Revisiting Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog – 16-bit review

So, eventually, on June 23rd 1991 (in the US at least) Sonic the Hedgehog was released to the public.  Players assume the role of the titular hero as they attempt to put a stop to the evil Dr Eggman (or Dr Robotnik, depending on which country you reside in) and rescue all of Sonic’s animal pals from his crazy mechanical scheme.  Sonic achieves this by traversing some of the most bright, beautifully designed and entertaining platforming stages you will ever see.  They contain ramps, loops, slides (all of which were a first, as most platform games at the time just consisted of stages constructed of blocks), and a wonderful selection of colourful enemies to vanquish by using Sonic’s spin attacks.  Television sets litter each stage, containing various power ups to help Sonic along the way, such as speed trainers or temporary invincibility.  At the end of each zone Sonic goes up against Dr Eggman, who must be defeated to rescue a group of Sonic’s trapped friends, and progress to the next area.

Taking a hit will result in Sonic dropping all the rings he was carrying…

Sonic is actually extremely vulnerable – a single hit will result in death, and this is where the rings come in.  Each stage is littered with golden rings for Sonic to collect, and upon acquisition taking a hit will make Sonic drop all the rings he is holding instead of losing a life.  All the rings bounce around for a couple of seconds after being dropped, giving the player chance to re-collect as many as they can during Sonic’s temporary invincibility frames.  This is actually ingenious game design, as so long as Sonic holds at least one ring he cannot be killed by an enemy (although being squashed, falling out of bounds or drowning can still make him lose a life).  This allows beginners to learn the stages without being hampered by constant deaths, while the more skilled players can attempt to collect and hold as many rings as possible. Indeed, collecting 100 rings grants the player with an extra life, whereas finishing a stage with 50 or more rings allows access to the special stages (again a technological feat on the Mega Drive – a fully rotating stage must have been tough to program considering the hardware), where Sonic can attempt to collect one of the 6 elusive Chaos Emeralds.  Collecting them all will result in the game’s true ending.

The rotating special stages were a technical tour-de-force for the hardware…

Graphically the game was absolutely phenomenal at the time, and even today still holds up.  The art direction is superb – putting the Mega Drive’s limited colour palette to excellent use, and proving once and for all that the art style of a game is arguably far more important than the hardware’s pure graphical power.  The animation on Sonic himself is crisp and clear, and all the stages are vibrant and full of life – from the waterfalls and rolling hills of the Green Hill Zone, through to the animated water of the Aztec-esq Labyrinth Zone.  All the enemies are bright and colourful – each having a unique look and charm despite being completely robotic.  What is particularly impressive about the visuals is how quickly the game engine flings them around the screen with barely any slowdown as Sonic charges through tunnels and round loops.  This was a gigantic leap on from other platform games at the time, and is still a joy to behold today.

One of the iconic loops from the Starlight Zone

The music to this game is utterly iconic.  Everybody…and I mean EVERYBODY who plays video games has surely heard the theme tune to Green Hill Zone.  Each theme fits its corresponding level to perfection, and every one sounds different enough to be instantly recognisable.  The sound effects are equally as unique, with the adorable ‘boing’ noise as Sonic jumps, to the chimes of rings being collected to even the cheeky cash register noise that plays after the score has been counted at the end of each stage.  The audio works together with the visuals in almost perfect harmony, creating an overall aesthetic which is utterly irresistible to any casual observers.

Sonic himself had lots of neat little touches in terms of animation…

Of course amazing graphics and catchy tunes wouldn’t mean a thing if the gameplay was not up to scratch, but thankfully Sonic the Hedgehog delivers in spades.  Sonic is responsive and wonderfully precise to control, and the physics that control his acceleration and momentum just feel…. correct.   Each of the massive stages feature multiple paths through, with the upper parts of the levels generally favouring speed over the slower, more complex lower routes.  This does wonders for replay value, as the player gradually learns the stages and subsequently the fastest routes through, effectively turning the whole game into a natural speedrunner, long before speedrunning was even really a thing.  This is aided by the excellent ring collection system, which allows some experimentation and exploration without any detrimental penalties.  How many other games have you played where you collide with a foe you weren’t ready for, or were too slow to react to and had to start the stage over?  Not so in Sonic.  Get hit – fall back, lose a second or two, re-collect a few rings and move on…. remembering the encounter for next time.  The whole game practically begs to be played over and over again.

Touching springs would send Sonic hurtling in the opposite direction

Sonic the Hedgehog is an utterly wonderful game that most of us will be very familiar with and hold dear to our hearts.  But are there any negatives?  Over the 25 years that I have owned this title, the only real negative that comes to mind (apart from occasional slowdown if Sonic drops a lot of rings) is the difficulty curve.  Game-design 101 generally dictates that a game should gradually get more and more difficult as it progresses, with the conclusion being the ultimate test of the player’s skill.  Sonic the Hedgehog mostly follows this rule, with one exception……. Labyrinth Zone Act 3.  For many players this was the wall – the stage that initiated the rage quits….the broken pads…the tears of frustration at a ridiculously hard boss fight that is the pure definition of difficulty spike.  Indeed, my 11 year old self took many many months to conquer that stage, and upon doing so the rest of the game was a breeze.  Nowadays it doesn’t seem that difficult, but I certainly remember this section generating its fair share of sweaty palms in my youth.

Labyrinth Zone required Sonic to inhale air bubbles whilst underwater to prevent drowning…

Another thing worth bearing in mind for purists is how poorly optimised the original Mega Drive cartridge is for PAL systems.  The European game runs a whole 17% slower than on an NTSC system, so collectors take note of this fact if you are planning to acquire an original copy.  Thankfully the issue is with the system rather than the game itself, so popping the PAL cart into an NTSC console will run the game in full 60hz, as nature intended.  Interestingly though, this makes the PAL game a good place to learn how to speed-run the game, and the special stages in particular are much easier in this slowed-down version.

Pros

+ Beautiful visuals and iconic music

+ Great fun to play

+ Immense replay value

Cons

– Some slowdown in busy areas

– Difficulty curve not quite right

– In retrospect the game is quite short

Sonic the Hedgehog is perhaps the definitive Mega Drive title, catapulting Sega into the public eye and kick-starting arguably the greatest console war in the history of gaming.  It got practically everything right, with its stunning visuals, catchy music and awesome gameplay.  It would be the greatest platformer on the Mega Drive, if not for its absolutely phenomenal sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 2.  But that is another story, for another time….

Rating: 9/10

…Click below for a review of the 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog…