16 bit Zones

Green Hill Zone:

• Green Hill Zone is a tropical delight with the style of this zone becoming the typical first zone that sticks with Sonic games right up to now. Waterfalls, palm trees, rope bridges and tunnels around are set against the backdrop of the famous chequered hills and the 360o loops.
• Is a constant source of familiarity for the series, re-appearing under different guises.
• Hazards in this stage include plenty of crumbling platforms, bridges with piranhas leaping below them, spikes and winding logs complete with horns. These need timing to get across.

Marble Zone:

• This zone is the very unstable ancient ruins. On the surface everything is bobbing up and down a hot bed of lava whilst underground is populated with again lava flows and plenty of rudimentary mechanics. A good majority of the play in this zone will take place underground.
• There will be pushing and smashing blocks aplenty whilst switches activate the movement of machinery and pillars. Sonic must push some blocks around for rides across expanses of lava which will be the main hazard throughout. It rushes and erupts with some of the larger eruptions necessary for progress. Large and small weights which slowly rise and then suddenly plunge with more spikes coming out of steps and the floor will be about.

Spring Yard Zone:

• This zone introduces the famous pinball element to Sonic games. The zone is basically a semi-industrial wasteland yet it's populated with parts of a pinball machine. The bumpers, flippers and springs knock Sonic around the zone. Some areas are filled with springs for some erratic movement. There are a few huge slopes, some of which are curved so if Sonic is in a roll he will pick up some great speed.
• Hazards are the free floating mines, mines that orbit grooves in the ground, loads of moving cargo boxes which make platforms of different shapes and sizes and bottomless drops.

Labrynth Zone:

• This zone will be most likely be remembered as the most annoying of the game. It is another set of ruins mostly underwater. When Sonic is submerged his speed is about half that of normal. During progress of each act air must be located as Sonic can only hold his breath for a short amount of time. When Sonic’s air supply is running out a countdown starts. His air supply can be replenished by leaping out of the water which is not always possible or by grabbing a large air bubble when it emerges. This can be timed but can be tricky so just assume it is random and to give enough time.
• Act 2 start off with Sonic rocketing down rapids into the murky depths below.
• Hazards to avoid include mines swinging on chains, spikes, spears, poison spitting statues and of course drowning. The water level is not always static. Some areas fill up rapidly.

Starlight Zone:

• Star Light is an aerial construction site set against the backdrop of a pretty star field. There are plenty of loops for some serious speed when rolling and seesaws. Use the accompanying mines to gain some height.
• Lots of hazards and obstacles are present in this zone. Lava is ejected from the walls, collapsing platforms, plunges to instant death and smart mines which explode when Sonic walks near them. Windmills block Sonic's progress in places whilst others give a slight speed boost. Some stop momentarily allowing Sonic to pass whereas others are continuously running.

Scrap Brain Zone:

• Scrap Brain is the toughest zone in the game. It is an electro-mechanical death-trap which is Robotnik's favourite hangout. Being the last zone just about everything is used to kill. It is full of platforms which can only be stood on when they are not rotating, holographic steps that appear and disappear after a few seconds, conveyor belts and transport tunnels.
• Just about everything in this zone is lethal; a few are bottomless plunges, electrical blasts from generators sometimes on the floor or ceiling, buzz saws with some of them not attached to anything and racing across the floor, igniting gas from broken pipes and the smart exploding mines.

Final Zone:

• As the title suggests - the final battle between Sonic and Dr Robotnik. With no rings, a hit will result in instant death.
• Robotnik has protected himself inside 4 capsules. Every 20 seconds or so 2 capsules will come onto the screen at random. Robotnik may or may not be inside one of them. Attack the one he is inside. Being trapped above or below one of these capsules will crush Sonic instantly.
• When they retract off the screen the plasma gun to the top right of the will begin to charge 4 shots. They will home on Sonic so be sure to look for a safe gap.