Retro Review: Sonic 3 & Knuckles (PC) Review

A bigger, better adventure. 

 Sorry for being inactive lately, everyone. I'm happy to say that I'm back and planning to continue the Sonic reviews. Without further delay, it's time to review Sonic's final outing on the Sega Genesis, Sonic 3 & Knuckles! Originally, Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles were supposed to be one big game but due to financial and time constraints, the title was split into two games: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles. By using the Sega Genesis' "lock-on" technology, one can now play both titles as one game, Sonic 3 & Knuckles, just as how the developers envisioned it. Sonic 3 & Knuckles has been regarded by many fans and critics to be one of the best Sonic games on the Genesis, competing with Sonic 2. I've been eager to play Sonic 3 & Knuckles ever since I've started the Sonic reviews and after beating it, I've got a lot to talk about. 

STORY- After its defeat in Sonic 2, the Death Egg has crash landed on a nearby island called Angel Island. Eggman is once again on the loose and is planning to resurrect the Death Egg. He tricks Knuckles the echidna, the last surviving member of an ancient civilization that lived on the island, into thinking that Sonic and Tails are coming to steal the island's all-important Master Emerald, which thanks to its powers, keeps Angel Island hover above the surface. As soon as they arrive on Angel Island, Sonic and Tails are ambushed by Knuckles, who then proceeds to steal the chaos emeralds they obtained in Sonic 2. Having no option but to get back the emeralds and stopping Eggman's latest scheme, the two begin their journey across the many zones of Angel Island. The game isn't story-heavy so I had to look up a synopsis for the game's story. Still, there are the occasional "cut-scenes" that progresses the story.

GAMEPLAY- The gameplay is what you've come to expect from a 2D Sonic game. You start a level, collect rings and power-ups, defeat badniks, and reach the sign post at the end. Sonic 3 & Knuckles retains all that while adding more. There are over 14 new zones to explore, more than any Sonic game prior. They take longer to complete, have hidden routes and secrets to explore, and pack a mid-boss, which are quite easy to beat. The Eggman bosses can be tricky if you don't memorize their patterns though. While most levels can be a breeze, I found some of them to be downright frustrating thanks to some annoying enemies and hazards (I'm looking at you Flying Battery Zone!), but that could be just me. 

The longer levels offers many
hidden places to explore.

 The game retains power-ups introduced in previous games such as the shield, speed shoes, invincibility, and extra rings. There are three new shield that'll help Sonic in his journey. The Flame shield protects Sonic from fire damage and allows him to freely walk on lava. The Water shield allows Sonic to breath underwater and reach higher ground by bouncing. The Lighting shield attracts nearby rings to Sonic and negates all electrical attacks. The game features a new playable character: Knuckles the Echidna. While he's occasionally causing trouble for Sonic and Tails throughout their journey, he later becomes a trusted friend of theirs. Knuckles controls similarly to Sonic, though not as fast, but has the ability to briefly glide and can destroy breakable objects to reveal hidden paths.

Knuckles is just as
fun as Sonic and Tails.

 The special stages are presented in a flat 3D surface similar to Sonic CD. This time, it has Sonic and Tails collecting blue balls... aah- I mean blue spheres while avoiding bumpers and red spheres. While fun, the special stages can be pretty tricky and there's a chance that you could fail some of them if you're not careful enough. If Sonic touches a bumper it could lead him straight to a red sphere and immediately end the stage. However, if he collects all blue spheres, he will be rewarded a chaos emerald. That's right, chaos emeralds make a return after their absence from Sonic CD. After obtaining all seven of them and collecting 50 rings, Sonic can transform into Super Sonic, which grants him cool powers such a invincibility, better handling, and high speeds and jumps. However, if his ring count reaches zero, Sonic will revert back to his normal self. 

These special stages may
take you a while to master.

 New are the super emeralds, more powerful versions of the chaos emeralds. They allows Sonic to transform into Hyper Sonic, a more powerful state compared to Super Sonic. As if he's not already overpowered, Hyper Sonic has increased strength, can breath underwater, and has a move that can instantly kill all enemies on-screen. Tails becomes Super Tails and Knuckles becomes Hyper Knuckles when they obtain the chaos emeralds and super emeralds, respectively. Additionally, upon collecting 50 rings and passing a checkpoint, Sonic can wrap into a gumball machine-like special stage and earn items such as extra lives, shields, and rings. The competitive mode seen in Sonic 2 makes a return. Up to two player can choose among Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles to compete in races across five stages that don't make an appearance in the main game.

The co-op is a neat feature and
the new levels are quite fun.

PRESENTATION- Visually, it's a lot more detailed than the other Genesis titles. Sonic has gotten a new sprite update is looking better than ever. The backgrounds are a nice sight to look at and colorful as well. The audio is filled with great tracks and sound effects. The soundtrack is one of my aspects of the game mainly due to the catchy nature of the tracks. However, playing on PC, I've encounter a lot of audio issues such as choppiness. There is a mod that fixes some of the issues, though it won't do much.  

OVERALL- Sonic 3 & Knuckles is one of the best Sonic games ever made. While it can be outright frustrating at times, I still had fun with the game. The new features and improvements are welcome additions and it makes the game superior compared to the others. If you do manage to have access to Sonic 3 & Knuckles, then what are you waiting for? It's one of the hedgehog's best titles!