Yes, you read that right – there’s a new Sonic cartridge for 2024 with an official box and instruction booklet, and it works on your Sega Genesis! The artwork on the box might be a little more advanced than we were used to back in the day, but the case, the red Genesis logo; just looking at it is enough to take you back to the 90s.
All the characters on the case are in the same positions as they were on the original Genesis game box, albeit with the inclusion of Knuckles and the eyes peeking through the bush on the bottom right of the cover being replaced with Shadow’s face. The game itself has a section where players can listen to unique lines of dialogue from all the characters, and there’s also an option to look at four posters for the movie in classic 16-bit graphics, all after being greeted by the iconic ‘SEEEGGGAAAAA’ title screen, of course.
The coolest part of the cartridge is a little minigame where you, as Sonic, get chased by Shadow on a motorbike. It’s a novelty more than anything as you can’t win or lose on this minigame, but when you enter the classic Sonic 3 cheat of Up, Up, Down, Down, Up, Up, Up, Up (or ⬆️ ⬆️ ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬆️ ⬆️ ⬆️ ⬆️ if you prefer your emojis), a trailer category unlocks telling us a new trailer is coming for the movie next week on November 25th!
While it’s not a new game, it’s amazing that Paramount has gone to these lengths to market the new Sonic Movie and to give something back to the retro gaming community who have lived and breathed everything Sonic-related since the 90s. Only a handful of people have received one of these cartridges, and sadly Paramount mustn’t have had our address in their system! Still, you can check out the video above to see the cartridge in action!
