Sonic the Hedgehog 2

 Xbox 360
User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 100 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 85 out of 100
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 100
  3. Negative: 6 out of 100

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  1. AngryNerds100
    Oct 19, 2015
    6
    Sonic 2 is far from "The perfect game" everyone claims it is. Far from it. To say I got no enjoyment out of it would be a lie, but I can't say it's a great game. There are good things about Sonic 2, including the soundtrack and presentation, but those are standard. The physics are perfect and the spindash is a nice edition, even though it often sends you flying into spikes. The screenSonic 2 is far from "The perfect game" everyone claims it is. Far from it. To say I got no enjoyment out of it would be a lie, but I can't say it's a great game. There are good things about Sonic 2, including the soundtrack and presentation, but those are standard. The physics are perfect and the spindash is a nice edition, even though it often sends you flying into spikes. The screen crunch is awful, and I find myself to be constantly running into enemies, especially since the levels aren't that well designed. Yes, Sonic's about going fast, but the level design is orientated around speed and less platforming. The levels are just plain confusing because of it. You never know which path you're on, or how far you've progressed in the level, because the stages are super non-linear. Running into hazards, would not be so bad, if the special stages require 50 rings to enter. The pace of the game is broken once you start hunting down rings and checkpoints. The special stages themselves are just terrible. It isn't worth it, not even for Super Sonic. They are too dang hard. The control is slippery, the bomb placement id flat out unfair at times, there is almost no room for error, they are memorization based and are too hard until you've played them over and over, and when you get booted out, you lose all your rings, forcing you to find 50 more. Then the last two levels are just meant to waste your lives. Especially Death Egg zone. The final boss of the game (I won't spoil it) is one of the most unfair bosses I've ever played. To put the icing on the cake, there is no real save feature. Getting a game over, makes you have to restart the entire game and lose all of your Emeralds. There is no excuse for this flawed game design, especially since Super Mario World was already released on the SNES and that game had a save feature. This also means I can't replay the fun levels without using the level select code, which I consider cheating. However, the worst part about this game, are the fans who are still defending this game and calling it flawless or the best Sonic game. Let me tell you, it's far from it. This doesn't mean Sonic 2 is bad, I just find it to be the weakest classic Sonic game.… Expand
  2. genesisdoes
    Oct 2, 2020
    6
    Sonic 2 is a game I played to prepare myself for Sonic Mania. I wanted to finally beat a classic Sonic game or 2 so I could have a full comparison once I got around to checking Mania off my list. 2 is considered to be the first game of Sonic's classic peak and I can see why. It's certainly a big improvement over the first game in many areas but there are still several other areas they justSonic 2 is a game I played to prepare myself for Sonic Mania. I wanted to finally beat a classic Sonic game or 2 so I could have a full comparison once I got around to checking Mania off my list. 2 is considered to be the first game of Sonic's classic peak and I can see why. It's certainly a big improvement over the first game in many areas but there are still several other areas they just hadn't perfected yet.

    Mainly, the trial and error gameplay. Sonic games are about going fast, it was the one thing the Sega Genesis had over the SNES. Processing. So naturally, SEGA capitalized that by making their brand new mascot a fast as hell hedgehog. Where this becomes an issue is when you're going 100 miles per hour through a level and an enemy that you couldn't see stops you in your tracks.

    This happens A LOT. Way more often than I care to mention. This is my main problem with the game and while it's a glaring one, it wasn't ever enough to make me want to quit. I always wanted to keep chugging along, even if my obstacles were very often unfairly presented to me. I can see why it's a classic and I'm happy I beat it. I was a huge Sonic fan as a kid and I feel like I've done some previously unfinished business by beating this.
    I beat this game in December of 2019.    … Expand
  3. Gobnous_Gretch
    Mar 18, 2021
    5
    This port has some weird little quirks I don't run into on the Genesis version, or Gamecube port. There are times when you'll just kinda clip through the level geometry and fall to your death, dropped rings fall through the floor more often, and you can also just fall through the last boss when you hit him, which, iirc, was previously only a problem in the "& Knuckles" version of the game.This port has some weird little quirks I don't run into on the Genesis version, or Gamecube port. There are times when you'll just kinda clip through the level geometry and fall to your death, dropped rings fall through the floor more often, and you can also just fall through the last boss when you hit him, which, iirc, was previously only a problem in the "& Knuckles" version of the game. It gets a 5/10 because it's Sonic 2 and if it's the only way you can get this game it's worth it, but if you have a Gamecube, 3DS, or PC, they all have better versions of Sonic 2 where you can access the actual game menus rather than the weird Xbox 360 UI they put it in. I would buy it over the mobile release because Sonic on mobile is nooo goooood… Expand

Awards & Rankings

27
#27 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2007
31
#31 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2007
81
#81 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2007

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. IGN
    79
    Holds up as not only one of the best games available on Sega's memorable 16-bit machine, but also a worthy addition to any XBLA library.
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  2. GameSpot
    80
    The quintessential Sonic experience is made even better thanks to the inclusion of achievements and a strong, competitive multiplayer component.
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  3. Eurogamer
    90
    An all-time great.
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