SegaSonic the Hedgehog
Screenshot of SegaSonic the Hedgehog
Developer(s)	Sega AM3
Publisher(s)	Sega
Designer(s)	M. Kusunoki, K. Miyagi, M. Hoshino, S. Yamagata
Release date(s)	June, 1993
Genre(s)	Platform
Mode(s)	Up to 3 players simultaneously
Platform(s)	Arcade
Input	Trackball, 1 button
Arcade system(s)	Sega System 32
Arcade display	Raster, 416 x 224 pixels (Horizontal), 16384 colors

SegaSonic the Hedgehog, known by various names including Sonic Arcade, Sonic the Arcade and SEGASONIC Arcade was officially released into the Japanese arcades in June 1993. Versions of the arcade game appeared in limited quantities in arcades in anglophone countries, such as London's Sega World. A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates computer or video games. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Sega Corporation ) is an international video game software and hardware developing company, and a former home computer and console manufacturer. ... A game designer is a person who designs games. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... Platform game, or platformer, is a video game genre characterized by jumping to and from suspended platforms. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... Logitech TrackMan A trackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball housed in a socket containing sensors to detect rotation of the ball about two axes—like an upside-down mouse with an exposed protruding ball. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Button (computing). ... An arcade system board is a standardized printed circuit board or group of printed circuit boards that are used as the basis for multiple arcade games with very similar hardware requirements. ... The System 32 was an arcade platform released by Sega in the early 1990s. ... A computer display is an interface between the computer and the operator. ... Suppose the smiley face in the top left corner is an RGB bitmap image. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Look up Anglophone in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The game was Sonic the Hedgehog's first major arcade outing, and featured Sega's mascot alongside two new characters: Ray The Flying Squirrel and Mighty the Armadillo. The latter would later feature in the low-profile Knuckles' Chaotix for the Sega 32X. The characters have the same gameplay that Sonic has. Sonic the Hedgehog ) is a video game character and the protagonist of a series of video games released by Sega, as well as numerous spin-off comics, cartoons and books. ... Sega Corporation ) is an international video game software and hardware developing company, and a former home computer and console manufacturer. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Mighty the Armadillo is a fictional character in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. ... Knuckles Chaotix, in Japan called simply Chaotix, is a platform game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, developed and published by Sega for the Sega 32X. The game was released in North America in March 1995, in Japan on April 21, 1995 and finally in Europe during May 1995. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

In the game, Sonic, Ray and Mighty have been kidnapped by the evil Doctor Eggman and must run for their lives to escape Eggman Island, an island littered with tricks and traps that can be activated with the push of a button. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The game

The premise of the game is to get to the end of an isometric course without dying. This objective is similar to other Sonic games, yet different in the sense that, instead of a typical platforming game, the game is entirely centered around running as fast as possible on a linear course from a never-ending barrage of threats, ranging from giant boulders, lava flows, rogue gears, falling stalactites, and others. Players who get harmed by any of the above will lose health from a health bar - this game is one of the few entries in the series to have such a thing - which can be refilled with various rings lying around the arena. Upon completing the level, the game tallies up how many rings were grabbed, and gives extra points if the percentage is over 50%. The game only has one boss, who appears midway through the game.

The characters were controlled by one action button, allowing you to perform a jumping spin attack, and a trackball, similar to Marble Madness. The inclusion of the latter has subsequently lead to great difficulty in emulation by both unofficial and official programmers; in a recent interview, Yuji Naka stated that the reason it was not included on the recent Sonic Gems Collection was because of this. [1] Logitech TrackMan A trackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball housed in a socket containing sensors to detect rotation of the ball about two axes—like an upside-down mouse with an exposed protruding ball. ... Marble Madness is an arcade game by Atari Games released in 1984. ... Sonic Gems Collection (ソニック ジェムズ コレクション) is a GameCube and (in Japan and Europe) PlayStation 2 compilation of the more obscure games of the Sonic series. ...

This game is notable for being the first to feature voices for the characters. The voices were provided by T.Kusao (Sonic), H.Kanamaru (Ray), Y.Numata (Mighty), and M.Satoh (Eggman).

Levels

The game is made up of seven stages:

1. Volcanic Vault: You're chased by a flood of lava as you run through a rocky dungeon with closed grates and pits of magma. Unlike most of the levels, which are typically surrounded by bottomless pits, this level is walled-in, making it easier.
2. Icy Isle: Slip across ice paths, dodging spears and giant ice-cubes, in order to escape walls of falling stalactites. This level introduces pits; a bottomless pit is on at least one side at all times.
3. Desert Dodge: Large tornadoes chase you down a fragile path of sand that is rapidly growing large holes on the sides - right as you run by them. Avoid quicksand and large robotic worms to reach victory.
4. Trap Tower: A giant rolling cog has broken free and is giving chase to our heroes. It isn't the only thing that can crush you, however; large spiked walls act like giant flyswats. Toward the end of the level, you have to escape a rising wall of fire by climbing a ladder set on wall laden with mines.
5. Landslide Limbo: Raised rock platforms crumble away behind you. You'll have to catch vines and use various catapults to cross the many gaps in the path. This level features the game's only boss, a machine with buzz saws and flame throwers.
6. Wild Water Way: The moat to Eggman Tower. A giant propellor follows you through the submerged areas of the level, which feature some enemies (seasnakes and clam-like traps). Also, you will have to climb walls which are rapidly giving way to the water pressure behind them, and navigate rafts coasting on a river, as the waterfall of the river rapidly moves toward you (literally), threatening to toss you over into the abyss below.
7. Eggman's Tower: The final level. Guillotines, buzz saws and weak bridges abound as you make your way to Eggman - who, upon confrontation, will just decide to blow up the island, forcing you to escape in 20 seconds or else not see the ending.

Between stages, the game shows Eggman panicking and plotting your demise as he tracks your progress on a map of Eggman Island. The Maiden, an older Scottish design. ...

The prototype

Up until very recently the only ROM, and thus the only version of the game most could play, was a beta (Revision A, specifically). There were only five levels:

1. Unnamed
2. Ice World
3. Trap Tower
4. Landslide Zone
5. Desert Zone

which correlate to:

1. Volcanic Vault
2. Icy Isle
3. Trap Tower
4. Landslide Limbo
5. Desert Dodge

placing all of the levels bar the first two in the wrong order.

The levels become less complete as the game continues, lacking most of the little touches such as rings, which are all missing. Despite this, it is entirely possible to play the game right up until Desert Dodge (albeit this is difficult), where, after exiting the quicksand section of the level, you'll be rewarded with a game over sign and Eggman laughing at you. Hackers subsequently revealed that the final two levels, both originally missing, were included in the game data.

Also of note, the beta title screen features only Sonic, although Mighty and Ray are fully selectable. Some emulators will not allow you to make the characters run, most probably because of improper emulation the trackball controls of the original.

Trivia

• Mighty is one of the oldest characters in the Sonic franchise; he was a prototype for Sonic and thus bares an uncanny resemblance to him.
• Each of the trackballs and their corresponding action buttons were color-coded (blue for Sonic, red for Mighty and yellow for Ray).
• This was the first Sonic game to feature an ice level, which would later become a recurring theme in the series starting with Sonic 3's Ice Cap Zone.
• This is the first Sonic game to feature character dialogue and more so, voices for the characters

Sonic the Hedgehog 3, or simply Sonic 3, is a platform game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. ...

Playable characters

• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Ray the Flying Squirrel
• Mighty the Armadillo

Sonic the Hedgehog ) is a video game character and the protagonist of a series of video games released by Sega, as well as numerous spin-off comics, cartoons and books. ... Ray the Flying Squirrel is a fictional character in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. ... Mighty the Armadillo is a fictional character in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. ...

External links

• SegaSonic page at The GHZ
• Secerts of Sonic Team's information on Sega Sonic
• Knuckleschaotix page on SegaSonic