drx dumped this early prototype of the game Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Keep in mind that this is _not_ the famed Sonic 2 Beta ROM, but a much earlier version, which many people believe was used in Nick Arcade. This prototype has many differences from the later beta and the final version. Some of the differences:
- Speed is nerfed. Whenever you're pressing forward, it will always return you to your normal running speed if you're going faster, so you won't gain speed while running down a slope. Instead, you have to roll. The spindash is more like that from Sonic CD, and is missing the smoke effect. It's much less powerful than the one in the final game.
- Hitting the wall. If you're running fast and you run head-long into a wall, you'll fly back and hit the ground. This actually uses animations which were unused in the later versions, and, until recently, it was unclear what they were used for.
- Different end signpost images. Sonic and Tails' heads are looking toward the camera.
- Leftovers from Sonic 1. Sonic 2, of course, uses the same engine as Sonic 1, but with alterations. In this prototype, there are many leftovers in the ROM. Sonic 1 music plays in Sonic 2 stages, and Green Hill Zone has been left in the ROM, which even contains old resources such as the old spring sprites.
In this video, I am playing through Sonic 1's Green Hill Zone, left in the Sonic 2 prototype. It is very glitchy. Some of these issues:
- Background collision is wacky. While moving along the gentle slopes on the flat ground, you may fall through if you aren't moving fast enough. The steeper slopes will make you fall through the ground if you're moving to the right, and if you're moving to the left, you will be launched into the air.
- Not surprisingly, Sonic 1's hit-spikes-and-fly-back-onto-more-spikes-and-die is still in GHZ.
- Sprite tiles for spikes, badniks and more are very glitchy and incorrect.
To get to the leftover Green Hill Zone, as well as the other levels, you must use the level-select. The code is:
UDDDDU A+Start
