This video was made in 2014 with footage recorded from Wii Virtual Console, and the production was limited compared to what I can do today. Additionally, I was considerably less experienced with scriptwriting and editing than I am now. If I were to remake this video today, it would be much higher in footage quality and I probably would've ironed some things out. I'm not too fond of it myself, but a lot of people disagreed and asked me to keep it public, so here we are. If I can get the capacitors in my Triple Bypass Genesis replaced, I might redo this video.

This video really satisfies me since I've suffered many of the same flaws Exo had, but was never usually brought up by a lot of reviewers.

“Welp” Sonic Origins got that covered for a option to try again in the special stage (cost coins - anniversary mode only)

*"I beat this game when I was 8 years old. You must suck at video games."* *If that's what you were going to say, please save it. I've heard it all before. I don't care.* *I didn't have the same first playthrough experience you did, and that's never going to change. Get over it.* *I am not accusing this game of being HARD. I'm accusing it of having flawed DIFFICULTY DESIGN. There's an important difference there.* *I don't "suck at video games" just because I have a different opinion on this game's difficulty than you do.* *For your information, I can beat this in an hour with no problem NOW. That doesn't mean the difficulty is well designed, it just means that the game is easy when you've memorized all the surprised kills. That's not good design.* *If you are going to nitpick the stuffing out of new Sonic games over trivial things that don't matter, like Sonic's eye color, then I'm allowed to make note of when your precious classics do something wrong. It's only fair.*

*My Sonic 2 ROR,* now reuploaded in higher quality. *No more footage ghosting!* No, I was too lazy to change anything else. I rendered this back during the original marathon and don't have the project file any more. Anyways, I had figured out how to fix ghosting for Sonic CD and Sonic 3&K, so there won't be higher quality versions of those videos. Enjoy.

I give this reupload... a replace!

This review is AMAZING!! Also, Technically there were 3 Sonic 2s made. Before they made CD and Sonic 2, they made Sonic 2 on the GameGear. Since it came out before Sonic 2 for the Genesis, Tails was introduced in Sonic 2 for the Gamegear.

If they ever get to actually do Sonic 3 & Knuckles, I hope they take some hints from Sonic 3: Complete.

The spin dash button combintion is genius! It prevents players from abusing it like what was seen in adevnture 1 - instant boosting. Players are rewarded speed for playing well and the spindash is the last resort, hense standing still and pushing down on the said button.

Gonna have to disagree. Despite being shorter, Sonic 1 was still harder for me.

There's actually a very easy way to get all the Chaos Emeralds fairly early in the original Mega Drive/Genesis game: The "Reset Trick". What you do is collect 50 rings, go to the very first check point of Emerald Hill Zone, and enter the Special Stage. Alternatively, do the "Stage-Select Cheat", go to the 'Sound Test" on the menu, choose '19, 65, 09, 17'', then press A +Start, and then A+Start again at the title screen, and choose to go to a "Special Stage". Keep in mind that once you activated the "Stage-Select Cheat" you don't need to do the sound-test selection again in order to activate it, you just press A+Start to enter the "Stage Selection Menu". Whatever you choose to do, the important thing is to *stay consistent*. If you choose to access the first easy check point in Emerald Hill Zone, keep doing that. If you choose to access the Special Stage via the "Stage Select Cheat", again keep doing that. Now play through the Special Stage. Once it's over, *before you return to normal gameplay*, PRESS THE RESET BUTTON! Now go to the Special Stage again... Yep, you see correctly! You actually kept your chaos emeralds! Keep going to the Special Stage and keep resetting and trying until you get all of them. It's then you find out that Super Sonic in the original Sonic 2 for the Mega Drive/Genesis comes with a big drawback: You don't get to choose when to activate him. In Sonic 3 (&Knuckles) as well as the iOS/Android Remake for Sonic 2 you just perform the insta-shield trick (Press Jump while in Mid-Air with no shield) in order to turn into Super Sonic once you collect more than 50 Rings. In the original Sonic 2 for the Mega Drive/Genesis however, you turn into Super Sonic the moment you jump once your Ring Counter is over 50. This is especially jarring in stages like the "Air Fortress Zone" where you *need* to stay in control (though turning into Super Sonic allows you to take a much less frustrating shortcut to the end of that particular level if you know what to do). Have Fun!

If you want an unfair boss fight, let's talk about Wing Fortress Zone. Good luck trying to land on the platforms while not getting gouged by spikes while you're trying to dodge platforms covered in spikes, all while trying to attack a laser-blaster before it blasts you with its laser. It's a freaking crap-shoot filled with spiky pin-balls _that you're supposed to land on._ Rings or no rings, even if you know what you're supposed to know, you've got a better chance at winning the jackpot at Casino Night Zone than beating this boss without dying. tl;dr WING FORTRESS ZONE'S BOSS IS THE WORST BOSS IN THE GAME

For those who don't know, it is actually quite possible to get all 7 chaos emeralds in Emerald Hill Zone alone!

Death Egg Robot... *shudder* I had the benefit of first playing the classic games in Mega Collection Plus, and even when I saved after every hit I landed, I STILL found this boss to be the hardest in any Sonic game I've ever played!

That music when he realizes there is no rings LOL

I agree with the death egg rant, it took me a whole year to finally beat the death egg fight, thank god I played the mobile version first, and had a save system. Strangely I beat the final boss with knuckles!(the hard mode of the game!)

This is one of my favs games of all time. I just have so much good memories with Sonic 2.

Eh, still think S3&K is the best. Come at me, fanbois.

Am I an idiot for thinking the Genesis version is better than the mobile one? I get that the mobile port has more features, but the physics just work better on Genesis.

The Taxman version enabled me to get the Chaos Emeralds today for the first time WITHOUT the cheat. Restarting the Special Stage really helps you to not only get better at them but if your lives are gone, you can restart the save file where you left off, enter the stage and try again and it is great now having a save file that permanently has Super Sonic much like 3 & Knuckles. It is indeed my preferred version of Sonic 2 as well.

This video made me go on Google play and buy both remakes.

I am surprised you found this game harder. The level design is specifically designed to encourage you to coast along a set path. It took me years to clear Sonic 1 because of its death traps but I coasted through this game my first time.

Started to recently play this again, love this game

Technically, the Genesis/iOS version’s story plot took place after its Master System/Game Gear version’s plot.

You should do a RoR on Diddy Kong Racing

Sonic 2 was sonic's first game where he could charge the spindash. That itself was something new in the series. I don't feel comparing it to the 3d spindash charge is fair cuz back then we had nothing to compare it to so im sure if this review was made in the 90's that wouldnt had been a problem.

3:24 yes even on mobile actually.

IMO, the Sonic 2 final boss isn't that hard to beat once you know how to spin dash infront of Robo Sonic and take it slow with the Death Egg Robo. Just wait for him to stand still and time your jumps when he lands.

The death egg robotic robot takes exactly 14 hits to beat

as someone who only enjoys a select few Sonic games from the Classic and Modern Era of Sonic Games, think that Sonic 3 & Knuckles along with Sonic CD are the only enjoyable classic games *IN MY OPINION*

Just like you, beating the Death Egg Robot for the first time took me several playthroughs to beat him. When I beat him for the first time (as Tails) I was so happy and proud of myself for not giving up! Also like you I can usually beat him on my first try since I have learned some other ways to exploit his pattern and weak spot. Sonic 2 is my 2nd favorite classic Sonic game next to 3 & Knuckles

Opinions are opinions sure a lot of people like this game but that’s his opinion

Yeah, at least someone has a similar opinion to me because I think sonic 2 is too overrated and praised for it's actual quality and it's just way too popular. In fact, a lot people think sonic 2 is better than SONIC 3!!! That is truly outrageous.

I'd disagree with you on assigning the spin dash it's own button. While it is convenient in the 3D games, it also come at the price of being able to abuse it, much like in Adventure 1. Plus you'd take some of the challenge out of maintaining the speed you get with the spin dash as it is, or, if you're new to the game, would probably end up slamming into a wall, some spikes, or surprise-motherfucker badniks with spikes. It's also not totally counter-intuitive, given that commercials would've most likely shown how a spin dash works, your friends could tell you how to do it, or you can read the manual (for the original or the HD remasters).

You know, I honestly find this review very funny and well explained. I gave a like and I sent it to my sister, who loves the classic Sonic games. But watching again now, just for the sake of fun, *I don't understand what was all the trouble about the last boss.* I don't remember anyone saying "OMG, that boss is impossible!" or something like that. Everyone that had or rented the game just figured out what to do after a couple of deaths. A lot of people must write that to you, but I'll try to explain what I don't understand. *I was trying to remember what I did.* The first time I reached the boss, I got a game over because I had just one life - I remember that. But the second time I was confident, with more than a handful of lives. So I decided to try to hit the belly again (no success on that matter). Then I decided to wait to see all the boss forms or movements and check if he could trap himself or give a breach in his defense. And that was it: the moment I saw the robot landing, I figured I could reach his head and that's it. Yes, I died again because of the projectile, but the path was clear. I'm not saying I am a genius. Actually, a lot of my mates figured that out by themselves, without the aid of the internet. "Ok, cool generation of pro-players! So what?". *The thing I don't understand is:* why you played the full game for four times, but didn't waste a couple of lives to see the whole boss pattern? I think the frustration got to all over your head.

So, fun fact: during my most recent playthrough of Sonic Origins, I actually managed to beat the Death Egg Robot on my first try, but don’t get me wrong, it was mainly down to pure luck. I didn’t take any risks, just hitting him when he landed. Origins was the first time I had ever beaten Sonic 2 legitimately, but my first attempt, it took me like 30 tries to get it.

Let's hope Tails wasn't being passed way unlike the 8-bit sequel before Sonic 2 16-bit. By the way it took me a lot of tries to beat the final boss in my Note 3 (Android device).

I have watched the sonic videos some many times not just because of how good the video is(and I applaud you for that),But I LOVE it when you say "Dr.Ivo Eggman Robotnik" I just get a kick out of it :D

Well done video, hope ya make a video like this for Sonic Mania

Sonic 1 is much easier than Sonic 2, I personally rank Sonic 2 as the worst game in the classic series... The Special Stage is the worst of all

All of your cons are exactly why I prefer Sonic 3 and Knuckles 10x more and consider it the quintessential classic Sonic game.

Love sonic 2 special stages. I find it fun to learn them. Maybe thats just me.

I love your video man, I'm a huge sonic fan since day one. I do love the iOS/android remake of all the sonics. Playing sonic as long as I have I can see very small differences most people don't catch. However the only complaint I have is that they are not Bluetooth controller compatible which is a bummer. Playing sonic to its best ability requires a controller. I always play the classics to keep my memory and skills sharp. I am very excited for Sonic Mania to debut this year. Looking forward to more of your videos brother👍🏾👍🏾

Sonic 2 has more underwater sections than Sonic 1? So that very short part in Chemical plant + the optional route in Aquatic ruin is more and harder than the entire Labyrinth-Zone and Act 3 of Scrap Brain-Zone in Sonic 1? That's just BS. Also, more spikes and stage hazards? Not really, look at all the spikes and lava in Marble-Zone, spears and fireballs in Labyrinth-Zone or those saws and flamethrowers in Scrap Brain. The final boss can be unforgiving for new players, granted. In the end though, this was a game made for kids back in the 90s and as a 90s kid you had time and a lot of patience when it came to video games. Also, fighting a giant robot on a space station to make it blow up is hell of a lot cooler than fighting that weirdo in Lost world for example.

Wow great non biased review dude, finally someone not blinded by nostalgia😎👍

Here is one challenge in sonic 3: Get all chaos emeralds before Carnival Night Zone

I loved these reviews so much as a kid

I actually agree with you a lot! This game is my least favorite game of the classic series, and by far i prefer Sonic 1, 3 and CD. Tho the spindash isn't really that much of a problem, nor it is the Level design (at least before Hill Top Zone), and the final boss wasn't too dificult imo, but anyways :P. But... this game isn't fun... at all. I only like, like 3 zones...

Sonic 2 is still my favourite but the final boss is godawful.

That a spicy review 👌

Couldn't agree more about the special stages. Totally brought the experience of Sonic 2 down for me.

The mobile versions of Sonic 1 and 2 are much better. I can get through special stages in Sonic 2 on my android phone easily

If this game at least had unlimited continues at the start of each zone and a password feature, then it's frustrating elements would be tolerable enough to be forgivable. Alternatively, this is the kind of game that could REALLY benefit from a Shovel Knight style breakable checkpoint system. That would make this game so much more friendly and approachable, that it would be nearly impossible to get mad at it even with the unforeseen deaths.

Here's an idea: maybe games that use a lives system could use a "Practice" feature, similar to the Mario Party minigames, where the player can try and figure out how to complete a section or defeat a boss in a risk free environment with no threat of losing progress, at the cost that whatever the player does in "Practice" mode doesn't count, neither the victory nor the death, and after practicing they still have to complete the section under the risk in order for it to count. That would allow games to still keep the tension of the lives system and the threat of losing progress, while eliminating or mitigating the unfair element of the player dying because they didn't know what they needed to do or didn't see certain hazards coming and would otherwise lose multiple lives AND their progress trying to figure it out. The Oil Ocean Boss and the Death Egg Robot are both bosses that could benefit from a system like this. Let the player practice and figure the boss out in a risk free environment, THEN have them fight the boss WITH the risk of losing progress after they know what they need to do. That would have HEAVILLY mitigated the problems with Sonic 2's final boss. I think Exo will agree that the Death Egg robot wouldn't be nearly as egregious or frustrating if Sonic 2 had such a feature, even if it still kept the limited continues. It might have even prevented the death in launch base zone.

I remember raging on Chemical Plant Act 2 when you got to the part with the purple water. Oh how I hated that stage.

I actually finished Sonic 2 first before Sonic 1. The only thing was that I used Knuckles to zoom by any obstacles that I could avoid.

I really like Sonic 2 but I agree on your points, the special stages suck, the level structure is confusing sometimes, Metropolis SUCKS, and the last 3 bosses suck (especially in K.T.E. in Sonic 2) i played originally in the SEGA vintage, which made the special stages less painful, (still sucked tho to the loading time of the savestates) and some of the zones

@ExoParadigmGamer: Any chance of doing a ROR of 3D Classics Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 for 3DS? I've been hearing that they're better than the iOS versions.

A little harsh review but I mostly agree on the difficulty being unbalanced and the special stages being unforgiving (these reasons are why I haven’t beaten the game).

Weird question, but what's your favorite color?

I am super glad I finally found a you-tuber who's willing to speak up and flat out say that the classic sonic games are not the holy grail of game design that so many blind-eyed fans think it is, still not bad games but severely under polished ones when compared to its rival Mario (which arnt perfect either but in more small nit pick blemishes, rather then grating design flaws).

My first Genesis game! Sadly don't have an android. That special stage looks a bit more playable. On the Genesis version, I found a game genie code that's SUPPOSED to give you 8 rings for every one you collect in the special stage, but that's not exactly what it does. Instead, it gives you all the rings you pass by as long as you're not jumping. Then all you have to worry about are the bombs. Most of the time though I just played without collecting any emeralds.

I know i'm late here but Sonic Team should implement elemental shields to the final bosses. Why? Because if a boss requires 12 hits and no rings are given, it then becomes so hard it's unfair, but if we give the player a certain amount of an elemental shield that is required to beat the boss, it sets how many hits you can take before you can't hit it at all. Let's say a boss requires 8 hits and no rings, and 3 bubble shields are given to the player and is required to damage the boss, if you have none left then you can't hit it, it makes bosses feel difficult without making them impossible for newcomers. This can probably work.

Hey! I just found your channel last night and love your Sonic videos. I have a question, though: why do you always trash talk the Sonic fanbase and seem to get all bent out of shape when someone has a minor complaint about a modern Sonic game?

S2 is my least favourite, however at 18:45 the checkpoint expires from time, not from traveling too far away as you can see the stars go inwards.

3:02, even though I think that box art is iconic, I will agree that the artwork is fugaly. I have nothing but respect for the late Greg martin he is a great artist, but I am sorry I don't like the US box artwork I agree that the Japanese box art looks better.

I did not do that run from side to side when fighting the death egg as a kid. Still beat him, multiple times. Stage select cheat was awesome as wlel since you could select the special stage, and as you finished, you got plopped at stage one. Reset (Not power off) and you could repeat getting them chaos emeralds and start stage 1 with the ability to use Super Sonic. Legendary times.. Legendary times.

I know Exo himself said this review is outdated, and some of his points are valid criticism (mainly the limited continues, the special stage design and the difficulty spike on the final boss). But I still find hilarious how he describes Sonic 2 like it was Dark Souls lmao. The game is one hour long, not two. And all acts are designed to be beaten in less than 5 minutes, not 15. People shouldn’t try to get the emeralds if they can’t beat the game yet.

Will you do another one for Sonic Collection for the DS

Why would Eggman have rings in his base for Sonic? >w> But yeah, I fully agree that boss is awful. Music is awesome, Silver sonic is a pain but manageable; but Death Egg Robot is so awful.

can you do a sonic classic collection review

Seriously the special stages suck in this game and even the difficulty is spiky in the game. If noctis from ffXV was here and sees a special stage glow on the poll he will say “Don’t bother!” Because the special stage is hard.

Dude. Love your shit. And I agree with your opinion. I wasn’t alive when sonic 1- adventure 1 came out. And when I first played these games when I was young ( like 8) I couldn’t get past marble zone and aquatic zone when I was younger now I can no problem and it’s bs how people (as you say bc I haven’t played lost world yet) say trial and error in that game is bad but in classics is fine. I love sonic and I have beaten sonic 1-3&k a few times (I guess mania fits too in this huh) and I have only finished generations and forces. I think I prefer the boost formula a bit more bc I think it handles platforming and speed very well. Just now I’m actually playing Sonic adventure 1 (Dreamcast version right now at least) and I can see why people do like it but like with sm64 the camera is aged as well as me..a giant failure and pain in the ass but at least my shorty ness had never killed anybody. But yeah I totally agree for first times with sonic it’s hard and bs but gets better with each play through.

Green hills zone act 3 in sonic 2 game gear is my equivalent to the death egg zone

Yo exo, you gonna review sonic origins?

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is the very first Sonic game I ever heard of, saw, and played. It was brand new, I was at... I struggle to call him a friend, more of an acquaintance than anything else... I was visiting a kid I knew from school, and he had just got the game, and it looked awesome. Later that year, I got a Sega Genesis and a copy of Sonic 2 as a gift, and loved it. I was never able to beat it, however. I played that game pretty ritualistically for the next twenty some-odd years as I grew up, going back to it every so often whenever the mood struck me. Never managed to beat it once. Not without using the debug mode cheat, anyway. Playing fair and square? No luck. I'm sorry, but Exo is 100% right about Sonic 2's difficulty and special stages. I'm 37 years old, I played Sonic 2 back in 1992 when I was just 7 years old, I love this game... but sometimes I absolutely can't stand it.

i missed this show

Will you do ROR: of the (Rock N Roll Racing?

In order to get some secrets play the "No save mode" select a character press S E G A (if you do this in backwards it changes the name of Tails to Miles) in correct order and tap and hold with two fingers at the title screen and reveal the secrets by using the sound test and here's some codes that you need: Debug mode - 1,9,9,2,1,1,2,4 All Chaos Emeralds - 4,1,2,6 Proto Palace zone - 3,3,3,B,10,10,10,4 (Debug mode required) Special Stage 8 (which is the hardest special I've ever played) - 7 Configuration menu - 0,0,0 14 continues - 1,1,2,4

how is the doom gba ROR coming?

I'm giving Sonic 1 on mobile a whirl because of this review series. It was free on the app store!

Wait.....you had to hit it when it bent over huh well I just spent 8 playthroughts not knowing what in the name of god I was doing

I can get super sonic in chemical plant on every playthrough. It's really not that bad. I do admit the special stages aren't great, but the sonic 1 ones are worse to me

I disagree with your opinion about the Death Egg Robot, but not because I say it isn't difficult; no, I think you dislike it for the wrong reasons.The first time I played that final boss was a pain in the ass, I constantly tried to hit him, but his arms killed me WITHOUT WARNING like you said in the video. But that's the thing, you would probably die like 2-3 times and then find out that the only parts that you should hit the Robot is when he is fully stationary but that's the thing, IT'S SO TEDIOUS AN BORING.I mean, It's easy, but in a tedious way. The game forces you to be so careful because you don't have a single ring and puts you in one of the most unfair battles in the games, and IT'S CERTAINLY EASY BUT SO FREAKING TEDIOUS!!!Nice video BTW :D

Atomic take but, the sonic 2 special stages are my favorite. Sure there a chore for your first time, but once you’ve played them so many time like I have it’s pretty fun, in my opinion

2 Years to complete the 2nd Sonic game Coincedence i think not

And then there's me. I played some sonic 2 yesterday and had 4 emeralds before the end of the emerald hill zones and got through them with less than 3 minutes on the level clock.

more like remake rebreak or replace am I right

Remake or Rebreak: Metal Gear Solid and Twin Snakes?

Here's hoping Sonic Origins REPLACES the iOS/Android version. Just being able to use a controller by proxy gives it a REPLACE verdict in my book, but I'm hoping they bring back Tails co-op.

"oH, iT's ThE fInAl BoSs. It'S sUpPoSeD tO bE hArd" "iF yOu KnOw WhAt To Do, It'S nOt ThAt BaD"

One thing I find annoying with the Android Remakes is that they not only kick you back to the title screen after a game over, but they also save your lives counter everytime you die. This means that if you get a game over, you'll always start with ONE life, and every single death requires you to go through the menus, select your file and go through the entire stage all over again. This may not SOUND too annoying, but it becomes VERY annoying in some stages. Like Labyrynth Zone act 3, Scrap Brain Zone act 3 and Starlight Zone act 3. Some might say that refilling the lives counter to 3 or to whatever previous number it was might have made the game too easy, but that's why the "No Save" mode is there. The save option is for those who want to avoid frustration and to be able to relax and enjoy the game without much fear of losing progress. And even then, they DEFINITELY didn't need to kick you back to the title screen. Even if they only started you with one life, couldn't they at least restart the level immediatelly? This isn't a game breaking issue, and I still managed to beat Sonic 1, but the title screen thing becomes really annoying and genuinely puts me off from playing.

you should cover sonic 2 sega master system remake vs rebreak with its fan remake

4:50: I also feel like another one of the buttons could've been used to activate and de-activate Super Sonic.

Most of your complaints are for fixed in the mobile version. I’m not saying your complaints aren’t justified I’m just saying the mobile version can be amazing in 16:9 and 3D special stages Edit: metropolis zone enemy placement is bad in both versions

On my old genesis, I could hit the first checkpoint, get an emerald, hard reset the game, go back to the same checkpoint, and still retain my emeralds.. Rinse and repeat. ^_^ It was a weird thing Ive never been able to replicate, outside of my first sega.

ExoParadigmGamer. I 100% respect your opinion. I hate the special stages too.

I first played the classic games on the sonic mega collection on the game cube and I fucking hated sonic 1 and 2 because of how difficult they were 7 years later I find remakes of those games on iOS and it was one hell of a better experience than the originals

Is there any way to play the mobile version..not on a mobile?

12:10 It's for this reason alone that I prefer Sonic Classic Collection for the DS whenever I'm playing Sonic 1 or 2. Was 4 games enough for a whole collection? Not really. Was the 4:3 ratio cut down even further to a 1:1? Yes. But by golly you can save the game. This isn't really new for Sonic 3, but it is new for Sonic & Knuckles (unless you're playing Sonic 3 & Knuckles), Sonic 2, and Sonic 1. And even as a grown man, I cannot complete any of those games in one sitting. If it weren't for Sonic Classic Collection, I would have never beaten those games, and would have only beaten Sonic 3, which has the least climatic of the 4 endings because it's the only one that's all like "To be continued" since Sonic & Knuckles is an extension of that plot.