Sonic Drift

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Sonic Drift
Sonic Drift cover art.jpg
Developer(s)Sega
Publisher(s)Sega
Director(s)Toshihiro Nagoshi
Katsuhiro Hasegawa
Producer(s)Yu Suzuki
Hiroshi Aso
Composer(s)Naofumi Hataya
Masayuki Nagao
SeriesSonic the Hedgehog
Platform(s)Game Gear
Release
  • JP: March 18, 1994
Genre(s)Racing
Mode(s)Single-player

Sonic Drift[a] is a 1994 racing video game developed and published by Sega for the Game Gear in Japan. It features Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, Amy Rose, and Doctor Robotnik.

In 1995, a sequel named Sonic Drift 2 was released.

Gameplay[]

In-game screenshot, showing Sonic racing on a course themed after Green Hill Zone.

Sonic Drift is a racing video game in the vein of games Super Mario Kart (1992).[1] Players control one of four characters―Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, Amy Rose, and Dr. Robotnik―and race around a series of tracks, with the objective being to cross the finish line in first place. Tracks are divided into three grand prix modes and are themed after levels from the original Sonic the Hedgehog (1991). Each character has their own attributes that make them weaker in some areas and stronger in others. For instance, Sonic has fast acceleration but poor control, while Robotnik has poor acceleration but moves at high speed. Driving into television monitors scattered around the track awards the player a power-up, such as a temporary speed boost or invincibility. Tracks also contain gold rings that can be collected to use a special attack, which is unique for each character. Alongside a traditional racing mode, the game also features a training mode and multiplayer options that are compatible with the Game Gear's link cable peripheral.

Development and release[]

Sonic Drift was developed by Sega AM2, a development studio for Sega headed by Yu Suzuki, who directed critically and commercially successful games for Sega, such as Hang-On, Space Harrier, Out Run, and Virtua Fighter, and released in Japan for the Game Gear on March 18, 1994.[2] A Western release was planned but canceled due to Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske’s concerns regarding its quality.[3] In place of Drift's release in America, Sega instead released a port of Sonic Spinball. Drift is the first racing game in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and was created specifically to rival the success of Nintendo's Super Mario Kart (1992). Early versions of the game featured Flicky, a blue bird that has made frequent appearances throughout the series, as a playable character, who was subsequently replaced by Amy Rose in the final version. The music that plays when collecting a blue invincibility power-up is a sped-up version of the opening song You Can Do Anything from Sonic CD. Drift is also the first Sonic game to feature Amy and Dr. Robotnik as playable characters. The soundtrack was composed by Naofumi Hataya.

In 2003, Sonic Drift was ported to the GameCube as an unlockable extra in Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut, though it was omitted from the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 releases. It was compiled into Sonic Mega Collection Plus for the Xbox, PlayStation 2 and PC in 2005, and was digitally re-released for the now-defunct GameTap storefront in 2006. A demo of Drift is also included in Sonic Gems Collection.

Reception[]

Sonic Drift received mainly mixed reviews from the press. Japanese publication Famitsu heavily compared the game to Super Mario Kart, feeling that the game was largely uninspired and generally lacking in content compared to Nintendo's game. They were also critical of the game's short horizon, which they claimed made it hard to see what was ahead of the player. Electronic Gaming Monthly was more positive towards it in a preview, saying that the game was fast-paced and enjoyable but the flashing, choppy scrolling hampered the gameplay somewhat.[7] They enjoyed the game's amount of modes, namely the Vs. Mode.[7] Jeuxvideo.com in 2012 also compared the game to Super Mario Kart, disliking Drift for being too simplistic and for being very easy to finish, alongside the general lack of content and poor presentation.[5] They stated: "Too simple and too fast to finish, Sonic Drift is unfortunately not a title that will fascinate the crowds."[5] Its inclusion in Sonic Mega Collection was negatively received; GameSpy passingly labeled it as "almost unplayable",[8] while Eurogamer mockingly called it "a terrible, terrible racing game whose flickering madness actually made me physically sick."[9]

Retrospectively in 2019, Hardcore Gaming 101 said that the gameplay itself was decent and solid, but felt that it was greatly lacking in content and variety.[1] They criticized the track design in particular for being generally boring, lacking in presentation, and for the stage themes being purely cosmetic instead of affecting the track designs themselves.[1] Hardcore Gaming 101 argued that the "controversial" short horizon was easy to become used to, and said that it didn't have that negative of an effect on the game itself.[1] They concluded their review with: "Sonic Drift is a decent enough racer, but the lack of variety in track design (both visually and thematically) and the small amount of content mean that it’s a racer only a small number of people will dedicate themselves to."[1]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Japanese: ソニックドリフト, Hepburn: Sonikku Dorifuto

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e Chungus, Apollo (12 March 2019). "Sonic Drift". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 20 August 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  2. ^ "[セガハード大百科] ゲームギア対応ソフトウェア（セガ発売）". Sega. Archived from the original on 1 June 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2015.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ^ "First Shots" (PDF). Computer and Video Games. Future plc (151): 11. June 1994.
  4. ^ "ソニックドリフト (GG)". Famitsu (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Archived from the original on 29 February 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  5. ^ a b c L'avis de Wolphegon (2 January 2012). "Test : Sonic Drift". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Archived from the original on 8 February 2016. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  6. ^ Hill, Mark (December 1994). "Sonic Drift". Sega Pro. No. 39. p. 72. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Game Gear - Sonic Drift" (PDF) (58). EGM Media, LLC. Electronic Gaming Monthly. May 1994. p. 200. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  8. ^ Baker, Chris (1 November 2004). "Sonic Mega Collection Plus". GameSpy. IGN. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original on 25 February 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  9. ^ Bramwell, Tom (11 May 2005). "Sonic Mega Collection Plus". Eurogamer. Gaming Network. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
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