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 THAT'S A LOT OF SONIC SONIC MEGA COLLECTION Written By Shaun McCracken I'm kind of a sucker for classic compilation games. Wether it be the arcade classic collections from Midway or Namco, or an offering of classic console games such as the Sega Smash Pack, I always enjoy going back to the classics, especially in today's gaming climate. The thing about compilation packs is that you pretty much know what you should expect in terms of graphics, sound and gameplay. This is why you want the game in the first place, to relive those memories, or catch up on what you may have missed. So then the key to a really good classic game collection lies in two areas: how good the emulation is and how good the offerings have been made available. You can have all the greatest hits, and each game can be a poor translation due to poor emulation work. But then you can have a really great translation and not offer the best games in the collection. Sonic Mega Collection manages to do both pretty well. It has a fairly solid lineup of games, and is emulated to near-perfection. But will this interest you? Read on. Sonic Mega Collection cuts to the chase. No complicated plots or storylines, just a collection of every Sonic game released on the Genesis. You get Sonic 1, 2, and 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3-D Blast, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Sonic Spinball and some extra unlockables such as Flicky and Ristar. Every game in this collection has been emulated very well. In fact, it's a little bit better than it was on the Genesis thanks to a slight boost in resolution. But nothing, and I mean NOTHING has been changed in these games. Every stage is there, as it was in the past. Every item is in the same place. Even the slowdown still exists (couldn't that be fixed?). Keeping everything in place is both a good and bad thing. Sega hasn't screwed around with what made these games great, but on the other hand, they didn't take the extra step to keep track of your best scores, or save your progress in every game, not just in Sonic 3. Why can a free emulator that can be used on your computer be able to save exactly where you are in the game (a saved state), but nothing like this could be implemented in this collection. Each game plays as well as it did back in the 90's. Of course, now you're using a Gamecube controller instead of a Genesis pad. But using the Gamecube controller is not all bad. You can use the stick, and it actually feels pretty natural. Most Sonic games just use one button, and the large A-button does the trick. Sonic Spinball feels different, since all three buttons were used, and some may not like that scheme. I really don't care, since I mapped the A button to flip both flippers. That's how I used to play Sonic Spinball, I never bothered using one flipper individually. Sonic 3-D blast also feels a bit strange on the GC controller, since I expect to jump when I press A. Instead, I roll around. Again, just change the default controls, and you're good to go. The graphics are a tough thing to judge for a game like this. If the score was based upon emulation, it would score almost perfectly. But really, that's not fair to the other games, since they are two worlds apart. Also, you can make the argument that the graphics here are much more primitive than say, Metroid Prime or even Sonic Adventure 2. So, you have to compromise with a score that acknowledges the great emulation with the dated material. So, for the sake of argument, the emulation is done very well, and the game looks as it should. That's what's important for a game like this. The sound is no different from the graphics. Emulated very well, but dated compared to modern releases. It should be noted that Sega did an excellent job emulating the sound, especially after the horrible sound emulation in the Sega Smash Pack for the Dreamcast. If those had doubts about getting this game due to Sega's previous mistake in emulation, don't fret or hesitate about getting this game. They did a damn fine job. There's not a whole lot more to say about SMC. It's a classic compilation that gives you most of what you want from Sega's cash cow. But I, as well as many, would have liked to have seen Sonic CD in here. Many never had the chance to play the game, and it would have made a wonderful addition to the collection. Also, seeing this is a Sonic Team game, why not include a version of Chu Chu Rocket as a bonus unlockable? Flicky and Ristar are decent unlockables, but I think we could have been given so much more. As it is, SMC is still a lot of game. You have 5 complete Sonic adventures to go through, as well as a pinball and a puzzle game. Seeing how Sonic Adventure DX missed the mark, it's nice to see where Sega went right with the game. I'm hoping Nintendo will follow suit and give us a huge collection of their classics from the past 20 years. . . |
  Published By : SEGA Developed By: SONIC TEAM Year Published : 2002 Players : 1-2 ESRB Rating: EVERYONE  OVERALL
SCORE
8.0
Enough Sonic to give you your fix, but it doesn't include every Sonic game.  Sega Smash Pack Sega Classics Collection Sonic Gems Collection  Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 1 |
