Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – Now With 3D Graphics!!

WHOOOOOOAAAAAAAAA!! Don’t fall over dudes!! Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is back in THREE DEE!! Have YOU played it yet? Everyone at school is talking about it. Remastered in stereoscopic 3D glory, the world of Sonic 2 has come alive. Race across Emerald Hill Zone, work your way through Chemical Plant Zone, hold your nose through Oil Ocean Zone and explore Mystic Cave Zone like NEVER BEFORE! Collect rings, save animals, run through loops and take on a range of bosses in glorious 3D graphics that fit in your pocket. That’s right, you can take it to school and be the coolest kid there. 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 has launched on the Nintendo 3DS eShop for a few dollars, and it’s worth throwing your lunch away for.

See these blades of grass? You might think you can comprehend them, but you have no idea what the 3DS screen is capable of. New in 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the wavy tips of the grass appear in a slightly distant layer of 3D. This makes the grass feel a little bit extra thick and lush. That’s right you can’t just see it, but feel it. Little effects like that are only possible on Nintendo 3DS and make it the definitive version of the game. If you rub the screen against your face you might be able to smell grass too. Don’t try to eat it, though. At least not without a professional around. This remaster is full of excellent details like that and it makes you appreciate the finer things you might not have noticed in regular, boring 2D Sonic the Hedgehog. You can view things in different 3D modes depending on how you deal with the 3D effect, pop-out if you want the graphics to pop in your face, or fill-in to get your fill of awesome graphics. There’s also CRT mode but TVs are old news, man.

Take in the beautiful environments of Sonic 2 with an unprecedented level of depth. While the 2D classic gameplay remains unchanged, the backgrounds whiz by in different layers at different speeds. This makes the levels feel more wholesome and also compliments the sense of speed. It’s so fast you’ll be like “SLOW DOWN, SONIC 2!!” and it won’t listen. You can reach for that 3D slider, but the density of Aquatic Ruin Zone’s plants will lure you back in. You can feel the water on your face. The space between the crystals in Mystic Cave Zone is now a playground for the bass line to echo back and forth. With different background layers doing their own individual thing and scrolling at their own pace, it’s like you’re playing 6 games at once!

…. YEAAAAAAAAAH!! Sure buddy. How did you get here? DOESN’T MATTER!! It’s the 90s and we’re all invited to FUN! 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 includes 2 player if you have a local friend with a 3DS. Shouldn’t be hard to find because this is the most popular game around. Find someone patient enough to play as Tails while you scroll the screen at an impossible speed, and you have a friend for life.

If your lame parents want to play, there’s a brand new “Ring Keeper” mode to make everything super easy! You start every level with 10 rings, and you only lose half your rings when you get hit. It’s practically impossible to die unless you fall into a pit, and bosses are a complete joke. Just run and jump into them. You won the game. This mode was made the default option, just to scare people into thinking that game design and challenge had become irrelevant. Haha. That’ll never happen. Not as long as it’s the 90s. For people in a mad rush, you can also select “credits” from the menu without even playing a level. This is for that kid who sucks at the game but doesn’t want to feel left out. Enjoy the sweet music, dude. There’s a party here for everyone. There’s also a secret mode if you beat the game, OOOOO!! Read SEGA POWER edition 92 to find out if you can’t get your hands on the game. It’s only for Super Players.

Here we have the thinking pit. As your rings slip away into the dark corners of the cave, you hear the crystals laughing in the distance as they collect their bounty and cash-in on your sorrow. You’re given just enough time to feel regret and contemplate the choices you made that led to this moment. The lesson here is don’t fall down pits. You might think you’re a rad, tough dude or dudette jumping carelessly down the pit, but you’re dead. You should’ve grabbed the vine. The vine you were too cool for. The level design doesn’t care how brave you are if you can not harness your power as a player.

Great level design doesn’t age and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is no exception. The game strikes a nice balance of speed and patience, resulting in a satisfying level of control and momentum. Momentum doesn’t mean holding right to win, it comes from control. That means CHECKING yourself, bro. You’re going to have to jump over pits, carefully avoid spikes, and look at things while going fast. This makes it not just thrilling but dangerous. The game is short enough so you should be able to remember these things. If you know where everything is, the game is over in 30 minutes. That’s the whole point of them, to be obstacles. A lot of things can kill you, but if you take them seriously you’ll be apples.

Throw your lunch away right now and smack down a few bucks for this if you want the best version of Sonic 2. The 3D is flawless, it’ll WOW you but it’s also very well presented and clean. It’s extremely well-made just like every other 3D Classic by development team M2. Shout out to them because they are amazing. They also do a great job porting GBA games to Wii U, the best emulation on that system by far. Thanks dudes, I hope you never get tired of the classics. This game is a flawless port in terms of graphics, controls and gameplay and with these added bells and extra customisation, you can’t go wrong. Nothing here takes away from how faithful this port is. Get into it. 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is the best 3D Sonic game.