RETRO REBOOT - Sonic The Hedgehog (Sega Mega Drive)

Retro Reboot has been around for more than two years and I haven't reviewed an actual Sonic game? How on earth does that happen with a guy who reviews retro video games?Well, I covered Sonic Spinball, one of my earlier reviews, but that's not good enough. How does the original game that helped launch not only the Mega Drive into the stratosphere, but made Sonic himself a household name who's popularity is maintained long after Sega stopped manufacturing hardware.

What's there to say about Sonic? The colorful graphics and mind-blowing speed on display was jaw-dropping when those commercials aired. Sonic replaced Altered Beast as the prepackaged game in new Mega Drives in 1991 (you might be one of those who still owns a "Not For Resale" carttridge), as Sega wanted EVERYONE to know who Sonic was. As I discussed in my Vs series, Sonic was pretty much direct competition to Mario for video game mascot supremacy. He was fast, his more carefree and thrill-seeking attitude was a sharp contrast to the more harmless Nintendo characters. The very first Sonic the Hedgehog was certainly a different kind of platform game for its time, placing its emphasis on large scale stages to take advantage of his momentum, and then later stages get more puzzle jumpy, working against Sonic's strengths.

In Sonic, you always wanna go fast, but it always isn't wise, as running into enemies is very easy to do. Green Hill Zone is made for the speed, jumps, and loops. Then you get to Marble Zone, and the pace slows to a meticulous crawl. Sonic's controls are at their stiffest in his first venture, it takes a moment for him to properly build momentum before he gets going.

There's some pretty unique uses of the engine the game bases itself on with the physics. If Sonic jumps on an incline or slope, his trajectory is affected by his speed. Not much to the buttons, all three jump. It took years for the Blue Bomber to learn some unique inherent abilites (those power-up shields don't count), but it feels naked even without his Spin Dash.

This parlays into the game's level design. Future games would experiment, but Sonic the Hedgehog zones are pretty linear, with a few hidden nooks and crannies scattered about. I do like how each zone has their own unique theme, color scheme, and feel. After the tight and confined corners of Marble Zone, the world opens up a little more with Springyard Zone, which bounces you around the map. Doesn't seem too much of a mystery where the idea of bouncing the protagonist around like a pinball came from. Even an underwater level is tried, safe to say Sonic is a character that doesn't take to water as well as most platform stars. The need to find bubbles after a matter of seconds adds a lot of tension and pulls a little bit of the control from you, it's still a part of the game where you kinda slow down to a snail's pace. At least the charms indicate how much time has passed.

Clearing the zones and defeating a different form of Robotnik's Eggmobile is one thing, but to truly beat the game, you must gather all six Chaos Emeralds. They can only be earned by completing the bonus areas, which are accessible after clearing a stage with at least 50 Rings. Boy, these special stages certainly take a little getting used to. Sonic is in a constant state of rolling, but is a little lighter. The Chaos Emerald located at the center, but there are bumpers and switches that alternate the stage between clockwise and vice versa, as well as the speed. All the rotating and odd backgrounds make these a little annoying, and as Sonic Special Stages go, they're my least favorite.

The music is infectious, and it's one of those games that defines the attitude of the Mega Drive. Green Hill Zone is probably ingrained in the minds of former Sega kids. Another sound probably planted well into the brain is getting hit and scattering your rings all over the place. Something I wondered, Sonic get damaged, if you have over 20 Rings (say, 50), you'll always drop 20.

The tunes were produced by bassist Masato Nakamura, who is a member of a J-pop group known as Dreams Come True, who are active as of 2017, from what I know. It's very telling, as each zone has an accompanying track that fits the theme of the stage. My personal favorite being Starlight Zone's more serene, low tempo lounge beat.  

While the first Sonic the Hedgehog was entertaining, it is a little rough. I've always felt the Mario games were better designed 2D platformers, but Sonic's speedy gameplay aimed to be an antithesis to the opposition, and can be fun to revisit. It's kinda hard to knock a game where a level is called "Scrap Brain Zone". I don't even know what that means, yet it's awesome.

The graphics are great, the music is well done, and while I don't dig the Special Stages, Sonic was one of the games that provided alternatives to linear game completion. It shows its age, and doesn't hold up well in wake of its sequels, but it serves as a neat piece of history to revisit his [not very] humble beginnings. Sonic the Hedgehog is not a hard game to find. Even if you don't have the original hardware, the game is on the 4,812 Genesis anthology/anniversary collections that have been produced. because Sega constantly reminds you, "we made the Sega Genesis".  

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