Maps in the Sonic Games...

[JaidynReiman]

Well, a number of times in the past their have been discussions on how the maps in Sonic games generally greatly differ from one another, and I have noticed this in some games in the past, and especially how the Sonic Chronicles map looks completely different from what we know of past games... but is it truly all that different?

I take you back to Sonic Adventure 2. I know some people don't believe that the "capital city" is Central City, but Shadow the Hedgehog confirms this to be the case and it cannot be denied. Central City wasn't named until Sonic Battle, and it wasn't confirmed to be the capital until Shadow the Hedgehog, but its still the same city that appeared in SA2.

Of course, SA2 does have a map you can view which shows a pretty wide range. Something I never noticed before is how there is a -small- city just to the west of Aquatic Mine, and northeast from a much larger city, across the water (and there are roads connecting the two cities). My opinion on this, after noticing that this was the case, is that the southwestern city was Central City (the "capital city"), but the northeastern one was Station Square (its larger than it looks on the map, but its still -far- smaller than Central City). I've also noticed that, based on how the landmass around Central City goes, that it appears to have rounded edges on top and beneath. Now, most "mainlands" don't look like that. This may very well show that Central City -IS- on an island, which I never really noticed before.

I also noticed that Prison Island is much further east from Central City that I thought it was. Let's also not forget how Prison Island is said to be located in the "South Seas" by the announcer during the "Dark Side Preview" shown at the end of the Hero Side.

Head back over to the heavily-criticized Sonic Chronicles map. Central City appears a little southwest of Station Square, and Prison Island isn't on the map (obviously far off to the east). There are also landmasses a little bit east of Station Square. Now, if you watch the map in SA2 closely, you can see that the section of the land containing Aquatic Mine isn't actually the same landmass as with Station Square; there's a little bit of water there that does separate it, so it -is- a separate island.

In SA, it is known that Station Square is by the shore. Its also known that it connects to the fallen Egg Carrier by boat, and so does the Mystic Ruins. It is also known, though, that Station Square is a long distance from the Mystic Ruins. Since Tails says "the fastest way is by train," and Sonic is, of course, the fastest thing alive, its quite possible that it is, in fact, over water (and as seen in SA2, there -are- roads that cross over the water), and it would make sense that Mystic Ruins is next to Central City.

Now, with that out of the way, let's continue. I'm not saying the map in Chronicles isn't flawed. I'm just saying it isn't -nearly- as flawed as we once thought. Now, let's look at some of the -problems- with it. First and foremost, the areas are too small. We know that, but every area in the game is too small, as well, so it can be taken into consideration that they just didn't want to make the full-sized locations. Next, Green Hill Zone is north of Central City. That is probably the most flawed piece of the entire map. Green Hill Zone, of course, is on South Island, and if SA2's map is anything to go by, it is -probably- southeast of Central City, south of Station Square.

Next, this also quite possibly means that Station Square is on Westside Island. In my opinion, it makes perfect sense, and they just never visit Station Square during the events of the original Sonic the Hedgehog games. This also adds to it based on the fact that the coastline next to Station Square is called "Emerald Coast." In that case, the hilly region next to Station Square (which isn't visited in SA2) is "Emerald Hill", the mountains (Blue Ridge) are "Hill Top," and the caves are "Mystic Cave." "Oil Ocean" is merely the coastline of Metropolis, with Metropolis being Eggman's base where he sets off the Death Egg from. The "Chemical Plant" is the Chemical Plant just north of Station Square in Sonic Chronicles, though once again, its actually -much- larger than it looks in Chronicles.

Okay, so that's probably the biggest map problem to note. Most other maps only show a small segment, and usually aren't really showcasing the same exact area. The only time this appears to be the case is between Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic Unleashed, because both showcase a World Map. This can be disregarded for certain reasons, though, due to the fact that Shadow the Hedgehog's map was only a fill-in for GUN to use in cutscenes, and never really has an important role. Sonic Unleashed's map is when they officially filled out everything.

So, let's take the Unleashed map as canon and compare. All the continents in the world are given straight-out names except for one--the one featuring Empire City. And unlike the other continents, Empire City is NOT called the "capital" (I've seen it in gameplay footages). This continent is most definitely the United Federation, and my guess is that Central City is either on the eastern side of the continent, or the southern. Perhaps its both, I'm not sure exactly. But that is fairly obvious.

Other areas we could probably guess at, but that's not really all too necessary right now. I was merely trying to explain what I found out when recently playing through SA2. So, any more thoughts on the maps? Don't like my theories? We can debate that here; I do know that a lot of discussions have popping up recently relating to maps, so I figured it'd be best to start discussing in a different topic.

[Blue Blood]

I'm boring...

Personally, I don't think there is any rock solid map at all yet. No games have features the same maps, and so each map has been tailored to each game. I could imagine that the globe from Unleashed could become something that recurs, but I shan't hold my breath.

The map in Chronicles was not made to be aesthetically correct, it was made for the game. Heck, speaking of Chronicles, did you see how much Angel Island changed on there? It was like the ruins where there used to be a dense jungle, with this massive pyramid in the centre. And then, in the Advance (1&3) games there was no vegetation at all- it was just flying ruins. Rivals has Onyx Isalnd, which is Angel Island from the future and themematically and size wise it's very like Sonic3&K. Adventure is an odd-ball. The island still seems to be huge like when it first appeared (but we cannot tell for sure) but you simply cannot explore all of it and the Emerald Altar was miraculously written in. What the heck happened to it in Unleashed? Surely Knuckles would have had an issue, or he could have been hanging over a fissure.

I personally believe that the Sonic's world will simply be whatever it needs to be for the game. If it needs to be futuristic and WTF-y, as in Riders and Heroes, then it shall be. If it needs to be realisctic, as in 06 and Unleashed, then it shall be that as well.

Like I said at the beginning, I'm boring. I take everything as is without looking into it. If Sonic's World varies from game to game, then that's what's canon. The world is made for the games, not the game for the world. The series will hopefully remain flexible with games doing as they please with the world.

Edited August 1, 2009 by Blue Blood

[JaidynReiman]

Angel Island wasn't really needed for the plot of Unleashed, so it was left out. Its probably still floating somewhere in the area.

In Sonic Advance 3 (and 2) you're only exploring a part of Angel Island, probably Sky Sanctuary. In Sonic Adventure, you do see a lot of Angel Island, and two stages (Red Mountain and Ice Cap) are located entirely on it. I've actually also been playing a little more of sonic Adventure recently, and if you look up at Angel Island, you can easily tell where the hills of Mystic Ruins start, because Angel Island itself is -far- taller than the Mystic Ruins mountains.

And yes, I know Angel Island is smaller in Sonic Chronicles. I've already addressed that one of the Chronicles issues is the size of it. The only significant problem I see with Angel Island in Chronicles (OTHER THAN the size issue) is how the Master Emerald shrine is fully rebuilt, though it could be that the shrine had since been rebuilt to protect the Master Emerald, possibly with GUN's help (since the emerald in the wrong hands means disaster, as we know).

[Blue Blood]

Master Emerald shrine is fully rebuilt, though it could be that the shrine had since been rebuilt to protect the Master Emerald, possibly with GUN's help (since the emerald in the wrong hands means disaster, as we know).

That's where you lose credibility, because you're making up the story now.

What do you say about the world totally changing? SA2 > Heroes > Shadow the Hedgehog. They pulled a U-turn on design each time! Rush then included GUN troops, but this can easily be argued to be nothing less than an easter egg type thing. Riders ZG has GUN,and the world is this futuristic scope.

[Joseppi]

I have to agree that the maps are made for the games. I don't think Sonic Team even worry about how where everything is placed to match one game from another. I always thought it was weird how the Master Emerald alter is now outside when in Sonic & Knuckles, it was in the volcano.

[Diogenes]

I'm not going to go around digging up the maps to compare, so I can't say much about the examples you're mentioning.

But comparing the map of the Earth in ShtH (in the GUN command center cutscenes) with the planet as shown in Unleashed, I honestly can't believe that geographical consistency is a significant concern for Sonic Team. Maybe they do sometimes pay attention to what they've done, maybe sometimes they get lucky and it works out by accident. But I don't think they've ever intended to have everything fit together.

[JaidynReiman]

That's where you lose credibility, because you're making up the story now.

What do you say about the world totally changing? SA2 > Heroes > Shadow the Hedgehog. They pulled a U-turn on design each time! Rush then included GUN troops, but this can easily be argued to be nothing less than an easter egg type thing. Riders ZG has GUN,and the world is this futuristic scope.

All I said was that there's a possible explanation for the M.E. shrine looking different, I never said it actually happened. I didn't "make up" a story, I merely made up a theory. Notice how I said "could," not "is."

The world doesn't "totally change" between games, either... I don't know where that comes from at all. All it does is showcase different areas of the world at different times. The only time a world map completely changes is between Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic Unleashed, as those are the only times we actually -see- a full map of the world.

As for the Shrine of the Master Emerald being underground in S&K and on top of the island later... that's not an inconsistency at all. I'm not saying I'm right about the maps thing (merely making theories as to how they formulate together). However, in S&K, there is a shrine in the Hidden Palace (which, to date, has only appeared in S&K), but there's also one at Sky Sanctuary (obviously not the real name of the location, but the best term I can come up with) which is -also- where the Master Emerald -remains- at the end of S&K. So, that isn't an inconsistency, either, because it was in the exact same game where we see two shrines. If this part at the end of Sonic and Knuckles was never shown, then yeah, we could say that was an inconsistency.

[Core]

What you're saying is interesting. It's true that Central City seems to be on a island. I had always assumed that the western city was on the same landmass as the rest, and that the light blue water was just a river, which is why it was a different color. But now that you mention it, yeah, it seems rather likely that Central City is on an island.

Now, if you watch the map in SA2 closely, you can see that the section of the land containing Aquatic Mine isn't actually the same landmass as with Station Square; there's a little bit of water there that does separate it, so it -is- a separate island.

If I understand correctly, you're saying that the small city, that you think is Station Square, is not on the same landmass as Aquatic Mine? That's not true, Aquatic Mine is clearly connected to the small city. They are separated from Pumpkin Hill and the rest, though, but the bit of water between them definitely looks like a river and a lake to me. It doesn't look like the small city is on a separate island. Unless the whole landmass is an island.

The world doesn't "totally change" between games, either... I don't know where that comes from at all. All it does is showcase different areas of the world at different times. The only time a world map completely changes is between Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic Unleashed, as those are the only times we actually -see- a full map of the world.

I've already mentioned it, but you also see a map of the world in Sonic Riders. And it clearly shows our world. Though I guess you can disregard it since it only appears for half a second or so.

And the map in Shadow the Hedgehog is actually contradicted in the game itself. As far as I can tell, the world shown in Shadow's CG cutscenes is also our world. For example, look at the cutscene when Central City is destroyed, you can see North America here (well, it may not be obvious on that picture; but I remember recognizing America when I was playing, during several cutscenes). Not to mention that the impact is not located near the ocean where Central City is supposed to be.

[JaidynReiman]

Ah... yeah, I forgot about the Riders map. And yes, I did make a mistake about Aquatic Mine; I thought that it was separate. Regardless, the area around Station Square does appear to be -close- to being an island. The stretch of water just north of it is most definitely a river, but if it cuts off the northern portion, then ultimately Station Square is still on an island.

As for Shadow the Hedgehog... you can barely tell with all the clouds, so I never really noticed anything like that. Things like this definitely aren't planned out very well, though. And for skeptics/critics, once again, I'm not saying Sega has planned out the maps well or not. I'm just comparing and seeing how "unalike" they really are, and visa-versa. Its just a discussion; everybody has discussions.

Yeah, I did make that assumption about Central City initially, as well, hence why I had been so critical of Sonic Chronicles' maps. However, recently I'd been playing more often and I suddenly noticed that Central City does appear to be on an island after all, and of course the "lighter" blue represents shallow water.

And yeah, thanks for getting that map for me. I wasn't sure where to look to find it.

[HunterTSF]

Giant wall of text.

You've done a great job of keeping track of the geographical locations in the series! Awesome. However, I will say that the Station Square's assumed location of being the northeasternmost city may be a bit off. In Sonic Adventure, an NPC in Station Square's business district described Station Square as being a "hub" that connected nearby satellite cities. However, that eastern city on Sonic Adventure 2's map appears to be fairly isolated, and appears to be the only sign of urban civilization on that landmass.

Also, the antique shop owner in Station Square's business district mentions that Amy Rose is a frequent visitor there, and that she lives in an apartment downtown. Now, this could have been some meaningless statement briefly mentioned by an NPC without any significance to the grand scheme of things whatsoever - but Sonic Battle does indeed futher confirm that she does indeed live in an apartment - in Central City.

Now, with the first NPC stating that Station Square was merely a hub connecting its nearby satellite cities, and with the antique shop owner's statement that Amy lived in apartment downtown, it can be safe to assume that Central City is indeed fairly close to Station Square - and Station's Square proposed location of being an entire island away would be quite a stretch on the word "downtown". So I would assume that that easternmost city is not Station Square, but somewhere else entirely.

[Badnik Zero]

Well, I don't think that any maps of Sonic's world should be taken literally. What I mean is that each one is canonical for the game it's in obviously, but since no one in the series' art department decided to make a serious map, it will change until they do.

I don't even think it needs a map. We know roughly where things are and what each location looks like.

Anyways, on what you're saying about Amy's apartment.

If you talk to more NPCs in Station Square, you find out that the city is a lot bigger than what we see. I didn't get this until several replays of SA. When they talk about downtown, they mean the entire stage of Speed Highway. The man in front of the stage entrance who says he owns the skyscraper says something about downtown and his building. From when you enter Speed Highway, all that skyline is downtown Station Square, up until you loop back to the Town Hall and end up in the corner of the hub world.

At least that's what I gathered from the NPCs. Did anyone else think Speed Highway was downtown?

Edited August 2, 2009 by Badnikz

[HunterTSF]

Well, I don't think that any maps of Sonic's world should be taken literally. What I mean is that each one is canonical for the game it's in obviously, but since no one in the series' art department decided to make a serious map, it will change until they do.

I don't even think it needs a map. We know roughly where things are and what each location looks like.

Anyways, on what you're saying about Amy's apartment.

If you talk to more NPCs in Station Square, you find out that the city is a lot bigger than what we see. I didn't get this until several replays of SA. When they talk about downtown, they mean the entire stage of Speed Highway. The man in front of the stage entrance who says he owns the skyscraper says something about downtown and his building. From when you enter Speed Highway, all that skyline is downtown Station Square, up until you loop back to the Town Hall and end up in the corner of the hub world.

At least that's what I gathered from the NPCs. Did anyone else think Speed Highway was downtown?

Yup. The owner of the Cyber-Met Inc. does confirm that Speed Highway was indeed downtown Station Square - and further proving that Station Square is quite a large city - like a fair share of the cities represented so far in the United Federation (ex: Central City, Empire City). That being said, Central City is most probably located somewhere near Speed Highway. (Why, Central City in Sonic Battle even displays a similarly-named Battle Highway to the far right of the map - which is not too far from Amy's apartment.)

Now, with this we can also assume that Station Square also connects to the nearby city of Night Babylon, and isn't too far away from Emerald Town. (Where Emerald Beach is located.)

[JaidynReiman]

I dunno. I figured that the "major metropolis" near Station Square was Central City, but as I did note in the first topic, Station Square -is- larger than it looks. However, on the map it looks smaller due to two things--(1) Central City is far larger, and (2) it is quite likely than by the events of SA2, they didn't fully get around to entirely rebuilding Station Square after it was destroyed by Chaos.

On another note, its also quite possible that "Speed Highway" is one of the highways that passes across the waterway to Central City. If you really want to reference a "Highway," let's also not forget Radical Highway in SA2, which, if you notice, connects both the northeastern city and the southwestern one.

Now, you do got me on Emerald Town. I had forgotten about that, and in fact, when we first heard of it being referenced in Chronicles, I was under the assumption that it was on the eastern island (which we later found out to be Station Square). The fact that there's a major highway makes the city close enough to SA2; Amy could easily have taken the highway from Central City to Station Square, which, despite being across water, still clearly aren't "that" far away. But regardless, it was only a theory I had brought up anyway after noticing the other city shown in SA2 (which you never visit), but Station Square is still referenced (and it clearly isn't the larger city; they referred to that one as the "capital," not as "Station Square").

EDIT: Sorry, another note... While the larger city clearly isn't Station Square, I should add that it could -possibly- be a suburb of Central City (which, technically, it may very well be close enough to be a suburb, anyway), and this was one of my original theories, too. Even after Chronicles came out I knew that the map was flawed a bit... but when I saw how similar the areas in SA2 were to Chronicles, I noticed that it may be that way after all.

Edited August 2, 2009 by UltimaHedgie

[Barry the Nomad]

I've always viewed the Sonic planet similarly to the Simpsons geography. There are clear locations that exist from episode to episode (or game to game in Sonic's case), but the placement of these locations change to suit the story (or gameplay and story in the case of Sonic).

For example, Capital City in the Simpsons has been very close to very far away but it still exists in every episode whether mentioned or not. Other locations like Shelbyville, Ogdenville and North Haverbrook appear multiple times but differ in placement. I believe the term is an "elastic reality". I applaud you for your efforts, and you are correct in your assumptions, from a certain point of view.

Here are the basic truths to the Sonic world:

- South Island is a short flight in the Tornado to the United Federation which is a series of cities including Empire City, Central City (the Capital), Grand Metropolis (Grand City?) and Station Square.

- The Mysic Ruins are near Station Square.

- Angel Island can exist wherever it is needed as it floats

- Every desert level (i.e. Dusty Desert, Sandopolis, Sand Ocean, Sand Hill) may have occurred on the continent of Shamar. The same goes for every other country containing levels that suit their geological look. These could be debated of course, but remember Sonic lives in an "elastic reality".

[JaidynReiman]

Mmm... some stuff like you said may be the case, especially on Angel Island; in my opinion Angel Island does move around a lot. However, the desert level thing is a bit ridiculous. Dusty Desert is clearly on Soleanna, and Sand Hill is somewhere -near- the Mystic Ruins. It doesn't necessarily mean its directly in that basic area. Sand Ocean is quite obviously to the east of Central City.

Sandopolis is questionable, since they're clearly isn't much desert on Angel Island, but one possibility is that it is linked to the original desert that was around the Mystic Ruins, so it may very well be amidst the mountains on Angel Island, where the forests were unable to grow due to the heat coming from the volcanoes. However, Sandopolis cannot be on Shamar, because you go directly to Lava Reef from Sandopolis in Sonic & Knuckles. If it wasn't for this, it could've been possible for Sandopolis to have been on Shamar.

Regardless, once again I have to say that most locations we see in the series are all in different remote areas, and other times we don't even see maps. I agree that oftentimes they probably don't really pay much attention to geography, but saying that every desert in the series is located in Shamar is very much far-fetched, especially since in the same game Mazuri was filled with deserts, and pretty much any area heavily surrounded by mountains (or near the equator) could easily wind up being a desert.

As for your other points, Doc Eggman... I too believe that South Island is just off the coast of the United Federation. The exact location may change somewhat, but usually its nearby. The Mystic Ruins, though, sounds more to be a greater distance from Station Square than most people seem to think... I do think its "fairly" close, but the characters seem to indicate that it is a bit of a distance, and Tails even says that the "fastest way is by train," when talking to a hedgehog who can run at supersonic speeds. Wherever it is located, it clearly isn't easy to get to by foot. I don't know if that means its across the water or if its passed mountains. Something else to add, don't forget to Westopolis in your list of United Federation cities. That definitely seems to be the case.

Another thing of note is that I believe both Riders games to take place in roughly the same location. Megalo Station is either a part of Future City (also referred to as Metal City; Tails calls it Future City in a cutscene), or its probably a city nearby. I also believe that Eggman build the Meteotech Mother Computer near Sand Ruins. Babylon Garden, which was last seen in Sand Ruins, appears to be around this location. Due to the geography of the area, it could be located either in the United Federation, Shamar (I can't tell if Future City/Megalo Station is in a grassland area or in a desert), or Mazuri. Its quite possibly on an island near one of those locations, too.

Adding yet another location... Soleanna we -know- is an island, and I think its off the coast of Spogonia, perhaps somewhere near Apotos. The city of Soleanna does appear to have similar structures, though its also based on Italy.

And yeah, the elastic reality I kinda agree with... but we can still get the basic locations set up. That's somewhat what I was referring to in my first post. The maps between Chronicles and SA2 aren't exact, and some of the locations are smaller/larger, or further apart from nearby locations, but they are still similar location-wise.

[Barry the Nomad]

Ah right! You got me on the deserts, though one could argue that SOME of the early desert levels very well could be in Shamar.

I give Sonic Team credit for making the United Federation such a solid entity between games. Sure its just a clusterfu*k of cities, but it hasn't contradicted itself yet. It just keeps growing.

I'm hoping that the other countries revealed in Unleashed become deeper as the series continues. Maybe we'll see Angel Island appear over Apotos, or fly from Station Square to South Island.

[Blue Blood]

Where is Soleanna? How does it have a beach, snowy mountains, a desert, rainforest and temperate regions all in such close proximity? No real geography. =(

[Barry the Nomad]

Where is Soleanna? How does it have a beach, snowy mountains, a desert, rainforest and temperate regions all in such close proximity? No real geography. =(

Didn't Sonic access the "zones" via magic mirrors?

[Core]

Sandopolis is questionable, since they're clearly isn't much desert on Angel Island, but one possibility is that it is linked to the original desert that was around the Mystic Ruins, so it may very well be amidst the mountains on Angel Island, where the forests were unable to grow due to the heat coming from the volcanoes.

Actually, Sandopolis is well visible on Angel Island.

You can see it on the title screen of Sonic & Knuckles as well, though I don't know if that counts.

By the way, was it ever confirmed that Station Square and Empire City were part of the United Federation? I think the United Federation was only mentioned in Shadow (and maybe Chronicles, I don't remember), and it was just mentioned without any explanation. People seem to think that every human city is in the United Federation, but isn't that just a conjecture?

Where is Soleanna? How does it have a beach, snowy mountains, a desert, rainforest and temperate regions all in such close proximity? No real geography. =(

Yeah but every Sonic game is like that. In Sonic 2 you go from Emerald Hill to Chemical Plant without any transition. Angel Island has both a desert and an ice zone. In Sonic Adventure you have Sand Hill right next to the Mystic Ruins jungle. Soleanna having beaches, deserts and jungles isn't more improbable (I don't think White Acropolis is on Soleanna, though).

[FeathersMcGraw]

It's worth noting that the SA2 Map is essentially an imitation of San Francisco bay area with a few liberties taken. The city matches San Francisco pretty closely, complete with a mock Golden Gate bridge (Radical Highway or whatever it was called) and Alcatraz Prison (Prison Island), the landmass the later levels (Pumpkin Hill etc.) are located on also pretty closely matches Marin country.

For sake of comparison, here's the real life map compared to the SA2 map...

Obviously the SA2 map is a stylized interpratation and as such many parts are exagerated and out of scale, but all the key landmarks (Prison Island etc.) are there and in pretty much the same positions.

Edited August 3, 2009 by FeathersMcGraw

[Blue Blood]

Didn't Sonic access the "zones" via magic mirrors?

Thing is, those games were set on whole islands. Heroes was never explained, but like the old games he just appeared in the next place. Soleanna was a city. A single city. The city of water. The mirrors took you to other parts of the same city. That always irked me.

Yeah, it makes no sense. The Japanese website had a map of the whole thing.

Yeah, the old games had zones. The geography of Sonic 06 (and everything else about the game) is hugely annoying.

Edited August 3, 2009 by Blue Blood

[Barry the Nomad]

Oh yeah! Thats pretty cheap to say Soleanna has a beach, desert AND snow area. At least SA2 had a large map, and Unleashed had you move about the globe. Soleanna just happens to have EVERY form of landscape? Bullsh*t.

[Blue Blood]

So does Springfield!

[JaidynReiman]

Hmm... Well, I've never really seen a map of San Francisco, so I couldn't say anything about that. However, there are numerous differences. Of course you mention that there are scale differences, but all the gaps are a lot farther apart in this map, especially Prison Island. Not to mention the fact that Prison Island is about 10 times the size of Alcatraz. Either way, though, again, its only something that is slightly influenced on the real world, just like in pretty much every other game (even Unleashed; the World Map simply is completely different).

Core, I do know that you can see the temple of Sandopolis, but you can't actually see a real "desert" there. I probably should've mentioned that, though.

As for the United Federation, nobody said it was -confirmed- these locations exist there. However, there is one continent that isn't given a name on the Sonic Unleashed World Map, and doesn't play much of a plot role, that being the continent where Empire City is located. Empire City is based on New York City, while other cities, such as Central City and Station Square, are also clearly based on U.S. cities. The term "United Federation", as well as other things such as "CIA," are also based on the U.S. The fact that these are all closely related makes it quite likely that the final continent is the United Federation, and all of them are related. Westopolis -is- confirmed to be a United Federation city, though.

As for Soleanna, I thought I remember seeing a full map showing all the geographical locations of the island, but I can't find it right now. In my opinion, though, its probably near Spogonia, quite likely around the equator. It has a jungle and a desert in the same basic region, but that's not hard to get. What is probably the case is that the mountainous region of Soleanna blocks a lot of the cooler winds from region the desert area and ultimately prevents many green things from growing there. (I have read that deserts are often caused by being blockaded by mountains, and of course being around very hot temperatures.) The jungle is in an area where the trees and plants can actually grow. And of course, very high mountains are generally cold at the top. I don't know if it matters where they are located or not.

EDIT: I suppose I should mention the above map. I did see it recently (on the Sonic '06 site), but those are actually separate cities, they aren't the same one. Soleanna is known as the "City of Water," but the entire island is also called "Soleanna," as well. Basically, the City of Soleanna (Soleanna City) is the capital of the country of Soleanna. I thought I remembered a larger map than that, though... maybe I was mistaken. Either way, that's merely a filler map on the gamesite. Is there actually a map in the game itself?

Edited August 3, 2009 by UltimaHedgie

[Tailikku]

I'd like to point out that one of Tails' stages was called Mission Street. That is an actual street in San Francisco, but SEGA Studios USA made it much larger.