Best/Worst Sonic games on the Gear?

[Jeckidy]

I'd rank them like this:

1. Tails Adventures
2. Sonic the Hedgehog
3. Sonic the Hedgehog 2
4. Sonic the Hedgehog: Triple Trouble/Sonic & Tails 2
5. Sonic Chaos/Sonic & Tails
6. Sonic Spinball
7. Tails Skypatrol
8. Sonic Labyrinth
9. Sonic Bast

I don't have enough experience with the Sonic Drift games to judge. The last three on that list were a hard decision. But I'd put Tails Skypatrol above Blast and Labyrinth because as clunky and frustrating as it is, it's amusing to try and figure out because of how weird it is. Sonic Blast is clunky in a really ugly and forced way. Like one of those bad Klik 'n Play fan games from years ago. I actually can't even remember enough of Labyrinth except that it isn't that bad, sort of.

Sonic Chaos deserved the criticism for being too short. Spinball is not that much worse than the Genesis version though neither of them were really that special to begin with. Tails Adventures was an easy choice, because for me it is the no. 1 Game Gear game I've played. Unfortunately, it is too often confused with Skypatrol as the stinker.

[Obviously]

Just counting the traditional-style games:

1. Sonic the Hedgehog
2. Triple Trouble
3. Chaos
4. Sonic 2
5. Sonic Blast

The first game is a very pleasant platformer that mostly does its own thing instead of trying to emulate its 16-bit brother too heavily and as such its definitely the strongest of the bunch.

Triple Trouble on the other hand seems to be trying hard to emulate Sonic 3 and it's impressive how close they come to the feel of the Genesis games but it's still kind of sloppy and a lot of things simply feel off about it.

Chaos is way too short and way too easy. It almost feels like the alpha version of Triple Trouble with barely designed levels.

Sonic 2 is better on the Master System, still not fantastic but better. On the Game Gear I find it really abysmal and poorly formatted to the small screen.

Sonic Blast is just straight up garbage.

[Gogogadget]

Sonic Drift isn't an awful game but it's practically worthless, if you need an old school kart racer that badly just pick up Super Mario Kart or Street Racer or something.

Why it's on the Game Gear of all consoles is anyones guess.

Sonic Blast is clunky in a really ugly and forced way. Like one of those bad Klik 'n Play fan games from years ago.

Lol yes, i'd rather play Sonic Robo Blast 1, not even 2.

[POLYGAMe]

I still to this day prefer Sonic 1&2 on the SMS/GG to the SMD originals. Something about the simplicity makes them so much more fun!

As for Sonic Drift, was soooo looking forward to that when I saw it in magazines but was pretty let down when I finally played it. I guess Mario Kart ruined me. lol.

[Jeckidy]

I agree that 8-bit games are so addictive because of their simplicity. That's why I love SMS and NES so much. GG too! I just bought a copy of Sonic 1 for GG on 3DS Virtual Console yesterday, even though I own it on the actual GG. Not a bad choice, given the crisper display and save states they have integrated in the software. I also got Shining Force: Sword of Hajya and Tails Adventures from 3DS VC, which were fairly priced (4 and 5 dollars respectively).

[Gogogadget]

Sonic 1 SMS has music composed by Yuzo Kohshiro too, which is pretty cool.

[Lync]

I was desperate as a kid to play the Sonic games on Game Gear - especially Triple Trouble. I remember buying the comic special of Triple Trouble and they had themed it according to the game's story and levels; it was as close as I'd get at the time to owning a Game Gear - outside the Tiger handhelds which were absolute trash! Hated myself for even trying to play those damn things...



Anyways, after dragging my heels and finally getting a Game Gear my impression is this:

1. Sonic (1991) - Perhaps the most well-rounded entry and it's incredible how Ancient managed this game, and not just the music which even Janet Jackson couldn't ignore.
2. Sonic Triple Trouble (1994) - In my mind the Sonic 3 of the Game Gear. Sonic is probably the best, but Triple Trouble is my favorite with everything they packed into it. Love the ending too which is a plus for me.
3./4. Sonic Chaos (1993)- This is where Aspect started to come into their own, I like Chaos, it's a bit brief and the experience felt a bit stream-line but pretty enjoyable.
3./4. Tails' Adventure (1995) - I would place this above 2 and maybe even Chaos, it's unique and the production values show on all fronts. Certainly the most ambitious and surprisingly worthwhile.
5. Sonic 2 (1992) - Everyone I knew with a Game Gear back in the day had this one. It's okay, the screen size caused level hazards to feel poorly placed and annoying as already mentioned.

[Obviously]

Sonic 1 SMS has music composed by Yuzo Kohshiro too, which is pretty cool.

And all the original tunes are catchy as hell.





Jazzy!

[A Black Falcon]

A-grade games
--
1. Sonic the Hedgehog - Good little game. All the Genesis game are better, but this is fun stuff. It's terrible that you never getrings for bosses though, that's a really bad idea. No rings for the whole last level was a pain too. I did beat the game though.

B-grade games
--
2. Tails' Sky Patrol - Surprisingly good game that doesn't usually get the credit it deserves. It's a shooter-ish game with Tails, and it's original and fun.
3. Sonic Spinball - Fun little game. It's nothing great, but it's much easier and more fun than the Genesis game, at least (unless you like overly hard games).
4. Sonic Drift 2 - Okay linescroll racer; this is a bit better than I thought it would be. It's simple stuff, but good for the platform.

C-grade games
--
5. Sonic Triple Trouble - Below-average platformer. Aspect was almost always a poor developer and this game is no exception. it's the best of Aspect's GG Sonic platformers, but it's still easy, boring, and nearly identical to the last one (below). Chaos and Triple Trouble are probably the two most similar Sonic games ever.
6. Sonic Chaos - Like the above, but a bit worse and somehow even easier.

F-grade games
--
7. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Aspect's first GG game is a complete disaster due to some mediocre level designs (the first world is kind of bad!) and some of the worst bossfights ever thanks to no rings and no visibility due to the small screen.

I don't own the rest for the actual GG so I won't list them, though Sonic Drift 1 is about the same as the first one. Sonic Blast is about even with Chaos and Triple Trouble, I think. I don't see how it's so much worse like people say, it looks like the same game again but with new graphics and slower gameplay due to the CG-rendered graphics. I still haven't really spent much time with Sonic Labyrinth or Tails' Adventure, though I should (even if just in emulation). And last, I have Puyo Puyo (import JP version) for the GG, and it's pretty good, so I have no need for Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, which is the same game with different graphics, sound, and text. It's a good version of Puyo Puyo considering the limitations of the system, but later Puyo games are better than the first one, and this GG version has very simple graphics and slower gameplay than some other versions. it's still decently good though.

[Jeckidy]

I prefer the Master System version of Sonic 2 over its GG counterpart for the reasons often cited about the latter (poor adaptation of screen ratio to the levels) and so forth. The ant-lion boss is a pain on the GG version. And honestly, the first GG Sonic trumps both the sequel and every other Sonic game on the system except Tails Adventures, which is in a league of its own. Both Triple Trouble and Chaos were dull as ditch water. I'm surprised Triple Trouble didn't get an SMS port though. I don't think it used any extra colors that were exclusive to the GG. Sonic 1 is adapted well to both the SMS and the GG, which is an achievement. I bought it again for 3DS VC a few days ago, and can go with either version. Sonic Spinball was pretty dull on GG. Much prefer the Genesis original.

[A Black Falcon]

I prefer the Master System version of Sonic 2 over its GG counterpart for the reasons often cited about the latter (poor adaptation of screen ratio to the levels) and so forth. The ant-lion boss is a pain on the GG version. And honestly, the first GG Sonic trumps both the sequel and every other Sonic game on the system except Tails Adventures, which is in a league of its own. Both Triple Trouble and Chaos were dull as ditch water.

Aspect Quality!

To be fair, not ALL of Aspect's games are bad. The studio was one of those shadow-developers, so they didn't have the same people working on every game. Land of Illusion and Tails' Adventure are Aspect games, and they're solid games. But most of Aspect's games aren't as good as that, and play like the cheaply-made games they are: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspect_Co. Other than those two games and maybe Coca-Cola Kid, almost all of Aspect's other GG games are kind of bad. I know some have fans, but I'm not one -- Legend of Illusion and Deep Duck Trouble aren't better than Sonic Chaos, Triple Trouble, or Blast, and The Lost World: Jurassic Park is one of the worst GG games I own, and that's saying something (I am not exactly a big GG fan...).

I'm surprised Triple Trouble didn't get an SMS port though. I don't think it used any extra colors that were exclusive to the GG. Sonic 1 is adapted well to both the SMS and the GG, which is an achievement. I bought it again for 3DS VC a few days ago, and can go with either version. Sonic Spinball was pretty dull on GG. Much prefer the Genesis original.

Triple Trouble was a 1994 release. By that point, even in Europe the SMS was fading; that's surely why they didn't do a port As for Spinball, I disagree. The Genesis game is brokenly difficult, but the GG game is balanced better and is actually fun. It's nothing great, but it's an amusing little game.

[JungleStrike]

1. Sonic (1991) - Perhaps the most well-rounded entry and it's incredible how Ancient managed this game, and not just the music which even Janet Jackson couldn't ignore.

This is what blows my mind: despite that game being out for 25 years, I had never heard of the Janet Jackson connection before. Just a couple weeks ago I was playing through it, and when I got to that level I started singing that song to myself. I thought, "wow, that melody is eerily similar to a song I know!" I chalked it up to a coincidence.

Afterwards, I read the Wiki entry for the game and my jaw dropped. I couldn't believe it! I knew I recognized that melody.

[Jeckidy]

I finally got my hands on Sonic Drift 2 for 3DS Virtual Console. I love the small, but tasteful selection of GG titles they have for it. I got a hankering to really try the game, despite feeling the track designs were dated. So far I've been enjoying it. Not on the same level of Mario Kart, but not bad either. It has it's own merits. Also, the 3DS software settings for the Gear allow you to turn on the blur effect like in the original handheld system. This is one game where I like the blur effect because it makes the race tracks much softer. Normally, for games with more precision or bullets, the blur wouldn't be ideal, but here it shines. Not to mention that they enabled a Local Play option in the software for head-to-head competition. Well done, and it's only $3.99 for US residents on the VC/eShop!

[GiliusSegahead]

I'm sorry but Sonic 2 is awful.

[CasetheCorvetteman]

I'm sorry but Sonic 2 is awful.

Shit yeah