Topic: Sonc the Hedgehog 2 - Long Version

[TerraEsperZ]

For those not in the know, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Genesis ended up as a very different game than it was supposed to. A dumped ROM from a beta cartridge as well as mock-ups images and interviews reveal that several things changed along the way.



For starters, there were some simple name changes like Green Hills -> Emerald Hills and Neo Green Hills -> Aquatic Ruins.



Some stages were removed after being started. The beta ROM allows you to see very preliminary version of the Wood Zone (taking place inside a forest with big leaves and huge tree trunks) and the now infamous Hidden Palace which looks like a cave with crystals and waterfalls.



Finally, some zones ended up being cut all together at various degrees of completion. First, we have a desert zone which was only featured in a mock-up picture and has been incorrectly referred as Dust Hill zone ever since. An interview also reveals that the zone was supposed to change into a winterland halfway through with Christmas trees instead of cacti. And finally, there was Cyber City which was then renamed Genocide City before being removed altogether before it was even started. A concept sketch shows that it would have been a high-tech zone with lots of mechanical traps, kinda like Metropolis but much more futuristic.



All of this is to introduce you to a fan project called Sonic 2 Long Version, which is an attempt to recreate the game that Sonic 2 was supposed to have been. Of course, liberties were taken and it's still far from finished (most new stages feel quite incomplete and/or boring) but it's fully playable and can be finished. For example, Genocide City is actually completely new, using new graphics and takes place instead on top of a series of sky-scrappers and is a bit boring to me but it looks nice anyway. Dust Hill is my favourite so far because somehow, the graphics from that mock-up picture were either found or recreated and the level design isn't half bad, plus it does turn into a sorta winter zone halfway through.



In any case, if you want to try this special version of Sonic 2, you can find it at the following link:



http://www.sonicresearch.org/s2long/



Enjoy!



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"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably." [...] The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged. - Captain Jean-Luc Picard



B*tch, meet reality. Reality, meet b*tch. - Me

[Grizzly]

It sounds interesting to have some additional Sonic 2 levels in the game. But is the version already final? Otherwise I will wait with playing it because I played the original Sonic 2 and don't feel like playing it over and over again - although it is a nice game.

And you said that the new stages still play very boring so I suppose that is changed later on?

[TerraEsperZ]

The problem is that the website linked above doesn't have much in the way of information and is very much a work in progress. I think it was stated on another site that it was still being worked on actively and most of the new levels don't feel anywhere as interesting as the official ones in terms of layout. Personally, I think it's neat to find out what's new right now using the Stage Select code but we're still far from a finished quality game.



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"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably." [...] The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged. - Captain Jean-Luc Picard



B*tch, meet reality. Reality, meet b*tch. - Me

[Waddle Dee]

Hopefully it gets finished because I loved Sonic 2 but I always thought that it was too short and too easy...



Oh and thanks for the link.