Even Sonic’s longtime nemesis, Doctor Eggman, who’s apparently been hitting the weights during leisure hours, has shed his signature oval-shaped body, looking very much like a mustachioed Gru from Despicable Me. These are questions without discernible answers. Why does each character have their various appendages wrapped up, Scooby-Doo! mummy-style, with athletic tape? What the hell happened to Knuckles’s hands and torso? Why is Sonic sporting such a gaudy red scarf? Before even getting into Rise of Lyric’s gameplay, the obvious aesthetic alterations to Sonic and his band of boisterous woodland cohorts-Miles “Tails” Prower, Knuckles the Echidna, and Amy Rose-are downright offensive. What began with the mediocre late-2013 double dose of Sonic Lost World and Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games concludes with what is perhaps the worst of the lot. Along with its 3DS counterpart, Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal, Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric represents the final phase in a three-part exclusivity arrangement between Sega and Nintendo in regard to Sonic the Hedgehog-branded titles.

Big red button sonic boom