General Sonic The Hedgehog thread

Funny thing, but the Genesis 3D Blast music seems more popular than the Saturn soundtrack.

edited 3rd Apr '13 9:41:45 AM by AceOfScarabs

A lot more popular. I'm assuming it's exposure; the Genesis version has been rereleased everywhere since Mega Collection, while the Saturn and PC versions have fallen to the wayside.

Which is a shame, because as much as I like the Genesis soundtrack (well, half of it, anyway), I like the Saturn one a whole lot more.

There's a certain purity from the Z80 CPU being used as the soundchip :D

Z80 soundchip? What is that?

One of the many CP Us inside a stock Genesis.

I could never quite figure out what the exact names of the things are... I always considered the FM synths + DAC to be "YM 2612" and the square waves/noise channels "PSG". I'm pretty sure "PSG" isn't the name of the chip, though; that's more like "SN 76496" or something.

Has the Unleashed Project team said anything about porting over the "extra" acts from Unleashed? You know those short acts with a gimmick that tests a certain ability?

@Stamina: The Genesis uses a venerable Zilog Z80 CPU as the sound chip, the same CPU that powers a Master System and the Game Gear. It's also the most-used 8-bit CPU I've heard of :D

Hmm... Interesting.

I love the Genesis sound. It's aged tons better than the SNES more realstic but muddier sounds. I also love good remixes of songs using Genesis sounds. The Legend Of Renegade on You Tube is an expert at using it.

This. All of it.

Depends on the soundtrack. I'd say the SNES at its best hasn't aged much worse than the Genesis at its best, while the Genesis at its worst has aged much worse than the SNES at its worst.

edited 3rd Apr '13 8:37:18 PM by ShadowHog

He's pretty good. This being one of his best remakes. Genesis x aka Urban Flow's even better, though he releases his work much slower. For some of his best, check out Skyrail.

For me, the Genesis sounds are... hit or miss. Ristar has a good soundtrack, but I can't really listen to it because some songs give me a bit of a headache.

Weakling.

Genesis soundtrack doesn't work as good for orchestration-like stuff. But with more bass and drummy stuff it works better than SNES.

The Z80 reproduces a stronger bassline than anything the SNES's audio system can do. Also a lot of the instrumentation has a strong impact.

edited 4th Apr '13 3:08:07 AM by AceOfScarabs

The old sounds worked in a lot of cases - especially when it came to basslines - but didn't work so well in others. The original Sky Sanctuary practically makes my ears bleed.

edited 4th Apr '13 1:36:20 AM by KnownUnknown

Pretty much every damn music on the SNES lacks any dynamics in the sounds, which is likely a result of the use of downgraded samples. The Megadrive sound is timeless because it's synthesis : you still have people using it today for music releases, because you can do what you want with it. I have never heard and doubt I ever will hear any chiptune release made on the SNES for that very reason.

That said, I could just be a sucker for big fat noisy sounds, but I gotta say the SNES sound chip does not make me squee. At all. I'll take Alien Soldier over any symphonic SNES OST anytime.

I'm sure some of the remixers on O Cremix still use something that can simulate the Genesis's chip synth.

I've always loved some good ol' music from the Sega Genesis. From Sonic and Ristar (ESPECIALLY Ristar), to Pulseman AND Vectorman, and heck, even Socket/Time Dominator 1st, I can't get over that distinct... Genesis-y sound.

edited 4th Apr '13 3:23:37 AM by GreatT

I have to say, if you like the sound of the Megadrive, check out some of the music on the X68000. It's the same kind of beefy FM sound, only up to eleven.

But to get a tad back on topic, it's really quite impressive to realize that pretty much every Sonic game has good music, if not fantastic. The old school 8/16-bit games notwithstanding, I was listening the other day to Sonic 06's soundtrack, and it's really outstanding : extremely well made, beautiful arrangements, intricate work on melodies, with variations on each track (much like the Act 1/Act 2 system of 3/SK and 3D Blast). I was quite floored.

Yeah, crappy game but mind-blowing OST. It could just be my fondness for electro pop, but Sonic R, Sonic Shuffle, Saturn Flickies Island, and You're My Hero are awesome. There's a kind of retro cheesieness in the games just after the Genesis games that has it's own charm for me.

then we had the metal trilogy with Adventure, Adventure 2, and Heroes and the Dark Edge with Shadow the Hedgehog's bland soundtrack, but of course YMMV.

Genesis is definitely better when the music calls for bass. I mean, just take a listen to Thunder Force IV, which I swear has the most metal 16-bit soundtrack ever.

That said, the SNES definitely had some kickass music. Especially when Tim And Geoff Follin were involved. I kinda wish Timetrax came out for the Genesis; it would've been a mediocre game, but if that leaked track was any indication, it'd have had one helluva soundtrack.

That Plok soundtrack has a funny anecdote attached to it : apparently, Shigeru Miyamoto heard a bit of one of the songs and flat out refused to believe it was on the SNES until he saw the game run firsthand. Quite a testament to the Follins' talent.

And as far as the most metal soundtrack on the Genesis goes, I'd say Vapor Trail is a pretty epic contender :

Now I wish I hadn't brought up the SNES, since we've degenerated to arguing about which is better.