@matana imo, the best sonic games are stuff like all stars racing and riders. sa1 and sa2 are good but they've still got some very large glaring issues.

the big problem is that you want sonic to go fast but with the way the levels are laid out there is always stuff that stops you from going fast, and there kind of has to be to make the gameplay interesting beyond just "hold right/forward and have a good time."

so when you get to the (good) racing games, you have a lot of typical racing game stuff (and drifting to gain speed which is fucking awesome btw) that helps add to the experience of "just go fast" without needing environmental puzzles or anything that kind of slows you down. or in the 2d games where there's an enemy off screen you can't see or react to because of the speed.

i think a good sonic game is one where you're constantly hitting the jets and reacting to stuff ahead of you that you can actually see. the boost gameplay is really good for that but a little bit too limited, usually in a very small area.

like, there can be sonic games that are still at least decent, but are they necessarily "sonic games" if sonic is just walking around doing menial tasks or slowly solving puzzles? nahhh if i'm playing sonic i wanna be running around at the speed of sound. going fast. i don't think sonic team has any idea on how to make that work if it isn't just a racing game.

if sonic r actually had good controls and bigger maps, add in some timing sections that feel really satisfying to pull off, with multiple paths you can take, and of course some nice cinematic moments... i think that could make for a pretty good sonic game. levels that are only 3-4 minutes long or so that help avoid burnout and let you play in small, quick bursts.