Sonic Superspeed

Sonic Superspeed is a 2017 3D platformer, developed by Inora and published by Sega. Released for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and the V², the game is a sequel to 2011's Sonic Generations, following the same gameplay style. Despite this, it adds numerous factors to change things up, including a darker story, multiple playable characters, and redesigned 2D sections.
The game follows Sonic, Shadow, Knuckles, Blaze, G.U.N., and the rest of the former's friends as they attempt to retake the world from Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik and his empire. Reception for the title has been (TBA).
==Plot==
At the end of another adventure, Sonic attacks Dr. Eggman's newest base (Egg Satellite Act 1) after being flown in by Tails. After making short work of the doctor's defenses and mocking him for it, Eggman reveals that he wanted Sonic to get this far. The hedgehog is confused, but understands what he means when the doctor traps him in a containment pod and painfully removes the Chaos Emeralds he earned in his last adventure. Weakened by the brutal attack, Sonic is unable to escape the trap and can only watch as Eggman gloats.
Eggman, who admits that he's grown to respect his nemesis over the years, is unable to kill Sonic himself. Deciding to dispose of him in a less messy way, he launches the pod out into space as the hedgehog swears revenge. Months later, Sonic is woken up by a squadron of G.U.N. soldiers inside one of their transport vehicles. The troops inform him that they salvaged him from the bottom of the ocean, where the pod apparently crashed. They go on to tell Sonic that the doctor has taken over the world with the Chaos Emeralds in his absence.
Blaming himself for his arrogance and left bitter by the attack, Sonic promises to make things right by defeating Eggman. The soldiers are amused by this, and tell him that G.U.N., the leaders of the rebellion against Eggman's empire, have already tried this to no avail. They add that things aren't hopeless though, as they've recovered the Chaos Emeralds from Eggman and are studying them. Before the conversation can continue, the vehicle is attacked by a fleet of Eggman Empire ships.
It crashes into a nearby island full of grassy hills, sandy beaches, and ancient temples, which is being ravaged by Eggman's robots in their attempt to discover the rebellion's headquarters. Seperated from the squadron, Sonic sets off to save them from the mad doctor's forces (Aqua Hill Act 1). By the time he gets there, the blue blur and the soldiers are massively outnumbered by Badniks. He attempts to destroy a bunch of them, but finds that he's gotten a bit rusty and that they've got stronger.
The group is saved in the nick of time by Knuckles, who uses a G.U.N. battleship to annihilate the Eggman robots and rescue them. On board the ship, the echidna is estatic to learn about Sonic's survival and embraces him in a tight hug. Surprised, the hedgehog realizes that things must've changed quite a bit. His suspicions are confirmed by Knuckles, now a G.U.N. commander, who says that the world is being run down by the doctor, who's lost his sanity and the little honor he had left. The ship reaches the G.U.N. base, a massive fortress they abandoned years ago which has allowed them to evade Eggman.
Inside the base, Sonic is greeted by all of G.U.N.'s new recruits, from Team Chaotix to Big the Cat. They're all shocked to see him but happy nonetheless, none more so than Tails. Although the hedgehog treats him like a little brother as always, he finds that the fox has changed too. No longer shy and living in Sonic's shadow, he's become one of the head scientists at the organization and a brave leader in his own right. As he adjusts to things changing, from Amy moving past her crush on him to Knuckles and Rouge dating, they all learn about portals opening up in Aqua Hill.
Tails informs Sonic that the Chaos Emeralds have lost most of their power from repeat use by Eggman, and that he and the G.U.N. scientists have been working to salvage what little energy they have left. The fox theorizes that the doctor is now looking for a new power source, most likely one from another universe. Knuckles reminds them that security will be high, so they decide to send a small task force to break through the empire's defenses and stop them from using the portal. Picking Sonic, who's familiar with the environment, Knuckles, who they take as the muscle, and Shadow, the organization's best agent who is unhappy to be teamed up with the two, they set out for Aqua Hill.
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==Gameplay==
Sonic Superspeed is a fast-paced platformer that occasionally switches between 3D and 2D. The game's 3D sections closely resemble Modern Sonic's levels in Sonic Generations, with branching paths, boosting, rail grinding, platforming, and an assortment of cinematic setpieces. The 2D sections have gotten a revamp, gone are the days of classic imitations or block platforming, these closely resemble the Sonic Rush series. As such, platforms are integrated better, and levels are full of loops, hills, and high-speed fun. A few changes have been made to the formula for the best possible experience.
First of all, difficulty levels are introduced so each player can have the most enjoyable experience for them. These levels are, in order, Newbie, Sidekick, Hero, and Legend. Newbies go through easier levels and only lose a few rings at a time, Sidekicks lose all of their rings but go through standard levels, Heroes are the same and go through challenging levels, and Legends cannot regain lost rings and experience the most difficult levels. The player can switch between difficulties at any time.
A common thread between all of these is a lack of lives. Every time the player dies, they simply start at the last checkpoint. Rings and their red variants also play a bigger role. They can both be spent at shops in the hub world, with red rings being limited and buying more valuable items. This hub world is the G.U.N. base, which is sprawling and full of optional challenges, secrets, and NPCs to interact with. For those looking to just get into the action, they can simply go to the Tornado, which is used to access every level in a large map that portrays Sonic's world in its entirety. Levels can also be replayed from this world map and times, scores, and ranks can be compared to other players across the world in a leaderboard.
One of the biggest additions to the game is multiple playable characters. Each of these go through unique areas. While they share basic gameplay, every character has different abilities and elements exclusive to their levels. Unlike previous installments, Superspeed has no central gimmick. Wisps have been replaced by traditional Power-Ups, which can be collected from monitors across the stage. They can also be bought and stored for later use. Special Stages have been removed, as G.U.N. has already recovered all seven Chaos Emeralds.
Super forms are instead unlocked by beating the game, and they function as usual, requiring 50 rings to be activated and slowly draining them over time. Each character also recieves adjustments to their abilities in these forms which are outlined below. Smaller additions include the ability to turn super forms off and on at will after they're activated, flashing exclamation points to alert players to nearby pits and spikes, activating or deactivating Omochao and information markers at any time, and being able to change the stage's music to unlocked songs or those that players have imported.
Several modes are featured in the game. Besides Story Mode, there's Multiplayer, Time Trials, Boss Rush, and the Base. Time Trials pit the player against several records they need to break. Each level has four time trials: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. For each trial they beat, the player earns a red ring. Boss Rush pits the player against every boss in a row, whether alone or with a friend. This mode shares the four difficulties that the story mode has, with a red ring earned for each time they beat a difficulty. Lastly, the Base is modeled after the game's hub world and allows players to customize their online profile, view statistics, import music, control settings, and listen to the game's soundtrack as songs are unlocked.
In Multiplayer, two players, whether using the same console or an online connection, can play Race, Collector, Battle, and Team. Race has two players attempting to reach the goal with split screens, allowing them to use items and special moves (activated via rings) to hinder their opponent. Collector takes the same basic format, but the goal is to earn the most rings before time runs out. Battle has two players facing off in a small arena, similar to a 3D Super Smash Bros. or Power Stone. Team features a number of small stages where one player controls the main character, for example Sonic, and the other takes the role of a buddy like Tails. The two players must work together to reach the goal or defeat a boss.
==Characters==
===Playable Characters===
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===NPCs===
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===Bosses===
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===Enemies===
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==Stages==
There are 32 stages in the game, split across 12 zones. Additional red rings can be found in the G.U.N. base, the game's hub world.
===G.U.N. Base===
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===Egg Satellite===
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===Aqua Hill===
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===Kingdom City===
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===Radical Rainforest===
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===Ghostly Festival===
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===Spiral Snowfield===
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===Outer Plains===
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===Samurai Valley===
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===Ancient Desert===
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===Frigid Facility===
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===Imperial Capital===
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===Digital Dimension===
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==Items==
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==Soundtrack==
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==Reception==
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==Trivia==
*Some mechanics were inspired by Sonic Scramble.
Category:Games
Category:Fan Games
Category:2017
Category:Sonic (series)
Category:Sonic Games
Category:Nintendo Switch Games
Category:Xbox One Games
Category:PlayStation 4 Games
Category:V2 Games
Category:Platforming Games
Category:Inora