Could running be more fun? Yes. You could play as a blue woodland animal, like a Hedgehog.
The same as the first game, from the second you pick up the controller to the end, you know what to do and how to do it. The controls are still simple enough for even the youngest players and the whole idea is simply to run as fast as you possibly can to the other side of the level while destroying robots and collecting as many rings as possible to get the highest possible points. Since the game is centered around fun it isn't too difficult or complicated to follow. The only thing that's changing between levels is the level and the difficulty. If this were any other game, that would be considered bad, but the simple formula doesn't seem to get boring whether you know the level or have mastered the game completely. It's simply put, a fun game.
Basically, the level starts and you run. Early on, this isn't a problem. It's pretty easy and a very enjoyable experience. In the later levels, that concept gets tossed. You need to go slow to get around all the traps, pitfalls, and enemies. Even the level doesn't like you since the levels start to get less and less like a race track and more like a giant gauntlet specifically made to prohibit fast hedgohogs from running fast. You'll need to jump more and walk. Up until a certain point, the player will have never known there was a walk animation. At this designated point, things will suddenly feel like they're playing a regular platformer. Walking slow as to not get hit by several obstacles at once, paying attention to where their walking and waiting till the absolute last second to jump, and so on. These obstacles that force the naturally fast moving Sonic to go slow can be extremely aggravating since they usually come along when you're running on a track and you couldn't possibly see the incoming jump. However, this kind of problems doesn't arise often enough to make the player want to stop playing. On the contrary, the levels are so diverse and well made that the simple concept that never gets boring anyway is actually enhanced. Different kinds of tracks, obstacles, and special objects like cannons to shoot out of or spirals to run through are apparent from zone to zone, so the player will need to re-adapt to each zone. The player will reach a new zone every 3 levels, so the environment doesn't get boring and it almost never feels repetitive.
The game is better on most fronts, despite the problems that followed it from the first game. The controls are better. Maybe it's just my imagination, but Sonic seems to move more controllably, NOT slower, but he does seem to slow down faster. Now you can use the Spin Attack, which makes you get fast instantly as opposed to needing to run to get speed going. This new move alone allows the player to get past more difficult obstacles, defeat enemies, and obviously move very fast in a much more forgiving manner than the first game. The bosses are still slouches that any player can run circles around, but that actually adds to the fun. The player will get a sense that they're awesome and cool along the way, so hard bosses would be a real newsflash. This time around, Sonic has a sidekick named Miles Prower ( miles per hour. sarcastic laughing) nicknamed Tails. He constantly follows right behind Sonic, so the skilled player can actually use him to do double damage in boss fights, but he never becomes full playable other than in VS mode. 2 players can race each other on a track splitscreen style, 1 player Sonic and the other Tails. The new features are welcome and greatly enhance the game despite how slight of differences they may be. The other features of the game like sound, graphics, and replay are all fantastic. You will never find yourself in a boring environment listening to dull music. Things are always fast and exciting, including the gameplay. The only real thing bogging it down is in the later levels. As a whole, the game is great, especially for being on Sega Genesis. 7 being average, 9.1 out of 10