Are They the Same Game? - Sonic the Hedgehog on Sega Master System and Game Gear Comparison
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.พ. 2025
- Sonic the Hedgehog on the Sega Master System and Game Gear are often considered one and the same.
But they do have differences.
How different are they, and can they really be considered the same game?
![[TAS] Arcade SegaSonic the Hedgehog by Tuffcracker, rodonic01 & SpectralPlatypus in 10:23.98](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/8JxZHD1FQDQ/mqdefault.jpg)
For years, all I have heard was that they were identical games outside of the screen crunch. This was a nice deep dive into the actual differences.
I have both versions, and they do feel different.
Spent lots of hours on the Master System version
"Are the two versions the same game?" "No."
Imo the GG version is better, it has more polish and better level design and I find the challenge more fair, however because of one downside, screen crunch, it goes underappreciated...
There's a GG2SMS patch though.
@ there is? I didn't know that.
This video must have taken a long time to put together. Well done good sir.
Those barriers on the bonus stages always make me think of Wall's Twister ice lollies 😅
The recent C64 version is a very faithful port of the Master System version, it requires a RAM expansion but it doesn’t seem to have anything missing, it even runs smoother and the SID music sounds awesome too 😎
Haha, I can't unsee it now.
@ 😆
Cool topic. Like many others, and having only played the Master System version, I myself thought they were the same, but no. Even though there is much overlapping between the MS and the GG libraries, we should remember that sometimes they don't overlap, and that's part of the charm of old consoles
Cool and informative video! Wasn't aware of the later stages differences since the screen crunch usually makes me drop the game halfway through in favour of the MS version. I think calling them different games is a bit of a stretch tho. You're not gonna have a whole new experience playing one game or the other. It's more of a different version of the same game. I think your comparison to Turtles in Time and Hyperstone Heist was pretty good but I'd say this sits somewhere inbetween that and the difference between the Arcade and Snes version of Turtles in Time.
That said, I applaude Ancient for doing this much work to compensate the Game Gears screen crunch, and touching up a lot of the game while at it (I believe Westone did something similar with their GG port of The Dragon's Trap if memory serves me right.) I adore the visual changes to the stages and wish I could have that in the MS resolution for an optimal 8-bit Sonic 1 version.
Would love to see you do this with Sonic 2 as I really didn't like the game gear version but I've been told the master system version is much better
Had the Master System version as a kid and thought something was amiss when I played the Game Gear version on the Sonic Origins collection a couple years ago. Glad to know I ain't too mental
I played Sonic 1 and 2 on the SMS before I played their 16 bit counterparts. The Master System was also my first console, moving on from the good ol' Speccy! To 9-10 year old me, the difference in graphics and sound was like night and day. So much nostalgia for Sega's 8-bit. Like Wonder Boy 3: The Dragon's Trap, and R-type, a game better then it should be
I have that exact cyber razor cut sticker on my own childhood Master System!
Master system was my first console ever,back in the early 90s,it had alex kidd built in and sonic the Hedgehog cartridge loose inside,sonic was the first game i finished ,it is amazing and much superior to the game gear version which is easier,maybe to atract younger kids.i love playing it on the master system 2 rgb console.
Sonic 2 sms is honestly my favourite sonic game, well that and sonic CD. Love all the vehicles and stuff
Basically the same but the GG version has an advantage over the SMS version.
The Game Gear has a much larger palette to choose from (even if it doesn't mean more colours on-screen at any given time). As such, this allows for tweaked colours and better colour fades.
Love to see these differences highlighted. I've a similar issue considering Sonic 1 SMS a "port" of the Mega Drive version!
Thank fans for the work on emulators so we can preserve and enjoy. New releases never include a PAL 50Hz paced (nevermind aspect ratio) version. Bizarre given European SMS popularity.
After this video I decided to play both versions again since I like this game so much, and I found another difference you didn't mention in this video that I think is in favor of the Master System version, the Game Over screen, on Game Gear the BGM does not play.
For the Master System version I went with the FM Rom hack so the music does not cut off and for the Game Gear version I went with Rev 1.0 (like in this video) alongside the patch that adds extra screen (Genesis Plus GX core on RetroArch), I still prefer the Game Gear version tbh, the bigger sprites while look nice make playforming more difficult than on Game Gear and the level design is a lot more forgiving on Game Gear, plus the extra polish like the SEGA screen, rotating sunflowers, extra background elements in Bridge Zone, etc just makes it my preferred version.
Thanks for watching, and yeah, favourite version ultimately comes down to personal preference. Nice spot with the Game Over music too!
I really need to try the FM Sound have on SMS, and also the C64 port! - Dan
@SEGAGuys @Dan if you're interested in other versions there's a fan remake based on the Master System version that adds extra features such as wide screen, extra characters like Tails and Knuckles, Spindash, Dropdash, even Super Sonic, some additional levels like Marble and Spring Yard as well, the developer even made ports to Android, PS Vita and Switch, there are also a couple of homebrews that are inspired by this game.
Great video, please make more like this! ❤😅
Would love to see you do the same for my favourite Sonic game. Sonic Chaos!
Kinda strange Ancient went the extra mile and made two different versions. They could've just used "Master System mode" for the GG release as did Castle of Illusion.
What a great vid dude! i def agree the collections should have both versions - some of those level layouts are so different it's like extra acts! i guess the big thing that binds them is the physics - i just adore the movement on 8-bit sonic and you can jump between them without feeling like you've switched games so i love em both. maybe one day we'll see a mega game mixing the two level layouts!?! which one is better is maybe the biggest bone of contention between me and dibbs so i won't go there! 😂😂😂 - bedgell
They are essentially the same game but the Game Gear version actually bothered itself to adapt to its screen resolution and colour depth, unlike Sonic 2...
Agreed: the Master System is indeed the superior version. Great video, Dan.
Its weird, i have never sat back and noticed the differences in both of these games. i always preferred the Game Gear version but having watched this i prefer the look of the Master System version. Would love to see the changes in the Sonic 2 ports in a future video, Another great video Dan. Have you tried the android remakes of the 8 bit sonic games?
Sonic 2 and Sonic Chaos also have differences, Sonic 2 for example is missing some songs on the Master System and Sonic Chaos' Gigalopolis Zone (also known as Gigapolis Zone in the US on the Game Gear version) has a different music, other differences are for title screen, character select and title cards, to name a few, also it's worth mentioning with Chaos the US and Jap versions use different title cards.
Regarding the Sonic Origins Plus at the end of the video - I'm all for paying for legitimate copies of games over emulation, but I'm sorry; 30 dollars for the games then 10 more on top for the Plus content is flat out greedy. I could see the entire thing for maybe 20-25, but that's outright lunacy.
Always thought it was exactly the same... Thanks for this! I think the Game Gear version seems better :)
Mega Drive OG is better than both.
It is, but that’s not the point of this video, is it? - James.