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THIS is why we wait untill Teusday to do our Retro Reviews! If you remember correctly, we did the review on Sonic 1 for the Sega Genesis, and this time, we got the sequel to cover, Strap yourself in, because Sonic 2 was that much better.

During the ending of Sonic 1 (spoiler alert) you will notice that Dr. Robotnik does not perish, instead he escapes. And as all good sequals go, the enemy will return with greater force than before, and Sonic games were no exception, in fact they probably did it best (for a while). Dr Robotnik had followed the "Tornado" (the name of Sonics' Biplane) back to where Sonic enjoys his life, the Westside Island. Somewhere within the island are 7 powerful jewels, that according to legend were abused by the ancients. Dr Robotnik wants these "Chaos Emeralds" to use as the new power source for the "Death Egg" - Think "Death Star", but with a moustache. Dr Robotnik tracks these emeralds down and attacks Westside Island with an army of robots that are controlled by the enslaved adorable animals from the island. Sonic gears up to put an end to Robotniks schemes, and is joined by his best friend Miles "Tails" Prower. Tails is the brilliant young fox who has a nack for turning wrenches and screwdrivers in the right direction. Tails can also fly for short distances thanks to his two tales that create a helicopter of fur. The two must set out to free the animals from their mechanical prisons as well as stopping Dr Robotnik from using his death-beam on the world.

Sonic - This cool dude is even faster than before, and can still tuck and roll with speed to destroy enemies and make for some pretty sweet air when launching out of jumps. This time though, he has got one more move that totally propells sonic into dizzying new speeds. At any time the player is standing still he can curl up in place, and begin to rev-up Sonics "Spin Attack". This gives Sonic an emense burst of speed whenever he needs it, and toatlly frees the player of any slowdown in the game. This is one feature that has followed Sonic through 'till today, and is comparible to the importance of Marios mad-jumps. This is his staple-move.

Tails - As well already know can fly using his copter-tails, but what I havn't said yet is that when a second player grabs hold of a second controller, he/she can control him! This becomes VERY useful in the game because any rings that Tails collects automatically tally up on Sonics meter giving Sonic life. Sonic can at any time jump up to a flying Tails and grab a hold of his hands. The player controlling Tails can then fly Sonic across casms, or up to ledges the hedgehog previously would have no way of reaching. Of coarse Tails is very young, and cannot carry Sonics weight for long, and will grow tired and begin a very quick decent after a few seconds of flight. Tails also has the ability to battle the boss n any level for Sonic as well! and to top that off, Tails will come back after a few second if he is killed while taking zero lives with him.

Sonic 2 is pretty much the same enjoyable game as Sonic 1, but with strides in graphics and in music. As always the music in the Genesis generations of Sonic games is perfectly scored to the game. The graphics in Sonic two surpass those from the first game by a large amount while still holding true to that Sonic universe look and feel. Loop-de-loops are still everywhere and are now accompanied by cork-screw loops that look more 3D than anything else done previously on the system.

Multiplayer - makes a triumphant entrance in Sonic 2! If player 2 wants in on even more action than just helping Sonic in what could be one of the best 2-player campaign games known to man, he can challenge player one in some races that are placed within a few choice levels that have been altered to loop for a few laps. Tails can also help Sonic in the bonus round found in the main game. By the way, the Bonus Round found in Sonic 2 is without a doubt one of the most vivid memories a gamer can have from the time. The half-pipe "collect the rings" found in the game makes a return in Sonic Rush for the DS, so all of you new-gamers can get a feel for what it is. Even though Tails can help Sonic in this mode, he can also cost him the battle as well. In some of the later rounds, there are spikes that take away your rings when touched, and if Tails hits one, Sonic looses his rings!

N+ 9.5/10 The game is tops! - even toppier than Sonic 1. if you have Wii points floating around, spend them now, if you don't have any extras... buy more! The only reason I can't give it a 10/10 is because Sonic & Knuckles (connected to Sonic 3) was absolutely perfect! - Wait for the review on that! But until then please enjoy the masterpiece that is Sonic the Hedghog 2.
Cost: 800 Wii Points

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