Most iconic Sonic the Hedgehog games of all time

In the early 90s, every developer and publisher was looking for their Mario. Mascot platformers were flooding the market in hopes of replicating even a fraction of Nintendo’s moustached plumber’s success, with nearly every one failing to get off the ground. Most chose the animal route, with characters like Bubsy, Aero the Acrobat, and Croc all falling into obscurity. However, Mario’s greatest rival was also one of his first, and the only one to give him a genuine run for his money for a short time. That was, of course, Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog.

After his debut in 1991, Sonic carried the Sega brand even after it had to drop out of the console market and go third-party. He survived the transition to 3D, and branched out into a wide range of genres and spin-off games, but always came back to the core concept of blazing through rollercoaster-like stages at insane speeds. He’s had more than his fair share of bumps in the road, but ever since his movies rekindled interest in the blue hedgehog, Sonic is arguably more popular now than he ever has been. With 30 years of games to look back on, we’ve narrowed Sonic’s long resume to only his most iconic entries, for better and for worse.

1 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis

A refined sequel that brings in Tails

Releasing just one year after Sonic’s debut title, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 makes the first game feel like a prototype. It has nearly the exact same structure and plot, which would be par for the course at this time anyway, but takes everything up a notch. The game moves faster, the levels are bigger, and it even introduces 3D-style bonus stages that blew our minds at the time. But the real kicker Sonic 2 had was the addition of Tails, Sonic’s fox pal who could help him hover through levels or let a second player join to play cooperatively. Despite its age, Sonic 2 is still incredibly playable today and widely considered one of the best games of all-time.

2 Sonic 2006 for the 360/PS3

Iconic for all the wrong reasons

Remember how I said that iconic didn’t necessarily mean good? Yeah, Sonic the Hedgehog, aka Sonic ’06, is all the proof I need to back up that claim. At this point, hundreds of hours of essays, videos, and discussions have been had going over every detail of what makes this game so bad, but it can be summed up rather quickly: the game isn’t finished. Animations are missing, loading is frequent and prolonged, bugs and glitches run rampant, and controlling all of the characters is wildly imprecice and unsatisfying. In stark contrast to Sonic 2, Sonic ’06 is not only considered the worst Sonic game, but among the worst games ever released by a major company. And I’m not even going to mention the whole kiss fiasco.

3 Sonic Adventure 2 (Dreamcast)

A janky but charming adventure

The first Sonic Adventure wasn’t the hedgehog’s first dive into 3D, but was the first one taken seriously. There’s a lot this game did that was innovative for its time, from the cutscenes to structure, but there was a heavy layer of jank overtop that was hard to ignore. SA 2 is by no means a polished gem, either, but did what any great sequel needs to and refines what was introduced in the first and layer new features on top. Perhaps the most important thing SA 2 brought to the table was the character of Shadow, Sonic’s dark rival. Eggman had been, and likely always will be, Sonic’s arch nemesis, but Shadow is a far more interesting foil since he can compete with Sonic on a physical level.

4 Sonic Mania for the Switch, Xbox One, and PS4

Leave it to the fans to bring Sonic back

Unlike Mario and Zelda, which never fully abandoned their 2D roots after upgrading to 3D, Sonic mostly stuck to the new multi-dimensional realm. There were a couple attempts to utilize 2D again, but they never had that same look and feel as the Genesis games did. When all hoped seemed lost for a return to the great games of Sonic’s past, a team of Sonic fans were given Sega’s blessing to make an official 2D Sonic game in that retro style. Sonic Mania is the Sonic 4 we never got in every way possible. It pays tribute to all those classic levels, as well as introduces new ones that feel right at home thematically. It instantly became the most well received Sonic game in 15 years and may even still be the best one to this day.

5 Sonic Generations for the Switch, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360

Blending the old and the new

When Sonic was floundering to find footing in both 2D and 3D, the solution ended up being the unlikely merging of the two. Sonic Generations brings the two eras of Sonic together in a delightful mashup of classic and modern gameplay. The game is somewhat of a repeat of the series’ best moments, bringing in stages from many of his past games, which is a safe but effective move. You never get bored or burned out on any one playstyle, and the shifting perspective keeps each stage visually interesting. It is the best celebration of Sonic’s legacy yet, and one that encourages numerous replays to master every stage.