Composer: Masato Nakamura
System: Sega Genesis
Date: 1991

Sonic was Sega's attempt to steal Mario's thunder. With his cocky demeanor and bright blue colors, Sonic was an icon, and although Sega ultimately lost the console war, the first three games in the series have endured (the less said about the 3D Sonic games, the better). The Green Hill Zone theme was the first song of the first level of the first game – even if you didn't have a Genesis, this was the level you played at the department store while your parents went shopping.