Gallery: iam8bit's Sonic Legacy Cartridges Are Stunning, But Are They Worth The Money?
For a select few, potentially
by Ollie Reynolds · Nintendo LifeWhen iam8bit announced its Legacy Cartridge Collection for Sonic and Sonic 2 on Sega Genesis a few months back, it's safe to say that most people were taken aback by the price. Available via iam8bit's official store page, each cartridge — complete with authentic case, instruction manual, and poster — is priced at $99.99.
That's a lot. Certainly a hefty chunk more than both games cost together digitally on Switch. Hell, you can pick up Sonic Origins Plus for 20 quid these days. So no, for the Average Joe who just wants to play these games in whichever manner is most convenient, these are probably not worth the money.
However. There are some proper diehard Sonic fans out there; folks who will quite happily buy any and all collectibles and merch they can get their hands on (and yes, despite a love-hate relationship with Sonic, I too am far too weak to resist a good bit of merch). For those people, the price might just be worth it, because holy moly, these things are gorgeous.
Images: Ollie Reynolds / Nintendo Life
For starters, the cases look and feel like original Genesis games, complete with the textured sleeve and display hook. The colours — blue for the first game, orange for the second — really work well with the original artwork, but if you fancy changing it up, the sleeves are reversible to display the Japanese variants.
The instruction manuals are great, too. Sonic 1 contains a new foreword by Sonic Mania dev Christian Whitehead, while Sonic 2 includes one by Team Sonic. They're both chock full of information on gameplay, options, characters, and enemies. In a world in which instruction manuals have essentially gone extinct, this is a solid effort.
Images: Ollie Reynolds / Nintendo Life
Moving onto the cartridges themselves, I absolutely love them... but I also kind of hate them. Let me explain.
iam8bit kindly sent these over to me, and the cartridges I received are both rarer variants in which the casing itself is translucent while the interior lights up when plugged in. They're incredible; I love them. But not everyone who buys them will get these variants – in fact, most won't.
iam8bit states that there's a 1-in-8 chance of nabbing a light-up "Chaos Emerald energy" one, but otherwise you'll be getting a blue cartridge for Sonic 1 and an orange cartridge for Sonic 2.
Introducing random elements into cheap plastic toys you get from the supermarket is one thing, but these are $99.99 each. For that price, you should really know what you're getting, and I think iam8bit would have been wise to offer customers the option. The standard cartridges still look great, but if you have a clear preference either way, you probably don't want to take the chance for that kind of money.
Images: Ollie Reynolds / Nintendo Life
Overall though, I do love these cartridges. If you view them as just games, then yes, they're bloody expensive. But as collectibles to display on your shelf that also happen to work on original hardware, they're pretty cool. Considering publishers are all too willing to charge $200+ on collector's editions containing a naff, plastic statue, these are a nice alternative if you're a big fan of all things Sonic.
For everyone else? Just get Sonic Origins Plus.
Sonic the Hedgehog (35th Anniversary) - Legacy Cartridge Collection
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (35th Anniversary) - Legacy Cartridge Collection
So, what are your thoughts on iam8bit's new Legacy Cartridge Collection for Sonic and Sonic 2? Would you pick them up? Let us know with a comment.