Sonic the Hedgehog is a gaming icon character but the latest 3D games featuring him were widely considered as being bad. This is why many series enthusiasts look at the 2D games as being the best ever featuring the colorful blue character.
As the Sonic movie had a bad Box Office opening, those that watched it were generally pleasantly surprised, with reviews being widely positive. With this in mind, many went back to the older 2D Sonic games that they knew from childhood.
The following are the best 2D Sonic games ever and any enthusiast can play them to get that classic Sonic flair the hedgehog is known for.
10 Sonic Rush
Sonic Rush was launched for the Nintendo DS and it managed to recapture the appeal of the original Sonic games with great tunes, a lot of fun and high-speed action. At the same time, it managed to make the game feel fresh.
The dual-screen of the DS was perfectly used and the game’s story introduced Blaze. Ever since Sonic Rush, the cat was a mainstay. What was particularly appreciated was that playing as Blaze was rewarding. This was not the case with other characters introduced by past games in the franchise.
9 Sonic Advance
At first glance, Sonic Advance looked basic but it is now recognized as one of the most important games in the franchise. This was the first Nintendo Sonic game and marked the end of the console wars happening between Nintendo and Sega.
Sonic Advance offered the fast-pace excitement desired by players, a huge replay value and great music. It did not have something done by a world-renowned artist like Wiz Khalifa, but this might have been a good thing for the series. In addition, when it was launched, GameBoy Advance was strong and offered a highly-mobile Sonic playing experience that was previously not available.
8 Sonic Advance 2
After the success of Sonic Advance, there were high expectations for the second game in the series. They were fully met and Sonic Advance 2 took full advantage of a massive level design that included multiple paths, which was exactly what other popular Sonic titles did.
This game’s levels were not very long but this was an advantage because it allowed players to enjoy the game for a much longer time. It was very easy to replay the game whenever you wanted. Also, Sonic Advance 2 introduced the very popular Cream, which is a series mainstay that will not go away anytime soon.
7 Sonic Advance 3
The last game in the Sonic Advance trilogy is considered to be the very best as it took the best parts of the first 2 games and improved them. Sonic Advance 2’s open-ended levels were improved by making the new levels have distinct feelings. At the same time, the game was fast-moving and included several segments that were difficult to go over.
Another thing that Sonic Advance 3 did really well was creating a team-up mechanics that was very effective. It is widely considered to be one of the best in the entire franchise, which is impressive since the game was 2D.
6 Sonic The Hedgehog
Sonic The Hedgehog was released in 1991 and was an instant hit since it was groundbreaking. The game was practically Sega’s answer to Super Mario Bros. It came to the table with great level design, memorable music and the iconic Sonic character. On the whole, the game remains in history as a pivotal release.
The only problem with this game was that it was just the start of the franchise. Even so, it did introduce the Sonic formula that ended up being perfected with future installments.
5 Sonic The Hedgehog 3
While Sonic The Hedgehog 2 was widely regarded as being perfection and is later down the list, Sonic The Hedgehog 3 was a very good game. What was particularly good was the platforming. Players received access to many interesting, new stages and the fact that the environment influenced the run did make many parts of the game tricky.
Sonic The Hedgehog 3 had really large levels that included several alternate paths. In addition, Knuckles was introduced for the first time.
4 Sonic & Knuckles
One of the first things that come to mind when talking about Sonic & Knuckles was that the game was difficult. Even so, it was not exaggerated. In many instances, this was due to the introduction of brand-new gameplay elements. For instance, there are bosses that need to be outsmarted as opposed to the usual formula that involved Sonic hitting them over and over.
The game had a very good level design and Sega took full advantage of the new Knuckles character.
3 Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Second installments of games are very important in the industry and Sonic The Hedgehog 2 managed to create something special. The game is often mentioned as the Sonic game that did do absolutely everything right. It managed to improve music, boss fights, level design and graphics.
The game remains a landmark in the history of Sonic games because of the introduction of spindash. The mechanic is now one of the trademarks of the character.
2 Sonic CD
Sonic CD is most-likely the game that simply justified the creation of Sega CD. It took elements from Sonic 2 and Sonic The Hedgehog in order to create something that can be arguably considered as being the very best Sonic 2D game ever.
Level design was really good and the game is considered to be the most replayable of the entire franchise. In addition, the new time travel mechanic improved the plot without making it seem cheesy.
1 Sonic Mania
No matter who writes a top of the best 2D Sonic games, it is hard not to put Sonic Mania at the top. Level design is flawless and brought in an open-endedness that was never better. Every single level featured many secrets and routes to discover. Some were only accessible when playing Knuckles or Tails.
Sonic Mania was flawlessly presented and had a perfect soundtrack. The drop dash was added and gaming history was made.