![]() ![]() Green Hills Zone Act 3 asks you to bounce atop springs until you reach the boss. Finally, some aspects of this Sonic resurface in Mania. This is also the first Sonic game where collecting every Chaos Emerald has a purpose beyond merely altering the ending entering Crystal Egg requires them. One of them, Eggman’s translucent (and uncharacteristically bright) Crystal Egg base, remains a novel backdrop even today. Though that quota is later filled by Green Hill s, 2 ’s roster of Zones is otherwise wholly new. Sonic 2 refreshingly starts in an underground cave, not a Green Hill-esque stage. It features the first robotic Sonic doppelgänger ( Sonic CD and the better Sonic 2 introduce metallic Sonic simulacrums, too). It’s inadvertently the debut of Sonic’s sidekick, Tails. Visually, the game is fine, as is its soundtrack (two of Sonic 2 ’s composers, Naofumi Hataya and Masafumi Ogata, later scored CD Green Hills’ theme and CD ’s main theme share a melody).Īnd Aspect’s Sonic 2 does, to its credit, introduce a few worthwhile concepts to the greater franchise. This 8-bit Sonic does, nevertheless, surmount some of its predecessor’s shortcomings: players can now reclaim lost Rings, and the Master System version contains the Speed Shoes power-up (Rings replace it on the Game Gear). Considering the harsh hardware constraints Aspect was contending with, their Sonic 2 was never going to attain the highs of the Sonic 2. This was their first crack at a simultaneously big and nascent franchise, one still figuring out its strengths. Rings are plentiful in each Zone’s first two Acts, though each third Act lacks them. If you sustain damage while holding at least one Ring, Sonic will survive, but his collection scatters. ![]() Yes, it shares its name with the Genesis classic, but this Sonic 2 hit store shelves first and is a vastly different-and substantially inferior-game. Meanwhile, SEGA recruited Aspect to handle another Sonic 2, succeeding Ancient’s version. Sonic 2 and CD, the console original’s follow-ups, were spearheaded by Sonic Team veterans Yuji Naka and Naoto Ohshima, respectively. Still, even if its stage layouts are unique, its more technologically impressive big brother overshadows it it’s the “lesser” Sonic 1. Eggman’s flying fortresses, namely-to the franchise. It’s actually a solid facsimile of its namesake that introduces new stage archetypes-jungles and Dr. The first of them was outsourced to third-party studio Ancient and shares its name, setting, and story with the hero’s pioneering platformer. However, a secondary line of Sonic side-scrollers ran concurrently on SEGA’s 8-bit machines, the Master System and Game Gear. It’d receive a few direct sequels in the coming years, which were also successful. The first Sonic the Hedgehog was a big deal, giving the SEGA Genesis a foothold against the Super Nintendo. The switch in developers from Ancient to Aspect did mean a significant increase in speed but it also made the game frustrating to control and, at times, an unplayable mess.Sonic 1, the second Sonic 1, and this Sonic 2 all sport multiple Zones with three Acts each, the third of which always closes with a boss fight. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a horrible follow-up and a huge step back for the 8-bit series. The action is rarely enjoyable and Scrambled Egg Zone has to be one of the worst stages ever in a Sonic game! You're sucked into various pipes and if you don't know which sequence of directions to press you'll usually fall to your death! The only real positives are that the graphics are detailed and the game has loops that didn't feature in the original. The most familiar looking stage is the fourth (Green Hill Zones) it's much easier and straightforward than the preceding stages and it's puzzling why this didn't open the game to balance the difficulty. ![]() At times it feels like the developers expect you to be a mind reader as there are bottomless pits everywhere. Most of the levels are brutal and the opening boss ends up being one of the most difficult in the entire game. You'll also take to the skies and fly using hand gliders and tackle tough underwater stages. ![]() There are seven levels (although one requires the Chaos Emeralds to unlock it) and some diverse locales including the first one which takes place underground and sees you riding minecarts. The problem is that the action is already zoomed in to fit on the tiny Game Gear screen as a result you'll be wrestling with the slippery controls and taking many leaps of faith as you can't fully see your surroundings. For the 8-bit sequel Sega decided to address once of the main criticisms and increase Sonic's speed. Sonic the Hedgehog for the Game Gear was a short but decent game that managed to successfully capture the spirit of the Mega Drive titles on less powerful hardware. ![]()
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