Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) prototype discovered
Determined to start 2021 off on the right foot; infamous scene member 'drx', along with The Cutting Room Floor have uncovered what is long thought to have been lost to the ages.
While a number of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) betas and prototypes, including the famous Nick Arcade build have been floating around the internet since 2006; and then more recently in 2019 we saw the surprise discovery of a Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994) prototype - it's long been thought that any and all early builds of Sonic's first outing on SEGA's 16-bit machine would never be found.
Although plenty of early show floor demos and VHS tapes have made their way onto the internet which show glimpses of early Sonic 1 footage and a bevy of fan made hoax ROMs exist - until last night this is all we had to show for SEGA's first entry in the Sonic the Hedgehog series.
That was until last night, when during their last Twitch stream of 2020, The Hidden Palace Zone closed off their stream with a surprise showing - an early prototype build of Sonic the Hedgehog for the SEGA Mega Drive / Genesis.
Although an exact build date of the ROM is unknown, it's thought to be from mid to late development of the title. A number of zones are near complete while a couple including Labyrinth and Spring Yard Zone look quite different from the final product.
Here is a list of key differences that has been compiled by members of the scene:
More detailed information on this release as well as a download can be found via the link at The Hidden Palace Zone below.
Maybe some day we'll also get to see the incredibly rare Tokyo Toy Show prototype/proof of concept version of Sonic 1?
Twitch stream (starts at approx 40:00)
The Hidden Palace Zone
While a number of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) betas and prototypes, including the famous Nick Arcade build have been floating around the internet since 2006; and then more recently in 2019 we saw the surprise discovery of a Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994) prototype - it's long been thought that any and all early builds of Sonic's first outing on SEGA's 16-bit machine would never be found.
Although plenty of early show floor demos and VHS tapes have made their way onto the internet which show glimpses of early Sonic 1 footage and a bevy of fan made hoax ROMs exist - until last night this is all we had to show for SEGA's first entry in the Sonic the Hedgehog series.
That was until last night, when during their last Twitch stream of 2020, The Hidden Palace Zone closed off their stream with a surprise showing - an early prototype build of Sonic the Hedgehog for the SEGA Mega Drive / Genesis.
Although an exact build date of the ROM is unknown, it's thought to be from mid to late development of the title. A number of zones are near complete while a couple including Labyrinth and Spring Yard Zone look quite different from the final product.
Here is a list of key differences that has been compiled by members of the scene:
More detailed information on this release as well as a download can be found via the link at The Hidden Palace Zone below.
Maybe some day we'll also get to see the incredibly rare Tokyo Toy Show prototype/proof of concept version of Sonic 1?
Twitch stream (starts at approx 40:00) The Hidden Palace Zone
