• Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: Nov 15, 2005
Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 43 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 54 Ratings

  • Summary: Everyone's favorite blue dude with 'tude, Sonic the Hedgehog, blasts his way onto the Nintendo DS and takes high-speed action gaming to a new level...literally! Sonic pairs up with royalty - Queen, Blaze the Cat - from another dimension to save the universe from utter destruction. Sonic Rush takes full advantage of the dual screens on the Nintendo DS system to deliver a frenetic adventure with dizzying dives, near vertical curves, extreme jumps, brain-twisting loops and more. [Sega] Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 43
  2. Negative: 0 out of 43
  1. Sonic may be in a rush, but Sega clearly wasn't when they crafted this glorious game. [NGC Pocket]
  2. Aside from some repetition and a few minor technical flaws, Sonic Rush delivers a wholly satisfying old-school experience, kicked into extreme overdrive.
  3. 85
    The action is fluid and fun, though some of the difficulty is a bit off. It looks gorgeous, and I give top props to the developers for the engine in both the normal stages and 3D boss battles.
  4. It instantly shares the same atmosphere and pleasure as the original Sonic classics did 15 years ago, even if it does little to move them forward. [Christmas 2005, p.111]

See all 43 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 26
  2. Negative: 2 out of 26
  1. MarlonB.
    9
    Hands down this game has revolutionized the Sonic franchise! When I played Sonic Advance I thought "hey, this isnt half bad" Then the sequels which truly made me feel like a bad ass with the incredible speed they brought, but that NOTHING compared to what Sonic Rush brought! Take the speed of Sonic Advance, multiply that by "holy pepperoni?!" & you got Sonic Rush. It aint called Sonic Rush for no reason. But Speed isnt the only thing this game brought, the tricks (oh the tricks!!) now that is the milk in my cereal! In the game when you jump or you're on a rail you gotta do tricks. Its simpler than it sounds, a simple press of the b, a, or r button. but of course these tricks have a purpose, the more you do, the more your rush meter fills. Now you can be boring & speed Sonic up the advance way (run till the after images show up) or you can use your tricks to your advantage press y or x and RUSH to get an instant speed boost! this with the amazing level design makes Sonic Rush an instant classic. there parts of the level though where you jump & you're doing your tricks and all of a sudden an enemy is there to ruin your combo, but they're easily ignorable. the game has its minor flawss though but again, they're minor but are what prevented the game from getting that perfect score. for example, the boss fights. they're either very easy or extremely irritating. the fact that I can only hit the boss when he (or she, blaze) is in position really makes it slow paced, and if i miss, i gotta wait till he's in position again, ugh! and then there is blaze. nothing really terrible about her but if you ask me, seems like she is begginer oriented with her no bonus levels, slower speed yet superior aerial abilities which really makes versus mode unbalanced. foix that and this would be a perfect game. Sonic Rush is most definitely a must have for ANY sonic fan!!! Expand
  2. Sonic Rush showcases the awesomeness of the DS rather well, with fast-paced sonic awesomeness taking place over both screens. I haven't played a Sonic game on a Nintendo Handheld that I haven't enjoyed. It isn't fantastic, just great. Where it succeeds is the gameplay and difficulty, very good. But where it fails is in level design and music. The levels are mostly good, but there are one or two that aren't so great and the game contains what is quite possibly the most annoying soundtrack I've ever heard on the DS. But, it is great and Blaze isn't actually that bad, maybe a tad pointless, but not that bad. Expand
  3. DavidCharlton
    6
    The stages are entertaining and harken back to the old Sonic style we know and love, but the polygonal 3D boss fights are often tedious, cheap and frustrating, with the boss of the aircraft carrier stage Huge Crisis and the penultimate "unknown" zone being the worst offenders and as fun as the levels are, they lack any of the flare and magic that made the original Mega Drive series so compulsively replayable.

    Another complaint I have is regarding the bonus stages which you are required to complete as Sonic in order to obtain the chaos emeralds. They play out like the half-pipe special stages from Sonic 2 and Sonic 3D Blast, only you control Sonic using the DS stylus, which feels twitchy and unresponsive at best and is particularly problematic later on as the stages get more difficult.

    I'd go so far as to say that you're better off playing Sonic Unleashed. Even the disastrous Sonic '06 had tonnes more replay value than this game. If you hate playing 3D Sonic games, then my advice is to stick with the classics from Sonic's heyday. The reason they are remembered so fondly is because of their lasting appeal. Sonic Rush has none of this.

    Of course it's not all bad. Sonic Rush features some gorgeous 2D graphics even does its best to make use of the DS's primitive 3D capabilities. It's often a great pleasure to blast through such pleasant, colourful levels and I'm happy to say that adrenaline-pumped speed rarely lets up. The levels feature a nice balance of breakneck speed and interactivity, without compromising either (which is part of what made the daytime levels in Unleashed so much fun). The soundtrack is very reminiscent of Jet Set Radio and , depending on your inclination, will either sound fun and catchy or cloying and dated. I must say I enjoyed it though.

    So in conclusion, I would recommend this game to any Sonic fan who owns a DS, but don't set your expectations too high. Sonic still has a long way to go before he can recapture his previous glory.
    Expand
  4. RobL.
    3
    No touch screen control. Lots of holding right Bad Level design Bad enemy placements Very gimmicky Terrible voice acting and soundtrack The only good bits are the bosses especially the zone 3 boss. Expand

See all 26 User Reviews