How do you prefer your Sonic games? 2D or 3D?

[bikingjahuty]

I ran across a fairly heated discussion on a Facebook group I belong to about whether 2D or 3D Sonic games are the best. Like most things, I think it comes down to personal preference, however pound for pound it seems like the 2D entries have done better in terms of critical and fan acclaim. I personally am way more of a fan of Sonic as a 2D franchise compared to its 3D entries. While I still have a buttload of nostalgia for it, Sonic Adventure did not age as well as I once thought when I replayed it a couple years back. Even some of the newer entries I've tried just haven't done it for me like the old 2D games. Hell, even Sonic Mania blows the vast majority of 3D Sonic games out of the water. That's my opinion on the matter, what is yours?

[Cartagia]

I'm not that big of a Sonic fan, in general, but I do think the 2D games are pretty much better across the board.  There might be a couple of decent 3D games, but more of them are just kinda broken messes than not.

[kamikazekeeg]

I'm a weird Sonic fan in that I don't really like playing the games, especially the 2D ones, but love everything else about them lol My favorite Sonic game is actually Generations, because it's like the best version of the 3D games while also having a really great representation of the classic 2D ones, just with a more pulled out camera.  The 2D ones are the most consistent of the series though compared to 3D where the quality of them are all over the place, but generally aren't very good.

[sworddude]

I prefer them to be Mario games

all jokes aside, generally 2D. If it's simular to adventure 1 3D. track record of 3D ain't that great however and changing at all times for better or worse.

[vivigamer]

When I think of Sonic and why I love it, it all boils down to Sonic Adventure 1! Sure it has it's flaws, many, MANY flaws! But there is something cozy about it's atmosphere. The little hub areas between levels are fun to explore and add a level of exploration the level based games just lack. I love the cutscenes and the story, it's the first time a story REALLY felt present within a Sonic game and I was fully very invested in it - Like with all the lore around the ancients and the Master Emerald. SA2 just wasn't the same, its pure level based gameplay was a pain, especially having to dig through hidden upgrades in levels and some levels like tails/Robotniks just werent fun.

Beyond that, I enjoy S1-3&K but found level design for CD & Mania to frustrating. A lot of probelms with Sonic in general are through the hit detection - I often end up spamming bosses when I'm immune after being hit  or fuming whenever the game thinks I get squished.

[conduit]

I grew up playing Sonic Adventure DX and Sonic Adventure 2 on Gamecube constantly. Same goes for the Sonic Mega Collection and the Sonic Advance games. All of which I have, regrettably, relinquished ownership of throughout the years. If younger me had the foresight to hold onto them all I would have, especially the Sonic Advance games.

2D Sonic would be my go to, without question. I've never felt compelled to play most of the non-SA entries. That's not to say 3D Sonic doesn't have its place despite its inconsistencies, like so many other 2D-centric games that hastily stumbled into the third dimension.

[telekill]

Having played most Sonic games and being there from the first, I'm going to say the 2D games are superior. Most the Game Gear and Genesis games were good if not great. Dreamcast's Sonic Adventure was fun regardless of its flaws. It showed a lot of promise of what could be done in the 3D space.

Then it all went downhill from there.

Once Sega was done with Dreamcast, the slope was steep and the 3D Sonic games were essentially trash. The 2D GBA games were decent, getting back to fundamentals. Then Generations was a decent outing. The 2.5D Sonic 4 was a mess. It wasn't until Mania that I really decided to give Sonic another chance though.

The last few Sonic games haven't been bad. My son is now huge into Sonic. We picked up Origins so he's played or watched most the 2D games. He enjoyed Frontiers until it got to be difficult in later levels. He really enjoyed Superstars. Now he's looking forward to Sonic x Shadow. He also loves the comics, cartoons, and movies.

The torch is passed, so to speak. While I'm not big into the 3D Sonic games, my son enjoys them and in turn that makes me happy.

My wife and I already have his Christmas planned out, with going to see the new Sonic 3 movie, the Sonic x Shadow game and I'm even creating him a Sonic shadowbox that will have a complete copy of the original release from Genesis. Check out my gallery here for an idea of what it will be. It's been a couple years since I last made one, but it's coming along.

[dhaabi]

I'm not that big of a Sonic fan, in general, but I do think the 2D games are pretty much better across the board.  There might be a couple of decent 3D games, but more of them are just kinda broken messes than not.

This is exactly my opinion. Sonic as a franchise has never interested me, but the 2D entries (generally) seem much more successful from a gameplay and design perspective.

[wolff242]

Def 2-D. Not the biggest fan either. I had the original on the Genesis. Never got very far, lol, my brother was quite good at it though.

[alligo]

2D personally.

This is the general opinion which is quite shared but the 3D Sonic games are bad.

[bikingjahuty]

I'm surprised to hear there are a lot of people that don't like Sonic. I get liking Mario games (both 2D and 3D) have been treated a lot better than Sonic has over the years, but Sonic games, particularly the 2D games, have been pretty solid over the years if you're a fan of the genre.

[dhaabi]

I'm surprised to hear there are a lot of people that don't like Sonic. I get not liking Mario games (both 2D and 3D) have been treated a lot better than Sonic has over the years, but Sonic games, particularly the 2D games, have been pretty solid over the years if you're a fan of the genre.

While it's not often I play 2D or 3D platformers, I do like both genres. However, I never cared for Sonic's fast-paced arcade-like action, so it's always been a franchise I've turned away from. I acknowledge that plenty of entries are commendable, but it's just not a design choice for me.

[bizzgeburt]

I don't see myself as a "huuuuuge" fan of the sonic-franchise, but I played some titles, 2D and 3D alike. I personally prefer the 8bit and 16bit Sonic-games. The only enjoyable feature of later (3D) releases for me was training chao's 

Sonic-games on MasterSystem or Genesis/MegaDrive are classic platformers, especially the first two main-titles, with later titles emphasizing more on dashing and speed - I personally like exploring stages and collecting everything I can reach, so the more fast paced titles kind of spoil this for me.
Nervertheless, I confess to like Sonic-games in general. Some more, some less ...

[kamikazekeeg]

I'm surprised to hear there are a lot of people that don't like Sonic. I get liking Mario games (both 2D and 3D) have been treated a lot better than Sonic has over the years, but Sonic games, particularly the 2D games, have been pretty solid over the years if you're a fan of the genre.

I think it's the gameplay loop for myself, a lot of 2D Sonic is just blindly running into things, and it's cool high speed stuff, but even as a kid, while I did mostly like them enough, I never liked them as well as a regular platformer like Mario.  It's why I brought up Generations as my favorite game, because it takes 2D Sonic and pulls the camera back which is way more enjoyable since you have time to actually react to stuff.

[aliensstudios]

After having a surprisingly good time playing Sonic Dream Team late last year, I decided to replay Sonic Adventure 1 and 2 quite recently. While they are fun, they don't hold up all that well, they give me the same feeling that Super Mario 64 did me when I replayed it earlier this year; in the sense that I can definitely see the appeal of it, and how revolutionary they were for their time, they just don't hold up all that great.
On the other hand, Sonic 1, 2, 3&K, CD, and Mania are absolutely awesome to just pick up and play, especially when I only have thirty to sixty minutes to game. I'd say 2D for sure, while the 3D entries are a mixed bag, decent at best, absolute dog crap at worst.