Does anyone else remember spending entire weekends glued to the Sega controller watching a little blue ball rocket through colorful landscapes and loop de loops in search of gold coins? Although the formula was much the same as previous games (like the popular Super Mario Bros. franchise) that you were playing a whimsical blue hedgehog wearing red running sneakers made it somehow more enjoyable. The beauty of changing technology is that everything old becomes new again. Sonic and his foxy pal, Tails, are no exception to this rule. And fans of this long-lived franchise will find a lot to love in the recently released Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II, which brings the hedgehog and his metal alter-ego (among other familiar characters) to your iPad. You may never go anywhere without your tablet again.

You’ll no doubt recognize the format of the game. The space is rendered in stunning 3-dimensional detail thanks to the power of the Retina Display feature, and while Sonic still operates mainly in 2D space (i.e. he moves forward from left to right across the screen), there are forays into decidedly 3D movement with special levels. The crazy, clear graphics are a nice addition for gamers sick of products that have been up-resed for the iPad; and anyone familiar with the earlier version of this classic for Apple’s tablet will see noticeable improvement in this area (especially nice is that they have ditched the pre-rendered landscapes from Episode I). But the latest iteration of the Sonic universe also comes with an all new game engine that offers updated physics for enhanced gameplay.

Plus, the game includes the return of Tails, Sonic’s lovable sidekick. As with previous appearances, Tails adds to the fun by helping Sonic to beat the bad guys with a spate of his own signature moves (mainly revolving around his tail). He can also team up with his hedgehog bestie for cooperative attacks that will help them to overcome obstacles and enemies more quickly. And Episode II picks up where the earlier game left off, with Metal Sonic creator Dr. Eggman teaming up with the evil, robotic hedgehog to antagonize his furry, blue foe.

If you just want a taste of this addictive game, you can opt to download the freebie. You’ll only get one level to play with (the Sylvania Castle Zone) and one special level with the lite version, as well as some free wallpapers for your tablet. But you’ll have to spring for the paid version (a little pricy at $4.99) if you want to gain access to all the levels of gameplay (4 zones plus 7 special stages) and the opportunity to play with your mobile gaming buddies via Bluetooth. And if you’ve downloaded the first episode, as well, you’ll gain to an “exclusive scenario”. Plus, with cloud services you can pay to download just once and have access to your Sonic Games 365 days a year on all compatible mobile devices (play on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch). If you love the Sonic franchise, this is one addition you can’t afford to miss, especially now that you can use the gyroscope and accelerometer features to take gameplay to the next level.

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