Another year, another 3D Sonic the Hedgehog games. After so many years of disappointment (although I'll admit despite its flaws I enjoyed Sonic Heroes a lot more than I probably should have) it's a wonder I still keep coming back to Sega. But in the end, Sonic isn't just one of the great gaming icons, he's my great gaming icon - so I'll always be watching to see if he one day reclaim his former glory on home consoles (handheld is a different matter entirely - the Sonic Rush series has been nothing short of fantastic). And if any game since Sonic & Knuckles is going to do it, it's this one. The premise is simple - Dr Eggman/Robotnik/whatever you call him these days seemingly turned over a new leaf has opened a huge intergalactic theme park made up of several different worlds, and Sonic and Tails being, well, Sonic and Tails don't trust him and discover a plot to take over the world using a mind control beam powered by a race of aliens known a...

NB. This is a review of the wiiware version of the game, any differences between this and the psn, xbox arcade and iphone versions will not be covered as I have not played any of them. There have been so many disappointing Sonic games over the last few years that it's begun to feel hard to believe that the hedgehog was once one of the greatest video games characters of all time, but when Sonic Team announced the episodic Sonic the Hedgehog 4 - a direct sequel to the Mega Drive's Sonic & Knuckles which would use the original 2d side scrolling style which made Sonic popular in the first place, there was finally a glimmer of hope that this could be the game that saved the hedgehog from being ridiculed forever. At 1500 wii points (or £10) it already has a tall order to fill given its status as a episodic game (as in this isn't the whole thing). But right away this game feels so right . There are no proper cutscenes, no voiceacting, no extra characters - just S...