Sunday, February 15, 2015

Buy Sonic Mega Collection Plus - PC

Sonic Mega Collection Plus - PC
Customer Ratings: 4 stars
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $16.00
Today's Bonus: 20% Off
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I ordered mine from another retailer online yesterday with 1 day shipping. I got it in this evening and I must say this is one fantastic collection on the PC that never gets boring. There are a few buyer beware points that need to be made before you purchase this:

1. The game is a DVD-ROM version for the North American Release, not a CD-ROM as shown on the box and disc label. Sega did not change the packaging and this may lead to many unhappy people that this game does not work in their machine.

2. The localization for this version of the game seems to be the European Localization and not the North American Localization found on the XBOX and Playstation 2. Sonic 3D Blast is known as Flickies Island in this compilation. Shows MegaDrive Icons too next to each game.

3. The roms they use in this compilation seem to be the PAL versions , as shown in the file folder directories.

4. The XBOX 360 Controller for Windows, and any controller that does not have dual analog sticks will not function properly in Sonic Mega Collection Plus and will exhibit behavior as if the DPAD is stuck in one direction. A controller such as the Logitech Dual Action or Rumblepad 2 will work just fine. There may be other dual analog ones that work fine too.

On the plus side, you can save an unlimited amount of save games for the classic games something that had a limitation in the XBOX and PS2 versions of these games.

Overall I am satisfied with my purchase and reccomend this to anyone who has wanted to play this game before but do not own a PS2 or XBOX and could not play it before....

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Finally, the games that established SEGA in the home console market are available for the PC. Included are Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3-D, Sonic Spinball, along with various Game Gear games. There are unlockable extra games as well.

The graphics look rather out of date on today's HD monitors, but the colours still look vibrant. The sound is exactly the same, although it pails in comparison to the surround sound available on many modern games.

Bonus features include comic book covers and character designs as well as all the original game manuals.

Overall a decent collection for any Sonic fan or anyone harking back to a simpler time.

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Ah, Sonic. How well so many of us remember that little blue blur. How many of us are gamers becuase of Sonic, and other stars of the 16 bit era? In this terrific value bundle, you get an excellent assortment of classic Genesis, and Game Gear Sonic games. Included are: Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, Sonic and Knuckles, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic Spinball, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, plus 6 of the original 12 Game Gear Sonic games (Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Labyrinth, Sonic Drift, Sonic Chaos, Sonic Blast, and Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine). There are also unlockable games, but I won't spoil it for anyone. For the record, Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut contains all 12 Game Gear titles as unlockable mini-games, and remains readily available for PC, PS2, and Gamecube.

In general, the games are visibly dated, and simplistic comparatively speaking to modern games, but have been nicely re-mastered, and look sharp and vibrant. The sound can't compare to modern games either of course, but is just as you remember it, and even sounds good with surround speakers. Native gamepad support is included (but no rumblepad support), and the button layout is customizable. Keyboard controls are customizable (the mouse is not used), but I don't use them, and can't speak to how intuitive, or well implemented they are. I use, and strongly recommend a dual analog gamepad since this game prefers, and plays best with one. Also, please be aware that this game will require an older type, DirectInput gamepad (like the Logitech Dual Action, or Rumblepad 2 for example) for full, and proper gamepad support. Even if the game will recognize an X-Box 360 controller for Windows, there is a good chance it will not behave correctly since the game pre-dates, and therefore does not support Xinput. The game's system specs are modest, and it seems stable and well behaved. On the down side, there are a few bizarre omissions like Sonic CD, Sonic R, Sonic and Tails 2, and Knuckles Chaotix. Perhaps most significantly for hardcore fans, it does not contain Sonic CD, or Sonic 3 and Knuckles, the classic Genesis two cartridge lock-on game. Their absence is disappointing since they were fan favorites, but in the case of Sonic 3 and Knuckles, the lock-on feature enabled certain features like exclusive cutscenes, and Super Emeralds which are probably difficult or impossible to replicate through emulation, so that could offer a partial explanation for it's absence. Unless it was an issue of inadequate space on the DVD, I can see no good reason for Sonic CD's exclusion, but I guess this is forgivable given that the old Expert Software PC version (which avid Sonic fans will most likely have anyway) is still readily available, and runs fine on Win Vista/Win 7 with a user-created compatibility fix which is just as readily available on numerous fan/tribute sites and forums.

Lacking a jewel case, presentation quality isn't anything to brag about either, but that isn't uncommon for a low budget value title these days, so you can't smack it around too much for that. However, in-game presentation is much better, and you get plenty of extras like original concept art, character designs, and comic book clips, along with a PDF containing each game's original user manual. The game does include a user manual (for once), and in it, the games are laid out chronologically, and each game is pictured with it's original box cover, a brief plot summary, date of launch, and a couple of screenshots. The game has also been spruced up a bit with a save function, modernized front end menu, and in-game interface. Another aspect of this bundle's appeal is that even though there are user-created compatibility fixes available for most of them, older Sonic PC ports are often incompatible with newer operating systems; whereas these are XP/Vista/Win 7 compatible, and don't fuss when you try to play them, or demand scouring the internet for a compatibility fix. There have been some reports of Vista and Win 7 users having trouble running this game even in compatibility mode, but I haven't personally encountered these problems. At worst, I've only had to run the game's installer in compatibility mode to get it to install correctly, and use Vista compatibility mode for the game to run. The headline here though is that PC Sonic fans have never had a better chance to rack up on so many old school Sonic games all at once. Make no mistake: this is the best Sonic value bundle the PC has seen in years, and PC Sonic fans won't want to miss this. All said and done, I'm satisfied with my purchase, and am going to give Sonic Mega Collection Plus a good grade with minor dings for the low production values.

UPDATED EDIT: Sonic Mega Collection Plus is Windows Vista/Windows 7 compatible.

Honest reviews on Sonic Mega Collection Plus - PC

Playing these games for hours on the Genesis is one of my fondest memories, and playing them again is good indeed. This collection comes with Sonic 1, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, and Sonic and Knuckles. It does NOT contain Sonic 3 and Knuckles, the classic two cartridge lock-on game. This means that you do not gain the advantages of having the lock-on ability, like certain cutscenes and the ability to get the Super Emeralds. You can still obtain regular chaos emeralds twice however, in Sonic 3 and then Sonic and Knuckles.

One advantage of getting this collection is that it is an emulator that has a save function, so you can stop and continue at any time, and play those Chaos emerald missions over and over if necessary. This collection does seem to have a Sonic running speed problem though, he seems to accelerate and run about 4/5 of normal, but everything else is the same (I double checked with online videos). According to other reviews there is a patch available, but I was unable to find in on Sega's website, probably due to the age of this game.

If you want to play your favorite Sonic games again, then this collection will let you do that.

Compatibility: On Windows 7 64-bit I was able to get this game to run in compatibility mode for Vista Service Pack 2.

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I've always loved the old school Sonic games. I've played and beat them countless times and never really get tired of doing so. That's why it's so nice to have them all compiled on a single disc. This collection also includes the Sega Game Gear games, debug cheats, and some bonus character and comic artwork and video clips. My only real problem with Sonic Mega Collection Plus is the required hours of game play needed to unlock certain games. Seems a bit much and can be a little frustrating. Other than that, it's totally worth the buy!

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