{"id":669,"date":"2023-12-05T16:36:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-05T17:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/?p=669"},"modified":"2025-07-02T18:25:32","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T18:25:32","slug":"sonic-dream-team-apple-arcade-review-sweet-dreams-are-fleeting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/2023\/12\/05\/sonic-dream-team-apple-arcade-review-sweet-dreams-are-fleeting\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Sonic Dream Team\u2019 Apple Arcade Review \u2013 Sweet Dreams Are Fleeting"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>What an unusual day we have arrived upon today. Now, Sonic the Hedgehog<\/em> games aren\u2019t a new thing for iOS gaming. The original Sonic the Hedgehog<\/em> appeared on the classic iPod, so the Blue Blur got in the doors as fast as you would expect him to. The iPhone and iPad saw their own ports of some of the classic games, too. We\u2019ve also seen a handful of original Sonic<\/em> games for the platform, like Sonic the Hedgehog 4, Sonic Dash, Sonic Jump<\/em>, and Sonic Runners<\/em>. But Sonic Dream Team<\/em> hits a bit differently. It\u2019s not just an original Sonic<\/em> game, but it\u2019s an exclusive<\/em> one. And it\u2019s not some free-to-play nonsense, but rather a proper (albeit bite-sized in some ways) 3D Sonic the Hedgehog<\/em> title. That, of course, lands us in a different kind of Russian Roulette. Is this a good outing for SEGA\u2019s mascot, or has he tripped over his non-existent laces yet again?<\/p>\n

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Using questions to end an introductory paragraph is an old habit from my first gig back in the day. It doesn\u2019t make much sense when you can see the score immediately. Well, you know already. If you want a decent 3D Sonic<\/em> game on your iPhone or iPad, I\u2019m happy to say that this delivers. It leans more into the Boost Sonic<\/em> style rather than the Adventure style, but I\u2019m sure most would have expected that anyway. There\u2019s a time and a place for that eventual Adventure 3<\/em>, but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s here and now. There\u2019s a story here, some business about Eggman trying to pervert some mysterious power to use for his ambitions of world conquest, but nothing to get too excited about. You\u2019ll get a lot of cut-scenes, but most of them are just basic stills with text boxes. Also, I can\u2019t believe we have a whole Sonic<\/em> game set in the world of dreams and NiGHTS<\/em> isn\u2019t anywhere about. Rude.<\/p>\n

Anyhow, the broad structure is familiar. You\u2019ve got four zones that are broken up into three acts, each of which is basically a level incorporating the same theme as the rest of the acts in that zone. In Sonic Dream Team<\/em>, each of those acts is then broken down into a bunch of challenges, each of which will net you a Dream Orb. The first challenge in each act also has a number of collectibles and other things around for you to hunt for, which will in turn net you more Dream Orbs and other goodies. Dream Orbs are the key to opening up further acts and zones and progressing the story. And of course at the end of each zone, you\u2019ll have a lovely little boss battle. Quick napkin math will tell you that we\u2019ve got twelve acts in total, which seems like a fair amount but ends up feeling too few after you\u2019ve blasted your way through.<\/p>\n

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Adding some replay value are the additional characters, split in the usual Sonic manner by their abilities. Sonic and Amy go fast, so fast they can zip along trails of rings in the sky. They\u2019re also the default characters. Tails and Cream can fly, as they often do. Then we have Knuckles and Rouge, and they can climb up walls, as they often do. There are some paths that only particular characters can reach, and you might have some fun fully exploring each act to see what you can find. They\u2019re not massive spaces, but there are some interesting things to see if you poke around enough. Some extra weekly Tails\u2019 Challenges give you more reasons to return, though it starts to feel like wringing blood from a stone at a certain point with the small number of acts.<\/p>\n

I actually like the level designs a lot. The spaces are clearly built to keep pushing you forward in fun ways, with little breather sections between the breakneck rails and tubes that let you slow down and explore a little. Each zone also offers up some distinct gameplay mechanics, and the difficulty from act to act ramps up nicely as the game gets you comfortable with those mechanics. There are some of the usual 3D Sonic issues, of course. Sometimes you just go flying off of sections to your (only slightly inconvenient) \u201cdeath”. Sometimes the path forward isn\u2019t as clear as it could be. You don\u2019t often need to adjust the camera, but on such occasions it can be a real pig.<\/p>\n

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This seems like as good a time as any to talk controls. If you have a controller, I recommend you use it. One of those nice Backbone controllers or a Kishi would be a lovely choice. If you do that, you\u2019ll be playing it as you would expect, with movement on the left stick, camera control on the right, a button for jumping, and a button for dashing and boosting. Simple and easy to play. If you\u2019re using touch controls, you\u2019re given some virtual buttons and a virtual stick to mimic those actions. You can just drag the camera around, which is actually better than having on a stick, but trying to keep an eye on those buttons when you\u2019re rolling around at the speed of sound can be bothersome. Still, I won\u2019t say it plays badly with touch controls. It\u2019s fine.<\/p>\n

In terms of the presentation, it\u2019s really well-done. The visuals are at a glance as good as the console 3D Sonic<\/em> games, though the zones themselves are obviously a fair bit less ambitious in scope than most of them. The soundtrack is good, though I don\u2019t think the best tunes in the franchise have much to fear from it. Ah, most of you will be playing with the mute switch on anyway. But if you do leave the sound on, I don\u2019t think you\u2019ll be displeased with what you hear. This game feels like a full-effort affair in virtually all regards, and that\u2019s something I always like to see in a mobile game.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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