I normally just post video game collection stuff on my blog, including pictures of my recent purchases, but I decided to do a special post regarding a topic that has been on my mind ever since I was a kid. Hopefully some people get a kick out of this article. I know that my 10-year-old self would have loved reading this.
With this article I'll be comparing the mainline first-party platforming games (Sonic and Mario, basically) for the Game Boy and the Game Gear to see which titles come out on top. Even though I'd love to compare other games as well, for now I'll just be looking at each company's mascot-based releases since they constituted the premier software for their respective systems and were in the same genre. Plus, I don't have access to many other Game Gear games.
Any kid who grew up in the early/mid '90s like me and who was into video games no doubt has a ton of nostalgia for 16-bit showdown that occurred between the Super Nintendo and the Sega Genesis. Whether you grew up on the Nintendo side (like me), the Sega side, or both (lucky you), you had the chance to experience some of the best console games ever made. Sega debuted its killer-app platformer, Sonic the Hedgehog, in June of 1991, well after the 1989 launch of the 16-bit Sega Genesis in the U.S. Nintendo responded with its own generally more powerful 16-bit Super Nintendo Entertainment System and the pack-in game Super Mario World in August of 1991. The 16-bit war was then waged in full force through approximately 1996.
Around the same time, Nintendo and Sega also engaged in a notable handheld war with the dates essentially reversed for each side and Sega now relying on more powerful hardware. Nintendo initiated the handheld battle with the launch of its monochrome Game Boy in July of 1989 and the simultaneous release of Super Mario Land. Sega responded in kind with the launch of its full-color, backlit Game Gear in April of 1991, followed by the release of Sonic the Hedgehog in December of 1991.
Plenty of people have talked in detail about the 16-bit war and written articles or posted videos discussing which is better: Super Mario World or Sonic Hedgehog? While I do love reading/watching debates such at this, I wanted to do a comparison of an entire series and not just two games. Sadly though, there were just two Super Mario World games on the SNES, and that's only if you include the spinoff sequel, Yoshi's Island. Sonic, on the other hand, had four total games in the main, 2D series on the Genesis (including Sonic & Knuckles), making for a rather lopsided comparison in the 16-bit arena. That just won't work for a head-to-head matchup.
If we turn to the handhelds, however, things get more interesting. Although Mario only had two original platforming games on the Game Boy by way of Super Mario Land 1 and 2, Nintendo spun off Super Mario Land 3 into Wario Land and then released two Wario Land sequels, creating a grand total of five Mario Land/Wario Land games. We have to include the Game Boy Color though since Wario Land 3 was only available on that system, but I think that's fair since the Game Boy Color is still basically the same 8-bit system, but with a color screen. Oh, I know, the Wario games were a bit different from the Mario games, but they were still platformers, and not, say, action/adventure games, so they'll work for this article. Also, at the same time Nintendo was replacing Mario with Wario, Sega was adding new playable characters to its Sonic games, so I think the comparison is fair overall.
The Game Gear also saw five mainline Sonic games if you include Sonic Blast, making for an even five-game match up against the Game Boy. If we include spinoffs such as Sonic Labyrinth, Tails Adventure and Tails' Skypatrol, then the number becomes lopsided again. But Sonic Labyrinth is an isometric game lacking a jump ability; Tails Adventure is an action/adventure game; and Tails' Skypatrol is a scrolling shooter that wasn't originally released in America, so I'll be leaving them out of this comparison.
So long story short, there will be no inherent bias here, and one side is definitely not guaranteed to win. What would be the fun it that anyway? But before we get to the game showdown, here's a summary of the hardware, some accessories, and my own experiences with them to lay the foundation for this competition.
THE SYSTEMS
Game Boy
The Game Boy released in July of 1989 for roughly $90 and featured a control setup identical to the NES: a D-pad, two main face buttons, and start and select buttons. It was an 8-bit system, similar to the NES, but with one massive difference: no color. The Game Boy utilized a monochrome dot matrix screen that produced four shades of gray on a green background. Not only did the system not feature any color, but it also lacked any sort of backlight, meaning you needed an external light source just to see the screen (sunlight was generally your best bet, but there were all sorts of lighting accessories available). And of course, the resolution was much smaller than your average TV screen.
However, there was a justifiable reason for the Game Boy's screen limitations: battery life. The Game Boy ran on four AA batteries for anywhere between 15-20 hours, something none of its competitors could match. Nintendo knew that all the games in the world didn't mean much if you couldn't play them because your batteries were constantly dying, and the company was ultimately proven right on that point.
Although the system had only a single speaker in the lower right corner, it could produce stereo sound through headphones or external speakers. The Game Boy could also be linked to other systems for multiplayer gaming via a link cable port to the right of the screen. However, each system needed to have its own copy of a specific game for multiplayer to work. A four-player adapter was released for the system as well.
The above picture is the original packaging for the Game Boy. The bundle included the hit new game, Tetris, which had previously been released on computers. It also came with a set of headphones, a multiplayer link cable, and even four AA batteries. This meant that right out of the box, you could connect your Game Boy to other systems and immediately have head-to-head Tetris battles.
Myself, my brother and our cousin all received new Game Boys for Christmas of 1990, shortly before our families traveled to Switzerland and northern Italy for a massive family vacation funded largely by my grandfather. My cousin and I were 6 years old (my brother was 8), and our parents knew that we needed to be occupied on the long flights so as not to drive the adults crazy.
As soon as we received our Game Boys, all three of us, as well as my mother, my aunt, and another cousin, proceeded to have round-robin Tetris battles against each other on Christmas day. It was a ton of fun. I believe I also received Alleyway and Baseball at the same time, so I had at least three games during that trip. I forget what games my brother had, but I think my cousin received Super Mario Land. I have some vague memories of playing his copy of the game.
The Game Boy ended up being a lifesaver for me during the somewhat frequent road trips my family would take. My grandparents' main house was at least two hours away, so I definitely needed something to keep me busy in the back of the car. I spent quite a bit of time playing the Game Boy in the car, in hotel rooms, and at family members' houses. I never got bored with that thing around.
Nintendo released an external, rechargeable battery pack for the system, but I never owned one of those things. The Game Boy just didn't eat through batteries fast enough to warrant such a large, cumbersome battery pack, and other companies came out with better alternatives. One of my friends had the official battery pack though.
Companies such as Interact also released some awesome accessories for the system such as rechargeable battery packs and external lights. I had at least two different rechargeable battery packs (since they eventually died), but this one was my absolute favorite because it actually fit inside the Game Boy's battery compartment:
Aside from a couple different carrying cases, I also had this wild accessory called the Handy Boy:
If you've heard of the Handy Boy, then odds are, you've seen a ton of jokes about how supposedly ridiculous it is. Well let me just say that I loved this thing and used it all the time. It gave you a decent front light so you could play your system in the dark; two large speakers for built-in stereo sound; a magnifying glass to increase the size of the screen; and a joystick overlay that worked quite well. The only annoying part was that it drew its power from the Game Boy's batteries via two flexible metal prongs that had to be wedged in between two of the AA batteries and the system's metal battery contacts. It required a lot of nuanced adjustments to make sure that both the Game Boy and the Handy Boy received power at the same time, but once you got it right, viola! Instant light source and stereo sound.
Nintendo included really cool large, folding posters with many of its games that showed off new titles and accessories. The posters pictured above are from 1989 and 1991, respectively. I actually taped these types of posters to my wall when I was a kid. I remember having NES, SNES, and Game Boy posters all hanging above my bed, but Nintendo started dropping support for inserts like these during the Nintendo 64 era.
In 1994, Nintendo released a simple adapter for the SNES which allowed you to play Game Boy games on your TV. The Super Game Boy not only put portable games on the big screen, but it applied a specific color to each of the Game Boy's four shades of gray. So it effectively colorized Game Boy games, and you could adjust the color palette as well.
Although this isn't really a peripheral for the Game Boy hardware itself, it's notable because Nintendo started releasing "Super Game Boy Enhanced" games during the second half of the original Game Boy's lifespan, from 1994 through about 1998. These enhanced games featured special, built-in color palettes that could display up to 10 simultaneous colors when played on a Super Game Boy. In addition, enhanced games could include special borders around the screen and even additional sound effects. However, these special features only worked on the Super Game Boy. Not even later hardware, such as the Game Boy Color, could activate Super Game Boy enhancements due to the hardware differences. Unfortunately, due to the Super Nintendo's different CPU clock speed from the Game Boy, the Super Game Boy played Game Boy games 2.4% faster than the Game Boy itself. Nintendo later released a Super Game Boy 2 in Japan that fixed the speed issue and featured a link port for multiplayer. It was never released in the U.S.
I never bothered getting a Super Game Boy because when I was at home I generally felt like playing a home console. To me, the point of a Game Boy was to be portable. However, later on during the GameCube era I received a Game Boy Player, which made the Super Game Boy irrelevant.
In 1995 Nintendo released five different "Play it Loud!" system colors for the Game Boy in the U.S.: clear, yellow, green, red and black. The above advertisement was printed in Nintendo Power magazine, which I had a subscription to from 1993 until the end of the magazine's production in 2012. A blue Game Boy variant was also released in the UK and Japan. Functionally, these color variations were no different from original 1989 Game Boy model, but they came in a clear plastic case instead of a cardboard box, which you could use to store your Game Boy and a few games. A friend of mine had the black one. This set the stage for Nintendo to offer all of its later handhelds (not to mention console controllers) in a variety of colors. Sega actually released a funny commercial in 1995 mocking Nintendo for offering colored Game Boys while still using the same colorless screen. It featured Sega putting the Game Boy in dresses and even a bondage outfit.
In 1996, Nintendo released the first major revision to the Game Boy, the Game Boy Pocket. It was a smaller system that ran on two AAA batteries and featured a sharper true-black-and-white screen without the green background. However, the system still lacked a backlight. It also featured a smaller link port that required a different link cable from the original Game Boy model. However, Nintendo included an adapter with the newer, smaller link cable that allowed it to plug into the original Game Boy. Other companies also offered their own versions of the smaller link cable, which were arguably better than Nintendo's since they included the smaller and larger size plugs on both ends of the cable (the official cable only had the adapter on one end). I never owned a Game Boy Pocket because I didn't see the point. It still lacked color and a backlight, so I had no interest in upgrading.
Nintendo also surprisingly released a backlit version of the Game Boy Pocket only in Japan labeled the Game Boy Light. This unusual unit came out in April of 1998, shortly before the release of the non-backlit Game Boy Color. This was Nintendo's first backlit Game Boy, and Nintendo wouldn't do it again until 2005 with a subtle revision of the Game Boy Advance SP (the GBA SP was originally frontlit in its 2003 release).
In 1998, Nintendo released the second revision to the Game Boy line: the Game Boy Color. This system was only slightly larger than the Game Boy Pocket and ran on two AA batteries. Best of all, it featured a new color screen that could display up to 56 simultaneous colors compared to the Game Gear's 32. However, the system still lacked a backlight and had the same size screen as before. It reused the Game Boy Pocket's smaller link cable, but also featured an infrared port on top that could be used for close-range (i.e., a few inches away) data transfer, though not for multiplayer. I never managed to use the infrared port because hardly any games supported it and the functionality was unremarkable (trading high scores, basically).
I got my Game Boy Color for Christmas of 1998 along with The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX. I later received other Game Boy Color games such as Super Mario Bros. Deluxe and R-Type DX, but sadly, there weren't too many Game Boy Color games that interested me. But the system did something really neat: it applied color to each of the four shades of gray in original Game Boy games, and it even had built-in, special color palettes for certain older games to make them look even more impressive (such as Super Mario Land). These built-in Game Boy Color palettes were actually better than the ones applied by the Super Game Boy. You could also adjust the assigned color palette to older games while starting up the system.
Upon receiving my Game Boy Color, I quickly sold my original Game Boy and accessories to another kid at my high school. I just didn't see any point in continuing to own the original version when the Game Boy Color was backwards compatible. I didn't really buy any accessories for the system (even though there was an updated Handy Boy released for it), but I did receive the popular Worm Light accessory which plugged into the multiplayer port on the left side of the system and provided a convenient light source.
The Game Boy Color only lasted three short years before Nintendo released the 32-bit Game Boy Advance, so it didn't have much of a lifespan. Also, I was already 14 by the time the Game Boy Color was released, and my family wasn't taking as many road trips, so I didn't get nearly as much use out of the system. However, it was still a great device.
Game Gear
Sega released the 8-bit Game Gear in April of 1991 for about $150 and it originally came bundled with Sega's answer to Tetris: Columns. The system featured a larger, 3.2-inch color screen (compared to the Game Boy's 2.6-inch screen) that was backlit. It had two face buttons and a start button, meaning it had only three usable buttons compared to the Game Boy's four. The system also featured a landscape layout, opposite the Game Boy's portrait layout, and was noticeably larger than Nintendo's handheld. However, it was arguably more comfortable than the Game Boy.
The hardware was essentially a portable Sega Master System, but with a smaller resolution due to the screen size. Also, even though it still displayed 32 simultaneous colors, similar to the Master System, the Game Gear had access to a much larger overall color palette, which caused Master System ports to look brighter on the Game Gear. The system could output stereo sound through headphones or external speakers. Multiplayer was available through similar means to the Game Boy: a link cable.
The system's technical capabilities came at a cost though: it ate through six AA batteries in about 3-5 hours. This meant you probably needed an AC and/or DC adapter to play the system regularly.
The above picture is the original U.S. packaging for the Game Gear. It came with a pack-in game, Columns, and a wrist strap that attached to the system (kind of like Wii Remote wrist straps). Batteries were not included with the system (what a bummer).
I don't recall my first experience with the system, but I may have played a store's demo unit some time after the Game Gear was released. The only experience I can actually recall is from 1995.
In 1995 my cousin (the one with the Game Boy) and I flew by ourselves from California to Hawaii to visit our grandparents at their timeshare. My cousin received a Game Gear shortly before that trip (even though he already owned a Game Boy from Christmas of 1990), either from his mother or his rich uncle who was always showering him with gifts. The Game Gear was no doubt meant to keep him entertained during the flight.
During the flights to Hawaii and back I played my Game Boy and my cousin played his Game Gear, but we occasionally traded off. I got to play Sonic 2 and Frank Thomas Big Hurt Baseball, but I don't remember if my cousin had any other Game Gear games.
Sonic 2 was pretty damn hard, and I remember watching as my cousin progressed pretty far in the game just for the batteries to die on him. He started screaming at the system for ruining his successful run. He was able to acquire more batteries once we landed in Hawaii and we played the system during our entire trip. I liked the Game Gear quite a bit, but sadly, that was the extent of my experience with the system until Sega started releasing Game Gear games on the 3DS Virtual Console starting in 2012. I will be mostly (but not entirely) relying on the 3DS Virtual Console for the Game Gear games in this article.
Despite my almost Nintendo-only upbringing, I used to love reading gaming magazines at the store to see what Sega had up its sleeve and to see what the company was doing in response to Nintendo. Nintendo and Sega were just opposite sides of the same coin, so I generally liked the games that both companies were producing. Growing up I had more experience with the Sega Genesis than the Game Gear because I knew a few people who owned a Genesis, but I always had a fascination with the Game Gear because of its differences from the Game Boy.
The Game Gear had an external battery pack similar to the Game Boy's, except larger. The battery could clip onto your belt or pocket and be turned off and on with a switch on the unit itself.
Although the battery pack was fairly large, it actually made sense given the Game Gear's power requirements. However, according to the instruction manual for this accessory, it still only provided 3-4 hours of continuous play before it had to be recharged for a full 8-hour period again. You could, however, recharge the battery pack while playing. In a strange move, Sega actually offered two different bundles. One version (pictured above) only included the battery pack but not the AC adapter needed to recharge it. The other, larger bundle included both the battery pack and the AC adapter.
Sega later released a more ergonomic battery pack that attached directly to the back of the system, but it was also quite large. Notably, it had an available 2-hour quick charge option. Other companies released their own battery packs, but I never saw one that fit within the battery compartments like Interact's Handy Power did for the Game Boy.
Since the Game Gear was essentially a portable Master System with a larger color palette, Sega also released a simple adapter that allowed you to play Master System games on the Game Gear. It was called the Master Gear Converter, and some other companies released their own versions as well. Think of it as an inverse Super Game Boy. Whereas Nintendo released an adapter to play portable games on a home console, Sega released one to play home console games on a portable system.
In addition to a magnifying glass known as the Super Wide Gear, there was also a Game Gear counterpart to the Handy Boy, called the Handy Gear, which was similar to the armor casing used for cell phones these days. It was advertised as being water resistant and featured a built-in magnifying glass.
The most notable accessory, however, was probably the TV tuner, which turned your Game Gear into a portable television capable of picking up broadcast channels. This was a neat idea since portable TVs were fairly expensive back in the early '90s. The TV Tuner no longer works though since it only picks up analog broadcast signals. The FCC mandated that all broadcasts in the U.S. be converted to a digital format in 2009, turning the TV Tuner into a mere collector's item. But for a laugh, you can still plug another device into the TV Tuner's AV port, meaning you can actually play a VCR or even another gaming system on the Game Gear. Talk about hilarious irony.
Aside from some sort of power supply (rechargeable battery, AC adapter or DC adapter), the Game Gear didn't really need any accessories. It was good to go out of the box.
Just like Nintendo, Sega included some excellent large, folding posters with some of its games to show off various new titles and different hardware accessories. Pictured above are two posters that I own, one from 1991, before the release of Sonic 1, and the other from 1992, before the release of Sonic 2. I couldn't find any scans of these massive posters, so I just took pictures of them with my digital camera.
Sega didn't release any hardware revisions to the Game Gear, but a blue version was offered around 1994 in two different bundles: the "Sports System," which included a handy soft-sided carrying case, and a Lion King bundle that simply included the Lion King game. Other colors and models were released in Japan including yellow, white, light blue and red, as well as company logos and character artwork on the system itself.
The system was officially discontinued worldwide in 1997, but Majesco revived the Game Gear around 2000 with a budget release. The Majesco version of the Game Gear was basically the same, but lacked TV Tuner support. The Majesco versions feature an all white Game Gear logo instead of the red, green, blue ovals on the Sega versions, and have a flat glass panel over the screen.
If you still want to play on an actual Game Gear today, battery life is no longer an issue because battery capacity has increased substantially since the 1990s and rechargeable AAs are cheaper and easier to use now due to improved technology (NiMH batteries don't have memory problems, unlike the old NiCds). However, I have read that the systems frequently suffer from failing capacitors, so you might need to replace those. Some people also choose to upgrade the screen with a newer, clearer display.
If you want to record Game Gear footage from the system itself or play the games on your TV, there is at least one company that offers a TV output modification (similar to the 3DS capture cards), and there are unlicensed systems and adapters that can play Game Gear games as well.
In 2020, Sega released the Game Gear Micro in Japan only. It was a miniaturized reproduction system along the lines of the NES or SNES Classic Edition, with no ability to play cartridges. Each system included only four games, but each color had a different set of games. The system was absolutely tiny: only 8 cm across. As you can see in the picture above, it's small enough to act as a keychain, but Japan is weird like that. Before smart phones, the Japanese carried their cell phones around attached to their keychains, so maybe that was the intent for the Micro.
And now, on to the actual games.
ROUND 1: SUPER MARIO LAND vs. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
And now, on to the actual games.
ROUND 1: SUPER MARIO LAND vs. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
Super Mario Land
Super Mario Land was a 1989 launch title for the Game Boy and at the time was only the third mainline Mario game released in America. However, instead of being developer by Shigeru Miyamoto, this game was produced by Gunpei Yokoi, the producer for Metroid and the creator of the Game Boy itself. As a result, the game feels a bit different from the console-based Mario games of the time, but for me that's a positive because it gives the game its own identity.
As I said before, I didn't get my copy of Super Mario Land until around 1994, at the same time as Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3. However, I had played (and I think beaten) the game prior to that because my cousin had the game (a friend may have owned the game as well).
I've beaten this game countless times, but the last time I did so was for my Youtube channel (shown above), and I achieved a no-death run for that playthrough. I decided to play the game again for this article, only this time, I used my Game Boy Color from 1998 for the true portable experience. That meant I had play with at least some direct sunlight, but the image was clearer than on a standard Game Boy and there was a special color palette added by the hardware.
One thing I had forgotten was just how small the Game Boy screen is. Super Mario Land is very zoomed out and all of the characters/enemies are rather tiny. However, the game didn't scroll vertically that I noticed, so I didn't have to worry about dying from a pit or enemy suddenly appearing below me.
What always stuck me as odd was that Super Mario Land used the blocky, pixelated art style from the original Super Mario Bros even though Super Mario Bros. 2 had been released a year earlier in America, and Super Mario Bros. 3 had also been released that year in Japan. Those sequels both utilized a more detailed graphical style that bared a closer resemblance to the official artwork.
Despite the similarities in Mario's pixelated look, the overall art style for Super Mario Land is a bit different from Super Mario Bros. due to the lack of color. Backgrounds frequently feature "line art" with no shading in between the lines, and there's more of a desert theme, similar to Super Mario Bros. 2, thanks to pyramids and underground tombs. There's also a little bit of science fiction incorporated into the game due to space ships and aliens. Despite the simplistic graphics, the art style is quite memorable.
The setting here is entirely different from Super Mario Bros., which I enjoy. This game takes place in Sarasaland, where Mario has to rescue Princess Daisy (instead of Princess Toadstool) from the alien Tatanga. There are some similar enemies from Super Mario Bros., such as Goombas, Koopa Troopas, Piranha Plants and Bullet Bills, but Koopa Troopas now explode after you jump on them. In general, the enemies feel a bit odd or quirky, such as the Chinese fighters, but I think that fits this game.
Another notable difference is that the flower no longer gives Mario fireballs, but instead gives him a "superball" which bounces off of walls. This powerup always confused me as a kid because I thought it was a fireball, so I didn't know why it would fly upwards off screen. Super Mario Land intentionally throws you for a loop by altering some established mechanics from Super Mario Bros.
As I said before, I didn't get my copy of Super Mario Land until around 1994, at the same time as Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3. However, I had played (and I think beaten) the game prior to that because my cousin had the game (a friend may have owned the game as well).
I've beaten this game countless times, but the last time I did so was for my Youtube channel (shown above), and I achieved a no-death run for that playthrough. I decided to play the game again for this article, only this time, I used my Game Boy Color from 1998 for the true portable experience. That meant I had play with at least some direct sunlight, but the image was clearer than on a standard Game Boy and there was a special color palette added by the hardware.
One thing I had forgotten was just how small the Game Boy screen is. Super Mario Land is very zoomed out and all of the characters/enemies are rather tiny. However, the game didn't scroll vertically that I noticed, so I didn't have to worry about dying from a pit or enemy suddenly appearing below me.
What always stuck me as odd was that Super Mario Land used the blocky, pixelated art style from the original Super Mario Bros even though Super Mario Bros. 2 had been released a year earlier in America, and Super Mario Bros. 3 had also been released that year in Japan. Those sequels both utilized a more detailed graphical style that bared a closer resemblance to the official artwork.
Despite the similarities in Mario's pixelated look, the overall art style for Super Mario Land is a bit different from Super Mario Bros. due to the lack of color. Backgrounds frequently feature "line art" with no shading in between the lines, and there's more of a desert theme, similar to Super Mario Bros. 2, thanks to pyramids and underground tombs. There's also a little bit of science fiction incorporated into the game due to space ships and aliens. Despite the simplistic graphics, the art style is quite memorable.
The setting here is entirely different from Super Mario Bros., which I enjoy. This game takes place in Sarasaland, where Mario has to rescue Princess Daisy (instead of Princess Toadstool) from the alien Tatanga. There are some similar enemies from Super Mario Bros., such as Goombas, Koopa Troopas, Piranha Plants and Bullet Bills, but Koopa Troopas now explode after you jump on them. In general, the enemies feel a bit odd or quirky, such as the Chinese fighters, but I think that fits this game.
Another notable difference is that the flower no longer gives Mario fireballs, but instead gives him a "superball" which bounces off of walls. This powerup always confused me as a kid because I thought it was a fireball, so I didn't know why it would fly upwards off screen. Super Mario Land intentionally throws you for a loop by altering some established mechanics from Super Mario Bros.
The gameplay is solid, just as I remember, but it's based on the simplistic design of Super Mario Bros. That means the screen will not scroll to the left, so there's no backtracking through a level. The same basic run and jump mechanics from Super Mario Bros. return (no changing direction in mid air) with some tricky platforming here and there, but what's interesting is that Yokoi's team also included a few auto-scrolling levels where Mario pilots an airplane/submarine similar to Gradius. The shooting levels help to break up the platforming and give the gameplay some nice diversity. I remember Batman for the Game Boy utilizing similar shooting stages, which were probably inspired by this game.
At the end of each stage, you generally have the chance to reach an upper door which gives you access to a bonus stage where you can gain extra lives or a flower. It's quite handy and much appreciated.
In terms of difficulty, I have two minor complaints. First, Mario himself is larger than the individual blocks in the game, but his hitbox is smaller than it seems in order to compensate for this fact. This makes jumping between one-block gaps rather difficult and annoying. And when you have to land on single blocks, it can be downright frustrating and nerve-racking.
Second, the physics are a bit off. It feels like Mario accelerates too fast and also falls too quickly, as if the gravity is a bit too strong in this game. This can cause you to mistime jumps. Still, the game is balanced and I never had any trouble completing it by the time I received my own copy in 1994. Even when you die, you don't necessarily have to start over from the beginning of the stage.
When I played the game again on my Game Boy Color I died maybe eight times, but I had a stockpile of more than 20 lives. Some of my deaths were simply related to jumps not registering properly. It turned out my A button wasn't working correctly, so afterward I opened up the Game Boy Color, cleaned it, and the problem went away.
Playing this game again, I was reminded of just how excellent the soundtrack is. Every tune is a classic, and my favorite is probably from the above-ground stages in World 2. The music never gets old.
Unfortunately, the game is a bit short. I completed my no-death run for my Youtube channel in just over 30 minutes (including the credits), but every time I beat the game it still feels rewarding. So to summarize, I just have a couple of complaints about the physics, and the game is a tad short. Let's see how Sonic does...
Sonic the Hedgehog
Despite Sega releasing the Genesis in 1989, Sonic the Hedgehog did not debut until 1991. It took Sega a while to come up with a successful mascot to counter Mario's massive appeal after Alex Kidd failed to do the job, but the wait was worth it.
Even though the Game Gear was released in the U.S. in April of 1991, and Sonic was released on the Genesis in June of 1991, the Game Gear version of Sonic wasn't released until several months later, in December of 1991. So Sonic wasn't even a launch game for the Game Gear. Interestingly, the Sega poster from 1991 that I showed above claimed that Sonic wouldn't even be releasing on the Game Gear until January of 1992. I guess Sega beat its own predicted release date.
Unlike Super Mario Land, Sonic for the Game Gear was not designed as a portable game per se. A single Sonic game was developed for both the Game Gear and the 8-bit Master System, with tweaks made for each system based on resolution and whatnot. So the Game Gear version of Sonic is basically the same game as the Master System version, except with a smaller viewing area, some gameplay fixes, and a lower level of difficulty. Oh yeah, and Sonic's sprite is missing his nose in the Game Gear version for some odd reason.
The 8-bit versions of Sonic were actually developed by an external studio, Ancient Corp., instead of the internal Sonic Team at Sega. Sega did oversee the development of the 8-bit versions though.
Even though the Game Gear was released in the U.S. in April of 1991, and Sonic was released on the Genesis in June of 1991, the Game Gear version of Sonic wasn't released until several months later, in December of 1991. So Sonic wasn't even a launch game for the Game Gear. Interestingly, the Sega poster from 1991 that I showed above claimed that Sonic wouldn't even be releasing on the Game Gear until January of 1992. I guess Sega beat its own predicted release date.
Unlike Super Mario Land, Sonic for the Game Gear was not designed as a portable game per se. A single Sonic game was developed for both the Game Gear and the 8-bit Master System, with tweaks made for each system based on resolution and whatnot. So the Game Gear version of Sonic is basically the same game as the Master System version, except with a smaller viewing area, some gameplay fixes, and a lower level of difficulty. Oh yeah, and Sonic's sprite is missing his nose in the Game Gear version for some odd reason.
The 8-bit versions of Sonic were actually developed by an external studio, Ancient Corp., instead of the internal Sonic Team at Sega. Sega did oversee the development of the 8-bit versions though.
I had never played the Game Gear version of Sonic as a kid, so my first experience with the game was when Sega released the title on the 3DS eShop in 2013. I purchased the game as soon as it was available for the 3DS and beat it very quickly.
For this article I played the game once again on my 3DS, which features excellent Game Gear emulation through the Virtual Console. The 3DS Virtual Console not only offers save states, but you can apply a Game Gear-style filter to make the game look like it's on an actual Game Gear screen. In addition, you can apply a Game Gear border showing part of the actual system itself. I didn't bother with either of these filters since I prefer a large, clear image, but they're cool features. However, the 3DS's Game Gear emulation offers performance optimization in the options menu, which causes games to run smoother (i.e., have less slowdown) than normal, so my Virtual Console experience was enhanced by the software equivalent of overclocking.
Graphically, Sonic on the Game Gear is an impressive game. It's bright, colorful and detailed, just like Sega advertised back in the day. I was most impressed by the Jungle Zone with its vivid green backgrounds and flowing waterfalls. There's no denying that this game puts Super Mario Land to shame in the graphics department. However, due to the Game Gear's smaller resolution, this game does feature vertical scrolling throughout, including when Sonic jumps, but it doesn't cause too much of a problem since you can hold the D-pad up or down to move the camera. I only had an issue with this on the last Zone.
This version of Sonic is loosely based on the original Sega Genesis game and features a similar story line. Sonic has to rescue kidnapped animals from Dr. Robotnik on South Island and potentially reclaim the Chaos Emeralds along the way. A few zones are borrowed from the Sega Genesis version with heavily altered layouts, but there are also entirely new ones such as the Bridge and Jungle Zones.
The gameplay here is equally solid compared to Super Mario Land, but I'd say that Sonic handles better than Mario since he can change direction in midair. In fact, Sonic is even more responsive here than in the Genesis version. Since this title is based on the first Genesis Sonic game, Sonic can only jump on or roll through enemies (there's no Spin Dash attack), and he can use the same powerups from the Genesis version. One notable improvement, though, is that the shield now lasts until you get hit (it doesn't wear off at the end of a level). However, when Sonic gets hit without a shield, he drops all of his rings, and they cannot be picked up. Bummer.
Nonetheless, the Game Gear version of Sonic is overall quite different from the Genesis version. Levels are much smaller and tend to lack the various branching high/low paths of the 16-bit game, and the gameplay is nowhere near as fast or as complicated as the Genesis version. Instead, there's more of a focus on careful platforming, similar to Mario. There's even an auto-scrolling stage in this game, which might be considered sacrilege to some Sonic fans. The game's pacing slows down a bit in Scrap Brain Zone Act 2 as a result of the level's confusing design, but you can still haul ass through that stage if you already know the correct path.
Unlike Super Mario Land, Sonic can backtrack through the standard levels, which is necessary for collecting some of the Chaos Emeralds. So Sonic on the Game Gear actually offers more freedom and exploration than Super Mario Land.
Although this game doesn't feature any of the trademark loop-de-loops from the Genesis version, it does have some ramps here and there that launch Sonic quite far. I found the gameplay and levels to have a nice variety in this version. The Bridge Zone features the aforementioned auto-scrolling level, which I enjoyed, and the Jungle Zone has a tall, vertical level that breaks up the standard Sonic design. I was also impressed by the different ideas that were implemented such as the rolling logs, which Sonic can use to run across water. I did notice some frame rate slowdown on multiple levels though, even with the Virtual Console's performance optimization.
In this game the Chaos Emeralds (which you must collect to obtain the best ending) are placed within the standard levels themselves and are not hidden within special stages. I actually like this design better because I usually find Sonic's special stages to be irritating. However, there are still bonus stages in this version that can be accessed by finishing a level with more than 50 rings. Sonic can collect extra lives and continues in these stages, and they're rather fun overall because of how incredibly fast Sonic can bounce through the areas. This game is quite generous with extra lives.
In terms of difficulty, I again have two complaints. First, the boss fights don't give you any rings beforehand, so unless you happen to be carrying over a shield from earlier on, you'll die in a single hit, which is irritating. Second, the underwater Labyrinth Zone gets a bit annoying with its slower physics and Sonic's constant need to replenish his air supply. I have never liked the need for an air supply in any game, but luckily, the underwater sections aren't too long.
Despite these complaints, the difficulty isn't too bad. There are checkpoint arrows in most stages, and there is a fair distribution of rings and shields throughout the game. I did get a game over on my first attempt to play through this game for this article, but that was largely based on me not being familiar with the boss fights. On my second attempt I did much better and collected all of the Chaos Emeralds without resorting to save states or even using a continue.
The soundtrack in this game is also quite good - perhaps as good as Super Mario Land. The first area features a decent conversion of the Green Hill Zone them from the Genesis version of Sonic, and the Bridge Zone contains an excellent, original composition that was allegedly ripped off by Janet Jackson. The other zones feature decent tracks which don't quite match the quality of the first two areas, but the compositions are clean and enjoyable.
If we don't count the third act in each zone (which are merely boss fights), then this version of Sonic features 12 total stages - the same as Super Mario Land. It took me about 45 minutes (including credits) to achieve a no-death run of this game after writing this review, so this game is about 50% longer than Super Mario Land. There's no save feature here, but I don't really think it's necessary.
Unlike Super Mario Land, Sonic can backtrack through the standard levels, which is necessary for collecting some of the Chaos Emeralds. So Sonic on the Game Gear actually offers more freedom and exploration than Super Mario Land.
Although this game doesn't feature any of the trademark loop-de-loops from the Genesis version, it does have some ramps here and there that launch Sonic quite far. I found the gameplay and levels to have a nice variety in this version. The Bridge Zone features the aforementioned auto-scrolling level, which I enjoyed, and the Jungle Zone has a tall, vertical level that breaks up the standard Sonic design. I was also impressed by the different ideas that were implemented such as the rolling logs, which Sonic can use to run across water. I did notice some frame rate slowdown on multiple levels though, even with the Virtual Console's performance optimization.
In this game the Chaos Emeralds (which you must collect to obtain the best ending) are placed within the standard levels themselves and are not hidden within special stages. I actually like this design better because I usually find Sonic's special stages to be irritating. However, there are still bonus stages in this version that can be accessed by finishing a level with more than 50 rings. Sonic can collect extra lives and continues in these stages, and they're rather fun overall because of how incredibly fast Sonic can bounce through the areas. This game is quite generous with extra lives.
In terms of difficulty, I again have two complaints. First, the boss fights don't give you any rings beforehand, so unless you happen to be carrying over a shield from earlier on, you'll die in a single hit, which is irritating. Second, the underwater Labyrinth Zone gets a bit annoying with its slower physics and Sonic's constant need to replenish his air supply. I have never liked the need for an air supply in any game, but luckily, the underwater sections aren't too long.
Despite these complaints, the difficulty isn't too bad. There are checkpoint arrows in most stages, and there is a fair distribution of rings and shields throughout the game. I did get a game over on my first attempt to play through this game for this article, but that was largely based on me not being familiar with the boss fights. On my second attempt I did much better and collected all of the Chaos Emeralds without resorting to save states or even using a continue.
The soundtrack in this game is also quite good - perhaps as good as Super Mario Land. The first area features a decent conversion of the Green Hill Zone them from the Genesis version of Sonic, and the Bridge Zone contains an excellent, original composition that was allegedly ripped off by Janet Jackson. The other zones feature decent tracks which don't quite match the quality of the first two areas, but the compositions are clean and enjoyable.
If we don't count the third act in each zone (which are merely boss fights), then this version of Sonic features 12 total stages - the same as Super Mario Land. It took me about 45 minutes (including credits) to achieve a no-death run of this game after writing this review, so this game is about 50% longer than Super Mario Land. There's no save feature here, but I don't really think it's necessary.
In summary, I just have a couple of complaints regarding underwater levels and bosses. Otherwise, it's a solid game that surprisingly seems to adopt more of a Mario-style platforming approach.
And the winner is...
I have a great amount of fondness for the first Super Mario Land. I grew up with the game and played it repeatedly, even before I had my own copy. However, it is a very rudimentary platforming game, even for the time it came out. Despite the advancements made in the Super Mario Bros. sequels, Super Mario Land has simplistic graphics akin to the first Super Mario Bros., and equally simplistic gameplay to match. The screen can only scroll to the right, so there's no backtracking, and Mario cannot change direction in mid jump. The physics and hit boxes are also a bit off. That doesn't make it a bad game. But it does create some weaknesses.
Sonic the Hedgehog, on the other hand, is surprisingly good for a Game Gear game. Some people actually argue that it's better than the Genesis version. With his first Game Gear entry, Sonic ironically outperforms Mario in his own arena by featuring better physics, more exploration, and scrolling in all directions. Even Sonic's bonus games are more fun. Sonic also incorporates some different platforming ideas such as an auto-scrolling stage and a vertical climbing stage reminiscent of Super Mario Bros. 2. And that doesn't even factor in the better graphics and larger sprites.
Super Mario Land has very tight, arcade-like platforming, which deserves praise. But it also has a certain degree of concentrated frustration because of the odd physics and densely packed, tiny platforms that you're likely to miss. This makes for a nerve-racking experience at times. Sonic, however, is less frustrating overall due to the larger, more spread-out level designs and the more natural progression in difficulty. Even Sonic's underwater areas aren't too bad thanks to their much shorter length compared to the Genesis version. In fact, you could actually argue that they are enjoyable.
Mario has started this competition with a pretty good entry, but Sonic has outperformed him in most aspects, even if only slightly. It's a surprising start to a battle that I expected to favor Nintendo. Let's see if there are more surprises in this competition.
ROUND 2: SUPER MARIO LAND 2 vs. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins
For Super Mario Land 2, Yokoi took advantage of the graphical and gameplay advancements that had been made in the Mario series since Super Mario Bros. 2 on the NES. Mario now has a larger and more detailed sprite similar to Super Mario Bros. 2, 3, and Super Mario World; the levels and backgrounds feature more detail; the screen scrolls freely in all directions; and the game now features an overworld map similar to Super Mario Bros. 3/Super Mario World where Mario can enter different zones and levels in almost any order. There is also a new save feature which allows you continue playing from where ever you left off last time (saving occurs automatically as you complete a level). These features were a massive improvement over Super Mario Land. It's similar to the difference between Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario World. The tradeoff, however, is that the viewable playing area is smaller than before and there is now quite a bit of vertical camera scrolling, though it doesn't present much of an issue.
Super Mario Land 2 definitely runs wild with the weirdness/quirkiness established in the first Mario Land game. This time, Mario has his own kingdom (dubbed "Mario Land") complete with his own castle, but his old archenemy Wario (a demented, pseudo-Mario doppelganger) took over the land and Mario's castle while Mario was busy saving Princess Daisy in the prior game. Mario now has to reclaim the six golden coins from each of the various zones to unlock the entrance to his own castle and face Wario.
I first played this game within a year or two of its release because a childhood friend of mine owned the game. I'm fairly certain that I beat my friend's copy of Mario Land 2 around that time, but I eventually obtained my own copy around 1996 or 1997. I then played the game countless times, always going back to it on road trips and whatnot. For this article I completed the game again using my Game Boy Color. However, while replaying it, I discovered that the game's autosave feature wasn't working, so the cartridge's battery must have died on me. This is the first time this has ever happened (even my NES Zelda games still save, to my knowledge). As a result, I had to complete the game in a single session.
Aside from the graphical improvements noted above, Super Mario Land 2 has improved physics that allow you to change direction in mid-air, though Mario moves rather slow in this game, even when running. The jumps are also floatier, so there's no more excessive gravity, unlike the first Mario Land game. Mario also gains a new spin-jump ability derived from Super Mario World that allows him to break certain blocks by holding down on the D-jump while jumping with a powered-up Mario (small Mario can't do it). You can also increase the height of Mario's jumps by holding up on the D-pad, but this occurs automatically with Bunny Mario.
Speaking of Bunny Mario, that's the trademark, unique ability for this game. Eat a carrot and Mario grows ears which allow him to slow fall, similar to Racoon Mario from Super Mario Bros. 3, minus the flying ability. But oddly, Bunny Mario lacks the spin jump ability. The fire flower has also returned to replace the odd super ball power from before, and the flying/submarine stages from the first game are gone. However, this game does have a few unique flying stages by way of a space suit and bubbles. There is also a strange slime substance that Mario can essentially swim through in certain levels.
What I really enjoy about this game is the ability to travel all over the world map and complete unique zones in any order I want. Even Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World didn't have that much freedom. The zones themselves feel like isolated, quirky little worlds, and are just oozing with charm. I particularly like the Pumpkin and Macro Zones with their odd enemies (walking hockey masks with knives in their heads, anyone?) and large level layouts. Quite a few stages have hidden areas to encourage exploration, and similar to Super Mario World, there are secret exits leading to bonus levels. Overall, it's just really fun to get lost in the atmosphere of each level, like a kid exploring the old play palaces at McDonald's.
The music is also catchy and fits in with the quirky atmosphere, but there are only two stand-out tunes in my mind: the iconic first level theme, and the music from the second regular stage of Star Zone. Well, that, and the credits theme.
This game is incredibly easy though. It's unlikely to provide any real challenge until Wario's Castle, where the difficulty ramps up suddenly. Even with the new vertical camera scrolling, you probably won't encounter many camera-based deaths, especially with Mario's relatively slow movement speed and Bunny Mario's slow fall. There is also a mini-game that you can access in most levels by ringing a bell above the goal. It's an idea carried over from the first Mario Land, and it once again gives you the chance to collect extra lives and power-ups.
The game's low difficulty may be its only real setback. Other than that, it's a major improvement over the first Mario Land. I completed my no-death run for my Youtube channel in just over an hour and 20 minutes, so this game is much longer than either Super Mario Land or Sonic 2. Now let's see if Sonic has improved since last time...
And the winner is...
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic 2 was released for the Game Gear in November of 1992, resulting in a head-to-head holiday battle with Super Mario Land 2. Surprisingly, the Game Gear version of Sonic 2 came out a week before the Sega Genesis version, and as before, this handheld version has very little in common with its 16-bit counterpart. Aside from featuring Tails, who isn't even a playable character in this game, Sonic 2 doesn't appear to borrow any ideas from the hit Genesis sequel.
In this game, Tails has actually been kidnapped by Dr. Robotnik (shown in the opening cutscene before the start menu), and Sonic must collect all six Chaos Emeralds to unlock the final Zone, rescue Tails, and obtain the best ending. Chaos Emeralds are again hidden within the main levels themselves and not in bonus stages, but they're much harder to obtain this time (especially the infamous second one). Oddly though, the title cards for each level still depict Sonic and Tails tackling the stages together. I remember this confusing the crap out of me as a kid, and I'm sure plenty of other kids felt the same way back in the '90s.
8-bit Sonic 2 was again developed by an outside team (this time Aspect) for both the Master System and the Game Gear with a few small changes made for each system. The Master System version of course features a much larger viewing area due to the higher resolution, making that version much, much easier - and better overall.
Here, the Game Gear version of Sonic 2 is even more zoomed in than the Game Gear version of Sonic 1, making for a very limited viewing area that now causes problems throughout the game, including repeated blind jumps into spiked pits, lava and other hazards. Simply running full speed through the stages will very likely cause you to drop your rings, if not outright get you killed. It's a bit disappointing not being able to play this game fast and wild like Sonic 2 on the Genesis.
In order to beat Sonic 2 on the Game Gear (especially with all the Chaos Emeralds), you'll probably have to memorize the stages through a hell of a lot of trial and error, in addition to using maps. Thankfully though, this game features a hidden level select cheat, and the 3DS Virtual Console offers save states so that you can repeat tough areas, which I used judiciously to learn the game.
Nonetheless, Sonic 2 is in some ways slightly more forgiving than Sonic 1 thanks to the generous amount rings placed throughout each stage and Sonic's ability to pick up multiple scattered rings when he gets hit, like in the Genesis games. In some areas you can actually run continuously across spike beds if you keep picking up your scattered rings fast enough. But boss fights once again occur without any rings, and the bosses are tougher than before. Also, the shield powerup is noticeably absent from this game, and there are no more checkpoints. Ouch.
Sonic's physics have noticeably changed from before, but he controls great. He now feels heavier, moves faster, and takes more time to build up and stop his momentum, which is closer to the feel of the Genesis games. Loop-de-loops are included for the first time in a handheld Sonic title, and Sonic can finally Spin Attack through walls in the same fashion as Sonic 1 for the Genesis. Unfortunately, the awesome and highly useful Spin Dash from the Genesis version of Sonic 2 is missing.
It's debatable whether this game is graphically more impressive than Sonic 1 on the Game Gear, but the character sprites (especially Sonic's) are better than before and the game runs much smoother than Sonic 1, with far fewer instances of slowdown. There's certainly no question that Sonic 2 is more graphically impressive than the monochrome Super Mario Land 2. Sonic 2 also features faster gameplay than both Super Mario Land 2 and Sonic 1.
The music is excellent and even iconic. Every stage has a solid theme and the Underground Zone, Green Hills Zone, Crystal Egg Zone and boss fight music in particular are all top notch. When I purchased this game from the eShop in 2013, I instantly recognized the Underground Zone and boss fight music from my childhood experience back in 1995. There was no forgetting those tunes. This game simply has better music than Super Mario Land 2.
The gameplay is generally solid and there are quite a few "gimmicks" used in various levels to make this title stand out from the Genesis sequel, such as riding in mine carts and on hang gliders, rolling across the surface of water (my favorite), and floating inside of bubbles underwater. The stages are just the right size for a handheld title and there often multiple paths to take with even more hidden areas than the prior game, providing for plenty of exploration. The overall speed and level design make this feel more like a true Sonic game compared to its predecessor. Most of the zones were enjoyable, and once I memorized the game I was able to blast through the stages rather quickly.
However, the game's level arrangement is highly questionable. The very first zone is an underground one with lava and an unnecessarily confusing/difficult boss fight that simply involves dodging an incoming bouncing ball so that it can hit the boss. I remember my cousin and I being incredibly confused by this boss back in 1995 because every time we jumped on the boss, it killed us. It took a while, but my cousin eventually figured out that he had to dodge the bouncing ball. The second zone then goes right into a sky-themed area with a hang glider and massive blind jumps, and the third zone is an underwater area. It's not until the fourth zone that the game finally drops a traditional starting area on you with Green Hills Zone, which is a really easy area - up until the third act.
In Act 3 of Green Hills Zone, the game becomes downright ludicrous with repeated blind springboard jumps that will more often than not drop you right onto a set of unpredictable spikes, causing instant death since it's a boss stage with no rings. It probably took me ten full minutes of resetting to my save state on this level in order to come up with a repeatable pattern to pass this area and get to the boss. Imagine trying to figure out this stage back in the day on an actual Game Gear. What a nightmare!
Scrambled Egg Zone had to easily win the most out-of-place zone in this game due to its ridiculously confusing pipe mazes. Seriously, when did Sonic get transported to Pipe Word from Super Mario Bros. 3? The only way to beat this zone is once again through trial and error, though it is forgiving to some extent - that is, until you get close to the end of Act 2 where you have make precise timed jumps on and off a moving platform. Screw up once in that section and you're dead.
The final boss fight is an absolute nightmare. I had to watch other playthroughs on Youtube, and then after about 15 minutes of trial and error, I altered the strategy I was copying by having Sonic immediately go left after reentering the pipes encircling the arena. That was the only way I could come up with a repeatable pattern for beating Robotnik. How were kids supposed to beat this game?
Once it came down to actually recording footage, I managed to secure a no-death playthrough while collecting all of the Chaos Emeralds within about two dozen attempts, which was a bit less difficult than I expected. The playthrough came in at just under 40 minutes, which is slightly shorter than Sonic 1 on the Game Gear, and about half the length of Mario Land 2. There is no save feature in this game, but there are plenty of extra lives to obtain.
So in conclusion, Sonic 2 is overall a fun but very, very frustrating game that takes quite a bit of memorization to beat. There are some improvements compared to the prior game, but the unfair difficulty level holds this sequel back.
And the winner is...
Although both games made several improvements over their predecessors and included innovative "gimmicks" to distinguish themselves from their home console counterparts, this battle ultimately wasn't close due to the polar opposite nature of Super Mario Land 2 and Sonic 2. Whereas Mario Land 2 was almost laughably easy, Sonic 2 was so absurdly difficult and imbalanced that the sheer frustration marred the otherwise good game design. There's a reason my cousin almost broke his Game Gear playing this game.
If only the developer had shrunk everything down to provide a larger viewing area and made a few tweaks, this would have been a much better Sonic game overall - probably better than the first one. As it stands though, the Master System version of Sonic 2 is the definitive 8-bit version, though Green Hills Zone Act 3 still sucks in that one.
Super Mario Land 2, on the other hand, provides excellent (albeit incredibly easy) level design and exploration in a package that is quirky, charming, and unique without being unnecessarily frustrating. The save feature is also a welcome addition. I'd rather have a quirky but easy Mario game than to have a somewhat innovative but downright sadistic Sonic game.
Sorry Sonic. You put in a good effort, but you seem to have tripped over your own feet along the way. Mario wins this one without a struggle.
ROUND 3: WARIO LAND: SUPER MARIO LAND 3 vs. SONIC CHAOS
Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3
In the mid '90s, Nintendo started spinning off some of its mainline series by taking prominent side characters and giving them their own adventure based upon their unique gameplay mechanics. Perhaps most notably, in 1995 Nintendo spun off Super Mario World into Yoshi's Island, and the Yoshi series still continues to this day. However, a year before that, Nintendo spun off its successful Super Mario Land series into Wario Land, and the results were phenomenal.
Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3, as it was dubbed, was released in early 1994 for the Game Boy (about three months after Sonic Chaos) and featured the deposed final boss from Super Mario Land 2 - Wario - as the hero in his own entirely new adventure.
After being driven out of Mario Land at the end of the prior game, Wario has once again sought to amass a fortune and obtain his own castle, this time by stealing a golden statute of Princess Toadstool from the Brown Sugar Pirates. In order to do this, he's waging a one-man war against the pirates' stronghold on Kitchen Island, the unique world for this game.
As best as I can recall, I received Wario Land for Christmas of 1994 along with Super Mario Land. I spent quite a bit of time playing the game on road trips, and it became one of my go-to games during the mid '90s, especially since I didn't get Super Mario Land 2 until a few years later. I have replayed this game more times than I can remember, which is a testament to its quality.
Although Wario Land may not constitute a true Super Mario Land game since Mario is no longer a playable character, it bares the title of Super Mario Land 3 and draws some clear inspiration from the basic design of Mario Land 2. Like Super Mario Land 2, Wario Land is a platforming adventure game taking place across seven different areas that are accessible from an overworld map. However, the areas are generally completed in sequence, similar to Super Mario Bros. 3.
Wario has the traditional walking and jumping controls inherited from Mario Land 2, but there are some innovative new mechanics that distinguish this game from Mario's last adventure. To begin with, Wario is larger and tougher than Mario, so much so that he can stun enemies simply by bumping into them. Thus, the only way for enemies to hurt him is through the use of pointed weapons, bombs, lightning, or similar damaging attacks. This means you'll frequently have to hit enemies from behind to avoid their spikes or just wait for them to otherwise become vulnerable.
In further differentiation from Mario, Wario doesn't have an on-the-fly run ability, but instead has a body slam mechanic that allows him to charge forward with a damaging, short-rage attack by pressing B. Wario can also body slam and jump at the same time to charge into the air diagonally. Body slamming enemies and sending them flying off screen is a fun and satisfying change to the traditional Mario mechanics. It's also a handy new platforming mechanic since Wario can charge off the edge of a cliff and not fall until his charge has stopped.
Wario's physics feel tighter and more responsive than Mario's. He can stop immediately in mid-air (momentum isn't an issue) and jump higher and faster by holding up on the D-pad, which is an ability derived from Mario Land 2. The game frequently requires you to hold up while jumping to dodge obstacles and clear larger gaps. Wario can also crouch walk, similar to Simon Belmont in Super Castlevania IV, and he has better swimming controls than Mario since you can hold A to swim continuously and sink faster by holding down.
Instead of Mario's old power-up system, there is a new hat-based upgrade mechanic. Aside from the default, full-size Wario who can simply body slam, there is Bull Wario, who breaks blocks in a single hit, has a butt slam, a longer-range body slam, and the ability to stick to the ceiling; Jet Wario, who can fly instead of body slam, as well as walk faster and jump higher by default; and Dragon Wario, who has a fire-breathing hat that can kill enemies and break blocks (even underwater) at the cost of no longer having a body slam. If Wario gets hit while in any of these forms, he'll downgrade to small Wario, who lacks the body slam ability and will die if he gets hit again. However, small Wario can still stun enemies by walking into them. The game will generously revert you back to full-size Wario if you complete a level as small Wario though. My favorite ability by far is Jet Wario since he can fly across entire sections of levels by immediately stopping and restarting the jet hat's propulsion with B. Also, the jet ability still acts functionally the same as a body slam and can even be used underwater. None of these power-ups are overpowered or game breaking, and certain level sections can only be accessed with specific abilities like the butt slam or dragon breath.
Another unique feature is Wario's ability to carry and throw stunned enemies. In addition to body slamming bad guys off screen, you can pick them up and toss them at each other to knock them out, or simply toss them into pits, spikes, lava, etc. Several boss fights use this enemy-tossing mechanic to change up the usual jump-on-head-three-times routine. Wario can also generate a 10-gold coin by holding up and pressing B, and this coin is necessary to unlock checkpoints and open the exit door for most levels. It can also be used to knock out enemies. So there are a variety of combat options in this game.
Whereas Mario games are simply focused on completing levels, Wario adds the additional focus of collecting money, but not for 1ups. The game has multiple endings based upon how much money and treasure you collect, and there are 15 specific treasures hidden throughout Kitchen Island. You can obtain them by locating and then carrying a hidden key to the giant Skeleton Lock in the same level, which will open a door to the stage's hidden treasure. Most treasures are easy to find, but a few are hidden so well that I couldn't find them as a kid. The new treasure hunting feature and multiple endings finally gives the Mario Land series some competition to Sonic's Chaos Emeralds.
The level design here is excellent. In fact, I think it surpasses Super Mario Land 2. The developers implemented a variety of fun and clever ideas such as fleeing from a pursuing Thwomp or wall of lava, jumping from one rolling wagon cart to another, and my personal favorite, trekking through a moving locomotive as you alternate between the interior and exterior of the train and avoid falling on the tracks. There are plenty of more traditional level designs, such as underwater levels, but some of the indoor levels use a more maze-like design, almost like Yoshi's Island. Just like Mario Land 2, it is easy to get lost in the atmosphere of each level.
There are also several hidden stages in the game which can be accessed through secret exits (a la Super Mario World), and the overworld map even indicates the stages possessing secrets exits by giving them darker icons. Also, an entire area - Sherbet Land - is hidden and must be accessed from a secret exit in Mt. Teapot. Secret exits typically aren't that difficult to find.
At the end of each stage you're automatically given the chance to play one of two minigames for a price: one is a gambling game that gives you three chances to pull the string on one of two buckets, with one randomly doubling your money and the other cutting it in half; and the other is a bomb-tossing game that rewards you with hearts (you get additional lives for each 100 hearts you collect). The bomb-tossing game is fun, but the gambling game is more useful.
The graphics are good for a Game Boy game and both Kitchen Island and the Brown Sugar Pirates have a distinctive theme and style that set this game apart from Super Mario Land 2. Wario also has a larger sprite that is detailed with his trademark evil/goofy grin.
While certainly odd, the music in this game is distinctive and memorable. No single tune stands out as truly amazing, but I did enjoy the menacing vibe of the boss-stage theme, and the upbeat train-stage music was good too. For the most part, it's just fitting music for an anti-hero like Wario.
Wario Land isn't exactly difficult, but it is more challenging that Super Mario Land 2, and it requires more problem solving, especially if you want to find all of the secret exits and treasures. There is once again an automatic save feature, which is necessary since this game takes almost three hours to complete - approximately twice the length of Super Mario Land 2. But wouldn't you know it, my Wario Land cartridge's battery also died since I last played it in 2015.
Since I was going to replay this game for this article anyway, I decided to record a new no-death playthrough for my Youtube channel (I died once in the prior playthrough, which always bothered me) and obtain the best ending as well (I previously obtained the second-best ending). Wario Land was still as fun as before, and I think this may actually have been the first time I obtained the best ending.
In summary, this is a phenomenal game that surpasses Super Mario Land 1 and 2 with innovative new gameplay ideas and a surprising twist on the typical platforming genre. It's clever, charming, and highly replayable. In fact, it's probably one of my favorite Game Boy games altogether. Wario has already brought his A-game with his debut title, so can Sonic's third handheld game hope to improve things enough to match Wario's amazing entrance?
Sonic Chaos
A year before the 1994 release of Sonic 3 on the Genesis, Sega had already released a third official Sonic game for the Game Gear titled Sonic Chaos. Since this game predated Sonic 3, it basically has little in common with that title. Instead, in a now predictable fashion, the handheld Sonic series was once again late in incorporating features already introduced in the mainline Genesis games.
With Sonic Chaos, Tails was finally included as a playable character on the Game Gear after he was initially made playable in the Genesis version of Sonic 2. But rather than being a simple sidekick with an identical moveset to Sonic, Tails is now more of a distinct, alternate character along the lines of Knuckles.
So at the same time Nintendo has replaced Mario with an innovative new main character, Sega has at least added an alternate playable character to the Sonic roster, making for a rather interesting side-character faceoff in this third round.
For whatever reason, Sega never released Sonic Chaos on the 3DS Virtual Console despite releasing Sonic 1, 2, Triple Trouble and even Blast on that platform. As a result, I had to look elsewhere for my Sonic Chaos fix, and I ultimately picked up Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut for the GameCube after I discovered that it not only contained Sonic Chaos, but all 12 Game Gear Sonic games including Sonic Drift and Tails' Skypatrol. However, the Game Gear games had to be unlocked by collecting all 130 emblems and completing all 60 missions in Sonic Adventure, which took me two weeks to complete.
The Game Gear emulation in Sonic Adventure DX seems pretty good, but I did notice a bit of input lag. Nonetheless, for recording purposes, the GameCube footage comes through much clearer than my 3DS captures. There's no save state feature though.
Sonic Chaos was developed by the same outside studio from before (Aspect) and was once again made for both the Master System and Game Gear, with the Master System having the larger viewable playing area due to the increased resolution over the Game Gear.
The setting is largely the same as before. Dr. Robotnik has seized a Chaos Emerald from South Island, causing the others to scatter, but this time he's going to construct nuclear weapons. At the beginning of the game you can choose to play as either Sonic or Tails, but only Sonic can collect the Chaos Emeralds and use the rocket shoes. Sonic runs faster and can use the Super Peel Out from Sonic CD, but Tails can fly and starts with additional lives and continues. So Tails is essentially easy mode.
I used Sonic for my Youtube playthrough since I wanted to record myself collecting the Chaos Emeralds, but after that, I played through the game again with Tails and just screwed around along the way, taking my time exploring and whatnot.
Right off the bat, Sonic Chaos still feels a bit too zoomed in, similar to Sonic 2. However, this game is overall much easier than the prior one, so this limited viewing area presents less of an issue. Sonic still has his trademark speed, but he feels just a tad slower than he did in Sonic 2. Nonetheless, he handles rather well, platforming works as it should, and momentum once again feels comparable to the Genesis games.
The new Spin Dash and Super Peel Out moves are tons of fun and allow you to instantly shoot forward, with the Spin Dash having the added benefit of tearing through enemies and destructible walls. The developers made great use of carefully placed ramps and loop-de-loops to take advantage of these new mechanics, and corkscrews are even included for the first time in the handheld series. If there is any complaint to be made here, it's that the Super Peel Out feels a bit redundant to the Spin Dash.
Certain "gimmicks" have returned from before such as pipes and minecarts, but the developers have added some new ideas including the pogo springs, which you can use to reach higher platforms, and the rocket shoes, which allow you fly around temporarily (though Tails can't use them since he can already fly). These two new items have actually been incorporated into the level design rather well, with both items also featuring prominently in some of the bonus stages. Thankfully, the pipe maze insanity from Sonic 2 has been toned down a bit and feels more natural here, though the final bonus stage is a bit confusing.
The levels again feature a branching high/low paths, and enemies are only sparsely scattered throughout to prevent you from mindlessly charging forward. The upper paths are generally safer and more productive for collecting rings, but it's easier to miss a platform and fall down. The lower paths, on the other hand, are more simplistic but tend to feature pitfalls, spikes, and other hazards. This game also uniquely features tilted floor sections that must be crossed at full speed or else you'll fall, potentially into a hazard. This is the classic Sonic design where you're constantly switching between bursts of speed and careful platforming. Spring boards are used judiciously throughout, and there's no shortage of moving platforms. Hidden areas are also quite prominent.
Unfortunately, the stages are too short, and even a bit bland at times. It's possible to complete most, if not all of the levels in under a minute each, and you can easily zip past large sections just by using the rocket shoes. Of course, you can still take your time and explore if you feel like it. The game also interestingly features a speedometer at the end of each stage that measures your top speed.
The zones have a nice variety and I'm particularly fond of the second one, Gigapolis Zone, which reminds me of Star Light Zone from Sonic 1 on the Genesis and early NES games in general due to its dark background and twinkling lights. The third area, Sleeping Egg Zone, is rather interesting with its sheer amount of breakable blocks and false walls. You can actually break diagonally upward through the blocks to reach higher areas, though it's a little tricky to perform. This game's water area, Aqua Planet Zone, might be the best water area so far because you can complete the entire zone without ever seeing any H2O since it's limited to the lower path only and is quite shallow. It's also still possible to skip across the surface of the water, just like in Sonic 2, but that feature has less use here.
The third act in each zone once again serves as a boss fight, but thankfully, there is now an option to pick up rings along the way, if you know where to look, so exploration is encouraged. The bosses themselves are fairly well balanced, with a few being easily exploitable by repeatedly bouncing on their heads. However, the later bosses take quite a few hits to defeat (something like 15), and the final boss can kill you in one hit in his second form, regardless of rings, though you can do the same to him.
Graphically, Sega's third handheld entry is once again more impressive than Nintendo's comparative showing. Sonic's sprite is different from before (I think it's a bit of a downgrade), but Aspect actually managed to angle Sonic and Tails on the tilted floor sections for a neat graphical effect. The zones are particularly vibrant and detailed, especially the final zone with its animated circuitry in the background. Special stages 3 and 5 have a nice look to them, and I was impressed with the rolling clouds in Aqua Planet Zone. Aspect did a great job showing what the Game Gear hardware could achieve.
The music is also quite good, with Turquoise Hill Zone and Aqua Planet Zone being particularly catchy and memorable. The soundtrack might be a bit below Sonic 2's compositions, but it's a good a showing overall and fares decently against Wario's music.
Sadly, one of the drawbacks, aside from the short levels, is the Chaos Emeralds. This time, the gems are no longer hidden in the main stages. Instead, in a return to form, the Chaos Emeralds are now hidden in bonus stages, just like the Genesis Sonic games. But the bonus levels are now immediately accessed by collecting 100 rings in a level, which is easier to do in some stages than in others.
Collecting this many rings feels a bit excessive, especially since a single hit will cause you to drop all of them at once, but another issue is that once you complete a bonus stage, you immediately move on to the zone's next act, effectively skipping large portions of the main levels. The bonus stages themselves aren't too bad though, and they do a good job of progressing in difficulty, going from a simple rocket shoe level, to pogo spring climbing, a simple pipe maze, a large platforming level, and finally a more complex pipe maze. The sixth Chaos Emerald is automatically dropped by the final boss.
However, this drawback is easily avoided by using the better playable character - Tails. Unlike Sonic, Tails doesn't have the option to collect the Chaos Emeralds, so he can complete the main stages in their entirety regardless of the total rings he collects while still obtaining the same basic best ending. The only difference is that Tails isn't depicted inside of a giant Chaos Emerald during the credits.
Tails isn't as distinct or innovative as Wario, but his flight ability is great for exploration and discovering alternate paths, though it only lasts for a few seconds and must be activated from a standstill. Also, contrary to what the instruction manual claims, Tails cannot swim. He'll simply jump underwater if you try to fly. Although Tails does run slower than Sonic, I hardly noticed any difference. Tails can basically access the same areas as Sonic, but in Act 3 of Aqua Planet Zone, I was only able to reach the lone ring monitor with Tails' flight ability.
I completed my no-death playthrough of this game in just over 30 minutes while collecting all of the Chaos Emeralds, making this easily the shortest Game Gear Sonic title. It's almost the same length as Super Mario Land. That makes for a good pick-up-and-play title, but doesn't provide for much depth.
In summary, Sonic Chaos can be viewed as a general improvement over Sonic 2 since it's nowhere near as frustrating, though it's even shorter and arguably has some blander level designs. Tails is more fun, especially with his flying ability, but he lacks the innovative new platforming design that Wario has provided.
This round was certainly closer than the prior one, but still not close enough for Sonic and Tails to collectively surpass or even match Wario's impressive initial showing. Wario Land is an amazing game - one of the best on the Game Boy. It's so highly refined that there's almost nothing to complain about. I consider it the quintessential handheld title since you can easily play a few stages (or even complete an entire area) and then come back to it later thanks to the save feature. There's also no shortage of content since it's approximately three hours long and loaded with hidden treasures and secret exits. The replay value is just excellent, especially since each of the power-ups provides for a different experience.
While Sonic Chaos is certainly an improvement over the sadistic Sonic 2, the continued screen crunch, occasional lackluster level design, and overall short game length (around 1/6th of Wario's) limit this game's potential. The already short stages get cut even shorter if you use Sonic and collect the Chaos Emeralds, but the two playable characters collectively add some needed replay value. Tails is definitely more fun to use overall, especially with his flying ability, but it feels like the zones should have been longer and more complex, and the bonus stages should have been accessible through different means than just collecting 100 rings. It is rather interesting though how both games added new playable characters and featured such a heavy focus on collecting coins/rings.
I really enjoyed this round due to the games' similar innovations, but Sonic didn't bring his A game when he should have. It's more like his B game. It's not a bad showing, for sure, but it's also not good enough to win. With two rounds remaining though, there's still hope for the Blue Blur.
ROUND 4: WARIO LAND II vs. SONIC TRIPLE TROUBLE
Wario Land II
Unlike Sega, who was pumping out new mainline Game Gear Sonic games every year up through 1994 (not to mention releasing numerous spinoff titles), Nintendo had been taking its time, releasing Super Mario Land 1 and 2 three full years apart, followed by an approximate two-year gap between Super Mario Land 2 and 3 (well, more like a year and three months). Nintendo then officially ended the Super Mario Land series as a trilogy in 1994, and it took an astounding four more years for the company to continue its newly established Wario Land franchise on the Game Boy. By this point, the Game Gear had already been discontinued by Sega, and Nintendo was essentially continuing forward unchallenged in the handheld space.
Wario Land II was released in March of 1998, almost four years after Sonic Triple Trouble, and only eight months before the launch of the Game Boy Color. Due to its late-generation release, the initial version of Wario Land II featured Super Game Boy enhancements for the first time in the Mario Land/Wario Land series, which meant additional colors (no more than 10 at once), and a special Wario-themed border, but only if you played the game on the SNES using the Super Game Boy.
However, Nintendo later released an upgraded Game Boy Color version of Wario Land II in February of 1999. I actually did not bother to pick up Wario Land II when it was released because I didn't really care for the sudden change in the direction of the series. Nonetheless, I picked up the Game Boy Color version complete in box around 2009 and I managed to beat the game once. I still needed to post a playthrough of Wario Land II for my Youtube channel though, so that gave me the perfect opportunity to experience the game again for this review.
Wario Land II takes place directly after the events of Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3. While Wario is sleeping in his castle, Captain Syrup and the Brown Sugar Pirates invade Wario's home, flood the place, and make off with his hard-earned (i.e., pillaged) treasure in retaliation for his prior assault on Kitchen Island. Wario then wakes up and has to fix his castle and chase down the pirates through a series of different areas and branching scenarios.
As I mentioned before, Wario Land II marked a radical change in the series, which up to this point had included both a Game Boy game and a lesser-known Virtual Boy title. Wario Land II transitioned the series from an action platformer inspired by Super Mario Land 2 to more of a puzzle platformer. Wario can no longer die, so prior platforming staples such as bottomless pits and lava pools are gone, though he can still take damage, which now simply causes him to drop coins.
Wario's basic abilities have returned, so he can still body slam, butt slam, crawl, and jump higher by holding up on the D-pad, though his body slam no longer defies gravity. Swimming controls have changed a bit too since you can swim in all directions using B, and Wario can now slide down hills, causing him to roll into a ball that destroys breakable blocks and walls in a similar fashion to Sonic's Spin Attack. However, if you duck while charging, Wario will crouch slide a short distance, which is a neat feature not really utilized until the end of the game. Wario has also gained greater control over his throwing ability since he can now toss enemies upward and even charge his throws by holding down B and then releasing it.
However, Wario is stiffer and less responsive than before. It feels like there's a delay to his jumps, and he takes a moment to change directions while running. Also, his running animation feels jerky.
Aside from the new immortality feature, Wario Land II's biggest change comes from the replacement of the prior hat-based power-up system. In its place, Wario now undergoes temporary transformations that help you to defeat enemies, destroy certain types of blocks, or reach specific areas. There are 11 specific transformations that Wario can use to his advantage, and each of them can be undone through a specific action or just the passage of time. For example, when Wario gets stung by a bee, he turns into Puffy Wario and can float up to otherwise unreachable areas, though he'll deflate once he touches the ceiling. As another example, when Wario eats one of the cakes tossed at him by the Cook, he turns into Fat Wario, who can crush enemies instantly and break certain floor tiles. Fat Wario reverts back to normal after a short period of time. However, sometimes the transformations are presented as a hindrance to be avoided, like when Wario gets inadvertently turned into a zombie on high-up platforms, causing him to lose his jump ability.
In an ironic move, Wario appears to have stolen one of Sonic's innovations from Sonic 2 on the Game Gear through his Bubble Wario ability, which allows him to float upward underwater from inside an air bubble. However, unlike in Sonic 2, this ability is used to pass through strong downward water currents that Wario otherwise couldn't swim past.
I find the transformations to simply be less fun than the prior power-up system. Not only are they temporary, but they're basically used for puzzle-solving mechanics. Rather than having options for progressing through a level with different power-ups, you're generally given just one fairly obvious solution to the puzzle blocking your way. For instance, if there are fire blocks in your way, use Hot Wario to destroy them. If there are platforms out of your jumping range and bees nearby, just have the bees sting you and float upward. I prefer to have more freedom in my gameplay, especially when it comes to platformers.
The level designs are a bit too bland for my liking. For the most part, you're just lackadaisically collecting the massive amount of coins strewn about each room rather than dealing with tricky platforming and clever enemy placement. There's no sense of urgency or danger, and even the pacing doesn't feel right. There is, however, a very OCD component to this game as you frequently find yourself trying to methodically obtain every single last coin, including those dropped from enemies and breakable blocks, before you finish the level. There are also numerous breakable walls, floors and ceilings leading to hidden coin stashes, even in the initial levels, so you'll often find yourself bashing every wall along the way. Later in the game the platforming becomes a bit more technical, but even then, it doesn't match the fun and challenge of the first Wario Land. In fact, it gets rather frustrating at times. The stiff and unresponsive controls certainly don't help.
There is no longer a traditional overworld map. Instead, the game is divided into several different chapters containing five levels (or "stories") each, but once you initially beat the game after completing five chapters, you'll unlock a so-called treasure map that displays the branching level paths. Certain levels have hidden exits that lead to alternate chapters, so you can use the treasure map to replay your previously completed levels and find the alternate exits. There are 10 chapters in total (5 of which are alternate), plus a hidden, final time attack level, making for a grand total of 51 stages.
Boss fights are more frequent than before, but they're also far more annoying since you can now only "lose" a boss fight by getting ejected from the boss arena, forcing you to trek through part of the level again in order to restart the fight. Frankly, I'd rather just die on the boss than to deal with this tedious design. Nonetheless, some of the boss fights are rather clever, such as a basketball faceoff.
Treasures have once again returned, but this time they're obtained by way of a minigame accessed from a specific unmarked door in each stage. The minigame involves spotting a random, specific enemy among a lineup of eight different characters that are quickly flashed in front of you. You're given three different modes to choose from (easy, normal, and hard) at a price of 50, 100 and 200 coins, respectively, with the normal and easy modes giving you progressively more time to spot the correct enemy. I am not a fan of this new minigame because the hard mode gives you only a split second to find the correct character, which is nearly impossible for me, and the normal mode is only moderately better. It's not fun or easy, especially on the Game Boy's small screen, and it has no relationship to the rest of the game's design. I would much rather locate and carry a hidden key, like in the original Wario Land.
At the end of each level there is also a number-matching game where a random, single-digit number is split into nine panels and revealed one section at a time at the cost of 50 coins per panel. At any time you can choose to solve the puzzle, and if you get it right, you'll obtain a piece of a larger overall picture panel. Every treasure and picture panel must be obtained in order to complete the game 100%.
Overall, the graphics are pretty good. I particularly liked the dark theme of the Uncanny Mansion area, and several of the indoor areas felt reminiscent of the prior game. But even though this game appears to have more detailed backgrounds and environments than the first Wario Land, Wario's new sideways-facing sprite feels like a downgrade, and his running animation just seems choppier than before.
New to the series are little cutscenes displayed at the beginning and end of the various chapters to show how the story is progressing. Since this game has alternate chapters, the cutscenes show the different possible story paths that Wario follows in his pursuit of the Brown Sugar Pirates.
Aside from the added color, there isn't much of a difference between the original version of Wario Land II and the later Game Boy Color release. The original version sadly doesn't appear to make good use of the Super Game Boy enhancements. Despite the title screen and the special border both utilizing an impressive variety of colors, Wario Land II appears to generally utilize only one particular color in each level (through the specific color changes throughout the game), and oddly enough, you cannot alter the game's default color scheme, unlike most Game Boy games. I have honestly seen more impressive colorization through the Game Boy Color's default palette for Super Mario Land. Also, if you are playing the original version of Wario Land II, you evidently cannot save your game on a Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance, which makes no sense to me since both systems are backwards compatible.
The Game Boy Color version of course adds far more color and makes for a much more impressive-looking game. There are also fewer instances of slowdown, but Wario still has choppy animations. Even with the added color, Wario Land II still doesn't look quite as impressive as Sonic Triple Trouble, but this is likely because Nintendo simply colorized an existing Game Boy game.
Wario Land II's soundtrack features heavy inspiration from the original Wario Land and even features reworked music from the first game. You would almost think you were playing the first Wario Land just from listening to the sequel's music. Some entirely new music appears here as well and I'm actually rather fond of it, especially the underwater tunnel theme. The music also changes to coincide with certain transformations. Wario Land II has a fairly impressive musical score overall.
In total, Wario Land II takes about 6 hours to complete 100% (not factoring in the redundant credits that play after each alternate final chapter), so it is an absolutely massive game - twice as long as the first Wario Land. Thankfully, my cartridge's battery hadn't died yet, so my save feature still worked. Interestingly, this game has two different save options. It automatically saves after you complete a level, but you can also save partway through a stage by pressing select, which is a handy feature for when you need to suddenly interrupt your game. However, you only have one available save slot.
There is no question that this game is absolutely loaded with content and has plenty of replay value due to the alternate chapters and the treasure collecting aspect, but overall, I find Wario Land II to be a step down from the first game. The levels often feel like bland collectathons, and the atmosphere frequently lacks the adventurous charm of the prior Wario Land. Wario also doesn't control as well as he used to. Some of the transformations are interesting, but they have a more limited use than a traditional power-up and are therefore less fun. Perhaps Sonic can take advantage of these weaknesses to secure a much-needed second win in this competition.
Sonic Triple Trouble
Sonic Triple Trouble was released on Game Gear in November of 1994, well after Sonic 3's release on the Genesis in February of that year, and about a month after Sonic & Knuckles. So Sonic Triple Trouble came out during the hedgehog's peak year and was one of the last main entries in the classic 2D series until Sonic Blast was released a couple years later.
Triple Trouble was once again developed by Aspect, but this time, the game was finally developed specifically for the Game Gear instead of both the Game Gear and Master System. In fact, this game is actually exclusive to Sega's handheld. There's no Master System port in existence, which is odd since even the later-released Sonic Blast ultimately received a home console port.
This game is for all intents and purposes a direct follow-up to Sonic Chaos. Sonic Chaos was actually titled Sonic and Tails in Japan, and Triple Trouble was known as Sonic and Tails 2, so the two games are more closely related than any of the prior titles. This time, Dr. Robotnik has inadvertently caused an explosion with one of his experiments, scattering five of the six Chaos Emeralds that were in his possession.
I first played this game when it was released on the 3DS Virtual Console in early 2012. Sega had actually released Triple Trouble first on the 3DS, and I downloaded and beat it on the day it came out, making this my official return to Sega's handheld since my limited experience back in 1995. However, I had no prior experience with Triple Trouble and didn't use any maps at the time, so I didn't manage to collect any of the Chaos Emeralds when I initially completed the game with Sonic. Though I had originally planned replay the game with Tails and collect all of the Chaos Emeralds, I started my Youtube channel shortly afterward and got completely distracted. It took just over 10 years for me to finally return to this game, and by then, I had forgotten the level design and areas almost entirely.
Due to the clearer footage, I decided to record my playthrough of Triple Trouble using Sonic Adventure DX on the GameCube instead of the 3DS, and I once again used Sonic for the sake of consistency. However, I also separately played through the game on my 3DS using Tails in order to finally have that experience.
As the Triple Trouble name suggests, there are now three main enemies to contend with: Dr. Robotnik, Knuckles, and Nack the Weasel, a new character who simply wants the Chaos Emerald for his own monetary gain. Knuckles merely serves to taunt Sonic and Tails at the end of each zone until an actual boss battle in the underwater zone, and Nack acts as a boss character for every bonus stage after the first one since he has evidently obtained the Chaos Emeralds accidentally scattered by Robotnik. Robotnik once again serves as the final boss, though Metal Sonic makes an appearance as well.
Sonic and Tails return as the two alternate playable characters, and they have the same basic differences inherited from Sonic Chaos. Sonic moves faster and can use the Super Peel Out whereas Tails runs slower and can fly. However, some noticeable improvements have been made from before. To begin with, both Sonic and Tails can now access the bonus stages and collect all of the Chaos Emeralds, so you're no longer stuck using one character in order to experience the full game. Both characters also have the new ability to immediately tuck into a spin jump in midair by pressing the jump button after bouncing off a spring, though it only lasts for a brief second. It's actually a fun new mechanic that requires proper timing and adds some depth to the game.
Also, Tails can now activate his flight ability in midair if he bounces off a spring first, though he won't be able to fly upwards, similar to Knuckles' gliding ability. There is also a new special item that temporarily increases Tails' flying speed. Additionally, Tails has a brand new submarine for the game's underwater zone that provides him with a very useful air supply, a drill, missiles, and of course, the equivalent of a swimming ability (which was falsely promised in the prior game). This submarine is available in all three acts of the underwater area, though it can't be used for the entirety of the first two acts. It'll despawn after a single hit in the first two acts, but it can take multiple hits during the boss fight.
Sonic, meanwhile, gains exclusive access to a jet snowboard for the winter area, as well as propeller shoes, which act like rocket shoes underwater. The pogo springs and rocket shoes make a return too, but only Sonic can use the latter since Tails can already fly. Both characters can once again skip across the surface of water, though it still doesn't have much use since its excellent debut in Sonic 2.
The physics have changed a bit from before. Sonic and Tails now take even longer to build up momentum while running, but you can gain instant speed from jumping or using the Spin Dash/Super Peel Out. This doesn't really present any gameplay issues, but it can take some getting used to if you have recently been playing any of the prior Game Gear Sonic games.
Apparently, since this game was developed exclusively for the Game Gear, Aspect finally played to the strengths and weaknesses of Sega's portable hardware, so vertical scrolling no longer presents a problem. As a result, you're are able to blast through levels without worrying too much about sudden, unexpected hazards. This makes Triple Trouble feel even closer to the mainline Genesis games than any of the prior Game Gear Sonic titles.
The level design here is nothing short of excellent. Aspect apparently learned from the shortcomings of Sonic Chaos, so the stages are now approximately four times the size of the Chaos's levels, with each main level taking approximately two or more minutes to complete. Breakable walls and floors, loop-de-loops, half pipes, springs and well-placed platforms are ingeniously scattered throughout the stages to create exciting, fast-paced action expected from a proper Sonic game. Even more branching paths have been incorporated this time around, and it's easy to get lost while exploring the generously sized levels. Thankfully, bottomless pits are few and far between, though the game does include some troll pitfalls right before the end of the later levels. Enemy placement is also competent.
A few of the prior "gimmicks" have returned as well, including both the bubbles and minecarts from Sonic 2. However, the bubbles no longer break automatically upon contact with a wall or ceiling, and the minecarts are now controlled by continually Spin Dashing. In addition, Triple Trouble appears to give a nod to the first Game Gear Sonic game by including an auto scrolling/auto running level for the boss fight in the second zone. The tubes also return yet again, though they're only about as confusing as they were in the main stages of Sonic Chaos. Triple Trouble incorporates a surprising variety of different gameplay mechanics, and everything fits together incredibly well. I'm particularly fond of the snow area's zig zagging horizontal halfpipes and air currents which allow you to haphazardly race through the zone.
The game is again broken into six zones with three acts each, and the areas have some degree of freshness, at least compared to the prior Game Gear Sonic games. Sunset Park features a smoggy, mechanical setting not seen before; Meta Junglira looks and plays completely different from the jungle zone in the first Game Gear Sonic; and Robotnik Winter Zone marks the first appearance of a snow area in the handheld series. Tidal Plant Zone incorporates bubbles (not to mention Tails' submarine) so heavily that it feels remarkably different from all of the prior underwater areas. Even though the first zone, Great Turquoise, performs the predictable job of being the green, above-ground starting area, it incorporates waterfalls and water pools in a new and interesting way. The final area, Atomic Destroyer Zone, simply feels like an expansion of the final area from Sonic Chaos, but it's still an improvement overall.
Boss fights are fun without being frustrating, and most of the patterns are easy to figure out. The bosses don't provide much of a challenge until you reach the final act, at which point you'll encounter a multi-phase boss gauntlet, with Robotnik's final form proving fairly difficult. However, you can still rely on quickly picking up your dropped rings, which is nice.
The Chaos Emerald design has changed a bit since there are now Chaos Emerald monitors located in the first two acts of the first five zones. If you have at least 50 rings, you can hit the monitor to activate a warp gate taking you to the bonus areas. The bonus areas themselves are divided into three side-scrolling levels where you have to reach the goal before time expires and two third-person flying stages where you simply control Sonic's/Tails' airplane while collecting a sufficient amount of rings. Nack acts as the recurring bonus stage boss (after the first bonus level) but doesn't provide much of a challenge. Overall, the bonus stages have a decent size and aren't too frustrating or difficult. The final Chaos Emerald is once again dropped by Robotnik.
Triple Trouble is easily the most graphically impressive title in this competition so far. It features more detailed environments and backgrounds than Sonic Chaos and doesn't repeat simple square tile patterns nearly as much as the prior two games. Foreground layers and animated backgrounds are utilized to a greater degree and slowdown appears to be almost nonexistent. Sonic's sprite has changed yet again, and I think it looks better than the Sonic Chaos version. It truly is remarkable what Aspect pulled off with the Game Gear. Despite the hardware benefits of the Game Boy Color, even Wario Land II isn't able to match this effort.
The music here is fitting, but I don't consider it particularly impressive outside of the excellent boss music for Sunset Park Act 3. Oddly, the side-scrolling bonus stages look and sound like something out of Metroid, which was a bit jarring. Also, Tails gets a unique theme when he uses the submarine, though it's short and repetitive. Wario Land II seems to have a better soundtrack overall.
This game isn't all that difficult since there are far fewer pitfalls and you now drop only 30 rings at a time when you get hit. Checkpoints make a triumphant return as well. I actually managed to secure a no-death run on my very first recording attempt, which was surprising. Nonetheless, I would say Triple Trouble is more challenging overall than Super Mario Land 2.
Tails is once again debatably the better playable character due to his flight ability, which is incredibly handy, and the submarine, which makes the underwater levels much easier. Unfortunately, Aspect screwed up an underwater function again. Just as the instruction manual for Sonic Chaos falsely promised Tails' swimming ability, Triple Trouble's manual falsely states that Tails will disembark from the sub by entering a pipe, which is not true. I actually had to take damage on Tidal Plant Zone Act 2 because I couldn't get Tails out of the submarine otherwise. But Tails isn't entirely beneficial. His slower acceleration did cause some issues when I tried to make sudden movements to dodge the lasers on the final boss fight, and his different physics threw me off a bit in general.
I completed this game while collecting the Chaos Emeralds in exactly one hour (including credits), making this the longest Sonic game on the Game Gear so far. While this is once again roughly 1/6 the length of Wario's comparable showing, it's actually about the same length as the Genesis Sonic games, so there's nothing unusual here. The massive, branching levels designs and two playable characters add quite a bit of replay value, and the difficulty is just right. The game is never frustrating outside of perhaps the side-scrolling bonus stages, but even then, Tails can alleviate any frustrating parts with his flight ability.
The only real downside that I can think of is the lack of a save feature, but Triple Trouble does at least feature a hidden level select code that can be used on the original hardware. Notwithstanding that small nitpick, it looks like Sonic finally brought his A-game to the Game Gear.
And the winner is...
Some people are massive fans of Wario Land II and view it as one of the best games in the series. I am not one of those people. My gut-level instincts told me back in 1998 that I wouldn't be very happy with this game, and I was right. Despite the almost overwhelming amount of content, Wario Land II just isn't very fun to me. In fact, it can be very frustrating at times. The game is essentially an OCD coin collectathon with some moderate puzzle platforming thrown in for good measure. I'm not really impressed by this type of design, and frankly, I think Wario Land: Shake It! on the Wii did a much better job of balancing the series' action and puzzle platforming aspects. Unlike when I'm playing the first Wario Land, I don't feel a strong sense of adventure with Wario Land II. But I did chuckle at Wario stealing Sonic's Spin Attack and bubble ability from Sonic 2, especially since the bubbles were ultimately brought back for Sonic Triple Trouble.
Over in Sega land, however, we have a surprising turn of events. With his fourth Game Gear title, Sonic finally achieved the ultimate portable adventure that he should have managed through the prior two games. He also surprisingly defeated Nintendo's very first entry into the full-color handheld realm and dethroned what is on average a very highly rated Game Boy game.
Perhaps it was a result of Aspect finally designing a Sonic game specifically for the Game Gear, or maybe just lessons learned from their two prior Sonic titles, but either way, Sonic Triple Trouble is simply the pinnacle of the classic handheld Sonic series. Even though I haven't played that many Game Gear games, I think it's safe to say that Sonic Triple Trouble might actually be one of the best games on the system. Just like with the first Wario Land, there is almost nothing for me to complain about here, except possibly the lack of a save feature. While Triple Trouble is certainly much shorter than Wario Land II, this is simply an instance of quality vs. quantity.
Sonic Triple Trouble is a blast to play. The speed, level design, and sheer variety of action-based platforming mechanics blow Wario Land II's slow puzzle design out of the water as far as I'm concerned. It's also a far less frustrating and more graphically impressive game than Wario Land II despite being released almost four years earlier. Frankly, if I was on a trip and looking for a game to play, I'd take Sonic Triple Trouble over Wario Land II nearly every time.
And now, on to the final round and the ultimate tie breaker. Will Sonic and his sidekicks claim victory, or will the tag-team efforts of Mario and Wario ultimately achieve 8-bit handheld dominance?
ROUND 5: WARIO LAND 3 vs. SONIC BLAST
Wario Land 3
Wario Land 3 was released in the middle of 2000, late in the 8-bit Game Boy's life, and it marks the first instance of a game in the Super Mario Land/Wario Land series being available exclusively for the Game Boy Color. Although the Game Gear was generally considered a dead system by this point, Majesco had just re-released the handheld and some of its games under license from Sega, so the Game Gear was briefly back on the market. Nonetheless, the two games in this round were again released almost four years apart, and near the end of their respective systems' original lifespans.
Just like before, I initially did not bother to pick up Wario land 3 because of the series' change of direction following the original Wario Land. However, I ultimately picked up a complete copy of Wario Land 3 in 2012 as I started filling out my collection, though I didn't complete the game until I posted my playthrough on Youtube shortly before publishing this article.
With his third Game Boy entry, Wario finally said goodbye to the Brown Sugar Pirates and faced a new challenge. This time, after crashing his plane in a forest and entering a nearby cave, Wario discovers a strange music box. While examining the item, Wario gets sucked inside and is greeted by the supposed god of this miniature realm who says that his power has been stolen by a wicked being. If Wario agrees to restore this god's powers by returning five different music boxes, he'll send Wario back to his own world and allow him to keep all the treasure he finds along the way.
Wario Land 3 inherits the basic puzzle platforming design of Wario Land II, so Wario is once again invincible (save for the final boss fight) and the transformations return as well. However, there are some noticeable changes and refinements to the prior game's structure. The overworld has returned and the new music box realm is divided into four separate regions: north, west, south and east. Instead of a goal door, stages are now completed by locating one of four color-coded keys (gray, red, green and blue) and then reaching the corresponding treasure chest. Also, rather than completing levels in general succession, you are given greater leeway to complete stages in the order you see fit.
But even so, you don't have the option to just methodically collect all four treasures in a single stage and then rinse and repeat with the subsequent levels. In an apparent nod to Metroid, Wario must now obtain most of his basic abilities from Wario Land II as he progresses through the music box world and then use his recently acquired powerups to explore newly accessible sections of earlier stages. This means that you will end up bouncing around the various regions and levels as you try to figure out where to utilize your new abilities, especially since stages are not unlocked sequentially. If you ever get confused, you can simply return to the starting area, the temple, and receive a hint from the god of the music box realm.
There is also a new day/night cycle that alternates every time you complete a level, and this causes certain changes such as altering the available paths and enemies you will encounter. Certain treasures can only be obtained during the day or at night, so this adds to the game's complexity.
Wario starts out with only his crouch walk, shoulder charge and jumping abilities, as well as his downhill rolling attack. From there you have to unlock Wario's swimming ability, his butt slam, his high jump, his enemy-carrying ability, and his ability to break blocks by jumping into them from below. There are also upgrades that improve the strength of the swimming, butt slamming, enemy carrying and body slamming abilities.
All of the progress in this game occurs through obtaining treasures. Some treasures grant Wario the powerups listed above while others unlock additional stages (or sections of stages) and the remaining treasures simply add to your grand total. In order to unlock the final boss and beat the game, Wario doesn't have to collect every single treasure, but he does have to find five colored music boxes, which takes quite a while. If you do manage to collect all 100 treasures, your save file will convert into a Time Trial mode that records how fast you can collect all four keys in a stage.
Aside from the four treasures per stage, there are also 8 giant coins in each level known as Musical Coins, though they're not necessary to beat the game. The instruction manual doesn't clearly explain this, but it is not truly possible to obtain the Musical Coins unless you collect all 8 at once, otherwise the game won't record your coin progress. Collecting all of the Musical Coins merely unlocks a new mode for the golf minigame, and it's only possible to collect every Musical Coin toward the end of the game when you have obtained all of the powerups.
The golf minigame mentioned above replaces the irritating memory game from Wario Land II. In certain stages, a giant block must be moved out of the way by completing a golf minigame where Wario is given a limited number of shots at shoulder charging an enemy into a hole. The minigame uses a typical charge meter seen in other golf games, but its application is more confusing. Instead of simply stopping a single cursor on the charge meter to determine the power of your stroke, you have to stop two cursors in rapid succession: one to determine power, and one to determine the extent of backspin/topspin. This dual-purpose charge meter is unnecessarily complex and confusing, and it took me a while to figure it out due to the insufficient explanation in the instruction manual. Even after I figured out the minigame, I still didn't like it because of how hard it was to accurately measure distance with the charge meter. Also, the course obstacles such as sand and water made things worse, especially with the limited number of shots. Thankfully though, this frustrating minigame is not included in every level.
The overall level design has also changed from before. Wario Land 3 no longer uses the large, bland coin collectathon layouts from Wario Land II and instead utilizes condensed, branching paths leading to different treasure chests and Musical Coins. Though regular coins are included here, they're only dropped from breakable blocks or walls, and you only need a small number of them (first 10, then 30, then ultimately 50) to play the golf minigame in select stages. Wario also no longer drop coins when he gets attacked or hurt. Instead of worrying about coins, you simply need to figure out where to go and how to deal with some tricky puzzle platforming, often times through the use of available transformations.
This means that the stages are now much shorter than before, at least for treasure hunting. It's often possible to collect individual treasures within two minutes, if you know where to go. I actually enjoyed the shorter and more focused platforming design in this game compared to Wario Land II, and there were even some instances where I simply had to deal with basic platforming without any puzzles being thrown in my way. This design is still not as fun as the action platforming from the first Wario Land, but it is a slight improvement over Wario Land II.
The transformations are better utilized in this game. All of the prior transformations have returned except for Tiny Wario, and there are new ones as well including Ball o' String Wario, Electric Wario, Invisible Wario, Snowman Wario, and Vampire Wario. Ball o' String Wario and Snowman Wario are largely redundant of Wario's downhill rolling attack, and Electric Wario is just a shortened version of Ice Skatin' Wario and Crazy Wario, but Vampire Wario adds a cool new flying ability and Invisible Wario has some clever applications by forcing you to traverse areas without seeing your character on screen.
I was actually impressed with how Wario Land 3 made use of multiple transformations back-to-back in certain stages, such as The Tower of Revival, where I had utilize Fat Wario, Hot Wario and Zombie Wario to break through various blocks and floors to reach a necessary switch. There were also more simplistic but clever applications of single transformations, such as The Steep Canyon, where I had to use Puffy Wario to travel horizontally over water and then carefully drop through small openings in the walls.
However, Wario Land 3 also utilizes more negative transformations than Wario Land II, meaning transformations that slow you down or set you back, such as accidentally turning into a zombie and falling through a floor. This can actually be quite frustrating at times because of the backtracking it can cause. But even so, I had much more fun with Wario Land 3's transformations.
Boss fights are largely the same as before, so that means you can get ejected from the boss arena once again and have to trek all the way back, which is still annoying. However, the bosses were overall much easier than in Wario Land II (especially compared to the Captain Syrup fights) and therefore better.
As far as the graphics go, Wario Land 3 is unsurprisingly Nintendo's most impressive showing in this competition. Nintendo has taken full advantage of the Game Boy Color hardware to provide even more detailed environments than Wario Land II. I particularly liked the mountainous look of the Steep Canyon and the lush, green design of the various forests. There is a large variety of indoor and outdoor areas including cities, Egyptian-style pyramids, forests, lakes, rivers, mountains, caves and winter environments. Colors are vivid and varied, and the stages alternate between day and night themes. I felt a better sense of adventure with this game than I did with Wario Land II.
Even though this game uses the same Wario sprite from Wario Land II, more detailed and entirely new animations have been added to spruce things up, such as when Wario climbs a ladder or enters a door. Prior enemies and transformations have also been redrawn or replaced to some extent, so little robots now set Wario on fire and Puffy Wario looks much more detailed than before.
The music is good overall, and I even heard one or two remixes from the original Wario Land such as the final boss theme from the first game. Nonetheless, I don't really consider any of the tunes to be truly remarkable. Wario Land 3 still has that distinctive Wario sound through.
Despite some improvements, Wario Land 3 does have its flaws. For one thing, the golf minigame can be frustrating due to the course obstacles and the inherent difficulty in accurately measuring distance. Merely screwing up one shot can potentially cause you to redo the entire minigame. Second, the Metroid-style design presents some problems. Even though this game almost always provides you with an indication of where to go next after completing a stage, some of these indications last only a brief second through a quick twinkle on the overworld map. If you happen to miss that indicator or just plain forget, you can end up getting lost and resorting to revisiting stages at random. Also, the twinkles only indicate that something has changed in a prior stage, so you can still be missing other activations that are necessary to obtain the next treasure.
Simply figuring out where to go in a stage can prove difficult, especially later in the game. Fake walls, invisible floors and other cryptic features are sometimes hard to uncover, and the more difficult or unusual mechanics are not explained. I avoided these problems by relying on maps and guides, plus I was able to look at my recordings to see the temporary overworld indicators, but anyone winging it without a guide will undoubtedly run into some problems. This hampers your ability to just sit down and casually play through the game.
The same save feature is included from before, so the game will auto save after each stage or you can save in the middle of a level. Although Wario Land 3 has only 25 main stages compared to Wario Land II's 50, it was still about the same length overall since it took me just over 6 hours to collect all of the treasures and Musical Coins. If you ignore the Musical Coins, then the game still takes over four hours to complete. So this is another massive handheld game.
I did legitimately enjoy this game more than Wario Land II, but I still don't think that Wario Land 3 matches the carefree fun and adventure of the original Wario Land. This game requires so much backtracking and problem solving that it feels more like a Metroid game, minus the action. It is a just bit too cerebral for a platformer. I prefer my platformers to stick to a more simplistic and accessible style. The bar hasn't been set terribly high here, but it's still going to take more than just a decent showing for Sonic to top this one.
Sonic Blast
After Sonic's peak year of 1994 on both the Genesis and Game Gear, Sega took a slight break from the mainline Sonic games, evidently to focus on the new 32-bit Saturn. However, in late 1996, Sega eventually released a brand new Sonic platformer for the legacy Genesis system (as well as the newer Saturn) titled Sonic 3D Blast. Unlike prior Sonic games, Sonic 3D Blast was an isometric 3D platformer that was similar graphically (though not gameplay wise) to Super Mario RPG. Sega tried to market this new 3D title as a proper successor to the prior mainline Sonic games with its TV commercial triumphantly proclaiming "blue is back." Sega also simultaneously released a corresponding game for the Game Gear, similarly titled Sonic Blast, which acted as the final Sonic game for the handheld. The Game Gear was then discontinued the following year.
Although Sega could have potentially made a severely stripped-down version of Sonic 3D Blast for the Game Gear (the company did, after all, release the isometric Sonic Labyrinth on the handheld a year earlier), it instead chose to make Sonic Blast as another 2D platformer, only this time using prerendered graphics similar to Donkey Kong Country (or Vectorman, for you Sega fans). So the fifth and final Sonic platformer on the Game Gear is basically Sonic's equivalent of Donkey Kong Land on the Game Boy.
Interestingly, Sonic Blast was later ported to the Sega Master System for Brazil only in 1997, but despite the generally increased resolution and viewing area (bonus areas and title/level screens actually remained the same), the Master System version suffered from a reduced color palette and slower gameplay. This appears to be the only instance in this competition where a Sonic game was given priority on the Game Gear and subsequently ported to the Master System.
Sonic Blast shares a similar title and box art with Sonic 3D Blast, but the two games otherwise have nothing in common. Oddly though, Sega's "blue is back" commercial suggested otherwise by stating: "New Sonic 3D Blast for Sega Saturn, Sega Genesis and Game Gear." Perhaps it was just easier to market the games that way.
I actually recall seeing the Sonic 3D Blast commercial quite a bit when I was a kid, so I was certainly aware of Sonic Blast back then. I also knew about its prerendered graphical style, either from seeing the back of the game's box in stores or from somehow seeing screenshots in gaming magazines. Even back then, I thought the graphics looked odd and that the game probably wouldn't be all that great. Nonetheless, when Sonic Blast was eventually released on the 3DS Virtual Console in 2013, I immediately downloaded the game so I could finally experience it for myself. I initially played through the entire game with Sonic and even collected all the Chaos Emeralds, but I relied on save states to do so. I didn't return to this game until I recorded my Youtube footage shortly before publishing this article.
Once again, due to the clearer footage provided by my GameCube captures, I decided to record a playthrough of this game using Sonic Adventure DX on the GameCube instead of the 3DS Virtual Console. However, before doing that, I played through the game on my 3DS so that I could have an easier time looking at maps on my computer in addition to having access to save states.
In a changeup from the prior two games, Sonic has now ditched Tails in favor of Knuckles, who acts as the new alternate playable character. After a Robotnik-shaped floating island shows up near Sonic's home, Sonic and Knuckles decide to break into the flying fortress and disable it from inside. In order to get there, Sonic and Knuckles will have to explore four different zones on Sonic's homeland before reaching the fifth and final area inside Robotnik's flying fortress.
Sonic Blast's most notable and distinctive feature is of course its prerendered graphics, which clearly set it apart from all of the prior Game Gear Sonic games. Despite the 2D gameplay, Sonic Blast has an inherent 3D look to it, similar to Donkey Kong Country, and it's honestly kind of impressive for the Game Gear. The character models and terrains are much more detailed than the Donkey Kong Land games on the Game Boy, and Sonic Blast is surprisingly even better looking than the 2000 Game Boy Color port of Donkey Kong Country.
Nonetheless, the overall art style feels a bit too bland, with no clear connection to the prior Sonic games aside from the main characters themselves. Prior distinctive features such as checkerboard patterns and kinked palm tree leaves are missing, and Sonic could easily be replaced by a generic character with no one being the wiser.
Sadly, these graphics come at a major cost. Not only is Sonic Blast zoomed in even more than all of the prior Game Gear Sonic games (which is really saying something), but the animations are choppy and the gameplay has been slowed down substantially to the point that it doesn't quite feel like a Sonic game anymore. Sonic and Knuckles now build momentum like they're running through mud, and the physics feel wonky, with both characters appearing to defy gravity as they almost walk through loop-de-loops and stick to ceilings longer than they should. Hitboxes are also sometimes off since only the middle section of your character can pick up rings.
The music is also a bit lackluster until you reach the final area, when the game suddenly spits out a surprisingly impressive tune. The sound effects are unimpressive and nowhere near as memorable as the Genesis Sonic games.
Aside from the graphics, this game's most notable feature would have to be Knuckles, who finally appears as a playable character in a Game Gear game after debuting in Sonic 3 on the Genesis back in 1994. Just like on the Genesis, Knuckles has the ability to glide in mid air and climb walls, though his glide seems to descend much faster in this game. Sonic, on the other hand, gains a newfound double jump ability, which is incredibly handy and makes up for Knuckles' wall climbing. Sonic also feels like he runs slightly faster than Knuckles. Both characters can use the trademark Spin Dash, but the Super Peel Out isn't included in this game.
The gameplay is unfortunately bland and uninspired. Almost all of the fun concepts and items from the prior games are gone. There are no rocket shoes, pogo springs, gliders, bubbles or other "gimmicks" from before. Instead, in some stages you can move small elevator platforms with the Spin Dash or cross lava pits by jumping on moving accordion platforms, but that's about it. Even typical monitor items such as speed shoes and shields make only occasional appearances here and there, and even though some websites claimed that the invincibility power-up is in this game, I never once encountered it.
In fact, at its most basic gameplay engine level, Sonic Blast fails to deliver a proper Sonic experience. There is no more rolling into a ball and blasting through a half pipe; no more bouncing off of bumpers like a pinball; no more launching off of ramps and flying into the air... nothing. Every fundamental Sonic staple established in the very first Sonic game on the Genesis has simply vanished. While Sonic 1 on the Game Gear was missing a few features from the Genesis version such as loop-de-loops and Spin Attacking through walls, the physics still felt like a Sonic game overall. That isn't the case here. Not only does this game look like a generic platformer, but it plays like one too.
The level design is generally short and simplistic. Branching paths are essentially gone and there are only rudimentary platforming designs such as occasional spikes and lava and water pools. Surprisingly, there are no bottomless pits in this game. There are, however, some moderately hidden areas where you can find power-ups, switches, or giant teleporter rings. The switches are typically used to remove indestructible barriers, thereby giving you access to additional rings and monitors, but it's not worth the effort most of the time.
The five zones have rather cliched themes. There is yet again a Green Hill Zone followed by an Egyptian desert zone, then a lava zone, then an underwater zone, and finally a predictable technological zone. The first three zones are unremarkable and far from frustrating, but then all hell breaks loose once you reach Blue Marine Zone. As one Youtube commenter poignantly stated on someone else's Sonic Blast video: "can you imagine playing the underwater level in this game when the controls already felt like playing underwater?"
Not only does Blue Marine Zone drop the already slow physics down to the point of being damn near unbearable, but it brings back pipe mazes in a more frustrating manner than even Sonic 2 by including invisible underwater current that annoyingly shoot you backwards. Unless you rely on Youtube videos for help, odds are that you will instantly get stuck on Act 1 of this terrible zone because the game doesn't make clear that you need to immediately jump after you launch out of a specific pipe so that you can avoid the invisible currents above and below you and then backtrack to the upper tube on the right using tiny floating platforms.
Act 2 similarly pulls frustrating shenanigans by requiring you to find a hidden switch to unlock the path to the bonus area and by requiring you to immediately jump out of the pipe leading to the exit or else you'll end up looping back around again. Act 3 (the boss fight) isn't too bad overall, but unless you know to cause the boss to shoot a harpoon into the ground and thereby generate the only available supply of air bubbles, you'll probably end up drowning. At least the game is gracious enough to have the pipes automatically recharge your air supply. Notwithstanding that single act of generosity, whoever designed this zone was a moron.
The game then improves substantially with the final zone where the developers actually try to do something different through various teleporters, rotating-platform switches, and moving spike wall traps that chase you through specific sections. However, even this zone is flawed since temporary invisible walls can suddenly prevent you from moving forward while a spike wall trap is chasing you. I think it has something to do with delayed camera movement after a spike wall trap activates, but in any event, it's annoying and can cause some unnecessary deaths.
Just like in Sonic 3, the Chaos Emeralds are now obtained by locating a giant ring that teleports you to a bonus stage. The bonus stages themselves are similar to Sonic 3, except there's no camera rotation. Instead, while continually running forward in a pseudo-3D environment, you have to move left, right or jump to collect the rings as they pop up. This is actually one of the easier bonus stage designs in the Sonic series, but it can be a bit difficult to accurately judge depth as you're timing your jumps.
Giant teleporter rings are hidden in the first two acts of every zone, but you can only collect Chaos Emeralds during the second act. If you complete a bonus stage in the first act of a zone, you'll simply receive a 1up. Since there are five Chaos Emeralds and only five separate zones, you have to collect each Chaos Emerald on your first attempt in order to obtain them all, which is a bit unforgiving.
The boss fights are probably the only high point of this game. They're clever and fun overall, especially the second-to-last boss fight where you have to move a platform in order to reflect Robotnik's laser shots back at him.
Aside from Blue Marine Zone, this game isn't terribly difficult. Sonic and Knuckles now drop only 10 rings at a time when they get hit, and this change is a welcome addition given the slower gameplay and limited viewing area. In fact, if you collect all of the Chaos Emeralds to unlock the true final boss fight, the game will automatically spawn you with 99 rings for that fight, which is quite generous. Checkpoints are also included.
When I initially replayed this game on the 3DS in order to memorize the levels for my eventual GameCube recording, I used Knuckles to get a proper feel for the character differences. Although there are some areas that only Knuckles can evidently reach, there isn't a big difference between Sonic and Knuckles overall - at least not compared to Tails' unique flying ability in Sonic Chaos and Triple Trouble. Sonic's double jump allows for better jump correction, but Knuckles' wall climbing is really useful for exploring. Whether you find one character to have an advantage over the other simply comes down to preference.
It took me roughly 40 minutes (including credits) to achieve a no-death run with Sonic while collecting all of the Chaos Emeralds, but I didn't bother with the unnecessary bonus stages in Act 1 that merely provide extra lives. So this title is about as long as Sonic 2 despite having one less zone on average compared to the other Game Gear games. Although there is no save feature, there is once again a hidden level select cheat that you can use if you get tired of being stuck on Blue Marine Zone.
If it weren't for the atrocious Blue Marine Zone, Sonic Blast might pass for a mediocre platformer. However, as a whole, this game kind of sucks, especially when judged as a Sonic game specifically. It's disappointing that this was Sega's final Sonic entry on the Game Gear after the amazing Sonic Triple Trouble two years earlier.
Aspect should taken some ideas from Sonic & Knuckles on the Genesis and applied them to the Game Gear using Triple Trouble's basic graphical style, but unfortunately, there's no correcting the past. I think you already know where this is headed, but then again, you probably knew that before you ever started reading my reviews for this final round.
And the winner is...
If you thought Super Mario Land 2 vs. Sonic 2 was lopsided, then this round was nothing short of a slaughter. Sonic Blast, despite its graphical achievements, is generally thought of as a train wreck - something to be included in the all-time worst Sonic game lists. Personally, I don't think it's that bad (it is playable), but it is certainly a massive step down from all four of the prior Game Gear Sonic games, and just a plain misstep altogether. Blue Marine Zone really drags this game down, but even if it weren't for that area, the game would still suffer from slow, boring gameplay, bland level design, and a total lack of ambition.
It really is odd that Sonic Blast ended up so slow and choppy when Donkey Kong Land played so much better than this. Considering the Game Gear's more advanced hardware, this shouldn't have been an issue. Perhaps Sega demanded a prerendered Game Gear game to coincide with Sonic 3D Blast and Aspect just wasn't given enough time to deliver a polished product. If only Aspect had continued its successful work with Sonic Triple Trouble, the Game Gear could have had another amazing Sonic title. But as it stands, the disappointing Sonic Blast was the last classic 2D Sonic game to be released on any system before Sega adopted the "modern" Sonic redesign in Sonic Adventure (which I don't like). Instead of finishing the Game Gear with a bang, Sega ended the system with a whimper.
Wario didn't have to do much to win this round other than to not suck and, well, he didn't suck. In fact, I think Wario Land 3 is a general improvement over Wario Land II despite the awkward complexities of its Metroid-style design. The levels feature shorter and more focused puzzle platforming elements without relying on the cheap coin collectathon filler from before, and the transformations are better utilized as well. Just as Sega had expanded upon and fine tuned the concepts established in Sonic Chaos with Sonic Triple Trouble, Nintendo similarly improved upon Wario Land II's innovative design through Wario Land 3 without totally upending the apple cart. Although I still prefer the original Wario Land, these improvements work for me overall.
This round had more to do with Sega's screw-ups (a recurring theme at this point in the company's history) than it did with Nintendo's achievements, but a win is still a win in either event.
CONCLUSION
With a score of 3-to-2, Nintendo just barely managed to edge out a victory over Sega in this battle. All of Nintendo's entries in this battle were top-notch games without any major flaws holding them back, but the same cannot be said of Sega's entries. Nintendo's victory really came down to Sega botching two games in particular: Sonic 2 and Sonic Blast. Had Sega done better with Sonic 2 or made a Sonic and Tails 3 instead of Sonic Blast, this competition might have turned out differently.
The disparity between Nintendo's and Sega's platformers really became apparent starting with Wario Land II when Nintendo suddenly shifted toward puzzle platforming. Whereas Sega kept trying to fine-tune the basic tried-and-true Sonic design, Nintendo took some risks and began innovating with Wario. This was both good and bad. Although this made the competition more asymmetrical in the final rounds, I don't think this prevents a comparison of the Wario and Sonic games as platformers in general.
Nintendo has a particularly solid handheld record that is nearly impossible to match, but it is neat to see how Sega nearly rivaled the Big N in the portable market back in the '90s. This battle really cemented my love for Sonic 1 and Sonic Triple Trouble, and even Sonic Chaos to a lesser extent. These are solid games and I will probably be returning to them in the future. There's even some fun to be had in Sonic 2, if you can handle the challenge (I can after memorizing the game).
So what did you think of the results? Were there any surprises or particular rounds that just made you say, "What is this guy thinking!?" If you have a different view on any of these games and think that the other title(s) should have won, feel free let me know. Thanks for reading.
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