by Hideki Naganuma of Jet Set Radio fame. Additional music was composed by the game's sound director Teruhiko Nakagawa, along with Masayoshi Ishi and Hiroyuki Hamada of T's Music. Composing the music was a challenge for Naganuma, who had to work under the limitations of the Nintendo DS' sound chip. Sonic Rush introduced Blaze, who has become a recurring character in the series. Blaze appeared for the second time in Sonic the Hedgehog in 2006, and then in Sonic Rush Adventure, the sequel to Sonic Rush, and numerous other games. Reception Sonic Rush was released on November 15, 2005, in North America; November 18 in Europe; and November 23 in Japan. It was the ninth best-selling DS game of December 2006. It sold 360,000 copies in Europe from March 2006 to March 2007. The game received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom. The game was released to "generally favorable" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. Critics praised the game for its usage of elements from older Sonic games. GameSpot, IGN, and Nintendo Power compared the game to older games in the series, specifically those on the Sega Genesis. GameSpy staff writer Greg Sewart offered a similar opinion, also praising the game for its "gorgeous graphics". The visuals were well received, with some calling it "gorgeous" and "colourful". The game's overall quickness was not as well received. GameSpy's Greg Sewart, although giving a mostly positive review, complained that "it's so fast you almost can't tell what's going on most of the time." 1UP.com and GamePro thought similarly. The game's music was well-received, called "bright [and] buoyant" by 1UP.com and compared to that of Jet Set Radio by GameSpot. GameSpy called the music "all very fitting and very catchy", noting its use of sampling and unconventional structure. In 2008, Sonic Rush was listed at #17 in IGN's list of the top 25 DS games. In 2009, it was listed as one of the "cheers" on IGN's "Cheers & Tears" list of action games for the DS. Notes References External links Official website 2005 soundtrack albums 2005 video games Dimps games Multiplayer and single-player video games Nintendo DS games Nintendo DS-only games Sega video games Side-scrolling video games Sonic Team games Sonic the Hedgehog video games Video games featuring female protagonists Video games