Sonic CD

"Nothing short of a masterpiece"

Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the best known video game characters of all time. When Sega was ready to launch their Genesis add-on, the Sega CD, they needed a great game to accompany it. Because of the incredible success of Sonic 1 on the Genesis, a Sonic game for the Sega CD was the obvious choice. The result was a near-perfect game. Although the Sega CD ultimately failed, due mostly to it being ahead of it's time, one of the best games ever created was born thanks to it.

Graphics: 10/10
One thing CD run games have always had up on cartridges is superior graphics. Sonic CD is no exception to the rule. Sonic, along with all the other character sprites, looks sharp and clear. The coloring on all the levels is just perfect. The good past levels look sunny and very detailed, while the bad future levels look dark, evil, and also very detailed.

Another feature CD games have is high memory space. This means Sonic CD has room for fully animated cut scenes. The animation of the opening and ending movies alone is spectacular.

Music: 10/10
The high amount of memory doesn't just mean room for animation. It also means there is room for a lot more music. Each level has it's own unique music. With at least three possible modes for each level, every level has at least 3 unique songs. This totals up to about 32 songs. So unlike some of the 16-bit Sonic games, the music track doesn't sound like the same 5 songs over and over.

Sound: 10/10
One thing that is consistent in every Sonic game is the sound effects. From the earliest Game Gear game to the newest Gamecube game, the sounds of sonic jumping, spinning, collecting rings, etc. are exactly the same. This is a good thing, because the sound effects suit Sonic perfectly on any system.

Gameplay: 9.5/10
This game was designed to keep you playing for a while. Every level is nice and long. Because of this, the wonderful save state system was implemented. While making Sonic 3, Sonic Team was being rushed, so they made the levels extremely long and used the same sections over and over. This was very annoying. In Sonic CD, however, the length is an asset. A lot of work was put into making sure each level wasn't repetitive, so as you go through, it all seems different.

While some of the levels proved at least a small challenge, the difficulty of the bosses never quite matched the levels. Metal Sonic was the only boss that proved to be a fun battle, and this is only because it was a literal race against the clock. The final boss seemed the easiest of them all. In any video game, this is a no-no.

The bonus stages have always been one of my favorite aspects of Sonic games. In Sonic CD, they decided to take a little different route. Instead of running through special stages to get Chaos Emeralds, we are treated to a 360*degree plain where we attack UFO's in order to get Time Stones. This new bonus stage type was clearly both an experiment and Sega showing off just what the Sega CD can do. I didn't enjoy this very much, and I'm glad they didn't use this system for any other Sonic games.

Replayability: 8/10
In each level, several different endings are possible. This fact alone adds some depth. You could play through the game in only the good pasts, only the bad futures, or you can mix it up. The time attack mode can be fun to, because you get some bonuses if you bring it down to a certain time. You'll have fun with this for a while.

Buy/Download?

This game you definitely must have. If you're one of the many people who don't own a Sega CD, you can still buy this game. With the wonders of console emulation, you can just stick this in your cd-rom and play as if you owned a Sega CD. If you can't find the game to buy, just download the ISO. The problem with this is you must download each song and make sure they are named and numbered correctly. No matter how you acquire it, I strongly recommend you own this. Sonic CD is one of the greatest games ever produced.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/13/03, Updated 06/30/03