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 comprimise 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.
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Sonic Mega Collection
