Sonic Gems Collection – GameCube

Developer: Sonic Team

Publisher: Sega

Release Date (NA): August 16, 2005

Nerd Rating: 7 out of 10

Reviewed by Nerdberry

Sonic Gems Collection is the wonderful compilation game featuring some of Sonic’s most unrecognized and forgotten games of the 1990s. These games span across the Game Gear, Sega CD, Saturn, and arcade. Unless you are a big Sonic fan or retro gaming fan, odds are you’ve never heard of or played any of these. With numerous Sonic compilation games available — most notably Sonic Mega Collection on the GameCube, is there any place for Sonic Gems Collection? Due to the rarity and challenge of playing these games in today’s modern world, I argue: YES! There IS a place for this most glorious compilation.

Sonic the Hedgehog is world-renowned. Non-gamers see an image of the blue-blur and can name him on the spot. There once was a time where Sonic and Mario were pretty darn close to being equals in any playground popularity contest. Any gamer from the ’90s will tell you that Sonic’s Genesis games were some of the best platforming and most fun of the decade, hands down. Sonic 2 improved upon the incredible success of Sonic 1 helping propel him, and the Genesis system, to the next level! Sonic 3 + Sonic & Knuckles furthered Sega’s fame, mastering the speed-platforming genre with which they popularized. But little did everyone know…

Sonic CD

…Little did the world know… nestled between the wild successes of Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 was perhaps an even greater Sonic game. I am, of course, talking about Sonic CD, Sega CD’s best-selling game and flagship title. Sonic CD is a masterful game that utilizes the Sega CD’s disc-based capabilities extremely well, most notably in the department of sound, music, and color. And while Sonic’s Genesis games have been ported on more than a handful of compilation discs, Sonic CD is somewhat of a unicorn in the re-release department.

Thankfully, Sonic Gems Collection answered the decade long request giving fans a chance at playing Sonic CD outside of the Sega CD world. And THANK GOODNESS, because busting out power strips and cables and wires and cords just for one game is becoming tougher as TVs get higher on the walls and hidden wires becomes the norm. And did I mention that Sonic CD is absolutely gorgeous?

Sonic the Fighters

Aside from Sonic CD, Sonic Gems Collection also features Sonic the Fighters, better known as Sonic Championship in The States. Sonic the Fighters is a pretty darn fun game and something I think should have been expanded on for the Dreamcast. The Dreamcast was a major stomping ground for Sega’s ported arcade games, so why Sonic the Fighters never made it is beyond me. Nevertheless, arcade-goers across the globe got to experience a Virtua Fighter-esque polygonal 3D fighter (on a 2D plane). There is very little depth here, but as one of the three main games on Sonic Gems Collection, it is a worthwhile inclusion.

Check out my full review on Sonic the Fighters here!

Sonic R

Sonic R is maybe one of the weirdest racing games I’ve ever experienced. All of these Sonic characters racing around the track… ON FOOT (save for Robotnik). Not sure why they didn’t just put them in carts, but I guess I sort of understand their logic. Kinda. Maybe. Sorta.

At the time of its release in 1997, it was a gorgeous racer featuring the creative and unique look of the Sonic world. Considering 3D games was still a newer thing in the at-home video game market, one should truly admire the efforts of the Sonic Team. Sonic fans may have been happy to finally get a new Sonic game on their beloved Saturns, but it was no replacement for the cancelled Sonic X-Treme fully 3D platforming game everyone wanted.

Retrospectively, it’s easy to see the flaws and issues with Sonic R, especially when put up against some of its competitors from the day like Mario Kart 64, Ridge Racer, Jet Moto, and Sega Rally Championship. Sonic R looks every bit as good, if not better, than its contemporaries, but it lacks the tightness in controls and replayability of the aforementioned games. Considering how the game only features a handful of tracks and a handful of racers, it never felt very complete to me. Even upon its release, because I owned this game in the late 1990s, I was not very impressed. It’s a good addition to the Sonic Gems Collection compilation disc as Sonic R saw limited popularity and as such, limited release outside of the Saturn.

Check out my full review on Sonic R here!

Sonic Game Gear + Bonuses

Rounding out the three marquee titles on Sonic Gems Collection are six Sonic-based games from the Game Gear. Of the six Game Gear games, Sonic 2, Sonic Triple Trouble, and Tails’ Sky Patrol are far away the best. Sonic Drift 2 isn’t so bad, but it’s your run-0f-the-mill early-era handheld racing game with a Sonic shell. Sonic Spinball (Game Gear) and Tails’ Adventure are below average and tough to sit through. The bonus games are Vectorman 1, Vectorman 2, and Bonanza Bros.

Overall, the Game Gear games feel pointless as there’s not really much to enjoy. The graphics and gameplay are so extremely inferior compared to the three main games, why would I even want to play them on a TV screen? They look ugly, they sound awful, and they’re just not very well-made. The difference in technology and quality between the main three games and the Game Gear games is downright jarring.

Conclusion

Sonic Gems Collection may boast three lesser-known titles, but it’s inclusion of Sonic CD is the shining jewel here. Being sold as a package deal helps increase the value and bargain of the compilation, but if you don’t own this, you should get it for Sonic CD alone. Although not a perfect game by any means, it is downright fun, exciting, and worthy of any Sonic fan’s time. Sonic R, Sonic the Fighters, and the six Game Gear games are decent titles and fun enough for a quick run-through, but none of them are worthy of standalone re-releases, thus its inclusion as “filler” titles to help shore up sales.

Although these titles are all emulations with their original flaws and glitches intact, they’re still fun as heck to play today. Even if just for the sake of nostalgia or experiencing something new. Game choices aside, Sonic Gems Collection as a compilation game is weak at best. The user interface is pretty bland, uninspired, and lacking. There are a few hidden games to earn (Vectorman 1 and 2 and Bonanza Bros.), but it’s really underwhelming, to say the least. I don’t want to tear up the Nerd Rating too bad just because of it, though. I view this entire collection as Sonic CD with bonus games, not a compilation that happens to include Sonic CD. Once you change your perspective, you’ll find that Sonic Gems Collection is pretty damn fun and worthy of your ownership.

Reviewed by Nerdberry