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Sonic The Hedgehog: The Game Gear Adventures

Since his debut on the Sega Genesis in 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog has become a popular video game icon, starring not only in many best-selling games, but also in cartoons, comic books, toys, clothing, and much more. His most popular games are arguably those that have appeared on the 16-bit Genesis, but for a time, he was also featured in a variety of 8-bit titles released for the Sega Game Gear. This hand held system was released in 1991 in order to try and dethrone Nintendo's reliable Game Boy by offering a full color screen. While it did last a good few years, it became notorious for its somewhat bulky weight and its tendency to drain batteries within a couple of hours. Nevertheless, it lasted long enough for Sonic and friends (and foes) to star in no less than twelve games released between 1991 and 1996. Here is a brief description of those games, which ranged from good to fair to downright ugly.

First in 1991 came Sonic the Hedgehog, which was a port of the Sega Master System version rather than the Genesis classic. It played much like the latter, but with some new stages, and new perks such as having the Chaos Emeralds located in the actual stages rather than in bonus levels; and all boss battles having to be fought without nabbing a single ring. While not quite as good as the Genesis version of Sonic, it is still a solid platform game, filled with plenty of the classic Sonic twists and turns. The hedgehog's hand held career was off to a good start, but his next adventure would be among his worst games ever.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2, released in 1992, was also different from the Genesis version. Here, Sonic had to rescue Tails from the clutches of the evil Dr. Robotnik, collecting the Chaos Emeralds as he went (in order to get the best ending) and using vehicles in some stages to help him. Unfortunately, the game is plagued with many forms of the bad type of hard. Some of the vehicle controls, particularly the hang glider, are broken; the Chaos Emeralds are hard to find without a walk through; the screen resolution is too small to see many dangers; and the lack of rings in boss battles made them frustrating. As a result, it was inferior in every way to the 16-bit classic, and is recommended only for die hards and those who do not mind poor game design so much.

1993 brought Sonic Chaos, the first time in a hand held game that Sonic and Tails were both playable. This time, the game played more like the Genesis titles, with the Emeralds hidden in special stages and Sonic and Tails using their own classic moves, such as the Spin Dash. As a result, it plays much better than Sonic 2, although getting the Emeralds can still be an annoying experience. Even so, it is one of Sonic's better Game Gear titles, and 1993 also saw his archenemy becoming the star of his own game...

Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine was released for the Game Gear as well as the Genesis. Based on Puyo Puyo, it challenged players to connect the falling beans in order to rescue them from Robotnik and his robots (many of which were from the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog TV series). I like both versions, but I am more partial to the 16 bit version as the hand held version is watered down with only one difficulty for the single player experience and (understandably) downgraded graphics and music. The puzzle mode, on the other hand, is addictive and tricky. This was back when many addictive puzzle games were released and became popular even to this day.

Mario had starred in the highly successful Super Mario Kart, so in 1994, Sonic was featured in his own kart racer, along with Tails, Robotnik, and Amy Rose, called Sonic Drift. Spanning the original six zones of the original Genesis title, the four characters would race to the finish, using various power ups like bombs and speed boosts along the way. The lack of playable characters and track variations make this a merely decent racer, but a superior sequel was on the way. Sonic Drift is one of two Sonic Game Gear titles that was originally released only in Japan: it was not until 2003 that it was released in the United States as an unlockable extra in Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut for the Nintendo GameCube.

Also in 1994, there was a port of Sonic Spinball, released the year before on the Genesis. Sonic had to fight his way through Robotnik's pinball defense program in order to collect the Chaos Emeralds and destroy his volcano fortress. It was a dumbed down version of the original, with easier physics to deal with, but the graphical slowdown, uninteresting bonus stages, and an insanely long credits sequence make for an inferior port. After this, pinball would only occasionally show up in Sonic games such as Sonic Adventure and Sonic Heroes.

The final Sonic Game Gear title released in 1994 was Sonic Triple Trouble, another platform title starring Sonic and Tails. It played much like the Genesis titles, with new features like a submarine for Tails; and featured Knuckles the Echidna as a rival and bounty hunter Nack the Weasel as a new (and underutilized) antagonist. Reminiscent of other Sonic platform titles of the 90s, the game is suitably fun and challenging, and is perhaps the best of the 8-bit side scrolling titles. Although Nack would be featured in some other titles, he never really became a star, and since the mid-1990s has mainly appeared in the comics as an occasional villain.

it was Tails' turn to star in his own adventure, and 1995 gave him two opportunities to do just that. The first was in the form of Tails' Skypatrol, where Tails had to fly through the air, using his ring to defeat enemies and grab onto poles, so that he could stop Wendy Witchcart and her minions from causing trouble. A good idea, but a very hard difficulty and a short length (only five stages long) make it feel more like a demo and less like a true game. Like Sonic Drift, Tails' Skypatrol was a Japanese exclusive until 2003, when it joined the other eleven Sonic Game Gear games as an unlockable extra in Sonic Adventure DX.

The other game to star Tails in 1995 was Tails' Adventure, where the young fox fought to save his island from an army of malicious birds. It played rather like an RPG, with equippable items (such as bombs and a remote-controlled robot), puzzles, and upgrades for Tails' health and flying power. At the same time, it also had platform elements with enemies to defeat and rings to collect. It all made for a surprisingly awesome title and perhaps the best Sonic Game Gear title of them all. Unfortunately, Tails has yet to star in another adventure of his own.

Two more Sonic games for the Game Gear were also released in 1995. First was Sonic Drift 2, the sequel to Sonic Drift, with Knuckles, Nack, and Metal Sonic joining the original four drivers for more racing mayhem. A greater variety of characters, more varied tracks, and a hidden final track make it a solid racer, and better than the original in every way. One wishes Sonic R for the Sega Saturn was also as good. Oddly, Sonic Drift 2 was released in North America under its original title, even though the first Sonic Drift had not been released outside of Japan.

Sonic Labyrinth was the last of the Game Gear additions for 1995, and it featured Sonic trapped in Robotnik's labyrinth in an isometric view...and without his trademark speed. Using his spin dash, he would have to collect the keys needed to reach the exit to each level so that he could get his shoes back. Having a slow Sonic makes for a lackluster experience, and the short and somewhat slow game play does not help. It is as if this could be an early example of why Sonic does not seem to work in a 3D environment.

In 1996, Sonic Blast, the final Sonic Game Gear entry, was released. No relation to Sonic 3D Blast for the Genesis and Saturn, it had Sonic and Knuckles as playable characters out to stop Robotnik and collect the Chaos Emeralds one more time. The graphics were supposed to be computer enhanced a la Donkey Kong Country, but the results were ugly, and the tough bonus stages make for a frustrating experience. This was a rather anti climatic end to Sonic's Game Gear titles, though he would later star in successful titles for the Game Boy Advance, Playstation Portable, and Nintendo DS.

Sonic the Hedgehog starred in mostly well-received games for the Genesis, but his Game Gear adventures met with decidedly mixed reviews. Some were very well made, some were passable, and some should never have seen the light of day. However, each one may be worth a try for die hard fans, who may or may not enjoy any of the above titles. I personally love games like Tails' Adventure and Sonic Drift 2, and hate those like Sonic 2 and Sonic Blast with a passion. At least they give players a chance to see how Sega was experimenting with the world-famous hedgehog even early in his career. The games themselves may be a bit hard to track down, but they have been re-released on the aforementioned Sonic Adventure DX as well as Sonic Mega Collection Plus for the Playstation 2 and Xbox, and Sonic Gems Collection for the GameCube. It is certainly fascinating to see the good, bad, and ugly sides of Sonic in his 8-bit adventures. It just goes to show how far Sonic has come, and even back then, it proves how he has fared in the video game industry as a whole.