The early nineties were a simpler time in gaming. There was no downloadable content, no season passes, and no in-app purchases. While some will say that this was better than today, the simplistic times for gaming also sadly led to developers putting little to no thought into their stories.
Now, before those pitchforks come out, there were indeed games that had stories popular to this day. However, those games mostly came in the latter half of the decade. Games such as Final Fantasy 7 and The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time were revolutionary and changed the landscape of gaming. That being said, taking a look at Sega games in the early years of that time, games often had just a paragraph of story on the back of the box for a story. Sega instead took to the medium of comics, as well as cartoons in the case of Sonic the Hedgehog, to expand their franchise lore.
6 Sketch Turner — Comix Zone
Comix Zone is a game that should naturally lend itself to the comic book medium. The game tells the story of Sketch Turner, who gets sucked into the pages of his own comic book by the dastardly mutant Mortus. Released in 1995, Comix Zone stood out among its peers with bright colors leaping out the screen and comic book styling.
Each area was designed like a panel from a comic book. Players could swing downwards as well as leap into panels left and right as they explore the pages. A fantastic action platformer that deserves its own comic book, Comix Zone did indeed receive a tie-in promotional comic. Only available as a freebie with issue 38 of Mean Machines, the Comix Zone comic is somewhat of a rare collectors item these days.
5 Kid Chameleon
In 1992 Sega fans got to meet Casey, a human boy who can use masks to shape-shift his form into other beings. Known as Kid Chameleon due to his ability to change form, Casey has to battle through stages filled with monsters using each unique form to do so.
The Kid Chameleon games never had a standalone comic book. Instead, British publication Sonic, the comic from Fleetway, ran stories featuring characters from the game, to complement the ongoing Sonic stories. A staple in most nineties gamer's collections, Kid Chameleon is fondly remembered and perfect for a modern-day reboot.
4 Joe Musashi — Shinobi
Ninjas were all the rage in the eighties and nineties, none more popular than Shinobi, except perhaps the Teenage Mutant Turtle variety. Joe Musashi was a weak young boy when he first came to the Oboro Clan temple. Over the years, his endless practice, dedication and focus resulted in Joe becoming the most skilled and respected ninja in his clan.
Shinobi was another Sega property that featured as one of the non-Sonic stories in Fleetway's Sonic The Comic. It even received a collected edition named Shinobi: The Fear Pavilion, given away in issue 24 to competition winners. Shinobi also received a prequel story to the Playstation 2 game, which was released by Dark Horse Comics in 2002. The franchise was at one point being developed as a feature film. But sadly, this adaptation never materialized.
3 Axel Stone — Streets Of Rage
Streets of Rage is set to receive a live-action adaptation, with John Wick creator and writer Derek Kolstad set to write the script. This could make for a fantastic adaptation of the Sega beat 'em up franchise. Axel and the rest of the gang enjoyed their time as comic book stars in the nineties also.
The series was immortalized in comic book form once again thanks to Fleetway comics. Streets of Rage featured in Sonic The Comic and even grabbed a front cover or two along the way. Bad City Fighters was a collected work of the six-part story from STC and was given away as a competition prize in issue 24.
2 Ryo Hazuki — Shenmue
The Shenmue franchise debuted on the Sega Dreamcast in 1999. The game tells the tale of Ryo Hazuki in 1980 Japan as he uncovers the mystery behind his father's murder. At the time, Shenmue was groundbreaking for its open-world environments and storytelling, as well as being the most expensive video game ever made at the time. A third entry to the series arrived in 2019 for Xbox One, Windows, and PlayStation 4 after a successful Kickstarter campaign.
In 2022, Shenmue also received an anime adaptation that was released on Crunchyroll and Adult Swim. For comic adaptations, Shenmue had several strips in Japanese published on Shenmue.com that have been archived by the team at Shenmue Dojo. Additionally, Shenmue Side Story is a four-part comic featured in the Xbox port of Shenmue 2 and told the story between the first and second games.
1 Sonic The Hedgehog
The blue hedgehog is iconic. Sega has used Sonic as their mascot for decades now, and games featuring the fastest thing on two legs are still being snapped up by eager fans. Sonic has received many adaptations in media, perhaps more than any other video game mascot. Two movies, an OVA movie, six animated shows, and dozens of novelizations make up a fraction of the hedgehogs' reach over the years.
In comics, the two most famous adaptations are the runs done by Archie and Fleetway. Archie chose to focus on a darker story of Sonic and the freedom fighters, while Fleetway focused more on the nineties attitudes and pop culture at the time. Sonic is currently being published by IDW who chose to reboot the story almost completely, following on from the story in Sonic Forces rather than picking up the ball from Archie.