Knuckles Chaotix

[Melf]

After appearing in two consecutive Genesis releases, Knuckles the Echidna got a game of his own on the 32X. Many people consider Knuckles Chaotix to be unpolished lacking in certain areas, and that begs the question: is it worth playing? Read our full review (http://www.sega-16.com/review_page.php?id=18&title=Knuckles%20Chaotix) and find out.

[PDorr3]

I really never got into chaotix, it seemed so out of place to me I guess, since I first played it when I was maybe 10 years old. I never liked the "jointed" 2 character combo, or the lack of on screen enemies, if I were to review it I would give it a 6.

[Sega Uranus]

That review OFFENDS ME!!

7 at best!

[Genesis Knight]

Tsk, tsk. You're offended very easily. Personally, I think Chaotix deserves it.

[j_factor]

I thought Chaotix was great in two-player mode but pretty lame in one-player. Am I alone in this feeling?

[tim333]

I found the two-player mode to be a bit confusing. It was hard to get anywhere unless you cooperated very well.

[j_factor]

Don't blame the game for your sour relationships with your friends. ;) :P

[tim333]

What I mean is that it's easy for your movements to get out of sync.

[Mel]

There's a two player mode ?

Damn i missed out on something...

[NintendoDieScreaming]

Chaotix was cool if only because it was Knuckles' own game.

Sonic & Knuckles, however, remains the greatest game of all time (next to the original Sonic, that is.).

[Sega Uranus]

Well, he had nothing good to say about the game... until the end. He just complained until the last few sentences, now how did it get a 9?

Here's how I think of the scores

1-4 = Avoid it!
5-6 = Give it a try!
7 = Okay game.
8 = Very Good!
9-10 = MUST OWN!!!

Chaotix just isn't a 9!


I enjoyed the co-op, but nobody else (that I know) did!

[janus]

Man, that Mighty the Armadillo character looks EXACTLY like Sonic.

[j_factor]

Mighty was based on the original idea for Sonic, which was "an animal that can roll up to attack enemies". He was originally featured in Sega Sonic arcade, which also has a squirrel character that looks a lot like Sonic.

[Baloo]

Well, he had nothing good to say about the game... until the end. He just complained until the last few sentences, now how did it get a 9?

Here's how I think of the scores

1-4 = Avoid it!
5-6 = Give it a try!
7 = Okay game.
8 = Very Good!
9-10 = MUST OWN!!!

Chaotix just isn't a 9!


I enjoyed the co-op, but nobody else (that I know) did!

Chaotix is definitely a 9, at LEAST an 8. I've been playing this game and I must say I LOVE IT. The connection gameplay gives a new twist to the Sonic gameplay while still retaining that Sonic gameplay. And the fact that it has really good music, graphics, replay value, along with a 2-player co-op definitely makes it a 9 in my book.

If it didn't have the bungee-cord gameplay I probably wouldn't have liked it as much since it would've been that same gameplay that had gotten stale during Sonic and Knuckles. The bungee-cord gameplay gives the game new speeds, while still retaining that Sonic gameplay that we all know and love. I absolutely love this game. and the fact that we get to see characters like Vector, Knuckles, Mighty, Charmy, and Espio makes the game even better. Sonic and Tails would've made the game good, but not as colorful. The more characters the better, unless you do them in the crappy style that the Sonic Adventure and on games did (Shadow, Rouge, Cream, Silver?!? Give me a break, all those characters suck.)

Anyone who owns a 32x should get this game definitely.

[jerry coeurl]

I think what's written in the review should match up with the final score. I've read a few reviews on this site that were practically just complaints, only to finish with a score of 8 or 9.

Basically, if you're scoring the game at an 8 or 9, the writing should reflect that. If a review is a laundry list of complaints that ends with a pretty good score I'm usually left scratching my head. This isn't aimed at anyone in particular, just something that I felt I should address.

[Milkymagic]

I thought this game was great, it's not comparable to the Genesis Sonic titles per say, but it's a very unique game in its own right.

I liked the partner system, and the music was fantastic. The fact that the game tried hard to be, well, "chaotic" proves that Sega was willing to try some new things with this game.

I appreciated it to say the least, though I understand how one could hate it if they weren't into the cooperative gameplay element.

[Bablefish]

Knuckles Chaotix is without a doubt is the worst 32X game EVER! To me there is nothing good about this game, and worst yet I own a copy (I bought it hoping it was better, (btw I paid less than $1 for it)). But the one thing you can be sure to know others feel as you do, when you try like me and find that you can't even give it away.

[nissling]

No, Cosmic Carnage is the worst (I have them both).

[kool kitty89]

I like the idea, but the style really is hard to implement properly, especially the thethered aspect. (problems of which were already clear early on, though it was improved somewhat, to at least a playable degree)

However, the partner theme can be much more proberly utilized with tag-team arrangment could be much more properly fulfilled in a different manner, and this game does it very well: http://opensnc.sourceforge.net/home/index.php

[Bablefish]

I agree about Cosmic Carnage, I forgot about that one. I should of said Knuckles Chaotix is the worst Sonic game of all time.

[Baloo]

I agree about Cosmic Carnage, I forgot about that one. I should of said Knuckles Chaotix is the worst Sonic game of all time.

I think Sonic CD and Sonic and Knuckles are both worse than Knuckles Chaotix. My vote for worst game would probably go to Sonic and Knuckles. Levels in that game just plain sucked.

[Alianger]

Sonic & Knuckles is excellent, especially the level design which is a huge improvement over Sonic 3.

This game is a mess.

[Da_Shocker]

S3 locked on with S&K=best Sonic game ever. Chaotix isn't all that good IMO and it barely looks better than the Genesis games.

[Baloo]

S3 locked on with S&K=best Sonic game ever. Chaotix isn't all that good IMO and it barely looks better than the Genesis games.

I disagree. There are some things in that game that the Genesis could NEVER do on it's own.

TBH, Sonic 3 is better than Sonic and Knuckles IMO. The level design is better, music is better, there's a save feature, everything just seems better.

[Alianger]

The only good thing about the save feature is that you can skip the dull parts of S3&K, which is about half of Sonic 3, then have a blast playing through Sonic & Knuckles.

[Chilly Willy]

This game is a 7 at best - 5 if you choose the wrong pair of players... and a 2 if you have a second player playing the other character and they suck. I've always wished they did a DECENT Sonic game (you know... with SONIC) for the 32X.

[Da_Shocker]

I disagree. There are some things in that game that the Genesis could NEVER do on it's own.

TBH, Sonic 3 is better than Sonic and Knuckles IMO. The level design is better, music is better, there's a save feature, everything just seems better.

The scaling and uhm 256 colors?

[Smii]

I think Sonic CD and Sonic and Knuckles are both worse than Knuckles Chaotix. My vote for worst game would probably go to Sonic and Knuckles. Levels in that game just plain sucked.

:shame:


I've always wished they did a DECENT Sonic game (you know... with SONIC) for the 32X.

Sonic is in Chaotix - he appears in the pretty picture on the end credits. :p

[Tears of Ash]

I thought Sonic was supposed to be in chaotix from the get-go, but they took him out because the game wasn't "fun" enough to be part of the sonic brand.

Not sure where I read that at.

[Zebbe]

The idea came from "Sonic Crackers", which later became the very different Chaotix. I think they took Sonic out because it was different, not because it wasn't fun. He was in Sonic Spinball, after all.

[Baloo]

The idea came from "Sonic Crackers", which later became the very different Chaotix. I think they took Sonic out because it was different, not because it wasn't fun. He was in Sonic Spinball, after all.

I thought they put Knuckles in instead of Sonic and Knuckles because of two reasons:

1. They had a Sonic 4 game planned for the 32x, but it was canceled

2. They wanted to pick up with Knuckles right where S&K left off.

All I'm going to say is, I like Knuckles Chaotix, and it's why I'm getting a 32x soon, that and Star Wars Arcade.

[zetastrike]

Chaotix strikes me as a game that polarizes people. Either you love it or detest it. I've wanted to play it for many years, don't know if I ever will. It looks pretty good to me.

[Baloo]

Chaotix strikes me as a game that polarizes people. Either you love it or detest it. I've wanted to play it for many years, don't know if I ever will. It looks pretty good to me.

Yeah, I've noticed that as well. Same with Ecco the Dolphin, that's another love or hate game.

[Chilly Willy]

I don't HATE it... but I also don't like it much either. It's more of a "meh" kind of game. And EVERYONE hates it if you pick the wrong pair of characters or try to play with two players. :p :D

[TmEE]

the game at least has some really awesome music

[Baloo]

the game at least has some really awesome music

You've got that right. I heard the main menu music and I was already hooked.

[Cornholio857]

After the discussion about Sonic 4 on the 32X I decided to revisit this game. I picked this game up for $20 in 1996 at K-Mart and have enjoyed it ever since. That being said, Chaotix is one of my favorite 32X games of all time. The music and graphics/art direction are top notch IMO. But the area that this game really shines is the 2-Player co-op. I know that some people absolutely detest the link system but I love it. Once you master how to control and use the second character to your advantage the game is great. It does take some patience and practice but the end result is definitely worth it. But that's one thing I admire about Sega. They were willing to try new ideas and be original. Sometimes it worked, sometimes not.

The music in this game is excellent. Some of the best "Sonic" tunes I have heard to date. Chaotix takes great advantage of the 32X's PWM channels and it really shows. In fact, Chaotix's music impressed me so much that I decided to make my own recordings of the tracks and post them here on Sega-16 for others to experience and enjoy. Truly some of the best music to come from the Genesis/32X during it's last years.

Graphics are great IMO. Some may say that the graphics are barely above Genesis level. That may be true, but what really impressed me was the art direction. I absolutely loved Botanic Base Zone and the Sonic 2 inspired Special Stages. Some areas of the game remind me of Ristar, which was also made by Sonic Team. But is that a bad thing? Hell no. I also found the scaling to be a nice touch, even if it was just eye candy.

So in conclusion, I find Knuckles' Chaotix to be an awesome game and was a great way to end the "True" 2D Sonic games on the Sega Genesis/32X. (Sonic 3D Blast doesn't count in my book being that it is from an isometric perspective) Highly recommended. My verdict: 9/10

[oldmanwinters]

And EVERYONE hates it if you pick the wrong pair of characters or try to play with two players. :p :D

Yeah, 2-player mode is great so long as you avoid Heavy and Bomb. Even Charmy Bee can throw the game out of balance since he can fly infinitely.

I would love to see speedruns of this game using only the team of Heavy and Bomb as soon as they become available.

[Milkymagic]

Time to knuckle up! :D

I loved this game, as it was a lot of fun to mix and match teams and levels. You never get the same order in your playthrough which kept things fresh, and I agree with Cornholio in that the level design was fun to observe and that the music was fantastic. I think this game was a blast on 2-Player as well.

This, Kolibri, Tempo, and Afterburner made the 32X experience what it was for me. :D

[Cornholio857]

I think this game was a blast on 2-Player as well.


Since we are now getting a proper port of Sonic CD, I would love to see Sega FINALLY re-release Knuckles' Chaotix on XBLA/PSN or a compilation game. Not only that, but add online co-op and I would be playing this game with friends for hours on end. I still to this day don't understand why Sega treats Knuckles' Chaotix like the bastard child of the Sonic series. Oh well, that's why I have my CIB copy still! :D

[The Jackal]

Chaotix feels...incomplete, rushed if you will. Music is top notch, but the ring-partner pulling dynamic is un-polished; if they made the levels less based on that gimmick, I would of enjoyed the game a whole lot more.