The Legacy of Green Hill Zone


It's an ongoing joke amongst fans of the series that Green Hill Zone is Sonic Team's (read: Iizuka's) favorite zone in the Sonic franchise. It seems to have appeared countless times since the release of Sonic 1. But, how often has it really appeared? Let's take a look!

NOTE: Remakes/Re-releases and direct ports don't count. I also will not be counting similar levels such as "Emerald Hill", because many Sonic levels tend to start with a relatively simple, tropical level to ease players into the game. This is counting how many unique games actually use a level with that name and likeness.

1. Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit) - "I thought you said direct ports don't count!" Well, they don't. But the lesser known 8-bit Sonic 1 is not really a direct port. Sure, it certainly shares many elements, including 3 zones. But with two of those 3 zones having unique music, 3 original zones, and every level having unique layouts and obstacles, on top of a different engine altogether, I'd argue that this game is different enough that it qualifies.

2. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Handheld) - Actually called "Green Hills Zone", this level is classic GHZ in far more than just the name. Oddly, it is NOT the first level in the game, despite the aesthetic and low difficulty in relation to the rest of the game, namely the actual first zone: Under Ground Zone.



 3. Sonic Drift - The Game Gear racing title features racetrack versions of all 6 zones in the original Sonic 1. Green Hill is easily identified in this game with its green grass, checkerboard hills, and waterfalls.


4. Sonic Blast - Green Hill opens the horribly received 8-bit Sonic Blast, opening the game up to a naming convention of color+noun that every zone in this game would utilize (e.g. Yellow Desert). Needless to say, this didn't make for appealing level names. Don't worry, they look and play just as bad as they sound. Despite the name, enemies present are reminiscent of Sonic 2's Emerald Hill Zone.
5. Sonic Adventure 2: Battle - Green Hill was not a level found in any of the main stories. Instead, it was a hidden bonus level, unlockable after obtaining all 180 Emblems and A Ranks on all Missions. The layout is essentially a 3D adaptation of the original Act 1, with paths diverging to the left and right, as opposed to just a straight-forward line.

6. Sonic Battle - This battle game for the Game Boy Advance had a bonus arena based on Green Hill Zone, unlocked after completing Emerl's episode in Story mode. It has the green grass and checkerboard aesthetic, and even uses a remix of Green Hill's music.




 7. Sonic Chronicles - The RPG title for the Nintendo DS uses a slightly more realistic version of Green Hill Zone for the start of the game, sporting more realistic looking rock textures that don't have as many checker patterns. Loop-de-loops can still be found, however.

8. & 9. Sonic Generations (Console & Handheld) - Both versions of Sonic Generations sport slightly different versions of Green Hill Zone. Given that these two levels are fairly different, and the two versions of Generations differ enough in the same way that Sonic 1's two versions differ, I'm gonna count these as two separate iterations.



10. Sonic Jump - The iOS/Android remake of the mobile endless jumper featured a series of wooden platforms and green terrain that got the Green Hill moniker. Side note, it's a shame that this game didn't see more content than it did.






 11. Sonic Mania - Of course this game has Green Hill Zone. When two-thirds of the game features classic zones, how could it NOT open with this level? Well, at least Encore Mode opens with something else, but I won't spoil that if you somehow haven't played it yet.

12. Sonic Forces - Drawing inspiration from the Sonic Generations iteration, this one puts a twist on things by making it appear more like a desert. As much as I don't like the game, I'll give it credit for trying to mix it up with this rehash.


13. Sonic Forces: Speed Battle - This mobile title plays a lot like Sonic Dash and features levels and areas from the above mentioned game. This includes Green Hill Zone, retaining the desert motif that was given to it in Sonic Forces. Once again, I think the desert backdrop is a nice addition to an old trope.



Honorable Mentions: Sonic Chaos and Sonic Advance - Not sure if these count, I'll let you decide, but Mecha Green Hill Zone appears in the first of the two handheld games and is all but a grey, mechanical version of the popular tropical level. The second one, Neo Green Hill Zone, is a little bit more different but the inspiration is very apparent.

That's quite a lot of Green Hill Zone over the last 30 years. Not to mention its appearance in a handful of crossover titles, most notably the Super Smash Bros. series.





Oh, and there was also that papercraft that SEGA released a while back:

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