With some compilation titles, fans hardly remember the collection and have more memories about the games they contain. Many compilations come with a menu to select from the many games it has to offer, maybe a few extras, and little else. However, Sonic Mega Collection did things differently. This unique Sonic collection game featured fourteen different titles, depending on how those titles are split, plus a library of artwork, high-quality manual scans, and special videos all complete with unique memorable music.
Back in 2002, series loyalists couldn't ask for more as the care found in Sonic Mega Collection made it into an experience all its own. What could have been just another collection of classic Sonic the Hedgehog titles became an ideal package perfect for any Sonic fan at the time. Sonic Mega Collection set the standard for the compilations that followed it, including Sonic Origins 20 years later.
Sonic Mega Collection's Game Selection
Sonic Mega Collection was rather humble on the box. Players who picked the game up would know that they'd be getting "seven great hits plus bonus games." Once the game was loaded up, they would also see tons of question marks that suggested there were even more titles just waiting to be unlocked. This only applied to the extra games, and all the ones that players had most likely bought the game for, like Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles, were already available.
In fact, playing games like Sonic 1 and Sonic 3D Blast was how players unlocked these extra games. As fans revisited these seven titles over and over again, they'd unlock Blue Spheres, Knuckles in Sonic 2, and surprise games like Ristar and Flicky. Due to this, players wouldn't get bored Mega Collection easily, and even when they weren't in the mood to play games, they had other things to explore.
Sonic Mega Collection's Extras
The compilation didn't stop with including tons of games for fans to play and unlock. There was a dedicated section to the manuals of the games it contained, made up of high quality scans of the paper copies for added nostalgia. Players could learn how to play just as the '90s intended. However, one of the parts of Mega Collection that fans spent the most time with was the "Extras" menu. It served as a huge gallery of official art pieces of Sonic and friends, ranging from outdated Sega of America style guides to newer artwork from characters like Sonic Advance 2's Cream the Rabbit. For some who didn't have the GBA game yet, Cream's artwork here may have been their first introduction to her.
These extras didn't stop with the stock art. In order to make up for how Sonic CD was missing from the collection, the opening and ending animations were included, along with "History of Sonic" videos. Players could also scroll through a large collection of covers from Sonic crossovers with Archie, all the way up to issue #115. As they looked through the huge art gallery, players were accompanied by relaxing, slow music composed specifically for Mega Collection. It was a song that helped invite nostalgia that fans would love for years to come.
Sonic Mega Collection Needs to Be Preserved
All in all, Sonic Mega Collection was a great way fans to celebrate the history of Sonic the Hedgehog. From how each of the games played rather smoothly to the aesthetics that wrapped the whole package with a nice bow, it's understandable why players remembered it so fondly. In the time since it released, a lot has changed, and after Mega Collection and Gems Collection handed games and more to fans with such fantastic presentation, some might feel Sonic Origins was lacking comparatively.
Sonic Origins certainly had its shortcomings. Due to music licensing issues, Sonic 3 & Knuckles lost some of its iconic tracks and replaced them with completed beta versions. On top of that, while the remasters in Sonic Origins are great in a lot of ways, there are a few glitches and problems that have made them run differently compared to the originals. Some of these issues were minor and fixed with a patch, but others were hard to ignore and have only been fixed somewhat. If a fan doesn't like how the Origins versions play, then they have hardly any options left as Sega removed all of the original versions of Sonic 1, 2, CD, and 3 & Knuckles from shelves before Origins released. While Origins tries to improve these games and has features Mega Collection never did, Mega Collection is now one of the very few remaining ways to play the original versions.
This is why Mega Collection is still important even though the series has moved on since. It's now part of the past, like the games it contains, that may help gamers understand the beginning years of Sonic more in the future. It also serves to remind fans that not everything lasts forever. Not only are the original versions of the Classic Sonic titles almost lost to time, but the Sonic Archie comics found in the extras section are now from a cancelled series.
In that sense, Sonic Mega Collection is like a time capsule from years ago. When opened, everything is exactly like it was when it was originally put inside of it. Even though Mega Collection was just a compilation of other Sonic titles, it managed to leave many memories with those that owned it. No matter how the Sonic franchise evolves and changes, those memories will always remain. In a sense, it's rather fitting that Sonic Mega Collection is now part of the history that it was once paying respect to.
Sonic Mega Collection released in 2002 for the GameCube.