Sega’s first attempts at a 3D Sonic game resembled Super Mario 64 augmented with sprawling, linear levels and speed-oriented controls. This lack of consistency has resulted in critical reception that ranges from “pretty good” ( Sonic Generations) to “downright awful” ( Sonic the Hedgehog 2006). Over the years, Sega experimented with many wildly different play styles, even within a single game. But Sonic’s transition to the 3D world, marked by the arrival of Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast, was much more divisive. Sonic’s fast, thrilling gameplay was critically acclaimed during the series’ early days as a 2D sidescroller and won millions of gamers over to Sega and the Genesis console. A video game franchise about a cool blue hedgehog who runs, jumps, and platforms through a variety of vast, intricate worlds.
