Blue Blur

And we're back to talking about old games, and the rotation falls back on the Sega Game Gear. I'll tell you that back then, I was kind of a Sonic addict. Out of the roughly 29 games I can remember having for my Game Gear (I had the thing for over 8 years, after all), at least six involved the super-fast, spiny blue hedgehog, and there were others I would have gotten, if given the chance. I can't say I liked all of them (Sonic the Hedgehog 2/Sonic & Tails was a disappointment for conspicuous lack of Tails, and Sonic Labyrinth? Well, wouldn't you say a Sonic game where he doesn't run fast sort of misses the point of the character?), but most of them were entertaining.

I'd say my favorite would probably be the original, Sonic the Hedgehog, because it kept things simple. Not that Sonic games are ever all that complex. I mean, you start at the beginning of a level, you run, and jump, and either avoid enemies, or do your spin attack to destroy them. At the third stage of each level, you fight Dr. Robotnik, and eventually you save the day.

But the later games had a particular aspect to them that frequently annoyed me, and that related to the Chaos Emeralds. See, in the first game, the Emeralds were just scattered throughout the levels, and if you found them, they provided a point boost to your final score, but if you didn't, no biggie, because if you're at the end, that means you beat the bad guy and saved the day, and that's what's important.

But in the later games, the Emeralds became more critically important. In Sonic 2, even if you beat Robotnik, if you hadn't collected all seven emeralds, you couldn't free Tails (never came up for me, as the game crushed me easily). I did actually manage to beat Sonic: Triple Trouble once, only to be told I needed to try again, seeing as I'd only gotten four of the six Emeralds (What happened to the seventh Emerald? There were only six in the original, and six in the third game, but seven in game #2. Where'd #7 come from/go to?). But consider this: Robotnik needs all six to make his big "Destroy the Planet" Weapon. You've got four of the six. Therefore, he can't use the weapon, because he doesn't have all the Emeralds (technically, he has none, as a thief named Nack has the other two), so what does it matter? You beat him, Mecha-Sonic, rescued Knuckles, all should be right with the world, right? Right?!

Back on topic. Sonic the Hedgehog.

Given such a simple game, I'm not entirely certain what else to say about it. It was the one game I've ever simply traded for, no money involved, getting this game and Taz-Mania from a fellow at school for Mortal Kombat. You know, the bloody combat, I mean kombat, really wasn't all that interesting after a little while. I will say water levels in Sonic games invariably drive me nuts, because of the air limitations, and how much slower and harder to maneuver he is. But I suppose that only makes it more satisfying when you succeed. It was your classic sort of gaming experience, with the boss battles relying on recognition of patterns and good timing, rather than any sort of intricate puzzle you had to suss out. I always liked the end of the game {SPOILER FOR THE END OF A 15 YEAR OLD GAME!}, after you've smashed the Doctor's final boss machine, and he flees into his teleporter. You hop in after him, the screen goes white. The next scene shows the Doctor fleeing in his little hovercraft, back amongst the gentle hills and grassy plains of the first level. Then, you abruptly teleport in above him, in spin attack form, drop down, smash his machine, and send him crashing to earth. It's nice because the first time through, I had a brief moment of "Oh no, is he gonna get away? I didn't do all this fighting for nothing, did I", and then everything works out. Hooray!