Sonic Origins

Genre: Compilation / Platformer

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Split-Screen), Online Leaderboards

.

Review:

Sonic Origins is a Compilation released on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch in 2022, and it is something of an oddity in multiple ways. This Compilation contains the first four (or five, depending on how you count) mainline games in the Sonic the Hedgehog series of family-friendly platformers: Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic CD, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles.

.

Sega Does What Nintendon’t?

However, two of these games have already been released on Nintendo Switch… multiple times, in fact. The original Sonic can be found in the Sega Genesis Classics compilation, as well as the excellent Sega Ages release of the game. Meanwhile, Sonic 2 is not only included in Sega Genesis Classics and the Sega Ages release, but it is also in the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack’s Sega Genesis App. Yes, that’s right, as of right now, you can own three different copies of Sonic 1 on your Nintendo Switch, and four different copies of Sonic 2. I would know – I now own all of these (you’re… welcome?).

However, it gets more bizarre than that. This compilation is priced at $40 ($45 for the Digital Deluxe version, but more on that later) for four only games, a price that’s kinda’ outrageous considering that Sega Genesis Classics currently sells for $30 and comes with 51 games. Now, that’s not giving you the entire picture, since this Compilation comes with extra bells and whistles, and some have complained about the emulation in Sega Genesis Classics. But even so, it’s a hard pill to swallow that the two additional Sonic games in this collection are worth $10 more than the 49 additional games in Sega Genesis Classics.

It’s not like they didn’t have options if they wanted to ensure this Collection presented us with a solid value. We’ve never seen Knuckles Chaotix ported outside orf 32X – that could have potentially made this Compilation a must-buy. The Nintendo Switch hasn’t gotten ports of Sonic Adventure 1 & 2, that would have instantly made this Compilation worth the price without even updating those games. The Sonic Game Gear games are… well, they’re terrible, but they’re not on Nintendo Switch yet, and that would have made for a nice bonus at least. Heck, even the spin-off games like Sonic Spinball, Sonic 3D Blast, and Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine that were all in Sega Genesis Classics would have added something worthwhile to this collection, minimal as it would have been. But no, Sega seems to think that four 30 year-old games at $10 apiece is perfectly acceptable.

Of course, Sega fans will note that Sega made an effort to remove other versions of the included games from other platforms prior to this game’s launch – possibly to avoid exactly this embarrassment, but more likely to force players to buy these versions of the games rather than being able to get the less expensive older releases. Which… yeah, that’s pretty sleazy.

Then, there’s this chart of additional microtransaction items, which is outrageous on a whole other level. Rather than seeking to add in as much value as possible into a Compilation of dusty old releases, Sega has opted to try to squeeze as much money as possible from die-hard Sega fans by pushing them to pay extra to get the full package here. What’s even more strange is that these extra features… well, aren’t very “extra”. Mirror Mode? That’s just the normal game flipped in reverse. Added menu features? Who cares. Additional music tracks? That’s nice, but they need to be unlocked before you can even access them!

Given all of these issues, Sonic Origins has a steep hill to climb to make the case that it’s worth the steep asking price. To its credit, this is the first time that both Sonic 3 & Knuckles and Sonic CD have appeared on the Nintendo Switch. Sonic 3 & Knuckles in particular is often skipped over in Sega’s re-releases (purportedly due to music rights being tied up in the Michael Jackson estate, oddly enough). As such, for many players, this may be their first opportunity to try these classic games. And as it happens, the versions of the games in this Compilation are really quite excellent.

.

True Blue

But before I get to that, here is what I thought of each of the games in this Compilation:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Grade
Sonic the Hedgehog	Platformer	1, Online Leaderboards	A-
tl;dr Even to this day, the original Sonic the Hedgehog remains a classic platformer that’s one of the best games of its kind. It’s not without its flaws, but it’s still a damn good game.
Sonic CD	Platformer	1, Online Leaderboards	B
tl;dr Sonic CD has a great soundtrack and the same great core gameplay as the other early Sonic titles, but the convoluted and confusing level design detracts from the streamlined approach that tends to make for the best Sonic gameplay. Still a solid Platformer, but not quite up to the level of the early numbered Sonic games.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2	Platformer	1-2 Co-Op (Local, Local Split Screen, Online), Online Leaderboards	A-
tl;dr Sonic’s second outing is every bit as good as the first, if not a bit more so, thanks to better, more consistent stage design, and a few helpful tweaks to the overall experience. The game still has its flaws, but it nevertheless remains a platforming classic.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles	Platformer	1-2 Co-Op (Local, Local Split Screen, Online), Online Leaderboards	A-
tl;dr This game is the experience you’d get if you played Sonic 3 plugged into Sonic & Knuckles using the much-touted “lock-on” technology. The result is a solid game that may not be quite as iconic as the first two Sonic games, but it’s nearly on that level, and a solid experience overall.

Okay, so clearly the three numbered Sonic games are the highlight here. However, even though Sonic CD isn’t quite at the same level as those games, it’s still a solid entry in the genre that Sonic fans should consider a must-play.

Having said that, it has long been my personal belief that Sonic games have never quite lived up to the Mario games they were rivals with. Perhaps this is a matter of personal preference, but I have always felt that where Mario games encouraged exploration and made discovery one of the great joys of the game, Sonic games were always at their best when you were only just barely in control of your character, speeding through the level so fast your eyes couldn’t keep up with it. Still fun experiences, but… well, I’ll take the plumbers over the hedgehog any day. So you can take my opinion on the quality of these games in that context, I suppose – perhaps your mileage may vary.

Oh, before moving on, I should note that the version of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles here does not allow you to play Sonic 3 on its own or Sonic & Knuckles on its own. You can only play the combined game. As it happens, this is how the game was originally envisioned (these two games were originally one game that grew to be too big and got split into two titles that could be connected for the full experience). However, those hoping to play these games separately as they may remember them from their original releases may find themselves disappointed here.

.

Sega Does It All

The versions of the Sonic games included here have been brushed up in numerous ways, with each game now including a Classic Mode, Anniversary Mode, and Boss Rush mode.

Classic Mode is just the original game, mostly as it was originally released, complete with the original 4:3 aspect ratio with borders. I say “mostly” because a few small quality-of-life changes have been added. One in particular I can point to is that the spindash move has been added to the first Sonic the Hedgehog game and Sonic CD in this mode, as well as an instant-speed dash in Sonic CD.

Classic Mode will probably be appreciated by purists, but most players are better off skipping the Classic Mode and heading straight to Anniversary Mode. This mode adds in the much-loved Drop Dash move originally created for Sonic Mania and later added into the Sega Ages versions of the games. It also allows players to select Tails and Knuckles in all of the games of the collection (except Sonic CD, which only lets you pick Sonic or Tails). What’s more, this version of the game includes a widescreen display that makes it far easier for players blazing through the level to see what’s coming up. And finally, this mode replaces lives with “coins” that players can earn and spend to retry bonus levels, or save up to spend in Sonic Origins’ Museum Mode to unlock content there.

Players wanting to earn coins can also do that in the Boss Rush mode for each of the included games, though this mode seems to be exclusively for more expert players – the lack of rings in the boss levels here means that players will lose a life upon taking even a single hit.

One other primary game mode I should point out – Sonic 3 & Knuckles includes a Blue Spheres Mode that allows players to hop straight into that game’s bonus minigame, which is nice.

.

Blast Processing

The gameplay here is presented with mostly the same visuals as was in the original games, which means some colorful, detailed pixel art 2D visuals (with occasional faux 3D in bonus stages and some other monir effects). I say “mostly” because the game now runs with a silky-smooth framerate with no flicker or anything like that. Oh, also, in Anniversary Mode, rings you lose when you get hit no longer flicker when they’re about to disappear, but simply fade out, which looks a bit odd.

Anyway, in addition to the cleaned-up classic visuals, these games all feature their original chiptune soundtracks (though apparently a few of Sonic 3’s tracks have been replaced with newer ones, no doubt due to the aforementioned legal situation around this game’s soundtrack), containing themes that were excellent back in the day, and are now quite simply iconic. I should note that the sound emulation here sounds great to my ear – something I knocked the Sega Genesis Classics version of the original Sonic the Hedgehog for bungling.

This collection also adds new intro and outro animated videos for all the included games (this is in addition to Sonic CD’s classic animated introduction). These sequences are nice, though they come at a high price in another area – because of this, the entire collection’s file size balloons up to 3.6GB. By comparison, the original Sonic CD, the largest of the included games in terms of file size, was a mere 21MB in its original release.

While these games look great, players will likely be disappointed by the lack of display options, a rewind feature, or manual save states, although on this last note the game does at least include automatic save states so you can return to a game in progress after quitting out. This Compilation also lacks a few extras that were in the Sega Ages releases – there’s no “Ring Keep Mode”, no ability to choose between the Genesis and Mega Drive versions of the games, and no 100-Ring Challenge.

There are additional features here as well – a Story mode that has you playing through the entire Sonic saga in one go, Mission Mode which has you taking on brief portions of levels with specific goals to meet, the aforementioned Museum that allows you to play through the soundtracks of all the included games, look at box art, instruction manual art, character renders, and concept art from the making of the games, as well as a “Movies” mode where you can watch the intro and outro animations (most new and created for this collection). However, most of this content must ber unlocked by playing through the game and either meeting certain requirements, or paying to unlock them with “coins” earned through gameplay (or via one of the offered DLC packages).

.

Sega Scream

Okay, taking all that into consideration, what you have here are arguably the best versions of the included games ever released. Due to features that are missing from the Sega Ages versions of the games, I can’t quite say that these are the definitive versions of these games. However, the addition of widescreen support, the inclusion of the Drop Dash ability, and the inclusion of a good selection of extra content (yes, even if you don’t pay for the extra DLC) makes this possibly the best version of Sonic and Sonic 2, and unquestionably the best versions of Sonic CD and Sonic 3 & Knuckles. There are still a few areas where they could have provided more options, more improvements, but overall, this is a solid Collection of three fantastic games, and one very good game.

However, that’s talking about the quality of what’s in this collection, and it’s not addressing the question of value, and on that note, Sonic Origins doesn’t look quite as rosy. I cannot look past the fact that this is a collection that costs $40 for only four games that are about thirty years old. What’s more, two of those games are ones that we’ve already gotten on Nintendo Switch multiple times over at this point. What’s more, they tacked on some sleazy microtransactions on top of that inflated price tag.

Seriously, why can’t these game publishers just release a good Compilation of classic games with a healthy amount of extras, at a decent price? Why can’t we get more collections like Castlevania Advance Collection and less like Super Mario 3D All-Stars and this one? I’d love to be able to sing the praises of a Compilation of arguably the best versions of a handful of excellent classic Platformers, but instead I have to mull over whether it’s even worth it with all of the caveats and less-than-fantastic issues that come with this Compilation. I suppose at the very least, if you’re a massive Sonic fan who has somehow avoided other releases of the Sonic games on Switch so far, you should consider this a must-buy. But if you’re a massive Sonic fan… why would you have avoided the other releases of those games? Rrrgh…

Look, I’ll just end with this – I can’t tell you how much a game is worth to you, I can only tell you if the game is good, and these games are excellent versions of fantastic games. You can look over this review and see my complaints and make the determination for yourself whether these games are worth the price.

tl;dr – Sonic Origins is a Compilation of Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic CD, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles. All versions of the included games here are arguably the best versions of these games ever made, and this Compilation includes a pretty healthy selection of extra features too. Unfortunately, the price tag is outrageous, the multiple versions of Sonic Origins and the microtransactions are sleazy, and the fact that the target audience already owns half of these games on Nintendo Switch makes its value even more suspect. What’s here is very good, but these questions of value really harm this otherwise great Compilation.

Grade: B

.

This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2022 Game Awards:

Winner:

The “Why is this taking so much space on my memory card!?” Award (3.6 GB) – For the record, of the four(-ish) games included in this collection, the biggest of the bunch, Sonic CD, originally released with a file size of 21MB. This package inflates the file size of the original games over 100x. Even adding in the remixed music and completely unnecessary new animated intros, there’s no way the game should be that big. It’s disappointing Sega didn’t just release Sonic CD and Sonic 3 & Knuckles via the Sega Ages line of games so we could be spared this massive hog of file space.

Runner-Up: Worst Microtransactions, Most Overpriced ($40)

.

^{You can support eShopperReviews on Patreon! Please click HERE to become a Sponsor!}

^{This month’s sponsors are Andy Miller, Exlene, Johannes, Ilya Zverev, Connor Armstrong, Eli Goodman, K.H. Kristoffer Wulff, Stov, and Gabriel Coronado-Medina. Thank you for helping to keep the reviews coming!}