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Back in the golden days of gaming, Sonic, our much loved furry hedgehog, was a company mascot to be proud of, he had a good run over a plethora of different games, but with the more recent Sonic games, and his inclusion in a wealth of cross-platform titles, his furry coat has become somewhat tarnished. Sonic Colors was shown at E3 2010 and is SEGA's next foray into a new Sonic game for the Nintendo Wii and DS, taking some elements from Sonic Unleashed which released back in 2008.
The game takes place in a new theme park created by the infamous Dr. Eggman, he's gone and built Eggman's Amazing Interstellar Amusement Park orbiting Sonic's home planet, a collection of several planets linked together with energy chains, however, he's also kidnapped the Wisps, an alien race with powerful abilities so that he can harvest their energy and unleash his cunning plan upon the world. Sonic can absorb the color of these creatures, which when absorbed by Sonic, give him some rather special abilities.
One such ability is the new Cyan Laser power which can be used to destroy any enemies or objects in Sonic's path, the abilities themselves, much like the laser, have multiple purposes and can be used in a number of different ways, such as opening shortcuts when used in conjunction with crystals placed around some of the levels. Another, is the Yellow Drill, an ability much akin to something which was reserved for Knuckles, but Sonic can now spin-drill through the ground to access hidden areas and various items in his usual high speed fashion.
Both 3D and 2D gameplay elements are utilised in Sonic Colors and the digging is represented in the traditional 2D style of past Sonic games. Transitioning between the two views looks to happen seamlessly from 3D to 2D and vice-versa, and there's no compromise on the speed of Sonic as he races around the levels traversing ramps and loops while picking up the usual golden rings in record speed.
Two levels have been shown which are selected from a hub screen showing the planets which make up Dr. Eggman's amusement park, Tropical Resort and Sweet Mountain. Tropical Resort is similar to the classic starting Sonic levels of old, while Sweet Mountain is a planet filled with sweets and other delicious consumables which looks a little like a level taken from Zool back on the old Amiga. SEGA have said that each of the levels are designed to be replayed multiple times since unlocking new powers will allow you to interact with the level in different ways to which you previously couldn't, such as going back with the drilling power to find secret areas.
Sonic Colors is due on both the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS in late 2010, however, the DS version is being built around Sonic Rush and will include some exclusive abilities which won't be available in the Wii version. Watch out for more details on Sonic Colors soon.
