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Earlier this year, Sonic Mania ushered Sega's flagship mascot back into the limelight with with a game every bit as good as the original 16-bit Mega Drive titles. It answered the question of whether Sonic's core 2D gameplay would stand up over time with a resounding 'yes!' and came as a breath of fresh air after decades of uneven 3D Sonic releases. Sure, there've been some great releases - like Sonic Generations, for example - but many fell flat. The new Sonic Forces though? Hopes were high, with initial footage suggesting we were looking at a full-on Generations sequel with a revised theme. The final result doesn't quite live up to our lofty expectations, but that's not to say that the game doesn't have some great features. Sonic Forces is a gorgeous release with a great soundtrack. From the very first stage, it's clear that we're looking at the latest evolution of the internal Hedgehog Engine - dubbed Hedgehog Engine 2. Truth be told, it's not a significant departure from Sonic Generations on the PC, but it does offer some great visuals on current generation consoles.
The Hedgehog Engine is quite capable, offering support for features like pre-baked global illumination, advanced post-processing and large, expansive stages. With the speed Sonic moves at, the engine's ability to render huge levels is critical to its design.
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