Could it possibly be as good on MS? Well ADRIAN PITT creamed himself, but who cares what he thinks - it’s Sonic Tonic!

They said, ‘Adrian, review Sonic The Hedgehog on the Master System.’ ‘Ha!’ I scoffed, ‘It won’t be a patch on the Mega Drive game. The graphics will be flickery, the scrolling dodgy and the gameplay unbearably dull.’. Hush my mouth, I scoffed too soon!...

MS Sonic is just as prickly, fast and all round wonderful as any glitzy ‘Mega’ sprite. The character which amazed everyone as the pinnacle of 16-bit wizardry is perfectly recreated: he runs, he leaps, he looks up, he crouches down, he rolls, he gasps for breath underwater, he dies — there ain’t nothing this critter can’t do!

Obviously the backdrops aren’t quite as detailed as the MD, there’s no animation, but heck — they’re damn fine coffee anyway and the scrolling is flickerless and super-fast. The speed when Sonic picks up a pair of well-radical training shoes is simply amazing.

There’s also a collection of amusing tunes running through the acts: like the MD they’re simplistic but enjoyable, and the ditties for special events like meeting Dr Robotnik help create a real sense of occasion.

In A Spin

The basic gameplay still isn’t all that complicated — get to the end of the level as fast as possible, avoiding nasties such as mutant fish, angry wasps, crazy crabs and wheelie porcupines! They’re all beautifully animated.and add a real sense of fun. Kill them with a supersonic spin attack, automatically activated whenever Sonic leaps (press any button). Hit a creature when you’re not in a ball and you lose a life, unless...

Unless you’ve got some rings. These are scattered all over the place and give loadsa bonus points at the end of the level. More importantly they act as a sort of shield. When hit by a baddie you lose all your rings first, and only if you’re hit again do you lose a life. This makes Sonic very friendly to newcomers: you can muddle through the first few levels in no time by grabbing rings as soon as you’re hit. Further help is provided by TVs! Spin-attack them for power-ups such as super-speed, limited-time invulnerability, a shield and extra rings!

The game is split into six Rounds, each divided into three Acts. Hold enough rings at the end of an Act and you get to play a special stage. This takes the form of a rather large pinball machine, with rings and game-continues to collect. Be warned, there’s a time limit: escape before it runs out or you won’t receive any bonus points. It’s a great touch to the game watching young Sonic bounce off walls and landing on springs!

The most satisfying part, though, is when you complete a Round and set free little bunnies and birdies from the Doctor’s huge alloy containers. Before that there’s the little matter of defeating Dr Robotnik himself, who has different attack methods for the end of each Round, but few of which are all that tough.

Super Sonic

MS Sonic isn’t a straightforward conversion though. There’s so many changes MD fans are advised to get a Power Base. The map layouts are completely different and the actual graphic style is often radically changed, culminating in a superb skyship which wasn’t even on the MD! Where the styles are the same, such as the wondrous underwater levels, the graphics come so close as to be almost identical. Then there’s the Map which appears before each level, showing your progress so far. It all makes you wonder which is the better machine! It never pays to be a cynic. This version of Sonic The Hedgehog is undoubtedly the best thing I’ve seen on the MS. It just goes to prove how some software companies are copping out by releasing inferior games with poor graphical content, presentation and gameplay.

Sonic sets new MS standards and gives the MD something of a red face, with its most famous game equalled if not bettered!

ADE

Producer

Sega

GG

TBA

MD

Out now

Memory

256K

Players

1

Price

£29.99

SF Rating

Presentation

90% - Sub-game, continues and end reward

Visuals

97% - Unbelievable Sonic sprite, fast-scrolling

Sonics

84% - Lots of varied, light-hearted tunes

Playability

98% - Incredibly playable, simply irresistable

Lastability

84% - Too easy, but you’ll still keep playing

95%

Sets a new standard for MS games

Rating

95

Reviewer

Sega Force magazine

Region

UK

Scans

Sega Force - Issue 01

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