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Proto:Sonic the Hedgehog (Genesis)/Star Light Zone

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This is a sub-page of Proto:Sonic the Hedgehog (Genesis).

Star Light Zone, while graphically similar to its final version, has very unfinished level layouts. Even Act 1 has a lot of work left to be done on it, as evidenced by parts where you can seemingly fall through the floor.

General

  • The stage as a whole has a more "under construction" appearance than the final, mainly due to the use of trusses. This look bears a striking similarity to the 8-bit version's Sky Base Zone - adding to the theory that the 8-bit version's tilesets were based on what was planned to appear in the 16-bit version (see Green Hill and Labyrinth for more examples).
  • While all three acts start roughly similar to their final versions, the level design itself is drastically different. Among the biggest differences from the final version include numerous small platforms clustered together, fewer loop-de-loops and winding paths, and more opportunities to fall into bottomless pits; one can fall from the stage in Act 1 mere seconds after starting the level, which is impossible in the final game.
  • Loops have a few blinking lights; these remain in the final's tileset, but go unused.
  • There are no enemies in the prototype's levels, though the cannons that shoot fire balls have been implemented. Crabmeat and Buzz Bomber can be placed with debug mode, though they are unused by the final.
  • There are several misplaced chunks throughout all three acts, as well as objects that don't seem to correspond to their surrounding layouts. It's probable that these are leftovers from an even earlier version of Star Light Zone, indicating that the Zone is in a similar state as that of Oil Ocean Zone in the August 21st build of Sonic 2.

Act 1

Prototype Sonic1ProtoSLZ1.png
Final Sonic1FinalSLZ1.png
  • When the stage is first loaded, a graphical error can be seen while walking down the initial path.
  • For an unknown reason, breaking any monitor in this Act seems to cause every other monitor to appear broken. This renders any remaining powerups within monitors inaccessible as soon as you break a single monitor.


Sonic1ProtoSLZ1-5-PlatformingWithFans.png

The prototype layout features many tricky platforming sections against fans that turn on and off, using small floating pieces of land nowhere to be seen in the final game.

Sonic1ProtoSLZ1-6-FloorAsPit.png

Under some of these platforming sections are non-solid wall chunks, giving the odd feeling of going right through the floor if one falls. Falling through these chunks will usually bring Sonic into a different section of the Act.

Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ1StartSecret.png Sonic1FinalSLZ1StartSecret.png
  • In the final game, there is a secret behind a breakable wall with 3 Ring Monitors and an Invincibility Monitor. The prototype lacks this secret, and contains falling platforms which were removed before the final release.
Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ11upSecret.png Sonic1FinalSLZ11upSecret.png
  • In the prototype, there is a bottomless pit below the first expanding platform. In the final game, a 1up Monitor was added on a new ledge beside the expanding platform.
Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ1-4-QuarterPipeVertical.png Sonic1FinalSLZ1-4-QuarterPipeVertical.png
  • The setpiece where Sonic runs across a gap and uses a quarter-pipe to run up the wall is a bit more complicated in the prototype. Rather than an unobstructed climb upwards, the path is blocked by a spring, forcing Sonic to jump to the left to continue climbing, as well as necessitating enough momentum to climb up the next quarter-pipe.
  • A similar setpiece also appears in Act 2, though it lacks objects.


Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ1-7-FireballSection.png Sonic1FinalSLZ1-7-FireballSection.png
  • This corridor is a lot narrower in the prototype.
  • The fireball shooters have an earlier, less refined look that's flatter and less detailed. Interestingly, the art for the fireball shooters is a part of the chunk rather than an object. The tiles for this early fireball shooter are still present in the final game.
Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ1Sign.png Sonic1FinalSLZ1Sign.png
  • In the prototype, the signpost is misplaced and ends up halfway in the ground. This was fixed in the final release.

Act 2

Prototype Sonic1Proto-SLZ2.png
Final Sonic1Final-SLZ2.png
  • The starting area stayed mostly the same, aside from the usual updated chunks. However, after the second loop, just about the entire layout was redone.
  • The pylons are also missing in this act.
  • There are very few objects present in this Act; for example, rings, springs, and monitors are nowhere to be seen. This makes it impossible to use the lower path to reach the end of the level without Debug Mode.

A pair of strange, corrupted elevator platform objects appear near the end of the stage, in between the swinging spike balls. One of the elevators has a subtype of 7A, while the other has a subtype of 14. For unknown reasons, the art for these elevators display as empty space and a few random garbage tiles. For both of these elevators, only the top left corner has collision; when stood upon, the objects travel downwards a slight distance, similar to fully-implemented elevator platforms in the same stage.

Sonic1ProtoSLZ2-1-MisplacedChunk.png

Right before the end of the Act is a seemingly misplaced chunk with rather buggy collision. This may be a remnant from an older version of the layout.

Prototype Final
Sonic1ProtoSLZ2-1-StartingArea.png Sonic1FinalSLZ2-1-StartingArea.png
  • There's a wall present to the left, after going up the quarter-pipe, that was removed in the final game.

Act 3

Prototype Sonic1ProtoSLZ3.png
Final Sonic1FinalSLZ3.png
  • Similar to Act 2, the giant slopes present at the beginning and the middle were kept for the final. The stage lacks pylons, and everything afterwards is different.
Sonic1ProtoSLZ3-1-PlatformObjects.png

Underneath the starting area, inaccessible without Debug Mode, are these two objects. The platform on the left crumbles when stood on, and the 4 platforms on the right rotate like other similar platforms in this Zone.

Sonic1ProtoSLZ3-2-StaircaseObjects.png

Going right from this point, two rotating staircase objects can be spotted after passing the slope.

Sonic1ProtoSLZ3-3-ElevatorObjects.png

By using Debug Mode to go a bit further into the level, then heading back and approaching the starting slope from below or to the right, these odd elevator spawners will appear. These two objects rapidly spawn elevator platforms that move upwards. The object on the right has a subtype of 94.

Aside from these objects, there are no other objects in the Act layout. Given their odd positions within the level, they may be left over from an older version of the layout. Another possibility, given their similar Y coordinates and proximity to each other, is that they are left over from a testing layout.

Unused and Changed Chunks

Sonic1ProtoSLZChunk09.png
Changed Chunks
Thoroughly de-trussed.

Unused Chunks

The only unused chunks in the prototype are 31 and 52, which are both empty. Chunk 52 remains empty in the final game, but Chunk 31 ends up being used as a background chunk, in place of the prototype's Chunk 4F.

Chunk 41 is also empty, but is actually used once in the Act 3 layout. This chunk's placement in Act 3 may be a remnant of an even older layout. Chunk 41 remains empty and sees no use in the final game.