Sonic the Hedgehog is a game about a blue, personified rodent that runs from the left side of the screen to the right side of the screen in a relatively hasty manner. Sometimes, he likes to mix things up by skedaddling from the right side of the screen to the left, a feat almost unheard of for NES players. People were so impressed by Sonic’s ability to sprint without fatigue so they all bought his console. And there’s a list of Genesis games that each of these Sega owners on the block had, and you know what I’m talking about: Sonic 2, X-Men, an NHL or NFL game, that iffy Street Fighter 2 port, Columns, possibly a Streets of Rage if your friend was cool. But not Sonic 3, so I never got to truly finish this game until recently.
This game is available on the Sega Genesis, at least three “best of the Sonic/Genesis games we own the rights to” compilations and almost every digital distribution service worth prostituting a hedgehog on.
Best I can tell, the plot for the game reads as follows; Knuckles has self-esteem issues from abusive parents, which turns him into an obnoxious bully. His pent up angst leads him into stealing Sonic’s crystals of godly godliness and Sonic must play Neighbourhood Watch to stop this menace to society. And I think Dr Ro…Eggman is trying to nuke the world. I don’t know. This game uses that grossly underutilized tactic of quickly and effectively telling a story without words, regardless of the player’s level of apathy; every time Sonic beats up something big, Knuckles jumps on an oversized button to do something dastardly. Alas, plot isn’t important here. You’re not playing to explore the heterosexual relationship between Sonic and Tails.
Sonic 3 earns brownie points right off the bat for having a save system to continue from the last world you were playing, as opposed to using that goofy sound test cheat code (you know the one.) Points are lost if you play Sonic’s Ultimate Sega Genesis Collection, as the in-game save system doesn’t seem to, eh, save. You can still record your progress using the compilation’s “Save/Load Game” feature, but leaving the original game’s save feature broken feels rather sloppy on whomever created that port.
Nonetheless, you’ll recognize the Sonic-ish gameplay on display here. You run fast, you speed through all manner of loops, spirals and doodads, and you’ll make tricky jumps across unorthodox-shaped platforms. And you’ll hold your breath underwater. Very often. There sure are a lot of water sequences in Sonic 3. You’ll wonder why part of the casino world is submerged in liquid. Did Knuckles smash up the fountain at the Bellagio? Part of what makes a Sonic game so uniquely Sonic-esque is how the visceral running sequences and platforming parts (you know, the parts you actually do something besides hold right on the d-pad) are interspersed without a sense of disconnection. Sans one or two sections, you rarely feel like the flow of the experience is stopped because a series of slow-moving platforms appear, nor will you often be ambushed by a cheap cameo from spikes during your marathon sprint. It feels like the right combination of being both in and out of control of the madness that is happening, and I dig that.
Really, the nicest compliments I can give to Sonic 3 is that it does what a good Sonic game normally does right. An alternate player can control Tails, whom is more or less indestructible but cannot scroll the screen, as if he is a spectre of some kind. Tails is the perfect option for the girlfriend in your life; the one that wants to participate in your gaming and giggle every time she loses a life while pretending to enjoy herself. Levels have several paths, so falling off a cliff usually means a new area to explore… one often involving water, of course. And, well, it’s a fast game. Replay value is assisted a tad by the newfound ability to play single player with Tails, whom suddenly becomes a lot more vulnerable than his two-player contribution to the team. And then there’s the whole Sonic and Knuckles lock-in cart-functionality that adds…things to the game. I don’t know, Sonic’s Ultimate Sega Genesis Collection didn’t emulate that, grumble grumble grumble.
Which brings me to my issues, negatives, cons, drawbacks, minuses, liabilities, turn-offs, general bad things. They all have to do with the fact that Sonic 3 feels too much like just another Sonic game. Thematically, nothing is new and exciting here. All of the worlds here have either been done before in Sonic 2 (grass land, water land, casino land, second grass land, military base land) or are not really that original to begin with (ice land!) The Mega Mans and Castlevanias of the world at least make a passing effort to shake things up from one cloned sequel to another. The boss fights still largely compose of fighting Dr Robo…Eggman egg spaceship variations, though they still provide the most adequate tests of skill in the experience. There’s still a pain in the hedgearse mini-game for collecting Chaos Emeralds in the name of getting the game’s better ending, and that is just…not…happening. Finally, the Sega Genesis has some kind of a crummy sound chip-thingy. Michael Jackson may or may not have worked on this game’s soundtrack, I haven’t the faintest clue. But I can somewhat see the influence, but I sure as hell have a hard time appreciating whatever grooves the one-gloved-one laid onto the final product.
The verdict on Sonic 3 is that…it is a Sonic game like any other. It does all the right attributes properly, even though they’ve all been done before and done better in underappreciated Game Boy Advance and DS games. For all I know, anally inserting the cartridge into the backside of the Sonic and Knuckles game transforms Sonic 3 into a sidescrolling platformer phenomenon, but I won’t find out for myself anytime soon. Your interest in this cart will largely vary on your fandom of Sonic games in general. At least it beats the snot out of all of the Sonic console games from the last 15 years.
3 ½ stars
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