Sonic CD Beta (Lost Levels?)

[NM Mighty]

I was discussing with my friend the other day the various beta versions of Sonic Games(as I had found a romhack of Sonic 2 that had inserted wood zone and desert hill zone in to the game), we pretty much cover all the games which couldve had betas then we got to Sonic CD, he said something about a missing level having a folder in the CD named R2? (Kinda like Forbidden 7 in super smash bros brawl) but in game the levels go R1 (Palmtree Panic) then skips R2 to go to R3(Collision Chaos) I googled Sonic CD R2 and it came up with an old Sonic retro forum post that had more detail on the subject

I've made this theory and it can explain well many things from CD Sonic 510 Beta, so let's start.

If you see the Original Anime Intro Video for Sonic CD from Sonic Jam you will see this:

This is R2, since it is between the Palmtree Panic (R1) and Collision Chaos (R3). They're ruins. We can see that the level order of Sonic 1 is very similar to the Sonic CD one.

_________________________

Sonic 1 | Sonic CD

_________________________

Green Hill | Palmtree Panic

Marble | R2

Spring Yard | Collision Chaos

Labyrinth | Tidal Tempest

As PPz was based on GHz, CCz was based on SYz and TT was based on Lz, we see that R2 perfectly matches Marble Zone, reforcing, so, the theory that R2 was based on Mz. This is the truth as many other sonic researches have confirmed. My theory is about what happened to R2 graphics.

I don't know the reasons for why was R2 scrapped, but the consequences can be found using some logical reasoning. For me, the graphics were merged with the Tidal Tempest ones and this can be proved since there are lots of Marble Zone concepts in Tidal Tempest that we will se bellow:

If you play CD Sonic 510 Beta's Tidal Tempest you will see many Pallet problems, and I have an explanation for that. If R2 was merged with TTz, the Tidal Tempest zone pallet could have been tweaked to fit better with the new (and probably unedited) graphics.

And that's it.

Anyone have any more info on this mysterious R2 level?

Edited September 10, 2010 by NM Mighty

[Diogenes]

Not really. Whatever "R2" is (if it's anything at all), it's managed to elude even the hardcore researchers in the fanbase.

[Vertekins]

Don't forget that in the ending footage of Sonic CD (The coloured-in version of the curiously snipped-out footage in the Mega CD version/PC version is restored in the Mega Collection version), there's a badnik in it that is clearly based off an antlion larvae and looks very much like the boss of Underground zone in Sonic 2.

Now look at the various time states of Little Planet in DA Garden/Play Music option. There's a desert-like area that really doesn't match any level in the game in present, good future and bad future. Whatsmore, there's a pair of volcanoes in the proximity of the desert-like area. If R2 was a Marble Zone-alike and had an Antlion Badnik in it, the volcanoes would explain any lava R2 would possibly have had as a Marble Zone-alike whilst the desert would explain the Antlion badnik and the sand pit it created, as real life antlion's are desert-dwelling creatures.

Whatsmore, in the good future and bad future of Little Planet, a pair of cylindrical buildings pop up (Good future) or a trio of cylindrical buildings pop up (Bad future) on the desert and volcano part of Little Planet. I myself have tried to match other Sonic CD zones with their counterparts on the DA Garden/Play Music Little Planet that makes decent sense;

1 - Palmtree Panic. I think this is so due to the palmtree and sizable mountain.

2 - Collision Chaos. Uneven platforms like in the zone and curly vines pretty much identical to the vines seen in the Past version of this stage

3 - Tidal Tempest. Includes that metal building in the water. Primarily makes sense because of Tidal Tempest's water and the volcanoes/Mountains visible in the far background of Act 1 Present

4 - Quartz Quadrant. Extremely obvious from the blue crystals. However, this part of Little Planet actually matches Quartz Quadrant's Good Future, as the quartz is blue and the mountains purple EXACTLY how the stage looks like in it's Good Future. In the present, the mountains are brown and the quartz green.

5 - Wacky Workbench. The building is large vertically, which suits the zone's great vertical size due to bouncy floors.

6 - Stardust Speedway clearly. There's the Eggman Statue.

7 - Metallic Madness. Due to all of those factories.

As for the question marks, that's where R2 is likely to have supposed to have been IMO.

Just look at the Bad and Good future equivalents and notice the curious buildings that have sprung up in the desert area near the volcanoes;

There appears to be a pipe-like construction leading from the volcano to the trio of cylindrical buildings in the Bad Future. Maybe a part of Eggman's dastardly pollution in overfilling R2 with lava? Incredibly convoluted but I didn't see any stage that had lava in it it any timeframe.

This is pure fancruft and speculation but I find it so curious how there's a desert like area that develops buildings in either future that don't seem to have a portray/have a connection to other zones. It's safe to think at least that R2 was dropped relatively late as there's the space in level select, it's featured an ending movie and traces of it may be on the Little Planet Pixel Art in DA Garden/Play music.

Edited September 10, 2010 by Verte

[ds73]

How comes this topic has no more attention than this?

Well,here's what I think R2 would be:

Many people think R2 is either a desert level/volcano level/ruins level according to the D.A. Garden and both ending cutscenes respectively.I think R2 is all of those.Because Sonic CD levels are based of Sonic 1 levels(R2 would be marble zone)and because of D.A. Garden.That means that R2 would be a generic desert ruins level WITH a volcano in the background to make it looks like Marble Zone.Here's why:

1.In the ending cutscene you actually see a ruin level where some part of the floor collapses when Sonic touches them,wich confirms the desert theory because stuff usually collapses in desert levels.

2.In the ending again,you can see a blue badnick that HIGHLY ressembles the blue badnick in Sandopolis Zone in Sonic and Knuckles,Wich means that the blue thing was an idea for a desert enemy,wich was later moved to Sandopolis in Sonic and Knuckles.Plus,the blue guy actually attacks Sonic from a hole in the ground in Sonic CD and attacks Sonic from quicksand in Sonic and Knuckles.Is it a coincidence that they both appears in specific areas in the stage?Or,more precisely,in areas that usually kills you or does bad stuff to you?

3.If you go on the R2 page on Sonic Retro,there's a link to an interview where the guy(I dont remember his name)says that the level did not met the quality standards.He also says that each level was being made by one single person and that the guy who was working on R2 did a bad job,so,they had to remove R2 from the final product.But if R2 was really a desert ruins volcano level,the level was probably bad because its theme is way more complicated than other levels in the game.

4.If you look carefully in the ending,you can see a machine to the far left of the screen.It looks like a teleporter like in Scrap Brain Zone in Sonic 1.Probably because most levels in the Present have(though little)Robotnick presence.

I'm pretty sure that if R2 would have been published it's name would be something like that:

Dusty Desert Zone or

Dusty Dunes Zone

And the stage would be something like that:

Present:Ruins of an ancient civilization that somehow grew in a land constantly ravaged by a huge volcano(wich would explain why its desertic).Some evil Robotnick machines here and there.

Past:Same as present but without machines and ancient buildings are still intact even if everybody that once lived here is dead.

Bad Future:Upon Robotnick's presence,buildings are now only present in your memory.Evil machines now drain magma from the volcano to the desert,because Robotnick wants to destroy everything in his path(Like Verte said).The land is now so hostile than even cactuses cant grow there,wich would explain the huge cactus becoming a tower in D.A. Garden.

Good Future:The volcano calmed down,no more eruptions from this thing.Also,ancient buildings were preserved and the whole desert turned into a huge museum.

And the boss would be something like Robotnick exiting out of quicksand or lava(in a similar way as the Hill Top Zone boss in Sonic 2)and shoot stuff or jump toward you(because the bosses in Sonic CD are usually tied with the environnement of the stage).

I hope somebody will read this it took long to write this!

[azoo]

Best guess as to what R2 was is going back to Wacky Workbench Past.

These tiles are out of nowhere in the middle of the stage, and in no way resemble the rest of WWZ Past. On that note, they also resemble bricks and statue peices that would appear in Marble Zone, which according to the stage list layout, R2 would've most likely been based upon.

Basically, these tiles are the ruins of the ruins stage.

[Rocka]

This is just one of the many mysteries of the Sonic The Hedgehog game series.

Do you want to learn EVERYTHING about Sonic The Hedgehog? I'd rather leave some mysteries that the world shall never know.

[azoo]

This is just one of the many mysteries of the Sonic The Hedgehog game series.

Do you want to learn EVERYTHING about Sonic The Hedgehog? I'd rather leave some mysteries that the world shall never know.

What's wrong with finding out the background information and the secrets of background game development? I can understand some things being left secret (such as the true origins for everyone and the creation and setup of Sonic's world and etc.) but I don't see the purpose for this. Besides, speculation and educated guesses are fun.

[Diogenes]

How comes this topic has no more attention than this?

Because the mystery is old as balls and had basically run out of relevant ideas long before this topic was even made.

Which is over a year ago, it's worth noting.

[Rocka]

I prefer to imagine how R2 would have been - if it ever existed, yes there are proof but...

I think they scrapped it because it would have looked too much like Marble Zone.

EDIT: Um... Didn't we revive a topic?

Edited October 29, 2011 by Rocka

[SuperMarioGlitchy5]

If R2 truly WAS based off Marble Zone, it would possibly go by the name Relic Ruins from doing research on the missing Sonic CD level only made out by the extended Ending cutscene and picture of what could maybe be concept art of Relic Ruins or "R2" in the game, if someone makes a ROM hack that adds in the cut level and actually call it "Relic Ruins," that would be perfect!