Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)

Game: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit version, as opposed to 8-bit)
Developer: Sonic Team
Platform: Sega Megadrive/Genesis
Release Year: 1992
Stephen's Rating: 7/10

Basic Plot

As with all Sonic games the plot revolves around stopping the evil Dr. Robotnic. Robotnic is attempting once again to take over the world with his army of animals who he's turned into robots.

Gameplay

The gameplay is very similar to the original Sonic the Hedgehog with some notable tweaks and additions:

• Sonic now has a spin dash attack which he can use to gain momentum from a stationary position. It has a really satisfying sound effect and is very useful in the game.
• You can play the game as Sonic (like the original), Tails (his sidekick, who is slower but has a "fly" ability to reach high places), or both. In the latter you play as Sonic, and Tails follows you. He has some limited AI and will try and help you, or another player can take over Tails' and control him.
• Bonus stages are different than the original game but give you a chaos emerald each time you complete one. If you manage to collect all of the chaos emeralds you gain the ability to turn into Super Sonic during the main game. This requires obtaining 50 rings and jumping into the air. Super Sonic is yellow with larger spikes, is faster than normal sonic, and immune to any damage other than falling or being crushed by terrain. He remains as Super Sonic as long as he as rings, but he slowly drains rings to remain in this form.
• Overall the levels are larger and the pace of the game is faster than the original.
• If the player also owns a copy of Sonic the Knuckles (released in 1994) they could "lock" that cartridge to the back of this one and play the combined game. This allows you to play the story as Knuckles.

 Sonic with Tails following behind.

Positives

The music is amazing, the gameplay is polished and satisfying. The little secrets like Super Sonic make this game very replayable. There is a really satisfying feeling as the game progresses, especially heading into the Sky Chase Zone and Death Egg Zone, and the music really helps with this.

Negatives

This game is pretty difficult if you play it in its original form. When I played it I used an emulator which allowed me to save my progress any time, which was the only reason I was able to obtain Super Sonic and experience the game in its entirety.

Memorable Moments

I remember vividly when I first was shown Super Sonic from a friend of mine. I thought it was pretty darn amazing, and an awesome little secret to put into the game.

When I watched a friend play this game I loved taking over as Tails as an non-important but semi-playable ally.