INFO BURST

Format: Sega Master System and Game Gear game
Initial Release Date: November 1992
Feature characters: Sonic the Hedgehog
Villain: Doctor Ivo “Eggman” Robotnik
Other Characters: Miles “Tails” Prower, Badniks (New Moto Bug, Newtron, Taraban, Game-game, Zaririn, Bomb, Buton, Drillin, Fliying Chopper), Animal Friends (Flicky, Pocky, Cucky, Pecky, Rocky, Ricky)
Boss Fights: Master Robots (Pit Master, Chick Master, Balance Master, Ring Master, Charge Master), Silver Sonic, Doctor Eggman (Crystal Egg Zone boss – has no official name)
Locations: South Island (Under Ground Zone, Sky High Zone, Aqua Lake Zone, Green Hills Zone, Gimmick Mountain Zone, Scrambled Egg Zone, Crystal Egg Zone)
Items: Ring, Item Box (Super Ring, Power Sneakers, Invincibility, One-Up, Continue), Sign Post, Prison Egg Capsule, Chaos Emerald
Continuity: Video games
Synopsis: Doctor Eggman kidnaps Sonic’s best friend Tails and uses him as bait to lure Sonic into a deadly trap. Eggman has managed to get his hands on one of the Chaos Emeralds and tells Sonic that if he is to rescue Tails, the hedgehog must bring the remaining five Chaos Emeralds to the Scrambled Egg Zone to gain access to the Crystal Egg Zone. Of course, that doesn’t mean Eggman won’t try his usual tactics to do away with Sonic along the way, including the use of his new elite Badnik force, the Master Robots guarding each Zone Sonic must traverse in search of the Chaos Emeralds. Arriving at the Scrambled Egg Zone, Sonic comes face to face with a robotic version of himself, Silver Sonic. Sonic is able to defeat Silver Sonic in combat and retrieve Robotnik’s Chaos Emerald from his bested doppelganger. Sonic pursues Robotnik to the Crystal Egg Zone and overcomes his latest death contraption. Robotnik flees but, to buy himself the time to escape, releases Tails. Sonic and Tails head home together and enjoy a beautiful starry sky- with constellations which remind them of each other.
Notes: First appearance of Tails

CREDITS

Game Plan: Tomozou Endo, Simachan, Ray
Programmers: Ko.Ko, Semimaru, Tea, Tea, Toshiyan, Hiro SSS
Artists: Jly King, Nobirun, Tez, U.D.K.
Editors: Raizou, M. Shima, End, Mariyuri
Sound: Gatao, Nao Chan, Dawasa
Special Thanks: Hiroshi Aso, Taku Shoji, Katsuhiro Hasegawa, Takashi Thomas Yuda, Okusan, Lunarian, Hitmen, Aspect

Review

With Sonic proving himself to be a firm success with his first two games, Sega had big plans for their new mascot. With a second Mega Drive title looming on the horizon, an 8-bit adventure was also created by the Sega CS2 team and Aspect to serve as a counterpart, rather than a port, of Sonic’s second 16-bit adventure in much the same way his first 8-bit adventure had served as a counterpart to his debut title.

Given the series was still in its early days at this point, the rules for the franchise had not yet been firmly established. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 on the Mega Drive would effectively set in stone the basis for all future 2D Sonic platforming adventures but this iteration would still offer much in the way of experimentation. Indeed, every single level in the game offers something unique, many of which offering different ways for Sonic to get around his surroundings. These range from the simple and fun- hopping in a minecart for a burst forward, but sacrificing Sonic’s control as a result- to the more complicated- using a hang glider to cover large stretches of sky.

It’s these more adventurous changes in level-to-level gameplay that are one of the 8-bit Sonic 2’s black spots, unfortunately. The hang gliders are notoriously finnicky and many a player will find themselves tripped up as they attempt multiple different ways to try and use them, only to crash out of the skies. This, of course, wouldn’t be a problem, except they are a requirement to clearing the second Zone of the game. Similarly, catching an upward ride inside a giant air bubble is perhaps the ultimate double-edged sword of underwater levels. While inside the bubble, Sonic has no need to stop to get his breath while underwater, but navigating trap-filled upward corridors of enemies and hazards becomes a frustrating exercise in patience and taking hits that seem easily avoidable.

As the game goes on, the level gimmicks become increasingly tiresome, with moving platform puzzles and tube mazes being the order of the day. There is almost no way a player could reasonably be expected to know the correct solution to many of these puzzles and mazes on an initial play through, meaning players will often have to repeat extended, lengthy and slow sequences.

This, in turn, speaks to a larger issue the game suffers from, specifically the pacing. The levels in this version of Sonic 2 do not feel especially large. In a number of cases, a player can blast through them in mere seconds. This is impressive when performed as the result of practice and development of muscle memory, as speedrunner players do, but when a level is short purely because there isn’t enough of it, the result is the game is sadly less engaging. Because so many of the levels are so short, things like the hang gliders, the bubbles, the slow moving platforms and the tube mazes artificially extend their length. While one might be tempted to commend the level designers for finding a way to make short levels seem longer than that are, ultimately it leaves the player wishing the Zones simply had more to do. It’s a real shame as well because every Zone in the game has a unique personality, complimented by some of the best music the Master System and Game Gear Sonic titles have to offer.

Don’t be fooled, though, just because the levels aren’t particularly meaty doesn’t mean what’s here isn’t good. Any player will have their platforming mettle tested by this game’s Zones, with the difficulty curve being notably more steep than the previous two entries in the series (and significantly more steep than its Mega Drive big brother). Badniks and traps are placed in such a way as to rarely be what one could consider unfair but remain plentiful enough that the sound of Sonic getting hit and losing his rings will be a frequent accompaniment to the action. Speaking of sound effects, one particular irritant in this instalment is a whistling sound which plays whenever Sonic descends rapidly, an addition which probably seemed like an amusing bit of cartoon silliness when it was devised, but rapidly becomes over-familiar given just how often Sonic will find himself launched skyward from a spring and then plummet downward accompanied by the noise of a falling missile.

Aesthetically, the game is very nice to look at. The backgrounds are absolutely gorgeous and it’s remarkable to think the game was released just the following year from its predecessor with the level of colour and detail on display. It almost feels like a surprise that the artists were able to get so much more out of the game, though it’s up to you whether you think the distinct vibrance of Sonic’s previous 8-bit adventure was better or worse than what this game offers. Sonic’s sprite is arguably less charming than 8-bit Sonic 1’s offering as well, though this one still retains a lot of the exaggerated expressiveness that made the character such an instant hit.

The Badniks this time represent the first diversion from the original roster, though not by much. Most of the Badniks in this game function as they did in the previous Sonic titles but have a new chrome design and the word “New” added as a prefix to their names. There are a few new additions, however, and they’re welcome ones. Somewhat surprisingly, Badniks can actually regenerate if Sonic walks away from where a defeated foe once stood. Though one can’t be too mad at the added challenge, it does seem a little cheap that a player can be defeated by an enemy they have already bested.

Eggman himself doesn’t show up too much in the game this time, which is almost a shame, but it does at least make logical sense in the story. Instead, the boss fights up until the final Zone are contested against the Master Robots, larger Badniks which take several hits to defeat. If nothing else, this does add variety as it means each boss is completely unique, rather than being a modified Egg Mobile once more, though admittedly that never before or since stopped Eggman from being a fun fight in the other games in the series. Each of the Master Robots is, like most Badniks, based on an animal and the animal in question often lends itself to the kind of attack pattern they utilise. Each of the Master Robots provide a decent challenge and never feel unfair. As with the previous 8-bit Sonic the Hedgehog, players will find there are no rings to be collected in the third Act of each Zone, meaning Sonic must defeat each of the bosses without taking a hit. This is fine and well to a point as the bosses themselves rarely rely on cheap tactics to swindle the player. Unfortunately, the levels themselves are also significantly more difficult than the third Act of any 8-bit Sonic 1 Zone so it isn’t impossible for a player to lose a life (or more) before they’ve even reached the boss. Whether you think the added challenge of having to defeat the bosses flawlessly is a fun one is down to you, but there can be little denying that if the bosses require perfection, the third Acts themselves ought to be more forgiving.

While there was a second Sonic in Sonic Eraser, this is the first entry in the series in which Sonic clashes with a definitively robotic version of himself. In a way it’s so forehead-slappingly obvious an idea within the concept of the series that it’s almost a surprise no such foe exists in the first game. Regardless, Silver Sonic is a strong first attempt at what would soon be a recurring theme in the series- robotic versions of the main character. We’re still a little way off the brilliance of Metal Sonic’s design but Silver Sonic is a simple, readable design. The extending claw arm seems a little strange as it deviates entirely from anything Sonic himself can do, somewhat undermining the concept of Silver Sonic serving as a doppelganger. At any rate, it wouldn’t take long for this to be ironed out as the next attempt would be much more like it. Either way, perhaps we’re being a bit too harsh on poor Silver Sonic- he’s just fine as he is.

Whereas the first two Sonic games offer a simple and reasonable level of challenge, mastering this entry in the series will not be an easy feat for a beginner player. Deaths and Game Overs are to be fully expected parts of the learning experience, particularly on the Game Gear version where screen real-estate is so low that it unintentionally makes the game far more difficult far earlier than on the Master System. But if you’re willing to push through the challenge and see the game through to the end, and particularly if you’re willing to find the Chaos Emeralds dotted about the levels (no Special Stage at all this time, I’m afraid!) and get the good ending, you’ll be able to say with absolute satisfaction you earned your victory against a tough, unforgiving early entry in the Sonic pantheon.