Sonic Colours – review

The second decent Sonic game in as many months? As unexpected as it is welcome, the answer, simply, is a resounding yes. But where the recently released Sonic 4 was a distinctly old-fashioned tribute to the hedgehog's good old days, Colours is a mix of 2D and 3D, of familiar visual and musical motifs and exciting new level design. It's the best original Sonic game in years. Colours , living up to its name, makes for a sugary, kaleidoscopic head-trip of a game, set across seven wildly different planets. These levels, with vertically stacked alternate routes, loop-the-loops and shimmering golden rings, range from neon highways through blue-and-green seaside resorts to mountains of cake and giant burgers. It is – praise be! – all about going from left to right very, very quickly, while the visual variety and speed combine to make Colours genuinely thrilling. Wisps – power-up collectibles that temporarily turn Sonic into a drill or a laser or a blur of super-speed – give Colours novelty beyond the initial assault on the senses. This is a simple game, but Colours 's core is sweet, and it's just wonderful to see Sonic in such a well-made adventure again.