What makes Sonic N enjoyable are the levels. Detailed and
varied, running through as one of four characters is a treat, and shows how well this
franchise can proceed without 3-D. While there's nothing here to stun longtime fans, it's
always fun to find all the little scenarios Sonic Team has created to fling the title
character around in the stages while still making the player feel like they're in control.
This is a short game, and if you're familiar with the layout, it shouldn't take more than an hour. Technically, you need to collect all the chaos emeralds (why are these still laying around after all these years?) with each character to truly complete it, but the bonuses are minimal at best. If this is your first experience, expect to spend around two or three hours.
On the N-Gage, Sonic N brings a second layer of challenge: the vertical screen. There are two viewing choices, one in a squished letterbox view or cramped full screen. The graphics are not re-done for the letterbox mode, and look pixilated. Enemies blend in with the backgrounds, and screen size is ridiculously small.
Playing full screen makes it impossible to see an incoming enemy since the horizontal view is limited. Sonic's speed has always made this difficult, but with the screen eliminating any chance of avoiding death, this is inexcusable. Given how sparsely populated the enemies are in every stage, there are only a few times where this is a major issue. However, it's enough to feel cheated by the hardware's orientation.
It's a shame too. Aside from that, this is a superb translation.
The speed, graphics, and control are perfectly represented. Slowdown is rare. Stages are
well laid out, though with only a few minor surprises. Bonus levels are a pleasant
technical showcase, and scattered throughout the game in order to ensure there's a little
replay value. It's not hard to figure out that this is a Sonic entry far better played on the Game Boy Advance. If that's not an option, and the technical hurdles don't bother you, this is one of Nokia's easiest sells for their console. It would have been nice to a see a completely new adventure for different hardware, but if we're going to get ports, this is (almost) the way to do them.
