I remember trying the demo to Homeworld when I was a kid, it came with one of those old school PC GAMER demo CDs. I think I was too young to understand how to play it effectively, but still loved it because I found the ambience of the experience so memorizing while hyper-cozy. Would you say it she’s well as something worth going back and playing now, and what of the sequel(s)?
Sonic fan for more than two decades here! It’s always great to see more people interested in the franchise!
I would say that maybe it would be good to start with Sonic Generations (or Sonic x Shadow Generations if you can afford it, which is the same but with the Shadow The Hedgehog story as an extra), so you get familiar with the gameplay of both classic and modern games, have a sense of where it’s going and decide whether to go ahead or not.
I see that your interest is more focused on the characters and their dynamics, fantastic! the best part of the franchise in my opinion!. In that sense I would say that your best option to go deeper after Sonic Generations would be the mythical Adventure saga (Adventure 1 and Adventure 2). They are the games in which much more emphasis was put on the characters and the story.
Already after this and if you are hooked is that I recommend that you play the classics. You can play Sonic 1, Sonic CD, Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 & Knuckles in Sonic Origins (although you can also emulate the Mega Drive games), and then there is Sonic Mania. Why not start with the classics? Because they are very much of their time: pure gameplay, simple and not so deep story, but very fun to play!
You talk about games, but let me recommend you to read the IDW Comics in a complementary way. They are REALLY good! If I remember correctly, one of the artists on the comics, Evan Stanley, worked on The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, and the story of the game plays out very similar to how the Comics read. It’s also where you’ll find the most depth in the characters (and you’ll encounter the best story arc EVER written for the franchise, EVER).
To sum up:
Sonic Generations (Or Sonic x Shadow Generations)
Sonic Adventure 1 and 2
Sonic Origins (Which are Sonic 1, CD, 2, 3 & Knuckles)
The franchise is very much split in gameplay style between the 2D and 3D entries. Generally the 2D games are much more highly rated, but there are good 3D games (and not-so-good 2D games) too. Here’s a list of what’s worth checking out of each:
2D The original trilogy from the Genesis (found in various Genesis collections and Sonic Origins) Sonic Advance trilogy (GBA) Sonic Rush (DS) Sonic Mania (any modern console and PC)
3D Sonic Adventure 1 and 2 (Steam, modern consoles MAY have digital copies) Sonic Colors (most easily accessible through recent remaster on PC and modern consoles) Sonic (X Shadow) Generations (just remade everywhere) Sonic Frontiers (haven’t tried it myself but heard it’s alright)
It’s what I expected overall. Some people loved it, others say it’s more like an alternate gamemode that reuses way too many assets. I think I’ll wait for a sale before jumping in with friends. Looks fun, but $40/person is a bit much.
I think it depends strongly on your taste for getting into a series (do you want to play the best game first, or work up to it? Etc) However, if you enjoyed the Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog you probably want to look into the IDW Sonic comics, which are being adapted for mobile formats on webtoons for free right now once a week.
Mind you, thats the IDW comics, not the old archie ones, which… Have a certain appeal but are so unhinged.
Curious to hear what the criteria for “masterpiece” is, otherwise I think it is just peoples’ subjective opinion of what makes a great game that they also think others might agree about being a great game. Genuinely curious, interested in discussion, not saying this to shut down any of the answers here.
Historically a masterpiece has been a (or the) work that demonstrates an artist is capable of utilizing their medium to its fullest extent, i.e. it has been mastered. Per ye olde Wiki:
Historically, a “masterpiece” was a work of a very high standard produced by an apprentice to obtain full membership, as a “master”, of a guild or academy in various areas of the visual arts and crafts.
In that light, I’d say the best qualified would be games that completely utilized the capabilities of the platform they were designed for or, perhaps of interest to more people, expanded what everyone thought could be done with those systems. Games which were furthermore well polished and complete, and did not have much room for improvement taking into account the constraints they had to work with at the time. (For instance: No duh we could make Mario 64 run at a higher framerate and have better textures to look nicer on hardware now. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t arguably a masterpiece of its time, on the system it was on.) This doesn’t just have to be technical stuff – It could be the way the game used storytelling, its gameplay mechanics, or anything else.
Then Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom belong to that category - run smoothly as fuck on one of the lamest consoles there is, and are beautiful and complex.
Spyro and Crash trilogies on the PSX, as well as the Quake 2 port, would definitely merit being called technical masterpieces
On the original Xbox, Phantom Dust would fit that bill, despite being a commercial failure at the time. The tldr is that you create a collection of spells (attacks, traps, dodges, curses, buffs) and try to grab them and the “mana” during the real time duels, in order to beat your opponents. Terrain is semi destructible and you have to take into consideration the trajectory of your spells - www.xbox.com/games/store/…/9PCDNBHR11MR
To be clear, the early 2D series of Sonic was relatively story-light, the detailed stories and characters didn’t really arrive until Sonic Adventure. Some of these you will need emulators on your PC to play. Make sure you have a good gamepad, either an Xbox controller or PS4/PS5 controller or a knockoff in the same style are ideal.
Best 2D Sonic (light on story, heavy on gameplay): Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Close 2nd 2D Sonic: Sonic 3 + Sonic & Knuckles
Best 3D Sonic (heavy on story and gameplay): Sonic Adventure
Close 2nd 3D Sonic: Sonic Adventure 2
3D “Sonic” with a cult following: Shadow the Hedgehog
Honorable Mention because it’s so fun in terms of gameplay and story: Sonic Generations and/or Shadow Generations
I’d recommend Sonic Generations (or Sonic X Shadow Generations), which is kind of a best-of of previous Sonic games’ levels, tied together with a new story.
Sonic mania is also a great game, reminiscent of the first few 2d Sonic games. But, just like those games, it doesn’t really have much of a story or character interactions.
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