Man, Sonic Advance was such a big deal when it dropped on the GBA—first time Sonic ever showed up on a Nintendo system after Sega stopped making consoles. Feels weird now, but back then it was wild seeing him on a Game Boy.

It’s classic 2D Sonic—speed, loops, those annoying spike traps you never see coming—but with smoother animation and way more detail than the Genesis days. You’ve got Tails, Knuckles, and Amy as playable characters too, which changes up how you blast through zones. Amy’s hammer swing is stupidly satisfying for smashing robots.

Some of the later levels get brutal (looking at you, Ice Mountain), but nailing a perfect run with Sonic’s homing attack never gets old. They nailed the feel of the old games while making it fresh for handhelds.