The One Thing Fans Already Hate About Sonic Origins
"Sonic Origins" has already faced its share of criticism regarding certain decisions by Sega, like taking down the individual games included in the collection from online stores. Reviews of the new collection have poured in from various outlets (via Nintendo Life), and even the positive reviews tend to call out questionable design aspects, like the lack of a dedicated save-state system. With the release of "Sonic Origins" this week, fans have given their verdicts online regarding some of the game's music. In particular, numerous fans have commented on the game not sounding the way they remember.
"Sonic" social media manager Katie Chrzanowski mentioned a few weeks ago that Sega "can't use all the original sounds [from 'Sonic 3 & Knuckles']," due to legal issues, leading to the creation of replacement tracks from Jun Senoue. Some outlets, like ComicBook.com, have speculated that these problems may stem from the long-lived rumors that Michael Jackson composed some of the music for "Sonic 3."
Senoue's replacement tracks have become a focal point of fan criticism. Many gamers online rhave eacted to the new tracks with a mixture of frustration and disappointment, missing the originals and wondering why Sega could not simply obtain the rights to use them in "Sonic Origins."
Sonic 3 & Knuckles music criticisms
"They legit could of just used the prototype sounds and called it a day," said one fan on Twitter, who would have preferred that alternative to the replacement tracks in the final product. Another argued that Sega needed to hire a sound engineer that could use the original game's sound chip "to its fullest potential." Overall, a vocal majority of fans agreed Sega could have done better, including Twitter user @TechBlade9000, who compared the situation to "messing up a part of a cake recipe that you've done right multiple times."
GameXplain created a YouTube video covering which tracks Sega replaced, which prompted more commenters to share their insights. Some have argued that Sega might have been better off hiring "Sonic Mania" composer Lee Topes, while others echoed the sentiment that the original prototype tracks might have fit "S3&K" better.
This online criticism has also prompted responses in Sega's defense, with some fans calling out their fellow gamers for latching onto a singular flaw and using it to tear down the rest of the game. "They did their best and that's what counts," Twitter user @Bluejack222 said, although they admitted they still miss the older songs.
Of course, this discourse doesn't mark the only time fans questioned Sega's decisions, as proven by the recent backlash surrounding "Sonic Frontiers" and its first gameplay reveal trailer. If you don't mind the major music changes and still want to revisit these classic titles, "Sonic Origins" is out now for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.