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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed games.
Sonic Rivals
Mixed or average reviews
Based on 25 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 9 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game >
Game Info
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Backbone Entertainment
Genre(s): Racing, Action
Players: 2
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Release Date: November 16, 2006
Summary
Sonic Rivals is a head-to-head competition between Sonic and his top rivals, where the gloves are off and winner takes all. Built from the ground-up, the engine allows gamers to rip through tracks in some high-spirited single player and wireless multiplayer action against friends as Sonic returns in a whole new racing-platformer with classic 2D gameplay in true 3D environments for gamers on the go. What starts as a friendly competition between Sonic and Knuckles quickly intensifies as Shadow and other rivals jump into the action. Sonic Rivals allows gamers to utilize boost moves and power-ups to trip, shove, and vault over each other while hurtling towards the finish line at breakneck speeds. Players will negotiate wildly twisting 3D tracks while avoiding the insidious Dr. Eggman and his myriad of hazardous traps and contraptions. In Sonic Rivals, gamers can play as one of four different characters from the Sonic Universe, each with separate fast and winding storylines. In addition, the extensive rewards system, which is based on collecting trading cards, allows players to customize their favorite characters. Connect via wireless to race against a friend, and put trading cards on the line for even more multiplayer challenges. [Sega]
Cheat Codes & Hints: GameSpot Hints & Cheats
Also On The Web: Official Website
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Pure Magazine UK
Fast-paced action and plenty of challenge make for a really fun title. [Jan 2007, p.72]
Games Master UK
Fast and furious and good old-fashioned Sonic fun, for all its faults. It looks splendid, too, with perspective changes and all manner of background detail. [Christmas 2006, p.58]
IGN
It mixes snazzy visuals with a good sense of speed, so there's little doubt hardcore Sonic fans will find a lot to like. Plus, it has a rewarding multiplayer mode and wager system, which only adds to the experience.
Read Full Review >GameTrailers
Sonic Rivals runs a fairly solid race, but it’s running in circles around a limited amount of content.
Read Full Review >Eurogamer
Sonic Rivals still stands head and shoulders over other recent efforts in the franchise - and, indeed, over many other recent PSP titles - simply because the game at the heart of it all is downright fun.
Read Full Review >GameSpy
A fun but shallow game. The graphics and speed-based level design are great, but the game's short length and lack of truly compelling replay value are cause for hesitation.
Read Full Review >Games Radar (in-house)
As the name suggests, Rivals plays well against a friend. Racing the computer is cool, but costing your bud the race with a last-minute cheap shot is a whole lot better.
Read Full Review >Yahoo! Games
Sonic Rivals feels a little like a mini-game to a bigger game. We expected more content than this. The cards are utterly useless in their attempt to milk replay out of the title, and seemed thrown in at the last minute.
Read Full Review >Play UK
Holding right on the D-pad just gets boring before long. And why's Sonic gone and got all rude? [Issue #147, p.82]
VideoGamer
Outside of the odd frustrating stage, the only criticism I have of Sonic Rivals is its brevity.
Read Full Review >GameSpot
Sonic Rivals keeps it simple and offers plenty of high-speed thrills, though it also has its share of frustrating moments.
Read Full Review >GameBrink
Take one part Sonic, add in one part racing, mix with two parts cheap deaths, and you’ve got Sonic Rivals. Fans may like it but I think most should steer clear.
Read Full Review >Game Informer
The base gameplay is decent, although the inclusion of power-up attacks and platforming obstacles only serves to muddle the experience, making success feel more like a matter of blind luck than skill.
Read Full Review >GamePro
The game is easy to pick up and great to look at, but there's little to it.
Read Full Review >PSM3 Magazine UK
Often good fun, but the fudged Rivals idea kicks the purity of standard Sonic quare in the onions. [Christmas 2006, p.91]
Worth Playing
Unfortunately, it brings little to the table beyond sheer speed and smacks soundly of the "battle" mode we spent many a day playing back in the Sonic The Hedgehog 2 era.
Read Full Review >Jolt Online Gaming UK
A series of unlockable wardrobe items do little to massage the questionable value for money factor of what is ultimately a short game that puts an interesting, er, ‘spin’, on the classic Sonic gameplay, yet fails to live up to such past successes.
Read Full Review >DarkStation
Sega tries to breathe new life into the stale Sonic franchise with this racer, but sadly forgot to rev up the overly simplistic gameplay and slim selection of modes and characters.
Read Full Review >PSM Magazine
It's a blast in short bursts with buddies, but otherwise gets old fast. [Jan. 2007, p.86]
games(TM)
You could do far worse than invest in a copy of Sonic Rivals, and a nice foundation has been laid for a sequel to eradicate the cracks present here. [Jan 2007, p.99]
Official Playstation 2 Magazine UK
Once the glow of nostalgia has faded, the fact that the gameplay is predictable and unfair can't be ignored. Disappointing. [Christmas 2006, p.101]
Gaming Age
Sonic Rivals pulls it together pretty well, but the game feels more like a mini-game than a fully fleshed out product. Overall, Sonic Rivals is unfortunately too short, and the concept is too simple, to hold the interest of most gamers for very long.
Read Full Review >Electronic Gaming Monthly
It's like an old-school Sonic game minus anything that made those games good. [Jan. 2007, p.106]
Official U.S. Playstation Magazine
Welcome to Sonic Hell, where it feels like you're stuck in Rome and some gladiator prisoner that is being forced to compete mercilessly non-stop with other combatants. [Jan. 2007, p.91]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this game is 8.6 (out of 10) based on 9 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Latoya S. gave it a10:
I love this game! It has much replay value. You get to collect cards and use them to get speciasl stuff. This is my favorite Sonic game of all time!
Rafael S. gave it an8:
The game is really fun and multiplayer is spectacular but can be annoying at times.
