Sonic the Hedgehog is one of gaming’s most recognizable faces, and yet, for most of his three decades on the scene, there’s been a disconnect between the likeability of the character and the quality of his games. For every Sonic the Hedgehog 2 or Sonic 3 & Knuckles, there’s a Sonic the Hedgehog ’06 or bizarre spin-off leering from the side of the room.
However, the past few years have been very good for the Blue Blur. His live-action movie not only made it to the theatres, but was actually pretty good, and even spawned a better sequel; judging by the first trailer, the third movie coming next month might be even better still. The latest cartoon, Sonic Prime, was well received—which hasn’t always been the case for his animated hijinx—and the IDW comic series is going strong, 70+ issues later.
And since Sonic Mania Plus restored balance to the gaming side of the franchise in 2018, Sega has been churning out a pretty solid stream of games—either solid new adventures like Sonic Frontiers, or redeeming remasters like Sonic Origins Plus and last month’s Sonic x Shadow Generations. In some ways, it hasn’t been this good to be a Sonic fan since the Genesis or GameCube days, and there’s no need for this Spin Dash to slow to a stop anytime soon.
There are plenty of other Sonic the Hedgehog games that deserve a remaster and a shot at new audiences—and here are our top five choices.
5) Sonic Spinball & Sonic 3D Blast
Last summer, when Sega updated the stellar Sonic Origins collection with a “Plus” DLC that added the 12 Game Gear games, I remarked that I would’ve gladly paid more to have updated versions of Sonic Spinball and Sonic 3D Blast instead of paying $10 for 12 lackluster Game Gear games. Origins was a painstakingly thorough rebuild of the classics, but these remaining Genesis games are a more fitting portrait of Sonic’s trajectory in the earlier years—and with some modern elbow grease, they might clean up pretty well.
Sonic Spinball may have originated as a desperate effort to ensure there would be a new Sonic game available for the 1993 shopping season, but it was also a fitting direction for a spin-off (no pun intended). After all, with how much time Sonic spends inside pinball-themed levels in the original games, it’s a natural progression. Spinball takes players through four novel, themed levels in pursuit of Chaos Emeralds, fighting robots and bosses along the way, using the mechanics and format of a pinball machine throughout.
Sonic 3D Blast is also a bit of an outsider, as it was developed by Traveler’s Tales and not Sonic Team. Releasing in the wake of Super Mario 64, Sonic’s farewell to the Genesis is often forgotten, but for an outside studio’s first take on the IP, at a time when 3D gameplay was in its infancy, it holds up fairly well.
Both games would benefit from the same treatment the rest of the Genesis games got in Origins—upgrading from simple emulation and adapting to modern resolutions. Having the Genesis generation of Sonic remastered and completely available on modern platforms, even as another pack of DLC for the existing game, would be a feather in longtime fans’ caps.
4) Knuckles Chaotix
One game from the Sonic umbrella saw release during the brief, tragic lifespan of Sega’s 32X add-on: Knuckles Chaotix. Despite the name, it still makes our wishlist of remasters for the impact it had on the series’ roster.
Knuckles Chaotix turned the spotlight on “Sonic’s Friendly Rival,” hot after his debut in Sonic 3, and assembled a crew of new allies: Mighty the Armadillo, Vector the Crocodile, Espio the Chameleon, and Charmy the Bee. Mighty had appeared in the mythical SegaSonic the Hedgehog arcade game, and Charmy in the Japan-only comic, but for the few western gamers who played Chaotix at the time, the ensemble was new—and since their debut, they’ve all been recurring characters throughout Sonic media, even in Sonic X Shadow Generations.
Now, of all the remasters we want to see on this list, Knuckles Chaotix might need the most work; a new re-release would likely be closer to a complete rebuild. The original hinged upon a tether mechanic, where players controlled two characters simultaneously and maneuvered them with a series of gimmicks and their unique abilities. As such the focus shifted away from fast-paced exploration and combat, and toward gimmicky platforming.
However, if Sega would set someone like Sonic Team or Headcannon to giving Chaotix some love, we’re sure fans would jump at the chance to experience one of the more impactful pieces of apocrypha with fresh eyes. Despite being one of the few games that hasn’t been re-released since its initial launch, it’s an important piece of the IP’s puzzle.
3) The Archie Comics Series
I was going to properly recommend SegaSonic the Hedgehog, the nigh-lost arcade machine that only a lucky few Japanese gamers ever got to experience. But since it’s such a long shot, between its obscurity and its trackball controls, I’ll call an audible and pivot into a different medium to suggest a different sort of remaster that’s probably just as impossible.
Back in the mid-90s, Archie Comics published a monthly Sonic the Hedgehog comic series that enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with the other parts of the franchise for many years. While Sega tried to capitalize on Sonic’s popularity in various cartoons, the Archie Comics team took these disparate pieces and tried to give them one consistent throughline; when later games added characters like Knuckles, Shadow, or the Chaotix, the comic welcomed them into its storylines.
Though the series began to teeter off the rails the longer it went on, it’s a shame that it’s so hard to find the first 50 issues or so, plus all the special issues and limited miniseries that accompanied them. At times they were corny and juvenile; at others they were tapped into the pop culture zeitgeist or surprisingly mature for the target audience. How well they’ve aged is largely a case-by-case consideration.
Nonetheless, recovering this era of Sonic the Hedgehog history would be as cathartic as any of these potential game remasters. I’m sure I’m not the only one who grew up anticipating each new issue as a kid, and would jump at the chance to buy an omnibus as an adult, to share with a new generation and reminisce. Unfortunately, this would require Sonic’s legal custodians and the original writer to bury the hatchet and play nice, and that’s frankly not going to happen anytime soon.
2) Sonic Advance (trilogy)
At this point in the list we turn away from diamonds in the rough, and focus on true classics—starting with the Sonic Advance trilogy from the Game Boy Advance.
Once Sega abandoned the hardware race, they made good with Nintendo and released a trio of classic, side-scrolling Sonic the Hedgehog games on the GBA, even as the series’ main focus was shifting to 3D. After years of games that took the series’ formula to drastic new lengths across Sega’s baffling succession of hardware, Sonic Advance arrived like a life preserver.
It was good old-fashioned Sonic the Hedgehog, with dynamic levels, vibrant colours, a quintessential cast of four playable characters, stimulating bosses, and an epic “true” finale as Super Sonic. The two sequels that followed kept up this high pedigree; Sonic Advance 2 is one of my favourite 2D Sonics after Sonic 3 & Knuckles, and Sonic Advance 3 felt like a redemption for Chaotix, making the mandatory partner-based gameplay feel intuitive instead of a chore. For a while, these games were “Sonic the Hedgehog 4” to me (until we got an actual game by that name… but that’s a different story).
Though these games are as good (or dare I suggest, better) than the original Genesis trilogy, they live relatively forgotten in the GBA’s stellar library. Ideally this hypothetical Sonic remaster would get the full Origins treatment to expand the resolution; like their Game Gear forebears, these handheld-first entries could use a bigger visible area, free from the constraints of the GBA’s smaller screen. If nothing else they would be right at home on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass roster.
1) The GameCube Era (Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, Sonic Heroes)
Halfway through the first zone of Sonic X Shadow Generations, I thought to myself, “they’re finally ready to remaster Sonic Adventure 2.”
Originally released on Dreamcast and later updated for the GameCube, Adventure 2 is the surest candidate on this list of hypothetical Sonic remasters. This was the origin of Shadow the Hedgehog and the advent of a new 3D age for Sonic—thanks largely in part to feedback from the first Adventure. The story stages are split into good and bad sides, with three different gameplay styles: Sonic and Shadow’s levels are fast-paced, third-person platforming (much like the Modern style of Generations); Tails and Eggman’s levels are mech-based shooters; and Knuckles and Rogue’s levels are “hot or cold” treasure hunts. Of course, the highlights are the hedgehogs’ stages, but there was other styles had their own merits and suited Tails and Knuckles’ skills.
It was like the second coming of Sonic, at the time, and this game still ranks as one of the best in the franchise. Yet remastering only Sonic Adventure 2 would raise some eyebrows, so our top pick is not only a SA2 remaster, but a Sonic Origins-style compilation including the original Sonic Adventure and the follow-up, Sonic Heroes. Even the most jaded of Sonic’s lapsed fans should agree that there’s a lot of historical value (and just plain fun) to be found in exploring this trilogy.
Sonic Adventure was a “growing pains” moment as Sonic and Sega learned how to truly work in 3D (with a truly epic showdown in the final boss). But like Sonic Advance 3, Sonic Heroes found a way to avoid Chaotix‘s curse and integrate multiple playable characters simultaneously: three-person teams. One character on each team had speed, one had power, and one had flight; clearing a stage required clever use of all three skillsets. It also found a way to use all of those side characters from other entries on this list, giving the Chaotix a star turn, and even creating a more accessible play style with Amy’s team.
Sonic the Hedgehog’s GameCube era stands comparable to the Genesis era, so I understand why Sega might be hesitant to touch these greats. But by now, their teams have shown they have great respect and passion for the franchise, and the skill needed to breathe life into older titles. It’s time to “Escape From The City” on modern consoles.
And while you’re at it, please please please give us a new iteration of the Tiny Chao Garden. Sega, you can’t just throw Chao into Sonic x Shadow Generations and not expect people to clamour for the return of the greatest sidequest in your company’s history.
