Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a flash tribute to the Game Boy Advance versions of the Sega classic Sonic series. You may choose to play as Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, or Cream (and two secret characters) and run your way through 2 worlds, each with two acts, and a boss fight with Robotnik, making it 6 stages in all.

How to Play
When the game loads, press the start button. You may also read about the controls and password system. Once you press start, you'll get some intro screens, and then be taken to the main menu. From the main menu you may select:
 * Start Game: Click on this to enter a sub-menu where you can choose between "Main Game" and "Time Trial". Time Trial will only contain stages you've unlocked in the Main Game.
 * Options: Click here to adjust the music and sound volume.
 * Password: Go here to either obtain a password for your current progress, or enter you password you've already received.
 * Cheats: Go here to activate any "cheats" you've unlocked.

Once you click on Main Game in the Start Game sub-menu, you can choose your character, and then click Start Game to begin.

You have 4 lives to get through all 6 levels. If you succeed, the game goes back to the title screen with your score saved, and you can play again with a brand new set of lives. (If you choose the same character you've already finished the game with, you can shoose which stage you wish to start on.) If you lose all 4 lives, the game is over and your score is submitted automatically.

Controls
Hold the Left or Right arrow keys to run left or right.

Press the Down arrow key to duck, or roll into a ball while running. (You will lose momentum rolled in a ball as opposed to running, but you'll destroy most enemies you come in contact with.)

You can press the Up arrow key to have your character look upward, but it doesn't do anything.

Press the space bar to jump.

Holding the down arrow key and pressing the space bar will allow you to do a "spin dash".

Characters
This game takes many of the characters from the 2D GBA Sonic games, but they don't all behave like they do in those games.


 * Sonic: The titular blue hedgehog. Sonic has no special abilities beyond his speed.
 * Tails: Tails (a.k.a. Miles Prower) is another iconic character from the Sonic series. Tails is usually regarded for his ability to fly. Tails can fly in this game as well. Press the space bar rapidly to fly upward slowly. Tails can't fly forever though, and will tire out after a few seconds.
 * Knuckles: The echidna and keeper of the Chaos Emeralds. In the Sonic games, he could punch through certain walls, and glide across the air. He cannot do either in this game, so he's essentially a red version of Sonic.
 * Cream: A female rabbit who's followed by a baby Chao named "Cheese". Like Tails, she can fly when you rapidly press the space bar.

Secret Characters
These characters can only be unlocked after finishing the game with each of the above listed characters:
 * Amy Rose: In the other games, Amy wields a giant hammer to attack. In this games, she's merely a pink version of Sonic. Finish the game with her, and you'll unlock:
 * Shadow: The evil twin of Sonic who starred in his own game. Luckily, Shadow left his AK-47 at home, so he's just another clone of Sonic in this game.

Tips
A general tip of Sonic games, make sure you always have at least one ring. You can take as many hits as you want, as long as you make sure you always have a ring on you. You get a nicer bonus at the end of the level depending on how many rings you're holding.

Use the "spin dash" to get out of a seemingly inescapable area.

When fighting Robotnik both times, he has two waves of attack. He'll attack slowly at first, but speed up greatly after a few hits. (The music also changes when this happens.) Timing is crucial in order to attack him while simultaneously avoiding his attacks.

A general rule of thumb is that the higher you are on a stage, the less threats you'll have to deal with. If you can, try to take the topmost path.

Beating the game with every character (except Shadow) unlocks a bonus feature in the "Cheats" section. These aren't really cheats, as most of them are superficial, and sometimes detrimental to play. (such as changing the animation when Sonic runs, having Tails follow every character (except Tails), running behind the foreground art, or changing the size of Cheese's sprite when playing as Cream.)

Bugs
Due to this being a flash tribute, it's much more buggy than any version of 2D Sonic you might be used to. Here are some more prominent glitches:

You'll often find rings placed oddly throughout the map, and sometimes you'll end up passing just underneath rings that were in your direct path. It's annoying but hardly a gamebreaker.

When pausing the game during a boss fight, the timer will still run.

Collecting rings doesn't make it's iconic sound, but oddly enough, collecting rings will occasionally repeat the last sound made by the game. (i.e. the pop noise when killing an enemy, or the dashing noise made when passing through a speed booster.)

If you pass a simple obstacle (such as a loop) by flying over it with Tails or Cream, you may end up running into severe clipping issues with certain background textures.

Occasionally, your character might stop suddenly on an incline, upward curve or change in terrain with no logical reason.

The post-hit invincibility doesn't work in this game, so it's entirely possible to be hit and die immediately afterward if you're hit in a bad position. That's no good.
 * Oddly enough, you can't collect lost rings immediately after being hit.

ChaosD1 08:23, 7 June 2009 (UTC)