Features


About
- What's a Dreamcast?
- Why Should I Buy One?
- Sega History

Games
- Best Games
- Cheats
- Dreamcast Database
- Reviews (A-M)
- Reviews (N-Z)

Site
- About PDC
- News Archives / Search
- POTD Archive

Features
- Sega E3 2002
- Dreamcast: The Afterlife
- Bring Back The Classics!

Hardware
- Controllers
- System
- VMU
- Other

Community
- Forums
- Mailbag
- Links

Hosted
- DC VMU Icons
- Jet Set Graffiti Site
- KOF Orochinagi
- PSO World
- RE Mega Site
- RE Survivor's Guide
- Shadow of a Hedgehog
- SOA World
- Tony Hawk P.S.

GameSpy
  
GameSpy.com
  Founders' Club
  GameSpy Comrade
  GameSpy Store
Services
  FilePlanet
  ForumPlanet
3DActionPlanet
RPGPlanet
SportPlanet
StrategyPlanet
MMORPG
  Vault Network
Classic/Console
  ClassicGaming
  Planet Dreamcast
  Planet Nintendo
  Planet PS2
  Planet Xbox
Community
  LANParty.com

   PlanetDreamcast | Features | The Games of Sonic (1991 - 1994)
   

Sonic Week: Day 1 - The Games of Sonic (1991 - 1994)
Sonic the Hedgehog - The early years. - by Reojojo - Page 1/2

Sonic Week Logo
Sonic the Hedgehog has been a Sega icon since his introduction in 1991. He's appeared in tons of games over several different consoles. He's touched our lives like no other hedgehog ever has. So we've decided that it was time to show him exactly how much he means to us.

We've pit together a week full of Sonic stuff for you all to enjoy! Today, we'll be taking a look back at the early years of Sonic the Hedgehog. In the first few years of Sonic, the hog with 'tude hit a number of systems with varying results. Here is a list of games that featured our favorite hog.



Sonic the Hedgehog - Sega Genesis


Even Robotnik's early crafts came complete with lava-ball dropping components. He's slick...
Ah, the game that started it all. Created so there would be a "killer-app" for the Genesis, Sonic the Hedgehog was revolutionary for its time.

The graphics were awe-inspiring and the first glimpse at the power of the 16-bit systems. The game was quite an interesting beast, especially the bonus stages, but players soon noticed it lacked severely in longevity. Despite all this it was a great hit, outselling all expectations and it created a mascot that was unforgettable.

Other:
Released: 1991






Sonic the Hedgehog - Sega Game Gear


Play Sonic on the go!
Essentially the same as Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Master System, this version received a few tweaks.

The camera was pulled in much closer due to the screen size, and certain "leap of faith" areas were removed because they were too difficult because of the limited screen size.

Other:
Released: 1991




Sonic the Hedgehog - Sega Master System


Like the Genesis version, but not as good.
A significantly toned down version of the Genesis original, it lacked most of the glitz of its predecessor.

The only significant gameplay change was the special stages, once again toned down for the puny SMS. (It feels funny saying that, seeing as my display phone has a more powerful processor than the Genesis)

Other:
Released: 1991







Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Sega Genesis


Sonic and Tails, together at last!
With the success of the original Sonic, Sonic Team went back to the drawing boards (or screens, to be precise) and made everything better.

The graphics were improved significantly, the speed bordered on the insane, a two-player mode was added, and the difficulty was upped to increase longevity. Special bonus stages were added too, which now took the form of pseudo-3D half-pipes with Sonic running through them. And let's not forget Tails! Sonic finally received a sidekick, Miles "Tails" Prower, a fox with two tails that could fly. Tails helped out at certain points in the game and could be controlled via the second controller. Though the two-player split-screen mode that was included had its flaws, it was a nice touch. (Note: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 also had the distinction of being the new pack-in game for the Genesis, replacing the aging Altered Beast)

Other:
Released: 1992



Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Sega Game Gear


He can fly!
Once again a port of the Master System version, the only differences are the camera is closer in, and for some odd reason there are no restart points.

Other:
Released: 1992





Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Sega Master System


The low-res version...
Unlike the first Sonic game for the SMS, this game shared little in common with the Genesis version except the title.

The graphics and sound were as good as it got on the Master System, but Tails had been removed from the gameplay. It wasn't much more than an upgrade of the original SMS version, and didn't come close to the Genesis version.

Other:
Released: 1992






Want more? Go to the next page, then!

Special thanks goes too our hosted site, Shadow of a Hedgehog, for most of the media and some great info.


[Main Page] [About] [Games] [Site] [Hosting Info] [Features] [Community]
IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | ModCenter | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels
By continuing past this page, and by your continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1996-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc.   About Us | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement Subscribe to RSS Feeds RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA.