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I, Game Designer: Sonic 2
superhobo | 7:19 AM on 09.17.2009 4 comments




I've had a keen interest in the design of Video Games for a long time, and recently I got down to tracking down where that interest really came from. I went backwards throughout my life and numerous factors emerged: the magazine GamesTM which had many interviews with designers throughout the game industry, my early love for board games, Fighting Fantasy etc etc.

One experience really stood out in my life though: Debug Mode in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. It's a simple cheat involving entering a series of sounds through the options menu, but what it unlocks is amazing. Put simply it unlocks the ability to place almost any enemy or object anywhere in a level. Sonic 1 had a similar feature, but in my opinion it's much stronger in Sonic 2.

This simple cheat had a profound effect on both me and my friends. Soon we were testing the possibilities of this system:
- Springs upon which we could jump from the start to the end of a level.
- Flat platforms where we could test Sonics true speed.
- Placing many more enemies throughout the level, effectively creating a super hard mode.
And all sorts of other more complex situations, many of which turned into elaborate rude goldberg machines.



Many people talk about the complexity of LittleBigPlanet et al, but if you think about it those sorts of games are just the natural evolution of this Debug Mode. People should have been making these games for years! I still go back to Debug Mode on Sonic 2 today, just for fun. I find I can work away on perfecting a machine for hours, the only drawback is that I can't save it.

Anyway, just a memory which struck me. Cheers!



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4 comments | showing # 1 to 4

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Waffleman's Destructoid Blog
I guess you could do it on a emulator and savestate it.
Krow's Destructoid Blog
@Waffleman
Wut.

@superhobo
Yes! I had completely forgotten about this, and it's just as awesome as it was then.
Holyetheline's Destructoid Blog
I used to love doing this too! Sonic 2 gave me many good memories.
Jon B's Destructoid Blog
There's an application I remember from my Sonic 2 hacking days that saves all the debug items into the stage, I'm fairly sure.

I frigging loved using debug on Sonic 2. Anyone who says they didn't give themselves rings on Death Egg to play it as Super Sonic is a damn liar.


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 about me

Welcome to the World of Tommorrow!

http://www.billykennedydesign.com

My name is Billy i.e the Fantastic Super Hobo!
I live in Ireland, a country devoid of all things in gaming, and as a member of the EU, one of the last places in the world to recieve most games.

Now Playing:
- Final Fantasy 12
- Mass Effect

Favourite Games (OAT):
- Bioshock
- Final Fantasy VII
- Final Fantasy VIII
- Mass Effect
- Dawn of War
- Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat
- Battlefield 2
- Harvest Moon: BTN
- Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow/Gold/Silver
- Super Mario Land
- Final Fantasy IX

My Literary Heroes:




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