Sonic & The Secret Rings | The First 3D "Boost Game"

The Sonic Storybook series might have a deeper legacy than it gets credit for but even if it aided in bringing Sonic forward - are they actually good games? We'll be covering Black Knight in a few days but for now let's check out Sonic and the Secret Rings!
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[@youmeltube]

04:55 A common fan theory I've seen a lot is that, since this is a words-only BOOK that Sonic was reading, this is just how Sonic "percieves" these characters. They're still Ali Baba and Sinbad, it's just how Sonic views them from his experience reading the book. "Oh, Ali Baba acts a bit like Tails" makes Ali Baba look like Tails to him once Sonic enters the book himself.

[@callmezeldaonemoartime]

That’s actually a pretty cool theory, I mean I do that lmao

[@playerback7722]

Agreed

[@eddache]

"You're not limited on how many times you can stab people" - Jon 2022

[@meanbeanthenintendoguy3111]

He is british, after all.

[@AccelerateHedge]

@@meanbeanthenintendoguy3111 Alright, I feel bad but this got a little chuckle out of me.

[@pixelbomb97]

I played this when I was a kid and literally all I remember is MAKE BELIEFS REBORN!!!

[@DonWeaselYeehawEdition]

"I genuinely love Sonic. I wanna give him a big Ole smooch." - Jon 2022

[@inkchariot6147]

Tell Jon to get in line.

[@ssjduelistDD]

> the furry community has entered the chat

[@heavydonkeykong5190]

I read that as he was saying it.

[@inkchariot6147]

@@ssjduelistDD *Warhammer intensifies*

[@alliesangalli1757]

When I played this game as a kid, I don't think I realized there was a game beyond the tutorial missions and gave up on it pretty quickly lol

[@RedKing12000]

Congrats, your Secret Rings experience was already better than mine, by virtue of presumably being much shorter.

[@SAGEtheGOD01]

😂😂😂no waaaay

[@ataladin87]

HELL YES, THAT WAS ME TOO. Except it was Sand Oasis that I kept playing. I had no Idea there was Other Levels.

[@ReapersLove69]

@@RedKing12000 looks like someone didnt find a way through

[@mesacboy7939]

SAME

[@peacorptv6502]

The "Mountain of hankerchiefs" scene has convinced me that Sonic Team's writing department consists entirely of aliens who have never interacted with real humans.

[@ReapersLove69]

last time sonic was smart funny or emotional but okay

[@damienjohn]

as someone who is completely outside the sonic fandom (only played the OG game in early teens), it's fascinating to hear about the series' highs and lows.

[@Just_Red_]

I honestly love Secret Rings for its rpg progression systems, which ironically is one of the main things people hate on I love that you start with a relatively limited, somewhat slow moveset but get all sorts of ways to gain speed instantly, do more damage to enemies, etc through playing the game To me it's kind of like platinum styled action games where you start off missing super basic things and over time your moveset gets more complex and more fun, it's addicting

[@Neoxon619]

A stage from Black Knight was actually used to test Hedgehog Engine 1, so you aren’t far off in your analysis of the similarities between Secret Rings & the Boost games. Even the Red Rings of the current games are more contemporary versions of Fire Souls in Secret Rings. As an aside, I think Ring Fit Adventure feels like a Sonic game with fitness controls & turn-based combat because of a lot of what you described about the level design of Secret Rings & the Boost games.

[@Blazingscourge]

I would say the red rings has its roots in Sonic Advance 2 because you had to find them to get into the special stages

[@Terminal_Apotos]

Honestly the Red Rings are so freakin interesting and kinda Mysterious. Every time I think I found their origins something else comes up, now I’m hearing Advance 2?

[@natoriousthehopeful2786]

When I was in middle school, I LOVED Dark Spine Sonic's design: can't explain why

[@UltraPaperGamer]

This really showcase how good a sonic game really is when it gets a sequel. If a lot of one of ideas had sequels I'm pretty sure people would be more ok with new gimmick and new gamestyles

[@RoyalXIII]

Sonic: "They could open up the gates of hell!" Arin Hanson - Sonic: "Oh no!"

[@draco2351]

Funnily enough I was just listening to let the speed mend it yesterday and it got me curious about this game since I never played it. The character designs were pretty interesting, and in retrospect it could have been a cool concept for the storybook games to continue. The Palace that Was found is awesome soundtrack too.

[@ChiefMedicPururu]

It's awkward to control at first, but I was able to get all gold medals, so it's not impossible to get used to it. Also, REALLY NICE multiplayer.

[@Hectoreo]

This was the first sonic game I owned, so it's really nostalgic to see it brought up again. Honestly, I'd be down for a rerelease that cuts out the motion controls and streamlines the progression

[@cnf465]

I remember playing this game (and the Black Knight) when I was younger and actually enjoying it. Although, I feel like I played them again now it would ruin the way I remember both games. 😅 Amazing video as always :D

[@gluttonousmaximus9048]

16:25 "Final Kirby Boss" Where's Derrick's Kirby lore appreciation video when you direly need it the most?!

[@ReapersLove69]

finally, someone remembers this as the first boost game, and the only one that did it right beside unleashed

[@poteriukusu]

What is great about the finale is that Sonic deprived Erazor Djinn of freedom, although what he hates the most is binding himself or even others to something. He is really mad at Erazor for his attempt to kill Shara.

[@Pureheartt13]

I freaking love this game. Just beat it again and completed every mission. So much love and inspiration went into the game, and the story is one of the best in the Sonic series. There's frustrating moments but the highs reach highs I haven't seen in over a decade in Sonic's more modern games. With some patience, I fully recommend Sonic and the Secret Rings. :)

[@Shades14236]

A Secret Rings video that isn't just berating the game? Could only be you, Jon. Loving this renaissance where the 'worst' Sonic games are reexamined. I definitely did not know you didn't have to push forward with the wiimote. I think I would have saved myself an early carpal tunnel scare and beaten a couple missions a lot easier if I knew that. 😂

[@dogsoap]

I have never seen this game before in my life but I'll just have to take your word that it's kinda fun because from the outside looking it, it looks pretty bad (janky camera snapping, weird oil slick strafing, ugly looking textures and general color scheme, etc.). With that being said, this was a fun video to watch from a Sonic series newbie! You never disappoint with your videos.

[@zaynem9157]

Its pretty sad that I basically grew up with the storybook series, Zero Gravity, and Unleashed as my first games, they are cemented as my favorites. Im sure people have reasons for disliking them all, but because of all the damn pickiness we are now stuck in a Roger Era rather then Jasons. (Seriously, why cant we have Jason back as sonic)

[@playerback7722]

Don't worry Roger is improving

[@zaynem9157]

@@playerback7722 Seeing how Frontiers gave me Black Knight vibes, Im praying/hopeful the writers know what they are doing with dialogue.

[@paulbell3682]

@@zaynem9157 The reason as to why we have the Studiopolis cast now has nothing to with the critical reception of 06, Riders: Zero Gravity, Secret Rings & Black Knight.

[@C_Arson]

The funny thing is that whoever wrote that handkerchief line probably thought it was genius.

[@jakeriese4862]

I find it sweet

[@diabeticman2194]

I love how the ending cutscene goes from Sonic being cool with the I'm not a rat, I'm a hedgehog line while treating the lamp as a gun, to then wishing for a mountain of handkerchiefs. It's so weird that I love it

[@bananabike279]

Great video! Never really thought of Secret Rings as a predecessor of the boost games, very interesting

[@GamingWithMe]

Never got around to finishing this game as a kid. Will do now as adult one of these days! I definitely have more patience than when I was younger.

[@amt2217]

3:31 THANK YOU JON!!!! SONIC RIDERS IS SUCH A GOOD GAME!

[@prestonanderson1719]

"I'm fully aware they're not all good" That makes me raise a eyebrow when you put Sonic Colours DS in frame when you said that

[@inkchariot6147]

Titanic Plain from Black Knight looks like it could be an area in Sonic Frontiers, same with Kingdom Valley or that desert stage from Secret Rings. Exaggerated Realism is the best aesthetic for Sonic besides the Future Funk of the Riders series.

[@spritvio639]

I love the exaggerated realism style but personally, I'm more of a cartoony setting guy for Sonic. Sonic Colors being my favorite example of that in the series.

[@inkchariot6147]

@@spritvio639 Lost World had a nice pop art theme, but it just reminds me too much of Mario Galaxy. They haven't tried cel shading before, have they? I think that would work, like Yuji Uekawa's artwork with saturated colors and thick outlines.

[@ronmexico6901]

I didn’t know this guy was back. Best radio voice on KZbin Edit, oh this isn’t Nintendo life. KZbin algorithm knows what to recommend me.

[@JenSpinsSGP]

Sonic and the secret rings is one of those games that I really want to love, great cutscenes, fun music and the sequel is one of my favorite sonic games. The issue is that I only remember being frustrated by this game because the motion controls felt awkward and completely made me shy away from motion controls as much as I could help it. I’ll eventually give the game a try as an adult but at the moment it’s one of my least favorites.

[@rikibdgd4764]

i tried it for the first time just a few days ago and was actually surprised at how fun the game was overall but was super annoyed at some missions not having checkpoints so if i died like 2 mins in at the end id have to restart then again my fav game in the series is black knight so maybe i am just used to this style of gameplay

[@arthuralvarez2930]

I always thought I was the only person that enjoyed Secret Rings and Black Knight… I love those games and I wish Sega did not kill the “story book series”

[@FrLaF]

I'm imagining John shaking the Wii Remote like a Shakeweight...Oh God! LOL And I feel this game should never see the light of day again...

[@JomaXZ]

Personally, my issue isn't that it IS motion controls, but that the motion controls are VERY inconsistent for me and just doesn't do what I want them to. Even with that responsiveness upgrade equipped. The only parts of the controls that worked consistently for me were the backflip and the homing attack. The control issue seems to vary from person to person... Like with Skyward Sword. That games motion controls function great for me, but not so much for others it seems...

[@lrgogo1517]

That moment when Sonic trapped the Djinn was actually pretty awesome. Too bad the internet only remembered the part of this cutscene that came afterward.

[@playerback7722]

Oh yeah

[@Hatibrella]

Didn’t expect to see a video on goat and the secret rings today but i’ll take it (with end of the summer in the video too, Absolute banger song from a underrated ost)

[@Hatibrella]

oh hell na he didn’t talk about darkspine sonic punching the shi out of alf wayla la’s chest

[@paulgilbert5278]

We can all agree that Secret Rings is when Jason Griffith became the definitive voice of Sonic

[@THEonlyAEON]

I remember borrowing this from my friend when I was younger and while playing the first level that's not the tutorial I would stare at Sonics shoes grip pattern, then I got a pair of trainers (sneakers) with the same grip pattern and I was so exited because I thought they would make me run faster. I never finished the game but I remember when I found out about Dark Spined Sonic and I am still kind of mad because I love that form, always been pissed they haven't ever included any other super transformations in the main games.

[@LegionIscariot]

This game would work great if remade as a traditional 3d Sonic game.

[@SAGEtheGOD01]

Honestly, it's still one of my favorite wii games. I went back to replay it my just to hit 100% and once you get the crest unlockables it really changes up the game.

[@danbagon924]

I remember playing Secret Rings a ton as a kid, but only the first main level over and over again because I didn't want to play the missions and couldn't figure out which to do to progress. The party mode is ultimately what got all the playtime for me and my sisters as the years went on as we didnt have mario party. Got really good at the janky controls in the minigames and learned you can play them with the gamecube controller (making some games much easier, others surprisingly much harder).

[@TheJmack90]

Sonic WILDFIRE!!! Holy hell I forgot about that working title, wow!!

[@Aka-Spade]

Secret Rings was my "return to video games" in my childhood (There was a chunk of my life where all I had was a DS with a broken screen and one of those McDonald's LED games before my family bought a Wii) and I always thought it was a pretty good Sonic game. One of the best? Certainly not, but definitely one of the decent ones.

[@zZaxOo]

Dino! in the jungle! DINO! you killed me there xD

[@Artzei]

Technically speaking, it's not really accurate to call Secret Rings as the "first 3D boost game" since Sonic Heroes more or less was the first 3D boost game. Or at least it was the basis that eventually grew into the Boost formula.

[@Jack_Saint_Archive]

Great video! Also I agreed with Felipe's article.

[@TheCurlyP]

Hmm you've almost convinced me to give it another try.. it did feel good to nail a hard level, just frustrating if you ever needed to go backwards

[@JustJulyo]

Gotta respect the love for Sonic to play Sonic games

[@masibb64]

Maybe an unpopular opinion but I think this game is perfect for a mobile re-release, just think about it. The gameplay is literally "Temple Run", a kind of endless runner on rails and the level structure is so you can play couple of levels in a short time. I would love to play this on mobile just because I'm interested in the story😅, but a mobile port would be perfect with a few tweaks. Fits on mobile better than a full title on the Wii in my opinion

[@Artista_Frustrado]

oh yeah this game could absolutelly be added as a level pack for Sonic Dash

[@callmezeldaonemoartime]

No, God no, PLEASE no

[@josephn1000]

I traded this game into GameStop for Spyro Eternal Night when I was a teenager. I did enjoy it at the time though.

[@u.dplaythroughs8486]

That game's hard for the wrong reasons, I'm talking about Eternal Night

[@bardknight]

Thanks for reminding me I need to play Black Knight. I loved Secret Rings back in the day but only played a bit of the other. Still own both games, too.

[@XanthinZarda]

Shame about one of the composers of the sister project though. It was his last project and I can't imagine how it feels to have finally burned all his bridges after it was the closest thing to a non-middling game he got to work on. Might be worth a look into that history on your alter ego's channel. ;D Also showing how well this stuck in my head is that I mistook this for Black Knight.

[@alexmabey7791]

Great video! 👍

[@callmezeldaonemoartime]

3:32 based Riders fan

[@JakeLT64]

After playing the missions at the end of Black Knight where you play more traditional stages with Wii mote & Nun chuck using the stick to move and motion the homing attack, I really wished I could play this game the same way. I get why they went for this method, since the Wii was brand new so they wanted folks to be able to play it without a nunchuck, but it couldn’t have been too much work to make both options available. Maybe just a product of rush development.

[@dac6400]

You didn't have to do SuperDiegoLego dirty like that

[@GenerationZ313]

Interestingly enough this is the first Sonic game Morio Kishimoto worked on, who also went to on to work on Sonic and the Black Knight, Sonic Colors, Sonic Lost World, Sonic Forces and is the director of the upcoming Sonic Frontiers. That said none of the games he worked on aside from Sonic Colors are generally well received so I am a bit worried about how Sonic Frontiers is going to turn out and whether the 15+ years of experience working on Sonic will culminate in a critically acclaimed titled.

[@amirgarcia547]

I’ve always quite enjoyed Secret Rings tbh, probably even more so than Black Knight. Since even if Black Knight has a more streamlined mission structure and better story, the core hack-and-slash gameplay never felt very fun to me, whereas this’s normal Sonic gameplay but on-rails. And I always thought the setting of the Arabian Nights was far more interesting tha just a generic fantasy kingdom, and while Merlina has more depth as a villain, I found Erazor Djinn way more memorable due to his pompous attitude and banter with Sonic. It’s also interesting how Sonic Unleashed would take more DNA from Secret Rings and Sonic ‘06, despite the former being a Wii spin-off due to Sega being unable to make a port of Sonic ‘06 for Wii, and the latter being Sonic’s big, next-gen reboot.

[@TwilightWolf032]

I thought Sonic wishing for the handkerchiefs was just a joke from the guy that does the joke fandubs, but holy shit, it actually happened!

[@Jormunguandr]

That sonic "mario party game" gives me nostalgia

[@ColdCobra84]

As a man in his late 30s who only ever played the 8 and 16 bit games (plus Sonic Adventure 1 and 2) it's always interesting to see more information about some of these games. I just hear "the 3D sonic games are all awful" but they often look more... mediocre than awful (with one or two exceptions, obviously...), so it's fun seeing these games looked at a bit more fairly. Keep up the good work!

[@TeeTekTrab]

I'm glad you like it Jon! I had a different experience. I traded it in and then my friends gifted me a new copy for my birthday as a prank smh :P

[@LegoReader12345hello]

This right here was my first sonic game!

[@Blazio]

"That's rad as flip" is my new favourite phrase

[@blitz4506]

I hope this game gets a fan PC remake that fixes all the issues

[@DesignDoc]

Love the stage theming, the story presentation has its charm, and at the time, the novelty of the control scheme kinda carried it for me. Can't say I like playing it now but parts of this are a guilty pleasure for me.

[@theminecraft2516]

El Macho is my favorite Despicable Me villain

[@DewMan31]

Everyone who has played Secret Rings has gotten stuck at Evil Foundry. I still love the game tho.

[@ItsDangerousGoAlone]

Have you seen the normal boots madness series? I think you guys should basically revive it yourselves because it was fun and i want it back.

[@gogears567]

I haven’t played sonic since the adventure days and it has me questioning if sonic has always been this weird.

[@starmaster65]

Ah yes, one of my childhood Sonic games... I hated it and never got past the tutorial. But then I picked it up again last year, and I beat it, had a really fun time with it! So yeah, can definitely agree that it's not one of the best Sonic games, but I think it's one of the good ones still too...

[@segaspice4062]

I'm excited for Black Knight video

[@jacksonlovesnintendo]

I don't know whether it's the font, the excessive amount of fire, the weird music, the desert-y vibe, or whatever, but this was my first introduction to Sonic as a kid and I HATED it. It felt waaayyy less creative, fun, and whimsical than the mainline Mario games on Wii, so I dropped it fast. In hindsight, I don't think it's awful, but still, this game just does not capture the best that Sonic has to offer.

[@Falco-Lombardi]

High and Broken is easily the best song in this game imo

[@AeroBlaze777]

It'd be cool to hear more about Unleashed in the future! I feel like Unleashed is pretty divisive now, with everyone who loves it praising the great Daytime stages while people who hate it only focus on the nighttime stages.

[@tcClockworth]

I remember enjoying it alright when I was a freshman in high school.

[@SamuraiDon]

I owned this game before I even had a Wii mostly because I had a £5 off coupon. 😂 Honestly the game is okay but it's clearly obvious that a lot of the game design largely stem from the short development time the game had, hence why the game is on-rail as it's quicker and simpler to design a stage around it. I use to replay it a lot until Sonic Colours released and became my preferred Wii Sonic game.

[@ssjduelistDD]

MAKE-BELIEVES REBORN!

[@selder_7]

They’re both flawed but good and could easily be remade into great games

[@jasonblack2477]

Also sonic turns to darkspine sinic because he absorbed sorrow sadness and anger.

[@jakeriese4862]

What happens if u have all of the Seven World Rings, does the credits just not roll

[@leeartlee915]

Sometimes I wonder what kind of games we would have got for the Wii if motion plus had been in since the beginning. The few games that utilize motion plus are amazing. But that’s the problem with adding in things mid generation. Nobody wants to risk alienating the majority of the consoles base.

[@bewilde_]

0:09 But do you own the elusive Sonic 2 With A Line? ಠ◡ಠ

[@DonWeaselYeehawEdition]

I understood that reference 👀 👉 👈

[@coldyummysugarfoods]

Just got the game in the mail today

[@jasonblack2477]

I wish sonic team would make creative levels like in this game like hipy shit black knight and secret rings have amazing environments

[@Club_Weeg]

BUT JON What about the song that THREW MY MUSTARD AWAY. It's a banger but at the cost of my mustard. So Secret Rings gets the shit end because of the motion controls and that certainly is a knock especially when some people make sure those controls look a shit but I still think it's crazy to have BETTER CONTROL LOCKED. Like who does that's utter insanity. But with Secret Rings and Black Knight especially there's a warmth and maturity in Sonic's portrayal that alot of people miss ever since he's been stuck as a Pre-teen jokester since Colors. I'm sure Roger Craig Smith could instill a great sense of warmth and maturity into Sonic if given the chance but he's never really been given it to the same degree that Jason gets to have with the storybook series and everything that was before it. The range Sonic goes through in that final cutscene of Secret Rings displays that aspect I really miss. That genuine annoyance/possibly hatred to the sappy over the top but still believable (to Sonic) cheesey cheeriness of that mountain of tissues line are just a small thing I really miss seeing Sonic express. I'm hoping Frontiers will finally give Roger that chance to portray that aspect of Sonic's personality because I really miss Sonic having more than like 3 emotions.

[@gamemaster2819]

This was my first ever Sonic game, so I’m always a bit biased towards it. It’s one of the most underrated games in my opinion

[@Noneusertaken]

Pretty much all 3D sonic games are underrated except for adventures and generations tbh. I'm not a big sonic fan but they all seem to have their supporters...

[@shadowkrono]

I don't understand the hate for this game, i never got a problem with the "unresponsive"(as some claim) control, the adventure was great and the mission based progression helped to familiarize yourself with each section of the level for when... ooooooohhhh that's right, Jon you forgot to cover the after-credits content, where all missions get unblocked including the full level mission, also all skills are released for you to choose (you can even unchoose some basic movements for better or faster skills) and the extra content of the album... i enjoyed the game to completion and it's one of the few games that i play from time to time, not the best but certainly a fun game

[@MartKart8]

I remember once when Official UK Nintendo Magazine was glad about being able to stop instead of auto-run in Sonic and The Black Knight.

[@selder_7]

Sonic and the secret rings was the first game in my Wii and 06 was the first game in the family guy PS3

[@Deoxys_Used_Mimic]

Wouldn’t ‘06, be the first “3D ‘Boost Game?’” -Mach Speed Sections -Blue Gem *Ring any bells???*

[@the1trueblue361]

Sorry if i come off as rude but i just wanna make a quick correction. Sonic is actually at Amy's house at the beginning the game.

[@onilao]

i mean...the part mode was a good idea i would still love to see a sonic party game...or heck a sega part game ^^

[@leeartlee915]

Wow, that script…. gold.

[@BlackCatCards]

MAKE BELIEFS REBORN

[@colin8802]

This was my last 3D Sonic game. There were some aspects of it that I liked, but overall, I think it helped me realize that I'm just not into 3D Sonic anymore.

[@Jack_Saint_Archive]

Also I wish you made a seperate video about Epic Games

[@brawlman2000064]

Fun fact: The party mode is compatible with GameCube controllers.

[@TheBlackSamurai2708]

This was a very insightful video! I still think this game is a piece of garbage and that black knight is way better but this was a very good analysis. I never realized how many similarities that this game and unleashed have. Also Evil foundry goes insanely hard.

[@TheDullStar]

6:48 Well I Guess I Should Release My Unleashed Sonic In Secret Rings Mod Then- (Im Only Half Joking Of Course, About The Release I Do Actually Have The Mod Though A Simple Texture Swap)