Sonic The Hedgehog
for Sega Genesis
Tips, Walkthrough
Version 1.0, 10/29/00


William Walker
email J-D-Walker@worldnet.att.net

This document Copyright 2000 William Walker. Reproduction and
distribution without permission is okay, as long as (1) I am
given credit for my work, and (2) it's not done for commercial
purposes.


Hello!

Did you know that the most popular games for Sega Genesis were
the Sonic the Hedgehog series? In this FAQ I'll cover Sonic 1,
the first and simplest game in the series. I'll include
walkthroughs for some of the tougher levels, plus a level select
if you can't seem to beat a level. That last part is important;
this file includes a controller code that lets you start at any
level you want. That can be very important if you're stuck. Look
for it at the end of the file. Well, what are you waiting for?
Let's get started!

Welcome to Sonic!

Ivo Robotnik, the demented scientist, has plans for a giant sky
station called the Death Egg (aka Star Wars) with which he plans
to conquer the world. So he's captured all the animals on
Floating Island, the magical island that floats in the sky due to
the power of the chaos emeralds, giant gems with amazing powers.
Anyway Robotnik's has put them in prison eggs and plans to turn
them into robots. Some of the animals have already met this
horrible fate and will never stop trying to defeat you. In Sonic
1, we won't see the Death Egg yet, as Robotnik's robot army works
to build it at his current lair, the scrap brain. Robotnik also
knows how to build traps, obstacles and many other things to
prevent anyone from stopping him. The only thing that can stop
him is our hero, Sonic the Hedgehog. Sonic's best ally is his
sneakers that enable him to outrun any trap, and his spiky skin
that will give him the upper hand against most of the slew of
robots he's going to face. The animals are on his side, and it's
guaranteed that he'll be able to find some stuff on the island
that'll help him out.

But even Sonic may need protection sometimes. That's where he'll
need gold rings. Sonic usually can't die as long as he has a
ring, and rings are plentiful, appearing everywhere, often in
groups. Unfortunately there are some things that kill Sonic even
if he has rings. One of these would be running out of time. Sonic
always has only ten minutes to complete a level.

In Sonic 2, despite being foiled once, Robotnik has completed his
Death Egg ship and can take over the world if he gets his hands
on the priceless chaos emeralds. To stop him Sonic will need to
destroy the death egg. He also wants to get all the emeralds.
Even though you don't need them to win the game, if you collect
them all you can become an all new Super Sonic, who's invincible
and is also super fast! You can collect the emeralds in Sonic 1
too, but you can't become Super Sonic. Also Sonic 2 has a new
character named Tails, who is a two-tailed fox who can fly using
his tails as a helicopter. Tails is Sonic's sidekick and you can
even play as Tails if you wish. To battle back, Robotnik has
created a Sonic robot called Robo-Sonic, and he's going to put up
a hard fight. Besides many more new zones Sonic 2 also has a
competition mode in which Sonic can compete against Tails in
three of the zones. Sonic 2 promises loads of fun.

In Sonic 3, Dr. Robotnik's Death Egg was apparently destroyed.
But what really happened was that it crash landed on floating
island. The only way Robotnik can repair it is to get the seven
chaos emeralds. The emeralds are faithfully guarded by Knuckles
the Echidna. But Dr. Robotnik tricks him into thinking that
Robotnik is a good guy. So Knuckles hides the emeralds away and
prepares to give them to Robotnik while Sonic and Tails try to
destroy the Death Egg ship again. You can become Super Sonic,
play as Tails, and do everything in the old game, plus there are
now three kinds of shields instead of one, a new bonus stage, and
six new zones that are all about 50% bigger than Sonic 2. There
is also a save feature, found only in this game. This game also
has a tipbook out for it. There's also a new competition mode.

The last Genesis platform game in the series is Sonic & Knuckles.
It is almost identical to Sonic 3, because they were originally
one game, but made into two games in order to get them out on
time. In this one Knuckles is a good guy, and you can play as him
if you want! If you do, you can use Knuckles's special moves,
which are gliding, wall climbing and wall bashing. Tails,
however, is not present in this game. If you play as Knuckles
your mission is to destroy the new Robo-Sonic, who tried to drop
a bomb on you. Knuckles can get to power-ups that Sonic can't or
has a difficult time getting to, and can also use new routes
through levels. Since he can't jump as high as Sonic, sometimes
he has to take a route that Sonic can't. This happens in both
acts of Lava Reef zone. These other routes are often harder then
the route Sonic would take and will require perfect use of
Knuckles's special moves. Knuckles's game ends when he beats
Robo-Sonic in Sky Sanctuary zone. This means his game is shorter
than Sonic's.

If you play as Sonic you must destroy Robotnik once and for all.
Robotnik has found the existence of a giant emerald called the
master emerald. It is hidden somewhere in a hidden palace,
guarded by Knuckles. If Robotnik gets his hands on this emerald,
his Death Egg will be able to conquer the world and floating
island will be destroyed! Robotnik plans to follow Knuckles to
the place where this giant gem is hidden. As Sonic, you must not
let that happen! Despite having a longer game, Sonic will
probably have an easier time of it. The final zone takes place
inside the Death Egg, and you can bet there's some pretty tough
characters around there. Sonic will have an easier time getting
the emeralds because when Knuckles plays, he goes on a different
route then Sonic and can't get to some of the giant gold rings.
If you get all the emeralds you'll not only have the ability to
become Super Sonic, but also can play a final zone with you as
Super Sonic. If you succeed, you'll destroy Robotnik for good!
(Well, until he comes back on Dreamcast). Also S & K has two new
bonus stages, but that's only the half of it. S & K has an even
more astounding feature. On the top of any S & K cartridge is an
top that can be opened. When it's open, you can put any other
Genesis cartridge into it! This is called the lock-on feature.

If you put Sonic 1 into S & K, you'll get a screen with the
characters all saying "No Way." Hold down Buttons A, B, and C,
and press start and it'll say special stage. Now you can play
through stage after stage after stage, trying to collect chaos
emeralds. I hear that there are over 32,000 of them! Astounding,
huh? And you can lose the stage unlimited times, and it doesn't
matter. If you collect all the rings in a stage you'll warp ahead
ten stages. If you collect the emerald you can move on to the
next stage. You can play until you get bored, or until your game
gets shut down because you never paid your electric bill. Great,
huh? Well, the next thing will make you jump out of your skin!

If you lock-on with Sonic 2, you'll play all of Sonic 2 - as
Knuckles! There will be no Tails or competition mode, but you can
use Knuckles' special moves in the levels of Sonic 2!
Unfortunately you cannot win the game, as Knuckles' low jump
prevents him from beating the boss in Metropolis zone.

If you lock on with Sonic 3, you can do the following:

-- Play the zones of Sonic 3 and S & K one after another, as
Sonic, Tails, Sonic and Tails or even Knuckles
-- Use Tails in the zones of S & K
-- Use Knuckles in the levels of Sonic 3, with new levels,
routes, and bosses galore
-- Collect 14 emeralds
-- Become Hyper Sonic or Hyper Knuckles, who is always surrounded
by stars, glows white, and can jet forward as if he had a flame
shield. Hyper Knuckles isn't as glamorous, but when he moves he
becomes a blur. Both also have all the powers of Super Sonic or
Knuckles.
-- Have fun, fun, and more fun

I'm done now, right? WRONG! I've done all the Genesis Sonic
games, but there's one more I like: Sonic CD.

Sonic CD takes place between Sonic 1 and 2. There is no Tails,
Knuckles or Death Egg, just Sonic, Robotnik, and a new and
improved Robo-Sonic. In this one Sonic's girlfriend, Amy, has
been abducted by Robotnik in an attempt to lure Sonic into a
trap. Sonic, of course, says that no trap can beat him and goes
off to rescue Amy. This game is basically the same as Sonic 1
with one major difference: time travel. To travel through time,
you must first touch a past or future lamppost and then travel at
ultra-fast speed for about 8 seconds to warp through time. If you
slow down at the wrong time, you may lose the time warp and have
to find another lamppost. A good strategy would be to find two
springs that bounce you back and forth at a fast speed. Your goal
is to go to the past and find and destroy the animal cage for
that level to create a good future. Also you collect time stones
instead of emeralds and if you get all the time stones, you get
an automatic good future in each level. If you get all the time
stones plus good futures in every level you get a bonus ending.
Another change from Sonic 1 is that there's a save feature. 

Well that's all the games. It's now time to go through the
individual zones and tell you what to do. This is a very long
FAQ, but very detailed. I hope this FAQ helps you master  Sonic
1, the first of one of the best sets of games in the world. Good
luck!  

Basics of gameplay

1. Upper left corner & controls
2. Power-ups
3. Other stuff

UPPER LEFT CORNER & CONTROLS

I know it's a silly name, but this stuff is very important, so
listen up. To control Sonic, press left or right to move that
way, down to duck and A, B, or C to jump -- that's all there is
to it! There's one more move you should know: the Super Spin
Attack. To do that simply press down while you're running. This
makes you roll into a ball as you run and can bust through
enemies and a few walls. 

In the upper left corner it tells you how your score, how much
time you've used up and how many rings you have. You only have
ten minutes to complete each level. If you go over that time you
die. 

You score 100 points for each robot you smash, 1,000 points for
each of Robotnik's ships that you blow up, 100 points for each
ring you hold at the end of a level, 100 points for each ring you
have at the end of the special stage and 100, 1,000, or 10,000
points for each of the bonus icons you touch at the end of each
stage. After you hit the flag, jump around in that area to reveal
the invisible bonus icons, each with its point value on it. There
is only one 10,000 icon at the end of each stage. Can you find
it? There are more ways to get points too. In Spring Yard zone,
you score 10 points for each bumper you hit. After enough hits, a
bumper no longer gives points. You also score a time bonus for
each act you complete in a certain amount of time. You'll score:

Time used       Points
<30sec          50,000
<45sec          10,000
<1min            5,000
<1min30sec       4,000
<2min            3,000
<3min            2,000
<4min            1,000
<5min              500

     As for rings, each ring you pick up stays with you until you
get hit. If you get hit while you have rings, you lose all of
them, but some will fly into the air and you can re-grab them if
you're quick. Having a lot of rings has other advantages, too.
We'll get to them soon. 
     In the lower left corner is your lives. To gain a life:
-- Smash a 1-Up monitor
-- Collect 100 rings
-- Get 50,000 points

Do NOT do the following things which cause you to lose a life:
-- Get hit with zero rings
-- Fall off the screen 
-- Run out of time
-- Get into a position where you are squished
-- Drown (spend 20 seconds underwater without getting an air
bubble, only can happen in Labyrinth zone)

All of those things except for the first kill you even if you are
invincible, and will kill even if you have rings! It's a
dangerous world, but remember that you'll almost never run out of
time, you can only drown in Labyrinth zone, and you can only fall
off the screen in certain places in some zones.

If you lose all your lives, it's game over, unless you have a
continue. If you do, press a button before the countdown reaches
zero to begin the level you were last in with three lives. To get
a continue, collect 50 rings in the special stage.

POWER-UPS

Bust open monitors to get stuff that will help you defeat
Robotnik and will give you advantages in the levels. The power-
ups are: 

-- Super ring (ten rings)
-- 1-Up (a new life)
-- Speed shoes (super speed)
-- Invincibility (30 seconds, can still be killed by drowning,
getting squished, etc)
-- Shield (the next time you get hit, you lose the shield instead
of rings)

The icon on the monitor tells which power-up it is. A ring
indicates a super ring, Sonic's face is a bonus life, a sneaker
means speed shoes, stars indicate invincibility, and a shield is
indicated by a white and blue thing I can't describe. You'll
recognize it easily. 

OTHER STUFF

There's one more thing I need to warn you of: spikes. If you land
on spikes you get hit, and you also get knocked back. If you get
land on more spikes you die, even though you should have been
given a chance to collect your rings. Spikes are not to be taken
lightly. Lava hurts you too, but doesn't do this to you.

Besides power-ups, there are also objects in the levels. They
include lampposts, which save your place in case you die,
springs, which propel you forward, red springs being more
powerful then yellow springs. There's a lot of other zone-
particular stuff that is covered in that zone.

Now the only thing not covered is special stage. If you finish a
stage with 50 rings or more a giant ring appears above the flag.
Jump into it and after your score is calculated, you'll go to
special stage. In special stage you must try to collect rings,
and also a chaos emerald. The special stage is a colorful maze
that rotates. Sonic is always spinning in this stage and can't
jump or do the spin attack. There are no robots, just orbs. There
are several kinds of orbs, some of which are in the walls and
others are out in the open. After the stage ends you get 100
points per ring, plus a continue if you got all the rings. There
are six stages and six emeralds to collect. It is very difficult
to get all the emeralds and no real benefit results. The special
stage is a great way to maximize your point score, so go there as
often as possible! Objects in the special stage are:

-- Bumper orb - bounces you off
-- Reverse orb - has an R on it and changes the direction of
rotation
-- Up/Down orb - makes the stage rotate faster or slower        
-- Goal orb - you'll hit a wall of these if you make a wrong
turn, and they send you out of the special stage, so avoid them!
-- Blue diamonds - surround the chaos emerald, and every time you
touch them, they change color and eventually disappear
-- Chaos emerald - if you get this you've won the stage and also
exit it immediately

Zone-by-zone walkthrough

GREEN HILL ZONE
           
Here's where you learn how to control Sonic and can have fun, as
the badniks  are easy to beat and there aren't many ways to get
in trouble. In this zone, you'll shoot down tunnels, run through
loops, bounce on springs, run over platforms that collapse, and
have fun. The badniks include bees that fly overhead and shoot
energy balls at you, and piranhas that jump from under bridges to
attack. While crossing a bridge use a spin attack to hit any
piranhas that try to hit you. Your biggest danger here is spikes.
As said before, they can kill you, so watch out. Other than that,
this zone is pure fun. Acts 2 and 3 will be a trifle tougher. In
those acts take the high road, as the low road has plenty of
opportunities to fall and die. If you can't get through a loop,
backtrack a little for a running start and run through. A few
walls can be broken through with a spin attack and a running
start. 

A few of the tough spots include where you must ride a swinging
platform across a pit of spikes in act 3. Another tight spot is
where you must jump from pillars that move up and down to cross
three gaps. In between the pillars are spikes and under them are
pits, so be careful. Worse are the poles with rotating spikes.
You must stay on the spot between the spikes as it moves to the
right. Always go right in this zone. Also look for power-ups in
the trees; hit them from below to knock them down. Here's a hint:
at the beginning of act 3, jump and hit one of the tress to knock
down the invincibility power-up, which helps as you start with
zero rings. Try not to lose any lives in this zone, as they'll
come in handy later. Also, go for 100 rings in each act for a
bonus life. There are also some 1-Up power-ups above loops. To
get one, you must take the low road (dangerous, I suggest you
don't go for it) and use a spring to bounce on top of the loop.
To get another one, you must use a spring to bounce toward it and
jump at the top of a hill to have a high jump while flying left
to get it.

At the end of act 3, instead of a flag, you'll face Robotnik and
one of his crazy machines. This is rather tough, so hang on.
First, jump on the platform on the right and leap up and hit
Robotnik. Then quickly get under the platform on the right to
avoid the giant ball Robotnik swings back and forth. After it
starts swinging to the left, jump onto the platform, hit
Robotnik, and quickly get under the platform before the ball gets
back. If you get hit, grab as many flying rings as you can.
Always have at least one ring. If you die, there's a lamppost
near the boss, so go back into the level to get some rings, and
fight him again. But you should try not to die, because as said
before, lives in this game are precious. After you hit Robotnik 8
times his machine explodes but Robotnik will see you again at the
end of the next zone. Run right and jump on the prison egg to
blow it up and free the animals inside.

Congratulations! You just won Green Hill Zone! The next zone is
Marble Zone, and it's significantly tougher then what we just
did. I hope you have at least 5 lives now. Good luck, you'll need
it.   

MARBLE ZONE

I'm not going to give you a complete walkthrough for this zone,
but I'll tell you how to get started in act 1. First go right,
and you'll meet a new badnik, one that looks like a caterpillar.
To beat him you must hit him in the head with a super spin
attack. A jump is useless because of the spikes on his back. Also
hit the bees overhead. Jump over the small pits of lava and also
avoid the flames shooting out of them. Lava hurts you, but can't
kill you like spikes can. When you get past this part, you'll go
down a hill. Stop and ride the moving pillar down. Then go left
to find three super ring monitors. Great! Grab them and go back
on top of the moving pillar. Now things get really tough.

You must cross the wide pool of lava to the right by using the
platforms. When you touch a platform, fire starts covering it.
Keep moving to avoid getting hurt and when you reach another
hill, slide down, grab a shield to the right, and go left
underground. Soon you'll see several moving pillars going up and
down. You must run under one pillar while it's up, then stay
between the pillars until the next one rises. Their purpose is to
crush you, so be careful. After the pillars you'll meet some
bats. Jump up and hit them, and continue left. Now you have a new
skill to learn. You must push a block. Jump over it and run into
it to push it right, onto the button. This will make the spiked
chandelier rise and allow you to go down. I'll end my walkthrough
here, but I'll tell you how to beat some of the tough spots in
this zone.

You'll spend most of your time underground. I've already told you
about the dangers of pillars. In one part, I think in act 1,
you'll go down into a corridor with a wall of lava behind you.
The lava will chase you. Run right through three narrow passages,
the third having spikes in them. You must run by the spikes when
they're down and jump up to safer ground.

Spiked chandeliers aren't to be taken lightly. All of them except
the first will move up and down by themselves. The spikes on the
bottom can hurt you if the chandelier moves all the way to the
ground. You can jump on top of them and sometimes you must. At
the very end of act 2, for instance, you must jump on top of one
chandelier and then to the top of another one, and from there you
can jump to the exit. Lava and fire are a big threat, too. In the
later acts there are flame throwers in the walls that shoot
flames at you. Worse are the torrents of lava that pour down from
the ceiling. In other cases you must ride a block across lava.
When you do this, there are blocks ahead that you can't fit
under. You must jump on top of the platforms and then back down
to the moving block. Also, plumes of lava will rise that shoot
your block up. In one case, you must jump up and left while at
your highest place to reach a small ledge. Then you must wait for
another ledge to appear out of the wall, jump on it, and then up
to a higher platform. If you fall you'll be stranded in the lava
and definitely killed. There are badniks here too. They are bats
and caterpillars. They don't pose as much of a threat as lava,
pillars and chandeliers do. This zone will test your skill. Note
that the start and exit are always above ground level.

But there are good things too. After the first torrent of lava
that you see falls down, jump up and into an area up/right of it
to find two super rings and a shield. Also, to skip part of act
3, go down/right in a way similar to what you did in act 1 to
find three super rings. You'll see a passageway that lets you
skip some hard parts. Also, there are green blocks that sometimes
block your path. Each time you bust one you gain more points, so
bust them in succession. There is only one 1-Up in this zone; if
you find more go ahead and e-mail me. At one place you find a
block which you must push onto lava. Up/right of the block is a
shield. Ride the block left, staying on the block when plumes of
lava shoot it up. When you're on the third plume, don't jump to
the platform on the left (which leads the rest of the way through
the level) but stay on the block until you see another block to
your right. Now jump over the block and to the wall. You'll go
through the wall and into a room with two super rings and a 1-Up.
Now ride the block you jumped over back. The block you rode
initially will be back! Ride it left and this time jump to the
platform while on the third plume.

The battle with Robotnik at the end of the zone isn't too hard.
The battle arena consists of two platforms on each side with a
lava pit in between. Jump to the platform on the right and jump
and hit Robotnik before he moves over to the other platform.
He'll drop a flame that covers that platform with fire. Then
he'll move over to the platform on the right (which you should be
on). Hit him as he moves toward you and then jump to the platform
on the left because Robotnik will now fire the one on the right.
If this confuses you don't worry, when you play it shouldn't be
too hard. Keep this up, hitting Robotnik and then jumping to the
other platform quickly, until Robotnik's machine explodes after
eight hits. Run right and bust open the prison egg to free some
animals.

Great job - you completed Marble zone! If you have at least four
lives now, you're doing okay. The next zone is Spring Yard zone,
and you'll be pleased to know that it isn't that tough, except
just before the boss. Concentrate on getting extra lives now -
trust me, they're important later.

SPRING YARD ZONE

This zone isn't too hard. I'll give you a walkthrough of the
first level to get you started. First go right, and jump on the
little object on the ground, and from there jump up to grab two
rings. Then go right, taking out crabs and bees. Use the spring
to go up the hill at the right. Then continue right to find
another spring. Use it to bounce into an area with a lot of
bumpers. Bounce around for a while if you want, then go to the
bottom, hit the spring on the right, and hold right to get to the
next area. Continue right, being sure to take out the bees above
If you don't they'll come back. You must now go down through a
maze of blocks. When one block goes down go onto another block.
Repeat this to get to the ground below. Now go right and a robot
who looks a little like you will follow. Jump over the spring to
avoid getting knocked into him and he'll jump over you. Now hit
him when he stops rolling. You may see more of these badniks in
spring yard zone. If you do, use the same strategy.

Now go right, slipping under the spiked balls when they're up.
You'll next have to avoid a spiked chain that swings in a circle.
When it's on its way down jump over it. Slip past two more spiked
balls and another spiked chain to find another block maze, this
time going up. The right wall is fake; go through it to find a
bunch of rings. Proceed up the block maze and at the top go
right. Jump onto the platform with rings above it, and from there
to the ledge at the right. Now you must jump to the platform in
the center of the arc of the spinning spiked ball. Jump to the
tiny ledge between the two balls, and from there to the second
platform. After you get out of here proceed right, using a spin
attack to beat the badniks with spikes on their backs. There are
two wide gaps with rings above them. If you jump in you'll find
springs to bounce you back up. After the second gap (which has a
super ring in it) proceed right to the exit.

Acts 2 and 3 are pretty much the same as act 1, except with some
new stuff, like the chains of blocks that swing back and forth.
Also there are more spinning spiked balls. Never go for the rings
while you're near them as it's too dangerous. Also I have a tip
for the block mazes: sometimes the game treats you as if you've
been squished (and kills you) if you jump through a narrow space.
So remember: only jump when the space is as big as it will get.
Also I have a tip for act 2: early in the act you'll go down a
big hill and shoot up high in the sky. Well, get back down to the
bottom of this hill, and walk back and forth until you get to the
ledge on the right. Go right along this lower path, passing
several spiked balls, until you see two red springs, the second
one having an arrow of rings above it. From the ground jump up
above the first spring and into the wall. Proceed right through
this long corridor, slipping past five blocks that try to crush
you, to find a 1-Up and a spring that sends you back to the main
level, near a shield.

The rest of the zone is easy, until you reach the part with
several swinging chains of blocks. Under them is, well, NOTHING!
This is by far the hardest place in this zone, and the only place
where you can fall off the screen. To cross this chasm, you must
jump on the top block of the first chain of blocks that swings
back and forth. Then you must jump to the top block of the next
chain. This is very tough, as one false move is your last. And if
you do get to the other side, don't rest, as you have a tough
battle with Robotnik coming up.

This is a tough battle. First, Robotnik will hover above you.
Stay on the block on the far left and wait for Robotnik to hover
above you. When he does, he'll drop down with a spike at the
bottom of his ship. Quickly move away and hit Robotnik from the
side. Quickly hit him again before he goes back up, taking the
block with him and smashing it. Now there's a hole in the floor,
and if you fall in, you'll die. Now stay on the block next to the
hole on the left. He'll hover above you and do this again. You
have to hit him at least twice each time he comes down as each
time he destroys a block, another hole appears. You have to hit
him eight times to beat him, and if you hit him twice for each
block he destroys, you'll kill him when he destroys the fourth
block. What you need to do is stay on the far left block the
first time, then the next block from the left, then the next one,
etc. The reason to do this is that he'll be destroying the blocks
on the left, and in effect making one big hole instead of four
small ones. The reason that this is good is because if you have
one big hole and six blocks you'll have more room to maneuver
then if you had four small holes. So, make sure he destroys the
blocks on the left, in succession. After he's down for the count
run right and bust open the prison egg.

Amazing! You won Spring Yard zone and are now halfway through the
game! But don't get cocky, as the next zone is Labyrinth zone and
it's the second toughest zone in the game. A lot of it's
underwater, so you'll need to breathe, plus be prepared to take
on spears, conveyor belts, spikes, swinging spiked balls and a
very tough boss. If you can beat this zone you probably can beat
the game. If you can't you can use the cheat codes to warp ahead.
But only do that if you're really stuck - with a lot of lives and
hard work (and of course these tips) you can beat this zone. Be
prepared for a hassle and be sure to have at least four lives
now.

LABYRINTH ZONE

Okay, lets get on with it. In this zone I'll give you a
walkthrough of each act, rather then simply tell you all the
major obstacles. Before we start, I have to tell you about
drowning. Basically you die if you stay underwater for more then
twenty seconds. In this zone there will be little patches of
bubbles on the floor. To get air from them, stand on top of them
and wait for a big bubble to appear, then jump into it to start
the countdown over. Keep doing this to stay underwater for a long
time. The water also hampers Sonic's movement. Also, the start
and exit will always be out of the water. 

Act 1

Start off by heading right, and you'll meet badniks that jump out
of the floor. When they're in the floor only their top is
visible, so be careful. These guys appear throughout the zone.
Next you'll have to deal with a spinning spiked ball. Slip past
it and grab the shield to the right, then head down into the
water. Grab a super ring to the left, and hit the button to open
the door and go right, grabbing an air bubble or two. Go up,
press the button to open the barrier, and head up out of the
water. Grab a super ring to the left, and go right taking out
badniks. When you get back in the water there's a new badnik, a
shark that moves slowly through the water. Now things get
tougher. Go down into an area with two switches. In this area
beware of platforms hidden or partially hidden in the ground,
that rise up when you land on them. They may not seem like a
threat - until they kill you by smashing you against the spikes
above. Get them out of the way, and then hit the left switch to
open the left wall, which leads to a super ring. The other
switch, which you must make a tough jump to hit, opens a door and
starts a current that pushes you into the next area.

You'll land on another platform that rises, so quickly get off.
Trigger the other rising platform, then grab an air bubble and go
down. Go right through a passageway tangling with three spiked
balls. The second one is tough to avoid; jump on the first step
and duck as it swings by, jump to the next step, wait, jump to
the next and in this way get through. After the spiked balls
comes a really tough part.

There's a conveyor belt with platforms rotating clock wise. You
need to get to a switch in the upper right corner of this area to
open a barrier and proceed down. WARNING: DO NOT DO THE OBVIOUS
THING AND RIDE THE CONVEYOR BELT UP, AS IT WILL SMASH YOU AGAINST
SPIKES AND KILL YOU! Instead, get to the right side with the
platforms going down, and jump up from platform to platform to
get up. It's like trying to run up a down escalator. When you
reach the top jump up and hit the switch, but be careful of the
spikes above it! Now go down into the water and below this area.
Soon you'll find a lamppost.

You'll now have to jump past some spears that move up and down.
You must jump past them when they're down, but it's quite tough.
Hit a button to open another door. Now you must jump past four
more spears, some of which are on the ceiling. Now, after passing
these spears don't touch the spring. The water level will lower
all the way to the bottom. Take a gulp of air and then hit the
spring. When you do that it causes the water to rise. Jump up the
steps trying to beat the water. When you see the block that looks
like a cork, stop, and jump on it. When the water touches it, it
rises. You can then head left, but if you fail to get on it
first, you'll have to jump up to it. Go left, back into the
water, and to a conveyor belt.

You must do the next part fast before you drown, as there are no
air bubbles around here. Go left, and in the bottom left corner
is a badnik surrounded by spiked balls. He'll launch them one by
one at you, so stay under the step and they'll fly over you.
After he's shot the balls kill him and get onto the conveyor
belt, which takes you out of the water. You'll have to avoid the
bullets the two red crow heads shoot at you and go right through
a narrow corridor.

Quickly jump past the first cork-like block, and when you see the
second stop and wait for the water to engulf you. It makes the
cork block rise to the ceiling, and will smash you if you are on
them. Hurry right, as you have no air, to a button which opens a
door. Grab an air bubble, and grab the super ring but watch out
for the spear! Get past another spear and press the button to
open the barrier to get back on dry land. Run right to the exit.

Act 2

Go right until you see a water slide. Ride down into the water
and go right to bag an invincibility. Then head left, bashing the
spike badnik while you're invincible, and go left to find two
super rings. Now go right in a passage under the one you were
just in, running past two spiked balls. Go up the steps grabbing
an air bubble and a current will take you to the next area. The
next area is huge. Kill both underwater badniks and then use the
spring to bounce up. There are four super rings in this place.
One is in the lower right corner, two in the upper left corner
(the second may be tricky to get) and one in the center. After
you bust open the one in the center hit the button under it. Then
go to the upper right corner where a crow head is, and proceed
right to a lamppost.

Now jump over the spears, slip past the spiked ball and grab the
invincibility. You must do the next part fast, while the
invincibility lasts. Go down through the shaft, ignoring the
spears and hit the button to open the barrier. Continue down,
open another barrier, and go left and kill the spike badnik
(don't stop for an air bubble) now go right and touch one of the
blocks and it falls next to an air pocket. Grab a bubble and go
right, past a crow head and two spears to another spiked badnik.
Jump over the spikes as he shoots them at you, kill him, and get
another air bubble. Now you must pass a spiked ball and another
badnik. For him, duck, and wait ten seconds, or until a low air
countdown starts. Then the spikes should be gone and you can kill
him and get an air bubble (hurry up or you might drown).      
Then comes the toughest area in the level. There's a conveyor
belt which you must ride up. If you stay on it it'll smash you
against spikes. Instead you must jump to another conveyor belt.
It's above and to the right of the one you're on. Be very careful
as you jump to the other platform. From the top of this conveyor
belt run right to the exit.

Act 3

This act is long and tough, but there's a shortcut too. Go right
from the start to a water slide. The problem is, this slide is
infinite. To get out is very hard. On the second slide which goes
down and left you can jump off, but not far enough to reach the
platform you must reach. When you're on the slide first there's a
small platform with a shield to the left. When you see this
platform press and hold "down" on the 
d-pad and you'll hear the sound Sonic makes when he does the
super spin attack. Now jump off and Sonic jumps far enough to
reach the second platform to the left. On this one there's a
super ring and a button. Hit the button and go back to the slide,
which now has a slight deviation in it now. You must jump through
the opening created. If you miss, you must get to this platform
again and try again.

After you get through hit the button to open the barrier and
finally you'll see water. Slip past the spiked ball but don't hit
the switch yet. Go left and jump the wall to find a bunch of
rings. Now hit the switch and proceed downward. Soon you see four
spears in a row. Between the second and third is a block that
goes down. If you ride it down you might hit one of the badnik's
below. Instead, jump straight up and then go down, and since
you're spinning you'll kill any badnik you hit. Thus is the
shortcut, but it's not a cakewalk.

Snag an air bubble and go right. For a long time you won't get an
air bubble, so hurry. Soon a current catches you and you'll grab
a pole. Press down while you're grabbing the pole to move down.
Then press the jump button to release the pole. You must be on
the bottom of the pole to avoid getting slammed into spikes (it
doesn't kill you, though). There are five poles, and after you go
past the spikes after the third one, hold up or you'll crash into
a wall and land on spikes. It isn't too tough once you get the
hang of it, but remember you won't get any air until it's done so
make it snappy.

Once the current stops get an air bubble and prepare for your
next challenge. You must use the spring on one of the platforms
to hit the button above. The problem is there isn't much space
above it to fit into. Jump from the right onto the spring and
hold left to bounce up at an angle and be more likely to hit it.
After every two bounces get an air bubble. When you hit the
switch head right, and you'll meet a spike badnik. Jump to the
step above and two of the floor badniks attack. Jump straight up
to kill both, while the spikes fly under you. After they're gone
kill the badnik, snag an air bubble, and head up.

You're above the water now, and there's a lamppost to the left.
VERY IMPORTANT WARNING: DO NOT TOUCH THIS LAMPPOST! That's
because the boss is coming up and there are no rings from now on,
so if you die you'll have to fight the boss with zero rings. If
you touch this lamppost you can't go back to get rings no matter
how many times you die, unless you have a game over, which might
happen. Yes, there's a shield before the boss, but you can't re-
grab a shield like you can rings. So don't touch that lamppost.
Understand?

To the right are three cork blocks. Now comes another nightmare:
if you don't get on them the water level will rise and you will
drown because there are no air bubbles around here, and if you do
drown you'll go back to the beginning of the level because you
didn't touch the lamppost - at least you better not have. I
warned you that Labyrinth zone would be tough.

So get on the first cork block and it rises. Now the nightmares
never stop, do they? You must jump over to the cork block on the
right, and then another one because the first two will smash you
against spikes! If you fall, I just told you what happens. Also,
when you're on the second block jump, because a floor badnik will
jump up and try to knock you off. Jump straight up and you should
be okay. If you can't get through this part you can use the cheat
code to warp ahead. If you have to do that, it's okay. If you can
get on the third cork block you'll have to high-tail it up some
stairs with the water close behind you. At the very top, go left
to a shield, and go right to the boss, who's well, very tough to
put it mildly.

Robotnik's ship will rise through a shaft with a lot of spears
and crow heads. You don't have to hit him to beat him. Also the
water is rising just behind you, and there are no air bubbles
here, so hurry up. First you must jump past two crow heads. Then
jump over a spear and wait for the second spear to retract before
jumping onto the block it's on. Now go to the right side and jump
on the platform in the center when the spear above you retracts.
Jump past a few more spears and wait for the water to submerge
you. Now you must go really fast. The second part is much like
the first, only a little tougher. If you get hit just grab a few
flying rings and keep going. At the top Robotnik will fly away,
and you can bust open another prison egg.

Unbelievable. You won Labyrinth zone - the second toughest zone
in the game - and will be happy to know that the next zone, Star
Light zone, isn't that tough compared to what you just did. If
you can beat this zone you are a very good player. Excellent
work. 

STAR LIGHT ZONE

This zone is... weird. It's as if you're out in space somewhere.
Most of the walls and floors are green-colored. It won't be that
tough, and it has nice quiet music. This is my favorite zone in
the game. Unfortunately it's not a total cakewalk. Your main goal
in this zone is to stay on the upper path because you'll have a
strong possibility of falling off the screen. To help you I'll
give a walkthrough for act 1, and you should be able to get
through. Remember, stay on the high path! There are almost no
spikes here, but all kinds of platforms.

Start act 1 by going right. Soon you'll meet a new badnik. When
you go near it, it explodes into four pieces which fly at you.
They can't be beaten and your best strategy is to run past them
and get away. Bounce on the spring and you'll face another one.
For him, set him off and then move back left, avoiding the
particles. Now touch the platform and it moves down, making it
seemingly impossible to get the 1-Up under it. This one is easy
to get. Go right and spin down the hill. You need to be going
fast to skip over the gap. Also hold "up" to skip over more
easily. If you fall down, you'll be on the very bottom of the
level - not the best place to be. I really doubt that anyone can
go down that gap and survive. There are rings down there, but
they're bait. Now don't touch the spring on the left but go back
down, over the gap, up the hills and back to the 1-Up, which you
can now get because the platform is gone. If you die later in the
act you can get the 1-Up again. Go back down the hill and over
the gap, this time hitting the red spring on the left. You'll fly
by a fan which means that you can't go back.

Now you meet a new badnik identical to the one in Labyrinth zone
except it doesn't shoot its spikes at you and can't be defeated.
Lure it to the left and then jump over it and go right, finding a
fan that prevents you from passing. To proceed, use the platform
that extends down. Use another one to continue down and head
left, to find a flame thrower like the one in Marble zone. Jump
the flame and wait for the platform to go down. You must go down
four platforms watching out for flame throwers. Now we're at the
very bottom of the level. Go right to find two flame throwers
pointing at each other. Jump over the flames and continue. Now
stop.

The next part is crucial to getting through the act. You'll see a
platform above that looks like one you previously saw. Jump up
and hit it from below and it shakes and extends down. You must be
on the ledge on the left so it doesn't cut you off, so get back
there fast and use it to climb higher. Now there's another spike
badnik. Stay on the steps and it slowly moves above you. After
it's out of your way go right to find two red springs. Bouncing
between them accomplishes nothing, so jump over them. You'll have
to be going pretty fast to get up the next hill. Then there's
another red spring. Use it to bounce up to a platform at the
left. Don't get the invincibility yet, instead jump and hit the
platform above so it shakes and extends down. You must curve your
jump around so you get back to the platform. If you miss you can
just try again. Then get the invincibility and go up the new
stairs.

Head right, killing the spiked badnik with the invincibility, and
spin down the two hills because you'll need to skip over a gap
ahead. If you get over the gap and hit the red spring on the
left, go right to pass a few fans to the exit. However, if you
fall in the gap, you can still get to the goal but it's more
difficult.

Acts 2 and 3 have a few more things. They include platforms that
collapse, platforms that move in circles, and catapults. To use
them, jump on the side without the spiked ball, and then run to
the other side as the ball lands on the other side that it
started on. If you need more height, bounce again and again. Oh,
and there's another 1-Up in this zone. In act 3, after the big
hill try to avoid the collapsing platform, but if you fall you
can get a 1-Up. Go right, but watch out for exploding badniks. At
the catapult you'll want to go right, but you'll see a small
platform to the left. Bounce several times to reach this platform
in the upper left corner. On it is a super ring, 1-Up, and
invincibility. That's basically it, except for the battle with
Robotnik at the end.

Just like in Labyrinth zone there's a lamppost before the boss
that you shouldn't touch. Remember that as you play act 3.
Anyway, on with the battle. Robotnik flies above, dropping spiked
balls onto the three catapults on the floor. If a ball sits for
too long it explodes into four particles. If you jump on the
other side of the catapult that the spiked ball is on, it flies
up, and if it touches Robotnik's ship it hurts it. When it lands
it explodes. What you must do is use the balls to bounce yourself
up to hit Robotnik. Pretty simple, but it can get frantic.
Robotnik's ship is beaten after eight hits, and you get to smash
another prison egg.

Excellent work! You've completed Star Light zone! Now only one
zone remains, and it's called Scrap Brain zone. This zone is
packed with flamespouts, grinder wheels, crusher blocks and elite
badniks. It's the toughest zone in the entire game. Are you
ready? As for how many lives you'll need, well, you'll need every
one you've got! Also important are continues, which you can get
in the secret zone.


SCRAP BRAIN ZONE

Oh... this zone is evil. All the stuff here is about 50% tougher
then Labyrinth zone. This zone is the ultimate test of you
agility skills and survivability.

Act 1

Start off this hellish zone by going right. You'll see a platform
that opens and closes by folding into the wall. If you fall below
it you die. Jump over it, but don't go too quickly because
there's another one. Now there's some pipes in the ground that
shoot a flamespout up through the floor at you. These spouts are
meant to hit you if you go too fast. Next, jump over the
caterpillar from Marble zone and proceed right to a spinning
wheel with a spot for you in it. WARNING: DON'T JUMP INTO THIS
WHEEL YET! It will deposit you to a low route that is super hard.
Instead, hit the button to reverse the direction the wheel is
rotating, then jump in and you'll shoot right. Go through a door
(which prevents you from going back) and you'll find your next
challenge, a series of moving blocks that move in and out of a
wall. To negotiate them get inside the small space between the
block and the left wall when they move down, and then under the
block when it moves left but before it moves down. Got it?

At the bottom of this nasty corridor are two caterpillars. Beat
them and go right, but don't jump because of the energy
conductors on the ceiling. Clobber another caterpillar with a
spin attack and go through another door. Now, you must climb to
the top of another corridor by jumping up the platforms on either
side that appear and disappear. They appear and disappear in a
synchronized manner. At the top get the shield to the left and
then go to the ledge on the right but stay on the edge to avoid
the energy conductor. Run by after it fires a blast of energy to
a lamppost.

Stand directly in front of the lamppost and run by another energy
conductor. Now go down the steps collecting rings. Avoid two
flamespouts and you'll reach a conveyor belt. When the platforms
are spinning you'll fall through them. If you fall you must hit
the button to make a platform appear, then jump back to the
conveyor belt. If you fall below this platform, well, you don't
want to know, believe me. From the conveyor belt make a leap of
faith onto the place with zero rings. If you're lucky a platform
will appear. Jump to another platform to the right when it
appears, and from there jump to a third and you will be on solid
ground again. Drop down below the folding platform to find two
super rings and springs that'll propel you up to fifteen rings.
Head right, kill the caterpillar and spin down the chute and over
two folding platforms. You're done for if you fall below them, so
hurry up.

Now comes a tough part. Make a low jump so as not to get on top
of the red platform above, and hit the button. Now jump to the
platform, which disappears into the wall upon touch, so instantly
jump to another platform above, and from there jump to the next
level. If you didn't touch the button, there will be a barrier
that blocks you. If you fall you must wait for the platforms to
return and hit the button again. From the top of this place go
right to the toughest part of the act. You must run across a
platform that flips over regularly. You'll fall if you're on it
when it flips over, and if you fall you'll probably die. Also you
must run through when the flamespout is out of the way. Run
across it and when you're about halfway across, jump the rest of
the way. Oh, and there's another one. Isn't this fun?

Now you'll find a door you can't go through. Instead, take the
upper path and you'll meet a badnik that looks like a purple
teddy bear. He'll release an energy ball that bounces toward you.
Kill him fast and go left on a higher passageway. Then don't jump
to the higher platform yet, as two energy balls are coming your
way. Wait for them to explode, and go along the upper platform
fast, killing the two badniks before they release their balls. Go
right past a flamespout to the exit. Excellent work! And now
you've got to do more of the same.

Act 2

Go right but watch out for the flamespout. Jump right and onto
the big wheel. You'll run around and around on it. Press and hold
right to go faster, but don't spin or you'll go too fast and go
out of control. You must jump off at the perfect time to reach
the wheel to the right. If you fall, a bunch of energy shooters
will zap you good. From the second wheel jump to the yellow and
black platform above. Don't jump to a third wheel but jump to the
next platform with a button. This causes another platform to
appear to the right. Jump on it and continue right. Kill two
caterpillars but avoid the flamespout and go into the transport
pipe to be jetted down. Go left to find three platforms composed
of those tiles that flip over. There are energy shooters below,
so avoid falling by jumping when the flip is coming at you.
Continue left through a door but watch out for the flamespout. As
for the exploding badnik, the best way to avoid the particles is
to stand directly under him.

Now you'll find a conveyor belt that moves you right, with a
giant grinding wheel that moves up and down. Fight the conveyor
belt and run under it when it's up. Go past a flamespout to a
transport pipe. You must go by another flamespout to another
conveyor belt with a grinding wheel. This time the conveyor belt
will carry you right under the wheel if you time it right. Once
past this, jump up and down to hold your place and wait for the
next wheel to rise and duck to avoid the flamespout. Now you must
cross platforms that fold in and out. You must run by when they
are not folded and the flamespout is off. Under them is a nasty
energy conductor. The platform could trap you in with it if
you're not very careful. You don't have time to run all the way
across, so run about halfway and jump the rest. After you go
through another one of these you'll go through a transport pipe.
Now run under the flamespout and you'll see another flip tile
platform. You must run part of the way and jump the rest. If you
go down you can get two super rings but it's very hard to get
back up again. After this you go through a door.

Kill the caterpillar and go right to find a small conveyor belt.
Slip by the grinder wheel and then drop off the second conveyor
belt to the left. You'll land next to a red spring. Shoot right,
you might hit a spiked ball, in which case you must try again.
You'll fly off a ramp and hit a conveyor belt. Hold right to land
on the platform. Now there's an energy conductor that shoots
rapidly. You must spin attack underneath it, but that's almost
impossible. The best strategy is to let yourself be hit and then
run by while you're flashing. The next obstacle is a big block
that moves rapidly from the ceiling to the floor. It will try to
crush you, and that's why I call it a crusher block. After the
energy conductor stop quickly to avoid it, and then push against
it when it's on the floor, and when it moves up run by like a
madman. This is one of the few things in this level that kills
instantly, and is one of the toughest obstacles in the level. Now
run by the two exploding badniks on the ceiling and the
flamespout on the floor, and jump to get past the two exploding
badniks on the floor. Hit the button and quickly jump to the
platform to avoid the particles.

Now you must jump past the flamespout above and go right, but
watch out for the swinging spiked ball. Go right to a purple
teddy bear badnik. Kill it and go left, kill another badnik, and
go right to a third one. Kill it and go left to a fourth one,
which has a spiked ball above it. Kill it and go right, watch out
for the spiked ball, and go through the door and hit the fifth
badnik from behind. Continue left, then go right and get out of
this area. Kill two caterpillars and go right past a few swinging
spiked balls to the exit. It looks like it's time for the final
battle, but Robotnik hits a switch and you fall to act 3, which
is actually Labyrinth zone. Not that it's much of an improvement,
though.  

Act 3

This act is weird but very tough. There is a shortcut but it is a
little tough to use. Still, the act is so tough I feel it's
justified in telling you only the shortcut. It's more like
Labyrinth zone then Scrap Brain zone, with white background and
purple water. Not only is there a slew of crow heads, spiked
balls and spears, but there are only   as many air pockets. When
you start, go left and hit the button and the platform will move
down and left. The moment you can, run left and off the platform
and drop between the platform and the stationar yplatform to the
left. When you finish you must be under the ledge with the moving
platform on the platform to the right. You only have one chance
to do this, so do it right. If you fail, kill yourself.

There are spikes above this shortcut that kill you instantly
because you have zero rings. Go left from here and hit the button
to open the barrier and proceed down into the water, but watch
out for the spears. This is the only place where you can use the
shortcut, so do it right. You should have 8 rings now. Grab an
air bubble but watch out for the swinging spiked balls. There are
two in the same place and you'll probably get hit. If you do,
_you must get at least one ring!_ The next obstacle is two crow
heads facing each other. If you fall into the holes you lose the
shortcut. Make a low jump onto the platform in the center to
avoid the bullets and then make another low jump and run through.
If you get hit, you might be knocked into a hole. If you fall,
it's best to kill yourself and try again, for if you do try to go
through the normal way, you'll find a lamppost. Yes, that's
another booby-trapped lamppost because if you touch it you'll be
unable to go back and take the shortcut.

The normal route is very hard, so you must kill yourself. If you
get through you must jump up some steps with crow heads. The
first one you can't jump past, so jump to his step just after he
fires and then quickly jump to the next step. It gets harder if
you have zero rings. The second one you can jump past, and it's
pretty smooth sailing from here.

Stop quickly to avoid a single spiked ball and jump over the gap
with rings in it and kill a few floor badniks.  If you fall
you're in trouble. Even though you'll still have skipped most of
the level you must get an air bubble, open a door, get the super
ring and go back for another air bubble, and quickly jump up the
perilous shaft and open the barrier before oxygen runs out. If
you make it, or if you get past the gap you'll be in the same
place. You must jump up the steps to the right, but watch out for
the three spiked balls that intermesh. It won't be easy but if
you make it jump on the red spring and you'll go to the final
battle. You won't get a time or ring bonus, but you'll have
hardly any rings, so who cares?
     
FINAL ZONE

Well, this is it. You've worked hard and beaten many traps and
obstacles, but none of that matters if you can't beat Robotnik
himself. The music is really cool, and... What's that you say?
Just shut up and tell me how to beat him? Okay, I'll tell you.
You'll start at the place where Robotnik was at the end of act 2,
but the button is gone. Run right to the battle arena. WARNING:
YOU'LL ALWAYS HAVE NO RINGS IN THIS ZONE, SO ONE MISTAKE KILLS
YOU! First, two pistons will move. There are two on the floor and
two on the ceiling, and they never hit each other. Always one of
the two on the left will move, and one of the two on the right.
Stay on the far right of the screen to avoid being squashed.
Robotnik himself will be in one of the pistons. If you can, hit
the one he's in from the side and he'll suffer damage. Next four
energy balls appear overhead and fall to the floor. As they fall
they move slightly toward you. They kill you (duh!) You must find
the biggest break between them and stay in the center. That means
that if there's a big break between the second and third ones,
stand in the center between them and they don't hit you. If
they're all pretty evenly spaced, you must stand in the biggest
break and when they come within an inch of your head jump
straight up and you'll be in the air when they touch the floor.
If you jump too soon they may land on you so be careful.

Then the pistons move again and it repeats itself. If possible,
hit Robotnik. That's the safe but time-consuming method. However,
if you have plenty of lives and want to get done fast, there's
another way. Notice that before the pistons move they move a
little bit before they go all the way. This is rather dangerous,
but it wipes out the frustration of being unable to hit Robotnik
because his piston is out of reach. For this I've numbered the
pistons from left to right: 1, 2, 3, and 4.

If pistons 1 and 3, 2 and 4 or 1 and 4 are the ones, you can
quickly get between them and hit Robotnik no matter which one
he's in. If you aren't careful you could get squished, though. If
pistons 2 and 3 move, you can't get between them and must quickly
get out of the way. You may want to try this if you're having
trouble avoiding the energy balls. It is a bit dangerous but lets
you get done quick. After 8 hits a door opens and you can run
right. Robotnik will take off and for show you can hit him from
below and he explodes. Run right but don't jump or you might fall
off and die, and Sonic stops by himself. Now you can watch the
ending, which first shows Sonic with all his animal friends, then
skits from each zone along with the credits, and finally Robotnik
holding all the emeralds you didn't get. You'll also get a little
bonus if you got all the emeralds. Congratulations - you've
beaten Sonic 1!

I'm not done quite yet though, and as promised...

CHEAT CODES

The first cheat code is fun to fool around with. During any demo
press and hold A, B and C. Sonic will get mixed up and start
doing strange things. If you want to impress your friends, do
this at the start of the Green Hill demo and Sonic runs right
into the first badnik and dies. See how quickly you can kill
Sonic in each demo, and you might even be able to get Sonic to
get the emerald in the special stage. You can fool around with
this cheat code a lot.

For the level select, at the title screen when Sonic appears and
starts shaking his hand, press up, down, left and right on the D-
pad. You'll hear the sound of a ring being collected. Now hold A,
and press start to go to the level select menu. You can go to any
act of any zone with three lives and no continues. This code can
be helpful if your stuck or just want to play one level, but the
ultimate challenge is still to beat the game without any codes.
Good luck!
 
Well, time for me to go now, but I also would advise you to buy
Ristar and Aero the Acrobat, two other games I have that are
similar to Sonic. There's already a FAQ for Ristar on game sages
and I may be doing one for Aero the Acrobat soon. And of course,
if you enjoy Sonic 1 buy all the other games. I'm thinking about
doing FAQ'S on all of them soon. Oh, and of course, good luck! 
Bye!  
 
If you have any further questions, comments or further tips e-
mail J-D-Walker@worldnet.att.net

Note: Please do not use this FAQ without giving me credit for it,
and do not use them for commercial purposes without my
permission.