Editing Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (section)

==Development==
Like ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'', ''Sonic the Hedgehog 3'' was developed in California by [[Sega Technical Institute]] (STI).<ref name="STIRetro">{{cite magazine|last=Day|first=Ashley|year=2007|title=Company Profile: Sega Technical Institute|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|publisher=[[Imagine Publishing]]|issue=36|pages=28–33}}</ref> After the completion of ''Sonic 2'', the producer, [[Yuji Naka]], refused to develop another ''Sonic'' game if he had to work with the Americans again.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Thorpe |first1=Nick |date=December 2017 |title=The Making of: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 |magazine=[[Retro Gamer]] |publisher=[[Future plc]] |location=[[Bournemouth]] |pages=20–29 |issue=175 |issn=1742-3155}}</ref> STI split into two teams: one comprised Japanese developers, who worked on ''Sonic 3,'' and the other Americans, who worked on ''[[Sonic Spinball]]''.<ref name="gamestm">{{cite journal|title=Sonic 3 & Knuckles - Behind the Scenes|journal=[[GamesTM]]|issue=60|pages=140–144|url=http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_3_%26_Knuckles_-_Behind_the_Scenes_(GamesTM_issue_60) |date=August 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Story of Sonic the Hedgehog |magazine=[[Retro Gamer]] |publisher=[[Imagine Publishing]] |issue=158 |year=2016 |first=Nick |last=Thorpe |pages=18–25}}</ref><ref name="den">{{cite web|last1=Horowitz|first1=Ken|title=Developer's Den: Sega Technical Institute|url=http://www.sega-16.com/2007/06/developers-den-sega-technical-institute/|website=Sega-16|access-date=March 15, 2018|date=June 11, 2007}}</ref> Naka and [[Hirokazu Yasuhara]] were the primary creators of the ''Sonic 3'' [[software design document|design document]] and project schedule.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sost.emulationzone.org/sonic_3/interview/rogerhector.htm|title=Roger Hector: Director of STI Interviews|date=October 2005|publisher=EmulationZone|quote=Once Naka & Yasuhara agreed on a general design approach, they drew up a schedule and started working|access-date=January 22, 2015}}</ref> Naka selected the majority of the team, while STI director Roger Hector oversaw development and Pamela Kelly led the marketing.<ref name="gamestm" />{{sfn|Thorpe|2017|p=29}}

Development began in January 1993. The team initially used the [[Sega Virtua Processor]] chip, allowing for [[3D computer graphics|3D graphics]]. They created a prototype with [[Isometric video game graphics|isometric graphics]] with the working title ''Sonic 3D''. The original special stage featured a [[Polygon mesh|polygonal]] Sonic in a figure eight-shaped stage. When it became apparent that the chip would not be finished by 1994, ''Sonic 3'' was restarted as a more conventional 2D platform game.<ref name=":0">{{cite magazine|url=https://retrocdn.net/index.php?title=File%3ASega_Magazine_JP_Issue_03_199701.pdf&page=11|title=ソニックチーム物語|magazine=Sega Magazine|issue=3|publisher=[[SB Creative|SoftBank Creative]]|date=January 1997|pages=9–13|lang=ja}} ([http://shmuplations.com/sonicteam/ Translation] by Shmuplations. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191217211118/http://shmuplations.com/sonicteam/|date=2019-12-17}}).</ref> The designer [[Takashi Iizuka (game designer)|Takashi Iizuka]] said the chip was an experiment to see if ''Sonic'' could work in 3D, and was abandoned due to its low polygon count.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Thorpe |first=Nick |date=2024-01-13 |title=30 years later, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is still a stone-cold classic: 'We wanted to make the third game more epic than Sonic 2' |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/30-years-later-sonic-the-hedgehog-3-is-still-a-stone-cold-classic-we-wanted-to-make-the-third-game-more-epic-than-sonic-2/ |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=[[Retro Gamer]] |language=en}}</ref> The isometric concept was eventually used for ''[[Sonic 3D Blast]]'' in 1996.<ref name="gamestm" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/levelup/a549866/sonic-the-hedgehog-3-retrospective-sega-mascots-finest-outing.html#~p27TPtEkmLdAKi|title=Sonic the Hedgehog 3 retrospective: Sega mascot's finest outing|last=Langshaw|first=Mark|date=February 8, 2014|website=Digital Spy|access-date=January 22, 2015}}</ref>

According to Naka, the team wanted a deeper story to expand the ''Sonic'' world, which greatly expanded the project size.<ref name="gametap" /> As ''Sonic'' was an action game with international appeal, they told the story visually, using in-game [[Cutscene|cutscenes]], instead of text.<ref name=":2" /> The levels are triple the size of those in ''Sonic 2''.<ref name="gametap">{{cite video|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qbu4TEE1_pE|title=Sonic the Hedgehog GameTap Retrospective Pt. 4/4|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725182313/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qbu4TEE1_pE|archive-date=July 25, 2015}}</ref> Additional bosses, different musical arrangements and graphics were used to distinguish act 1 and 2 of each stage.<ref name=":2" /> Many elements were conceived during the development of ''Sonic 2'' but deferred to ''Sonic 3''.<ref name="gamestm" /> 

''Sonic 3'' and ''Sonic & Knuckles'' were originally planned as a single game. However, the manufacturing costs of a 34-megabit cartridge<ref>''[[Sonic & Knuckles]]'' (Genesis, EU) instruction manual, p. 4.</ref> with NVRAM would have been prohibitively expensive.<ref name="yujitalks" /> Due to the game's scope and Sega of America's commitment to launch a major [[McDonald's]] Happy Meal promotion in February 1994,<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gander |first=Matt |date=February 14, 2020 |title=Twenty-five years ago, to this very month, Sonic 'Happy Meal' toys were available in the UK |url=https://www.gamesasylum.com/2020/02/14/twenty-five-years-ago-to-this-very-month-sonic-happy-meal-toys-were-available-in-the-uk/ |access-date=2021-03-04 |website=Games Asylum |language=en-US}}</ref> the team reluctantly split it in half,<ref name="gamestm" /><ref name="GI: Two" /> allowing more time to develop the second part and splitting the cost between two cartridges.<ref name="yujitalks">{{cite web|url=http://xbox.gamespy.com/articles/654/654750p4.html|publisher=[[GameSpy]]|title=Sega's Yuji Naka Talks!|access-date=December 31, 2014}}</ref> The ''Sonic & Knuckles'' cartridge's lock-on technology was created, named and implemented so ''Sonic 3'' could be experienced as intended.<ref name="GI: Two">{{cite magazine |last1=Shea |first1=Brian |title=How Sonic 3 Became Two Separate Games |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2016/10/10/how-sonic-the-hedgehog-3-became-two-games-sonic-and-knuckles-lock-on-technology.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014015127/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2016/10/10/how-sonic-the-hedgehog-3-became-two-games-sonic-and-knuckles-lock-on-technology.aspx |url-status=live |archive-date=October 14, 2016 |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |date=October 10, 2016}}</ref> Among other features, it allowed the developers to keep the paths designed for Knuckles in ''Sonic 3'', which were inaccessible on the standalone cartridge.<ref name=":2" />

''Sonic 3'' features the debut of Sonic's rival, Knuckles the Echidna. Many designs for the character were considered;<ref>{{cite web|title=Sonic's Creator - Yuji Naka|url=http://www.sega.com/features/allsonic/creator/naka04.html|publisher=[[Sega]]|access-date=February 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970605172353/http://www.sega.com/features/allsonic/creator/naka04.html|archive-date=June 5, 1997}}</ref> for the final design, Takashi Yuda chose the kind of animal, and Pamela Kelly chose the name.<ref name="GMU">{{cite web|last=Nguyen|first=Michelle|date=July 1, 2021|title=How Sonic & Knuckles came to be and the journey of creating it|url=https://www.abc4.com/gtu/how-sonic-knuckles-came-to-be-and-the-journey-of-creating-it|website=[[KTVX]]|publisher=Good Things Utah|access-date=June 7, 2022}}</ref>  Yuda envisioned him as a supporting character for Sonic, and felt he would make a good playable character.<ref name="gspyriders">{{cite web|last1=Theobald|first1=Phil|title=Sega Talks Sonic Riders Part Two|url=http://xbox.gamespy.com/xbox/sonic-riders/683757p1.html|website=[[GameSpy]]|publisher=[[IGN]]|access-date=February 26, 2018|date=January 27, 2006}}</ref> Whereas Sonic symbolizes speed, Knuckles symbolizes power,<ref name="gametap" /> and the emphasis of the character was to break walls.<ref name="Naka interview PPF">{{cite web|url=http://www2.sega.com/sonic/globalsonic/post_sonicteam.php?article=nakainterviewsonic |publisher=Sega.com |title=Sonic Central interview: Yuji Naka on Sonic's Past, Present, Future |access-date=July 7, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100526174339/http://www2.sega.com/sonic/globalsonic/post_sonicteam.php?article=nakainterviewsonic |archive-date=May 26, 2010 }}</ref> His shoe coloration was inspired by [[Jamaica]]'s flag.<ref name="gametap" /> The original name for the character was "Dreds", referring to his dreadlocks.<ref>{{cite book|title=Sonic Advance 2: Prima's Official Strategy Guide|publisher=[[Prima Games]]|date=March 11, 2003|last=Mylonas|first=Eric|isbn=0761540083|page=99}}</ref> The design was tested with [[focus group]]s of American children.<ref name=":0" /> Knuckles' climbing ability allowed the developers to introduce more vertical gameplay.<ref name=":2" />

Hector said ''Sonic 3'' had a troubled development. He recalled having to prevent the rest of Sega from bothering the team while simultaneously making sure the game would be finished in time. Additionally, Hector struggled to balance resources between ''Sonic 3'' and other projects, Naka was sometimes seen as a harsh leader, and American STI staff not on the ''Sonic 3'' team became jealous of the priority given to the game.<ref name="gamestm"/>

===Michael Jackson's involvement===
{{See also|Michael Jackson in video games}}
[[File:Michael Jackson, 1988 (46845017052).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|According to the development staff, [[Michael Jackson]] composed portions of the ''Sonic 3'' soundtrack but went uncredited. His involvement was denied by senior Sega employees.]]
According to several sources involved in the development, Sega hired the pop musician [[Michael Jackson]] to compose music for ''Sonic 3'', but he left the project and went uncredited.<ref name="MJSonic3" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=McMahon |first=James |date=2019-05-12 |title=Michael Jackson probably wrote the music for Sonic the Hedgehog – so why is his name nowhere to be seen? |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/michael-jackson-sonic-hedgehog-3-music-composed-sega-game-a8908246.html |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=[[The Independent]] |language=en}}</ref> Fans speculated about similarities to Jackson's music, but his involvement was not known until Hector mentioned it in an interview in 2005.<ref name="MJSonic3" />

Jackson was a ''Sonic'' fan<ref name="untoldvol3">{{cite book|last1=Szczepaniak|first1=John|title=The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers: Volume 3|date=2018|publisher=S.M.G Szczepaniak|isbn=978-0992926083}}</ref>{{rp|292}} and had collaborated with Sega on the 1990 arcade game ''[[Moonwalker (video game)|Moonwalker]]''.<ref name="sega-16.com" /> Jackson's tour director, [[Brad Buxer]], assembled a team and worked on the project for four weeks at [[Record One]] in Los Angeles in 1993.<ref name="MJSonic3" /><ref name="NLifeBuxer">{{cite web |last1=Hagues |first1=Alana |date=9 June 2022 |title=Brad Buxer Reconfirms Michael Jackson's Involvement With Sonic 3's Soundtrack |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/06/brad-buxer-reconfirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack |access-date=27 June 2022 |website=[[Nintendo Life]]}}</ref> They developed fully fledged tracks, with extensive [[Sampling (music)|samples]] of Jackson [[beatboxing]], to be adapted for the Genesis.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> Hector said the work had a recognizable Jackson sound.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> Naka said that the development team visited Jackson's home at [[Neverland Ranch]] during the development''.''<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Stewart |first=Marcus |date=June 23, 2022 |title=Yuji Naka Seemingly Confirms Michael Jackson's Involvement With Sonic 3's Soundtrack |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/2022/06/23/yuji-naka-seemingly-confirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623145615/https://www.gameinformer.com/2022/06/23/yuji-naka-seemingly-confirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack |url-status=live |archive-date=June 23, 2022 |access-date=2023-07-08 |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |language=en}}</ref> [[Naoto Ohshima]], the co-creator of Sonic, said Jackson recorded an [[a cappella]] demo tape for ''Sonic 3''.<ref name="untoldvol3" />{{rp|301}}<ref name=":1">{{cite web |last=Ashcraft |first=Brian |date=February 22, 2018 |title=More Fuel For The Michael Jackson ''Sonic 3'' Conspiracy Theory |url=https://kotaku.com/more-fodder-for-the-michael-jackson-sonic-3-conspiracy-1823221932 |access-date=March 17, 2018 |work=[[Kotaku]]}}</ref> 

During the development, [[1993 child sexual abuse accusations against Michael Jackson|allegations of child sexual abuse]] against Jackson emerged. Buxer said the team received no instruction to halt work and sent the finished soundtrack to Sega in mid-1993.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> According to Hector and Ohshima, Jackson's involvement was terminated following the allegations.<ref name="MJSonic3" /><ref name="untoldvol3" />{{rp|301}}<ref name=":1" /> However, Buxer and two other members of Jackson's team, Doug Grigsby III and Cirocco Jones, said Jackson went uncredited because he was unhappy with how the Genesis, which was incapable of playing back high-quality audio, replicated his music.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> 

Jackson's music had already been implemented and had to be quickly reworked by [[Howard Drossin]],<ref name="gamestm" /> who had joined the project expecting to work with Jackson.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> Other tracks were composed by Sega sound team members, such as [[Jun Senoue]], who became a regular composer for the series.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Herman |first1=Tamar |title=Jun Senoue on Creating Music for 'Team Sonic Racing' and the Future of Video Gaming Music |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/gaming/8529526/jun-senoue-interview-sonic-the-hedgehog-video-games |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=21 November 2019}}</ref> According to Buxer, Grigsby and Jones, their music remained in the game.<ref name="MJSonic3" /> Jones credited himself along with Jackson and Buxer for musical cues for "levels 2 & 3" of "''Sonic the Hedgehog''" on his website.<ref name="GameTrailers">{{cite web |date=October 4, 2013 |title=Episode 39: Sonic 3: Michael Jackson |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFgnUa1v8uA |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/EFgnUa1v8uA |archive-date=2021-12-11 |access-date=January 22, 2015 |website=[[GameTrailers]] |publisher=}}{{cbignore}}</ref> An anonymous source involved in development also told ''[[GameTrailers]]'' that Jackson's contributions, such as the Carnival Night Zone theme, remained.<ref name="GameTrailers" /> In 2013, it was discovered that the music for IceCap Zone was derived from a previously unreleased 1982 song, "Hard Times", by Buxer's band the [[Jetzons]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/music/a-michael-jackson-sonic-the-hedgehog-conspiracy-runs-through-arizona-6620734|title=A Michael Jackson-Sonic the Hedgehog Conspiracy Runs Through Arizona|last=Moore|first=Dan|date=December 11, 2013|website=[[Phoenix New Times]]|access-date=June 4, 2016}}</ref> The ''Sonic 3'' credits music became the basis for Jackson's 1996 single "[[Stranger in Moscow]]".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hagues |first=Alana |date=2022-06-09 |title=Brad Buxer Reconfirms Michael Jackson's Involvement With Sonic 3's Soundtrack |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/06/brad-buxer-reconfirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=[[Nintendo Life]] |language=en-GB}}</ref> 

Senior Sega staff, including Sega of America's president [[Tom Kalinske]], said that any involvement of Jackson was arranged without their knowledge, and that no formal agreements were made.<ref name="sega-16.com">{{cite web | url=http://www.sega-16.com/2009/05/sega-legends-michael-jackson-sonic-3/ | title=Sega Legends: Michael Jackson & Sonic 3 | last=Horowitz | first=Ken | publisher=Sega-16|date=May 19, 2009 |access-date=March 17, 2018}}</ref><ref name="MJSonic3">{{cite news |last1=Van Luling |first1=Todd |date=January 25, 2016 |title=The Michael Jackson Video Game Conspiracy |work=[[The Huffington Post]] |url=http://testkitchen.huffingtonpost.com/michaeljacksonsonic/#2/ |access-date=21 December 2023}}</ref> In 2013, Hector said that any similarities to Jackson's music in ''Sonic 3'' were unintentional.<ref name="GameTrailers" /> The journalist Ken Horowitz raised questions about Jackson's alleged involvement, such as how an agreement between Sega and Jackson could have been kept secret from the media, why Sega's marketing never mentioned Jackson's involvement and why Jackson would reuse music originally composed for a video game.<ref name="sega-16.com" /> According to Buxer, Jackson only worked on one of the 41 tracks that his team composed.<ref name="NLifeBuxer" /> ''[[Retro Gamer]]'' reasoned that, if this were true, it was unlikely that any music composed by Jackson himself remained in the game.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Thorpe |first=Nick |date=2023 |title=30 years later, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is still a stone-cold classic: 'We wanted to make the third game more epic than Sonic 2' |journal=[[Retro Gamer]]}}</ref> 

Some ''Sonic 3'' tracks were replaced in the 1997 [[Windows]] port ''[[Sonic & Knuckles Collection]],''<ref>{{cite web|title=Sonic & Knuckles Collection|date=June 23, 2011 |url=http://www.gamesradar.com/sonic-knuckles-collection/|publisher=GamesRadar|access-date=January 19, 2015}}</ref> as well as the remaster included in the 2022 compilation ''[[Sonic Origins]]''.<ref name=":3" /> These tracks also appear in a ''Sonic 3'' prototype discovered in 2019, suggesting that they were written before being replaced by Jackson's music.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Purslow |first1=Matt |title=Sonic 3 Prototype With Lost Content Discovered |date=November 19, 2019 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2019/11/18/sonic-3-prototype-with-lost-content-discovered |website=[[IGN]] |access-date=21 November 2019}}</ref> In 2019, ''[[VG247]]'' noted that ''Sonic 3'' had been rereleased less frequently since [[Death of Michael Jackson|Jackson's death in 2009]] and speculated that this was due to legal problems with [[Estate of Michael Jackson|his estate]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alex |first1=Donaldson |date=March 20, 2019 |title=I believe in Google's Stadia vision of the future, but the gaming preservationist in me is worried |url=https://www.vg247.com/2019/03/20/stadia-streaming-vision-future-video-game-preservation/ |access-date=April 10, 2019 |website=[[VG247]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Donaldson |first1=Alex |date=April 10, 2019 |title=Sonic 3 A.I.R. is the quality remaster that Sega probably won't release itself |url=https://www.vg247.com/2019/04/10/sonic-3-air-fan-remaster-sega/ |access-date=April 10, 2019 |website=[[VC247]]}}</ref>