Sonic 2, Sonic 3, and Sonic & Knuckles are supposedly included in
this cart, but only a handful of levels have actually been implemented. You also get the
choice of the three main Sonic characters to play with. This is all fine and dandy, but
it's when the game actually begins that things start going downhill fast (pun intended).
The speed is barely half of what it was in the Genesis versions (if that) and the controls
are broken. Numerous times you'll attempt to go up a hill only to find yourself the victim
of gravity, proving that this is not the Sonic we all know and love. Attempting
to blast off is an exercise in frustration and Sonic's jump isn't what it used to be.
The sparse graphics are hardly worth writing about. Aside from a few flowers and clouds, the backgrounds are void of detail. A few of Sonic's animations have made the transition, but they're hardly noticeable due to the blurring of the screen. Enemies are easily missed due to the same problem resulting in a few uncalled for deaths. The programming wasn't cleaned up to avoid slowdown.
The sound effects have been digitized from the console versions giving them an authentic yet scratchy quality. The music is nothing more than a few bleeps at different frequencies put together to sound like music. Definitely a step down from the memorable tunes on the Genesis.
It's really hard to screw up a Sonic game. It's even harder to say that this
is the highlight of the Game.com's library. It's actually playable, but only for the most
patient of gamers. If you own the console, you have to pick this game up as it's a glimpse
of what the console could accomplish. That's not saying much. However, the system does
include Solitaire... save you money and play that instead.
