However, Shawn Smith and Sushi-X of "Electronic Gaming Monthly" both found the gameplay formula to be well thought-out, with Smith remarking, "I like having to retrieve the animals in each level and the various warps make the levels seem huge." Though he compared the gameplay unfavorably to previous Sonic games, "Sega Saturn Magazine"s Lee Nutter found it had a great deal of fun to offer and praised it as being more challenging than any previous "Sonic" game. Despite his criticism of the isometric format, Art Angel was pleased with the game's level designs. Reflecting on its complaints years earlier upon the game's inclusion in "Sonic Mega Collection Plus", Jeremy Parish of "1UP.com" called the game "much better than you might be led to believe". Brett Alan Weiss of "AllGame" voiced a similar opinion, feeling it was a "nice departure" from the style of the side-scrolling "Sonic" games.