known in Europe and Japan as is a 1996

platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...

in the ''

Sonic the Hedgehog is a Japanese video game series and media franchise created by Sega. The franchise follows Sonic, an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog who battles the evil Doctor Eggman, a mad scientist. The main ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' games are platformers mo ...

'' series for the

Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

and

Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...

. As

, the player embarks on a journey to save the Flickies, birds enslaved by

Doctor Robotnik Doctor Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik is the main antagonist of Sega's ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' franchise. Eggman was created and designed by Naoto Ohshima as part of many design choices for Sega's new mascot. After the creation of Sonic the Hedgehog, Ohshi ...

. The player must guide Sonic through a series of themed

level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights *Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *Canal pound or level *Regr ...

s to collect Flickies and defeat Robotnik. Though it retains

game mechanics In tabletop games and video games, game mechanics are the rules or ludemes that govern and guide the player's actions, as well as the game's response to them. A rule is an instruction on how to play, a ludeme is an element of play like the L-sha ...

from prior ''Sonic'' games, ''Sonic 3D Blast'' is differentiated by its isometric perspective, with

pre-rendered Pre-rendering is the process in which video footage is not rendered in real-time by the hardware that is outputting or playing back the video. Instead, the video is a recording of footage that was previously rendered on different equipment (typic ...

3D models converted into sprites. The concept for ''Sonic 3D Blast'' originated during the development of ''

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is a 1994 platform game developed and published by Sega for the Genesis. Like previous ''Sonic'' games, players traverse side-scrolling levels while collecting rings and defeating enemies. They control Sonic and Tails, who attempt to retrieve ...

'' (1994). Most of the programming was outsourced to the British studio

Traveller's Tales Traveller's Tales is a British video game developer and a subsidiary of TT Games. Traveller's Tales was founded in 1989 by Jon Burton and Andy Ingram. Initially a small company focused on its own content, it grew in profile through developing ...

, as the Japanese

Sonic Team is a video game developer owned by the Japanese video game company Sega as part of its Sega CS Research and Development No. 2 division. Sonic Team is best known for the long-running '' Sonic the Hedgehog'' series and games such as '' Nights ...

staff was preoccupied with '' Nights into Dreams'' (1996). Development lasted eight months, and the team drew inspiration from ''

Donkey Kong Country ''Donkey Kong Country'' is a 1994 platform game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). It is a reboot of Nintendo's ''Donkey Kong'' franchise and follows the gorilla Donkey Kong and h ...

'' (1994) and ''

Sonic Labyrinth is an action-puzzle game developed by Minato Giken and published by Sega for the Game Gear in 1995. The game features Sonic the Hedgehog exploring maze-like stages from an isometric perspective. Dr. Robotnik has robbed Sonic of his trademark sp ...

'' (1995). ''Sonic 3D Blast'' was developed alongside the Saturn game ''

Sonic X-treme ''Sonic X-treme'' was a platform game developed by Sega Technical Institute from 1994 until its cancellation in 1996. It was planned as the first fully 3D '' Sonic the Hedgehog'' game, taking Sonic into the 3D era of video games, and the firs ...

''. When ''X-treme'' was canceled,

Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...

commissioned a

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

of ''3D Blast'' featuring improved graphics for the Saturn. Both versions were published by

in November 1996, with a

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

port released the following year. ''Sonic 3D Blast'' was the final ''Sonic'' game for the Genesis, and has been re-released through ''Sonic'' compilations and

digital distribution Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of digital media content (media), content such as Sound recording and reproductio ...

platforms. Though commercially successful, it received mixed reviews. Criticism was directed at its isometric gameplay, controls, and pace, although the visuals and soundtrack were praised. An unofficial

director's cut A director's cut is an edited version of a film (or video game, television episode, music video, or commercial) that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit in contrast to the theatrical release. "Cut" explicitly refers to the ...

version, featuring adjusted gameplay elements and improved controls, was released by the Genesis version's lead programmer,

Jon Burton Jon Burton is a British video game director, designer, writer, and programmer. He is the founder of development studio Traveller's Tales and its parent company TT Games. Burton founded Traveller's Tales in 1989. He worked as a designer on ''P ...

, in 2017.

Gameplay

''Sonic 3D Blast'' is a

presented from an isometric perspective. Players control

, whose goal is to save the Flickies, collect the seven

Chaos Emeralds is a Japanese video game series and media franchise created by Sega. The franchise follows Sonic the Hedgehog (character), Sonic, an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog who battles the evil Doctor Eggman, a mad scientist. The main ''Sonic the Hedg ...

, and defeat

and his robot army. Sonic retains most of his abilities from prior games: he can jump and spin in mid-air to defeat robots or hop on platforms, perform a spin-dash on the ground to gain speed, and collects

rings Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

as a form of

health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

. Sonic can also collect

power-up In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that can be used at any time chosen ...

s, such as elemental shields, speed shoes, or

invincibility {{Short pages monitor