Favorite Tunes #95: Sonic Boom

Last week's Favorite Tunes was all about Mario. Since Sonic and Mario are like two sides of the same coin, it only feel rights to have the fastest thing alive follow after the plumber.

Eggmanland Night - Sonic Unleashed (PS3, PS2, 360, Wii)

The day portions of the game are awesome. The night portions of the game suck. Says the majority of the Sonic fanbase. I'll admit that the night levels of Sonic Unleashed can dragon on, but they aren't all the game destroyers that so many make them out to be. Of course if everything I hear about Eggman Land is true, then this level can go screw itself. At least the music is pretty rad. That's gotta count for something.

Sonic Boom - Sonic CD (SCD)

Come on, you knew this was coming. How can I reference one of the most recognizable songs in the history of Sonic and not have said song featured here? As everyone knows by now, when Sonic CD was being brought over to the United States, SEGA of America made the decision to change the music, something that has since divided the fanbase to this day. We would never have gotten Sonic Boom if SEGA hadn't done this and the rest of the American soundtrack is certainly nothing to scoff at. Sonic Boom was included as an unlockable song in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as well as Sonic Generations.

Green Hill Zone Act 2 - Sonic Generations (PS3, 360, 3DS)

Past meets present in Sonic Generations, the game that allowed players to play as two different versions of the hedgehog each with their own style of play. Classic Sonic's levels are 2D affairs while Modern Sonic blasts through 3D stages. The soundtrack featured tons of remixes and arrangements from the updated levels from all the previous Sonic games. Long time Sonic music composer Jun Senoue took a stab at remix the famous Green Hill Zone theme. There's lots of trademark Jun guitar goodness but it still sticks close to the original theme.

Terminal Velocity Act 1 - Sonic Colors (Wii) 

A modern Sonic game that had a host of 2D gameplay. Despite not being on an HD console, Sonic Colors still posts visuals that are on par with it's HD brothers. I had more than enough time to get Terminal Velocity stuck in my head because I kept failing the first act over and over again. There's been an abundance of rock music in Sonic's long history and this baby ranks right up with the best of 'em.

Work It Out - Sonic R (SAT)

As part of Sonic's 23rd anniversary SEGA gave Sonic R's soundtrack the digital release treatment. The original album was released in 1998 so it has long since been out of print, making this re-release extremely welcome. The lyrics can be a bit cheesy, but Sonic R has always had some of my favorite vocal performances in the series. For me, Work It Out is every bit  as good as Can You Feel the Sunshine and Super Sonic Racing.

Intro - Sonic Mega Collection (GCN, PS2, XB)

This wasn't Sonic's first anthology release. Far from it. But being available on more platforms maid it far easier to own than Sonic Jam. Featuring all of Sonic's platforming Genesis adventures along with the spin-offs, Sonic Mega Collection was a hefty dose of Sonic goodness. Originally a GCN exclusive, this compilation eventually made it's way to the PS2 and XB in the form of Sonic Mega Collection Plus. Outside of the mostly great selection of games (Sonic 3D Blast sucks on unimaginable levels), there was some sweet, original music. The nostalgic is magnified tenfold when you hear the intro/title music while watching the demos of these games.

Favorite Tunes Database