The thought of a Now That's What I Call Sonic The Hedgehog compilation will either fill you with a mixture of tear-sniffing nostalgia, mild excitement, or dread. He first appeared in 1991, and in the amoebic pre-PlayStation days gave us a class-A-fuelled gaming experience like no other. There's the nostalgia. The gameplay wasn't especially deep, but it didn't matter - it was the furious speed that counted, delivering ten-minute nuggets of pure fun. There's the excitement. But the first game was followed by a glut of sequels and spin-off titles. Ah, the dread.

Almost all the Sonic games are note are included here, plus bonus features, unlockable games and a selection of Game Gear games, too. (What's the Game Gear, you say? Think of it as Sega's version of the PSP - but with worse battery life and the weight of a housebrick.) However, the pack is ten quid more than the Gamecube version that was released nearly two years ago, and for the extra tenner you get that bunch of lesser-loved handheld games to pick from. But to be honest, the less said about them, the better. Why, for example, would you want to play Sonic 1 on the Game Gear when the superior Mega Drive version is winking suggestively at you at the top of the menu? There are a few 8-Bit specific titles included - Sonic Labyrinth and Sonic Drift - but unless you really don't have anything better to do, they'll never be played after you've had a brief dabble for curiosity's sake.

As well as the initial line-up of titles, more can be unlocked as you progress through the game - although we have sneaking suspicions that at least one of them can only be unlocked by having a game save of Sonic Heroes on your memory card... shame on you, Sega. Although they're not Sonic-related, two of the games on offer are worthy of their inclusion (the great Comix Zone and Ristar) while the others (The Ooze and Flicky) do little more than make up the numbers.

So should you buy Sonic Mega Collection Plus? Possibly, but if it was stripped of the Game Gear padding and thrown out at £20, then it'd be a far more attractive proposition. The Sonic games are still enjoyable to play (a rare occurrence in retro gaming) and it's interesting to see the natural progression Sega took through the series but, as it stands, this simply isn't worth the price tag.

Graphics 30%
Fine for their day, but struggling now.

Sound 60%
Plays along like an excitable R2-D2.

Gameplay 70%
The Sonic games are still hugely enjoyable.

Lifespan 60%
Loads of choice and mini-games to unlock.

Overall 50%
Still a lot of fun to be had with the original Sonic games, but out of the seventeen included, only a few are worthy of repeated play.