Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity (2008)

Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity is a lot better than the first one in my opinion despite having its own issues.

Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity was released in 2008 mere months before the release of Sonic Unleashed. We were well into the Dark Ages of Sonic and after games like Sonic '06 and Sonic and the Secret Rings (Which I will play in this retrospective) people were worried that this will be another game in a series of flops. However, this game isn't all that bad.

Taking place after Sonic Riders, Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity follows Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy as they try to figure out the secret behind the Arks Of The Cosmos, these ring-shaped meteorites capable of allowing the user to use Zero Gravity. The Babylon Rogues, Jet, Wave, and Storm are also trying to figure this out. It's a very simple plot that I enjoyed. The story is a bit on the short side. You can beat it in like 2 hours. I can forgive this mostly because the game's story wasn't the priority.

The gameplay is a lot more accessible in this entry. In the first game, there was a steep learning curve. The game was easy to pick up, but hard to master. With Zero Gravity, the gameplay is simplified. You no longer have to regulate Air and the levels are much longer and less repetitive. Drifting is much easier since you use Zero Gravity to drift. And when shaking the Wii Remote, you blast through the tracks. I found the controls tolerable. It never was too hard to deal with but I had my fair share of issues. I'm ok with the game being easier but there is a lot of cut features that I wish weren't taken out.

The music is really good. The main theme, Un-Gravitify and Jet's theme, Catch Me If You Can are great vocal tracks. And the stage songs are also really well done.

Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity is a lot better than its predecessor. Great music, level design, and a fun story. However, the gameplay lacks many features and isn't as fast-paced and adrenaline rushing as the first game

3/5

Would Recommend

Fully finished story

• Played through Team Sonic & Team Babylon's Story
• Defeated the final boss and reached the credits.

Final thoughts: I actually prefer this game over the first Sonic Riders as this game's slower pace + simpler mechanics is easier for me to pick up. Otherwise, the story is on par with the 1st entry so there's not much more for me to add here. My main grip with the mechanics of this game is the requirement of the Gravity Points to even drift, so if you don't have any you'll just faceplant into a wall.

I do wonder why the setting for this game is very futuristic, as this game felt a bit like F-Zero GX tracks with Sonic characters. 80's/90's Boulevard is a nice nostalgic throwback race though.