Sonic Origins

Pros

• Looks even better than the originals
• Plays smoothly with a controller or the keyboard
• Includes an in-game museum of artwork
• Jukebox mode lets you listen to soundtrack independent of the game
• Features a boss rush mode

Cons

• Doesn't include the original music from Sonic the Hedgehog 3
• Some features only available as additional downloadable content
• Purists won't like the games being rendered in widescreen

Sonic Origins is a collection of the first four platformers in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Each of these games are remasters of the originals as opposed to direct ports. That means that they play in widescreen as opposed to the original 4:3 aspect ratio featured by the Sega Genesis.

On top of this, all of the games have had their music updated with modern synthesized computer instruments and the graphics are rendered using a present-generation engine. This gives the games a very different feel than they would have if they were being played on original hardware.

Those who balk at the idea of playing the games in any fashion other than how they were initially presented can tweak the Sonic Origins engine in order to let them play just the way they remember their favorite titles. It includes the first three numbered Sonic titles as well as Sonic CD.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is presented as though it were locked on to a physical Sonic & Knuckles cartridge. This might confuse some players who only remember the single cart game, though it actually adds a lot of functionality. Actual Sega Genesis hardware allowed players to stick a Sonic the Hedgehog 3 cartridge on top of a Sonic & Knuckles box in order to access additional features. This functionality remains unlocked at all times in Sonic Origins, which is great for those who've never otherwise had the chance to play the game in its physical form.

In fact, it's likely that gamers who've never played on a real Sega Genesis will be the happiest with Sonic Origins since it offers these titles in a way that's markedly different from their initial presentation. The music in the third game is completely unalike from what it might have sounded like on period hardware. Those who don't worry about perfect reproduction of a vintage gameplay experience might very well find that Sonic Origins is actually better in some ways.

For instance, some players might find that Sonic Origins doesn't slow down or lag the way that the original games did. They'll also like the fact that it can display far more colors than a Genesis title ever would have been able to. Perhaps the most important feature is the fact that it lets you play Sonic CD without the need for a set of complicated hardware add-on units that are prone to failure.

This alone may be worth the price of admission for those already entrenched in the PC gaming ecosystem.

Pros

• Looks even better than the originals
• Plays smoothly with a controller or the keyboard
• Includes an in-game museum of artwork
• Jukebox mode lets you listen to soundtrack independent of the game
• Features a boss rush mode

Cons

• Doesn't include the original music from Sonic the Hedgehog 3
• Some features only available as additional downloadable content
• Purists won't like the games being rendered in widescreen