It really does take a step back in terms of gameplay from the first Riders game, but that's all people ever focus on.
Besides the gameplay, SR:ZG does everything else a lot better than the first SR. The courses are way more memorable, The OST is better overall, and the story mode (While nothing amazing) Is more interesting than the first game. The Zero Gravity gimmick is cool but not that impactful. I think its a fine sequel, but I can agree that the gameplay is pretty bland...
Besides the gameplay, SR:ZG does everything else a lot better than the first SR. The courses are way more memorable, The OST is better overall, and the story mode (While nothing amazing) Is more interesting than the first game. The Zero Gravity gimmick is cool but not that impactful. I think its a fine sequel, but I can agree that the gameplay is pretty bland...
Grace in game design. You'd typically expect someone to take a standard hover racer as a framework, with preexisting buttons for boost and tight turning, and then try to shoehorn gravity mechanics into it where it's not needed. But instead, Sonic's newfound gravity shift and freefall abilities are used as this game's tight turn and boost mechanics, respectively.