I don’t recall how I stumbled on to this fan-made game, which takes place between Sonic 1 and 2 (yes, the old classic Sega Genesis cartridges), but I can only say this:
As a long time fan of Sonic the Hedgehog, who has stood by and watched while Sega drove the franchise into the ground with incessant 3D iterations and an array of incorrigible characters, I was both shocked and amazed at the quality of this fan-made game. It is telling that it takes a handful of passionate fans to produce a game that adheres to the spirit of the original, while the company itself continues to fail over and over again in this department.
Sonic - Before the Sequel not only provides beautiful continuity between the 1st and 2nd games, it does so without superfluous characters and awkward puzzle-style gimmicks. Instead, it is a game that has a diverse set of new levels and themes paying tribute to the original series, and an incredibly rich musical score, which (imo) beats the pants off of anything Sega has done as of late.
The part that astounds me the most is how the creator (LakeFepard) paid attention to the subtle parts of Sonic the Hedgehog, and incorporated them into this game. He looked at things like Sonic running on the bolts of screws to raise or lower platforms and implement similar clever items like rockets that would fire if you ran blindly across, but wouldn’t fire if simply walked over, or gravity increase / decrease auras that grant Sonic the ability to leap further or fall faster, destroying walkways in the process…all subtle bits of flavor that have long been absent from the commercial games.
Even the levels are carefully laid out, playing to the strengths of either Sonic or Tails; in this “presequel”, you alternate between Sonic or Tails – rather than sticking with one particular character throughout.
Overall, highly recommended, especially if you are an old-school gamer, and super especially if you are a Sonic fan, and have long since become disgusted with how the series has turned since the 90s.