Summary
- "Bedroom coders" evolved from creating games on microcomputers to making indie games and ROM hacks.
- Companies like Sega have tolerated Sonic fan games and ROM hacks for years, even leading to job opportunities.
- Impressive Sonic fan games like Hellfire Saga and Sonic World DX offer engaging gameplay experiences.
Once upon a time, tech-savvy kids could code their own games, sell them to publishers, and enter the computer world that way. These 'bedroom coders’ became a fad, especially in places where microcomputers like the Commodore 64 were big. Nowadays, they tend to get into software development in more typical, boring ways. But they haven’t gone away. If they’re not making indie games, they’re experimenting with ROM hacks and fan games.
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Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the gaming industry's most recognizable characters. Humorously, several unrelated games add the blue blur via mods.
Not every company is happy to see their IPs fiddled with like this, yet some tacitly tolerate it. For example, there have been a range of Sonic the Hedgehog fan games and ROM hack competitions that have run for years, even decades, without Sega calling foul on them thus far. In some cases, they may have helped their collaborators get work at the Blue Blur’s company. Here are some of the best Sonic fan games that can be found on the net.
Updated on March 27, 2025 by David Heath: The Sonic the Hedgehog games have caused a buzz to one degree or another, with opinions often shifting over time. Back in 2010, Sonic Colors was considered an improvement over Sonic Unleashed for ditching the werehog and focusing on the boost gameplay. 15 years and a dodgy remaster later, it's considered the lesser game for its reliance on 2D stages and autorunning sections.
By contrast, Sonic Unleashed has been reappraised thanks to its more complex level design, and modern hardware being able to run its Jungle Joyride stage without turning it into a slideshow. Like them or loathe them, both games have been back in the news lately thanks to some fanmade remasters that give them a whole new dimension. So, it seemed fitting to include these works along some new entries, and give the list some spring-cleaning by reorganizing it a little. That way, readers can keep track of what type of fan game goes where, etc.
26 Hellfire Saga
Sonic Takes On Ghouls N' Ghosts
- Creator: Red Miso Studios.
- Based On: Sonic 1-3 & Knuckles, Castlevania, Ghouls N' Ghosts, Demon's Crest, Kid Chameleon, Splatterhouse, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Sparkster, Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse, Ghost Sweeper Mikami, Omori, Gaiares, Contra: Hard Corps, The Adventures of Batman & Robin.
With that list of bases, it's no wonder Sonic Hellfire Saga took five years to fully complete. It's been worth it, as its development won its members multiple awards at the Sonic Hacking Contest over the years, coming 2nd in the 2019 and 2021 contests, before getting the top prize at the 2023 contest. That's not to mention its multiple community prizes and honorable mentions.
Inspired primarily by Castlevania and Ghouls N' Ghosts, Sonic sees himself trapped in the underworld, where he must contend with its demonic denizens to find a way out. Given its inspirations, it's not the easiest hack out there, as it offers some particularly challenging boss fights. Luckily, it does come with difficulty settings, from Assist (for players who want mercy) to Maniac (for masochists). It's pretty much the perfect Sonic fan game for players who want to get into the Halloween spirit.
25 Sonic Frenzy Adventure
A Blast from Fan Games' Past
- Creator: BlueFrenzy.
- Based On: Sonic 1-3 & Knuckles, Sonic Advance, Sonic Adventure 1-2.
Sonic Frenzy Adventure is an interesting one, as work began on it way back in 2004. According to BlueFrenzy, they planned a big 2D adventure involving Sonic and his friends stopping a possessed Egg Robo from creating their own mechanical empire. But the project's scope proved to be beyond their reach, and they had to focus on making a living instead. Its remaining data was thought lost when the hard drive containing it went kaput. However, it was about fifteen years later that BlueFrenzy found a pen drive containing a backup.
With more time on their hands thanks to the pandemic, they streamlined what they had leftover to produce a fun combo of classic Sonic action with additions from the Advance and Adventure games. It has five characters, each with their own abilities, alongside six shields and plenty of hidden collectibles, including Chao Eggs for players to raise their own Chao. While not as sophisticated as later Sonic fan games, it's an impressive display of skill with a lot to offer players.
24 Sonic Vs Darkness: True Nightmare Revived
Rushing Into the Void
- Creator: Nefault1st.
- Based On: Sonic Rush, Sonic Advance, Sonic Unleashed, Super Smash Bros Melee.
Like Sonic Frenzy Adventure, Sonic Vs Darkness: True Nightmare Revived is also a revival of an old project. Except this time, it was a game-ification of Nefault1st's own YouTube animated series. Here, Sonic and Shadow must collect the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman can use them for "Project Erubis," which plans to coat the world in eternal darkness (without being Eternal Darkness).
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The game uses Sonic Advance sprites, but goes for Sonic Rush-style gameplay, complete with a Sonic Unleashed-style boost meter where the hedgehogs have to keep up their rings, or chain tricks together, to keep the meter topped up. The more meter energy they have, the more they can boost through its levels. The game even comes with customizable skills, an online multiplayer mode, and an original soundtrack. Sadly, the current build is more of a demo, with just a few levels and acts, but what's there is a highly polished Sonic Rush experience that's worth playing.
23 Sonic Triple Trouble 16-Bit
A Classic Game Gear Game Gets the Genesis Treatment
- Creator: Noah N. Copeland.
- Based On: Sonic 3 & Knuckles, Sonic Triple Trouble.
The biggest additions to Sonic Origins Plus were the 12 Game Gear titles, many of which had previously appeared in older collections. As neat as they are, they don't look great when blown up onto a bigger screen. Savvy players can at least find the Master System releases of 8-bit Sonic 1, 2, and Sonic Chaos to avoid the screen crunch. But the best of the bunch, Sonic Triple Trouble, was a Game Gear exclusive and doesn't have an alternative port.
So Noah N. Copeland made his own with 16-bit graphics and new controls. In Sonic Triple Trouble 16-Bit, Sonic can now do Sonic Mania's Drop Dash alongside Triple Trouble's Strike Dash. He can use the Elemental Shields from Sonic 3 & Knuckles, and he can tag out to Tails (who can swim and fly). Knuckles, Fang the Sniper, Amy Rose, and Metal Sonic can also be unlocked as playable characters too, so there's plenty for players to sink their teeth into.
22 Metal Sonic Rebooted
Sonic's Rogue Robot Takes the Spotlight
- Creator: Lone Devil.
- Based On: Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
Players have to beat Sonic Triple Trouble 16-bit once as Sonic and Tails to unlock Knuckles, then beat it as Knuckles to play as the Blue Blur's metallic menace. But if they want him in his own game, Lone Devil reworked the original Genesis Sonic the Hedgehog 2 into Metal Sonic Rebooted. In it, Metal Sonic has to prove he's not obsolete to Dr. Eggman by destroying his new badniks and collecting the Chaos Emeralds before them.
Metal Sonic comes with some special abilities. For five rings, he can blast ahead with the Overdrive Attack, or shoot diagonally in midair with the Diagonal Aerial Dash. The vertical equivalent, which can be used to find new shortcuts or level areas, requires 10 rings. He can also go into Overclocked Mode with 200 Rings, where he's faster and invincible, but it drains his rings faster than Super mode and doesn't work underwater. As a plus, he can't drown, so that's one advantage over the walking pincushion.
21 Sonic Time Twisted
The Blue Blur Goes Back To The Future
- Creator: Overbound Game Studio.
- Based On: Sonic CD, Sonic 3 & Knuckles.
Sonic Time Twisted began development in 2005, tweaked by multiple hands, each overseen by Overbound Game Studio until it was officially released in 2017. The game combines elements from Sonic CD and the Genesis games, as Sonic and friends have to collect the Chaos Emeralds and the Time Stones to stop Metal Sonic. Players can pick Sonic, Tails, or Knuckles to explore the Past and Future versions of eight zones.
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Players can use Sonic 3's Elemental Shields, alongside three new ones that let Sonic fly (Wind), resist spikes (Rock), and freeze badniks (Ice). They might need them, as they have to time travel via posts a la Sonic CD and find the Special Stage rings in both the Past and Future to get the Emeralds and Stones. They both involve beating Metal Sonic in a race, with the Past ones resembling his boss fight in Sonic CD, and the Future ones being like Sonic 2's special stages. They all have to be beaten to access the true final zone. So, no pressure.
20 Sonic Overture '95
A Remake Of Sonic's Primordial Form
- Creators: Pixy-Pie, Additional Trees, LakeFeperd.
- Based On: Sonic the Hedgehog pre-release demo, Sega Saturn games.
This list previously featured Sonic Utopia, an inventive open-world take on classic Sonic games that, with work, could've become the definitive fan game equivalent to Sonic Frontiers. But its creator came under scrutiny for racism and abuse of other fan game developers. The worst of it was when he took over the Sonic: From the Beginning project and made it into Sonic Overture, where his behavior gradually led to its cancelation.
However, it's since come back with a fresh set of developers, levels, and assets as Sonic Overture '95. It's a prequel to Sonic 1 based on its pre-release demo, as Sonic takes on the old prototype enemies in new zones on Christmas Island. The game uses some of its pre-planned mechanics, like walking on giant balls to get past obstacles while using some new features to produce 3D-style bosses. It currently only has 2 playable zones, but it's nice to see a project that deserves better treatment get a revival.
19 Sonic The Hedgehog Megamix
One Of The Predecessors To Sonic Mania
- Creator: Team Megamix.
- Based On: Sonic 1-2, Sonic CD, Knuckles Chaotix, Sonic Adventure 2.
Making fan games isn’t a surefire way to get hired by one big company or another. However, it’s one way to make an interesting resumé. Before Simon ‘Stealth’ Thomley put together Headcannon Studios and co-created Sonic Mania and Sonic Origins, he worked with other notable coders on Sonic the Hedgehog Megamix. It was an ambitious fangame that redrew and tweaked the original Sonic the Hedgehog levels and threw in new sound effects, music, moves, and characters.
Sonic, Tails, Shadow, and Mighty all turned up, each with their own moves from the Lightspeed Dash to the time-stopping Chaos Control. The project stalled when it moved to a 4.0 beta build for Sega CD hardware and emulators. But the 3.0 build is stable and works with Genesis emulators and machines. The particularly sneaky can even find cartridge versions on the black market, but it’s safer (and cheaper) to search for the game online.
18 Sonic 1: The Next Level
Floating Around At The Speed Of Sound
- Creators: MarkeyJester, GalliumGrant.
- Based On: Sonic 1-2, Sonic CD.
Despite being a relatively short game (3 acts and a boss), Sonic 1: The Next Level swept the 2015 Sonic Hacking Contest, winning the most trophies out of any entry in the contest’s history up to that point. It only has 3 Acts and a Boss round, but it has new level assets, new music, new badniks, and smoother animation than the original game. That’s not to mention some new gameplay mechanics like antigravity and hoverbikes.
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The game also caught on beyond the Sonic Hacking community, appearing in Retro Gamer magazine's features among others. Footage of it was even used for Netflix’s High Score series in its episode on the Console War between the Genesis and SNES. The episode clearly displayed its title, gimmicks, and references (‘Jester Stream Technology’), but someone at Netflix somehow mistook it for a legit Sonic game. If only.
17 Sonic: Before The Sequel
Sonic 1.5
- Creator: LakeFeperd.
- Based On: Sonic 1-2, Sonic CD, Sonic Advance.
Ever thought it was weird when a series makes a sequel or prequel to just one specific game? Like how the Street Fighter Alpha series (Zero in Japan) takes place before Street Fighter 2 but after Street Fighter 1? That’s what Sonic: Before the Sequel does for Sonic. Made by LakeFeperd, who went on to make the Spark the Electric Jester games, S:BtS gives the hedgehog a new adventure where he meets Tails for the first time.
It’s a very beefy game, with twelve zones to go through, with all but the final one having 3 acts per zone: two gameplay acts, and a boss one. If players want the good ending, they have to beat the game in under 2 hours to get it. Any longer and they’ll get the bad ending. Sonic isn’t as loaded with moves as in Sonic the Hedgehog Megamix, but he has his spindash and Sonic CD’s Super Peel-Out. Tails can fly as well, unlike in the original Genesis sequel.