Sonic R (1997 Video Game) User Reviews

Sega could have done way better than this.

[The_Light_Triton · 6/10 · 18 May 2007]

I've played the PC and Nintendo Gamecube versions of this game (the gamecube version meaning the sonic gems collection) And seriously, i must say i was very impressed when i first saw it, but now, i look at it, and i say that sega could have done better.

Firsthand, it's a racing game. only the majority of the racing is on foot around a trail that runs around an island, a city, an ancient ruin, a factory, and eventually a rip-off of rainbow road.

each of those courses has a specific song, sung by T.J. Davis (Who's she?) and the music done by Richard Jacques. Now i can't stress enough of the lyrics..."and the sky, it makes me feel so high." really, what was she smoking? a type of marijuana named sky? then she sings "You're the one that makes me feel so high, just like a diamond in the sky?" what! there's diamonds in this marijuana she smokes? well, at least you can turn off the lyrics.

And for characters. there's 4 to start with. Sonic the hedgehog (cheers and clapping) "Tails" Miles prower (which means miles per hour) Knuckles the Echnida, and Amy Rose the hedgehog. Eventually, you can get metal sonic, the tails doll, Metal knuckles, Dr. Eggman/Robotnik, and The Robot Robotnik. then, if you collect all the emeralds, as always, something cool happens.

Folks, i used to love this game, but like i said, there could have been more work put into this. They could have chosen better lyrics (I'm gonna have to ask T.J why she did those lyrics in the first place, she does have a website) There could have been more courses, because in fair comparison to Mariokart 64, which was released a year earlier, there was 15 more courses, 15 more lyric-less songs, and way better graphics. There could have been more characters (espio the chameleon, Bean the dynamite, Fang the sniper ring any bells?) and there could have been an auto-save feature, which mariokart 64 also had.

Folks, this game is not a gem. Sonic Gems collection (The only way you can get this brand new) does have a few gems, but this is just a Toy plastic diamond in the marijuana sky that isn't worth more than 5 bucks.

Fun game, Bad control

[lcri-1 · 6/10 · 4 September 2006]

Sonic R is a fun game, which, contrary to that one guy's belief, was for the Sega Saturn and then ported to the PC later. There is a good variety of tracks with multiple routes you unlock by collecting rings. The racers each have their own stats and advantages, and the graphics are quite good for the Saturn. The music is excellent, complete with vocals. If there is one thing I would say I don't like about the game, it's the control. It is IMPOSSIBLE to keep your racer on the track while playing the game. If you get stuck in a corner, you can't go backwards, you have to turn ALL THE WAY AROUND. This is painfully slow and often reveals glitches in the graphics as the camera passes through the walls. This would be a wonderful game if it weren't for the heinous control.

Game was fun...For 45 minutes

[dean-52422 · 5/10 · 19 March 2018]

I played the GameCube version and I was having a fun time trying to find all the coins and Chaos Emeralds whilst trying to beat my opponents. However once I finished the game which took about 45 minutes I found myself finding no reason to play this any longer. Which was a real shame because if they had about 10 courses this game would of been fantastic but instead it only 5 courses which weren't even that long. That is why I have to rate this game a 5/10.

Horrible. One of the worst Sonic games I've ever played!

[bazmitch23 · 1/10 · 19 December 2013]

Back in Christmas 97, I really wanted a Sega Saturn and a copy of this game. What I got instead was an N64 and Lylat Wars, which was brill.

A decade later, I got Sonic Gems Collection and played this game. I like to thank my parents for getting me that N64 and Lylat Wars that decade before.

What's wrong with this game?:

. It's SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BORING! A Sonic game is suppose to be fast paced like Sonic himself. And here, we have a slow moving game that looks dull and doesn't excite at all. The levels look awful and just not very exciting to play in.

. There's only 9 characters and 4 racing areas. C'mon, guys! Imagine if Mario Kart 64 had only 4 levels to race in.

. Sonic moves so slow. He's called Sonic The Hedgehog and yet he runs as fast as an ordinary person. Fail.

. The songs are not very Sonic like. They don't even belong in a racing game. Who thought that this was a good idea.

. The Tails doll is the one of the worst characters ever.

. There's no race track and it's hard to know where you're going. Does that sound fun?

A racing game with Sonic could've been a classic. But Traveler's Tales were not the right people to make it. If SEGA themselves made it, it would've been great.

I think this game was one of the reasons the Saturn failed.

Fun but would've been disappointed.

[fountasalexander · 7/10 · 24 January 2023]

If I were a sonic fan in 1997 I would've been heavily disappointed by how short this game is. Out of all the Sonic racing games, this one seems to be the most appealing in almost every aspect.

The courses are bright, slightly complex, and overall pretty enjoyable. However, there are only 5 courses. I don't know why Sega decided 5 courses was enough (with the fifth one being locked until you complete the first 4 courses coming in first place).

LOVE the OST, very vintage vibe.

Played it on the Sonic Gems collection but wish it were longer, other than that I loved it, the controls were easy to use on the PS2.

Still better than the modern Sonic racing games.

Why ruin a game with good music?

[Irishchatter · 1/10 · 6 April 2015]

Honestly this game sucks! SEGA should've at least had second thoughts creating this game. Sonic unfortunately was a victim of being slow rather than being fast like he normally is nowadays. Sure he's not meant to like being slow so why on earth did SEGA does this to him??!

When Sonic and the team run, they wobble a lot so possibly they are drunk and the designers weren't bothering their heads trying to correct each characters postures. With Dr Eggman Robotnik, he couldn't jump to save his life so what, they made him fat by sticking him in his flying thing and not have a better jumping ability? Wow that's smart..

I have to say, this deserves an award for one of the worst games in the world and probably SEGA's worst game creations plus bullying it's good soundtrack :|

I had a kidney stone last week and it was better than this

[trickymod · 1/10 · 7 November 2020]

Everyone who worked on this should be in prison. The only thing that works is the character select and even that looks awful. I find it impossible to think I'll ever enjoy another second in this life after going through this. At least I know I'll be a second closer to everlasting sleep.

Best Sonic Game Ever

[mitchellharper-42888 · 10/10 · 26 April 2018]

This game has restored my faith in God because of its wonderful controls its beautiful scenery and most of all T.J Davis's enchanting singing. This game may not be the best in the selling of it but has a special place in everyone's heart. This game is the best and she get itself a squeal. Thanks for Listing.

Gameplay, graphics, and sound are great. It's just too short.

[mrdziekuje · 8/10 · 31 July 2006]

Sonic's third racing game first appeared on the Sega Saturn and then later the PC. It consisted of nine racers. Four (Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy) were default racers. The other five (Eggman, Metal Sonic, Tails Doll, Cyber Knuckles, and Egg Robo) had to be unlocked. SOuncs like a great game so far. You begin to play. Wow. Crisp graphics, amazing environments, long detailed levels and the control is easy and fun. But the most important strong point is that Sonic R has one of the most kick-ass game soundtracks EVER. This game still sounds awesome, right? Well all that is thrown down the drain when you find out that you have an almost non existent story line and only five levels. That gives this game little replay value. There is four different modes in both time trial and multi-player but it isn't enough to redeem the lack of play time (we're talking two hours or less to unlock everything and beat the game). If you still have a Saturn or you own a PC I'd say watch out for this one in bargain bins.

Why Sonic R is One Of The Best 3D Sonics.

[prestonmiller-72759 · 9/10 · 30 September 2023]

Note: First of all I'm referring to the PC Version With The Updater, you can get the updater off gamebanana and sonic R Itself on ebay (and abandonedware for y'all pirates)

Why Sonic R is One Of The Best 3D Sonic Games EVER:

The Game Has That Funky Sound, And Just Has Good Visuals (For late 90s Standers) And Just Astehics (poor spelling I know) That Modern Sonic Games (Example: Frontiers, Forces) Just Can't Replicate The Closet Thing We've Got Recently That Somewhat Replicates This (Officially) Is Sonic Manias Special Stages, But Anyways It's Just Something About The Controls I Like Because In The PC Ver It Still Feels like Controlling A Car But Like In A Good Way And I'm Actually Considering Getting Sonic R Off eBay With How Enjoyable This Game Is Overall 9.7/10.

10/10

[loganchilders · 10/10 · 26 April 2018]

This is the best game ever created. So much better than modern games like The Last of Us.

Really underrated

[thisisplusharama · 8/10 · 26 June 2022]

The pc Port is amazing super sonic is super fun collecting the chaos emeralds is challenging there are problems like there are 5 levels! And Tales doll we don't talk About tales doll.