The Worst Sonic Game Was Delisted 10 Years Ago, But Now It's Back

There once was a time whenSonic the Hedgehogwas one of the premiere video game franchises in the industry, with each installment selling well and earning rave reviews from critics. That changed in 2006 with the release ofSonic the Hedgehogfor PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, a disaster of a game that’s often cited as not only one of the worstSonicgames ever made, but one of the worst games ever made, period.

Sonic the Hedgehog, also referred to asSonic 06to differentiate it from the original game, was made by a relatively small team of developers at Sonic Team and was rushed to store shelves so it could be out in time for the holiday shopping season. The end result is a buggy mess with an unwieldy camera and a mountain of other problems that make it borderline unplayable in some cases. It’s a blemish on theSonic the Hedgehogfranchisethat some would say caused permanent damage for the blue hedgehog’s reputation, but now it’s back, in limited capacity.

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In an attempt to make theSonic the Hedgehogfandomforget aboutSonic 06, Sega delisted the game from digital storefronts along with other poorly-reviewedSonicgames in an attempt to improve the brand’s image. But for reasons unknown,Sonic 06is back on at least one digital storefront, over a decade after it was originally delisted.

As spotted by Sonic Stadium,Sonic the Hedgehog2006 is now back on the Xbox 360 marketplace and is currently available for digital purchase. It’s unclear why this is, and it’s entirely possible that it’s a mistake. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time thatXbox accidentally relisted gamesthat shouldn’t be available for purchase, and sinceSonic 06is not backward compatible with the newer Xbox consoles, it seems like that’s the most likely explanation.

Then again, maybe this was a deliberate move on Microsoft’s part at the request of Sega. Perhaps the company decided that 10+ years is long enough forSonic the Hedgehogto forget about howSonic 06burned them, and it may no longer be interested in hiding it from the public. TheSonic the Hedgehogfranchise is enjoying quite a bit of goodwill right now thanks to thewell-receivedSonic the Hedgehogmovies, so maybe Sega is no longer concerned aboutSonic 06tarnishing the brand’s reputation.

Any Xbox 360 gamers who feel like checking outSonic 06for whatever reason should buy it while it’s still available, as it’s unlikely to stay on the marketplace for long. In the meantime, those interested in newSonic the Hedgehoggaming experience haveSonic Frontiersto look forward to later this year.

Sonic the Hedgehogis available for PS3 and Xbox 360.