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I love Sonic 2. ur right! :3

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Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a platform game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis console, released worldwide in November 1992. It is the second main entry in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, and introduced Sonic's sidekick, Miles "Tails" Prower, controllable by a second player. In the story, Sonic and Tails must stop series antagonist Dr. Ivo Robotnik from stealing the Chaos Emeralds to power his space station, the Death Egg.

Development began in November 1991. It was developed by Japanese and American staff at Sega Technical Institute in California, and directed by Masaharu Yoshii and produced by Shinobu Toyoda. The game design was led by Hirokazu Yasuhara and music composed by Masato Nakamura. Art director Tim Skelly designed the appearance of the new 3D special stages based on a tech demo created by Yuji Naka. The staff increased the speed of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in comparison to its predecessor.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 sold over six million Genesis cartridges, making it the second best-selling Genesis game behind the original Sonic the Hedgehog. Cited as one of the greatest video games of all time, it received acclaim for its level design, visuals and music, although its multiplayer mode was criticized. It has been rereleased on various platforms; a remastered version developed using the Retro Engine released on iOS and Android in December 2013. Two direct sequels, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles, were released in 1994.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a 2D side-scrolling platform game. The game stars Sonic the Hedgehog and his sidekick, Miles "Tails" Prower, who is described as having idolized Sonic as a child and wanting to keep up with him. At the game's start, the player can select to either play as Sonic, Tails, or both. The difference between the two is purely cosmetic; the two both have identical abilities. In the dual mode, players control Sonic while Tails runs along beside him. A second player can join in at any time and control Tails separately. The game takes place over a series of levels, each divided into one, two, or three acts with a boss fight with Robotnik at the end of the last act. Certain levels have features that are unique to them; for example, Emerald Hill has corkscrew-like loops, and Chemical Plant has boost pads that instantly put Sonic at his top speed. The character can jump on enemies to defeat them; the game also introduces a new move, the "spin dash" or "Super Dash Attack", by which the player curls in a ball and spins while stationary, resulting in a speed boost. When the player is attacked by an enemy without rings, is crushed, falls off-screen, drowns, or exceeds the act's ten-minute limit, they lose a life and return to the start of the act or from the most recently passed checkpoint. Dying with zero lives gives the player a game over.

When the player collects at least 50 rings and passes a checkpoint, they can warp to a "special stage". In these stages, the player runs through a pseudo- 3D half-pipe course, collecting rings and dodging bombs. A set amount of rings must be collected to pass through each of three checkpoints and in turn to obtain the emerald itself. If Sonic collides with a bomb, he loses ten rings and is immobilized momentarily. The stages rise in difficulty, and the player cannot enter any stage without passing the previous one. After finishing, the player is transported back to the star post they used to enter the special stage, with their ring-count reset to zero. When all Emeralds have been collected, Sonic can transform into Super Sonic by collecting 50 rings and jumping. Super Sonic is invincible to attacks, runs faster, and jumps further; however, he loses one ring per second and reverts to regular Sonic when his rings are depleted.

The game also has a competitive mode, where two players compete against each other to the finish line, as either Sonic or Tails, in a split-screen race through three of the regular levels and a special stage. After one player finishes one of the regular levels, the other player must finish the zone within 60 seconds, or the level ends instantly. In the regular levels, players are ranked in five areas (score, time, rings held at the end of the level, total rings collected, and the number of item boxes broken). The player with wins in the most number of categories wins the level. In the Special Stage, players compete to obtain the most rings. The mode ends when all stages have been completed, or if a player loses all their lives, in which their opponent will automatically win.

Knuckles the Echidna in Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Sonic & Knuckles was released in 1994, two years after Sonic 2. The Sonic & Knuckles game cartridge features a special "lock-on" port into which the player can insert other Genesis cartridges. Attaching Sonic 2 unlocks Knuckles the Echidna in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, a variation of Sonic 2 whereby the player plays as Knuckles the Echidna, a character introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and not playable until Sonic & Knuckles. Though the game is largely identical to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Knuckles is able to glide and climb walls, allowing him access to areas previously inaccessible to Sonic or Tails. However, he cannot jump as high, making some parts of the game, such as certain boss fights, more difficult. In addition, Knuckles restarts with the amount of rings he collected at checkpoints (if he loses a life), the options are unavailable, the special stages have slightly fewer rings required to collect than before (for example, ten rings fewer than in the special stages with Sonic and Tails), and the two-player mode is removed. In the 2013 remastered version, Knuckles is playable from the start without anything being removed and when all 7 Chaos Emeralds are collected, he turns into his own super form 'Super Knuckles'.

The game's premise is similar to that of the original Sonic the Hedgehog. Sonic's nemesis, Dr. Ivo Robotnik, is planning world domination through the power of the Chaos Emeralds and an army of robots powered by trapped animals. Specific to this game, he is additionally constructing an armored space station known as the Death Egg (an homage to the Death Star), also for the means of world domination.

The events of the game see Sonic and Tails chasing Robotnik through West Side Island, and eventually up to the Death Egg, pursuing him with Tails' biplane, the Tornado. The plane is damaged after being shot at, but Sonic still manages to infiltrate the Death Egg, alone. Once there, he battles a robotic imposter before taking on Robotnik, who is piloting a giant mech. Sonic manages to defeat the robot and it explodes, damaging the Death Egg and knocking it out of orbit. Sonic comes down falling and is saved by Tails in the Tornado. If the player has collected all of the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic, in his Super Sonic form, flies alongside it.

Following the release of the original Sonic the Hedgehog, creator Yuji Naka quit Sega due to disagreements over corporate policy. Mark Cerny, who had recently founded Sega Technical Institute (STI) in California, met with Naka in Japan and offered him a higher salary and more creative freedom if he joined STI. Naka agreed, and Hirokazu Yasuhara, the lead level designer of Sonic the Hedgehog, also decided to move to STI. Yasuhara had been assigned to help Cerny establish STI in 1990, but the outbreak of the Gulf War delayed his move to the United States by three months, during which he joined Sonic Team and became part of the original Sonic project.

Development of Sonic 2 began in November 1991, two months later than Cerny had intended, as Sega of America initially felt it was too soon for a sequel. STI handled development; both American and Japanese staff contributed, although, according to team member Tim Skelly, "Everyone attached to Sonic 2 ultimately worked for Yuji Naka. I think Naka would have been much happier if he was working with an all-Japanese team, but just because of the language barrier and some cultural differences."

Skelly designed the appearance of the pseudo-3D special stages, based on a tech demo created by Naka. The special stages were created out of pre-rendered 3D polygons, video of which was compressed and halved vertically and horizontally to fit in the game cartridge. Sonic 2 also introduced Sonic's sidekick Tails, a flying two-tailed fox, inspired by Japanese folklore about the kitsune and created by level artist Yasushi Yamaguchi. Sega of America objected to the character's name, Miles Prower (a pun on " miles per hour"), so he was given the nickname Tails as a compromise. Masaharu Yoshii served as director. The staff increased the speed of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 compared to the first game.

Like the previous game, the music was composed by Masato Nakamura, bassist and songwriter of the J-pop band Dreams Come True. Nakamura began composing early in development with only concept images for reference, taking a similar approach to his method for Sonic 1. Nakamura treated Sonic the Hedgehog 2 as a film and designed the music around the atmosphere that he felt from the images of the stages. Except for the graphics and some discussion with Sonic Team, Nakamura was given freedom, which he believes was the reason why he was able to create "such melodic tunes and unusual rhythm patterns". Nakamura created the music while he was recording with Dreams Come True in London, working on their fifth album The Swinging Star. As a gift to Sonic Team, Masato produced an alternate version of the ending theme with Dreams Come True, included on The Swinging Star.

In 2011, the stage music from Chemical Plant and Casino Night Zone were remixed by Sega for use in Sonic Generations. That October, a three-disc compilation of the music from Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was released in Japan. It compilation includes comments by Naka and an interview with Nakamura. The first disc contains original tracks from both games, and the second contains Nakamura's demo recordings produced during the games' development. The third disc contains " Sweet Sweet Sweet" by Dreams Come True, its English-language version "Sweet Dream", and 2006 remixes of both songs by singer Akon, used in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).

Sega launched a $10 million advertising campaign for Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Sega sought a global release date to make the game available in all stores on the same day, a fairly novel concept at the time. This required Sega to reconfigure its distribution system to ensure that games were available in all major stores. The release date, Tuesday, November 24, 1992 was marketed as "Sonic 2s day". While the Genesis release in North America and the Mega Drive release in Europe both released the game on this day, Sega made the game available a few days before in Japan on November 21, 1992. 400,000 copies of Sonic 2 were sold in the first seven days after release and over 6 million in the lifespan of the console (only 180,000 of which were in Japan).

Sonic 2 is believed to have been planned to have time travel aspects and was originally developed alongside as the same game, but Sonic CD eventually became a separate game. A demonstration cartridge of Sonic 2 was stolen at a New York City toy show early in 1992. The theft was attributed to a lack of security. The prototype ROM was rediscovered by fan Simon Wai on a Chinese website, and features playable sections of two cut levels: Wood Zone and Hidden Palace Zone.

Hidden Palace Zone was planned as a secret stage accessed by collecting Chaos Emeralds. According to Naka, the stage would explain where the Chaos Emeralds came from and grant Sonic his Super Sonic powers. It was removed for lack of time and cartridge space, and a different version was used in Sonic & Knuckles. The 2013 remastered iOS port includes a redesigned Hidden Palace Zone as an optional stage. During development, Sega released mockup images of a cut desert-themed level, and the stolen 1992 prototype features an unused level slot titled "Genocide City". According to Naka, the third act of Metropolis Zone was planned as a different stage, but was cut. Feeling it would be a shame to waste the finished map, the team redesigned it as an additional act for Metropolis Zone.

A separate version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was developed by Aspect and released for the 8-bit Master System and Game Gear systems. Though based on the original game, it has different level designs and a different plot, in which Tails is kidnapped and Sonic must rescue him.

A remastered mobile port was released for iOS, Android and Windows Phone on December 12, 2013. It was developed from scratch by Christian "Taxman" Whitehead and Simon "Stealth" Thomley of Headcannon using the Retro Engine, previously used in the 2011 remaster. This version adds enhancements such as widescreen graphics, Knuckles as a playable character, time and boss attack modes, online multiplayer, additional multiplayer stages, Tails's flying and swimming abilities from Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the previously unreleased Hidden Palace Zone, and a post-credits scene which depicts the Death Egg crash-landing on Angel Island. Shaun Musgrave of TouchArcade declared it the "definitive version" of the game. The iOS version was updated in 2016, adding compatibility for Apple TV.

The game has been rereleased on compilations including Sonic Compilation (1995) for Genesis; (1997) for Sega Saturn; Sonic Mega Collection (2002) for Nintendo GameCube; Sonic Mega Collection Plus (2004) for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC; Sega Genesis Collection (2006) for PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable; Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection (2009) for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3; and Sonic Classic Collection (2010) for Nintendo DS.

The game was made available for download on Wii's Virtual Console on June 11, 2007, PlayStation 3 via the PlayStation Network on April 19, 2011, and Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade, the latter having enhancements such as online leaderboards, achievements, and online play. Various mobile phone versions exist as well, including the iOS release. The game was released as part of the Nintendo 3DS 3D Classics line in Japan on July 22, 2015, with a release in North America and Europe initially slated for September 2015, before being pushed back to October 8. This version of the game is enhanced using the stereoscopic 3D technology of the 3DS. In 2018, Sega announced a Nintendo Switch port would be released as part of the Sega Ages product line. It includes most of the features added to the 3DS version, and added the option to use Sonic's Drop Dash ability from Sonic Mania and a time attack mode, plus the lock-on game Knuckles in Sonic 2.

Due to the popularity of its predecessor, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 already had an established fanbase anticipating its release. The game received critical acclaim, accumulating an aggregate score of 88% on GameRankings based on eight reviews. The improvements to the gameplay in comparison to its predecessor were praised. commented that "Sonic 2's game play mechanics are the same as Sonic 1's with a few cool exceptions." They gave it a 4.5 out of 5 for sound and a perfect 5.0 in every other category (graphics, control, and fun factor). Lucas Thomas of IGN proclaimed that the game "offered more of everything. More characters, more levels. More music, moves and baddies to beat", and that the new spin dash move "enhanced the speed of the gameplay, as Sonic no longer had to have a long stretch of straightaway to get up to his signature blazing velocity any more." Ellie Gibson of , reviewing the Xbox Live Arcade port, wrote that "SEGA has been sensible enough to leave things alone. All the original levels are present and correct. They are as expansive and exciting as ever. The sheer speed of the game still has the power to thrill as you send Sonic zooming, spinning and bouncing in all directions." Frank Provo of wrote "Play through it and you'll understand why it helped sell a ton of Genesis consoles back in the day. It's a fun platformer and does everything a sequel is supposed to do. It resolves many of the first game's shortcomings and incorporates a slew of minor upgrades that cumulatively amount to a fresh experience." Justin Towell of GamesRadar+ called the sequel "an improvement in every respect", citing the "improved Special Stage with pseudo-3D shenanigans, a greater emphasis on speed, better graphics, [and] another incredible soundtrack" as examples. Tom East of Official Nintendo Magazine called the game "arguably the best game in the series and easily one of the best platform games ever". The main objects of criticism were the two-player mode and the inclusion of the character Tails; reviewers disliked the image distortion brought about by the squeezed and flickering graphics, and Tails was considered to be "useless" and "irritating" due to his interference in boss battles. By contrast, GamePro described Tails as "about the cutest companion that any Sonic fan could ask for" and said the game's biggest problem is that it is too easy, to the point where even unskilled players would quickly breeze through it. However, the reviewer noted that finding each stage's secrets provides the game with challenge and longevity.

Critics praised the game's level design and graphics. GamePro assessed that the "graphics are actually better than the original's. The rich variety of scenery, slightly larger sprites, and extra-added attitude help the spunky hedgehog paint video game magic." Gibson called the variation in the game's environments "impressive", and Andy Eddy of described the graphics as "bright" and "colorful". Despite the reduction in the number of acts per level to two from the first game's three, the levels themselves were said to be larger and more memorable. Provo pointed out that "Sega concocted new backgrounds in the same colorful style as those from the first game, then jazzed them up with animated highlights such as dancing flowers and shimmering lakes." However, the later stages were considered to be difficult and complex. Towell also noted that "When Sonic is hurtling around the screen, [the game] could be criticized for 'playing itself'". Opinions on the special stages were divided. Gibson described the visuals of these stages as "dreadfully blocky", and David Craddock of IGN felt that the inclusion of Tails in the stages was "detrimental at best, since he's always colliding with bombs, thus causing the player to lose valuable rings." However, those who spoke positively of the special stages approved of the visual effects. GamePro elaborated, "Theoretically, the Genesis isn't capable of scaling, but Sonic's Bonus Rounds are gonna make you wonder!"

Subsequent re-releases also saw positive reviews. Thomas wrote that the Virtual Console version was "an easy thumbs-up". The Xbox Live Arcade version's low selling price and the availability of an online mode attracted Gibson's attention: "It's also much cheaper. Just GBP 4.25 will buy you hours of fun. Not millions of hours, because games were shorter in those days." Craddock proclaimed that " Sonic the Hedgehog 2 holds up as not only one of the best games available on Sega's memorable 16-bit machine, but also a worthy addition to any XBLA library." The iOS version was met with middling reviews, with criticism focused on the subpar quality of the port and lack of multiplayer.

As of 2006, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 had sold over 6 million cartridges for the Sega Genesis, making it the second best-selling Sega Genesis game (after the original Sonic the Hedgehog). The game was a best-seller in the UK charts for 2 months. The Xbox Live Arcade digital version later sold 509,805 units on the Xbox 360, as of 2011. The Android mobile game version sold more than 100,000 paid downloads on the Google Play Store as of 2017, while the free-to-play Android version Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Classic has received more than 10million downloads as of 2019.

Electronic Gaming Monthly named it the best Genesis game of 1992, and number 71 on their 1997 list of the best console video games of all time. While they said that Sonic CD (ranked at number 17) was unquestionably better, they defended the multiplayer mode, contending that "Although it looks a little squashed, the vs. races are a lot of fun." placed the game at #36 in their "Top Sega Mega Drive Games of All Time" list. In 2000, Game Informer ranked Sonic 2 number 61 on its "Top 100 Games of All Time" list, calling it "the most challenging and finely polished Sonic the Hedgehog title." In 2010, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 took first place in the results of a survey conducted by Official Nintendo Magazine to determine the fan-favorite game in the series. In 2011, GameZone named Sonic the Hedgehog 2 the second-best title in the series (behind Sonic the Hedgehog 3). In 2017, GamesRadar+ named Sonic the Hedgehog 2 the best Sonic title of all time and the second-best Genesis title of all time.

Sonic 2's success was a major factor in Sega catching up to Nintendo in the early-1990s console wars. It brought their market share up to 40% within six months of its release. Tails, whom Sonic the Hedgehog 2 introduced, went on to become one of the most prominent characters in the series, appearing as Sonic's sidekick in most Sonic media, including in later games such as Sonic Colors, Sonic Generations, and Sonic Lost World. Sonic the Hedgehog 2's popularity extended to various merchandise such as comic books such as Sonic the Comic, a television series, and a sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which received similar acclaim.

For Sonic's 20th anniversary, Sega released Sonic Generations, which remade aspects of various past games from the franchise. The PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC versions contained a remade "Chemical Plant" level. It also contained a remake of the final boss fight, the Death Egg Robot, as the Classic Era boss of the game. Separately, the Nintendo 3DS version of the game contained a remake of the "Casino Night" level. A "Casino Night" themed pinball minigame was made available for download as a pre-order bonus for the console versions at GameStop. Remade versions of Chemical Plant and Oil Ocean also appear in the 2017 game Sonic Mania.

In 2008, an unofficial, high-definition remake was announced titled Sonic the Hedgehog 2 HD, which included development members who would later work on Sonic Mania. In 2012, it was reported that a potential keylogger was included with an alpha build of the game, which led to the project being discontinued due to the controversy. In 2014, the project was restarted under a new development team. The final version is planned to feature additional stages and the option to play levels as Knuckles the Echidna.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a platform game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis console, released worldwide in November 1992. It is the second main entry in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, and introduced Sonic's sidekick, Miles "Tails" Prower, controllable by a second player.

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Sonic (1991) Classic looks are the best.

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Sonic the Hedgehog

Artist(s)

Series
Sonic the Hedgehog

Platform(s)

Release

Sega Genesis

NA: June 23, 1991

PAL: July 1991

JP: July 26, 1991

Arcade Game Boy Advance Windows Nintendo 3DS

JP: May 15, 2013

WW: December 5, 2013

iOS

EU: May 15, 2013

NA: May 16, 2013

Android Nintendo Switch

Mode(s)
Single-player

Sonic the Hedgehog is a platform video game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis home video game console. The first game in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, it was released in North America in June 1991 and in PAL regions and Japan the following month. The game features Sonic the Hedgehog, who can run at supersonic speeds, setting out on a quest to defeat Dr. Robotnik, a scientist who has imprisoned animals in robots and seeks the powerful Chaos Emeralds. The gameplay involves collecting rings as a form of health, and a simple control scheme, with jumping and attacking controlled by a single button.

Development began in 1990 when Sega ordered its developers to create a game featuring a mascot for the company. After considering a number of suggestions, the developers decided on a blue hedgehog and named themselves "Sonic Team" to match their character. Sonic the Hedgehog, designed for fast gameplay, was influenced by games by Super Mario series creator Shigeru Miyamoto. Sonic the Hedgehog uses a novel technique that allows Sonic's sprite to roll along curved scenery, which originated in a tech demo created by programmer Yuji Naka. The music was composed by Masato Nakamura, songwriter of the J-pop band Dreams Come True.

Sonic the Hedgehog was well received by critics, who praised its visuals, audio, and gameplay. It was also commercially successful, becoming one of the best selling video games of all time. Furthermore, it established the Genesis as a key player in the 16-bit era and allowing it to compete with Nintendo's Super Nintendo Entertainment System console. The game has been ported a number of times, and inspired several clones, a successful franchise, and adaptations into other media.

Sonic the Hedgehog is a 2D side-scrolling platform game. The gameplay centers on Sonic the Hedgehog's ability to run at high speed through levels that include springs, slopes, bottomless pits, and vertical loops. The levels are populated with hazards in the form of robots inside which Dr. Robotnik has trapped animals. Destroying a robot frees the creature, but is not necessary to complete the game. The player must also avoid touching spikes, falling into bottomless pits, and being crushed by moving walls or platforms, as well as drowning, which may be prevented by breathing air bubbles from vents. Sonic's main means of attack is the Spin Attack, in which he curls into a ball and rapidly spins his body, damaging enemies and certain obstacles upon collision. This may be performed by jumping or by rolling on the ground.

At the start of the game, the player is given three lives, each of which may be lost if Sonic collides with hazardous enemies or objects while in possession of no rings, falls to the bottom of the level screen, or exceeds an act's ten-minute time limit. Signposts act as checkpoints to allow Sonic to return to the most recently activated post when he loses a life. The time resets when he returns to the checkpoint. The game ends when the player runs out of lives, although the player may return to the beginning of the act with three lives if the player has any continues.

Scattered around each level are gold rings. Collecting 100 rings rewards the player with an extra life. Rings act as a layer of protection against hazards: if Sonic holds at least one ring when he collides with an enemy or dangerous obstacle, all his rings will scatter. He can recollect some of them again before they disappear. If he is hit without holding any rings, he loses a life. Shields and temporary invincibility can be collected to provide additional layers of protection, but certain hazards, such as drowning, being crushed, falling into bottomless pits, or running out of time, kill Sonic regardless of rings or other protection.

The game is split into six principal zones, followed by a short 'Final Zone.' Each main zone has its own visual style, and while some enemies appear throughout, each zone has unique enemies and obstacles. Each main zone is split into three acts, all of which must be completed. At the end of each main zone's third act, the player confronts Dr. Robotnik for a boss fight. For most of the fights, Robotnik's vehicle is fitted with different weapons. After completing the sixth zone, the player continues directly to the single-level "Final Zone" for a last encounter with Robotnik inside a large machine environment. Destroying Robotnik's machine ends the game. A brief animation shows Sonic's return to the first zone, with animals liberated from Dr. Robotnik.

Optionally, if Sonic reaches the end of any zone's Act 1 or Act 2 while holding at least 50 rings, a large ring appears through which he can jump to enter a " special stage". In the Special Stages, Sonic is continually curled up in his Spin Attack animation, and bounces off the bumpers and walls of a fully rotating maze. In these levels, the player earns a number of continues for each multiple of 50 rings collected, but the main goal is to obtain the Chaos Emerald hidden within the maze. Colliding with any of the blocks marked "GOAL" ends the level.

In an attempt to steal the six Chaos Emeralds and harness their power, the evil Dr. Ivo Robotnik has trapped the animal inhabitants of South Island inside aggressive robots and stationary metal capsules. The player controls Sonic, who aims to halt Robotnik's plans by freeing his animal friends and collecting the emeralds himself. If the player collects all the Chaos Emeralds and completes the game, an ending sequence is shown. If all the emeralds are not collected, Robotnik taunts the player while juggling any of the Chaos Emeralds not collected by the player.

In the 1980s, Sega had had limited success with Genesis ports of its arcade games, but wanted a stronger foothold against its main competitor, Nintendo. In 1988, Sega of Japan began an in-house competition to find a rival to Nintendo's Mario. Programmers and designers at Sega worked on a brand character to rival Mario for the next three years. In 1990, Sega ordered its in-house development studio to develop a game featuring a mascot for the company. Sega wanted a character to rival Nintendo's mascot Mario; president Hayao Nakayama wanted a character as iconic as Mickey Mouse. Sega had previously used Alex Kidd as their mascot, but he was considered too similar to Mario and deemed unsatisfactory.

The team developed ideas for characters, an engine, and gameplay mechanics. Development emphasized speed, so Sega considered fast creatures such as kangaroos and squirrels and eliminated designs not associated with fast animals. One idea, a rabbit able to grasp objects with prehensile ears, showed promise but was too complex for the Genesis hardware. The team narrowed its search to animals that could roll into a ball, their idea for an attacking move, and considered armadillos and hedgehogs. The hedgehog character, proposed by Naoto Ohshima, prevailed; the armadillo became the basis for Mighty the Armadillo, who appeared in 1993's SegaSonic the Hedgehog. Ohshima said he created Sonic's basic design by combining Felix the Cat's head with Mickey Mouse's body. His inspiration for creating Sonic was Sega wanting a game that would be successful in the United States and a new mascot concurrently. Ohshima was thinking of design ideas with the toy and stationery department. Before Sonic was chosen, other characters, including a rabbit and a bearded man who became Dr. Robotnik, were created. Ohshima went on vacation to New York, taking sketches with him. He went to Central Park and asked locals for their opinions on them, and Sonic was the favorite. Ohshima explained that this was because he wanted support for his ideas.[citation needed ]

Sonic was originally teal-colored, then a light shade of blue, but he was changed to dark blue so he would stand out against certain backgrounds and to match the Sega logo. His shoes had buckles through the inspiration of Michael Jackson's boots on the album cover for and the red and white color scheme of Santa Claus, whom Ohshima saw as the most "famous character in the world". Sonic's spikes were emphasized to make him look sleeker, and he was given the ability to spin while jumping (so attacking and jumping could be controlled with one button). The new character was originally named "Mr. Hedgehog", but the eight-member team changed his name to "Sonic" and took the name Sonic Team. Ohshima stated that "Sonic" was chosen because it represented speed. Ideas proposed to flesh out the character included placing him in a rock band, giving him vampire fangs, and giving him a human girlfriend named Madonna, but Sega of America scrapped these ideas to keep his identity simple. Sega of America also expressed concerns that most Americans would not know what a hedgehog is and initially proposed a full-scale recreation of the character, but compromised with Sonic Team to simply make design changes. The antagonist ended up being named "Dr. Eggman" in Japan and "Dr. Robotnik" in other regions as a result of a dispute between Sega's American and Japanese divisions.

With a satisfying protagonist completed, Sega turned to programmer Yuji Naka, who had impressed them through his work on Phantasy Star and the Genesis port of Ghouls 'n Ghosts. Naka was a fan of Super Mario Bros. but desired something faster, so the game was made to play quickly, which was where he focused most of his effort. Naka explained that the reason he wanted a fast game was that he had ported Ghouls 'n Ghosts, and wanted to work on its movement but found it slow.

Sonic the Hedgehog was developed by a team of seven: two programmers, two sound engineers, and three designers, although it began with just Naka and Ohshima. People came onto the team as the need for content increased. After being assigned a project with the code name "Defeat Mario", Naka and Ohshima began work, but encountered problems: Ohshima's Rabbit proved hard to program. Catching items and throwing them caused the action's rhythm to break. Naka stated that the rabbit was not suitable for his game engine, and he also wanted the game to be playable with only one button. Hirokazu Yasuhara came onto the team to supervise Naka and Ohshima and develop levels. He became the lead designer due to his greater experience, and found the way to make the game playable with only one button by having Sonic do damage by jumping. The trio came up with the idea of him rolling into a ball. After the hedgehog character was chosen, many characters were redrawn, and the team agreed on the environments' visual complexity, with particular focus on the colors. After this, four people came onto the team to speed development up.

Due to the popularity of Mario, Naka wanted Sonic to take over the American market. Sonic's default speed was set to that of Mario while running. Tests were run using the Genesis' tool library, and problems such as flickering, slow frame rates, and shaky animation soon became apparent. Increasing Sonic's speed caused animation problems. Naka solved this by developing an algorithm retained fluidity. All that was left was to optimize of the game speed to adhere to the staff's expectations. The team noticed that different people had different perceptions of the game's speed: some believed it was too fast, which caused disagreements. As a result, it was slowed down.

The gameplay originated with a tech demo by Naka, who developed an algorithm allowing a sprite to move smoothly on a curve by determining its position with a dot matrix. Naka's prototype was a platform game with a fast-moving character rolling in a ball through a long, winding tube, and this concept was fleshed out with Ohshima's character designs and levels by Yasuhara. Yasuhara originally intended to work on the game for three months due to the delay of his planned move to the United States by the outbreak of the Gulf War, but was engrossed in the project for nearly a year. His designs for levels were intended to attract both hardcore and casual gamers by integrating occasional challenging set pieces into the mostly accessible level design. The color scheme was influenced by the work of pop artist Eizin Suzuki, and the aesthetics of Green Hill were influenced by the geography of California.

In designing the gameplay, Naka was inspired by Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, whose games he had enjoyed playing years earlier. Admiring the simplicity of Miyamoto's mechanics in complex environments, Naka decided that Sonic would be controlled with only a directional pad for movement and a single button for jumping. He also wanted his creation to be more action-oriented than the Mario series; while playing Super Mario Bros., he had wondered why the levels could not be cleared more quickly.

Naka, Ohshima, and Yasuhara worked 19 hours a day on the project for several months. Due to the need to demonstrate the Genesis' technological prowess, the game underwent extensive testing and redesign, which took over six months. According to Naka, the game had the fastest-ever character speed in a video game and a rotation effect in the special stages that had been considered impossible on the console.

The team intended to add a two-player mode displayed via split-screen, but Naka's programming knowledge was insufficient to implement it. A two-player mode appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992), whereby the second player controls Sonic's sidekick Miles "Tails" Prower. Sonic Team also intended to include a sound test with animations of Sonic breakdancing to a band of animal characters; including a crocodile keyboardist who was later introduced into the series as Vector the Crocodile in Knuckles' Chaotix in 1995. The sound test was scrapped for time reasons and Naka used the freed up memory to add the " Se-ga!" chant used in TV commercials as a startup sound.

Naka's relationship with Sega was tenuous during this time, and he received little credit for his work. He left the company shortly after the game's release, although Sega of America hired him later. Before leaving, however, he defied Sega's prohibition of developer credits by displaying a few names in black text on a black background, identifiable only by looking at the code. Naka stated that level design was a major challenge: he created maps much wider than normal and tried to ensure players would not get lost. It took him around eight months to develop Green Hill Zone as he kept restarting from scratch. He stated that he found the process "very interesting". Naka also stated that the team was trying to create smooth maps, and that implementing looping structures was a challenge because Sonic would break through them instead of running around them. The backgrounds were also a challenge, as the game's speed created the impression of going backwards. The zones were based on designs by Naka and Ohshima, with the goal of creating the world's fastest action game. According to Ohshima, Robotnik was based on Humpty Dumpty.

Yasuhara wanted the game to appeal to both Japanese and American players, which was why Green Hill Zone was redesigned many times. Sonic Team wanted the level to portray the character correctly. Its checkered ground was inspired by 3D image rendering from computers, an idea Naka obtained from Sega developer Yu Suzuki, who used this technique with Space Harrier. The team read to stay informed of what their rivals were doing so they could avoid their mistakes.

Sega director Fujio Minegishi had connections to the music industry, and suggested his friend Yūzō Kayama write the Sonic score. However, Sonic Team did not think Kayama's music would fit, and so commissioned Masato Nakamura, bassist and songwriter of the J-pop band Dreams Come True. Nakamura said he was surprised when asked to create the soundtrack, as he had just started with Dreams Come True, but accepted as he was inspired by the team's desire to outperform Nintendo. Nakamura said the hardest part of creating the soundtrack was the number of sounds that could play concurrently: he was limited to four, and said that his lack of knowledge of music on computers made it "impossible". He wrote the soundtrack concurrently with the Dreams Come True album Million Kisses. Upon being composed, all of the music was digitized using an Atari ST computer and the program Notator.

On October 19, 2011, over 20 years after the release, a three-disc compilation of music from Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was released in Japan. The first disc features original tracks from both games, the second contains Nakamura's demo recordings before they were programmed into the Genesis, and the third has songs by Dreams Come True and their associated Akon remixes.

Game-package illustrator Akira Watanabe said that his goal was to make the characters "colorful", using clear lines and gradation to "finish them neatly". According to Watanabe, the developers asked him to create a package design "similar to pop art ... without being particular to conventional packages" - something "original" and "stylish". The game was not revealed until the January 1991 International Consumer Electronics Show because Sega wanted to wait until the right time and because they saw an opportunity to "steal the show". At the show, Sonic the Hedgehog was believed to be the most impressive game shown, and won the CES award for innovation.

Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske wanted reassurance that the character would not fail. The global head of marketing, Al Nilsen, became involved, and playtested the game across the United States with Mario fans: they were shown Mario and then played Sonic the Hedgehog. 80 percent preferred Sonic the Hedgehog, and the game was shown at the 1991 Summer Consumer Electronics Show. It was released in North America on June 23, 1991, and in the PAL regions and Japan the following month. Sega of America packaged it with American Genesis consoles, replacing Altered Beast. This tactic enabled Sega of America to sell 15 million Genesis units. Genesis owners who bought their consoles before the switch could request free copies of Sonic the Hedgehog by mail. Sega of America created a marketing campaign, making Sonic its new mascot.

A version of Sonic the Hedgehog was developed by Ancient and released in late 1991 for Sega's 8-bit consoles, the Master System and Game Gear. Its plot and gameplay mechanics are similar to the 16-bit version, though some level themes and digital assets are different and Chaos Emeralds are scattered throughout levels rather than special stages. Gameplay as a whole is simplified; the level design is flatter and has a larger focus on exploration, with no vertical loops, and Sonic cannot re-collect his rings after being hit. The game has a different soundtrack composed by Yuzo Koshiro, which includes adaptations of music from the original version. It was the final game released for the Master System in North America. The Master System version was re-released for Wii's Virtual Console service in North America and Europe in August 2008. The Game Gear version was re-released for the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console on June 13, 2013, and included as an unlockable game in Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut for GameCube and Windows and Sonic Mega Collection Plus for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Windows.

Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis

To mark the game's fifteenth anniversary, a port for the Game Boy Advance, Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis, was released on November 14, 2006. While the port is mostly identical to the original, it includes several new features not seen in the original Genesis release, such as the ability to save game progress and the inclusion of the Spin Dash move. This version, unlike others, received poor reviews, with a Metacritic score of 33/100. The chief complaints concerned its poor conversion to the Game Boy Advance, resulting in a bad performance and poor implementation of the original music and gameplay.

As a response to the poor reception and claims that the system could not handle the original game, Simon "Stealth" Thomley, who later assisted with the development of the 2013 mobile port, released an unofficial, proof-of-concept version of Sonic the Hedgehog for the system. The unofficial version contains a complete Green Hill Zone and two special stages, as well as Tails and Knuckles as playable characters.

A remastered mobile port was released on iOS on May 15, 2013, with an Android version following the next day. This version was developed by Christian "Taxman" Whitehead and Simon Thomley of Headcannon from scratch using the Retro Engine, previously used in the 2011 remaster of . This port features several enhancements, such as widescreen graphics, the optional ability to Spin Dash, an additional special stage, a time attack mode, and the unlockable option to play as Tails or Knuckles; it additionally features a heavily expanded debug mode which allows for use of unused elements and elements from more recent games (such as the characters' super forms). The iOS version was updated in 2016, adding compatibility with Apple TV.

A Nintendo 3DS version, 3D Sonic the Hedgehog, was released as part of the 3D Classics line in 2013. This version, unlike most downloadable re-releases of the game, is not emulated; rather, the code was restructured to take advantage of the 3DS system's stereoscopic 3D graphics and comes with additional enhancements, such as the option to use the Spin Dash move, a CRT-style filter, and the option to start from any level.

With its sequels for the Genesis, Sonic the Hedgehog has been ported for a wide range of home and handheld consoles and personal computers through compilations. The first collection it appeared in was Sonic Compilation (1995) for the Genesis. It has since appeared in (1997) for the Sega Saturn, Sonic Mega Collection (2002) for the Nintendo GameCube, Sonic Mega Collection Plus (2004) for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, Sega Genesis Collection for the PlayStation 2 and PSP, Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection (2009) for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Sonic Classic Collection (2010) for the Nintendo DS, Oculus Arcade for the Oculus Rift, and Sega Genesis Classics (2018) for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

Sonic the Hedgehog has been available for all three major seventh-generation video game consoles. It was part of the Wii Virtual Console at the service's 2006 introduction, and was released for the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network shortly afterwards. The game was released for the iPod Classic, iPod video, and video-capable iPod Nano models in 2007 and for Apple's iOS in April 2009. Sonic the Hedgehog became available on GameTap in September 2009. In October 2010, it was released on Windows via Steam. The game was ported to Android and released in December 2012. Additionally, it is an unlockable reward in the console versions of Sonic Generations. It was also made available on the Sega Forever service on iOS and Android in June 2017. A port for Nintendo Switch was released on September 20, 2018 as part of the Sega Ages line of rereleases. It adds features including the ability to use moves from Sonic 2 and Sonic Mania, a challenge mode, a time attack for the first stage, and features from the 3DS rereleases of the game and its sequel.

U.S. Gold acquired the rights to make a version of Sonic the Hedgehog for the Amiga, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC and Atari ST personal computers, but these went unreleased. Several screenshots exist, some of which resemble the 8-bit version. An enhanced port for the Sega CD was also planned, but was scrapped in favor of .

Sonic the Hedgehog was praised by critics, with scores above 90% from most video game magazines at the time. It was considered Sega's answer to Nintendo's widely popular series, as it was a platformer featuring the company's mascot. Paul Rand of Computer and Video Games compared the two in depth and characterized Sonic the Hedgehog as being faster, with brighter colors, and Super Mario World as having more "depth of play". Frank Ladoire of believed Sonic the Hedgehog was part of a new generation of games that demonstrate that the Genesis is capable of "beautiful things" in the technical department.

Reviewers praised the colorful, detailed graphics. Rand called its color scheme "lively, but never garish", praising the interaction of color with detail in the sprites, backgrounds, and animations and describing its graphics as the best available for the Genesis. Reviewer Boogie Man of called the intricate backgrounds "eye-popping" and "gorgeous", which was echoed by Mean Machines. The Lessers (Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk) of claimed the graphics made Sonic a possible contender for the best game of 1991 and GameZone called the animation "some of the smoothest and fastest ... ever seen". Julian Boardman of praised the "colourful and highly detailed" backdrops and "fabulous" sprites. The music and sound effects were also well received; Dragon called them "great", and GameZone "amazing". Rand praised the "catchy" soundtrack, calling some of the sound effects "absolutely brilliant". Although Mean Machines called the songs "vaguely appealing", the sound effects were better appreciated. However, Boardman of Raze considered the music "a little boring".

Critics cited the fast gameplay, unprecedented in platformers. The difficulty was disputed, described as "impossible" by Rand and "average" by EGM. Rand said about the gameplay in general that it "plays like a dream"; according to GameZone it would enchant players for hours, and Boogie Man praised Sonic Team's ability to provide an engaging experience primarily from running and jumping. Although EGM, Dragon, Paul of Mean Machines and Boardman of Raze praised the level design (especially the hidden rooms), Paul found losing all of one's rings frustrating.

Retrospective reception has been positive, with an 86% rating at the review aggregator GameRankings based on nine reviews published online in the 2000s. Sonic the Hedgehog has maintained its popularity, and has since been considered one of the greatest video games of all time.

Frank Provo of GameSpot described the game as "one of the best platformers of all time", finding that despite technical issues in the Game Boy Advance port "after all these years, the underlying graphics, audio, and gameplay still hold up". Lucas M. Thomas of IGN agreed that it stood the test of time. Writing in The Guardian, Keith Stuart observed that Sonic the Hedgehog's emphasis on speed and pinball mechanics dramatically departs from generally accepted precepts of game design, requiring that players "learn through repetition rather than observation" as "the levels aren't designed to be seen or even understood in one playthrough." However, Stuart concluded that "sometimes in Sonic, when you get better, or through sheer luck, things take off, every jump is right, every loop-the-loop is perfect, and you're in the flow, sailing above the game's strange structure ... Sonic is incorrect game design and yet ... it's a masterpiece."

Bob Strauss of Entertainment Weekly gave the game an A+ and wrote that it was a very fast game, yet never felt chaotic or impossible, and they later named it the best game available in 1991.

Sonic the Hedgehog was a commercial success, selling nearly 1 million game cartridges in the United States by Christmas 1991. It sold 2 million copies worldwide by the end of 1991, and was Blockbuster Video's highest-renting game of the year. Sonic the Hedgehog helped Sega generate a gross revenue of $1 billion in console sales that year. Sonic the Hedgehog set a Sega software sales record with 2.8 million cartridges sold by March 1992, including 1.8 million copies in the United States and another 1 million in Europe and Japan. The game went on to sell 3.7 million units by October 1992, 4 million copies worldwide by December 1992, and more than 4 million copies by 1993. By 1997, the game had sold over 14 million copies worldwide, and earned over $400 million ($760 million adjusted for inflation), higher than the $200-300 million typically grossed by a blockbuster movie at the time.

The original version bundled with the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive hardware had sold over 15 million copies, as of February 2009. The mobile game version also had eight million paid downloads by 2008, 482,960 units were sold on Xbox Live Arcade as of 2011, and over 500,000 paid Android downloads were sold between 2013 and 2016.

At the 1991 Golden Joystick Awards, Sonic the Hedgehog won Overall Game of the Year. In the 1991 Electronic Gaming Monthly awards, Sonic the Hedgehog won Game of the Year.

ranked Sonic as its third-favorite Genesis game in 1992. In 2001, Game Informer called it the 24th-greatest game of all time.

Primarily because of its Genesis bundling, Sonic the Hedgehog was a factor in popularising the console in North America, thus solidifying it as an competitor to Nintendo and their Super Nintendo Entertainment System. During October-December 1991 with the game's success, the Genesis outsold the SNES by two to one; at its January 1992 peak it gained a foothold in the industry and had 65 percent of the market for 16-bit consoles. Although Nintendo eventually overtook Sega, it was the first time since December 1985 that Nintendo did not lead the console market.

Sonic's success led to an extensive media franchise, with the first of many sequels, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, released the following year. It has generated dozens of additional games and a large cast of recurring characters, keeping Sonic and Robotnik (later renamed as Eggman) mainstays, and continued beyond Sega's exit from the console industry after the Dreamcast. The series has ventured from platformers to fighting, racing, role-playing, and sports games, and also expanded into anime, manga, cartoons comic books, novels, and toys. Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the best-selling video game franchises of all time, with over 140 million copies sold or downloaded worldwide across consoles, PC's, mobile phones and tablets by May 2014. The game's first level, Green Hill Zone, has been seen in later other games, such as Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Generations, Sonic Mania, Sonic Forces, and the Super Smash Bros. series.

The game inspired a number of unofficial variants, including , a pirated Nintendo Entertainment System conversion featuring Nintendo's Mario character in levels from the original Sonic game, Sonic the Hedgehog Megamix, a total conversion mod of the original game, and Sonic 1 Boomed, a ROM hack which implements Sonic's redesign from the animated series.

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Sonic the Hedgehog (1991 video game) - Wikipedia

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Sonic the Hedgehog Artist(s) Series Sonic the Hedgehog Platform(s) Release Sega Genesis NA: June 23, 1991 PAL: July 1991 JP: July 26, 1991 Arcade Game Boy Advance Windows Nintendo 3DS JP: May 15, 2013 WW: December 5, 2013 iOS EU: May 15, 2013 NA: May 16, 2013 Android Nintendo Switch Mode(s) Single-player Sonic the Hedgehog is a platform video game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis home video game console.