Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sega Genesis, 1992)

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 follows in the same speedy footsteps as its well-regarded predecessor, Sonic the Hedgehog. Once again, players run, jump, and spin the blue hedgehog through a bizarre world of metal robots created by Dr. Robotnik, avoiding obstacles, trouncing enemies, and collecting rings and the elusive Chaos Emeralds (earning all seven emeralds turns Sonic into Super Sonic). While the basic action remains essentially the same, the levels are longer, the colors are brighter and more varied, all the zones are new, and the game introduces a new character: Tails the fox. In the standard game, Tails simply follows along, helping collect rings and defeating the occasional enemy, but he is a playable character in the special two-player split-screen race mode. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 also introduces a new move (the Spin Dash) and a new special stage: a challenging, pseudo-3D race through tubes to collect rings.