Game music of the day: Sonic the Hedgehog 2

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GR's ongoing tribute to the beloved world of videogame music

Welcome to GamesRadar's daily blast of all things pertaining to the ever-growing field of game music. Each post will introduce new sounds, games, composers and fan-made remixes of gaming's greatest aural achievements.

July 9, 2010

Game: Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Song: Aquatic Ruin Zone

Composer: Masato Nakamura


Above: Aquatic Ruin Zone from Sonic 2

Long before the Sonic series adopted shredding guitars and voiced character anthems, the original Genesis/Mega Drive games packed in dozens of legendary tracks that just about any gamer alive in the '90s will remember. We already covered Sonic 1 (way back in March), so today it's all about Sonic 2.

But which song to pick? As with so many games in the GMOTD archives, Sonic 2 has nothing but excellent music, but if I had to pick a favorite, it'd be Aquatic Ruin Zone. No particular reason why, I just love the sound of it, from the melody to the actual "instrument" choices made by Nakamura. Love listening to this one.

Oil Ocean, above, is possibly number two on my list. Again, the sounds used to build this song don't reek of typical Genesis music, making it a standout piece of music in a game that already looks, plays and sounds great. Love the Egyptian feel and all the percussion.

If you're digging Sonic 2 today, or just generally love Sonic music, be sure to check out the complete ReMix album,Hedgehog Heaven. That's 22 tracks of OverClocked goodness, all free. Get on it!


To Far Away Times by Yasunori Mitsuda


Neon Night by O'Donnell and Salvatori


Weeks and weeks worth of quality VGM

Brett Elston
Brett Elston

A fomer Executive Editor at GamesRadar, Brett also contributed content to many other Future gaming publications including Nintendo Power, PC Gamer and Official Xbox Magazine. Brett has worked at Capcom in several senior roles, is an experienced podcaster, and now works as a Senior Manager of Content Communications at PlayStation SIE.