All the S@nics - the end

[Blivsey]

Every time I play this game I spindash at the start of this level and run directly into the spikes and die.

Your first mistake was using the spindash in Sonic CD.

obviously anyone worth their salt uses the peel-out to slam into the spikes instead

[10204307]

Super peel-out is way too fast. I wouldn't be able to see the spikes coming for half a second before slamming into them and dying anyway.

[Ashan]

The time travelling mechanic seems horribly implemented. From what I can tell in the videos, you touch the sign and then have to one shot to get up to full speed for a certain amount of time for it to work, but if you accidentally get going fast and don't go fast for long enough it eats it up? So you have to like inch forward until you find a place where you can get going fast for a while (seems to mostly be those segments where the game bounces you around through tunnels and plays itself) which once again goes against the game's point of going fast.

[raekuul]

The point is to go fast? I thought the point was to shove it into Nintendo's face (whatever "it" is).

[Reecer7]

check out the incredible new sega cd! redbook audio? no problem, have as much of it as you could ever want. rendering 50 coins at once? woah, slow down there, buckoo, this ain't a supercomputer.

also, what's up with the vertical scrolling in this zone? the background just stops going up at a point, but the level continues. it's kind of disorientating.

[Sebby19]

Something I've been wondering about for a very long time...

how do they program the layer shenanigan's across the sonic games. Loops are the obvious example, but Sonic 2 had a double helix thing where you could only go on one of the paths, depending on which on you jump on. Among numeruos other examples.

[Sebby19]

Man the blue UFO makes this Special stage extremely forgiving.

Adding to my previous question, how'd the get SNES mode 7 without mode 7?

[Crow]

Something I've been wondering about for a very long time...

how do they program the layer shenanigan's across the sonic games. Loops are the obvious example, but Sonic 2 had a double helix thing where you could only go on one of the paths, depending on which on you jump on. Among numeruos other examples.

http://info.sonicretro.org/Path_swapper

[Heavy Sigh]

Fun Sonic Facts!

The Westernization of Sonic CD

Wanting just as much, if not more for the game to succeed as Sega of Japan, Sega of America prepped the Mega CD (referred to as the "Sega CD" in the United States) for the release of Sonic's time hopping adventure. Though the code was only awaiting the starting flag on NTSC systems, executive decision delayed the game, as SoA felt something wasn't right for the American market. Looking over the game, SoA decided that the CD audio was in dire need of a change if it was to succeed in America. The original tracks in the Japanese release (which remained in the European releases), in the highly trained opinion of marketing, were simply too similar to other electronic dance albums hitting the market around that time, and CD's beats would be seen as mere imitations of them, damaging the brand. Wanting to give the game an identity to resonate with American gamers, Sega contracted their recently hired in-house musician Spencer Nilsen to rescore the entire game...

...in less than a month.

[Whimsical Calamari]

Something I've been wondering about for a very long time...

how do they program the layer shenanigan's across the sonic games. Loops are the obvious example, but Sonic 2 had a double helix thing where you could only go on one of the paths, depending on which on you jump on. Among numeruos other examples.

http://info.sonicretro.org/Path_swapper

For a visual example of those objects at work, here's a video of Chemical Plant Zone in the extremely early alpha Nick Arcade Prototype. The path swapper objects have their debug visuals (straight lines of rings without animation) perpetually enabled, and play a checkpoint noise when either Sonic or Tails crosses one.

[Super Llama]

Sonic CD's environmental theme is more green technology vs. callous industrialism, rather than the usual "'TECHNOLOGY BAD, LET'S ALL LIVE IN THE WOODS AND EAT BERRIES N SHIT,' I type on my state-of-the-art computer in my air-conditioned office."

Also, oh boy it's Nippon music time.

And as a bonus, some more Temporal Duality tracks

[Sebby19]

Ah, invisible triggers that 'turn on and off' certain sections of the level. After all these years, it finally makes sense.

Now, how'd they replicate Mode 7?

[SAJewers]

I mean, Mode 7 isn't some special proprietary Nintendo technology, it's just the technical name for the 7th background graphics mode, which allows hardware scaling and rotation of the background layer. The Sega CD also includes the ability to scale and rotate backgrounds in hardware

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mode_7

[Heavy Sigh]

Fun Sonic Facts!

With less than a month before his deadline, SEGA musician Spencer Nilsen did the smart thing and gave the original soundtrack a listen. While he appreciated its accomplishments, he was also not willing to bite the hand currently feeding him by calling SoA's concerns groundless. So he immediately set out to create a more dramatic sound that would be utterly separate from the original.

As his first good idea, Nilsen contacted the female pop/jazz fusion trio Pastiche who were currently performing near him. Enlisting their help to complete the soundtrack, they became as essential to the project as Nilsen himself, their vocal flair flavouring numerous tracks. His idea to include them stemmed from the fact that the game's other lead was Amy Rose, thus the female vocals would be an 'almost subliminal' advertisement of her presence.

The biggest contribution from the group was connected to the theme song, "Sonic Boom." The lead singer of the group, Sandy Cressman, was not only the singer to both versions of the theme, but was also responsible for the lyrics, coming up with the first few lines while the rest of her band helped finish.

[Grounder]

i feel like we just wandered into an alternate universe where the playsega sonic maker game was actually good and we watched a quick proof of concept pinball machine level

[Crow]

this boss was terrible hard bad for me as a kid. it's not hard. i just sucked as a kid

[xnamkcor]

Would raocow be willing to see what happens if you play Sonic & Knuckles with Sonic CD attached?

[Awoo]

Would raocow be willing to see what happens if you play Sonic & Knuckles with Sonic CD attached?

NO WAY? NO WAY! NO WAY? NO WAY!

[Bean]

So while you can't do any bonus levels in the third level of each place, you can always get two lives from them if you really want to since they all contain 100 rings and an extra life monitor. And yeah, the pinball physics in this boss level are not that good in the original version.

[Grounder]

So my advice is basically

use the fans, and stay on the paths as much as you can. That means no fancy moves at all. Better safe and dry than wet and sorry!

[Awoo]

Ah, now raocow has felt the same frustration I've had with this game's special stages. Keep up the good work, though! You're perfect for destroying the universe past destroying machine things!

[FourteenthOrder]

The Tidal Tempest JP theme is my favorite from either soundtrack behind Sonic Boom. I just love it so much. The US version is another of my favorites, though. They go for slightly different feels and both work great.

[Katazuki]

I decided to look at the map of this Zone and yeah, the placement of the Past signs in the Present are pretty stupid.

[Heavy Sigh]

Fun Sonic Facts!

Released on November 19th, 1993, arguments over Sonic CD's two soundtracks began that day. Though a majority of the Americans who bought the game hadn't the faintest inkling there had ever been another soundtrack, those that did know had some strong words for SoA's decision, the most prominent being in the pages of GameFan. Fully aware of the controversy surrounding his alternate soundtrack, Spencer Nilsen chose to remain calm about the outburst, evne while interviewed about it:

“I think the controversy surrounding the two versions of the game soundtrack were really blown out of proportion. Honestly, I've had hundreds of people tell me that they LOVE the score I wrote for that game, and I'm sure the Japanese version has tons of fans as well, so everybody wins in the end… as it should be! After all… IT'S ONLY A GAME!!...I think critics were looking for reasons to bash the game, and so many critics are hardcore, loyal fans so they are not very objective. AND… they had all been playing the Japanese version for weeks or months before our version hit the streets, so it was like we replaced the music to Star Wars after the movie had been out for a while. From that perspective, I can't blame them. But to be honest, the game critics were always very kind to me and my collaborators, so a little bad press ain't the end of the world!"

[Piesonscreations]

Even with how finnicky these special stages seem to get, I can't say I miss either Sonic 1 or 2's special stages. Or 3 for that matter, but that'll come later.