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Sonic the Hedgehog 2

This article is about the Genesis game. For the film, see Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (film). For other uses, see Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (disambiguation).

Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic (an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog, right) and Tails (an anthropomorphic fox, left) stand confidently in front of a massive, checkered "2". A giant hand grips the top of the "2" on the left, and the face of Doctor Robotnik, a scowling, mustached mad scientist, looms in the background. Below Sonic and Tails, the words "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" sit. A black-and-gray checkered border surrounds the illustration, and Sega's seal of quality sits on Sonic's right.
US cover art by Greg Martin
Developer(s)Sega Technical Institute
Publisher(s)Sega
Director(s)Masaharu Yoshii
Producer(s)Shinobu Toyoda
Designer(s)
Programmer(s)Yuji Naka
Artist(s)Yasushi Yamaguchi
Composer(s)Masato Nakamura
SeriesSonic the Hedgehog
Platform(s)
Sega Genesis
Release
November 21, 1992
  • Sega Genesis
    • JP: November 21, 1992
    • WW: November 24, 1992
    Arcade
    • WW: 1993
    Android, iOS
    • WW: December 12, 2013
    Nintendo 3DS
    • JP: July 22, 2015
    • WW: October 8, 2015
    Nintendo Switch
    • JP: February 13, 2020
    • WW: February 20, 2020
Genre(s)Platform
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Sonic the Hedgehog 2[a] is a 1992 platform game developed by Sega Technical Institute (STI) for the Sega Genesis. Players control Sonic as he attempts to stop Doctor Robotnik from stealing the Chaos Emeralds to power his space station. Like the first Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), players traverse side-scrolling levels at high speeds while collecting rings, defeating enemies, and fighting bosses. Sonic 2 introduces Sonic's sidekick Miles "Tails" Prower and features faster gameplay, larger levels, a multiplayer mode, and special stages featuring pre-rendered 3D graphics.

After Sonic the Hedgehog greatly increased the popularity of the Genesis in North America, Sega directed STI founder Mark Cerny to start Sonic 2 in November 1991. Members of the original development team—including programmer Yuji Naka and designer Hirokazu Yasuhara—moved from Japan to California to join the project. Sonic 2 was intended to be faster and more ambitious than the first game. The development suffered setbacks, including cultural differences between the Japanese and American staff, and numerous levels were cut due to time constraints and quality concerns. As with the first game, Masato Nakamura, a member of the J-pop band Dreams Come True, composed the soundtrack.

Sonic 2 was widely anticipated, and Sega backed it with an aggressive $10 million marketing campaign. It was released in November 1992 to acclaim and received numerous year-end accolades, including two Golden Joystick Awards. Critics considered Sonic 2 an improvement over the first game and praised the visuals, level design, gameplay, and music, though the low difficulty level and similarities to its predecessor were criticized. Sonic 2 broke video game sales records and sold six million copies worldwide, making it the second-bestselling Genesis game behind the original Sonic the Hedgehog.

Sonic 2 solidified Sonic as a major franchise and helped keep Sega competitive during the console wars of the 16-bit era in the early 1990s. It continues to receive acclaim and is considered one of the greatest video games of all time. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles followed in 1994. Sonic 2 has been rereleased on various platforms via compilations and emulation, and a remake for iOS and Android devices, developed using the Retro Engine, was released in December 2013. A number of Sonic 2 prototypes have leaked since the release; the first, discovered in 1999, played a significant role in the development of a game datamining community.
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