7. Sonic 3 & Knuckles
Level: Death Egg Zone Act 2 So you've collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Now what? Well, now you collect all the Super Emeralds. Okay, what next? Now you fight a giant robot Dr. Robotnik and tear off his big, metal, pudgy fingers one by one, to this amazing piece of music. Tails helps too, I guess. Taking no prisoners (except for the cute furry animals that Eggman uses to power his robots), 'Mecha-Robotnik' utilises the Master Emerald for one final shot at eliminating his spiky, blue nemesis. This scene is immediately followed by another incredible moment with brilliant music, where, as Hyper Sonic, you speed through an asteroid belt in hot pursuit. But, because of the "one piece of music per game" rule I arbitrarily imposed, it is the fight against Robotnik, not the chase, that makes this list as the more memorable piece. You will most likely hear it again and again because Tails' attempts to help often leaves the boss invulnerable for a second, so you fall through him to your death. Again and again and again. But no complaints here, it's worth it. This music also appears in Sonic 3 at the end of Launch Base zone. Sonic & Knuckles and Sonic 3 were originally intended to be one game, but due to budgetary reasons were separated. Sonic 3 and Knuckles as a complete game was accessible by utilising the "lock-on" technology of the Sonic & Knuckles cartridge. This allowed the player to slot the Sonic 3 cartridge (as well as adding Knuckles with Sonic 2), into the top of the Sonic & Knuckles cartridge, and play the complete game, the way it was intended.