Sonic the Hedgehog 3

"8 years old, and still the best Sonic game ever!"

Introduction-

Welcome to sonic the hedgehog 3! Sonic 3 is one of the best games for the Genesis. You will love this game weather your new to the Sonic series, or if you’ve beat every Sonic game ever made. If you are curious weather to buy Sonic the hedgehog 3, then read my review. Here it goes:

Story- 10/10

The story picks up right on the heels of Sonic 2. After being knocked clean out of the sky, Eggman's Death Egg crashes smack into a mysterious floating island: it's the legendary Angel Island, suspended in the sky. Mountains are crushed and forests are burned as Angel Island is pushed with the Death Egg into the sea, creating a massive tsunami but leaving the island floating safely on the ocean's surface. Sonic, meanwhile, is chilling on the beach when he notices a Ring with strange carvings wash up. The Ring reminds him of a legend he'd once heard: the legend of a mysterious island that was once part of the main continent. The island was inhabited by a powerful race of people who had built a strong civilization using the power of ''the mighty stone.'' The peace was shattered, however, when a faction of elders attempted to syphon the power of the ''mighty stone'' for their own selfish purposes. The stone apparently exploded, wiping out the entire civilization. Time passed, and one day a god descended from the heavens and restored a part of the ancient civilization to Angel Island. Sonic and Tails, having nothing better to do, head out on their latest adventure. As soon as Super Sonic dashes into the neighborhood, however, he's given a rude greeting by the local welcoming committee, which consists solely of Knuckles the Echidna. Knuckles socks the seven Chaos Emeralds clean out of Sonic's grasp and makes off with the precious stones before Sonic can say: ''How do I get to South Island from here?'' The fact is that Dr. Eggman has Knux believing that Sonic and Tails are the villains. Being the guardian of Angel Island and its BIG secret, Knux immediately goes about giving the intruders a hard time. While Sonic and Tails are preoccupied with Knuckles, Eggman's busy repairing the Death Egg.

Gameplay- 9/10

The gameplay hasn’t changed a bit. Run from start to finish in the ten minute time limit, grabbing Rings along the way. Players can once again choose to control either Sonic or Tails, but this time they each have their own attributes. Sonic can run, Super Spin Dash, and perform the new W Kaiten Attack: a split-second slash that circles Sonic, increasing his attack radius and temporarily protecting him from damage. The W Kaiten Attack is performed by jumping, then pressing the action button again in mid-air. If Sonic has any kind of a Barrier protecting him, then the W Kaiten will be replaced with that Barrier's special attack. Sonic the hedgehog 3 also has many hidden Special Stages. Finding them is kind of similar to the first Sonic the Hedgehog. You have to find the big ring, and then jump into it. In the Special Stages, you have to get all the blue spheres, without bumping into anything else. After you get so many blue spheres, some will turn into rings, after you collect all the rings, you have to collect more blue spheres. Then, there are the speed ups. After awhile the music will start getting faster, and you will start moving faster. Which makes it harder. The Special Stages take a lot of skill to beat. They are fun but, I think they are way too hard for beginning players. You will get the hang of it after awhile, but it is very frustrating at times. It doesn’t hurt the score much though.

Graphics- 10/10

Sonic 3’s graphics are just plain amazing! I didn’t know the Genesis had that much power. The characters look nice, and sharp, and the backgrounds are excellent too. There is now stuff going on in the background, unlike Sonic 1 and 2. If you thought the graphics of Sonic 1 and 2 were good, you will be amazed at Sonic 3’s graphics.

Sound- 10/10

What is there to say about the sound? It is just like any other Sonic game, you will memorize the tunes immediately. The sound quality is amazingly good for Genesis. The sound effects are pretty much the same. When jump you still here that same old Sonic jump sound. One thing changed is, when you get invincibility, it has new music to it. Sega took out the old music, and put in some new music. You may be disappointed in this change at first but, you will grow to love it just like the old tune. The Sound/Music from Sonic the hedgehog 3 is perfect.

Extras- 10/10

There are a few extra features in Sonic 3, starting with the new Save Feature. Now, If you die on the last boss you don’t have to start all the way over again. that will not happen any more. That means you probably won’t even have to use codes at all. Also, there is a 2-Player Competition Mode. In the Competition Mode, you have many small races that you have to race for 5 laps each against who you’re playing with. Then, at the end whoever has won the most races wins the Competition.

Replay Value- 10/10

Just like in every Sonic game, you will play this game over and over again. Even after you beat it. The 2-Player mode also adds more to the Replay Value. The game is pretty long, though you may think the Save Feature made it shorter. Sonic 3 is worth your money, because you will keep playing it over and over again.

Buy, borrow or leave it in the stores?

Buy. If you have played any of the Sonic games before you will definitely want to pick up Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Why you’re at it, you may also want to pick up a copy of Sonic and Knuckles.
If you have never played a Sonic game before, you may want to borrow it from one of your friends, just to make sure you like it.

Overall- 10/10

From the minute you pick up the game you will love it. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will not disappoint. The Sonic the Hedgehog series was great, and it still is. Buy a copy of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 NOW! It is probably one of the best games of all time. Trust Me.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/11/02, Updated 08/11/02