--- By Robert Flory --- Return to the 51st Area --- About this Sonic 1 Special Stage Mystery ---------------------------------------- As I'm sure you already know, moving Sonic outside the Special Stage maze layout with debug mode can drop him into some very unusual, glitchy areas, created by reading data outside the range of the maze layout data (where Sonic shouldn't be). In some of these areas, strange icons can be seen that aren't available during normal play; these items can't even be picked up with debug mode on. However, I have discovered an area that lets you pick up one of these icons (the 1-up)! At Sonic Area 51 is a Genecyst save state of that area. After you load it, you'll find yourself rolling over the top of three 1-up icons with diamond blocks between them. Destroy the diamonds to collect them! The items are fully functional, too; if you hit a goal and return to the game, you'll find that your lives have indeed increased. Be careful when exploring this strange area, though: if you fall off in the wrong direction, or press B to activate debug mode, you'll be thrown back into the "valid" maze area, and have to reload the save state. You've been warned. NOTE: I have found this area on a real Sonic 1 cart as well, so it is _not_ a weird emulator bug, it's the real thing. =) Interesting things about the area --------------------------------- What's so interesting about the area, you ask? Isn't it just like all the other messed-up areas, except for the fact that you can collect the 1-ups? Well, first, take a look at the wall of blocks where the 1-ups are located. You'll see a row of blocks, then a 1-up, a diamond, a 1-up, another diamond, another 1-up, and another row of blocks. Compare this orderly pattern to the rest of the glitched areas...they look nothing alike. This leads me to believe that the area with the 1-ups is actually a small remnant of a lost secret stage! This _might_ also account for the fact that you can collect the 1-ups in this area, unlike the other areas where you pass right through them. Another interesting thing about this area is the scrambled (yet recognizable) sections of secret stage walls, goals, and bumpers that reside straight across from the "1-up wall." They look as though they could be parts of the aforementioned lost secret stage, partially overwritten with other data, or perhaps lacking the proper layout information that would assemble them into a clean, organized maze. Or they could simply be sections of the valid maze, randomly thrown in by the now whacked-out maze engine. I'm not sure. =P If you follow the "1-up wall" in the right direction, you'll also encounter those weird "W" icons! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to collect them (invisible wall or something). =( Final words ----------- I'm hoping that another "Sonic secret" freak out there (one with a bit more technical knowledge than myself) could someday create a level editor for the mazes in Sonic 1, and we could finally figure out what those other icons do by simply placing them in the middle of a maze. It shouldn't be impossible, they're doing it right now with Sonic 2... I'm also hoping that someday, a beta version of Sonic 1 will see the light of day, and put to rest so many unproven theories about this game...just like the Sonic 2 beta did (well, sort of...we got the real Hidden Palace =). And maybe, just maybe, an ex-Sonic Team member will spill their guts about the lost stages/enemies/items/etc. in the future. Wishful thinking... That's all ---------- Everything in this doc was written by Robert Flory (BMF54123). You can write to me at bmf54123@hotmail.com, or visit my Web page at http://welcome.to/rusted.logic. Sonic the Hedgehog is a trademark of SEGA. Keep pumping out the unfinished games, guys, we love finding your deep, hidden secrets. Hehehe. >=) I'd like to say thanks to Andre' Dirk for creating of the "Secrets of Sonic the Hedgehog" Web site (http://ssrg.emulationzone.org/secret). I never knew there was so much hidden stuff inside a common Sonic cart until I visited your site! Keep up the good work! There's also loads more Sonic secret sites at http://ssrg.emulationzone.org! Check 'em out! END --- Taken from 'Secrets of Sonic the Hedgehog - The Original' http://secretsonic.cjb.net ---