The difference between Sonic 1 and 2 are clear as day and night. The progression of how levels were designed vastly improved and the controls feel a little better especially with the spindash which became a staple of Sonic ever since and honesty, I much prefer Sonic 2 over Sonic 1 any day. While I really enjoyed Sonic 2 over Sonic 1 I think the three last game zones in Sonic 2 are pretty tough and had me stuck for a while but all in all a solid game and I would probably recommend you start with this one over the first one. You know, now that I am thinking about it so far the early classic Sonic games kind of mirror how I feel about playing through classic Mega Man in a way. Does this mean I will really like Sonic 3? Is Sonic 3 better than what I remembered as a kid?