History VideoGame / SonicTheHedgehog2

In 2013, hot off the heels of the ''Sonic 1'' and ''Sonic CD'' remasters, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' (and, by extension, ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'') was also remastered in the Retro Engine in 2013 for [=iOS=] and Android devices by Christian "The Taxman" Whitehead (of ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' fame) and Simon "Stealth" Thomley, featuring all of the improvements those remasters received. As with ''Sonic 3'', Tails also has the ability to pick up Sonic, fly, and swim. The remaster also added a BossRush mode and Hidden Palace Zone, the latter of which was famously cut during development, but lingered on as a MinusWorld in the finished product. The two-player mode also underwent an upgrade: Chemical Plant Zone, Aquatic Ruin Zone, Hill Top Zone, and Oil Ocean Zone were made available; Knuckles is no longer confined to the single-player experience; both players can use the same character competitively; and each player's screen occupies their own device rather than appearing in a split-screen as in the original. As of November 21, 2017, the remastered re-release of ''Sonic 2'' was included in the Sega Forever line-up of ad-supported free-to-play titles along with ''Sonic 1'' and later ''Sonic CD''. All three of these games, plus a similarly remastered version of ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'', are included in ''VideoGame/SonicOrigins'' CompilationRerelease.

** The purple liquid in Chemical Plant Zone was supposed to be some polluted but harmless water, presenting no risk to the player outside of drowning. The American manual claimed that it was a toxic liquid called "Mega Mack" and tried to pass it off [[AmericanKirbyIsHardcore as poisoning the player character instead of drowning him.]] Which of course brings the question of why simply jumping out the substance makes the effects of the poison go away.

* DubInducedPlothole: The Western manuals have a different account of the game's storyline, stating that Tails had been a huge fan of Sonic's for as long as he could remember. It also implies that the game takes place on the same island as the first, which is incompatible with later sources which sides with the original Japanese storyline. This pretty much singlehandedly generated the entire concept of "[=SegaSonic=]" in the late '90s/early 2000s fandom. As a result, the Japanese storyline is used in later re-releases.

** If you're playing as Knuckles, via a locked-on ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic & Knuckles]]'' cartridge for ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'', whenever you touch a [[{{Checkpoint}} Star Post]], your Ring count at that point will be recorded. Exiting a Special Stage that you entered there or respawning at that checkpoint after a death will restore your Ring count, instead of putting you back at 0 Rings. This feature wasn't retained in the 2013 remake.

* OldSaveBonus: If the game is locked on with ''Sonic & Knuckles'', ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'' can be played. This makes Knuckles playable with all his abilities from ''Sonic & Knuckles'' intact. In the 2013 remake and the Switch port, Knuckles is available from the beginning.

Like its predecessor, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' had both a 16-bit and [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog28Bit 8-bit version]], and both versions had different stories. The 16-bit version was released for the Sega Mega Drive in Japan on Saturday, November 21, 1992, and in Europe and North America on Tuesday, November 24, 1992, a date which was marketed as "Sonic [[{{Pun}} 2sday]]." It was [[TropeMaker the very first global launch for a video game]], an event which redefined video game marketing and helped ''Sonic 2'' become such a groundbreaking success.

->''An attitude, tons of enemies, and a running mate with the mind of a four year old. (No, it's not another presidential election).''

Like its predecessor, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' had both a 16-bit and [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog28Bit 8-bit version]], and both versions had different stories.

Released for the Sega Mega Drive in Japan on Saturday, November 21, 1992, and in Europe and North America on Tuesday, November 24, 1992, a date which was marketed as "Sonic [[{{Pun}} 2sday]].'

* DubNameChange: The main antagonist and virtually all the robots were once again renamed in localization, and this time, the Japanese version was released first by a few days; unlike the first game, however, some references the the original name remain. "EGGMAN-01" is written on Wing Fortress, and there is a mildly recurring "EG" symbol (replaced with an emblem of his head later in the series), both of which are present in all regions. Also, the Death Egg's name is unchanged.

* DubNameChange: The main antagonist and virtually all the robots were once again renamed in localization, and this time, the Japanese version was released first by a few days; unlike the first game, however, "EGGMAN-01" is written on Wing Fortress, and there is a mildly recurring "EG" symbol (replaced with an emblem of his head later in the series), both of which are present in all regions.

* BossOnlyLevel: The final zone, Death Egg Zone, only has one act and two bosses in it, and just like the original game, no rings are in this level, necessitating a FlawlessVictory (unless you're playing an easier difficulty in ''VideoGame/SonicJam'' or one of the 3DS version's alternate modes).

* ButtMonkey: Tails is, as one "Let's Play" author on Website/YouTube put it, gaming's first meat shield.

* DevelopersForesight: In the 2013 remake, Knuckles' eyes won't peek out of the bushes if you beat the game as him.

* EverythingTryingToKillYou: Mystic Cave Zone and Metropolis Zone.

** The 2013 Retro Engine remaster has received modding support thanks to the fan-made mobile decompilation project, with mods that include [[https://gamebanana.com/wips/53269 giving characters movesets and abilities]] from the later [=2D=] ''Sonic'' games, [[https://gamebanana.com/gamefiles/15233 extending the time counter to include miliseconds]], and restoring [[https://gamebanana.com/gamefiles/14655 Knuckle's unique title card colors]] from ''Knuckles in Sonic 2''.

* GlitchEntity: Messing around in the Debug Mode could turn Sonic's sprite black and green; fans refer to this new "character" as Ashura.

* HailfirePeaks: Several Zones don't fit well into any one category, such as Hill Top Zone (DeathMountain[=/=]GreenHillZone[=/=]LethalLavaLand) and Aquatic Ruin Zone (TempleOfDoom / halfhearted UnderTheSea). Casino Night Zone is one part CasinoPark and one part PinballZone.

** Knuckles' eyes peeking out of the bushes in the GoldenEnding is a reference to the North American box art of ''Sonic 3'', where he does the same thing.

** The 2013 remake also has a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7qbidxNXy8 hidden Special Stage]] that can be played through the level select menu. It has corkscrews near the end!

** In Mystic Cave Zone, one of the small animals that escapes from the robots when they are defeated is a mouse [[AllThereInTheManual who is referred to in supplemental materials as]] [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse Mick]][[SpellMyNameWithAnS y]].[[note]]Around this time, Sega had the license to release Disney games for their consoles, most notably ''VideoGame/CastleOfIllusion'' and ''VideoGame/{{Quackshot}}''.[[/note]]

* ThemeMusicPowerUp: Super Sonic.

* VillainExitStageLeft: Dr. Eggman flies away when defeated, as usual. However, when defeated on his giant mech, he goes down with the Death Egg (though as the all-Emeralds ending added in 2013 remake shows, he survived and the Death Egg wasn't completely destroyed).

* WarmupBoss: Drill Eggman II (aka Egg Mobile-D)/Egg Drillster from Emerald Hill Zone, which goes from one side of the screen to the other. It's even ''easier'' than the wrecking ball contraption from Green Hill Zone (which was also the first boss of its respective game).

In 2013, hot off the heels of the ''Sonic 1'' and ''Sonic CD'' remasters, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' (and, by extension, ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'') was also remastered in the Retro Engine in 2013 for [=iOS=] and Android devices by Christian "The Taxman" Whitehead (of ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' fame) and Simon "Stealth" Thomley, featuring all of the improvements those remasters received. As with ''Sonic 3'', Tails also has the ability to pick up Sonic, fly, and swim. The remaster also added a BossRush mode and Hidden Palace Zone, the latter of which was famously cut during development, but lingered on as a MinusWorld in the finished product. The two-player mode also underwent an upgrade: Chemical Plant Zone, Aquatic Ruin Zone, Hill Top Zone, and Oil Ocean Zone were made available; Knuckles is no longer confined to the single-player experience; both players can use the same character competitively; and each player's screen occupies their own device rather than appearing in a split-screen as in the original. As of November 21, 2017, the remastered re-release of ''Sonic 2'' was included in the Sega Forever line-up of ad-supported free-to-play titles along with ''Sonic 1'' and later ''Sonic CD''. All three of these games, plus a similarly remastered version of ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'', are included in ''VideoGame/SonicOrigins2022'' CompilationRerelease.

In 2013, hot off the heels of the ''Sonic 1'' and ''Sonic CD'' remasters, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' (and, by extension, ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'') was also remastered in the Retro Engine in 2013 for [=iOS=] and Android devices by Christian "The Taxman" Whitehead (of ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' fame) and Simon "Stealth" Thomley, featuring all of the improvements those remasters received. As with ''Sonic 3'', Tails also has the ability to pick up Sonic, fly, and swim. The remaster also added a BossRush mode and Hidden Palace Zone, the latter of which was famously cut during development, but lingered on as a MinusWorld in the finished product. The two-player mode also underwent an upgrade: Chemical Plant Zone, Aquatic Ruin Zone, Hill Top Zone, and Oil Ocean Zone were made available; Knuckles is no longer confined to the single-player experience; both players can use the same character competitively; and each player's screen occupies their own device rather than appearing in a split-screen as in the original. As of November 21, 2017, the remastered re-release of ''Sonic 2'' was included in the Sega Forever line-up of ad-supported free-to-play titles along with ''Sonic 1'' and later ''Sonic CD''. All three of these games, plus a similarly remastered version of ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'', are included in 2022's ''Sonic Origins'' CompilationRerelease.

In 2013, hot off the heels of the ''Sonic 1'' and ''Sonic CD'' remasters, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 2'' (and, by extension, ''Knuckles in Sonic 2'') was also remastered in the Retro Engine in 2013 for [=iOS=] and Android devices by Christian "The Taxman" Whitehead (of ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' fame) and Simon "Stealth" Thomley, featuring all of the improvements those remasters received. As with ''Sonic 3'', Tails also has the ability to pick up Sonic, fly, and swim. The remaster also added a BossRush mode and Hidden Palace Zone, the latter of which was famously cut during development, but lingered on as a MinusWorld in the finished product. The two-player mode also underwent an upgrade: Chemical Plant Zone, Aquatic Ruin Zone, Hill Top Zone, and Oil Ocean Zone were made available; Knuckles is no longer confined to the single-player experience; both players can use the same character competitively; and each player's screen occupies their own device rather than appearing in a split-screen as in the original. As of November 21, 2017, the remastered re-release of ''Sonic 2'' was included in the Sega Forever line-up of ad-supported free-to-play titles along with ''Sonic 1'' and later ''Sonic CD''.

* DangerouslyGarishEnvironment: Many of the most garishly-decorated levels are also the most dangerous (most notably, the "Chemical Plant Zone", "Casino Night Zone", and "Metropolis Zone" levels).

-->-- [[https://info.sonicretro.org/Images/2/2c/S2_ElectronicGamingMonthly_Issue41_December1992_Page223.jpg EGM Promo for the game]]

** The Chemical Plant Zone has a lot of "Mega Mack" (originally named as such in the western manual), a supposedly poisonous [[TechnicolorToxin pinkish water]] that in-game functions no different than standard water, with the odd exception that the Water Eggman/Egg Poison boss has an attack where he sucks up some of the fluid and drops it on you, in which case it actually hurts.

* ArtificialStupidity: CPU Tails renders the Special Stages near-impossible if you do not have them memorized. The game doesn't discriminate between players and [=CPUs=] subtracting from the ring count, and Tails' AI is not suited for avoiding obstacles at all.

* HundredPercentCompletion: The "perfect bonus", awarded for picking up (not necessarily retaining) all the rings in an Act. It's not possible in every Act.

* GuideDangIt: There's an alternative way to fight the Death Egg Robot by attacking it from behind, where its only countermeasure attacks are a pair of easily dodgeable bombs (as opposed to the infamously fast spiked hands fighting it from the front). However, the game does not tip that the player can do such a thing and in a stage with no ring protection, players would have to commit a ViolationOfCommonSense to find it: when chasing Dr. Eggman to the Death Egg Robot, the player has to continue all the way to the far edge of the screen, including crossing past the robot, as it will not damage them until it is fully raised to the platform. From there, the player can freely hit the robot's jetpack without a counter-attack and can remain behind the robot if during the landing phase, the player maintains enough distance from the edge of the screen as to not get squashed but close enough to where the robot will be forced to land facing backwards, without enough space to deploy its hands. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvPw6f6tcl8 Here's the method in action.]]

* ArtificialStupidity: CPU Tails renders the Special Stages near-impossible if you do not have them memorized. The game doesn't discriminate between players and CPUs subtracting from the ring count, and Tails' AI is not suited for avoiding obstacles at all.

* NoOntologicalInertia: The [[PrayingMantis slicers]] in the Metropolis Zone attack by throwing their claws at you, which move in a sort of a spiral pattern before falling down. If Sonic destroys a slicer while its claws are still on the screen, they immediately stop all lateral movement and sink like a stone.

-->-- [[http://info.sonicretro.org/images/2/2c/S2_ElectronicGamingMonthly_Issue41_December1992_Page223.jpg EGM Promo for the game]]

* AllThereInTheManual: Whilst both the Japanese and English manuals provide the names of all the regular Badniks in the game, the Japanese strategy guides also provide names for all the bosses.

** [[http://info.sonicretro.org/images/5/58/Z_cn05.png The original version]] of Casino Night Zone, with its pink and blue card suit motif, is vastly different from the [[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/WmdseeZBiz4/hqdefault.jpg final version's]] more Vegas-like design.
* TheArtifact: The otherwise entirely abandoned time travel aspect of the game is visible with Hill Top Zone's dinosaur enemy Rexon (a Plesiosaur), who would have formed a counterpart to Hidden Palace Zone's Redz (T-Rex) and Stego (Triceratops) enemies. The reason it remains is that Hill Top Zone had already been completed prior to this aspect getting dropped and the enemy forms a platform when defeated thus is necessary for the stage. As originally planned, Hill Top Zone was the past version of Emerald Hill Zone, with the unmade Dust Hill Zone as the future. Other vestiges of time travel remain if you know the plans for the game before they were give a shorter production deadline — such as Aquatic Ruin Zone[[note]]planned as the present stage of a sunken Olympus level[[/note]], Oil Ocean Zone[[note]]contrasting its past version, a serene ocean[[/note]], and Metropolis Zone[[note]]which shares the palette, music, conveyor belts, and tubes of its cancelled past version, Wood Zone, as well as containing an extra act based on the scrapped design of Genocide City Zone[[/note]].

* BombardierMook: The Nebula enemy is a flying robot that inhabits [[LevelsTakeFlight Sky Chase Zone]]. If Sonic or Tails gets underneath it, it drops spiked balls.

* CollapsingCeilingBoss: The boss of Mystic Cave Zone burrows in and out of the ceiling, causing a rain of stone. The rocks are harmless, but the stalactites will hurt you.

* CoresAndTurretsBoss: The boss of Wing Fortress Zone, as opposed to a modified Egg Mobile like all the prior bosses, is a laser beam controlled by Eggman from behind a barrier.

* EvilKnockoff: Robo Sonic.[[note]]Both this and Silver Sonic in 8-bit ''Sonic 2'' were simply known as "Mecha Sonic" in Japanese material, but they are decidedly different and were given differing names in other sources -- "Silver Sonic" comes from the original instruction booklet while "Robo Sonic" comes from the ''Sonic Dimensions'' [[DownloadableContent DLC]] of ''[[VideoGame/LegoDimensions LEGO Dimensions]]'', differentiating it from the robot '''[[NamesTheSame also]]''' called "Mecha Sonic" from ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic & Knuckles]]''.[[/note]]

* FanRemake: The 2013 Retro Engine remaster of ''Sonic 2'' received a [[https://github.com/Rubberduckycooly/Sonic-1-2-2013-Decompilation fan decompilation project]] along with its predecessor that allows these games to be played natively on PC. The project is also open-source, meaning a tech-savvy individual can port the game to other platforms.

** The game has a lot of spots where badniks will get a cheap hit in unless you know what's coming. In particular, Mystic Cave Zone and Metropolis Zone are notorious for this, the former for its numerous traps and the infamous unescapable Spike Pit, and the latter for its Shellcracker and Slicer enemies.
* FinalBoss: Eggman's Death Egg Robot modeled after him and sporting a jetpack, shooting spiked arms, and bombs is the very last challenge in ''Sonic 2''. It's fought right after Robo Sonic, and losing to this machine means having to go through Robo Sonic once again as [[CheckpointStarvation there is no checkpoint in Death Egg Zone]]. The Death Egg Robot returned as the first boss in ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'' and ''VideoGame/SonicMania''.

** The Chemical Plant Zone has a lot of "Mega Mack", a supposedly poisonous [[TechnicolorToxin pinkish fluid]] that in-game functions no different than standard water, with the odd exception that the boss has an attack where he sucks up some Mega Mack and drops it on you, in which case it actually hurts.

* GuideDangIt: There's an alternative way to fight the Death Egg Robot by attacking it from behind, where its only countermeasure attacks are a pair of easily dodgeable bombs (as opposed to the infamously fast spiked hands fighting it from the front). However, the game does not tip that the player can do such a thing and in a stage with no ring protection, players would have to commit a ViolationOfCommonSense to find it: when chasing Robotnik to the Robot, the player has to continue all the way to the far edge of the screen, including crossing past the Robot, as it will not damage them until it is fully raised to the platform. From there, the player can freely hit the Robot's jetpack without a counter-attack and can remain behind the Robot if during the landing phase, the player maintains enough distance from the edge of the screen as to not get squashed but close enough to where the Robot will be forced to land facing backwards, without enough space to deploy its hands. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvPw6f6tcl8 Here's the method in action.]]

** Sort of. During the boss fight in Chemical Plant Zone Act 2, the ground on either side of the arena flips periodically, sending whatever's on them into the water and the pit just beneath the surface. Since there's probably no hope for you if you fall in, you still have to be careful after the boss is beaten, because the platforms still flip. It doesn't help that said boss is [[WakeUpCallBoss suddenly harder than what little you've already gone through]].
** A ''literal'' kaizo trap can happen [[http://youtu.be/abY5jprIF3E at the end of Metropolis Zone Act 3]]. If you beat the boss as Super Sonic without destroying any of the clone bubbles the boss spawns and then run out of rings before reaching the animal pod at the end of the level, it's actually possible for the clone bubbles to follow you over to the pod and kill you while your end-of-level score is being tallied. Of course, you'd pretty much have to be actively trying for this to happen, so it overlaps heavily with EpicFail.

* PinballZone: Casino Night Zone, and even the boss is this.

* PushyMooks: Crawl, who first appears in Casino Night Zone, carries a shield that resembles a bumper. He bumps Sonic away with this shield if hit from the front or top; he has to be attacked from behind to defeat him.

* TankTreadMecha: Grounder is a robotic groundhog with tank treads and [[ThisIsADrill drills for hands and nose]]. Prominently featured in [[UnderwaterRuins Aquatic Ruin Zone]], he spends a lot of his time crawling across the ground, changing directions when he comes to a ledge, but he can also sneak up on Sonic and/or Tails by breaking through the walls he hides behind.

** Eggman has two drill-themed contraptions: the drill-tank contraption from Emerald Hill Zone, and the cave-burrowing contraption from Mystic Cave Zone.

* ViolationOfCommonSense: The SecretLevel in the 2013 port requires you to [[spoiler:jump into where Mystic Cave Zone Act 2's inescapable spike pit is supposed to be. [[NotHisSled Instead of being met with spikes, you'll end up in Hidden Palace Zone instead.]]]]
* WakeUpCallBoss: Eggman's chemical-dumper contraption from Chemical Plant Zone, the ''second'' Zone. It's not too hard, but the two platforms on both sides of the field periodically collapse into {{bottomless pit}}s, making it very possible for a chemical projectile to knock you into the pink water ("Mega Mack") below. Playing as "Sonic and Tails" also presents its share of problems, as when you jump, so does Tails, and if he hits Eggman first, you'll go through Eggman (due to his MercyInvincibility) and down the pit. However, if you actually have a second player to wield the other controller, it becomes laughably easy, since a crouching Sonic is ''immune'' to the boss' attack, and Tails will always respawn if you manage to get him killed.
* WarmupBoss: Drill Eggman (or Egg Mobile Drill Machine, a.k.a. Egg Mobile-D) from Emerald Hill Zone, which goes from one side of the screen to the other. It's even ''easier'' than the wrecking ball contraption from Green Hill Zone (which was also the first boss of its respective game).

** Hill Top Zone's Flying Eggman Mech jumps up from a lake of lava, spits a fireball, then dives back in post attack. [[ConvectionSchmonvection Hitting it doesn't hurt you, but hitting the lava does]]
** Oil Ocean's Flying Eggman Mech 2.0 also comes up from below periodically, after spending a while attacking with a spiked claw and a laser gun from under the oil. [[SuperNotDrowningSkills You can actually jump into the oil and as long as you keep jumping, you won't sink to your death.]]

** The boss formerly known as Silver Sonic to Western audiences is called Mecha Sonic in Japan, as in [[GodzillaVsMechagodzilla Mecha Godzilla]]. There are noticeable similarities between the two on a close inspection of its in-game look and concept art, and while the Mecha in ''Sonic 3'' looks very different, the one that makes a cameo in ''Sonic Adventure'' goes back to looking like Mecha Godzilla.

[[JustForFun/TheOneWith The one with]] Eggman building a [[Franchise/StarWars Death Star]] knockoff.

Elements of this game (and ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'') would get loosely adapted in the 2022 sequel to ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' of the same name. For tropes related to the film, go [[Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022 here]].

Elements of this game (and ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'') would be loosely adapted to the 2022 sequel to ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' of the same name. For tropes related to the film, go [[Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022 here]].