No, it’s not an ode to Street Fighter II’s Guile, but rather a focused compilation of Sonic the Hedgehog melodies created by Spencer Nilsen, a music composer, arranger, and producer best known for his
work on first-party Sega CD games. Yet Sonic Boom, which exclusively consists of Sonic CD tunes as well as selections from Sonic Spinball, is more of a curiosity than something you’ll want to listen to more than once.
The problem? The arrangements never feel like they belong in a video game, much less an upbeat, fast-paced Sonic title. Interestingly enough, the soundtrack for the U.S. version of Sonic CD was completely redone for American audiences, causing a stir in at least one mainstream game magazine, Die Hard Gamefan. Though not exactly known for its editorial restraint or even-keeled tone, the magazine was quick to criticize the revamped soundtrack in the January 1994 issue, knocking the game’s final score down 20% on average from the Japanese version. This was unusual for the hype-crazy review crew, who tossed out 100% scores on almost a monthly basis.
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