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Sonic the Hedgehog 3, often abbreviated and literally known in Europe as Sonic 3, is a platform game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It was developed by American studio Sega Technical Institute in collaboration with Sonic Team, and was published by Sega. The game debuted worldwide in the first half of 1994.

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. Combined, both games have sold over 4 million copies.

Storyline
Sonic 3 title screen.
Sonic 3 title screen.

In the Sonic chronology, Sonic 3's storyline commences shortly after the end of Sonic the Hedgehog 2: Dr. Robotnik's[3] space station, the Death Egg, has fallen out of orbit after his mech suit exploded in his final showdown with Sonic, causing critical damage to the ship.

However, instead of impacting the planet, the Death Egg crash-landed on Angel Island,[4][5] a mystical floating landmass that had previously been reputed only by legend to exist. As Dr. Robotnik repairs the ship he meets up with the Island’s sole inhabitant, Knuckles the Echidna. Knuckles is the last surviving member of an ancient civilization, whose ruins and relics are scattered throughout the island. He is also the guardian of a set of Chaos Emeralds, jewels that grant the island its levitation powers.[6][7]

Knowing Sonic and Tails will try to track him down, and realizing he can use the Chaos Emeralds to power the ship, Robotnik tricks Knuckles into believing Sonic is trying to steal his Emeralds, and he's come to help him. Shortly after, Super Sonic and Tails land on Angel Island in their bi-plane, the Tornado, in search of Robotnik. No sooner than they have arrived, 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. Once recovered, Sonic and Tails set off in a race against time to stop Knuckles, Dr. Robotnik and the re-launch of the Death Egg.

[edit] Gameplay

[edit] Changes

Based on a faster, more flexible game engine that was modified and adapted from the Sonic 2 game-engine [1], Sonic 3 included more scope than any other game in the series to date: The play fields were three times larger than previous games, with multiple paths for different characters (each character would play the same level, but their particular abilities, e.g. flying/gliding/wall-climbing, would allow them to access certain paths, or preclude and restrict paths if they lacked the abilities). Also, there were more environmental elements with which to interact, faster maximum speeds, more end-of-level bosses, and more set pieces, all without any of the framerate issues that plagued certain parts of Sonic 2.

The game introduced many staples to the series, such as an increasingly story-driven game, multiple shield types, several musical idents and themes used in most subsequent games, and introduced Jun Senoue to the series, who would later become sound director of the 3D Sonic games, lending them their signature rock-inspired soundtracks.

Each stage connects to the next, via continuation or a cutscene, to convey spatial relation between the levels. The game conveys a sense of existing in an interconnected geographical location, as opposed to separate, disconnected zones. With these transitions between the levels, the game developer expanded the idea initiated in the 8-bit version of Sonic 1. Knuckles has also become a firm fan favorite, alternating roles between rival, antagonist, and partner.

[edit] Overview of play
Hydrocity Zone.
Hydrocity Zone.

In single player mode, the player can choose to play solo, as either Sonic or Tails, or as a team, controlling Sonic, with the AI or a second player controlling Tails, which is the default configuration (a second player may take control of Tails by simply using a controller plugged into port 2). The object of the game is to progress through six zones, each comprised of two acts, an act 1 robotic mid-boss, and an act 2 main boss, piloted by Robotnik. In order to completely finish the game, seven Chaos Emeralds must also be collected from the special stages.

The gameplay builds on the formula laid down in Sonic 2. Sonic and Tails are now equipped with special moves that are activated by pressing the jump button a second time while in mid air. Tails will fly if he’s out of water, or swim if he’s in water, both for a limited amount of time. In a team game, a second player can use Tails to "airlift" Sonic for a short amount of time. If Sonic has no shield equipped, he will generate an Insta-shield by tapping any controller button twice, giving him a split second burst of protection from projectiles and increasing Sonic's attack radius. Tails retains his ability to fly regardless of whether or not he has a shield.

[edit] Power Ups

Instead of a single shield power-up, there are now three elemental shields, each with special abilities that can be used only by Sonic:

    * Lightning Shield: Absorbs all electric and charge-based attacks for any character, and will draw in any rings near to the player (a predecessor to Sonic Adventure's Magnet Shield). Sonic can generate a Boost Blast; a double jump, which acts like a mid-air normal jump. This shield shorts out upon contact with water, or any damage taken.
    * Flame Shield: Absorbs all fire-based attacks, and allows any character to walk on lava or fire without taking damage. Sonic can generate a Fireball Spin Dash: a fast, near horizontal dive across the screen as a fireball. This shield extinguishes upon contact with water, or any damage taken. The blast jump is a lot like Sonic's Jump Dash move from the Sonic Advance series and the Homing Attack used in all 3D Sonic titles from Sonic Adventure onwards (though it does not home in on enemies, and can't link attacks together consecutively like the Homing Attack can).
    * Water Shield: Being the only shield that sustains itself underwater, it allows any character to breathe freely underwater (i.e. it eliminates the imposed time limit before drowning). Sonic can use it to generate a Bubble Bounce jump, similar to the one Sonic gains from the Bounce Bracelet from Sonic Adventure 2; the closer Sonic is to the ground when he makes the second jump, the higher he bounces. This shield pops with any damage taken.

All three shields have the ability to deflect small projectiles, such as the shots from badniks in Hydrocity Zone and Marble Garden Zone.