Sega Mega Drive Sonic Games

Graphically the game looked absolutely gorgeous in its day, and indeed still does - especially compared too many other 16-bit titles released at the time. Even during the most hectic scenes there is never a hint of slow-down, allowing for flawless smooth gameplay that has become the key to Sonic’s success. The classic seven-zone, three-act formula was also first used here, something that would be incorporated time and time again in future titles (with slight changes here and there). The lack of a save feature also meant that if a player wanted to complete the game he or she would have to do so in one sitting, something that many gamers were never quiet able to achieve.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2

• Released: 1992 || Players: 2 || Developer: Sega Technical Institute || Publisher: Sega

Despite the initial success of the first title the Sonic series was whisked away from Japan to the talented minds at Sega Technical Institute in the US of A. To help development along and ensure the series didn’t stray too far from its roots Yuji Naka (one of Sonic’s initial character designers and lead programmer) along with Hirokazu Yasuhara were sent along too. The plot is similar to that of the first title with Dr. Robotnik (Eggman) after the seven chaos emeralds again, however this time round Sonic gets a little help in his quest to prevent the mad scientist achieving his goal: Tails Miles Prower the fox! He tags along with Sonic in the single player mode and could even be controlled by a second player for a sort of primitive co-operative mode.

The spin attack makes its more than welcome debut as well, this involves crouching and tapping the A button to charge Sonic up, when released he would shoot off at great speeds. This ability was perfect for escaping precarious situations and quickly gaining momentum for loop-the-loops and other aerial sections. A simple multiplayer mode was also included with Sonic 2; for this each player took control of either Sonic or Tails on a split-screen arena (most of the single player zones were available). The first character to finish the level won, whilst the aim in bonus levels was collecting the largest amount of rings. Unlike the previous instalment, Sonic 2 finally gave players a rewarding reason to collect all seven chaos emeralds; it allowed Sonic to transform into the all-powerful Super Sonic for any remaining zones!

Sonic the Hedgehog 3

• Released: 1994 || Players: 2 || Developer: Sonic Team || Publisher: Sega

Third times a charm and Sonic is no different! Favoured over numero uno y dos by many fans, Sonic 3 is the deepest game in the series so far. Released after Sonic Spinball and Dr. Robotniks Mean Bean Machine (discussed below) Sonic 3 continued and perfected the now loved Sonic gameplay as well as incorporating a host of new elements and features. First and foremost is the inclusion of Knuckles the Echidna who would go on to become one of the best loved and most recognised of all the characters in the ‘Sonic Universe’. After being tricked by Eggman into thinking that Sonic and Tails are trying to steal the chaos emeralds (which Knuckles guards) in order to steal them for himself, the Echidna pursues the heroic duo and ignores the true threat.

Not only is the most detailed plot so far it is also the most related too throughout the game through a variety of short cut scenes determining what exactly is happening. The multiplayer mode from Sonic 2 was also improved upon featuring Knuckles as a playable character as well as 5 brand new levels that are not featured in single player mode. Another interesting development involved wouldn’t be fully revealed until the launch of Sonic and Knuckles later that year (1994). The latter made use of a cartridge that opened up to reveal a secondary port like that used by the Mega Drive itself. By plugging Sonic 3 into that slot players could unlock Knuckles as a playable character for the single player missions in Sonic 3!

Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball

• Released: 1993 || Players: 2 || Developer: Sega Technical Institute || Publisher: Sega

Following the massive success that was Sonic 1 + 2, Sega decided it was time for a spin-off title (a trend that would continue for many years to come). Sonic Spinball does exactly what it says on the tin, Sonic Pinball – with a spin! The plot (yes you heard correctly, a pinball game with a plot) is simply thus: Dr. Robotnik has finally succeeded in collecting the chaos emeralds and is now using them to fuel a massive volcano-operated-robot-creation-machine! To stop this monstrosity from helping Eggman achieve his ultimate goal of world domination Sonic must get the emeralds back and escape before the immense explosion that will undoubtedly ensue.

Unlike classic pinball games given that the ‘ball’ is in fact alive, players could control movement mid-flight allowing for slight directional changes to avoid irritating disasters. Despite this feature the game is still considered to be one of the most difficult of all Sonic games available, even today. At the end of each zone a bonus level is initiated, these consisted of dramatically smaller pinball arenas where players are designated a specific task such as destroying all the enemy robots on screen or knocking out Robotniks mechanical teeth! Unfortunately without the flowing gameplay present in traditional Sonic games, Spinball never had quite the same effect as other Sonic titles.

Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine

• Released: 1993 || Players: 2 || Developer: Compile || Publisher: Sega

Now it’s time for Sonics next spin-off title now; Dr. Robotniks Mean Bean Machine. In fact other than the presence of Sonic’s arch nemesis (and an onslaught of other foes to boot) this need not be a hedgehog related game at all. Although you are told to be playing as the blue blur himself he never actually appears on screen. This is to be expected in a way given that the whole game is in fact just an edited version of a pre-existing title named Puyo Pop developed by Compile. Despite the lack of relation to Sonic himself the game became massively popular in Europe and the US, however a Japanese release never saw the light of day (more than likely because a sequel to the original Puyo Pop was already being launched there at around the same time).

Gameplay consists of a Tetris-esque puzzle format where players must match correspondingly coloured ‘beans’ that drop from the top of the screen in order to remove them from the screen. Combinations are the key to success on the harder stages as is common amongst similar titles. Due to the immense popularity of the title (and indeed the Puyo Pop series as a whole) Mean Bean Machine has been launched on a multitude of other formats since its debut on the MegaDrive (including an 8-bit Game Gear and Master System port and an inclusion in the recent Sonic Mega Collection title for GameCube, PS2 and Xbox).

Sonic and Knuckles

• Released: 1994 || Players: 1 || Developer: Sonic Team || Publisher: Sega

As mentioned in the description of Sonic 3, Sonic and Knuckles was the first (and last) Mega Drive game to feature a lock-on cartridge that other games could be ‘locked into’ for added features and the like. Primarily this was designed to work with Sonic 3, the combination of these two titles allowed gamers to play through with Knuckles for each of the different Zones including bonus stages. Plugging Sonic 2 also had the same effect, complete with additional hidden areas that only Knuckles could reach; these usual contained ring bonuses or special items such as shields. Knuckles (being the guardian of the chaos emeralds) also possesses the ability to maintain his ring count even after exiting a bonus level making emerald-collecting far easier.

What really made Knuckles such a fun character to play through these games with though, was his ability to fly/glide and climb walls by sticking to them, although these abilities come at the cost of extra speed. Of course the advantages are fairly obvious; with Knuckles under a players control it became possible to navigate far more diverse areas within each Zone that would not be possible with Sonic. Another nice added feature for the game is the chance to unlock a near everlasting supply of bonus stages when Sonic 1 (or indeed nearly any other Sega game) is plugged into it. These consisted of the classic sphere-collecting and avoiding stages from Sonic 3, after each completed stage a password is presented allowing for further progression at a later date.

Sonic 3D

• Released: 1996 || Players: 1 || Developer: Traveller's Tales || Publisher: Sega

Whilst closer to being a ‘true’ Sonic title than Bean Machine and Spinball, Sonic 3D is still criticised for its deviation from Sonic’s roots. This criticism is largely due to the clunky control system as a result of the isometric viewpoint. This also resulted in a far slower speed of gameplay, given the crucial element speed plays in the series this became a somewhat crucial mistake on the developer’s part. Still the game is not without its positive merits, as the first 3D (albeit isometric) Sonic game the visuals looked stunning at the time and were a breath of fresh air compared to the traditional side on 2D graphics of previous years.

The game was also ported to the Sega Saturn with more impressive graphics including special effects and cutscenes. Despite being launched in ’96 in Europe and the US later the same month it took until 1999 for Japan to get their hands on the title, by which time the fully 3D Sonic Adventure had already been released for Sega’s 128-bit home console the Dreamcast. Sonic’s goal for this game was to charge around collecting ‘flickies’ (small birds) as well as the usual ring gathering and Robotnik smashing at the end of each Zone. Also worth noting is the excellent sound track and bonus stages that are ranked by many fans as some of the best in the entire series.