3RRSG Sonic 2

Now this is what a sequel should be like. After the amazing Sonic the
hedgehog debuted, the development team, Sonic Team, knew they had
a winner. Coming out only the next year, some might have thought this
was just a (pun coming up) "fast" way of getting more cash, as Sonic
had shown he could bring in the dollar signs. But this sequel excels in
every area from the first one, and ultimately, is a better game. The
third sonic game (the second one released was sonic 1 on the game
gear) this one proved that sonic was here to stay.

Ahh Sonic was just starting to enjoy a more quiet life, until the evil Dr.
Eggman returned and this time he was posing a much bigger threat
than before! Sonic's friends are once again disappearing, and in their
places, robot versions have been popping up. But the worse was yet to
come. This time Eggman has been working on a giant spaceship known
as the "Death Egg". Shaped in the likeness of himself, it was just as
evil. With it, he planned to cause a global disaster, turning the entire
world's population into his robot slaves. Eggman has all he
needs...except the chaos emeralds. And he has learned that he will
need 7 of them to complete the death egg.

But Sonic would not be alone on his quest. After his initial run in with
the evil doctor, he befriended a small fox boy. The boy "Miles Prower"
was a gifted young child. He was a fox with two tails! These two tails
were used as a propeller, and he was able to keep up with sonic. He
could also use them to fly! Sonic was his idol, and he was determined
to help him defeat Eggman. But he insisted Sonic call him by his
nickname, Tails. And thus the duo was formed. So as you can see, we
get the death egg and tails introduced in the same game. Also note
that there are now 7 chaos emeralds in question instead of 6 like the
first game...

Gameplay wise is very similar to the first game and any other classic
2d sonic. For the basics, if you need them, please consult my sonic the
hedgehog (1) review for genesis. I will talk about the new additions in
this game, and boy there are a ton!

First off, Sonic has a new attack. By holding down on the d-pad, press
either a, b, or c, to charge up. Sonic will now be in his ball form and be
revving up. Press either button repeatedly to rev him up faster.
Release the down button and Sonic zooms off destroying robots in his
path! He will need to use this in all of the modes! In 1 player, you find
out that it isn't 1 player at all! Plug in a second controller, and your
friend can then control Tails! 2-player action was needed and a
welcome addition. You also have a 2-player mode, where you race your
friend (via split screen) to the finish of various levels. In the normal
mode you can play as sonic and tails, sonic alone, or play as just tails.

Sonic can go even faster in this game! One of the new item boxes has
a picture of Sonic's classic red and white shoes on it. Destroy the box
to have sonic run faster than before for a limited time. Bonus stages
have switched places. Now when you run past the lamp posts, if you
have more than 50 rings on you, you are taken to an all new kind of
bonus stage. Since there is more than 1 post per level, you can get
more than 1 chaos emerald in each act! So you have many chances to
get all 7. (Get the emerald by completing the bonus).

The bonus stage is a 3d tube where sonic and tails will run trying to
collect the set amount of rings given at the beginning. Don't get hit by
black orbs, which cause you to lose rings, and at the end if you have
enough rings, you get a chaos emerald. Much better than sonic 1's
rotating maze.

The zones no longer have 3 acts to them. Instead there are now 2 acts
for each zone. They are much longer than sonic 1's acts, and Eggman
will now appear at the end of the second act. There are 11 zones in all.
That was longer than sonic 1, which had 7 zones. This game takes
much longer to beat

The graphics are much improved from sonic 2. One only needs to
compare sonic 1's fist zone, Green Hill zone, to the new Emerald Hill
zone in Sonic 2. More detail in the background, more variety and colors
to the levels, and all around just a vast improvement. Many new robot
crones for Sonic to plow through as well, like Slicer, Rexon, and
Clucker. The new levels in the game where these robots live are a
good set. Standouts include Emerald Hill zone, Chemical Plant zone,
and Casino Night zone. Eggman's boss battle machines are also more
detailed and creative in this one. Look out for that guy.

Sonic games are likely to have good music. This game verifies that.
The high energy hits continue in this game. The music last more than
the 20 second spirals of the first. The quality has also improved.
Standout tracks include, Emerald Hill zone, Chemical Plant zone, and
Metropolis zone (which has 3 acts, it's a long level!). The final boss
music is yet again another spectacular piece that is sure to stir
emotions. It is followed by a moving ending theme.

The replay value is already increased with 2 player. Also the option to
play the game as sonic &tails, sonic alone, or just tails adds replay.
Getting all 7 emeralds will also be worth your time. Oh I haven't even
mentioned Super Sonic yet have I? Get all 7 emeralds and Sonic will be
able to turn golden and be invincible to all enemies. While it is fun, you
don't get to listen to the level's normal music while in super mode, but
that's my only complaint. But I suspect the replay will come because
many people tend to like to play games that are good. While "good" is
an opinion and subjective, I have yet to see a videogamer not like
sonic 2.

Where does this game rank with the rest of series? It's better than the
first one and anything made after sonic &Knuckles. The third one was
good, but it would need the help of s&k to be better. Say that reminds
me. Don't think in 1994 that sonic 2 became useless with 3. Back then
you just had to wait awhile and see that one day you would return to
sonic 2 with a new playable character, a mysterious red character. But
that's a few reviews from now! As for sonic 2 it is one of the best
games on genesis, one of the best sonic games, and truth be told, one
of the best videogames you will ever play.

Review by: Orochi Sonic