My goodness. I had saved Triple Trouble for the end of my Game Gear marathon because I had heard it was probably the best entry on there, and of course to jump straight into the 16-Bit fan game afterwards (that I knew next to nothing about), which I thought would be a nice reward to give myself for the mediocrity that was sure to come. I was absolutely not prepared for how much this was going to blow me away. Maybe I should have expected it knowing the reputation some would give sonic fan games of “being better than actual games”. Whether that’s a notion overblown out of enthusiasm to crap on Sonic games or not, there is no denying that we have some super passionate fans, but even still I could never have predicted how much I would enjoy this. Sonic 3 and Sonic Mania are fundamental Wollom-core games, and I would struggle to tell you that Triple Trouble 16-Bit doesn’t match these experiences, or even top them in some aspects.

The original Triple Trouble was indeed a decent game in my opinion. It didn’t quite take the cake for best Game Gear game though, that would go to Sonic 1, because that feels like a game that somewhat knows what hardware it’s on, and builds a fun platforming experience that isn’t necessarily trying too hard to be Sonic (this was very early days so it didn’t have too much to go off of anyway). Triple Trouble on the other hand, absolutely understood what gave Sonic 2 and 3 their identity and success, and rolls with it; It’s got original level theme ideas, plenty of gimmicks exclusive to each zone, a good balance of sections designed around both speed and platforming, it even has some ambitious set pieces and tells a more than one-note story involving a few characters. What is unfortunate is that this simply could not have its potential fully realised on a 4:3 screen with (I’m sorry GG fans) very botched Sonic physics, it’s just the nature of how these games turned out. But it absolutely gets tremendous points for effort and I respect how much this rose above the attempts of Sonic 2 8-Bit, Sonic Chaos, and Sonic Blast.

With all of that said, the idea to remake the game as if it was on the Mega Drive / Genesis makes complete sense doesn’t it? Touch it up a little and bob’s your uncle you’ve turned it into the better game it had the right to be. NonononoNO my sweetie pie, Noah Copeland had a VISION and he wasn’t going to let it just run away. Triple Trouble was Triply Transformed.

The first thing I noticed when I loaded up this game (apart from the super stylish main menu <3) was that we now play as both Sonic and Tails at the same time, whereas in the original you chose one or the other, and you can press a button to seamlessly switch between the controlling of either character on the fly! As long as they’re both on the screen you’re good to go! This change was awesome not only because it fits the original story better, but because the Japanese release of this game was actually titled Sonic & Tails 2. Straight away this feels like a true Sonic & Tails adventure :D . It’s really fun being able to switch to Tails for flight and Sonic for speed moves and elemental shields, rather than being locked to one for the whole playthrough.

The next lovely thing to grace your eyes is of course the massive glow up in the zones, there is not much else to say other than they’re all gorgeous. Foreground, sprites, tiny little visual effects, they all look damn good. But huge shout out to the backgrounds of these levels in particular, they are beautiful and often change dynamically throughout the zones, adding to the storytelling! These graphics alongside the new remixes of music tracks (which all sound GREAT by the way) marvellously replicate the feeling of classic Sonic and enhance it to a similar degree that Sonic Mania did.

Adding to that notion, to say that the levels themselves were mania-fied is an apt comparison for the most part. Well made sections from the original levels are retained and polished, while completely new ones with new gimmicks and sights are thrown into the mix. None of these gimmicks feel unwelcome. Snowballs and seels in Robotnik Winter Zone, leaf trampolines and snake basket platforms in Meta Junglira Zone, the list does go on.

The reason I say “for the most part” is because it’s where this game deviates from its inspiration significantly that truly impressed me. Along with reworked special stages, reworked and additional bosses, there are so many cool new setpieces, cutscenes and story elements within the zones themselves. My absolute favourite thing is how above and beyond the effort to seamlessly transition between zones is. No loading screens or teleportation, just an incredibly smooth and fun journey from start to end. I’m deliberately not explaining these things in detail because this game really is best experienced with the original fresh in your mind, with little idea as to how it will be translated.

There’s also a fricking competition mode. You might think what I initially thought, “oh, like in Sonic 3, that must not amount to much.”, but you’d be dead wrong!! This feels like a fangame in itself!! There are multiple types of minigames and 4 campaigns for Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Fang, each telling their own story, with cutscenes, like, with dialogue and shit!! WTF? Why are you so magnificent Noah?

It kind of crushes my soul slightly to say that Triple Trouble Trumps some of my most beloved games, but I can’t deny that it at least stands alongside them, as a true classic Sonic game, and I think it will always feel this way to me.

If you are a classic Sonic fan, please check this game out, it thoroughly deserves it and will not disappoint.

"Limitation breeds innovation". It's the oldest cliche in the book when talking about video-games of the Retro Variety. It's true, and I believe it. If all the solutions, the late-night, sweat-filled hack-job work-arounds that make the impossible possible are good enough, it's those limitations that can be part of the artistry too. Not just the dream.

What happens when those limitations are taken away? Should they be? Is it messing not just with art, but history to do so? These are important questions, students of art have to grapple with them especially in mediums only as new as the Dwight D. Eisenhower Administration.

The story of the Sonic games on Game Gear and Master System (at least, until Triple Trouble) is not just one of that limitation, but it is also one of avoiding imitation. Imitation was only another limitation in a world where they sure as hell didn't need another. Instead, another path was forged, forgoing even the chalk and numbers that was the last vestige tying the knot of the SEGA ecosystem. Sonic the Hedgehog: Triple Trouble was and always will be a Game Gear game. It couldn't have been a Genesis game.

Noah Copeland dares dream of a world where it was anyway. It's been said that the best way to predict the future is to create it. Mr. Copeland predicts a past by also creating it, but with the respect and finesse to not forget Triple Trouble's roots. It doesn't come out of nowhere, it is rooted in something. Yes, it is clearly a Sonic game that is taking after Sonic 3 & Knuckles, turning Triple Trouble into a sequel of that. But if you're going to imagine a past, you better make it believable. Mr. Copeland and his team understood this, it wasn't enough to just be the Sonic game that all Sonic fans would want to play. It convinced me. For the first time that I had played a Sonic fan-game, and I have played many, I had felt that this really could have existed. Sonic 3 & Knuckles, one of the best games ever made, maybe could have been followed up this way. Had it existed, it maybe would have been considered one of the best Sonic games. Had it existed, maybe I would think it's the best Sonic game ever made. Noah Copeland and his team turned the dream into reality; it is my favorite Sonic game ever made.

This is not just a prettier version of that old Game Gear game. Perhaps that would have been enough or preferable for many, but to me that would not have been faithful to the spirit of Triple Trouble, the blazing spirit to make the impossible possible. It's that same spirit more than anything else that Triple Trouble 16-bit handles with grace.

In 1994, a dream came true. In 2022, a dream came true.

My favourite 2D Sonic.

I have some minor annoyances (nitpicks really, I don't even think they're worth mentioning), but nothing that kept me from enjoying the game.
Everything felt intuitive, the special stages are playable, the setpieces are memorable, and the game doesn't punish you for going fast.

Oh also, switching between controlling Sonic and Tails at anytime during the stage is fantastic.
Missed a jump? Just switch and fly back up (because there's not gonna be a bottomless pit! Unless it's one of like two instances where you're hanging onto the side of a moving vehicle.)

It's difficult for me to call this a triple trouble fan-game, it's more-so an expansion pack for sonic 3 & K, while that's absolutely not a bad thing. It does come at a cost of stripping triple trouble of a lot of its unique identity.

And when comparing the level design of 3&K to triple trouble 16-bit, I'd say the genesis game wins pretty handidly.

Still, this is an excellent 2D genesis-style sonic game all the same, the team did a wonderful job with it and I can't wait to see more of their work!

Every Game Gear kid grew up convincing themselves that their Sonics would be just as good as the Mega Drive ones if they just had those Yuji Naka physics. Nope. They'd still be full of shite.

Triple Trouble 16-Bit is an impressive fangame that's hindered by the design sensibilities of the game it's based on, and the gameplay it's trying to incorporate. The levels are often full of blocky geometry with rudimentary enemies and lame gimmicks. Many aspects of Sonic 2, and 3 & Knuckles are attempted here, but they're tamer, crapper versions. You get Sky Chase Zone, except instead of the Tornado, Sonic's got flying shoes and he can spin into enemies, but there's no familiar jumping arc, and it feels crap. There's an attempt to expand on Ice Cap Zone's popular snowboarding sequence, but that takes the form of regular Sonic platforming with fewer abilities. Ice Cap Zone and Death Egg Zone are both quite liberally pulled from, actually, and reproduced in crapper, boxier, more repetitive designs here. There has been a lot of effort put into reworking the Game Gear's assets to bring them in line with the Mega Drive games, but the colour palettes and designs are just too limited and ugly to compare with some of the best-looking console games of the early 90s. It also takes away some of the scruffy appeal of the Game Gear original, in the process. The old art had a hell of a lot more charm than the edited Sonic 3 sprites you get here.

It seems somewhat harsh to compare an amateur hobby project to premier titles from one of the biggest developers in the industry, but that's how a lot of people have responded to it in their shortsighted praise. There's also game-breaking bugs and collision issues. You took a hit near a low ceiling? Say goodbye to those rings.

What has been achieved here is admirable, and there's some ambitious touches to elevate it above its implied intentions. Boss fights are often extended, each level is connected by a transitionary cutscene, and recreating the general geometry of the Game Gear title with the Mega Drive's sprite sizes and gameplay requires a lot of complex considerations, and they typically land on good compromises. There's also alternate characters, post-game unlocks and a competition mode that showcases a few ideas of how to make competitive Sonic better than anything Sega's come up with. It's an impressive project, and the people who created it should feel proud of what they've accomplished.

Just don't kid me on that anyone who isn't immediately sold by the concept ought to play it. Folk are treating it like it's the Sonic 4 that Mega Drive kids always wanted, and it quite candidly isn't that. If Triple Trouble was ever an important game to you, go for it. I really don't think you should be mentioning it to anyone else though.

Cannot believe how good this is. Puzon was right!!

Easily the 2nd best Sonic game ever made after Mania. This was too perfect.

Great levels, never felt like my time was being wasted. Cool boss-fights, always had a good time with them. Loved all the stages.

Sega needs to get their head out of their ass and hire these people and the Mania people again. These games are better than anything Sonic Team has ever done.

i wouldn’t say i like this game any less, but i definitely didn’t realize on first playthrough just how much this game owes to the original, which is not at all a detriment to a remake but does make me a bit more critical of what it did and didn’t add or change. atomic destroyer act 2 in the original may be far more basic, but i would genuinely say i quite prefer it compared to the long, meandering pace of the act in this game, and the weird restrictions on characters just seem half-assed, and also mean playing the game as sonic or tails alone like the original is just impossible. still amazing, but definitely warrants a playthrough of the original first if possible.

This game fucks tremendously. Turning a pretty average 8bit game into a masterfully crafted 16bit one that can go toe-to-toe with the official Mega Drive releases? Now that's impressive.

Effectively turning Sonic 3 into a trilogy, TT16B is seriously impressive, and I highly recommend it to anyone with the slightest interest in Sonic.

Knocking half a star off since Super Sonic is unavailable until New Game Plus, and only works to open the true ending when playing for the first time. That is mad dumb and frustrated me a lot, even if the special stages here are my favorites so far(second only to Sonic CD).

Despite having rated the other Game Gear Sonics pretty low, it's not so much that I dislike those games as it is they just so happened to have some bullshit that really turned me off ever wanting to touch them again. There's some merit to these more compact experiences; fun-sized levels, weird powerups and overall a different vibe.

For as much as Triple Trouble 16-bit is discussed as if it were a remake, it's actually more of a reimagining that pretty much throws out both the good and the bad of the original and instead gives you Sonic 3.5.
On it's own right, it does so well; a lot of Sonic fangames try accomplishing the same thing but fumble the bag either on terms of level design or general game feel. It's super close! I'd even say it's legit better than some of the official, well-regarded Sonic games.

Unfortunately, for something that's based on the Game Gear games, I can't help but feel a bit disappointed at how safe and close to the Genesis games (well, moreso Mania to be honest) it plays. I'm on the minority on this; I'm sure any mentally adjusted human being would be perfectly content in playing a new...ish Genesis styled Sonic game that plays close to a real big boy game. If you do like the Game Gear games, you might feel similar to how I did. Either way, play this and you'll probably have a good time. Fuck,even I might play it again since there's other characters (which should have been unlocked from the beginning, to be perfectly real).

I never played the Game Gear original, but I thought this was pretty cute.

My only major gripe is that the final level is kind of weak compared to the other 2D Sonic games, but that seems less like a failing of this remake and more of the original Triple Trouble. Hit detection can also be wonky at times.

The ridiculous and over-the-top final battle that you get when you gather all the emeralds makes up for those shortcomings, though. There are lots of extras and unlockables for beating the game as well. Definitely worth checking out for 2-D Sonic heads.