Retro|Spective 061R: Sonic the Hedgehog

[Neon Ignition]

I recall enjoying the MS version, it was interesting through being its own thing and always seemed more playable than other entries on the GG and MS seemed to be later on as often the field of view was too small

[Dogg Thang]

I recall enjoying the MS version, it was interesting through being its own thing and always seemed more playable than other entries on the GG and MS seemed to be later on as often the field of view was too small

Yep. They made the sprites larger in the sequels and it made them much harder to play. For whatever reason, they didn’t feel good either. Something in the movement got a bit jankier after that first GG game. I always remember thinking it was weird that they would rebuild the graphics and play system after a decent first entry.

[Hirst]

The sequels weren't by Ancient so I think they used their own game engines (to their detriment).

[Dogg Thang]

The sequels weren't by Ancient so I think they used their own game engines (to their detriment).

Ah okay. That makes sense. And yes it's a bit of a shame.

[Asura]

Yep. They made the sprites larger in the sequels and it made them much harder to play. For whatever reason, they didn’t feel good either. Something in the movement got a bit jankier after that first GG game. I always remember thinking it was weird that they would rebuild the graphics and play system after a decent first entry.

I assume you're thinking of GG Sonic 2? Yep, crap. The first boss alone was mind-shreddingly difficult in a not-fun way, because the view was cropped. Back in the 90s I don't think I ever saw any other levels!

[Dogg Thang]

I assume you're thinking of GG Sonic 2? Yep, crap. The first boss alone was mind-shreddingly difficult in a not-fun way, because the view was cropped. Back in the 90s I don't think I ever saw any other levels!

Yep, that one in particular but the other sequels too. They really weren’t good at all.

[wakka]

So yeah the MS one, first game I ever played. First time I ever jumped over a gap. Grabbed a collectible. Lost a life. And so on. And so very formative.

But I didn't play that game properly until years later on the GG, and it's actually a really solid game. It's much slower paced and while the 'going on a journey' thing is probably largely just because of that one JPG of an island that you see between levels, it does have an overall feel that's closer to something like Mario or Rayman (not that Rayman existed at that point).

It's not as good as Sonic 1 on the MD, but it's a good game in its own right.

[Neon Ignition]

Game 03 - Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic 2'sday! The mega event saw the release of two versions of the game launch, the first we will tackle though is the 8-bit follow up to the game we've just been discussing. Developed by Aspect, this entry is an entirely unique entry separate from the better known Mega Drive entry we'll get to tomorrow. The game was developed in complete isolation from the Sonic Team title and yet managed to launch to acclaim and success for Sega with a better response than its 8-bit predecessor.








What did you make of this encore effort?

[Asura]

At the risk of repeating what's said above, I hated this one

I had it for Game Gear (I think I borrowed it from someone) and could never get past the first boss. I spent years thinking I was crap at it until I got my Anbernic device a couple of years ago, and tried it out - and even now, I had to use save-states to get past the bloody thing.

The Master System version wasn't as bad; the problem was caused because you had to dodge its projectiles, and the GG's screen cropped the view, making it difficult to see them coming, so you needed Jedi reflexes or luck to do it. This also impacted the rest of the game to a greater or lesser degree, but this boss was definitely the worst part.

Finally getting past this boss, I thought the game was decent, but nothing special. I enjoyed Sonic Chaos and Sonic: Triple Trouble much more.

[Neon Ignition]

Same, I tried it on MS originally and took an early dislike to it then revisited it at some point having borrowed a Game Gear and that made an even worse impression

[Neon Ignition]

Game 04 - Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Crazy to think but technically we're well past the point where Sonic Team was actually making Sonic games, this seminal sequel coming from a mixture of US and JP staff under the umbrella of STI (I cannot comprehend how tech once moved so fast we went from Sonic 1 to NiGHTS in just 5 years). Introducing Tails, a two player function, Super Sonic, tunnel tube special stages as the likes of Mark Cerny worked with Yuji Naka and Hirokazu Yasuhara fought through language barriers to bring a worthwhile sequel to the original game. The game took many roads to its final form, versions of which many have since leaked. The game has gone on to heavily influence pretty much every Sonic title ever since.







Is the game so good that every Tuesday should be Sonic 2'sday?

[Asura]

Loved it, and it's fair to say it, and the era in which it flourished, practically defined the heyday of the franchise. I was a huge fan at this point; games, comic book, TV shows (one good, one bad, but I watched both), the lot.

[wakka]

My favourite Sonic and one of my favourite games of all time. I just skipped straight to Chemical Plant Zone in the video above to listen to the music one of my favourite chiptune tracks.

Finely tuned gameplay, great level design and terrific graphics - but it's the pacing that makes it. It's a brief thrill ride, designed to be consumed all in one go, and nothing outstays its welcome. That, for me, is where Sonic is at its best.

I've been playing it on the reg since I was a kid and I don't plan to stop any time soon

[Neon Ignition]

It was great being in the mix of the playground hype for Sonic 2 and it definitely delivered. It still suffers from ebbs and flows in quality as the Sonic gameplay never holds up when the action slows but it's much better balanced here than in the original game. It was definitely too successful too, I've grown sick and tired of the franchises repurposing of themes and elements over the years since

[Dogg Thang]

Sonic 2 is absolutely superb and I hear that anyone who says the gameplay doesn’t hold up has all sorts of STDs. That’s what the scientists reckon anyway. Really, I think the game holds up remarkably well after all these years. But then I’d have almost nothing bad to say about any of the first 3 Mega Drive Sonic games.

Which makes me completely STD free apparently.

Edit: wait, no. That implies I never have sex. I’m absolutely riddled with STDs. Can’t move for all the STDs. What were we taking about again?