The Ugliest Hedgehog

[Zeta]

I hate that picture of Tails in that SegaWorld Austrailia picture. His face and eyes are horribly lopsided, but they put that picture of him in EVERYTHING.

Sonic 3 US deserves another mention for the way it took Knuckles, one of the most compelling aspects of this new installment, and threw him into a bush.

Even Knuckles has to answer the call of nature sometimes.

[G.Silver]

I'm still kind of surprised the Super 32X Chaotix cover isn't on here. That was the laziest box cover ever. Ever.

I considered that actually for that very reason, but I think the end result is really rather cool-looking. I like it better than the US box art.

[Ngangbius]

Another thing, you thought the Sonic Gems Collection boxart was ugly, but you did not nominate the Sonic CD US boxart?

[G.Silver]

I've got a soft spot for that one too. Sonic's not the best model but he's well drawn and in an active pose, and the entire composition is fairly active, plus you've got a few background elements that compliment the game fairly nicely. Metal Sonic also looks pretty cool. There are plenty of other boxes in that style (Sonic 2, 3, and Chaos) and I think they're worse.

[Locit]

It always bugged me that Knuckles' eyes were connected in the Sonic 3 boxart more than anything else. It was like they weren't even trying. Or were doing it just to bug the kind of people that would notice.

[big_smile]

It’s too bad that SOA didn’t select this for the Sonic 3 box art. It’s hardly a masterpiece, but just using the ‘3’ image with no other text (not even a Sonic logo) would have been a big improvement over the existing design.

---
I voted for the PAL Sonic 3D box. Everything about it is ugly including the logo and background ring design.

^_^

[DackAttac]

I love Dead Eyes Eggman. I was six when S2 came out, and it made my skin crawl. And eventually, I got to play against that gigantic robo Eggman. My main problem with Sonic currently is they don't try to make Eggman scary (I'm convinced his new character model was just a happy accident).

Around 1995, I was head-deep in the saga and loved everything about it. And even the PAL S3 made me go "Oooooh... that's not looking good." And it's weird, since they went ahead and drew Carnival Night Zone, and I love it when the game zones are drawn—especially when the artist takes the 2D and interprets it into 3D. It's really not done often enough, if you ask me. But still, Sonic looks hideous. And Knuckles looks worse.

Yes, that Sonic 3D Blast is horrific, but that's almost the point. This was the first "3D" version of Sonic, and everyone took the lunge forward despite how stupid and blocky it looked. Of course, Sonic didn't actually take that step in that particular title, but the whole point of being 3D was to go ahead and do it despite looking pretty bad. It's like how the party's not fun if nobody's willing to go swimming. Yes, Becky, you still have that gut, and John, we know your pecs look like fake tits. But c'mon. Let's have a good time, eh?

Balding Eggman should irk me, and it did at the time, since even though I did watch AoStH, I knew it was a separate entity from the games and wanted that partition to stay. But let's face it. Sonic looks good on that Triple Trouble cover. And so does Fang, but that's a given, as you said. And that image of Knuckles holding up his fist and mentally cursing the mitten-make of his glove that holds his middle finger down with the rest is forever engraved in my head as the ultimate statement of Sonic & Knuckles' tension.

It's a shame those conflicts got resolved. I do love it when they fight.

[Tsuyoshi-kun]

I actually really like the Sonic Triple Trouble box art. The only thing that bothers me is that Tails is absent from the picture, in all honesty.

[Hybrid]

Sonic 3D PAL gets my vote. I thought it looked like ass when I was six years old, in fact I remember thinking his spines looked like a bunch of tentacles randomly growing out of his face.

Sonic 3 PAL comes second, though, despite the fact I actually like the Sonic artwork (well, his face at least. His body is all weird). I don't know if anybody noticed, but not only is Knuckles' face butt-ugly, he's also missing his white collar. Not to mention that he's actually holding his thumb inside his fist. I don't care how strong he is, only retards punch like that.

[gr4yJ4Y]

Not to mention that he's actually holding his thumb inside his fist. I don't care how strong he is, only retards punch like that.

There was a debate about this in a couple of issues of EGM back when Street Fighter Alpha 3 first came out. In one of the pictures one of the characters was making a fist with the tumb on the outside. In the end it was decided that there are different fighting styles which use inner-thumb style fighting and outer-thumb style fighting (yes, even when giving punches).

[Baba O'Reily]

The Way of the Self Bitten Ear is not an officially recognized martial arts style, no matter what the people at EGM tell you.

[Double-S-]

I can't think of any fighting style that uses a fist with the thumb tucked inside.

And logically, you don't get a flat knuckle surface with that, and when you hit something with force you'd probably pop your thumb.

[Light Speed]

Of all the fighting styles I know of, I have no idea how any of them punch. Cause I just know their names and the general area they came from.

[Delphine]

when you hit something with force you'd probably pop your thumb.

More like break. Even punching something lightly with your thumb tucked in is uncomfortable.

[j-man]

You're supposed to curl your thumb around and push it against the thumb-side of your index finger, nearer your knuckle. My mate Mike said that was the best way to punch someone, and he did kung fu or something.

But anyway. Sonic 3D PAL, mostly thanks to the fact that every single goddamned fucking bastard issue of Sonic the Comic for like 3 cocking years afterwards used that model as their reference. It didn't help that Mike McMahon couldn't draw Sonic for shit.

[Zarathustra]

At this point I'm really starting to wonder how good of an economical investment was/ is to buy the American and/ or European Sonic comics.

[aso]

At this point I'm really starting to wonder how good of an economical investment was/ is to buy the American and/ or European Sonic comics.

In a sense, it's not that bad an investment. If you seal all of the issues in plastic bags and sell them as 'mint' on eBay, then you can probably make a good deal of money from some misbegotten fanboy.

Also: Sonic Spinball, GG. Took the perfectly fine box art of Spinball on the Gen then did the characters in AoStH style. Crap.

[Arcade]

I'm voting for Europe's Sonic 3D Blast cover. It barely even resembles Sonic. What the hell were they thinking?

that 3D was cool even if it looks like crap...

[Brazillian Cara]

Well, an universal law around here is that "cool" is crap. Or something in those lines.

[Light Speed]

Nah, I'd say more like mainstream is crap, but not because it is mainstream, just most things that are mainstream are crap. A lot of unpopular stuff is crap too. We just have taste.

[Brazillian Cara]

Well, I'm proof that this is a semi-truth. Oh right, Sonic covers.
I still keep my vote for the Sonic 3 PAL, but Sonic 3D PAL definatly has a feel that the artist had almost no idea on what he was working on.

[TailsMcCloud]

Agreed.

[sasuke the dragonhog]

I would have to say sonic 3D blast because the game sucks(in my oppinion) and so does the box art in second place is sonic triple teouble that background is attrocious

[Light Speed]

Your first post is attrocious.

[Locit]

That was out of line, Light Speed.
I would've hoped you'd make fun of the fact that his board name includes the word "dragonhog".