Retro Engine

Retro Engine

Retro Engine logo
Developer(s)	Christian Whitehead
Written in	C++
Type	Game engine
License	Proprietary
Website	Official website

Retro Engine is a game engine developed by Australian programmer Christian "Taxman" Whitehead, best known for its use by Sega for games in the Sonic the Hedgehog series.

Unlike most modern game engines, the Retro Engine is primarily tailored for creating two-dimensional games like those released for 32-bit or below-era consoles, such as the Sega Saturn, Sega Genesis or the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. For this reason, the engine focuses more on raster effects and palette manipulation, although it does feature support for widescreen graphics and online functionality.

Christian Whitehead first created the Retro Engine for use with a 2008 Sonic the Hedgehog fangame entitled Retro Sonic, which is based upon the original Sonic games released for the Sega Genesis. The game became notable after its release for its accuracy to the games, despite not being a ROM hack or modification to an existing Sonic game.Retro Sonic later merged with two other Sonic fangames, Sonic XG and Sonic Nexus, to form Retro Sonic Nexus.

In 2009, Sega asked fans for ideas on a game to port to iOS. As a response, Whitehead produced a proof-of-concept video showing Sega's 1993 Sega CD game Sonic CD running on an iPhone. Sega later officially released the port in 2011 for various consoles, such as the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Ouya. Whitehead, along with fellow Sonic scene member Simon "Stealth" Thomley, were later commissioned to create remakes of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 using the engine, released for mobile platforms in 2013. Whitehead, Thomley, and PagodaWest Games later collaborated on an original Sonic title, Sonic Mania, which runs on an updated version of the Retro Engine. The game was released in 2017.