Format: Cartridge
Genre: Pinball
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Sega

John Duggan, who directed the game's art, states his intent early, as the first moment of gameplay sees Sonic leap from the water, whereupon he cutely shakes the wetness off of his mane of spiky blue hair. Sonic Spinball is loaded with moments like that, from the humorous commentary constantly marqueeing across the top of the screen, to the way Sonic's eyes-- he is visible via "reflections" in the pinball table glass-- follow the ball during the bonus stages. It's a shame that the stage art-- particularly from the latter two boards-- is just a shade on the generic side. But even then, Sonic Spinball is a seriously polished looking game, perhaps even moreso than the mainline releases.

Unlike the cases for the first two Sonic titles, a trio of Western sound men produced the music and sound effects for Spinball. The game's sound effects are some of the best on the system; whooshing steam, creaking doors, and demonstrative abstract effects all sound crystal clear, and give the game a lot of character. The music, on the other hand, is-- like some of the game's stage art-- just a bit too generic to be mentioned in the same breath as the "Green Hill Zone" or "Chemical Plant Zone" songs, from the first two Sonic games respectively.

It was once said that video game pinball games should do things that couldn't be done on a real table, and Sonic Spinball takes that to heart, with interspersed jumping segments, mine cart rides, and other conventions typical to platformers. The on-foot player physics are floaty and imprecise, but the most important piece-- the actual pinball physics-- are excellent. The tables emphasize clear progression over high score chasing-- although the latter is certainly present-- which gives the game a sharply cut distinction from other pinball video games.

With the prospect of "bit off too much" Sonic 3 not making the 1993 Christmas season, Sega's execs threw the Sega Technical Institute fellows on the job of rapidly producing a new Sonic title, with Spinball being the eventual result of six months of hard labor. Even ignoring that strict timeline, Spinball is a fantastic hybrid release, with just enough of a high score aspect to keep the play addicting, while layering on platformer-like advancement with a clear player skills progression. With a little more time, the undoubtedly rushed stage art in the later boards could have been given more attention, but even with that shortcoming, Sonic Spinball is a seriously underrated game that deserves the attention of any pinball aficionado.