Metropolis Zone (Sonic the Hedgehog 2)



Metropolis first appeared in the Sonic series as Metropolis Zone, the eighth zone of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit) ; coming after Oil Ocean Zone and preceding Sky Chase Zone. Unlike the previous seven levels, Metropolis contains three full Acts, and the stages are particularly massive&mdash;in some cases infinite, for in Act 2, the bottom of the level loops to the top!

Description
Apparently a metropolis in name only at this point, the level sees Sonic and Tails make their way through a bustling industrial plant. Meter-wide screws and bolts tower up into the caves of turquoise steel, and vast mesh-work dynamos thrash out hundreds of revolutions a minute. Along the walls, steam-pipes coil like brassy pythons, and giant cogs slowly grind out immense manufacturing processes above lakes of molten metal.

But perhaps the most dangerous aspect of Metropolis Zone comes in the form of the badniks, for the Doctor's city sports probably the most brutal robots of the entire game. Viridian mantis-bots hurl their razor-sharp scythe arms with boomeranging abandon, an attack which proves surprisingly difficult for Sonic to dodge. And then there's the starfish. These self-destructing drones are placed with infuriating precision, such that they invariably manage to knock the hedgehog off the giant screw-lifts used to move up the level.

Boss
At the end of Metropolis Zone's huge third Act, the Doctor breaks out his Egg-O-Matic for the sixth and final time in Sonic 2. Although this boss lacks any direct offensive weaponry, it remains nonetheless quite difficult in comparison to earlier fights - due to its heavy defensive countermeasures. The Doctor surrounds his pod with a ring of seven orbiting drones, which prevent Sonic from easily landing a hit. If an opening does present itself and you manage to strike him, one of the pods will deploy, releasing a strange, evanescent duplicate of Robotnik's machine. These copies bounce lazily along the floor and can be destroyed quite easily.

Music
thumb|left|300px|Metropolis Zone