like, the level design is really bad a lot of the time. there's a large emphasis on verticality and exploration that really does not lend itself to sonic's genesis moveset. but:

1. the remaster adds tails, who in hindsight seems like the character the game was designed around. it's much easier and more fun to explore the levels with him.
2. and also, the art and music give off absolutely radioactive levels of swag. this game has two soundtracks and both of them are all timers

i simply can't bring myself to not like it. it's too cool.

This game by all means should've been a slam dunk. Fresh crisp soundtrack? Check. A whole mini planet to explore? It has it. It has a frickin' Terminator Sonic in it. But the gameplay just is NOT there. Having to deal with getting the Time Stones and the time travelling shenanigans for each Zone to get the actual ending makes this one rigged against you unless you fancy having a guide glued to your eyes at all times. The Zones themselves are also just unusually easy to get lost in, too. Easily the weakest Sonic platformer on the Genesis, sadly.

Played through the GCN Gems Collection
While not a terrible entry, it definitely has it's quality overblown due to a history of scarcity and poor access.
Some levels are fun while many others are unremarkable.
Soundtrack is great, but the sound effects are horrible.
Neat to play for the novelty, but I would rather play any of the genesis games. However, these may be due to the quality of the emulation on the GCN.

O jogo que é mais conhecido pelo seu eterno debate entre a banda sonora da versão USA e JP (e confia, tirando a trilha do boss americana, a versão japonesa dá uma surra kk).

Por ter toda essa coisa de um aparato como o Sega CD para dar um UP de processamento, a evolução gráfica é notável, e as fases tem uma sensação de profundidade beeeem maior. Porém, achei que junto com isso, os cenários são meio confusos, com elementos demais na tela.

A mecânica do PAST/FUTURE é totalmente descartável, não acrescenta nada na gameplay e nem é lá muito charmosa. Mas eles precisavam justificar o grandioso MEGA BLAST PROCESS SEGA CD né?

No geral, um jogo competente, mas discordo com quem tenta alça-lo a prateleira de "hidden gem" hj em dia.

Originally released for the Mega CD and PC, for the first decade of it's existence Sonic CD had an air of mystery about it. It was considered something of a 'lost' Sonic game because so few fans had played it. I first got the chance to boot up the game when Sonic Gems Collection released in 2005.

Artistically, Sonic CD blew me away when I played it for the first time. It has, arguably, the best soundtrack in Sonic's illustrious history (the Japanese variant specifically, though the American soundtrack is also excellent) and beautifully realised levels that bring back the weird, slightly abstract visual design of the first game. The levels all look and sound great and that's all the more impressive considering Sonic CD's central time travel gimmick. You can visit a Past, Present, Good Future and Bad Future version of every level and it's truly wonderful to see each level's evolution (or devolution).

To get the game's best ending you're encouraged to travel to the past in each act of each zone, find a Robotnik device and destroy it. Doing so creates a 'good future' for the zone while failing to do so creates a 'bad future'. On paper, it's a pretty cool concept that adds an extra layer of agency to Sonic and the player but the time travel conceit completely changes how Sonic CD's levels are designed for the worse. The levels are all more maze-like and sprawling than previous instalments. They're built this way to encourage you to explore and find the devices but it doesn't make for a particularly fun experience. The central issue with this is that if you're playing casually and ignoring the exploration aspect of the game, the levels feel somewhat short and underwhelming. But even if you invest the time to scour each level for the Robotnik doohickeys, the level design is kind of frustrating and confusing. Wacky Workbench is probably the best example of what I mean. It's a slog and has no memorable set pieces or routes, it's just a spiderweb of obstacles and is a pain to get through.

Over time I have grown to appreciate the direction the game takes classic Sonic gameplay but I still feel the attempt to innovate here was somewhat botched. I enjoy playing Sonic CD casually but I've never taken the time to 100% the game. For me it's the weakest of the classic Sonic quadrilogy.

Ah, "Sonic CD," a game that swings like a jazz quartet on an off night—lots of ambition but the rhythm just isn't there. Imagine if Duke Ellington sat down at the piano, poised to deliver a soul-stirring number, and instead, we got the tinny tunes reminiscent of a speakeasy band on their first gig—unpolished, unrefined, and unexpectedly underwhelming. That's the soundtrack of "Sonic CD," trying to be the Miles Davis of video game music but landing more in the realm of a forgotten lounge act.

Then there's the level design, which feels like something straight out of a Groucho Marx routine—chaotic, confusing, and running into its own punchlines. You could almost hear Groucho quipping, "Why, they've got levels going everywhere and nowhere at once, just like my love life!" The paths twist and turn with all the perplexity of a Laurel and Hardy skit, where every doorway leads to another slapstick mishap rather than to the finish line.

Navigating through "Sonic CD" is akin to sitting through a Henny Youngman one-liner marathon—after a while, the confusion isn't just part of the act, it is the act. Each level feels like it's been designed on the whims of a stand-up comic mid-routine, where not even the performer knows the ending. It's like the game is playing its own private joke, but forgot to let the player in on the laugh.

In essence, "Sonic CD" is that late-night jazz club gig you hoped would be memorable, but the band wasn't quite up to the task. The game reaches for the stars but ends up playing in the backrooms of the gaming world, where the lights are dim and the crowd is unforgiving. So here’s to "Sonic CD," a game that aspires to be the headline act but ends up as the warm-up band, still tuning its instruments as the audience files in.

Sonic cd is not a very good game. For one the game is extremely short, each stage is only 3 or 4 minutes long at most and overall I was NOT A fan of the exploration type levels in this game. They just made the game feel empty and pointless.

I liked the time travel mechanic and thought it made for an interesting difference between this and sonic 1-3. The music was super good like always, they played the same music every boss though which I wasn't a big fan of.

I also wish that metal sonic appeared more in this game, he shows up occasionally throughout the game and then you race him and he fucking explodes. It's just really underwhelming, especially with a character who had so much potential. All in all, Sonic cd is not great but has some redeeming qualities if you look hard enough.

... Sonic 2 who?
Good lord, this is such a good game. Which is funny, considering I absolutely hated it when I was little and super into Sonic.

"Sonic is supposed to be fast! What's up with the weird maps and this time traveling stuff?" I'll tell you what's up with 'em, 10 year old me: They're peak, that's what they are.
If you pick up Sonic CD expecting to take your time and explore stages thoroughly instead of trying to get to the goal as fast as possible, as I did in this last playthrough, you'll have a great time.

Beautiful FMV cutscenes, cool zones with tons of visual variety, my favorite special stages and favorite soundtrack; CD has it all.

I guess my only complaint is that the timer shouldn't really be there. Having a Time Limit system in a game where exploration is encouraged is very counterintuitive. That aside, absolutely goated. 🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐

UPDATE 28/03: Platinum'd it. This game is so good.