Green Hill Zone
- Not to be confused with Green Hills Zone from Sonic 2 for Game Gear, Mecha Green Hill Zone from Sonic Chaos, or Neo Green Hill Zone from Sonic Advance. Additionally, Emerald Hill Zone and Aquatic Ruin Zone were originally referred to as "Green Hill Zone" and "Neo Green Hill Zone" in Simon Wai's Sonic 2 beta.
Green Hill Zone is the first Zone in both Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Genesis and its 8-bit counterparts, and thus is the first Zone in the entire Sonic the Hedgehog series. Frequently used as an early level in various Sonic titles (as with many "hill zones"), the layout of its stages is usually intended to introduce the player to the game's mechanics, and offers a relatively low difficulty so as to ease the player into the game experience. Like with all Zones from Sonic the Hedgehog, it also appears as a track in Sonic Drift without the "Zone" designation. In addition to its role in the Sonic series, it has also made an appearance as a fighting arena in both Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.
Stage theme
The stage theme for Green Hill Zone remains one of the most iconic in the franchise's history, not only frequently paired with the stage itself during its appearances, but occasionally remixed into other tracks, such as Sonic Advance 3's Sunset Hill Zone. A remix of the stage theme made by TOY serves as the intro track for nearly every video in The Super Sonic Let's Play.
Use on The D-Pad
Outside of its normal appearances as playable levels within the games themselves, elements of Green Hill Zone have appeared elsewhere in D-Pad-related media. The outro to the Sonic Week playthrough of Sonic the Hedgehog is set to a scrolling Green Hill Zone background.
Videos
The following videos include gameplay taking place in Green Hill Zone.
| Appearance | Episode | Title | Game | Series | Length | Player(s) | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Please Don't Sue Us, ScrewAttack" | Sonic the Hedgehog | Sonic Week | 12:43 | C/J | 20 June 2011 (dpadup.com) 15 August 2011 (YouTube) |
| 2 | 1 | "The Sea-Pad" | Sonic Generations | 15:20 | John | 17 November 2011 | |
| 3 | 1 | "23 Is Number 1" | Sonic the Hedgehog | D-Pad Rivals | 9:00 | C/J, Rick | 23 June 2014 |
| 4 | 2 | "Surrounded by Bees" | Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS | 18:01 | Ben, John | 7 October 2014 | |
| 5 | 10 | "Back Again" | Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS | 21:34 | Rick | 14 November 2014 | |
| 6 | 14 | "Battle of the Self-Insert Fanfic Characters" | Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS | 26:05 | Rick, Dustin, John, Ben | 21 November 2014 | |
| 7 | 1 | "The Worst Let's Play (We've Ever Done)" | Sonic the Hedgehog | The Super Sonic Let's Play | 16:25 | John | 20 June 2016 |
| 8 | 1 | "Sonic Has Passed" | Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit) | The Super Sonic Let's Play | 19:25 | John | 29 June 2016 |
| TBA | 1 | "Just Like the Old Games" | Sonic Mania | The Super Sonic Let's Play | 30:29 | Rick | 17 August 2017 |
| TBA | 18 | "What Are We Aiming For?" | Sonic Mania | The Super Sonic Let's Play | 16:16 | John, Rick | 11 September 2017 |
| TBA | 31 | "Colon Parenthesis" | Sonic Mania | The Super Sonic Let's Play | 20:25 | C/J | 2 October 2017 |