Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)


 * Not what you were looking for? See Sonic the Hedgehog (disambiguation).



Sonic the Hedgehog was the first Sonic game ever made. The game's original programmer was current Sonic Team leader and series creator Yuji Naka, and the planner was Hirokazu Yasuhara. The gameplay was faster than any other game before it and amazed many people at launch. This was due to the Genesis's Motorola 68000 processor, whose basic speed and ability to handle 16-bit numbers gave it incredible speed compared to its predecessor, the Master System.

Gameplay
Essential to the gameplay are the golden rings the player collects along his/her way in each level; a feature which would become one of the defining characteristics of the series. These items are regularly placed around the level map and serve multiple functions. First, the player collects rings to protect Sonic. As long as they have at least one ring, the player will not lose a life when injured. Instead, when hit, up to 40 of the rings the player has collected will fly outward and scatter around the immediate area for some seconds, some of which can then be retrieved before they disappear. If the player runs into an enemy without a single ring, they will lose a life. If the player collects 100 rings they will gain a life, and gain an additional life for every 100 rings after that, provided the rings are not lost.

If the player has at least 50 rings at the end of an act, a giant golden ring will float above the finishing sign which can be jumped through to enter one of the Special Stages (this excludes the final act of a stage, when Sonic will enter a boss fight). At the end of each act, the total number of rings the player has is multiplied by 100 and added to the player's score. During the score-tallying, the player can also jump through the air to find hidden emblems which can range from 100 to 10,000 points. This was the only console Sonic where the player could not get more lives by collecting over 200 rings (this is the only 16-bit title where it is impossible to obtain 300 rings in a single stage).

Also scattered throughout each level are monitors which, when broken by the character, reward the player with one of a variety of bonuses. These include a shield which will protect Sonic from a single hit, a 10-ring bonus, an extra life, temporary invincibility (accompanied with a temporary change in music), and "Super Sneakers", which give the player a temporary speed boost (and increase the tempo of the music for the duration). The item monitors have become another long-lasting feature in the series, though they have been changed to bubble-like containers in later games.

Despite the various types of protection available, neither the shield, rings, nor invincibility will prevent the player losing a life if Sonic is crushed (by a trap or between a wall and a moving platform), drowned, runs out of time (each act has a ten-minute time limit), or falls into a bottomless pit.

Progression through the game is made easier for the player by lamp posts that act as checkpoints. When Sonic passes a lamp post, its color changes from blue to red, and the next time a life is lost, gameplay will restart at that point rather than at the beginning of the act. In the Japanese version, if a checkpoint is activated and a life is lost as a result of running out of time, the time at the checkpoint will reset to 0:00.

Hazards the player experiences include a wide variety of "badniks" - these appear as animals trapped inside mechanical bodies which are released the moment the player hits them. Each badnik takes one hit to destroy, but they vary greatly from Zone to Zone; some will walk in a set path, others will try blasting the player, and some cannot be avoided at all. The player must also avoid rows of sharp spikes, cliffs, and elaborate death traps. There is also the threat of drowning (in Labyrinth Zone and the third act of Scrap Brain Zone which acts contained water), as the player can only survive approximately 30 seconds underwater (locating air bubbles can extend this).

Sonic's Abilities
walk -- Push left or right on the D-pad to initiate Sonic's movement in either direction. As you hold the button down, Sonic gains speed.

run -- Begin walking and hold down the button to make Sonic gain speed. After a few seconds, he'll break into a run.

screech -- While running, quickly press and hold the opposite direction on the D-pad to make Sonic screech to a halt. He'll skid for a short distance, based on how fast he was moving.

look up -- While standing still, press up on the D-pad to make Sonic gaze to the sky. As you hold up, the camera pans upward, giving you a view of Sonic's overhead surroundings.

crouch -- While standing still, press down on the D-pad to make Sonic duck down. As you hold down, the camera pans downward, giving you a view of the stage beneath where Sonic stands.

spin -- While moving, press down on the D-pad to make Sonic curl into a rolling attack. He'll remain in this position until you jump or slow down. The speed of Sonic's movement while in spin mode is based on how fast you're moving when you launch it, and also on the terrain Sonic rolls along.

spin jump -- Press any button at any time to make Sonic leap into the air with a spin attack. The height of the jump is proportional to how long you hold the button down.

push -- Certain blocks can be pushed by running up against them. Continue holding the D-pad against the offending cube to have Sonic push it along the ground.

Zones
Green Hill Zone -- Sonic's first steps into the tropics introduce the visual staples that remain trademarks of the series to this day: checkered hillsides, palmtrees, loop-de-loops, etc. Overhanging ledges crumble as you stand on them, so don't stick around unless you're looking for a quick trip down. Rotating logs are adorned with a spiral of spikes, so time your movement accordingly.



Marble Zone -- These crumbling ruins were built in a steamy volcanic region. Move quickly along platforms floating in lava - the dry grass on top easily catches fire. Push stone blocks into pools of magma for a safe ride. Bonus points are awarded for the destruction of priceless historical architecture: the gray bricks provide the same multiplier bonus as enemies.



Spring Yard Zone -- This dark mountain city forms a giant pinball arena with steep slopes and bumpers aplenty. Elevator platforms offer slow escape from deep pits. Look for hidden shortcuts behind walls, but watch for spiky rotating bars. Act 2 features two possible exits.



Labyrinth Zone -- The ancient ruins form an underground maze, sometimes submerged, sometimes dry. When underwater, Sonic's movement becomes slow and sluggish, and he can only hold his breath for so long. As his oxygen supply begins to wane, a countdown appears above his head: if it reaches zero, you lose a life. If you can't get to the surface in time, leap into one of the giant air bubbles that rise from clusters on the ground.



Star Light Zone -- This starry aerial highway is laced with large fans that impede your progress: some shut off periodically while others continue running for all eternity. Use seesaws to bounce to higher regions of the stage, but be mindful of the flashing mine: you need it for ballast, but it inflicts damage if touched.



Scrap Brain Zone -- Eggman, who is probably not an environmentalist, likes to while away his days in this grimy, polluted industrial city. Conveyor belts make for dangerous passage with smashing pistons looming overhead. Spinning platforms offer no support: wait until they stop moving before you leap on top. Large round platforms have their own gravitational pull: jump to break free of their clutch. The factory scenario is dropped entirely for Act 3, which is a gray chunk of Labyrinth Zone.



Final Zone -- In the final confrontation, Eggman escapes into a small room lined with 4 giant, pounding pistons. Only 2 pistons thrust forth at a time, and Eggman can be found cowering in one or the other: anticipate this location and attack quickly. After each thrust, 4 sparks form at the top of the screen and home in on Sonic's general direction. Note that Sonic has no Rings with which to do battle, so if you sustain even a single hit, you have to start the whole thing over.



Items and Power-ups
Ring (リング) -- As long as Sonic has some of these, he won't lose a life if he takes damage. Sustain a hit and all your collected Rings will scatter, giving you a brief opportunity to grab a few back before they disappear. (Note that Rings will not protect Sonic from getting smashed or falling off the screen, both of which result in instant death.) A 1up is awarded for every 100 Rings collected and each Ring is worth 100 points at the end-of-Act score tally.

Item Box -- In each stage, you'll find a number of these power-up bearing monitors. Pop them open with a spin to procure one of five power-ups: Big 10 Ring - Worth 10 Rings
 * 1) Barrier (バリア) - Absorbs one hit
 * 2) High Speed  - Temporary speed increase
 * 3) Muteki  - Temporary invincibility
 * 4) 1up - Gives Sonic an extra chance

Sai Start Marker -- These hold your place in a stage: should you lose a life, you'll start back at the last Start Marker you crossed.

Bobbin -- Round bumpers found only in Spring Yard Zone and the Special Stages. Bounce off one for 10 points, up to 10 times for a total of 100 points. (They stop dispensing points after the tenth hit.)

spring -- Leap onto the broad side to catapult Sonic into the air. The yellow ones send him flying a short distance and the more powerful red ones send him farther.

spikes -- Don't touch the pointy side! They're usually found in sets of three, but that's not a steadfast rule. Sometimes they're just lying out in the open, and sometimes they pop in and out of the ground (or the ceiling, or the walls).

switch -- Jump on the button to cause a change in the nearby scenery, usually necessary to proceed.

air bubbles -- Large, oxygen-filled bubbles periodically rise from these clusters: tag one to fill Sonic's lungs with air and prolong the time you can spend underwater.

bonus points -- As you approach the bonus plate at the end of an Act, leap into the air to find invisible bonus points that are added to your score. They can be worth 100, 1000, or a sweet 10,000.

bonus plate -- These signs can be found at the end of each first and second Act. Cross them to end the stage.

Special Stage ring -- These giant Rings appear above bonus plates when you cross with at least 50 Rings on hand. Jump in to warp to the Special Stage. (Once you've collected all 6 Chaos Emeralds, the Special Stage rings no longer appear.

capsule -- These are found at the end of each third Act, after defeating the boss. Push the button on top to destroy the machine and free the helpless animals within.

Enemies
Motobug -- Beetle bots that roll innocently along the ground.

Buzz Bomber -- Bee bots that fly across from the right side of the screen, pausing once to fire a large flashing projectile downward.

Chopper -- Piranha bots that leap upward from beneath bridges. ("Bata-bata" is Japanese for a clattering noise.)

Crabmeat -- Crab bots that crawl along the ground and fire projectiles from their pincers. ("Kani" is Japanese for crab.)

Newtron -- These chameleon bots hang out on the side of cliffs and remain invisible until approached. They come in two flavors: blue ones transform into missiles and jet along the ground. Green ones appear just long enough to fire an energy blast at Sonic.

Caterkiller -- Caterpillar bots that crawl slowly along the ground. The safest method of disposal is to roll into their spherical noggins: venture a poke anywhere else and you'll sustain damage and send their segments flying.

Bat Brain-- Bat bots that latch onto ceilings until approached, then drop down and fly through the air a ways before returning to their roost.

Roller -- Armadillo bots that roll down long slopes after Sonic. They tumble faster than Sonic runs, so leap to avoid being steamrolled. At the bottom of the hill, Arma pauses and briefly opens up: this your only chance to attack.

Yadrin -- Hermit crab bots that crawl along the ground. Their shells are cloaked with spikes, making them invulnerable from above. ("Yadokari" is Japanese for hermit crab.)

Burrobot -- Mole bots that spring from below ground and roll along the surface. Look for their drill bit noses poking out of the earth to avoid a booty ambush. ("Mogura" is Japanese for mole while "moguri" means diver.)

Jaws -- Piranha bots that swim around underwater. ("Puku-puku" is Japanese onomatopoeia for a bubbling noise.)

Orbinaut -- Irritable sphere bots that hover around very slowly. They're orbited by 4 spiked balls which they fling off in rapid succession upon being approached. It's a dangerous assault, but once it's done, Unidus is completely open to attack. ("Uni" is Japanese for sea urchin.)

Bomb -- Mindless kamikaze bots that waddle along the ground or ceiling and explode into a shower of projectiles when approached. They can't be damaged, only avoided.

-- These guys, palette aside, look exactly like Unidus. They're a bit more cool-headed, though, and won't fire off their barrier of orbs. While this means you don't have that tricky attack to avoid, they're virtually impossible to hit.

Ballhog -- Pig bots that hop in place atop steep banks and roll balls down the slope.

Special Stages
If Sonic finishes the first or second act of any of the first five zones with at least 50 rings, a large, spinning ring will appear. If he jumps into it, he will enter a "Special Stage" that hides a Chaos Emerald. In these stages, Sonic, in ball form, falls through a series of rotating mazes. If he can avoid the "GOAL" signs along parts of the stage's walls, he will eventually find the Chaos Emerald encased in colored diamonds; touching the diamonds repeatedly will cause them to change color and eventually disappear, allowing access to the Emerald. The stage will end when Sonic either touches the Emerald or hits a "GOAL" sign. If 50 rings are collected before Sonic makes contact with a "GOAL" sign or gets the Chaos Emerald, then a 'Continue' will be awarded to the player, indicated by a brief, distinct change in melody. Many fans believe that Super Sonic does not appear in Sonic The Hedgehog because 7 Chaos Emeralds are required to transform, whereas this game has only 6.

Master System
As the Master System was still selling like hotcakes in South America (and in limited amounts in the US through retail stores like Toy Liquidators), a version of Sonic the Hedgehog was produced for the Sega Master System. This version had slightly different levels and bosses, and simpler gameplay. The Master System version was released for the Wii Virtual Console on August 4, 2008.

United States

 * The EU/US manual contained the following story prologue:

''Dr. Ivo Robotnik, the mad scientist, is snatching innocent animals and turning them into robots! Only one tough dude can put an end to the Doc's evil scheme. It's Sonic, the real cool hedgehog with the spiked haircut and power sneakers that give him super speed. Help Sonic go down platforms and slides. Go into space and do the loop-de-loop until you're dizzy. Free all the animals and become the super hero. Be Sonic! Be atomic!''

Japanese

 * A rough translation of the story prologue from the Japanese manual reads:

''The malevolently gifted scientist, Dr. Ivo Robotnik, is about to hatch his biggest scheme yet. "Hmph. Those idiotic, moronic, South Islanders. They hope that the "evil scientist" is dead, when I'm about to hatch my greatest plot! Soon I can create the ultimate utopia, Robotnikland! And South Island will be a mere stepping stone." Meanwhile, on South Island, the people are living their normal lives when an army of animal-shaped robots appeared and started destroying everything! And, far above, floating in the Eggmobile, is the scientist Dr. Robotnik. "You think your puny technology can stop me? You can't stop me, no one can! There's not a being alive that can stop me!! Mwa ha ha!!" Now somewhere in the Green Hills of South Island is a 10-year-old super anthropomorphic hedgehog named Sonic. He saw helpless people being bullied by a robot. Sonic raced over at high speed and destroyed the robot. Much to his surprise, he saw an animal pop out of the robot. "Oh no! Someone's bullying animals and people alike! I...Hate...Bullies!! It's time to pick on someone his own size!"  ...And now the fight is on.''

Cheat codes
Level select at main menu press UP DOWN LEFT RIGHT hold A then press start Debug mode press UP C DOWN C LEFT C RIGHT C press start then hold A untill the game starts

Rereleases

 * Included in Sonic Classics on the Sega Mega Drive (Genesis).
 * Re-released on the Sega Mega Drive in a new package under a "Sega Classics" logo.
 * 6-Pack was a Sega Mega Drive (Genesis) cartridge consisting of 6 games, 1 of which was Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Playable in Sonic Jam for the Sega Saturn console.
 * Included in SEGA Smash Pack for the Dreamcast console.
 * In 2005 this game was ported as a mobile phone game and offered on the Sonic Cafe service. Sonic the Hedgehog (2005 Sonic Cafe)
 * SEGA Genesis Collection for PlayStation 2 and PSP also includes this game.
 * Available in Sonic Mega Collection for the GameCube and Sonic Mega Collection Plus for the PlayStation 2, PC and XBox.
 * Sonic Gems Collection allows you to play the final boss of this game in the museum mode. If you beat Final Zone under the time limit, you can continue on to the begining of the game until your time runs out.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog Mobile is an emulated version of the game released for download on Mobile phones in 2005, under the Sega Mobile banner.
 * Emulated onto a Game Boy Advance cartridge and released under the title of Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog has been ported to iPhone/iPodTouch.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog (iPod), iTunes recently released a "Click Wheel Game" version of this game for download under the Sega Mobile banner.
 * Available for Download on the Wii virtual console.
 * Included in a compilation disk titled Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Glitches
In the Green Hill Zone, Sonic may move so fast you lose a life.

If you stand at tip of a platform while rising and another platform is coming down, you WILL get crushed.

In the Labyrinth Zone if you press down, Sonic may roll at the end of the act resulting in an Illegal Instruction message.

On some versions, Sonic can sometimes can fall back on a set of spikes and die instantly, rather than have the invincibility when he is flashing.

Trivia
On the Marble Zone, if you look closely, some of the statues bear a humorous resembelance to Nintendo's Mario.