Finally picked my Sonic marathon back up after weeks of not playing any games. I beat Sonic CD the other day.
It's a strange game, I don't know how I feel about it. Like Sonic 1 it doesn't really allow you to have that burst of speed the series is known for most of the time but this time it actually has a purpose because of the time travel mechanic, which is a really cool and interesting concept that I absolutely have to give points to, especially considering this game is over 30 years old and was one of the first games in the franchise.
That being said, the mechanic feels kind of... underbaked? Like, all you do is go back to the past to destroy some robot capsules and then you get the good future. It's kind of repetitive and kind of annoying because I had to use a guide to find a lot of those capsules as well as a decent way to even time travel in the first place. And I barely got to visit the good futures afterwards because by the time you destroy the capsules and find a future post, the level is over.
The levels feel open ended and at the time way too short to stick out in my mind. Like, I hate half the zones in Sonic 1, but at least they stick in my mind. The only level in Sonic CD that does that is Wacky Workbench, and that's not for good reasons. Also unpopular opinion, but I don't think the JP OST is
that good. It is
good and I like some tracks, but it's not all that memorable to me.
But overall I would say this was a positive experience, it was a relaxing game to play and most of the levels were inoffensive to me aside from Wacky Workbench Zone 1. Also the Metal Sonic race was awesome and the animated cutscenes just hit different. I don't know if I want to replay it with the other characters yet, I'll have to think about it, unlike with Sonic 1 where I absolutely do not want to.
In conclusion,