Sonic and the Secret Rings

2007 video game

Sonic and the Secret Rings (ソニックと秘密のリング, Sonikku to Himitsu no Ringu) is a 2007 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Wii. A spin off from the Sonic the Hedgehog series, it is the first title in the franchise for the system, and follows Sonic the Hedgehog's quest to stop an evil genie named the Erazor Djinn. In addition to the basic platforming gameplay of previous Sonic titles, Secret Rings uses a system of experience points and levels, as well as special moves that are unlocked by means of progression. The title was released in place of an aborted attempt to port the 2006 game Sonic the Hedgehog to the Wii. Producer, writer, and director Yojiro Ogawa conceived Secret Rings to tap into the Wii Remote's capabilities. He chose the theme of Arabian Nights, using many elements of the stories in the game's setting, characters, and Middle Eastern influenced music. Sega changed the title of the game several times, originally being announced as Sonic Wild Fire, before settling on Sonic and the Secret Rings to tie in the theme of Arabian Nights. Upon release, Secret Rings received average reviews. Reviewers praised its visual style and considered the game as a whole to be an improvement from prior entries, but were critical of its controls, which some claimed took time to get used to, and its inconsistent difficulty. Sega released a sequel in 2009, Sonic and the Black Knight; the two form what is known as the Sonic Storybook series. Sonic and the Secret Rings was de listed from retailers in 2010, following Sega's decision to remove all Sonic titles with sub average Metacritic scores in order to increase the value of the brand.

Sonic and the Secret Rings is a three dimensional platform and action game featuring an on rails style of movement. Sonic the Hedgehog, the series' main character, is the game's only player character. He is controlled exclusively with the Wii Remote, which is held horizontally like a traditional gamepad. Players adjust his forward movement by tilting the controller. He runs along a predesignated path; players jump and brake using corresponding face buttons. Thrusting the Wii Remote forwards allows Sonic to perform a homing attack, a mid air move that targets and damages enemies in his path. Like in other games in the series, Sonic collects rings scattered throughout levels; contact with certain obstacles and enemies scatters them away, and Sonic dies if he touches an enemy without any rings. Unlike previous titles, Secret Rings does not feature a life counter or game over screen, but instead Sonic reappears at the last visited checkpoint after dying, although the player will have to restart a mission if they fail a specified objective. The game contains 110 missions (including boss battles) over the course of eight levels. New missions, cutscenes, and sometimes new levels are unlocked by completing missions. Successful missions earn Sonic experience points, which advance him levels. Sonic has 104 special moves called "skills" that are unlocked upon leveling up or reaching certain points in the story. The player can distribute these skills to four "Skill Rings", which the player selects before starting a mission. Skills can provide Sonic with improved movement, offensive, and defensive capabilities, as well as special attacks. Skills are generally used by depleting the "Soul Gauge", which is slowly filled by collecting pearls scattered throughout the levels. Notable skills Sonic can obtain are the "Speed Break", which greatly increases his speed, and "Time Break" which slows down time, allowing the player to dodge obstacles more easily. Secret Rings features three game modes: "Adventure", "Party", and "Special Book". The story is played in the Adventure mode. The Party mode features multiplayer gameplay for up to four players simultaneously,

After reading the Arabian Nights, Sonic falls asleep, only to be awoken by the Genie of the Ring, Shahra. She explains that Erazor Djinn is erasing the pages of the Arabian Nights and asks Sonic to help her, to which he agrees. He dons a ring that makes him Shahra's master and grants him the ability to ask for any wishes within her power; he then enters the book. Sonic and Shahra encounter Erazor inside; he tells them of his intent to search for seven artifacts called the World Rings, which Shahra claims do not exist. Erazor shoots an arrow of fire at Shahra, but Sonic takes it for her. Erazor opportunistically tells Sonic that he will remove the arrow if Sonic gathers the World Rings for him. If Sonic does not do so before the flame goes out, his "life is forfeit". Sonic and Shahra embark on a quest to retrieve the World Rings. Over the course of this quest, they learn that whoever collects the rings must be sacrificed to create a link between the Arabian Nights world and the real world, also that the rings themselves are sealed with different emotions. Elsewhere in the quest, Shahra gives Sonic Erazor's lamp to use as a last resort. After Sonic manages to obtain the World Rings, Erazor convinces Shahra to give them to him. To try and keep them out of Erazor's hands, Sonic wishes for Shahra to do what she truly thinks is right, and she collapses on the ground as her mind cracks due to her conflicting emotions. Erazor attempts to sacrifice Sonic in order to open the gateway between worlds, but in a move of altruistic suicide, Shahra interrupts the attack, saving Sonic and asking for his forgiveness before dying in his arms. Without Sonic as the proper offering, Erazor mutates into the monstrous Alf Layla wa Layla, now intent on remaking the Arabian Nights in his image before moving on to Sonic's world. Sonic absorbs the World Rings of Sadness, Rage, and Hatred emotions he was feeling at the time and transforms into Darkspine Sonic, a darker, more violent version of Super Sonic, granting him the power to defeat Alf Layla wa Layla, but Erazor subsequently boasts that he is immortal and will always return. Sonic then reveals that he possesses Erazor's lamp, and wishes for Erazor to bring Shahra back to life, restore the book to its original state, and be trapped in his lamp for all eternity. Erazor refuses to do so, but is helpless against the power of his lamp. After granting the third wish, Erazor pleads for Shahra to stop Sonic and save him, but she refuses, leaving him to be sucked into his lamp. Shahra then bursts into tears, and Sonic wishes for a mountain of handkerchiefs to help her through her crying. Sonic then disposes of the lamp in a pit of lava, running through the book until he finds a way home. Shahra states that his story will be forever remembered in the pages of the Arabian Nights, and the title image of "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp" in the book then changes to "Sonic and the Secret Rings".

Sonic and the Secret Rings (originally codenamed Sonic Wildfire) was developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. Sega had initially planned to release a port of the 2006 Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 game Sonic the Hedgehog as the first Sonic game for the Wii. Citing lengthy development times for a port, Sega switched plans and conceived of a Sonic game that would use the capabilities of the Wii Remote. Producer, writer, and director Yojiro Ogawa, who had previously worked on Sonic Adventure, "already had this basic idea (of Sonic constantly moving forward) in [his] mind", and immediately imagined its compatibility with the Wii. Sonic and the Secret Rings received "mixed or average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. It proved the best selling Wii game and fifth among all platforms in the United Kingdom. In North America, it was thirteenth overall, and fourth for the Wii, with 83,000 copies. In June, July, and August 2007, the game was the fourth, third, and seventh best selling game for the Wii, respectively. The game received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom. It sold 30,563 copies in Japan. Critics felt Secret Rings was a general improvement over recent Sonic games, whose popularity and critical reception had declined. According to Empire, which gave the game 3/5 stars, Secret Rings "reclaims the bewildering blend of platforming and racing that made the series famous" while "fixing the erratic stop start gameplay that marred recent editions" and showcasing "the best graphics the Wii has to offer this side of Zelda." However, "the occasionally sluggish controls and spasmodic in game camera mean Sonic's Wii debut is far from perfect." Electronic Gaming Monthly stated that it "does a decent job at stopping the bleeding caused by the recent 360/PS3/PSP Sonics", Sonic Team and Sega later created Sonic and the Black Knight, a sequel to Secret Rings released on March 3, 2009. The two form the Storybook series; Secret Rings is based on Arabian Nights, and Black Knight casts Sonic into the world of King Arthur. On March 18, Secret Rings and Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz were compiled in a Wii release titled Sega Fun Pack: Sonic and the Secret Rings & Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz.