Sonic the Hedgehog platforming of the main levels. The 16-bit "Sonic the Hedgehog " consisted of a giant rotating maze, which many considered a major technical achievement. The most common special stages, however, were segments with the character running through a long tunnel to collect certain items. 3D "collect item" levels, as in "Sonic 3" and "Sonic & Knuckles", used the same perspective but had Sonic collecting all the blue-colored orbs on the surface of a giant sphere. Finally, "Sonic Advance 2" employed a 3D ring-collecting stage, and "Sonic Chaos" ("Sonic and Tails" in Japan) used a variety of gimmicks for its levels.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Development began shortly after the release of "Sonic 2" in late 1992. It was developed simultaneously with "Sonic & Knuckles"; they were developed as a single game until time constraints and cartridge costs forced the developers to split them in two projects. The "Sonic & Knuckles" cartridge features "lock-on" technology that allows it to be physically attached to the "Sonic 3" cartridge, creating a combined game, "Sonic 3 & Knuckles". Pop musician Michael Jackson composed portions of the soundtrack, but left the project and went uncredited. As with its predecessors, "Sonic 3" was a critical and