you go from 0-100 way too quickly and it's super jarring, the main difference is that the turning isn't as stiff as Forces. General platforming and even just moving around never ONCE feels precise or natural, compounded by the fact that you have almost zero air control if you aren't going at a high speed. The general level design is a mixed bag, a lot of it is very expansive with little to show for it, or it's just incredibly convoluted and messy with (quite frankly) terrible stage gimmicks. The boss battles aren't really good either, they start out alright but the further you go in, the worse they get. I don't who in their right mind thought the Metal Sonic boss was a good idea, trying to hit a target that has the hitbox of a mosquito who flies around you in nonsensical patterns WHILST you're in a boxed arena with electrified fencing and bottomless pits, but I want whatever they were smoking that day. The camera is a mess too; again it is a little bit better with KBM than with controller but it never really gives good viewing angles, constantly needs to be readjusted and absolutely freaks out if you get close to any form of geometry, oftentimes I come across a wall, try to turn around and Sonic's gigantic sprite blocks the entire screen and makes things practically impossible to follow, doubly irritating within boss arenas.

There is a commendable amount of customization options on display via community made mods to change just about any aspect of the game you want, but bottom line, I shouldn't have to rely on mods to make the base game enjoyable. That's kind of a major problem methinks.

I appreciate them adding Fang, Amy, and Metal to the lineup. Metal and Cream have always been my favorites.

With mods this game becomes a 3.5 no doubt. Custom characters give you more options and make it a little easier, cause this game isn't easy, which I enjoy. Once you get the layout of the level progressing gets easier just like 2D sonic. In fact, it's easier to remember parts of the level in this.

There can be some irritating moments here and there, it's not perfect, but I think this is the most fun I've had with a sonic game. Custom stages are pretty interesting too.

[This is a review of Version 2.2.8, though I also played... I believe Version 2.0...? around 14-15 years ago]

Depending on how you define the term, my favorite Sonic fangames are Sonic Mania and Sonic 2: Special Edition. But assuming you don't count those (and, like, fair), then my favorite is Sonic Robo Blast 2. Without question, one of the greatest games to feature Sonic, over much of the official series.

Honestly, a lot of my appreciation for this game comes from how unlikely it all sounds on a high level. Even knowing how high-octane DOOM can be, I neeeever would've guessed at a well-realized, non-gimmicky Sonic game making sense in that engine. And yet...

I love 3D Sonic, but I'll be quick to point out that the post-Adventure games have pretty different design philosophies from the classic series. Yes, Sonic's always been a spectacle platformer series, but the means by which you get there changes. 2D Sonic places more focus on methodical exploration, with speed being a reward for good play; 3D Sonic encourages speed as often as it can, with speed built into its strongest set pieces. Exploration is traditionally presented as being divorced from speed in 3D Sonic...

(I haven't played Sonic Frontier yet, so no idea how the open world design addresses that)

...which is what makes Sonic Robo Blast 2 so striking. The game very cleanly blends 2D game design into 3D space. Levels are HUGE and expansive to accommodate the player's innate desire to explore, with a huge emphasis on naturalistic or logical environments. Sure, you still have plenty of video gamey obstacles like spinning spike bars and death lasers and such, but there's usually some sort of logical continuity to how the player explores the Zones, which in turn informs the cadence of challenges.

And it's not a complete rejection of 3D Sonic's design, either! A lot of the environmental storytelling you see in some of the Adventure titles and especially Sonic Unleashed, where the progression through biomes and buildings communicates its own adventure, gets teased out in SRB2. "Castle Eggman" isn't just a string of castle-themed rooms. It's a long trek through a forest leading up to the castle, followed by a trip through several rooms and libraries, followed by a run across danger-riddled castle ramparts. "Egg Rock" isn't just a generic space zone, but rather a slow infiltration of a meteor base as the player dives into the heart of Robotnik's stronghold. "Arid Canyon" is more than a generic desert level, it features a race through an abandoned mine and down to a train robbery.

Now, it isn't uniformly this - Greenflower and Red Volcano in particular are largely just biomes without any sort of adventure progression. But then, the game's still under development (even after twenty-five years of continuous work), and plans exist to embellish these levels and add more to boot. So, maybe some day! Even so, even with the game as it is, it's a very easy, very strong recommendation from me. Great stuff.

Miscellany:

- It is insane to me that this Sonic fangame off the DOOM engine spawned a Kart-Racer, which itself spawned a Persona dungeon-crawler. To parse this: a first-person shooter was modded into a third-person 3D platformer, which was modded into a racing game, which was modded into a turn-based RPG. It's hard for me to even wrap my head around that.
- I LOVE THE BOSS OF ARID CANYON. GREAT PULL HOLY CRAP
- Since I played different versions, it was kinda funny watching the plot go from "Eggman blew up a mountain, ANGST" to "Eggman Roboticized a mountain, oh but don't worry, people are okay (or at least will be once you beat the video game)"
- Theming the bonus rounds after NiGHTS into dreams... is a cute touch. Doesn't feel too far off from the realm of possibility, given the inexplicable NiGHTS cameos across some official titles and the Chemical Plant boss from Sonic Mania
- I haven't even played a Dark Souls game, but I love what that little sword-and-fire communicates in Castle Eggman.
- I think I tried the multiplayer once? Got dissed in text-chat for not knowing what I was doing, and decided I was good.
- Sonic's Speed Thok sure is a weirdly-named move, but it's a good compromise for the Homing Attack, itself a compromise for Sonic's speed in 3D. I like how much utility the move gives you, offset by just how much of a commitment it is. Good solution for something to give Sonic, to give him a movement counterpart to Tails' flight and Knux's gliding.