Sonic Rush (2005 Video Game) User Reviews

A ton of fun, but very, very short

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 7/10 · 14 December 2005]

Having enjoyed Sonic Advance I was eager to get my hands on Sonic Rush. With brilliant graphics and the fastest gameplay yet in a Sonic game it sure does make for a great video-game experience. But there's just not enough of it and not much is made of the Nintendo DS potential outside of some slight touch-screen interaction and tall graphics.

As always the levels range from tropical islands to mechanical metropolis with all the usual powers ups, springs and speed barriers. They are brilliantly designed and contain so many loop-the-loops and massive jumps that you'll go cock-eyed. The sheer speed that you can fire through the levels is amazing. The music top-notch too and there are loads of cool tunes.

You can play as Sonic, with his usual abilities, or as Blaze the Cat, who has her own mission opposite Sonic. Obviously this involves defeating Doctor Eggman, but you now have a 'rush' ability which acts as a booster to make Sonic or Blaze go even faster.

My major complaint is with the Special Stages. They are the same as the were in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, involving the 3D tunnels. And they are impossible. The one that I actually managed to enter requires 160 rings to catch the Chaos Emerald. Not only do I not think there were even 160 IN the whole stage but it's impossible to keep a hold of them as there are so many dangerous obstacles and traps. Plus, you control Sonic with the stylus pen in this stage and it's not got such a great response.

And the last boss is impossible also. There is no way to defeat Doctor Eggman and the controls frequently contradict each other, it's all down to bad programming. The game sure has a few bugs (nothing major) that should have been sorted out.

So apart from the special stage and the final boss, the game is just too damn easy and has nothing to bring you back for more. Yes, I had loads of fun playing it but it would be only worth the money if it were longer and had more to it.

Graphics A+ Sound A+ Gameplay B Lasting Appeal B-

Should really buy.

[paulofrunza · 8/10 · 24 May 2014]

This game is an amazing game. Definitely a game you should buy,but it was way too short. Now let's get started,shall we?

This game was a great game. It wasn't too ABSOLUTELY WOW GREAT BEST GAME EVER,but somewhat near that title.

Let's discuss the cons:

The difficulty. This game was VERY hard. Sure there was an Easy Mode,but all that did was reduce the boss's health. Nothing else.

No.2 Cheap deaths happen a lot in this game. Like,A lot. Sometimes you can't even see where you are going. One time,in the 7th zone,I was riding a rocket and I didn't even have a clue that I had to go up!

No.3 The controls for game mechanics e.g Rockets (like i just mentioned) are EXTREMELY HARD TO CONTROL. The rockets are way too slippery. On a 3DS,these Rockets are very difficult to control. No.4 They trick you a lot. Usually,the Rockets only have to go straight forward. But no,2nd act,they have to go up. Also,Zone 4's spinny things you have to boost on to get to areas left you having no clue what to do to get up them. Another time,in Zone 4, the Jump Pads always made you go up automatically. You didn't have to up dash or anything. At Act 2,in the middle of the level,you actually had to up dash. No clues or anything,not even telling you,just figure it out. This had me go INSANE. If they are ever to make a remake of this game,Please PLEASE do not add that part.

Pros: No.1 Controls in general are great. This was also the first game to introduce many mechanics to be used in future games. e.g Boost,etc. They also kept the spin dash along with the Boost,so you could choose to use whichever you wanted to.

No.2 The graphics in this game are AMAZING for its time. A+ to you,Sonic Team! These graphics were AMAZING. I loved how at the end,the cut-scene was like a comic,instead of a 3D animation.

No.3 This soundtrack was AWESMAZING. I JUST USED THAT WORD. I cannot begin to describe how amazing it was. Such little music,adding to the short game,BUT IT IS AMAZING MUSIC. Musicians have really outdone themselves with the music in this game. Anyways,there are lots more pros I have,but if i said them all,it would take up all the words.

I would rate this game a 8/10. You should really buy it!

Not a bad game just not an overly fun one.

[Zombie-Kermit · 31 March 2009]

I think the selling point of this game was just how similar the gameplay was to the classic Sonic the Hedgehog games. Run through (mostly) 2D environments, jumping on enemies and such. They even introduced a new Boost system that was really cool. But the issue I have with this game is that it doesn't seem like they put enough effort into making the game fun. And that's not exactly my only issue. Anyway, when I say that they didn't work hard enough at making the game fun, I mean that there aren't enough areas where you can run really fast free from enemies, like the older games had. There always seemed to be enemies placed in areas that you are made to assume are for experiencing the speed side of the games. You find yourself running into enemies without seeing them coming. There are just some really irritating enemy placements in the game. Add that to an overload of bottomless pits and other obstacles that will just make you die a little inside every time you die in the game.

The bosses are fairly generic, making you dodge their attacks until they give you an opening to take down one of their eight health points. What makes the boss battles even worse is you have either Cream or Tails at the bottom cheering for you, and making comments every time you get hit or hit the enemy. It was just completely unnecessary to have them there. There was only really one boss battle that was actually that fun, and it was one of the last ones. I liked the bonus rounds of the game, where you use your DS stylus to collect rings in a Sonic 2 Bonus Stage type environment. This could also get frustrating at times with the obstacles, but all in all, the stages were pretty good.

The music in the game was not good. It went for a very "funky" style of music that just doesn't fit with a Sonic game. It lacked any of the charm the older Sonic music had, and it was just plain annoying. The storyline of the game wasn't much to talk about either, but in the end, I don't play Sonic games for their story, I play them to have fun. I just wish I could have had a bit more fun playing this game. I mean, it would be a lie if I said I didn't have any fun playing the game at all, it's just that by the end, I was playing the game because I wanted to beat it, not because I enjoyed playing it. It's just that it was a game that was so easy to get frustrated with. There were times when I just felt that the people who made the game wanted to see me suffer! In the end, it's far from a bad game, and it was a step in the right directions for Sonic games, but there was a lot of room for improvement. Luckily, they made use of that room for improvement for the sequel, Sonic Rush Adventure. For more on my views of that game, check out my review for it.

As a lifelong Sonic fan, I never regretted buying Sonic Rush, and I liked the gameplay enough to spend money again on the sequel... although that was in part due to the fact that I had already heard that they had made improvements. But I probably would have bought it anyway.