Some new previews of Sonic Colours on Wii have hit the net and they’re all very positive, making a change to the usual reception 3D Sonic titles receive from critics.

Spanish gaming website Meristation believes that SEGA has listened to the fans requests and taken on board past mistakes:

An interesting proposal
Though still several weeks for the release of Sonic Colours in our country (not arrive until Nov. 19), and although it has largely remained quite hidden from your ad on arrival to the store just half a year passes , the truth is that things are looking very well. Sega’s blue hedgehog is showing signs of taking good note of all that its supporters claim on his adventures, and this new release is getting to attract more attention than Sonic 4, becoming the focus of all international fairs in the past months.

The very attractive story mode, which offers similar gameplay to the stage of Sonic Unleashed day but with the addition of the powers of the Wisp, there is also an interesting cooperative multiplayer that not only lengthens the life of the title but challenges and complexity also promises enough to have users who enjoy the challenges demanding. All with what promises to be a very worthy technical finish, both Wii and DS, and in the case of the first without having much to envy of its own productions in high definition consoles. Sonic and Sega are willing to redeem the mistakes of the past, and if things go wrong at the last minute, it seems that going in the right way to do this.

Full 2 page preview in Google Translator

In their preview, Dealspwn saw a clear emphasis on speed as well as platforming and thinks Sonic Team are truly trying to bring Sonic back to gaming fame once again and are “going the right way about it”, they add.

It’s telling that when pressed on what his favourite title of the series, Iisuka leans towards Sonic Adventure, and equally important when he notes that the great desire for Colours is to ‘introduce Sonic to a whole new audience, building on the success and publicity garnered by the Mario and Sonic titles. Hopefully, with the emphasis set on speed and core platforming, along with the new Wisp elements, it will be a game for old fans and newcomers alike.’ Colours is absolutely a statement of intent, to propel Sonic back into the big leagues and, on this evidence, he’s going the right way about it.

Full preview

NowGamer notes that the game has been given a lot of love to it’s production and is a very enjoyable experience, but they remain cautious in case any Werehog type gimmicks are added before release.

That Sega is releasing Sonic Colours solely on the Wii and DS, without making any promises about quality or appeal, is admirable but perhaps slightly misjudged. Although the build we played featured three of the available planets, we felt content that Sonic Colours is a solid, enjoyable experience with strong production values and a refreshing lack of fluff. Then again, we haven’t seen the whole game yet, and much like Sonic Unleashed’s Werehog debacle, there’s still time for Sega to spring some unexpected gimmick on us. We remain cautiously content for now.
Final Summary
We’re surprised Sega isn’t making a bigger song and dance about this surprisingly polished, charming Sonic title.

Full preview

The Sonic Stadium founder Svend “Dreadknux” Joscelyne has put out a new preview over at SPOnG, a gaming website where he works. It’s a good read and very in-depth, since Svend clocked-in 25 hours of play before writing it out. We won’t spoil it here for you, so head over to SPOnG to check it out.

Svend also responded to questions about the game at the SSMB today, with the below list of information:

* You can HA some badniks, note I said ‘you can’t HA most badniks’ in the preview Buzzbombers in Sweet Mountain and Crabmeats in Aquatic Park are two examples of classic badniks that can be HA’d.
* Spiny’s and Motobugs can’t be HA’d. Neither can underwater badniks. You only encounter Burrobots while drilling, so you obviously can’t HA those either.
* 3D underwater areas don’t equal ‘sudden death,’ mostly because there are no real 3D underwater areas to speak of. All underwater activity is done in 2D.
* [In response to a question about instant water deaths in 3D Sonic games] To the above point, if you mean like in Unleashed where Sonic will instantly die if he touches a foot of water during the 3D segments, you don’t need to worry. Bottomless hazards are always identified as bottomless pits, there are no watery quagmires that will suck you in. In Aquatic Park, when you come up to an area of water in 3D, the camera automatically pans back round to 2D view. You can boost along like Jesus, or fall and plunge into the water.
* There are ways of getting around the uncurling – the easiest (and probably most fun) is to stomp. But it can be a pain in the arse when underwater and you want to bop a Chopper, and you uncurl just before you land on it.
* No side-missions, no mini-games. The only thing you’ll be playing are Acts within worlds, or the Game Land/Sonic Simulator (which is essentially the same as the 1-player Story levels anyway). There are no other gameplay mechanics besides bosses.
* You can play Sonic Simulator on your own. Pressing the 1 or 2 button (in the Wii Remote + Nunchuk configuration) will allow you to switch between ‘RoboSonic Player 1’ and ‘RoboSonic Player 2’ (not official names). That’s what the red ball is, following you around – it’s the other ‘RoboSonic’.
* Although you can get pushed off the screen in multiplayer mode, you can escape death and the loss of a life by pressing the 1 or 2 button (Wiimote+Nunchuk config) – you’ll turn back into a spinning ball and follow the remaining player around the level, until you press something and jump back into the action.

Two more quotes from the game have also been revealed today at Sonic Wrecks and the official SonicGames Twitter:

“Ouch! I think I gloated so hard I pulled a muscle!” – Dr. Eggman, Sonic Colours

“Hasta la bye-bye, suckers!” – Dr. Eggman, Sonic Colours

What do you think of such positivity for the game from the critics? Let us know in the comments.