Sonic 1 Complete Collection
A comprehensive journey through the first mainline Sonic game!
Summary
Sonic 1 Complete Collection aims to cover every aspect of the first mainline Sonic game that released for both the SEGA Genesis, SEGA Master System, and the SEGA Game Gear. The latter two consoles received a different version of the game than the SEGA Genesis with altered level layouts for some of the zones that are shared between the two versions and a handful of zones that are unique to it. This project was developed to capture every act of every zone as its own independent experience with all of the gameplay aspects being covered from the location of secret areas to strategies on how to defeat the bosses. All of the components of this project can be viewed through the Sonic 1 Complete Collection YouTube Playlist where Arcmaevotix is home to the original versions and Nehrpsyznet is home to the remade versions.
Process
In addition to just creating a library of showcased material, I wanted that library to really highlight the landmarks of Sonic the Hedgehog since they have always interested me in their theming and environmental immersiveness. In order to construct this, I broke the game up into all of its separate acts and treated each piece of the game as a postcard of its own. Every zone was given a scenic thumbnail, descriptive title, and individual focus to achieve this effect. The acts of every zone were recorded first and then special stages and boss battles had their footage split off from the main recordings or recorded seperately through rhythmically spaced save states. Special stages, boss battles, secret areas, and the exploration of individual acts to their fullest extent are not the only draws of this project however. There is also a concept pitch of what it would be like if both versions of Sonic 1 were combined together in a single complete package with all of the content being brought together. This concept has been fully realized in some fan projects such as Sonic 1: South Island Expedition (formerly called Sonic 1 Definitive Edition).
Reflection
Sonic 1 Complete Collection was my entry point into understanding computers, emulation, video production, audio engineering, and capturing high quality demonstration footage. The process started well over a decade ago, but Sonic the Hedgehog 1 has always been the go to piece of media to sharpen my skills on due to the compact form of the game and its vivid landscapes. It was easy to find it retro game stores and incredibly easy to run on most devices since SEGA Genesis emulation is not quite as taxing as say Nintendo 64 emulation. This project allowed me to explore different ways of organizing and presenting media to achieve certain goals of displaying entertainment or communicating concepts that have a properly illustrated foundation.