GENRE
	Board Racing
	DEVELOPER
	Sonic Team
	PUBLISHER
	Sega
	NUMBER OF PLAYERS
	1-4
	CONNECTIVITY
	no
	BUY NOW AT

The comparison "SSX crossed with F-Zero" is apt. Sonic Riders bursts on the scene combining some bold new concepts with classic Sonic material. Riders crosses the finish line as a mixed bag of both good and bad moments.

visuals

Everything from characters to courses is well-crafted and detailed; though sometimes, too much flash litters the screen, leading to confusion. Pre-rendered, next-gen cinematics kick off Story mode, giving texture a whole new meaning. It would have been nice to see graphics of this quality, or even the hand-drawn animated look used in the title sequence, used for all cutscenes.

Confirmation plagues Riders's menu interface, requiring that players press A to continue at each and every step, including the loading of game data. Some of this could have been streamlined. Unfortunately it remains, existing as a disconnect between the driving concept of speed and a halting menu navigation.

audio

The English voice acting is unfortunately cheesy, with no option for subtitles or Japanese voices. In-game commentary, on the other hand, is cheekily endearing and actually helpful, commenting on what's happening with your status and technique as well as your opponents'.

Musically, Riders gets down and dirty with futuristic techno-dance beats befitting an edgy board racer. The coolness of the music further highlights the mismatch of most character voices.

gameplay

At first, the whole concept feels foreign and chaotic, but after investing some time working with the scheme you'll soon be riding turbulence and snagging big air with the best of them. Many racing games are typically just glorified Grand Prix with a smattering dialogue, but Sonic Riders actually has a story to tell. Sure, it's the same old story of Eggman hoarding the Chaos Emeralds to his own no-good end, but the Sonic plot is very much in form.

Sonic Riders features three character types: Speed, Flight and Power. Each can tackle courses in different ways, adding replay value and a level of dynamism to character selection. Speed types can grind on rails and pipes, while Flight types can soar through mid-air accelerator rings. Power types can punch through obstacles, revealing hidden shortcuts. Adding to the replay value are the number of unlocking characters, plus a wide variety of boards up for purchase with rings collected in-game.

The boards you ride are called Extreme Gear--hoverboards that literally run on air. Boost too much without pulling off enough tricks and you can run out of air. You must then run until either you get an air power-up or find an air station for a fill up. It's fitting that "catching big air" actually does just that. Pulling off tricks refills your air tank, as well as riding a trough of turbulent air and performing tricks off its curves and edges.

The turbulence effect really lands this game as a racer, setting it apart from others in the genre. In Mario Kart DS you have to stay right behind someone to get any kind of drafting advantage. Turbulence extends far behind the rider who created it and lasts for a period of time after. Because of this, it's actually possible to climb back up from behind to get ahead of the pack by skillfully riding turbulence. This is a refreshing, item-alternative solution to the problem of fixed-speed advancement.

multiplayer

Sonic Riders features Battle, Versus and Co-op modes for up to four players. These play like any standard racing game with one exception: there is no option to turn off computer players. While there are times when facing off against the computer is desirable, if you just want to go head to head with a friend, too bad. No such option exists for any mode.

This sometimes stifling inclusion of computer AI over human players is most vividly expressed in Tag mode. The concept of two players sharing one air supply is intriguing, but any potential for enjoyment is greatly diminished by the use of a four-player split screen. Two screens are used for the computer characters, bringing the necessary evil of a four-player game to a two-player mode. Again, this could have easily been fixed with a simple option, but none exists.

On first encounter, Battle mode feels like being on an ice rink with no weapons. It's akin to Road Rash: you race along a track, get up close to someone and whack 'em personally. For those who remember how different driving the hovercraft was from driving a kart in Diddy King Racing, such is the experience of battling on a hover board in Sonic Riders.

overall

Riders does contain some glaring flaws, mostly in the way of menu bog-down and an inconsiderate lack of multiplayer options. It's a shame that a game with so much going for it is so hindered by such simple oversights.

Setbacks aside, this is an enjoyable, rewarding racer for Sonic fans or anyone taking the time to invest in its unorthodox concept. Surprisingly, Sonic Riders feels more like a classic Sonic game of yore than most recent installments. It's all about speeding through courses as fast as possible. New courses must be learned for success, their pitfalls avoided, straightaways exploited. Eggman should really learn to center his plots around something Sonic isn't as good at.

7.7/10