Nothing will top the Christmas morning that I popped this in my Sega CD and was blasted with that opening cinema and insane rendition of Sonic Boom. I don’t think people realize how insane it was for there to be lyrics / singing on a video game. I had my Sega CD hooked up to a legit stereo and man did it blow everyone away when I flipped that on.

Does anyone else remember "Sonic Sunday" ??? 3 Sonic games released at the same time.... One each for Genesis, Game Gear, & Sega CD... I Picked up Sonic CD that day with my two nephews in tow, it was the first time ever I made a purchase with a credit card! Not because I didn't have the money but because I wanted to establish a credit history.... With Sonic 😂🎮👍

What puzzles me is how and why this game never got a Saturn port, they could have even fixed certain issues with the OG CD game, SEGA is so stupid sometimes, but of course I will always love them.

Palmtree Panic Japan is one of the most chaotic, upbeat, and crazy awesome songs of video game history... I'm sure it blew away people back then

My uncle gave me his Sega CD and Genesis along with a few games. Sonic CD and Lunar the Silver Star are my favorite Sega CD games.

I've put hundreds of hours in Sonic CD. Especially on Sega CD from 1996-2000. It had its flaws but it has a major part of my heart. I just hope I can get it's cameos into my projects I'm still trying to achieve.

Imagine NOT being a Toot Toot Sonic warriors

I loved this soundtrack so much, (USA version) that I used to jam to it on my portable CD player.

I unironically love the Sega Gens Collection, which is how I played SonicCD.

If I could add my two cents, I remember hearing the Japanese soundtrack first through the Sonic Screensaver on the S3&K Collection, and when I finally played it on the GameCube through the Gems Collection. I was bewildered hearing a different soundtrack. Didn't knew about the JP/US differences back then, but that being said, I do prefer the JP one simply because the songs are more memorable imo. The US soundtrack does have that 90s vibe to it so I'll give it that. Either way, I love me some Sonic CD. Fun fact: You can play as Tails in the remastered port. That's probably the best reason to give it a second playthrough, let alone get it again if you already own it.

Grew up with the original US version, and couldn't quite understand why there was such a marked difference between the Present/Future tracks and the Past version. It wasn't until I was able to play the Chris Whitehead versions that included the Japanese OST that it all made sense. I like the U.S. soundtrack because that's all I knew back then, but I really love the Japanese soundtrack because it all gels so well. Search for Wacky Workbench remix on YT and you'll find an awesome remix using both the US and Japanese soundtracks.

Yo SLX, thank you for your channel man, you and Game Sack are my go to sources for educational information! Also because of your channel I bought a Saturn and cant stop playing it! Cheers from California!

Hard to believe it will be 30 years since sonic came out...I was just a child when this came out...great memories of this game.

The end of level jingle even has a bit of music from "Back to the Future" in it.

Beautiful game. I remember talking this to school (with permission) and it was amazing to share the experience with others!!! Later in life? I became fascinated with the missing R2 level. Unlike Sonic two, there are so many mysteries that wouldn't be solved. But it's ok.

Personally I like the USA soundtrack much better. Great video!

I never knew about the remade soundtrack, but back in the day the Past versions were far and away my favorites. So I guess I'm on Team Japan for soundtrack choice. I can't wait to replay this in the new remake collection. I hope they do a great job with it!

Always will be my favorite Sonic game. Back in 1993, the Redbook audio music from Spencer Nielsen and animated opening intro totally immersed us in what Sega CD was all about. Great videos always

There are a lot of things I love about Sonic CD despite its shortcomings. The soundtracks of both versions are awesome, that acoustic guitar in the end theme of the US version kicked major rear, and then there's Amy Rose. Being the huge fan of her that I am, the fact that this was her debut game is the biggest reason why I love this game and in fact have numerous versions of it including international versions.

Sonic CD and Sonic 2 are my favorites! I love both CD soundtracks! To say that one is better than the other is pure opinion, but at the same time it's dumb to say the other "sucks". I definitely agree with SLX in that it mainly depends on which you heard first. Honestly, neither are perfect and there are some tracks I prefer on the US version than the others...and vice versa. Once you learn the time travel mechanic of this game, you see it in a very different light. Not as deep as say Chrono Trigger, but still enjoyable.

I been waiting for you to talk about this game

Is a nice game, but the stage design is a little clumsy and sometimes doesnt make too much sense, some plattforms, springs, loops, rings seems to be placed in a random way, definitly not as fun and polished as sonic 2 and sonic 3 & knuckles, also the time travel mechanics are kind of confusing in my opinion and interrupts the flow of the game..

I'll never forget the Christmas when my brother and I asked for a console and secretly I was hoping for a SNES, but under the tree it definitely looked like a Megadrive shaped wrapped box. I was still really happy when we opened it and got the Megadrive Aladdin edition, but when my parents then pulled out a surprise present from behind the sofa and it turned out to be a MegaCD we were blown away... literally couldn't believe our luck! Sonic CD was one of the first games we bought together and I played the shit out of it, loving every moment. Thanks for the review - it's brought back happy memories of distant times. We had the PAL version and the music rocked BTW!

Am I the only one that as soon as the video starts, hits like automatically because I know it's going to be great ?

This game is a classic and I loved back then and still do. I liked the time travel aspect, but it was a pain in the butt to use when you can't find a good spot to maintain the speed. I heard the US soundtrack first and I liked it. few years later I got the chance to hear the JP soundtrack and I felt like we missed out on a better experience. I didn't think the US soundtrack was bad, I just feel the JP ost was more fitting with the it's energy. Sega was rather pretentious thinking that's what we wanted in a soundtrack. Oh well, we got Sonic CD re-released years later with both soundtracks.

I’ll recall sega lord x saying that this would of been an instant no brainer to had this on the Saturn right away. I couldn’t agree more.

The Sonic CD US v Japan soundtrack brings back memories of trolling weeaboos about it in the early internet. Those were horrible times. Weeabos roamed around unchallenged in those days and were actually the dominant nerd force.

I'm a diehard Sega fan for life. I have been around for everything Sega has done since 1986 and I'm damn proud of it. From their amazing consoles too their insane arcade cabinets that defied everything I thought I knew about games. Every Sonic game, Shinobi, Space Harrier, Afterburner, Outrun, you name it I loved it. Unfortunately, I do not feel this way about Sonic CD. There is something about that game that rubs me the wrong way. It is one of the only Sonic titles I have not finished...I just can't. The 3d levels were one of the coolest things I had ever witnessed (for the time) but even they were not enough to motivate me. There is only one other Sonic title I dislike more and that's Spinball. Sorry, I forgot to add...it was an absolute pleasure watching your take on the game. I may not have cared for Sonic CD but your coverage is second to none.

Interestingly, there's evidence Sonic 2 was going to have a time travel mechanic but it was just one of the many things that never came to be with that game.

Oi Sonic CD was the very first game I bought for my Mega CD back in 1993. Its the best Sonic ever made, I played it like every day. Ahh the 90s I miss it so much.

One of my favorite games on the Sega CD! As well as Terminator, Silpheed, Robo Aleste, Batman Returns, Final Fight etc... And I have all those and more on my original Sega CD Model 1 U.S.

Oh and a Secret. If you complete Sonic CD with all the Stones, Pods and Projectors smashed on a "fresh system file" (not a new game) it'll unlock D.A. Garden early. GameFAQs deleted this when I uploaded it to the secrets section like 15yrs ago.

I bought the Sega CDX, which came with Sonic CD. I loved it, thought it was cool. But when I learned of the Japanese version, I imported it and loved it even more. I get how the Japanese theme song would have done poorly in the US market, I have no issues with the in-game music and find that it matches quite well with the hardware generated music more than the US light jazz style music. A point that doesn't get much talk, in regards to music, was that using CDA as the background music to a game was so revolutionary and cool that it's largely what drew me to SEGA CD versions of games. Such as Echo the Dolphin or Earth Worm Jim.

When I first heard the US theme I couldn't stop humming it. Hell, I still do it from time to time.

Sonic CD is an important title, being the introduction of two fan favourites, those being Amy Rose (my favourite) and Metal Sonic. And the Japanese/European soundtrack is glorious

Ok got to love the multiple paths to victory approach they took. Having two options to get the best ending was a really good move.

I remember getting Sonic CD with the Sega CD and 32x for Christmas in 1994. Loved it because I was a Sonic fan. Didn't know about the 2 soundtracks until I accidentally discovered it on Napster several years later.

Both the Japanese and the American soundtracks are bangers

I KNEW I HEARD THAT JAPANESE SONIC CD INTRO BEFORE!! That's the same song played on Green Hill Zone for Sonic 2 on Master System and Game Gear!!

I heard the US soundtrack first, and back in the 90s I preferred it over the Japanese one. But years later, looking back on it, I started liking the Japanese soundtrack as well. It has that kitsch 90s Japanese sound that so unique in anime and Japanese games that I found myself loving.

Loved this game, we did have the JP soundtrack here in PAL region, but I do like some of the US tracks, just like you. The most fun gimmick was to get the thing in the past stages and then travel all the way to the good future and enjoy an easy life. Always a challenge to pull it of as a kid

It's a crazy ass game with a lot of flaws, but I love it.

I still work out to this game's soundtrack in 2021!

As far as the soundtracks go, I say they're both good. The best move would have been to give you both and let you pick which one you want. That could have added to the replay value.

I played the PC port of Sonic CD like a regular Sonic game, and I enjoyed it quite a bit, particularly because it felt like a brand new 2D Sonic game to me! This was in the pre-Sonic Mania days, haha I really need to give it another look and try out the time travel mechanic for the good ending... Thanks for the explanation of the mechanic! I was definitely overthinking it, lol

I'm from the UK and despite owning two UK versions of Sonic CD I hadn't heard of the Japanese soundtrack until the 360 release came out. Funnily enough, I had the UK PC version, which had the US soundtrack on it, and then later a UK Sonic Gems Collection on Gamecube which also had the US soundtrack on it. I prefer the Japanese soundtrack on the whole, but there are a couple of USA tracks I prefer to their counterparts. I don't think Sonic's moveset is conducive to exploring the levels (especially with verticality) and that may be why it's my least favourite Sonic 2D game of that era. A lot of the stages felt like a pinball machine with all the flippers and springs. Sonic 3 & Knuckles seemed to do exploring vertical stages MUCH better. You had three characters with unique movements that explored the stages in their own way, and even the way sonic explored the obstacles/hazards looked and acted like they belonged to the level. Maybe I'm nit picking, but the Soundtrack and the FMV was the main selling point to me, and that probably shouldn't be the case for a sonic game. The time travel stuff is pretty neat, and it's a shame that we probably won't be able to change a level in the same way again. The peel out was nice, but the spin dash (even the Sonic CD one) and later drop dash are SO much better. Still I do enjoy this overall, and it's not a bad game by any means (the fact I've owned it several times is testament to that) but I don't hold it in the same regard as Sonic 2 or Sonic 3 & Knuckles. Sonic 1 was my first video game, so that will always get the edge too.

My favorite KZfaqr! Thank you for all the amazing videos! Do you offhand have any SLX merch for sale?

I bought a SegaCD when it came out. During my ownership, I only owned three games: Sewer Shark, Sonic CD and Earthworm Jim SE. I loved the system, I used it to listen to audio CDs (it was my only CD player at the time). And I rented a lot games from a local rental store. The system only lasted for about 2 years until one day it failed to boot.

I always wanted a sega CD and sonic CD game. But was never able to get one until I was an adult. Now I have both. Having grown up playing to death and so playing sonic 2 - sonic & knuckles. I gotta say, CD caught me by surprise and while I'm hesitant to say that it is as good a 3 and Knuckles. I'm glad I own it. I take my time exploring and savoring the game play.

Great reviews sir! Perfect to start 2021

Small correction about cheap deaths section, there are very little bottomless pits in Sonic CD. Outside of the very last level, there are no bottomless pits AFAIK, mainly to make backtracking and exploration less frustrating.

Sonic Boom theme still hits hard

I grew up with the PAL version on Mega CD, but *vastly* prefer the US soundtrack (which I heard for the first time in the Windows 95 port years later).

Great review, man. Love the content on this channel. Keep up the great work!

I remember getting this 1995 little late but loved it.

I'm sorry, you mentioned "A lot of cheap deaths: bottomless pits" where there's only bottomless pits in one place, in one act; Metallic Madness 3

R1 Palmtree Panic R2 Ridicule Root R3 Collision Chaos R4 Tidal Tempest R5 Quartz Quadrant R6 Wacky Workbench R7 Desert Dazzle R8 Stardust Speedway R9 Metallic Madness RA Final Fever

Great video as always though with every video new video the overall quality of your content keeps in improving keep up the good work bro.

I grew up a SNES guy but had and love the Genesis. Thanks for ur "work"/fun. Long live the Sega Lord. Here's some 90s for ya!!! Sonic fears Donkey Kong

I really like Sonic CD and it might be my favorite 2D Sonic! I really like the North American soundtrack and I have the full vinyl for the Japanese soundtrack and it's a great listen but I would like to see the North American soundtrack be released on vinyl! I really wish Sega had done an enhanced port of Sonic CD for the Saturn and also ported Knuckles Chaotix as well but oh well!

I remember playing this on the 360 and it was so awesome. I believe it was on the digital store

I remember my older brother had the cdx and this game was one of my faves would pump the soundtrack and eat fruit snacks.. good times

While I like the japanese soundtrack a little more, the us soundtrack is still very good and has a lot of underrated tracks. I especially enjoy the sonic the hedgehog boom versions of the songs. They’re basically more complete versions of the in-game tracks from the soundtrack cd.

4:06 - The audio in this part of the video triggered my Amazon Echo to say, "Seven times two is fourteen." XD

As someone who never owned a Sega CD as a kid, but was still crazy about all things Sonic, this game was like a mythical treasure that was out of my reach. But I would finally get my day when I got Sonic Gems Collection on GameCube, and spent many a night plumbing the depths of this game and it's secrets... and I must say, to me, at least, it truly did live up to the childhood hype. It felt like something truly fresh and different, and still has a surreal quality I'm not sure any other Sonic title has ever quite matched

I'm a big Sonic fan, I loved the Game Gear and Genesis games as a kid. Played Sonic CD today on my phone and I don't care for it much, too much platforming and time travel and not enough fun.

Thanks for making this video. I recently starting playing Sega CD games through RetroArch using the Genesis Plus GX emulator. There are videos on KZfaq that show how to setup RetroArch and how to get Sega CD games to work (in RetroArch). Probably only only have to watch two videos.

Starting 2021 off strong! Keep it up!!

I’m so glad u did a Sonic CD review. This is my favorite Sonic game

Glad you hate Wacky Workbench too :D I just posted a new video yesterday titled "Sonic Detours: Support ICE, Save the Polar Bears!" where I play it in Sonic World . . . and let me tell ya, Wacky Workbench doesn't get any better in 3D XD

I heard the USA soundtrack first and ended up loving much much more the JP/EUR soundtrack. They're just overall better melodies and suit the levels better, although the USA soundtrack has some bangers too (especially the intro and boss theme).

What drives me nuts about Sonic CD is the chaotic, seemingly random level design and being booted into Past, Present, Future all the time. Not nearly as slick a package as the Genesis entries were. The soundtrack is more of a mixed bag, too. The US and JP soundtracks were different, and oftentimes the JP songs were better. Of course I really liked the bonus stages and the fight against Metal Sonic. But overall, the experience as a whole was clunky. And this is coming from someone who grew up with a Sega CD, still owns a physical Sega CD collection, and loved the crap out of Sonic 1, 2, and 3.

I will admit, I didn't like this game at first, but over the years of playing it again and again, it grew on me to the point every time I hook up my 32X, I feel I have to play it again not just for the opening animated sequence, but the music and gameplay. A really well done game. 🙂

I love Sonic CD and glad that SEGA made it the way it is. If you listened to people, we would be playing Sonic 20 which would be copy-pasted from Sonic 2. We had several classic Sonic games oriented towards speed on the MegaDrive, so Sonic CD, Sonic 3D and Knuckles Chaotix are great games that offered something new. If you enjoy platforming in Sonic games, then Sonic CD is a great game to play, offering a lot to explore, backtracking in levels to find stuff etc... It is really a great fun game for this, and I like to go to the past to make a good future, and then try to go back to the future before completing the stage, simply to see the stage variants and colors. The HD port is fantastic and you can even play with Tails.

Ah, Sonic CD... One of my favorite games of all time! If only...this year...the Sonic Mania team could release a follow-up. I absolutely love the game, but I would make a few tweaks to the sequel. Of course, it would have the common-style spin-dash, insta-shield, and drop-dash, in addition to the super peel-out all together. And since Sonic is supposed to be the fastest, only he could get the super sneakers, while any other characters (just a few classic ones) would have other power-ups that are more suitable to their play styles. (Perhaps an 8-direction air-dash for Tails, for example.) Also, there would be "warp gates" that you have to enter at top running speed (or else you'd simply pass it without anything happening). It doesn't disappear, but rather turns into a "future" warp gate in the past. Due to no loading, the warping is instantaneous; like "Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart", you're just there immediately. The stage just turns into the past or future around you as you're running. This ability for warp gates to remain there also make it very easy to get from the past to the future and vice versa so you can explore better than in the original Sonic CD. I might call it "Sonic SSD", but could be played on hard disk drives as well (just like Sonic CD can be played on a hard drive or SSD), since for a 2D game that looks like Sonic Mania, the loading would be miniscule anyway.

Dude this video rocked, but I had to sit through 6 ads in this sucker. KZfaq is crushing your flow.

Your video content is TOP NOTCH! Great work man, keep em coming!

I got this game on the original Windows 95 release, and man, it was kind of awesome. I’m always going to be a PC gamer at my heart, but there was something very special about seeing Sonic on my computer. And since none of my friends had either a PC that could run it or a Sega CD, I knew I had a Sonic game that my friends couldn’t play. Just the fact that there are 4 different ways to play each stage was great. The US soundtrack is solid - Toot Toot Sonic Warrior might be funny, but Sonic Boom is a legitimately inspiring tune. The PC version also had the past themes updated in the US to match the others, since none of it was being “hardware driven” in the same way. There’s a lot of content in the game - but you have to go looking for it. And I think it loses steam because of that, toward the end. But I still love the game and would love to see any game that gives you the same ‘time travel to save the world’ feeling.

who came up with the premise for this game past future present concept? wow! I wish it was more straightforward personally as i have been struggling going anywhere with this concept. The music is so awesome though, It gives me energy to keep going!

I recently got Sonic CD on the GameCube games Sonic Gems, and I had no idea about the time travel things, or what those "future" signs where. This was pretty informative thanks!

Thank you for all the nostalgia.

I played first time this Game in My Gamecube collection

Always LOVED this game since my uncle got his MegaCD back in 1995 and with it this game and 3 others. And when i got my own MegaCD back in 1999 of course i had to have a copy of SonicCD as well. It really is a must have.

Man, I missed this one when it was new, but this channel is timeless. My Sega CD crashed like 25 years ago. This game, Final Fight, Batman Returns, Tomcat Alley, and both Lethal Enforcers are about all I played on it. Back then, I thought Sonic CD was "ok". I'd fiddle around with it, but would get frustrated. Downloaded it to the 360, and I fully agree, that version is better. Even on the "looser" 360 controller, even years after last playing the game. Best KZfaq gamer channel, period.

The amount and quality of content you put out is absolutely amazing!

Great video yet again SegaLordX. A timeless classic (pardon the pun) I too enjoy both soundtracks to this game but favour the Japanese/PAL one a bit more myself. I always loved the fact that you could work your way back to the past from starting in the good or bad futures and end up holding over 500 rings for big points, something no one else ever mentions.

Great video as always, and thanks for the trip down memory lane. Outside of the Working Designs games, this was probably the Sega CD game I put the most time into. I'm glad you brought up the size and visual variety of the levels; even though the stages were huge and encouraged omnidirectional exploration rather than raw, straightline speed, it didn't feel like a drag until the last level. Those definitely could have been shortened a little. I agree with you on the soundtracks; both are pretty good, I feel. The Japanese one has a much more obvious leitmotif throughout all of the songs, while the American soundtrack I feel does a better job of evoking a sense of wonder and mystery on a per-track basis.

I purchased a Sega CD in 2019. On december 2020, i finally moded my backup batery Unit, and finally can maintain the saves now. And finally now i m playing Sonic CD. I m playing the Usa version. For me its a goog game , but prefrer Sonic 2 and 3, altough the music is really great. Greetings from Brazil!

You described this really well. I remember going to a friend's house and was very confused. Not as confusing as Knuckles Chaotix though. I finally got it for myself about 2 years ago on the Xbox and I really didn't like dealing with the past and future thing so I just turned it off and haven't thought about it. Thank you Sega Lord X, knowing that I can just Breeze through it and then replay it again later and try to find things if I liked it or just try to do the special stages at the end of each stage... I actually feel excited to play this game again. Also it was just released as a Homebrew on the PS Vita, which I play during my hour-long lunch breaks at work 5 days a week.

I'm a fan of Sonic CD ever since 1993, largely because of the brilliant japan / europe soundtrack, which is easily the best thing about the game. When you remove or replace that, you're left with a game that falls short of the best 2D Sonic games.

Lord X you are my savior on these difficult time...Thank you so much for your amazing channel and great work!

I've been meaning to check this one out for awhile now. I was expecting a more glowing review though, I guess I just need to check it out for myself.

A lot of people bash the US soundtrack. But I love it! Seriously, check out Quartz Quadrant Zone: Bad Future US version, it's such an amazing track.

I never played this one! I had a sega cd too! Looking at it I like a lot of things about it. It seems like a cool entry! I loved sonic 1,2 and 3k. I'm not sure if I'll play this one but this was a great review!

I still remember hearing Sonic Boom for the first time on a Kenwood system on a demo unit at Circuit City. I was blown away. Also, the 25 people that disliked this video, I hope you rake your shins against a table.

Some aspects of all Sega CD games seem so archaic and gimmicky today. Like FMV. But as someone who was 12 when it first came out, those things blew my mind at the time. Even though I was a Nintendo guy too, Sonic on the Genesis blew my mind so much that I figured out getting one almost exclusively for that game alone. But with the Sega CD, having ANY actual video on a game at the time, even small, grainy, jumpy video that you had no control over, was really cool. I can remember before I had a Sega CD, seeing my friend’s little brother playing Sonic CD at his house and seeing the opening animation and hearing the theme song. Blew…my…little mind. I HAD to get one. I loved Sonic 1 & 2, but Sonic CD was my favorite. The depth that it had with the time travel, the special stages, the perfect audio off of a CD, and some of the animated cut scenes were just great. I still have the updated widescreen version on my old PS3 and play it sometimes. Really after Sonic 1, 2, and CD though, for all my interest, Sonic 3 and everything after I’ve really hated. Especially Sonic 3. It’s foregrounds and backgrounds were a blurry mess that blended together, I didn’t like the new look of Sonic, I didn’t understand the weird Knuckles character and he left me flat and confused, I didn’t like the music, and even the opening title screen looked really off-putting, trying to be 3D. The controls were even weird to me. But the Sega CD at the time I very oddly loved. I probably had about 6-8 games for it, and even the “bad” ones I slowly warmed up to and eventually liked. Famously, I got the game Sewer Shark as the pack-in game with my Sega CD. I tried playing it for about 2 months straight, unable to even get past the 1st stage, and I put it away for a good full year. Then for whatever reason, I pulled it back out, played it a little, started progressing, and it became kind of a cult classic for me.

I like the Japanese Sonic CD soundtrack a lot better than the USA version. Plus, I highly recommend saving your Sega CD's game data to the Sega CD memory cartridge.

love both version's music, but always thought the US soundtrack was way more appropriate for each stage environment

Music: A few tracks from the original Japan version are better, but I'd say overall/majority the USA one is better. The USA theme song, Collision Chaos, Title Tempest, Wacky Workbench are pure gold. Endings: I always felt they should have had three endings (a good, normal and bad) not just two (good and bad). Getting all the time stones gives you the best ending yea, so you never need to fully explore the past/future stages. I think to get the best ending... You should be required/forced to make a "Good Future" on every single stage! Good Future All Stages = Good Ending All Time Stones (but not all Good Futures) = Normal Ending Everything/Anything Else = Bad Ending (finishing the game shouldn't feel like an accomplishment, rather it should compel you to try again/harder) As you are aware, even if you earn all the time stones ASAP... The first 4 levels can never be finished with a "Good Future" unless you actually goto the past and destroy the generators, so I think it would fair/better. You wouldn't need to change the mechanic of once you get the all the Time stones you get all Good Futures, because you still couldn't get the best ending that way. Series Ranking: I'm a strange guy in that Sonic CD is my fave Sonic game, with my 2nd fave Sonic being the first one. It's not that I don't like 2, or 3, or And Knuckles... They took the series in a new/different direction, and are the most radically different from the first two. Yes I said "first two" because Sonic CD actually entered development before the USA team started work on Sonic 2 and it shows/is more like the original than 2. #1 Sonic CD #2 Sonic #3 Sonic 2 #4 Sonic Mania #5 Sonic 3 (And Knuckles also shares this spot because originally it was one game and I rank/treat it as such)

Sonic Boom takes me back to my childhood and now that ChrisChan is also tied to it its nothing but a nostalgia bomb. That being said I absolutely love the Japanese version too once I found out it was changed. Two games take me back to the Sega CD. Sewer Shark and Sonic CD.