Sonic 3 A.I.R - The Definitive Edition of Sonic 3

[JP]

(This is merely a promotion, All credit goes to Eukaryot.)

Expected Full Release: April 2019

Overview
Sonic 3 - Angel Island Revisited (Sonic 3 A.I.R.) is an unofficial port of Sonic 3 & Knuckles for Windows PCs.
It very closely resembles the original game, but adds features you would only expect from a modern fan game engine - including full support for 16:9 widescreen display, alpha transparency effects, and smooth 360° rotation.

The project goal is to provide a fully ported version of Sonic 3 & Knuckles, with all the necessary changes to make all of it work in widescreen. It's also planned to add several bugs fixes and game improvements on top.
In addition, this is a playground for trying out others things, like an experimental Time Attack game mode that allows you to directly race against the recordings of your previous best runs of each act.


Features

100% accurate Sonic 3 & Knuckles physics
Sonic, Tails, Knuckles fully playable, including Sonic & Tails co-op
Widescreen display
Additional effects like 360° rotation
Optional high quality pixel filter xBRZ
Controller support
Experimental Time Attack mode
Many fixes and small gameplay tweaks
Added movement options like Tails Assist and Flight Cancel
Save States
Special Stages
Bonus Stages
Chaos & Super Emeralds

Completed Zones
Angel Island
Hydrocity
Marble Garden
Carnival Night
Ice Cap
Launch Base
Mushroom Valley
Flying Battery
Sandopolis
Lava Reef

Technical information
(for those of you interested...)
The heart of the game engine powering Sonic 3 A.I.R. is a script interpreter that runs a ported version of the original game code. It's using a custom scripting language that is built specifically to allow for a relatively easy semi-automatic conversion of the Mega Drive's / Genesis' 68K machine code to this script. To make sure that the port behaves exactly like the original, the scripts get tested for accuracy by comparing the script execution to the original 68K code execution in a modified emulator. This way odd physics or similar issues can be ruled out without too much hassle.


Requirements
Sonic 3 A.I.R. is built on top of the Sonic 3 & Knuckles Steam version. Being a direct port of the original game code, it gets most of its data from the ROM that is part of this Steam release.
So in order to play, owning the S3&K Steam game is a requirement.
Other than that, you only need a PC with Windows 7 or higher.

Download
Get the latest demo here:
http://85.214.142.96/sonic3air_demo.zip
(Please note the requirements above!)


Additional Recommendations
GalacticG is working on remastered versions of the game's music tracks, and you can download his work as an audio mod for Sonic 3 A.I.R.
For more info, see this post: https://www.sonicfangameshq.com/forums/threads/sonic-3-a-i-r.221/page-4#post-2530

[DeV]

Thank you! Why is it not being discussed?

Safe to say it's the definitive way to play this game now?

[DeV]

Can it be made into a Workshop Item?

[theclaw135]

Originally posted by DeV:

Can it be made into a Workshop Item?

No. A Genesis emulator won't work.
It actually does a few things beyond the capabilities of the original system.

[DeV]

Too bad. Still surprised it's not being discussed.

[KayJay]

It's an amazing project.
I've read it's also possible to use Sonic Mania's Drop Dash in Sonic 3 A.I.R but I can't seem to find the option?

[Dark Redshift]

Already love it from what I've played of it so far. I do miss the ability to go to Flying Battery before Icecap like in 3 Complete though, but that doesn't matter.

Will Sonic 1 and 2 get similar treatment to 3 AIR, possibly Sonic 1 SIR and Sonic 2 WSIR? Basically fanmade PC versions of the Retro engine versions, as AIR feels like it's meant to be a Sonic 3 Retro Engine remake.

They could even have alternate modes to them besides Classic and "AIR" modes (for want of a better word): Sonic 1 could have Megamode which would recreate the mod Sonic Megamix for Mega CD, only more complete.

Sonic 2 could have my personal favourite idea for it (besides the Retro engine Hidden Palace with track 10 restored); Lost Levels Mode, which makes a fully fledged fan game recreation of the Sonic 2 beta with full story, time travel elements for every zone and a boss rush act on the Death Egg before Robo Sonic and the Death Egg Robot. Hidden Palace would serve a similar purpose to S3&K, but for the chaos emeralds and be a fully fledged zone, unlocking the past zones before the good future.

I'm not sure how this would be implemented nor if the old beta scripts and story material for Sonic 2 outside the game itself even survived, let alone translating it. Maybe Yuji Naka or whoever else was working on Sonic 2 in the beta stages could help with that.

It isn't clear if it would have handled the time travel elements in the way Sonic CD did, or if you'd play the present first and bad future second, only travelling to the past once you get the emeralds and unlock Hidden Palace Zone, and then you play the good future.

It also isn't clear which surviving stages were other time zones of which: apparently, both Chemical Plant and Dust Hill were meant to be Bad Futures of either Green Hill or Emerald Hill, with Hill Top being the latter's past. Oil Ocean Present was a fully scrapped sea level and I can't remember where Wood Zone fits in.

I think Genocide City was an original stage idea before becoming Metropolis act 3 and Aquatic Ruin had an Atlantis or at least city or water temple themed level for one of it's alternate time zones.


Side Note for Lost Levels mode: I think Genocide City is a great name for Eggman's "Metropolis Act 3" base instead of Cyber City, especially considering spoilers for Forces and implications of what happened to a lot of people when he blew the Earth open in Advance 3 and World Adventure. (Nevermind the Death Egg is his own private WMD)

Even though the Forces version of this zone was renamed after Metropolis from Sonic 2, I think the original name is more appropriate.

[DeV]

[Ikagura]

fans are making a better job than Sega...

[Patrick Starmie]

Sonic 3 A.I.R looks and sounds incredible, but I'm a bit hesitant to download it. Does it have any viruses, malware, or any unwanted programs?

[Ikagura]

Originally posted by Blind Beard The Pirate:

Sonic 3 A.I.R looks and sounds incredible, but I'm a bit hesitant to download it. Does it have any viruses, malware, or any unwanted programs?

The fangame is there since almost a year ago. If the fangame had malware it would've already been removed.

I know one fangame that got spyware (and a DRM included in), many people talked about it and it was removed from any "official" Sonic-related site.

I think it uses Visual C++ as its engine.

[Nintendo gamer]

can anyone help i can't get the game to open when i double click it i did everything i needed i put the rom in the folder as told i want to try this out but can't plz reply as soon as you read this.