The blue hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog | The 10 best games of the saga
We take a quick look at the most outstanding titles over the decades of the fastest blue hedgehog of all time, which is once again in the news.
SEGA's hedgehog celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2021, but couldn't celebrate it with a new video game. Sonic Frontiers, a title that will explore open-world mechanics on consoles and PC, will be available later this year, 2022. In the meantime, it is a good time to remember the franchise, those products that we have enjoyed during these decades of fun at breakneck speed. And all this at a time when Sonic's name is on billboards around the world.
Sonic's expansion into the audiovisual medium has been consolidated with Sonic The Hedgehog and Sonic The Hedgehog 2, but the party has only just begun. In addition to Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which has already been officially confirmed, there will be a live-action series with Knuckles and an animated series on Netflix (Sonic Prime), which will be released later this year.
With everything that has arrived and is yet to come, our colleague and Sonic expert from MeriStation Spain, Ramón Méndez, compiles the best Sonic ever. Do you agree with the list?
10. Sonic Generations (2011)
To celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the blue hedgehog, Sega surprised us all with a game that masterfully mixed the two sides of the franchise. On the one hand, we had the traditional Sonic of the 16 bits, in hilarious 2D platform stages. On the other, we had the modern Sonic, more slender and with frenetic and crazy speed sections. The mix worked very well in a title that paid homage to classic stages, characters and even timeless melodies from previous games. The best possible birthday present.
9. Sonic Adventure (1998)
Although it was not the first fully 3D Sonic (as the character had already been seen three-dimensionally in Sonic Jam and Sonic R), it was the first game in which Sega's mascot really shone in a new dimension. Sonic Adventure became an instant classic thanks to its varied gameplay (in which each character had its own control system and abilities), a very interesting plot and stages that were spectacular for the time. Later ports did not do justice to this great adventure of the blue hedgehog.
8. Sonic Adventure 2 (2001)
After the great success of the first part, Sega had a hard time raising the bar. However, they managed to get Sonic back on everyone's lips just a couple of years later, thanks to an even bigger adventure in which we were introduced to characters that would become emblematic of the franchise, as is the case of Shadow. It followed the line drawn by Sonic Adventure and we experienced the stories of several characters, but everything was bigger and more spectacular, as well as being more polished. Although it came out in the twilight of Dreamcast, it had the chance to redeem itself in GameCube.
7. Sonic Advance (2002)
It was one of the Sonic games that caused the most anticipation before its release, as it was the first completely original game in the franchise to be released away from Sega's platforms. And it proved that the GameBoy Advance was the perfect platform to recover the essence of the traditional games of the blue hedgehog in the 16 bits, with a platform title based on overcoming 2D levels along nine stages easily recognizable by fans of the franchise. With four characters to choose from, it was a game that left a great sensation and is still very enjoyable today.
6. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (2012)
Although it is not a typical Sonic game, because there are numerous Sega characters, scenarios and games, we could not resist including this spin-off in the list. Not in vain, it is a very fun title, with endless possibilities and that gives room for frenetic, intense and spectacular multiplayer games. All this, in a technical spectacle that is a love letter to all the great works that Sega has given us over the years, although with Sonic as the central element of the lineup. At the time, it even managed to look Mario Kart in the face, which are big words.
5. Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)
The game that gave birth to the legend. It is the simplest game of all those that have starred the blue hedgehog to date: collect rings, jump, kill Robotnik and move from stage to stage. However, it has nuances that make the experience unique and very special. Whether it's Sonic's frenetic speed (and how well they play with this to combine fast phases with other slower ones in which the hedgehog himself gets impatient when he has to wait for a platform) or the peculiarity that each phase has several different routes and hides endless secrets. Almost 30 years later, it is still a delight to enjoy this game, which has not aged at all.
4. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992)
The second part of Sonic's adventures was a bigger, longer and better game, with the introduction of Tails, a quite remarkable technical leap (with some really spectacular level, enemy and character designs) and new movements and objects that gave the experience a greater depth. If the first installment was a success, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was the game that established the blue hedgehog in popular culture as one of the biggest icons of the videogame industry.
3. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994)
The launch of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was held in style, as both the character and a work of this magnitude deserved. Apart from being able to play with Sonic or Tails, the game introduced us to the emblematic Knuckles, the guardian of the emeralds that Robotnik tricked so that he would not stop putting obstacles in our way. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 squeezed the full potential of Mega Drive with a constant search for spectacularity, whether impossible worlds, stunning graphic effects, environments full of life and color or situations of the most varied. A game that at the time seemed impossible in 16 bits and that time has treated very well, so it remains a must for lovers of 2D platformers.
2. Sonic CD (1993)
Little can be said about this title that hasn't already been said. Despite being limited at the time due to its release on Mega CD, this timeless gem has enjoyed the recognition it deserved from the press and, eventually, from the users, to the point that it did not end up falling into oblivion and is usually one of the fans' favorite titles. A game that exploited Mega CD very well, counting with impossible camera turns to convey the feeling of speed and dizziness of the blue hedgehog, posters to travel to the past to the future, impressive animation sequences by Toei Animation and even presenting characters as charismatic and timeless as Amy Rose or Metal Sonic. Undoubtedly, an unforgettable game.
1. Sonic Mania (2017)
It is a curious fact that the best Sonic game in many years, and possibly the best game of the franchise, is born from a simple fan. A proof that when the fan is so fond of a license and has the support of the company responsible for it, great things can be done.
Sonic Mania takes us back to the times of the 16 bits, with recycled graphics, many familiar environments, the same gameplay and plenty of tributes to the traditional Sonic. But, at the same time, it presents us with graphic effects impossible on the Mega Drive, new game modes, new playable possibilities and more.
Of all the history of the blue hedgehog, very few works exude as much love for the character as this Sonic Mania that, without you realizing it, manages to grab you from beginning to end.