This provides a unique Classic sonic experience

This title coming after the first Sonic the hedgehog in terms of development (As Sonic Origins proves) comes with a new method of mobility the Super-Peelout, it allows sonic to instantly reach max speed but has vulnerability compared to the spin-dash, this ability feels pretty important and becomes natural to use with the gimmick of time travel that CD introduces.

The time travel gimmick is impressive and adds lots of depth to the stage designs. This is done by passing future/past signs and maintaining max speed for a few seconds. This will warp Sonic into the past or future with different aesthetic and musical themes.

Level design: The level design of Sonic CD has the most visual flare out of all the classic games, bringing unique soundtracks with each time period also. But this sadly does not mean the layout of the levels is the strongest because some of the stages become easy to navigate without thinking within 20 seconds to beat the stage and doesn't provide too much challenge to navigate in new ways and on the other side of the coin some stages become confusing to find your way around (such as the final stage) which the difference in pace becomes very noticeable.

Bosses: The boss fights within Sonic CD are very unique, providing different ways to tackle them, these can range from jumping on stone blocks and navigating to the roof to having a race against Metal Sonic. These fights also can go back to basics in the starter stages to provide a brand new experience.

Soundtrack: The soundtrack of this game is fantastic. I played on the Steam release (that is no longer available, because of Origins) which gave me the opportunity to switch between the US and JP versions. I love the JP version of the soundtrack it feels so funky and stardust speedway is a banger. I find the US version to be really weird because despite absolutely loving the main theme Sonic Boom, there are weird cases where you question if they made the game for a younger audience with the game over screen sounding very creepy.

Overall: A gem of a sonic title that is very unique in a great way to provide a long-lasting memorable experience

Reviewed on Jun 03, 2023


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