My Played Video Games Review: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis

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Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a platform video game developed and published by Sega of Japan in 1992 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. The game was developed by a team of Japanese and American game developers at the Sega Technical Institute (STI), Sega's own USA development division, in California.

When I was gifted a Sega Genesis in 1994 by my uncle for Christmas, this was the second Sega video game that I ever played in my life. The first was Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage. Those were good times indeed.

The Story

Sonic's got that super speed! He is back and speedier than ever. He is that blue blur! A full blue blaze of action! With a new Super Spin Dash and a new, cute furry friend called "Tails" the Fox. See Sonic overcome gravity in racing loops. Grab them Power Sneakers and race like a meteor through the mazes. Dash like crazy across a corkscrew speedway. Bounce like a pinball through the corners of the fantastic Zones. All at eye-popping speed!

Sonic got that attitude of "can-do". The crazy, mad scientist Dr. Robotnik is planning a takeover of the world. Sonic gets tough and going in the fight to save his friends and beat down Robotnik for good!

The Graphics and Sound

A great improvement over Sonic 1 which I have reviewed in a post before. This game looks eye-candy beautiful. Every little bit seems to be colorful and detailed, and this is definitely one of the best looking platforming games out there. It looks timeless even now.

Another best part of this game is the game music. Every track in the game seems to sound catchy, and it has certainly got the best music out of most Genesis games. They fit in nicely with the themes of the levels. While immersed in playing, you will enjoy the game's powerful beats.

The Gameplay

This was a fantastic improvement over the first by adding a brand-new move: the Spin-Dash, which is a visually fast spinning maneuver that adds so much more to the game. The level design is almost perfect, although some parts are a bit tough (pesky enemies in some levels, etc.) Sonic moves much faster now. A mix of high speed dash zones and puzzle bits give this game variety, and even the disliked levels are enjoyable. Overall, the speed and physics make this game feel it is a true blockbuster gaming classic.

Controls are a dream with immediate response, and quite easy to learn. Only some moves to choose from, but the simplicity is successful.

Replay value is great. The 2 player can control "Tails" the Fox as assist. Tails can hover for a short while. Or the main player can use Tails as main use character.

Even now the game is quite fun to play, and even failing/dying doesn't feel that bad. You will want to beat it again and find all the secrets. And when you finally do, you will want to go over the well- designed zones again. This is probably the best fun you could have on a Sega Genesis game.

My Verdict

Sonic 2 is a great classic platform title for a system that leaves a long lasting, great gaming memory in your gaming mind.

Some may complain that it is damn short, Super Mario loyalists may question its replay value and difficulty. For the rest of us, however, we get to play a game that is a great example of Sega's time as a game development titan during the 1990s.

Go try and play this on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive or play it on easy to use emulators.

Let's keep on gaming in the free world!