The Wii's become a Sonic box. It's a true sign of the changing times, I suppose, as Mario's biggest rival from a decade and a half ago has now buried the hatchet so deep that he's not only starring alongside Nintendo's hero in several titles today, but also supporting his system more so than even the mustached man himself -- there are more Sonic the Hedgehog games available on Wii than any other franchise, Mario included. Maybe it's because SEGA is truly appreciative of the audience that its main mascot has found here on the little white console. Or maybe it's because the company's just trying to squeeze as much cash out of the old Blue Blur as possible.
Today's release of Sonic Chaos on the Virtual Console would seem to support the latter argument, as it clocks in as the ninth different Sonic game to come to the Wii's retro gaming download service. Just last week we were finding fault with Wonder Boy for taking up seven different spots in the Wii Shop, and calling for a rest from that franchise to give some other games a chance -- but Sonic's got old Wonder's total trumped by two.
It wouldn't be so bad if there were more variety in the offerings, but Sonic Chaos is once again a straightforward side-scrolling platformer focused on the series' staple gameplay elements like running fast, grabbing rings and getting the Chaos Emeralds back from Dr. Eggman. It's the third Sonic game to have come to the 8-bit SEGA Master System over 15 years ago, and serves as a sequel to the Master System editions of Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 (both of which have also come to the Console in recent months).
Like those other Master System Sonics, Sonic Chaos is not as vibrant and engaging as its 16-bit Genesis cousins -- it's limited by a more restricted color palette, and isn't able to reproduce the more complicated graphical effects most fans take for granted from the early Sonic installments. What's worse, though, is that Sonic Chaos doesn't do much to make up for this downfall. The Master versions of Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 were both still recommendable as VC downloads since they were still pretty fun and inventive, despite their technical shortcomings -- Chaos just feels flat all around.
Level design may have something to do with it, as the stages seen here never feel original or interesting -- they're just the same old Sonic fare, with loop-de-loops to spin through, springs to bounce off of and item boxes to find and bash. The enemy design is dull, with even boss characters at the end of the game's Zones often presenting an underwhelming challenge. And the soundtrack doesn't offer any memorable themes -- you won't remember what you just listened to thirty seconds after you turn it off.
Chaos isn't without its own minor merits, though, that Sonic franchise fans might take an interest in -- you can play as Tails, for one, which was still fairly novel at the time this game was published. This was the first game to allow you to fly with the twin-tailed sidekick, as holding Up on the D-Pad and hitting the Jump button lets you guide him through the sky like a helicopter.
Not to be outdone, Sonic has his own Up + Jump move -- using the button combination when playing as the Hedgehog will make him run in place, allowing you to charge him up to full running speed from a standstill instead of having to gradually gain that velocity over time. Sonic also has a faster overall top speed than Tails, and you can only play the game's Chaos Emerald bonus stages when you're using Sonic.
Those stages are activated if you managed to grab 100 rings or more before clearing a level, and contain a few more challenges unique to Sonic Chaos -- our hero will don special Rocket Boots to fly through the sky in some, and navigate special mazes in others in order to track down the lost gems. The final Emerald can only be won by beating Dr. Eggman in the game's final boss battle, though, so amassing a full collection can't happen until the very end.
