Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Encyclopedia
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is a 1994 platform
video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis
. It was developed in the United States by members of Sonic Team
working at Sega Technical Institute, and was published by Sega
, debuting worldwide in the first half of 1994
. The game is a sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog 2
and follows on directly from the end of the game, in which Sonic defeated his enemy, Dr. Robotnik; crash-landing on a floating island, Sonic encounters new character Knuckles the Echidna
, and must once more retrieve the Chaos Emeralds while also working to stop Dr. Robotnik from relaunching his ship, the Death Egg.
The game is closely tied to its direct sequel Sonic & Knuckles
, as the two games were originally one until time constraints and cartridge costs forced the game to be split into two interlocking parts. A version re-worked for Xbox 360
was released via Xbox Live Arcade
on June 10, 2009 with support for HD televisions.
The game features two main modes, Single Player and Competition. In the Single Player mode, players can choose a save slot which can save their progress, a first in the series, and choose between playing as either Sonic the Hedgehog
, Miles "Tails" Prower
, or Sonic with Tails as a partner. In the latter, the player controls Sonic whilst the computer controls Tails, who can be controlled by a second player at any time. The game is made up of six Zones, each containing two Acts with a boss at the end. At the end of each first act, a signpost falls from the sky, which can be juggled for extra points and may occassionally drop bonus items when it lands. When the game is cleared, players become able to choose a Zone to start on from the save select screen.
Building on the gameplay of Sonic 2, which introduced the Spin Dash, characters now have unique abilities, performed by pressing the jump button whilst in the air. Sonic can perform an 'insta-shield' attack, which grants him a split second burst of protection and expands his attack range, allowing him to attack enemies that would otherwise harm him. Tails on the other hand, has the ability to fly in the air or swim underwater for a short amount of time before he gets tired and comes back down, allowing him to explore areas Sonic cannot. Whilst flying, his tails can be used to attack enemies. During a team game, a second player controlling Tails can carry Sonic whilst flying. The game also introduces three kinds of shields; thunder, which protects against electricity and magnetically attracts rings, fire, which protects against fire attacks, and bubble, which allows its wearer to breathe underwater. When Sonic uses these shields, he can perform an additional skill based on his shield.
Hitting star post checkpoints whilst carrying 50 rings a more allows the player to access a gumball bonus stage, in which bonus items such as rings, shield and extra lives can be won. Special Stages can be entered by finding giant rings hidden throughout each stage. In these stages, players navigate a three dimensional space where the goal is to collect all the blue spheres in the level without touching any red ones. Collecting blue spheres transforms them into red ones, but if a player goes around the edge of a group of blue spheres at least 3x3 in size, all the spheres in that group will transform into rings, which can earn continues if enough are collected. Successfully completing these Special Stages earns the player a Chaos Emerald, which players able to access the good ending if all seven are collected. Additionally, if Sonic collects all seven emeralds, he can transform into Super Sonic after collecting at least 50 rings. Additional emeralds known as Super Emeralds can be obtained if the game is locked on with Sonic & Knuckles, which enable Sonic and Tails to become Hyper Sonic and Super Tails with unique abilities.
Competition Mode is a competitive mode in which two players, playing as either Sonic, Tails or Knuckles
, race against each other through five laps on an endless course. During the game, players can collect items to either help themselves or hinder their opponent. There are three game types available: Grand Prix, in which all five tracks are playing continuously, Single Race, where a single track is chosen to race on, or Time Trial, a single player mode in which players try to clear the five laps in the quickest time possible.
- Dr. Robotnik's space station, the Death Egg, has been knocked out of its orbit after his mech suit exploded in a final showdown with Sonic
, causing critical damage to the ship.
However, instead of impacting the planet, the Death Egg crash-lands on a mystical floating landmass called Angel Island that had previously been reputed only by legend to exist. As Dr. Robotnik begins to repair the ship, he meets up with Knuckles the Echidna
. Knuckles is the last surviving member of an ancient civilization of Echidnas that once inhabited the island, whose ruins and relics are scattered throughout. He is also the guardian of the Master Emerald, which grants the island its levitation powers.
Knowing Sonic and Tails
will try to track him down, and realizing he can use the Master Emerald to power the ship, Dr. Robotnik tricks Knuckles into believing Sonic is trying to steal his Emerald. Shortly after, Sonic and Tails in their biplane, the Tornado, are in search of Dr. Robotnik. Sonic then turns into Super Sonic. As soon as they arrive, Knuckles ambushes Sonic from underground with such force, he knocks the Chaos Emeralds from him, returning him to normal. Stunned, Sonic can only watch as Knuckles steals the Emeralds and disappears inland. As Sonic and Tails travel through the levels, they encounter Knuckles in almost every level.
In the Launch Base Zone, Sonic travels through to see Knuckles blow up the building that they are in. They manage to escape the building and find Dr. Robotnik. After they defeat Robotnik, he leaves his Egg-O-Matic behind. Sonic travels in it, and finds Knuckles standing on top of a pole trying to prevent Sonic from continuing onwards. As the Death Egg launches off for the second time, it knocks Knuckles off the pole sending him plummeting to the ground. Sonic travels to a platform on the Death Egg, while Robotnik awaits them there. Sonic and Tails defeat Robotnik for the last time, and the Death Egg is seen falling and exploding. The story then continues in Sonic & Knuckles
.
and Hirokazu Yasuhara
were mainly responsible for the Sonic 3 design document and project schedule. Sonic 3 originally began as a top-down, isometric game, similar to what would eventually become Sonic 3D. This concept was abandoned early into development, after the team did not want to change the Sonic formula too radically for a sequel.
Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles
were originally planned as one single-cartridge game. However, as time constraints and the manufacturing costs of a 34 megabit cartridge with NVRAM would have been prohibitively expensive, the decision was made to split the game in half, giving Yuji Naka and the other developers more time to finish the second part, and splitting the high cost between two cartridges. Because of the split development, a lot of extra data from Sonic & Knuckles is still present on the Sonic 3 cartridge.
The cartridge has a small amount of non-volatile RAM built into it, which allows the player to save game progress to the game cartridge.
Sonic Generations
includes several highlights of Sonic 3 such as a remake of the Launch Base Zone Boss Battle exclusively for the 3DS and also Seaside hill with Boulders chasing Classic Sonic and underwater style similar to the Hydrocity zone level and Rooftop Run (Classic Sonic Version) includes the unexpected arrival of Flying Battery Zone which Classic Sonic causes to crash after boarding it briefly. Finally the Sonic 3 game over theme was remixed as the game over theme for Sonic Genrations. Apart from what was previously mentioned no actual regular stage was remade from Sonic 3 for Sonic Generations as it is represented as Sonic 3 & Knuckles.
was initially brought in during development to compose music for the game, even though no mention of his involvement was included in any of the game's credits. This was supposedly due to the scandals that arose around Jackson at the time. His involvement was removed from the title, and much reworking, including all the started music, had to be done. These claims are dubious, however, and various interviews have made it clear that any involvement Jackson may have had was done without the knowledge of Sega's executives or marketing staff, and no contracts or formal agreements had ever been made. James Hansen, of Sonic Stuff Research Group, retorts that Cirocco (credited as "Scirocco" in Sonic 3) still has possession of presumably a demo version of fabled soundtrack. "I actually have "ALL" of the tracks...," he writes, "from the original humming of Michael calling in the middle of the night leaving messages, to his ideas at Record One with Matt and Bruce. - BUT, I don't think I can let any of that out to the public without permission." In December 2009, Michael Jackson's composer, Brad Buxer, told French magazine Black & White that Jackson was actually involved with some of Sonic 3's compositions, supposedly not being credited because he wasn't happy with how they sounded, due to the lack of optimal sound reproduction on the Genesis. Buxer also claimed that the ending music of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 later became the basis for Jackson's single Stranger in Moscow
.
. Toys "R" Us rewarded preorders with the limited edition CD Sonic Boom
, containing music from and inspired by Sonic CD
and Sonic Spinball
.
In Europe, Sonic 3 was released on February 24, 1994. To help promote the game, Right Said Fred
wrote the song Wonderman
, including references to many aspects of Sonic. The song was used both in the game adverts, and released as a single, which charted in the UK at number 55. In the music video, Fez and Skull from the Pirate TV Sega advertising campaign appeared along with Sonic.
To help support the game launch, issues 33 and 34 of the Fleetway comic
, and issue 13 of the Archie comic
used elements from Sonic 3 in their own comic adaptations of the game.
Several critics noted that many of the levels in Sonic 3 were too close of reiterations of levels in Sonic The Hedgehog 2, such as the Casino Night Zone and Mystic Ruins Zones. Although Sonic 3 did not perform as well as Sonic 2 in terms of sales (1.8 million to 6.3 million), the game was mainly well-received by fans and critics alike, scoring aggregate reviews of above 80%.
as part of the compilation game Sonic Jam. In 2002, it was part of the Sonic Mega Collection
for GameCube
, in 2004, as part of the Sonic Mega Collection Plus on PlayStation 2
, Xbox
, and Microsoft Windows
for PC
. An earlier Microsoft Windows
running PC
port was also released as part of the Sonic & Knuckles Collection. Sonic 3 was released on the Wii
Virtual Console
in Japan on August 21, 2007, in Europe on September 7, 2007, and in North America on September 10, 2007.It was also on sonic classic collection for the nintendo DS. of SEGA Genesis titles revealed for the Wii]
The game also appears in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection
("Sega Mega Drive Collection" in Europe) for Xbox 360
and PlayStation 3
on February 2009 and is on Sonic Classic Collection for Nintendo DS
released on March 2, 2010.
The game was announced for the Xbox Live Arcade
in May, 2009. It was released on the 10th of June, 2009. This version has enhanced graphics for high definition displays as well as online leaderboards and support for multiplayer via split screen and Xbox Live
. The original savegame slot feature of Sonic 3 in previous incarnations was replaced with the 'Vintage' savegame functionality which was used in Xbox Live Arcade versions of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic 2. While this allows progress to be saved anywhere during play, the possibility to replay levels after the game has finished with the current number of collected emeralds, extra lives and continues is lost.
http://www.soniczone0.com/games/sonic3/backgroundinfo/ Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Game guide
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
. It was developed in the United States by members of Sonic Team
Sonic Team
is a Japanese computer and video game developer established in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan in 1990, originally known as Sega AM8. The Japan-based division is also known as G.E. Department Global Entertainment. The studio has collaborated with several in-house Japanese studios as well as other American-based...
working at Sega Technical Institute, and was published by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
, debuting worldwide in the first half of 1994
1994 in video gaming
-Events:*Nintendo calls this year "1994: The Year of the Cartridge".*Nintendo Australia Pty. Ltd, the Australian subsidiary of Nintendo Co., Ltd is established and opened by Hiroshi Yamauchi and effectively ends Mattel Australia's distribution of Nintendo's products throughout Australia.*"Project...
. The game is a sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a 16-bit 1992 platform video game that was developed by Sonic Team members working at the Sega Technical Institute, and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis console. It was released in Japan on November 21, 1992 and in North America and Europe on November 24, 1992...
and follows on directly from the end of the game, in which Sonic defeated his enemy, Dr. Robotnik; crash-landing on a floating island, Sonic encounters new character Knuckles the Echidna
Knuckles the Echidna
Knuckles the Echidna is a video game character of the Sonic the Hedgehog game series, including spin-off games and comics. His first appearance was in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, released in 1994 to introduce a new rival for Sonic. He was presented as an antagonist who was tricked by Dr. Eggman into...
, and must once more retrieve the Chaos Emeralds while also working to stop Dr. Robotnik from relaunching his ship, the Death Egg.
The game is closely tied to its direct sequel Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles is a 1994 platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It was developed in the United States at Sega Technical Institute by members of Sonic Team, and was published by Sega worldwide on October 18, 1994.As well as working as a standalone...
, as the two games were originally one until time constraints and cartridge costs forced the game to be split into two interlocking parts. A version re-worked for Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
was released via Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
on June 10, 2009 with support for HD televisions.
Gameplay
Sonic the Hedgehog (character)
, trademarked Sonic The Hedgehog, is a video game character and the main protagonist of the Sonic video game series released by Sega, as well as in numerous spin-off comics, cartoons, and a feature film. The first game was released on June 23, 1991, to provide Sega with a mascot to rival Nintendo's...
, Miles "Tails" Prower
Miles "Tails" Prower
, better known by his nickname , is a character, as well as the main deuteragonist in the Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games, comics, animated series and film released by Sega....
, or Sonic with Tails as a partner. In the latter, the player controls Sonic whilst the computer controls Tails, who can be controlled by a second player at any time. The game is made up of six Zones, each containing two Acts with a boss at the end. At the end of each first act, a signpost falls from the sky, which can be juggled for extra points and may occassionally drop bonus items when it lands. When the game is cleared, players become able to choose a Zone to start on from the save select screen.
Building on the gameplay of Sonic 2, which introduced the Spin Dash, characters now have unique abilities, performed by pressing the jump button whilst in the air. Sonic can perform an 'insta-shield' attack, which grants him a split second burst of protection and expands his attack range, allowing him to attack enemies that would otherwise harm him. Tails on the other hand, has the ability to fly in the air or swim underwater for a short amount of time before he gets tired and comes back down, allowing him to explore areas Sonic cannot. Whilst flying, his tails can be used to attack enemies. During a team game, a second player controlling Tails can carry Sonic whilst flying. The game also introduces three kinds of shields; thunder, which protects against electricity and magnetically attracts rings, fire, which protects against fire attacks, and bubble, which allows its wearer to breathe underwater. When Sonic uses these shields, he can perform an additional skill based on his shield.
Knuckles the Echidna
Knuckles the Echidna is a video game character of the Sonic the Hedgehog game series, including spin-off games and comics. His first appearance was in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, released in 1994 to introduce a new rival for Sonic. He was presented as an antagonist who was tricked by Dr. Eggman into...
, race against each other through five laps on an endless course. During the game, players can collect items to either help themselves or hinder their opponent. There are three game types available: Grand Prix, in which all five tracks are playing continuously, Single Race, where a single track is chosen to race on, or Time Trial, a single player mode in which players try to clear the five laps in the quickest time possible.
Storyline
The Sonic 3 storyline commences shortly after the end of Sonic the Hedgehog 2Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a 16-bit 1992 platform video game that was developed by Sonic Team members working at the Sega Technical Institute, and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis console. It was released in Japan on November 21, 1992 and in North America and Europe on November 24, 1992...
- Dr. Robotnik's space station, the Death Egg, has been knocked out of its orbit after his mech suit exploded in a final showdown with Sonic
Sonic the Hedgehog (character)
, trademarked Sonic The Hedgehog, is a video game character and the main protagonist of the Sonic video game series released by Sega, as well as in numerous spin-off comics, cartoons, and a feature film. The first game was released on June 23, 1991, to provide Sega with a mascot to rival Nintendo's...
, causing critical damage to the ship.
However, instead of impacting the planet, the Death Egg crash-lands on a mystical floating landmass called Angel Island that had previously been reputed only by legend to exist. As Dr. Robotnik begins to repair the ship, he meets up with Knuckles the Echidna
Knuckles the Echidna
Knuckles the Echidna is a video game character of the Sonic the Hedgehog game series, including spin-off games and comics. His first appearance was in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, released in 1994 to introduce a new rival for Sonic. He was presented as an antagonist who was tricked by Dr. Eggman into...
. Knuckles is the last surviving member of an ancient civilization of Echidnas that once inhabited the island, whose ruins and relics are scattered throughout. He is also the guardian of the Master Emerald, which grants the island its levitation powers.
Knowing Sonic and Tails
Miles "Tails" Prower
, better known by his nickname , is a character, as well as the main deuteragonist in the Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games, comics, animated series and film released by Sega....
will try to track him down, and realizing he can use the Master Emerald to power the ship, Dr. Robotnik tricks Knuckles into believing Sonic is trying to steal his Emerald. Shortly after, Sonic and Tails in their biplane, the Tornado, are in search of Dr. Robotnik. Sonic then turns into Super Sonic. As soon as they arrive, Knuckles ambushes Sonic from underground with such force, he knocks the Chaos Emeralds from him, returning him to normal. Stunned, Sonic can only watch as Knuckles steals the Emeralds and disappears inland. As Sonic and Tails travel through the levels, they encounter Knuckles in almost every level.
In the Launch Base Zone, Sonic travels through to see Knuckles blow up the building that they are in. They manage to escape the building and find Dr. Robotnik. After they defeat Robotnik, he leaves his Egg-O-Matic behind. Sonic travels in it, and finds Knuckles standing on top of a pole trying to prevent Sonic from continuing onwards. As the Death Egg launches off for the second time, it knocks Knuckles off the pole sending him plummeting to the ground. Sonic travels to a platform on the Death Egg, while Robotnik awaits them there. Sonic and Tails defeat Robotnik for the last time, and the Death Egg is seen falling and exploding. The story then continues in Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles is a 1994 platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It was developed in the United States at Sega Technical Institute by members of Sonic Team, and was published by Sega worldwide on October 18, 1994.As well as working as a standalone...
.
Development
Yuji NakaYuji Naka
, is a video game designer and programmer, best known as the former head of Sonic Team, a group of Sega programmers/designers, where he was the lead programmer of the original Sonic the Hedgehog....
and Hirokazu Yasuhara
Hirokazu Yasuhara
Hirokazu Yasuhara is a Japanese video game designer and Sonic Team's 2nd Assistant President.He designed the gameplay and stages of the majority of the initial Sonic the Hedgehog video games for Sega Mega Drive based on technical demos and engines coded by Yuji Naka and characters designed by...
were mainly responsible for the Sonic 3 design document and project schedule. Sonic 3 originally began as a top-down, isometric game, similar to what would eventually become Sonic 3D. This concept was abandoned early into development, after the team did not want to change the Sonic formula too radically for a sequel.
Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic & Knuckles is a 1994 platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It was developed in the United States at Sega Technical Institute by members of Sonic Team, and was published by Sega worldwide on October 18, 1994.As well as working as a standalone...
were originally planned as one single-cartridge game. However, as time constraints and the manufacturing costs of a 34 megabit cartridge with NVRAM would have been prohibitively expensive, the decision was made to split the game in half, giving Yuji Naka and the other developers more time to finish the second part, and splitting the high cost between two cartridges. Because of the split development, a lot of extra data from Sonic & Knuckles is still present on the Sonic 3 cartridge.
The cartridge has a small amount of non-volatile RAM built into it, which allows the player to save game progress to the game cartridge.
Sonic Generations
Sonic Generations
is a 2011 platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, produced by Sonic Team for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Nintendo 3DS...
includes several highlights of Sonic 3 such as a remake of the Launch Base Zone Boss Battle exclusively for the 3DS and also Seaside hill with Boulders chasing Classic Sonic and underwater style similar to the Hydrocity zone level and Rooftop Run (Classic Sonic Version) includes the unexpected arrival of Flying Battery Zone which Classic Sonic causes to crash after boarding it briefly. Finally the Sonic 3 game over theme was remixed as the game over theme for Sonic Genrations. Apart from what was previously mentioned no actual regular stage was remade from Sonic 3 for Sonic Generations as it is represented as Sonic 3 & Knuckles.
Michael Jackson's involvement
According to STI director Roger Hector, Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
was initially brought in during development to compose music for the game, even though no mention of his involvement was included in any of the game's credits. This was supposedly due to the scandals that arose around Jackson at the time. His involvement was removed from the title, and much reworking, including all the started music, had to be done. These claims are dubious, however, and various interviews have made it clear that any involvement Jackson may have had was done without the knowledge of Sega's executives or marketing staff, and no contracts or formal agreements had ever been made. James Hansen, of Sonic Stuff Research Group, retorts that Cirocco (credited as "Scirocco" in Sonic 3) still has possession of presumably a demo version of fabled soundtrack. "I actually have "ALL" of the tracks...," he writes, "from the original humming of Michael calling in the middle of the night leaving messages, to his ideas at Record One with Matt and Bruce. - BUT, I don't think I can let any of that out to the public without permission." In December 2009, Michael Jackson's composer, Brad Buxer, told French magazine Black & White that Jackson was actually involved with some of Sonic 3's compositions, supposedly not being credited because he wasn't happy with how they sounded, due to the lack of optimal sound reproduction on the Genesis. Buxer also claimed that the ending music of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 later became the basis for Jackson's single Stranger in Moscow
Stranger in Moscow
"Stranger in Moscow" is the fifth and final single from Michael Jackson's album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. The song was released worldwide in November 1996 but was not released in the United States until August 1997...
.
Release and reception
Sonic 3 was released in the US on February 2, 1994, dubbed "Hedgehog Day", a reference to Groundhog DayGroundhog Day
Groundhog Day is a holiday celebrated on February 2 in the United States and Canada. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter-like weather will soon end...
. Toys "R" Us rewarded preorders with the limited edition CD Sonic Boom
Sonic the Hedgehog Boom
-Personnel:Musicians*Pastiche – vocals*Erik Frykman – guitars*Bobby Vega – bass*Brad Kaiser – drums, percussion*Armando Peraza – percussionProducers...
, containing music from and inspired by Sonic CD
Sonic the Hedgehog CD
, or Sonic CD, is a critically acclaimed 1993 platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, developed by Sonic Team for the Mega-CD/Sega CD. It marked the first official appearance of the characters Metal Sonic and Amy Rose...
and Sonic Spinball
Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball
Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball is an adventure pinball game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It was originally released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis in 1993 and later ported to the Game Gear and Master System in 1995.The game title is a pun on pinball and Sonic's famous spin dash move...
.
In Europe, Sonic 3 was released on February 24, 1994. To help promote the game, Right Said Fred
Right Said Fred
Right Said Fred is an English pop band, formed in 1989 by brothers Richard Fairbrass and Fred Fairbrass, later joined by their friend Rob Manzoli. The group is named after a song of the same name which was a hit for Bernard Cribbins in 1962...
wrote the song Wonderman
Wonderman (song)
"Wonderman" is a song by English pop group Right Said Fred released as the third single off their album Sex and Travel. It was a minor hit in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 55...
, including references to many aspects of Sonic. The song was used both in the game adverts, and released as a single, which charted in the UK at number 55. In the music video, Fez and Skull from the Pirate TV Sega advertising campaign appeared along with Sonic.
To help support the game launch, issues 33 and 34 of the Fleetway comic
Sonic the Comic
Sonic the Comic, known to its many readers as STC, was a UK children's comic published fortnightly by Fleetway Editions between 1993 and 2002...
, and issue 13 of the Archie comic
Sonic the Hedgehog (comics)
Sonic the Hedgehog is an ongoing series of American comic books published by Archie Comics, featuring Sega's mascot video game character of the same name. The comic book series debuted in the United States as a 4 part mini-series published between November 1992 and February 1993...
used elements from Sonic 3 in their own comic adaptations of the game.
Several critics noted that many of the levels in Sonic 3 were too close of reiterations of levels in Sonic The Hedgehog 2, such as the Casino Night Zone and Mystic Ruins Zones. Although Sonic 3 did not perform as well as Sonic 2 in terms of sales (1.8 million to 6.3 million), the game was mainly well-received by fans and critics alike, scoring aggregate reviews of above 80%.
Ports and rereleases
Sonic 3 has subsequently been re-released several times, first in 1997 for the Sega SaturnSega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
as part of the compilation game Sonic Jam. In 2002, it was part of the Sonic Mega Collection
Sonic Mega Collection
is a video game compilation for the Nintendo GameCube.The compilation contains twelve to fourteen games depending on the region, all originally released on the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis console...
for GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, in 2004, as part of the Sonic Mega Collection Plus on PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
for PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
. An earlier Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
running PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
port was also released as part of the Sonic & Knuckles Collection. Sonic 3 was released on the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
in Japan on August 21, 2007, in Europe on September 7, 2007, and in North America on September 10, 2007.It was also on sonic classic collection for the nintendo DS. of SEGA Genesis titles revealed for the Wii]
The game also appears in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection
Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection
Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection, known as the Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection in PAL regions, is a compilation of video games developed by Backbone Entertainment for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles...
("Sega Mega Drive Collection" in Europe) for Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
on February 2009 and is on Sonic Classic Collection for Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
released on March 2, 2010.
The game was announced for the Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
in May, 2009. It was released on the 10th of June, 2009. This version has enhanced graphics for high definition displays as well as online leaderboards and support for multiplayer via split screen and Xbox Live
Xbox Live
Xbox Live is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation. It is currently the only online gaming service on consoles that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox system in 2002...
. The original savegame slot feature of Sonic 3 in previous incarnations was replaced with the 'Vintage' savegame functionality which was used in Xbox Live Arcade versions of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic 2. While this allows progress to be saved anywhere during play, the possibility to replay levels after the game has finished with the current number of collected emeralds, extra lives and continues is lost.
External links
- Sonic the Hedgehog 3 page at The GHZ
http://www.soniczone0.com/games/sonic3/backgroundinfo/ Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Game guide