Why S3&K Is more than just " That Genesis Game"

[Mr Kixx Reborn]

S3&K was more than just that game you played on the Genesis back in 1994, It plays a huge role in the sonic storyline to come for future games, Introduced Hyper Sonic which we didn't see much after because they said " It would get to related to DBZ",etc. but ima get straight to the point, I want to know why you all think that S3&K was more than just "That Genesis Game

 

[Chezi]

Because it perfected the Classic formula before Mania did 20 years later and had a more complex story. That’s about it

 

[Reddispenser]

S3&K is just very good

 

[Axolex53]

Because it had Save files, and the choice to select at least 3 characters, every one with it's unique gameplay (and the save files are separated of every character). Besides, the exploration to find the Giant Rings is awesome to incentivize the player looking in anywhere (yeah, that doesn't seems to fit in a speed game, but because Tails & Knuckles are playable, it's understable) for the reward Super/Hyper Sonic, Super Tails (Oddly didn't have a super form in S3) and Super/Hyper Knuckles.
It also narrates a story thanks to cutscenes that are enough to show the player everything.

These are some points that came to my mind, sorry if my English is bad and you couldn't understand...

 

[time gear]

I still prefer S3&K over Mania. Mania does a lot of neat stuff, but I feel like the level design in S3&K is better. An S3K remake with Mania style graphics and music remasters would be the ideal Classic Sonic experience imo.

 

[Icarus]

I've never said anybody who told that Sonic 3 & Knuckles was "just another Genesis Sonic game" in my entire life.

But I totally understand why Sonic 2 is overal the most popular game (even in the entire series) because Sonic 3 and & Knuckles were seen as two halves of the same game sold separately and that the improvement wasn't as massive as between Sonic 1 and 2 (sure, there's the insta-shield and the connected acts but people mostly remember how game changing the spindash was).

This thread isn't about Mania but the difference is that it was an anniversary game made to rediscover older places while S3&K was its own adventure.

 

[Mr Kixx Reborn]

You can get the fact on why Sonic 2 was better than S3&K

 

[SilverVortex]

i don't blame people for thinking sonic 2 is a better package than sonic 3/knuckles, and yeah, it's a pretty good game overall, it really kicked classic sonic into high gear, introduced tails, and all of its zones are, at the very least, memorable.
however, i'll always prefer sonic 3 and knuckles because of how it expanded on the sonic formula. every zone smoothly moves into the next via cutscene or just starting exactly where the previous act left off. every act has its own distinct music track to signify the level's changes. the special stages are now hidden around the stage to encourage exploration, as well as the new shield abilities to encourage more exploration, plus giving people a reason to choose sonic.
sonic 3 has an extremely well defined world that you can immediately understand just by looking at it. the levels themselves and the details inside them are the story here. lava reef has the death egg waiting in the background, waiting to be activated again. hidden palace and sky sanctuary feature knuckles putting his and sonic's differences aside for the sake of angel island and the master emerald. there's just so much to unpack, and that's why i love the game as much as i do.

did i mention that the game has great stages i probably didn't the game has great stages

 

[Icarus]

I wouldn't use Watchmojo as a serious example.

Sonic 3 as a standalone title would still be much longer than Sonic 1 or CD because of the length of the stages.

 

[Chezi]

I seriously wouldn’t use WatchMojo. They had put Colors over Generations. I don’t think there’s much arguing when it comes to which is better

 

[Icarus]

I seriously wouldn’t use WatchMojo. They had put Colors over Generations. I don’t think there’s much arguing when it comes to which is better

Colors has some strong points over Generations (like having more levels overal and a better use of each level's gimmicks).
I'd even say that Generations' representation of Colors was kinda bad compared to what Colors offered.

S3&K was more than just that game you played on the Genesis back in 1994, It plays a huge role in the sonic storyline to come for future games...

To be honest I don't care about storyline in the series, Sonic 3 could have been released as a standalone game not connected to either Sonic 1 nor 2 if would've still been good (even Sonic & Knuckles as a standalone game was still good).

...Introduced Hyper Sonic which we didn't see much after because they said " It would get to related to DBZ",etc.

Ironically Sonic has taken many elements from Dragon Ball (and even in the more recent games like Silver being based off Trunk).

I'm glad that the Super Emeralds are just a one-time thing because Super Sonic is good enough, no need to add powerscaling or more forms.

 

[Chezi]

Colors has some strong points over Generations (like having more levels overal and a better use of each level's gimmicks).
I'd even say that Generations' representation of Colors was kinda bad compared to what Colors offered.

I agree on those points, but Generations had pretty much refined the Boost formula, so it has that on top. It’s been a while since I’ve played Colors, so my memory’s a little shaky on it

 

[Mr Kixx Reborn]

The Fact is Sonic 3 Originally was going to be S3&K but due to time it got separated into Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles, so then you would have to do the lock on technology

 

[Chezi]

The Fact is Sonic 3 Originally was going to be S3&K but due to time it got separated into Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles, so then you would have to do the lock on technology

Yeah, what about it? Lock-on technology alone doesn't make a game good

 

[Icarus]

I agree on those points, but Generations had pretty much refined the Boost formula, so it has that on top. It’s been a while since I’ve played Colors, so my memory’s a little shaky on it

Sorry but of all 3 Boost game (not counting Forces because even the boost was slowed down) Generations was the game that felt the most "Boost 2 win" (especially since you get boost metter for doing anything).

Still wish that the next Boost game (if there's any) would take more inspiration from Unleashed's day stages.

Post automatically merged: Mar 29, 2021

The Fact is Sonic 3 Originally was going to be S3&K but due to time it got separated into Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles, so then you would have to do the lock on technology

The Lock On Technology was just a marketing gimmick.
Sure, Knuckles in Sonic 2 was genuinely impressive (as glitchy as it could be) and Blue Spheres was a nice bonus but nowadays we should judge Sonic 3&K as a whole and not as two separate games (especially since the only legal way to get the game is on Steam and that you cannot get Sonoc 3 alone and & Knuckles on any modern gen consoles).

Yeah, what about it? Lock-on technology alone doesn't make a game good

But the game is still good, lock-on or not.

 

[Chezi]

Sorry but of all 3 Boost game (not counting Forces because even the boost was slowed down) Generations was the game that felt the most "Boost 2 win" (especially since you get boost metter for doing anything).

Still wish that the next Boost game (if there's any) would take more inspiration from Unleashed's day stages.

But the game is still good, lock-on or not.

Gonna reply to this in two parts:
1. Generations is probably one of the least boost to win. I’m currently playing through it and in order to get fast times, you have to do more than just hold down the Boost button. Green Hill is probably the sole exception to this since it’s the tutorial stage, but Chemical Plant allows you to skip a whole section if you jump to one of the iconic snakey roads, jump across domes, and jump into the abyss to get a light speed trail. Seaside Hill also allows you to boost across water (which requires some amount of skill as you have less control while boosting) in order to skip certain sections like the first 2D one.

2. I never said that 3&K was bad (in fact, it’s my second favorite 2D game). I’m just saying that the fact that it uses lock on technology shouldn’t be the sole reason a game is good

 

[leah]

Base sonic 3 had those funny spheres in the debug mode, making it 200000x better than S3&K.

 

[TehPuertoRicanSpartan]

It's not, Sonic's sprites look like he tried the monster poison. Sonic 1 has the best Sonic sprites.
(don't attack me it's just my answer)

 

[lnferno]

It's not, Sonic's sprites look like he tried the monster poison. Sonic 1 has the best Sonic sprites.
(don't attack me it's just my answer)

This thread's less about the sprites and more about why S3&K, as a game, is better than S1 and S2, and why it's actually notable compared to, say, Gunstar Heroes or Alien Storm (though those games/series have their own fanbases).

Also, again, Sonic 2's sprites are incredibly inconsistent, Sonic 1's have their own issues (such as losing the shoe stripe at times, the sprite pallete, the use of blue for eye shading causing misconceptions on eye shape, etc), and Sonic 3's look weird when compared to the other 2, but that's due to the artstyle change of Sonic 3 in general.

 

[shadow unleashed]

sonic 3 & knuckles was a better game than the first two brought a new enemy who will become friends with sonic a new story also brought hyper sonic and the master emerald that's why it's a good game