Long time mascot of Sega, Sonic is about to venture into unknown territory. Bioware has teamed up with Sega to offer players a little more than the usual run and jump gameplay of traditional Sonic titles.  Out now for the Nintendo DS, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood has the iconic blue furball and his colorful friends trading in their fast paced world for a less action oriented, RPG endeavor.

Picking up after the events of Eggman’s last evil scheme, Sonic and friends must set off to gather the missing Chaos Emeralds and discover the cause of this latest disturbance.  It might sound a tad formulaic if not downright familiar, but once it picks up, the narrative becomes quite interesting (just don’t expect it to pick until well into the game).

Sonic Chronicles’ strong points lie in its presentation. The game is visually impressive and the graphics really stand out on the DS. Gorgeous, hand drawn backgrounds littered with trademark ramps and rings are simply a cut above the rest.  From the animation to the 3D modeling, Sonic Chronicles will have players stopping and taking notice of the amount of detail put into this portable RPG.  And though not nearly as impressive, the soundtrack has its highlights.  Several tracks from the classic Hedgehog series can be found here, albeit remixed.  The music which plays over the battle sequences is quite catchy and overall, the tunes in Sonic Chronicles are well done.  And since this is a DS title, Bioware makes use of both screens as the upper screen contains map and character information while the lower screen houses all the action.

The controls are essentially pick-up and go. Action or lack there of, is controlled strictly with the stylus as Bioware has taken full advantage of the DS’s touch screen technology. Everything from character movements, to selecting enemies, to browsing the inventory or dialogue tree options, the stylus provides a fast and seamless approach to executing standard RPG commands. Not a single button will have to be used to navigate these familiar characters through this lush and vibrant world. The menus are easy to navigate and players can change to any team member on the fly, each complete with their unique sets of abilities which will provide uses both outside and inside of the battlefield.  Action icons will also populate the environments providing Sonic and team with a means to jump onto platforms and run through loops.

Taking into consideration the presentation of this title, it quickly becomes apparent that Sonic Chronicles is a very basic and by the book role playing experience.  The mechanics are simple, RPG fare as Chronicles’ charm lies in the diversity of its characters.  It doesn’t offer any real innovation but merely plays it safe with the accepted norms of any traditional role playing game.  Collected rings are used as currency and if well stocked, players will find themselves spending a lot of time at the shops. There are also some light action sequences to be found here and there as touch based attacks and chase sequences will help keep players actively involved in battle.

Praise aside, Sonic Chronicles does come with its share of speed bumps. There is a bit of repetition as players will often have to go through previously visited areas to complete simple fetch and retrieve quests.  Battles tend to drag on inherently longer than they should. And though these issues are what plagued the role playing games of yesteryear, it would have been nice if Bioware added a bit more depth to the gameplay.  Also, the aforementioned dialogue tree offers nothing but whimsical responses from the supporting cast with no real impact on the game’s scripted course of events.

The Dark Brotherhood is in essence a traditional RPG.  It offers quite a bit of enjoyment even for non Sonic fanatics and players will appreciate the level of detail put into this portable title.  Bioware should have taken a few chances with this title but if the ending is any indication, Sonic Chronicles could very well be the start of something special.

8/10

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