Next Zone: 0 game guide to be my last
Sunday, 6th February 2011, 3:00pm (UTC), 28 Comments
I've been doing a lot of mulling over about this, and there are a number of reasons behind it: desire to do new projects, changes in personal circumstances, and generally a reduced level of enthusiasm to name the most prominent. Ultimately though, I've come to a decision that I'll probably continue to stick to..

Sonic & Knuckles will be my last Zone: 0 guide, and there may or not not be any further guides by other writers featured on this site once that is complete. Zone: 0 will remain in existence for as long as I am capable of hosting it, and will not be taken down, nor will any content be removed, however updates or changes cannot be promised after I have completed the final guide. At the point of transition from activity to inactivity, blog posts will cease and the forum will be closed, however the history of both will be available through an archive. Level artwork by Ricky Earl will continue to be added to relevant pages for as long as he wishes to produce them.

Because some writers have agreed to produce guides for certain games, I will allow these to continue if they so wish, however they are under no obligation to do so. If any writers complete their guides I will cooperate with them in adding them to the site and publishing them with the rest at any point in the future. However, it would be appreciated if they could use the content management system that the site runs on to build and publish the pages themselves as much as possible. There is very little HTML or web programming skill necessary to do this, mostly none at all, and I will continue to work on this system to make sure it's as easy to use and automated as it can be.

From now on however, the hunt for new writers has officially ended and I am no longer looking for new guides to begin. The unfortunate fact is that in over one and a half years since I first announced the hunt for new writers, despite several applications, no one has even come close to completing the guides that they have started. From some people I've seen absolutely nothing, from others I've seen no more than drafts for the first one or two levels, and then nothing for months. I don't particularly mind - things happen and such a voluntary, spare time project naturally has to make way for more important things in people's lives. Or perhaps some simply became less enthusiastic about it over time. Regardless, the lack of success so far in this endeavour is evidence enough that it should also cease at this point. If you're unbelievably passionate about this project and you know that you'll be able to contribute something else worthwhile then by all means send me an email but I can't guarantee cooperation with anything except that with which I've already agreed to cooperate. There are one or two newer writers who currently seem to be progressing well with their guides, and keeping in regular contact, so I won't rule these out, however I don't expect there to be many more than that. If there are, then who knows, maybe the site will be able to run under new management, but personally, I don't expect this to happen.


So that's about the situation. Never say never, I may well change my mind and fire up a new guide one day. But as much as I've enjoyed writing and putting them all together, the fact of the matter is that, for a spare time hobby, it's unbelievably time consuming. The Sonic 3 guide has taken almost one and a half years just to publish - not even including the original time it took me to write it - being fit around my real life, and even at that rate it's sucked out hundreds of hours of my time that, I must admit, could well have been spent on something fresher, and more creative. Zone: 0 is a worthwhile project and I'm immensely proud of it, but it demands nothing but spare time and no real occupation if you want to produce it to a high quality, with regular updates, and have time left over for other personal pursuits. Unfortunately I have a 9-hour-a-day job, and a future family life to think about, on top of other ideas for projects desperate to burst out of the confines of my mind and onto the screen. Some Sonic-based, some not, and some with more financial possibilities, which could be essential to me. Something's got to give, and though it's not an easy decision, that thing is Zone: 0 I'm afraid.

However, I've always said that no matter what, I would complete what I had started, and as the Sonic & Knuckles guide has already been written, I will see it through, and as quickly as I can. So consider this message me handing in my "notice". I did look forward to the day where I would actually be able to sit down and start writing a new guide from scratch - something I haven't done since 2006. Part of me would still rather enjoy it, but it's just not feasible for me anymore really. Besides, I must admit that my enthusiasm for this project has dwindled. Back when I started writing, a good 6 and a half years ago, my excitement (and large amount of free time) drove me to complete drafts for all six Sonic 1 levels in just over a week. At that speed, naturally I would have thought I'd have at least a dozen games covered online by 2011, but a number of things prevented that, my perfectionism for one. I went back on everything two, three, maybe four times to bring it all to a consistent level of detail. The addition of maps and site maintenance all added up to a far longer amount of time than I had first projected, even as a part time hobby. Nevertheless, I was amazed at my own unfaltering enthusiasm for building up the project of my dreams, where other ideas had lost their steam under far less time. I particularly loved refreshing the design and structure of the site completely, a couple of years back. Since then though, once I'd returned to building the guides themselves, I've definitely felt more of a noticeable tedium to it all. I thought it might have been just my slight unfamiliarity with Sonic CD compared to the other four games, which are like childhood friends to me, but no, it persisted through Sonic 3 as well. It was still fun, but just as often it began to feel like a chore. A chore that I now realise I can only do for so much longer.

As I say, there's many factors to this decision though, and my reduced enthusiasm for Zone: 0 seems to correlate with.. well, I suppose it's more of a changing relationship with Sonic as a whole. I can't deny, Sonic pretty much equates to a kind of religion to me, in terms of the amount of time I spend just thinking and internally debating about it. Any other type of game can only be so much fun, and for me, none compare to Sonic at his best. But it's not even the quality of the modern games as much as the sheer amount of resistance to them all over the internet, and most hurtfully, from the most outspoken fans themselves that slowly chips away at my love of Sonic. I feel like I no longer want to be a part of any community that, once united by love of something, is now held together only by constant arguments about what that thing should be, and even more disturbing, a mutual hatred of whatever that thing currently is. I may have had my own criticisms to make now and then, but I genuinely feel things are moving on toward a better level of quality now in terms of the games themselves. It's unmistakable. It may not be perfect yet, but it's all going in the right direction, and to see supposed fans fail to acknowledge this and continually complain over and over again, as if they're beginning to get some enjoyment out of it, depresses me frankly. A lot.

Everyone's entitled to their own opinions, and maybe I'm just a bit too soft, but it's not just in Sonic, there's a worrying trend I'm noticing throughout popular culture. Everyone's a critic and what's more, they love it. Negativity is the new positivity, and I'm so unbelievably sick of it, but for something as close to me as Sonic, it's all too much to take. I'd rather ignore the comments, reviews and debates, (much of them, as they are, over the most trivial of things) entirely and get back to enjoying Sonic as I used to do as a child, and with some degree of wild-eyed innocence. At least then, any gripes I have will be my own, and not those pointed out by others and which honestly wouldn't have really bothered me until they had done so. To some extent, Zone: 0 still kind of connects me to their endless nit-pickings, although I admit it's hardly the central hub of current Sonic affairs. Still, I would feel some degree of relief from it for these reasons, and I do rather want to prove to myself that it's still possible in this day and age to be as big a Sonic fan as ever while having little or no connection or awareness of other fans, online or otherwise. Put simply: I want out of the Sonic community.


Let none of this take away from how proud I am of this site though. I'm genuinely amazed it's even lasted this long, and when I flick through the dozens of pages of info I've produced, I can't believe just how much I've actually done. The project existed for a couple of years before anyone was even aware of it, and during that time I had no idea if it was what people wanted it, but I've genuinely been touched by the many, many messages of support I've received. In general, I haven't really even heard anything spoken against it, so I realise how much of an achievement it is. Because it was born at a time before web 2.0 really emerged, I like to think it has an element about it of the old fashioned way of doing a website. Not a neutral, homogenous wiki made up of content from multiple people, but a highly focused, highly personal creation that cares more about, initially, the details of what it covers than its scope. Sadly, that scope probably won't be enlarged to the degree I had originally hoped for, but regardless, it'll always have a special place in my heart, and as I say, it'll continue to exist for as long as the Internet, myself, civilisation as a whole, and the small amount of money required to keep it hosted, exists too. Those are good odds, I think.

The show's not over yet. We've still got one fifth of the way to go in fact, and I'm going to make sure it's just as good as as the others! Thank you to everyone who has provided some much needed positivity to get this site to where it is now.
Comments   28 Comments have been posted.
#1. Comment posted by Rom on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 3:53pm
This is sad news. The site is the best Sonic site I've ever come across and even though it will continue to exist, it's too bad guides wont continue to be made. You've done an outstanding job and I hope you find everything you want in life.
#2. Comment posted by Tricky E on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 7:04pm
:(
#3. Comment posted by Mercury on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 8:00pm
I'm actually not that disappointed because the five guides that you will have I feel are the most important anyway... and I'm looking forward to whatever project you conquer next.

I find it really sad that you feel that way about the Sonic community. Sometimes it gets on my nerves, too; that's why I stay away from the news threads and join in on the hacking and other fanworks instead. I do wish everybody could pull together and be more constructive - we've accomplished so much so far, but we could do much more if we'd stop taking potshots at each other.

Speaking of constructive, what's the worst/most time consuming part of making the S3&K guide? You never know, Zone: 0 readers might find a way to facilitate it.
#4. Comment posted by MoDaD on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 8:15pm
"Not a neutral, homogenous wiki made up of content from multiple people, but a highly focused, highly personal creation that cares more about, initially, the details of what it covers than its scope."

I think you hit the nail on the head. That's exactly how I feel about some of the projects I've worked on. I'm not disappointed at all, to be honest, as I'd always thought this site seemed more focused on the Genesis/Mega Drive-era games. I'd always thought that was a key element of its charm. I'm incredibly nostalgic about these games in particular, and you've created what I'd just about call a work of art to cater to that.

I'm sorry if you feel disappointed or let down in yourself, but you shouldn't. This is a great accomplishment, and it's become a household name in the Sonic fan communities. I have no doubt that it will continue to be a center of interest for many. Whichever direction you choose to take it in will be great.
#5. Comment posted by JC on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 10:25pm
I literally just discovered this site today, doing research for a uni project on Sonic, and it's without doubt the best Sonic site I've come across. I myself have been a fan of these games since I was old enough to play my old Mega Drive, and I know exactly how you feel about the fanbase. I myself refuse to be a part of any community or forum, because the constant bickering and complaining about the tiniest of details is truly staggering.

"Euugh, Sonic 4 is gonna suck because Sonic has green eyes."

'Nuff said. Some people seem to love complaining and go out of their way to find fault with things, in any fanbase, but with Sonic it's so much more noticable. I attended Summer of Sonic in London last year, and was shocked at how many little digs at the current games and full on debates about how bad recent titles have been, by so-called fans of them. It's like they buy the games fully expecting to hate them, and I can't understand the logic at all. I buy them and I enjoy them, despite any minor nitpicks I may have. It's a series about a fast blue hedgehog fighting an egg-shaped man and his robot army... just enjoy it!

Congratulations on this site, and it's truly sad to see someone so dedicated forced out of the community by the ridiculous amount of negativity.
#6. Comment posted by Dapassified on Monday, 7th February 2011, 3:45am
This is truly sad news, but however, everything must come to an end. I admire your passion and dedication through these years and honestly you have created something truly amazing with your determination. You haven't created just a website, but a safe home and a place of remembrance for Sonic fans, old and new. I've heard of Zone:0 from several people and come here many times not for just guidance in my Sonic trials, but just to reignite my connection with the blue blur.

The devotion you've had for Zone:0 is something that is not common in most with their projects and is quite unique. My love for Sonic has run deep in my veins since 1991, but I still would not be able to tackle a project so large, and for that I applaud you.

I agree with your view on the animosity and negativity that has developed in the world and into the Sonic community and it does create almost a repellent to something that we love so much. I used to love discussing Sonic the Hedgehog with other fans, but now instead of our admiration and enthusiasm being the topic of discussion it is what has become how the Sonic franchise has gone "downhill." Follow that by how the next generation Sonic fans are labeled as "not real fans." It's sad that something so simple and fun has become something that has torn real fans with a common interest apart.

It is upsetting that you must close Zone:0, but not disappointing. It is understandable that such perfection is so time consuming and obvious that you would want to continue with your own personal life. I thank you for all the hard work, persistence, and involvement in the Sonic community and best wishes to any projects you are going to apply yourself to in the future. Thank you for giving me faith and comfort in knowing that there are others like me keeping Sonic the Hedgehog alive. Great job and best wishes.
#7. Comment posted by RS on Monday, 7th February 2011, 7:44am
Long time reader of the site. Enjoy the design and the content. You have your reasons for making the Sonic & Knuckles guide your last--I respect that. My problem arrives when you, ironically enough, criticize the fanbase for criticizing the series. Looking at it from another angle, as someone who is active in another fanbase who casually browses the Sonic fanbase, I see huge flaws in your argument.

Just because someone is a fan does not mean that they should have an undebatable love for everything that revolves around what they are a fan of. Sonic the Hedgehog is such as huge "franchise" that incorporates video games, comics, animations and so forth of different types from different eras. You can collectivize everyone as "Sonic fans" but you're not seeing that "Sonic fans" are composed of "classic fans," "SATAM fans," "modern fans," "Archie fans," etc. Even within these subgroups, there are more divisions. This diversity should be celebrated. Sorry, but it would be awfully boring if everyone everywhere just likes everything Sonic. That's not fandom. That's product worship.

Now while Sonic the Hedgehog 4 did garner negativity from some of the fanbase, it should be of great importance to point out that Sonic Colors was an entirely different game which, for the most part, was released to high praise from most of the fan community. I don't think Sonic fans are simply being negative for the sake of being negative. I think they have high expectations due to the bar being set so high back in the 1990s and that SEGA either drops the ball or at least shows progress.

I think it's comical that people such as Jim Sterling who are highly critical of the fanbase for being, well, critical of Sonic 4 seem to have less than favorable words for Sonic Colors. But that's okay. It's their opinion. Sonic Colors is my favorite third-dimensional Sonic game to date. Not perfect, but it's getting there. People can disagree with me and those people can very well be Sonic fans.

You have your own reasons for ceasing your plans for future updates and like I said, that's your decision and I respect that. You've done an excellent job here. I also completely understand what you mean in your second-to-last paragraph, owning a fansite of my own which is entirely of my own creation. I simply wanted to throw in my two cents in defense of a fan community that gets too much flack for having a diverse range of opinions.
#8. Comment posted by LiQuidShade on Monday, 7th February 2011, 8:03pm
I can only thank you all for your very heartfelt reflections on my work and this news. I'm very touched that this project has had such an astounding effect on what seems to be quite a large number of people. I'm truly amazed!

Rom, thank you very much. :)

Ricky, don't be sad! There's still much to come before I close the doors, and your artwork will always be welcome here.

Mercury, thank you, I agree. I think the thing is, I've pretty much eliminated most of the laborious elements to the whole process. Everything left now is all down to the quality and consistency of the writing, layouts, graphics and maps, and it's something I feel only I can do. I'd say the map making is still quite time consuming (although a fraction of how much time it would take without your own brilliant extractor tools!), but purely because of all of the extra arrows and icons I add. It's the kind of thing that has too many little rules and intricacies that I've built up over time for anyone else to really grasp, I think.

MoDaD - Yes, keeping it to the classics does kind of give it a special kind of charm I must admit. Thank you, I hope it does continue to be used by many long after its last update.

JC, better late than never! You're very welcome here, thank you.

Dapassified, thanks! I can't really believe I've been so devoted to it myself, really. I think if you find something you care that much about though, you can find the desire to produce anything really, no matter how big. And one of the best things about this site has been the amazing reactions to it from people like yourselves and how, for some, there's something about Sonic that just really.. well, gives meaning to life, I suppose!

RS - Thanks a lot, glad to hear understanding from a fellow site owner. You're quite right, I'm painting with broad brush strokes when describing the community as I did there. There are of course many positive fans out there and many good things about the community - these messages alone are testament to that. I didn't wish to begin a debate between anyone about the state of the community, nor do I seek to change it. It's just that to me, there's too much negativity, even if it's not the only thing. Too many people with glass-half-empty expectations, and petty, destructive criticisms. It's not everyone, at all, and I've no idea if it's really even the majority, but they speak with louder voices to me, and there's enough of them for me to no longer enjoy reading the opinions of others about Sonic. They just depress me, and that's all it is really, just a personal reaction.

Many thanks again.
#9. Comment posted by KMetalmind on Monday, 7th February 2011, 9:22pm
It´s a shame. I´m going to tell the truth, I haven´t really read everything is here (after playing all classic Sonic games hundreds of times and finding most of the best hidden secrets of them around the internet, it´s hard to look at an in-depth guide), but anyway, it´s superb content. This could be sold on a guide and most Sonic fans would be buying it like crazy, even knowing the entire games.

I wish you luck in anything else you do, because it´s hard to find so perfect content out there.

And you know, don´t get too serious about *we* Sonic complainers. We have been deceived for years, and we haven´t got still a game as good as the classics. I´ve really enjoyed games like Megaman 9-10 and Castlevania HD, but Sonic it´s still far from becoming a masterpiece again. Anyway, they are really improving :)

Sincerely, good luck in anything you do, because it will be awesome for sure ;)
#10. Comment posted by Eurysilas on Tuesday, 8th February 2011, 5:03am
NOOO! I just found you.... :(

Do you know how hard it is to come by Sonic Guides as good as yours? Why, I'm saving your Sonic 2 guide to my HD as I type this! I understand how discouraging the 'net can be when it comes to "Help Promised vs. Help Received". You've got my absolute sympathy there. But before you turn this place into the Smithsonian...

Could you make a Sonic 3 & Knuckles walkthrough? Pretty please? To me, Sonic 3 & Knuckles was the pinnacle of Sonic gaming, with Sonic 2 being an EXTREMELY close second. You already have the best Sonic 2 guide on the 'net (I say this with complete confidence and utter certainty)- why not go out with a bang? You may be puzzled why I'm requesting something so specific when simply combining the released Sonic 3 guide and as-yet-unreleased Sonic and Knuckles guide would be a huge help already.....Well, as I said; the former and the latter were meant to be played as one game. You know it. I know it. Yuji Naka knows it. EVERYONE knows it, would be the point. So, for the best Sonic game, why not have the best guide? It's commonly known from just cursory research that both games have slight but significant tweaks to their level designs. These differences would not be readily apparent as a tacked on footnote in the individual guides for the two games alone.

Please. You would be providing an invaluable service to us forgotten fans of Sonic's glorious past. There is no one else doing work on par with your guides.
#11. Comment posted by LiQuidShade on Tuesday, 8th February 2011, 7:32pm
Thank you KMetalmind and Eurysilas - an impassioned speech, but I'm afraid I must decline on the joint guide for the two games. It's still a lot of work for something that I don't think is really necessary to be honest. Anything that is specific to S3&K, I have already been including as I go, in the maps and descriptions (and not necessarily just tacked on at the end - wherever relevant), and although they were meant to be the same game - I admittedly more often play them together rather than separately in fact - I still think it makes more sense to keep them separate. That is how they were released, and that is, more often than not, how they're re-released now. It's not just classic Sonic fans that frequent this site but relative newbies too, who may not even know the full score between those games, and I think it's less confusing to keep them separate.

Sorry, nice idea, but no. :)
#12. Comment posted by MNV on Wednesday, 9th February 2011, 9:52am
You have done fine work throughout the years. I'm sure the S&K guide will be just as thorough and enjoyable as the others. Thank you for your contributions to one of my favorite childhood memories.

You're right on the money about a lot of things in this post. Particularly how jaded internet communities have become and how depressing the constant focus on negativity is. This site has always been refreshing to me in that I don't see all the hate that fills the Sonic community here. Way to rise above the standard.

You have done exceedingly well and have gone far beyond the level of commitment most fans would ever be willing to give to something they love. Love is one of the things that makes this site so awesome. The love for the source material has been present in this site from the get-go and in my opinion finishing up the S&K guide would be a great capstone to a very rad project. Anyway, that's enough babbling. Great job, and whatever you find yourself doing in the future, keep on being awesome!
#13. Comment posted by AJ on Wednesday, 9th February 2011, 4:10pm
This is just depresing... I wish i could have helped write something but i have been busy with school. I want you to know i have enjoyed reading your guides and i cant wait for sonic and knuckles. i hope you enjoy life and stuff........ :'{
#14. Comment posted by Andrew on Friday, 11th February 2011, 9:26pm
I hope Ricky Earl will continue with his artwork. The future of this websote seems great! My brother needs a walkthrough for something in Sonic & Knuckles. But he might have found it already.
#15. Comment posted by Traxus on Saturday, 12th February 2011, 3:45pm
:( I love your guides.
#16. Comment posted by Max-Ale on Saturday, 12th February 2011, 10:24pm
I would like to help
#17. Comment posted by Tricky E on Tuesday, 15th February 2011, 12:42pm
I will at LEAST see out Sonic 2, Andrew
I'm glad the website will continue to exist for as long as possible :)
#18. Comment posted by Oobo on Thursday, 24th February 2011, 4:55pm
I serched the internet and NO OTHER GUIDE in the internet (That i can find) is this good! I love your work...I was hoping for a guide for sonic 4 at some point...I get your point though, you have good reasons to stop. I would love it if you got other writers to help and/or write more guides, but if not, oh well. This is still the greatist guide to sonic ever.
P.S. Thank you for all your help with sonic 3, and especially with the @#$% barrels in carnival night!
#19. Comment posted by CJ on Saturday, 12th March 2011, 6:01am
Thats too bad. I like the site. Its clean, very very informative and you can the tlc that went into the details. Your effort is appreciated. Good luck on future endeavors.
#20. Comment posted by SpeedingHedgehog on Sunday, 13th March 2011, 3:44am
Well, I know I'm a little late on the comment-train, but I will like to say thank you for all the guides you have made so far, and wish you good luck with your last one! Finish strong and hard!
#21. Comment posted by murphy341 on Monday, 9th May 2011, 11:24pm
Definately a shame, as a childhood fan of the games I can say this is the best sonic site by far, its so in depth, appreciate all the hard work
#22. Comment posted by Hyper_Sonic on Sunday, 17th July 2011, 12:02pm
I'd imagine that blue spheres wouldn't be THAT time consuming. Consider it, OK, i'm VERY late on the "comment train", but hey, as I said, consider it.
#23. Comment posted by MAR on Monday, 22nd August 2011, 6:53am
I'm very impressed with this site. From the detail and amount of information to allowing anyone to add extra tips and comments, it's refined and set up to incorporate anything you missed.

About your gripes with the community's negativity: most of them are just as nostalgic as you. When they think of their childhood, Sonic is a part of that. I'm one of those who hasn't cared for anything since sonic adventure 2. Some of it is me not owning anything newer than a Dreamcast, but a lot of it is the reviews and information I keep reading. But this shit about him turning into a werewolf and next-gen graphics but horrible playability? I don' care for it. To me it's as if they are shitting on the Sonic universe with half-assed efforts. Now that may be too negative for you, but that's how I'm reacting to their treatment of Sonic. I do think you're too soft in this regard and I honestly have no idea what this "unmistakable" "new direction" they are taking. I guess Sonic 4 was kind of interesting, if it wasn't for the horrible physics. Maybe you mean Generations? Looks the most interesting since anything after SA2, but all this combo crap and automatic attacks/moves (like auto grind rail switching, really, is it that hard to just jump?) really turn me off. Sure, many fans critique a lot, but it's because they hold the original 5 in the highest regard and they hold anything new to the highest standard. Personally, I'd be ecstatic if they did a 16-bit sidescroller, but that's not happening and they already messed up the small effort there was in that direction. I wasn't crazy about moving to 3-d but I found Adventure 1 and 2 had their appeal (despite the beginning of the endless amounts of special gear and auto lock attacks [they could have had you aim at the enemies a bit to make it work instead of auto]. But then things changed. Even SA2 on gamecube was beginning to show me mistakes (the 2 player battle mode was a lot less fun than the cart racing). Maybe I'm just being an old curmudgeon stuck in the past, but there are valid points and you can't deny SEGA is catering to new fans, which means most of it will be dumbed down. So in the end, there will never be another original 5. The amount of talent they had, how much they got perfect from the level design to the music, how each new game was a continuation and logical building upon the last. It just won't happen again, and not just because of 16-bit, but because the demographic has changed and much of gaming has changed as a result. Sonic is still stuck in '94 but that's okay with me. Sure I wish somehow it continued, but I'm immensely grateful we had so much quality output by those development teams and really I shouldn't ask for anything more.

Well, if I offended you, just thought I'd share my view and help you see how your nostalgia is the same as everyone elses. So, let's forget about the present and raise a toast to the glory of yesteryear! Oh Sonic...
#24. Comment posted by David on Thursday, 1st September 2011, 11:01pm
I Could'nt Believe When I Saw This And All I Can Say Is THIS IS WAS AND WILL BE THE BEST SONIC FAN(HECK WITH THIS NON FANS THAT's RIGHT I'M SAYING YOU'RE BETTER AT MAKING GAMEGUIDES FOR SONIC THEN EVEN SEGA AND SONIC TEAM(ORIGINAL AND NON)AND I RESPECT YOUR WISHES SO HAVE A GOOD LIVE(OR LIVES) AND DONT LET ANYTHING(JUST SAYING.....DON't ASK) AND ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE(:
(;
...Oh p.s i Have done Some Sonic Fan Stuff Myself In Sonic CD's Coments And I Know That's Not Even Comparable To YOUR WORK!!!!!GASPS FOR (BREATH) And Really All Sonic Games Are Great Dont Get Me Wrong I Can See What All Of You Mean And And What Kmetalmind Said Is True I Mean Have You Seen Sonic Colors?(Wii)Anyway I'm A Devoted Sonic Fan Myself And You Are A Ture Sonic Fan I Can Tell Seriously And Farewell Fellow Sonic Fan!!!!!!!!!!
#25. Comment posted by Adam on Wednesday, 7th September 2011, 12:09am
In response to those who say Sonic won't be the same again, remember the original Sonic team is practically gone. even the head of current Sonic team was only around since Sonic and Knuckles
#26. Comment posted by ALEXISTH on Tuesday, 20th December 2011, 2:44am
:( I HOPE TO SEE SONIC 4 AND GENERATIONS
#27. Comment posted by Josh on Saturday, 24th December 2011, 11:26pm
Looks like the S&K guide was never finished =/
I had hoped at least that one would have been completed... just the guides for the originals would have made an awesome site in itself.
Still, the content on this site, and well, the entire site, is superb.
#28. Comment posted by Wassapman on Wednesday, 25th January 2012, 2:33am
God since Cybershell's epic reveal of this, (For me anyway), I've loved this site. Sonic and Knuckles should be done soon, Since you're up to Sky Sanctuary. Lets finish this stuff!
Sonic 3 Complete!
Wednesday, 2nd February 2011, 10:37pm (UTC), 5 Comments
Update: Sonic 3 guide now complete! Launch Base Zone, Miscellaneous Notes, and Downloads pages added.
Finally!.. This guide seems to have lasted forever, but Sonic 3 is now complete at last! Feels pretty good, I must say. I've even treated you to a three for one offer - A whole level, a brief info page, and the always popular Downloads page. The latter two only took me the last two or three evenings to pull together, so I thought I'd wait a bit and bundle them all in one update.

As I mentioned in my last post, Launch Base Zone, so vastly different in its Sonic 3 and Sonic 3 & Knuckles versions, gets two maps per act. Thankfully this is the last time I'll have to add water to my maps too, which is always a pain. Miscellaneous contains the usual stuff really, although at the last minute I decided to add a short summary of the whole Michael Jackson debacle and theories behind his involvement in the soundtrack. Some quite interesting things that I thought worth including, although mostly from Sonic Retro, I must admit. And of course, the all important Downloads page - a higher ranker in my page stats for each of the other three guides, so I expect much the same again.

I'll keep things short and sweet. There's been fantastically little going on in Sonic's world lately to discuss anyway, even if I had the inclination to do so right now. Sonic & Knuckles is the next guide, as you'd imagine, and it will be starting soon. I do aim for it to be complete much quicker than Sonic 3 was, mostly for my own personal benefit, but whether it will or not is anybody's guess. Before I do that though, I will post again soon, hopefully this weekend, and unless I change my mind between now and then, it'll be a very very important post. One that you'll want to pay attention to if you care about the future of this site.

That's all I'll say for now. Enjoy the new sections..!
Comments   5 Comments have been posted.
#1. Comment posted by sonictails1189 on Friday, 4th February 2011, 8:47pm
Finally, Launch Base Zone! Been looking forward to this one. There are a lot of hard to reach paths in this place, and the special zone rings are rather hidden, so I hope this can actually help some people out. Not to mention seeing the differences between the two versions of this zone. Should be interesting.

Definitely looking forward to Sonic & Knuckles. I'll keep checking back for your updates (like this weekend) to see what's new.
#2. Comment posted by Andrew on Friday, 4th February 2011, 9:00pm
I kept on looking and hoping for Launch Base zone ever since you mentioned it in the December blog.
My time has come!
#3. Comment posted by TrueDude on Saturday, 5th February 2011, 2:05am
What're you going to do with Blue Sphere? Is it going to share a page with Sonic & Knuckles or be a seperate article on it's own?
#4. Comment posted by LiQuidShade on Saturday, 5th February 2011, 9:20am
Thanks all :)

Blue Sphere will be part of the Sonic & Knuckles guide.
#5. Comment posted by MoDaD on Sunday, 6th February 2011, 2:53am
Thanks for working so hard on all of these great guides. The level of detail, as always, is great and the visual style you use in presenting everything just makes it even better. It's all very professional while still having a fun feel. I think someone else may have mentioned to it, but is it true that if you're Super Sonic while fighting the final boss in Sonic 3 that he can still grab you?
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