VIDEO GAME: Sonic Dash (2013)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Sonic DashYear: 2013Rating: ETime Played: 50+ hours It's interesting how most video game franchises that started on consoles have trouble breaking into the mobile gaming sphere. Sonic Dash is probably the most successful because it capitalizes on one cornerstone of mobile gaming: the endless runner. Who better to star in an endless runner game than a character known specifically for running? The problem is that , while the game is fun for a while, it becomes repetitive and stale the further you get into it. I first started playing this game as Sonic Dash+ on Apple Arcade. This version has no ads, which is perhaps its greatest selling point, as it feels that half my time on the free-to-play version is spent watching ads to get free consumables (rings, red rings, character cards, etc.). And mobile game ads have gotten no better as time goes by. Still, the amount of regular updates the game receives is just frequent enough to keep me...
Read More

MOVIE: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Year: 2022 Rating: PG Length: 122 minutes / 2.03 hours It's amazing to me that the original Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) movie pulled out a passable film despite decades of sub-par video game movie adaptations. While it didn't dive into much of the lore other than the conflict between Sonic (Ben Schwartz) and Doctor Robotnik (Jim Carrey), it set the stage for something better in its sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022). With nostalgia being a huge factor in this franchise, it pleasantly surprised me that this film knew which moments would achieve that intended effect. At first, I was worried that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was lumping too much new material together with the introduction of both Tails (Colleen O'Shaughnessey) and Knuckles (Idris Elba). Still, the combo—along with Robotnik's traditional video game look—really gave the impression that this movie cared about its source material. The huge action set pieces were the highlights of this film and I was grinning from...
Read More

MOVIE: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Sonic the Hedgehog Year: 2020 Rating: PG Length: 99 minutes / 1.65 hours As someone who grew up with the original Sonic video games, I was highly skeptical of this film adaptation. There's not much plot behind a game that's basically: move right as fast as possible and defeat a robot-making madman. Granted, Sonic has developed a little more depth to its lore over the years...but not much. The appeal of the character in the '90s was his attitude, and I have to admit that his movie does capture that attitude quite well. For a video game adaptation, Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) isn't terrible, which is saying something. I can only imagine the nightmare-inducing original design for Sonic, though. However, it's still not the greatest movie ever for the genre of video game adaptations. I did appreciate the little "slow-motion" moments, as well as the practical use of the rings as teleportation devices. Jim Carrey's Dr. Robotnik was passable, if not a little too goofy/sinister...
Read More