The musical “SE-GAAA!”, the bright title screen and
that earworm theme tune before you hit start and
were thrust into the Green Hill Zone, knowing you
were in for something exciting and new. These images
immediately imprinted themselves onto the minds of a
generation of players.CLASSIC INTRO
S
ega was doing perfectly well
in the console business in the
late Eighties, but the higher-
ups had noticed Nintendo’s
repeated success with Mario and
commanded internal development
teams to create a company mascot.
This spiky speed merchant was the
response, and he was an instant hit,
giving the Mega Drive a huge boost off
the line. Finally, Mario had a rival.
It wasn’t necessarily that Sonic was
better, but he was a distinct alternative,
and considered much cooler than a
chubby Italian plumber. Sure, your
objective might have been to collect
gems and free woodland creatures,
but there was a certain edge that
made Sonic such a draw. Of course, all
of this would have been for nothing
had his game been no good, but this
was a refreshingly different brand of
platformer, conducted at a blistering
pace. Though enemies and hazards
would regularly slow Sonic down, once
learned, these levels were designed
so that expert players could use his
greatest asset in thrilling, showboating
speedruns. It remains a vibrant,
unforgettable symbol of the 16-bit era.