Sonic Colors: Ultimate

Eggman’s gaudy interstellar amusement park makes an ideal playground for Sonic’s mix of breakneck momentum and colorful platforming. Behind the neon rides, candy-bright planets, and cheerful theme-park music lies a familiar threat: the doctor has imprisoned the alien Wisps to fuel a scheme that reaches far beyond the park itself. Sonic Colors: Ultimate revisits the Wii-era adventure with sharper presentation, modernized controls, new customization options, and an energetic Saturday-morning-cartoon tone. It is a lighter, more playful Sonic story than the series’ darker outings, but the pace and spectacle remain consistently high.

Stages alternate between behind-the-back speed sections and side-scrolling precision platforming, asking players to dash through loops, grind rails, dodge hazards, bounce off enemies, and hunt for alternate routes. Freed Wisps provide temporary powers that reshape how levels play: drilling through soft terrain, hovering across gaps, blasting through blocks with lasers, or turning into other specialized forms. The main campaign moves through six themed zones with multiple acts, while red Star Rings, hidden paths, and time-based rankings give skilled runners reasons to replay completed stages. Ultimate also adds the Jade Ghost Wisp, a phase-through-walls ability, alongside Rival Rush challenges against Metal Sonic and optional assistance features for players who find Sonic’s speed difficult to control.

What separates Colors from more open-ended Sonic games is its tightly designed, amusement-park structure; every area feels like a self-contained attraction with its own visual gimmicks and platforming language. Its best levels reward players who learn when to slow down, since blindly boosting ahead can send Sonic into hazards or past collectibles. The remaster’s visual upgrades are welcome, although the underlying design still reflects its Wii origins and some sections can feel less polished than the series’ strongest modern entries. Fans of Sonic Generations, Sonic Mania’s replay-driven challenge, or upbeat arcade platformers find plenty to enjoy here, while newcomers get one of Sonic’s more approachable 3D adventures.