Back when Sonic was shorter, rounder, and had beady, black eyes, Sonic Team and Sega's new mascot's popularity was leading the team to do something far more ambitious. As strange as it may seem, the fourth Sonic the Hedgehog game known as Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was too large for the development team to finish in time, and what they wanted to do couldn't fit on one single cartridge. What would become the fan-favorite Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis game would be released separately as Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles, with Sonic 3 being released on February 2.