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| TFH2 Demo Review By RedXVI Ok, one thing Sonic Fangames have never seemed to perfect correctly is the isometric style of Sonic 3D, whether this is a good thing or not, remains to be seen. However, playing this demo prooves very entertaining indeed. Graphics The Sonic X-treme sprite works well indeed, even though it is ripped, it seems be the best one for the job. But onto the graphics in general, and not just the sprites. The Intro screen in particular has a nice moody background to it. In game, there's been some clever skewing to create the 3D backdrops, of what looks like Emerald Hill. Needless to say, it works well. Gameplay Despite being a little slow at accel (this may just be my resolution and settings), the game's got it all. Proper 3D Enemy bounce is in there, the bars that send you flying upwards into the air are indeed fun to try, and well programmed too (Although if you make the mistake of leaping on by accident, there's no way to get off), even the ramps slow down or speed up your movement depending which way you're going, but the exact moment of fun arrived at the Rock chase. Despite being a little easy (Maybe throw in some onstacles to dodge/jump?), along with the chosen music (What else but the "Raider's March"), it added a little hint of the SA/SA2 flavour, being chased by some large object, plus it also really lets you discover the use of the second fire button, giving you a rather handy dash. Really, the first level (And only of this demo) is how first levels should be. Simple, easy, and teaching you things (For those you don't read the readme... Oops!). The In-Game hints are a gem too, good thinking on that point! Music/Sound The intro music worked well, builds up slowly (And it's familiar). The level music fits the theme as usual, and as mentioned above, the rock chase part is the icing on the cake. Some well chosen music fits the action perfectly. Nothing original, but well done all the same. The sound's all there, even a little cry of "Yeah!" from Sonic. Nice! Lastability It's a demo, so lastability isn't really that big a factor. Maybe running through it twice just to check all those parts of the huge level you missed. It's not really easy to get lost, but at the same time you'll want to explore the level. And the rock chase is fun a few times... Overall Pros Graphics fit well, Engine seems pretty bug-less (Despite a few collision hickups), Sound a music work well, The Rock Chase's pretty well done itself. Overall Cons The whole 'Changing your display' to get it running properly is slightly annoying. I usually run at 32 bit colour with 800 by 600 Res. Maybe make it a little smaller, and not fullscreen, the graphics look far too pixellated fullscreen. Overall Grade On the whole, the speed it runs on my comp let's it down, plus the fact there's very little to do. I encountered about 4 badniks on the whole level. There may be more, but I didn't see them. But almost all other factors keep it high, so I'd give the demo, somewhere around 70-80%. Lot's of potential, just seems a little featureless right now... It get's a B+ |
