Sonic DC (Death Calling)
Let me start off by saying this, my Latin Teacher has a bunch of retro Sega items that she had as a child. She even got things like a 32x and a Sega Saturn. I have always wanted a Sega CD, but I never could find one for a decent price in very good condition. I was shocked to see that she gave me her Sega CD, along with a copy of Sonic CD. I already had a Sega Genesis Model 2, so this was a perfect gift for me. I took the Sega CD and the copy of Sonic CD and thanked her, but as I closed the door, I saw a smerk on her face. This turned out to be the point where it all went downhill.
The Realization
When I got home that day, I immediately started to set up the Sega CD. I overlooked my homework, because I was way too excited about this. That is when I then noticed that the Sega CD was a model 1. I thought that because it was a model 1, it wouldn't work on a model 2 Sega Genesis. To my surprise, it hooked up without any issue. I was extremely sceptic about this, but eventually ignored it. I put my copy of Sonic CD in the Sega CD. It was a completely normal looking copy of the game from the outside.
It started the Sega CD start-up screen, but after 5 1/2 seconds, the screen froze in purple, but not just any purple, a lunar purple. The screen lasted for a total of 11 seconds. Then, a screen with some white text on an orange background stating, "Welcome to Sonic DC, Copyright 1998 Sega." This caught my interest, especially the Copyright portion. I also wondered what DC meant. I immediately thought of two things, Dreamcast and Discord. I kept this in my mind as I started the game. The game started me on Stardust Speedway, Zone 2. The level was in the past with only a straight path with a ring or two occasionally. The background was still the same, but I noticed the Lincoln Memorial-like building was gone.
Was this referring to something? Like a society falling apart? Then, there was a signpost to let you go to the past. I knew that this HAD to be edited in some way. Then, I remembered the different title. It was obviously a different version altogether. I hit the signpost, then teleported to the past direcly after. The screen flashed blue and purple rapidly when this occurred, and it looked seizure-inducing. Luckily, I'm not epileptic. The game gave me 10 more lives, adding up to thirteen in total. The game started me off in these morbid, weird, and sometimes gory, levels. They were called discords. That is when I figured out the true meaning of the title.
I have researched this game's unused sprites and oddities on Sonic Retro. After the 13 lives and these new odd levels, never before seen, I thought of the unused "Level 2" on the level select. In the level select, there is no listing for level 2. With there being a past, present, bad future, and good future, that makes a total of 12 possible levels. I was scared of where the 13th one would be, what it would look like, or even if there is a 13th discord.
The Discords
Discord 1: A version of Tidal Tempest, Zone 2, but the water was a much lighter shade of blue, a sky blue. This made me think I was in the sky, but after I started hearing the drowning theme, I rapidly started searching for a bubble. Dead.
It seems that the level looped, and I thought I had to restart the level over. Oddly, a score tally appered at a black screen after I died. The score tally ended. It showed a zoomed-up version of the life counter. Sonic - 12. I was then sent to the next discord. This happened every time in every discord.
Discord 2: Palmtree Panic, Zone 1. Seemed completely normal. Then level looked the exact same as in the original, until the part with Amy at the very end. She came up to hug me, but for 1 frame, pulled out a hammer. Dead.
Sonic - 11.
Discord 3: Collision Chaos, Zone 3. It was the boss act, and it dropped me off directly in the pinball part. The boss never attacked me, making it easier to get up into the area with the pull-out platforms. The last one crushed me. A little trickle of blood was seen. Dead.
Sonic - 10
Discord 4: Palmtree Panic, Zone 2. The level was now in Black and White, except for Sonic. The layout was a bunch of loops. At the end of the multiple loops, was a set of undodgeable spikes. Sonic dripped out a little more blood. Dead.
Sonic - 9
Discord 5: Stardust Speedway, Zone 2. Present. The background was a purple Robotnik building, same as the one in the Actual game. The layout was a bunch of the firefly enemies on a path going backwards. The fireflies came all at once and exploded Sonic with there shock. I saw a heart fall down to the ground. Dead.
Sonic - 8.
Discord 6: Quartz Quadrant, Zone 1. There was one treadmill with a change direction switch on both sides. Nothing else. I played around with it. Then, I saw Sonic fall under the treadmill. He was crushed into bits. Dead.
Sonic - 7.
Discord 7: Special Zone 6. The only thing visible was the background, Sonic, and the UFO's. The layout was unseeable. I managed to hit all the UFO's. About when I was getting the Time Stone, Sonic Drowned into the colorful background that was under his feet. He was screaming for help, but I couldn't do a thing. Dead.
Sonic - 6.
Discord 8: Stardust Speedway, Zone 3. This is the one that left the most impact on me. It started at the very end, with Amy being tied to a post. I was about to hit her, but then "Creepy Sonic" (from the Devil picture) came up for 2 seconds. He vanished and then Amy was gone. The only thing left of her was her bow. Sonic picked it up. Metal Sonic then blasted through the door, and picked Sonic up. He held him high. Sonic then slowly slid down Metal's arm. Metal's arm now had a stream of blood on it. Dead.
Sonic - 5.
Discord 9: Wacky Workbench, Zone 2. There was the bouncy floor, now green and orange, along with the rest of the sprites, including Sonic. There were some weights around Sonic. Then, they crushed him, causing a hole in Sonic's stomach.
Sonic - 4.
Discord 10: Collision Chaos, Zone 1. It was at this point I noticed Sonic was getting weaker. He constantly stopped and pulled out a sign saying, "You're killing me! Stop playing!" I thought this was a joke put in by Sega, so I ignored it. There were a bunch of Bumpers. I jumped into one of them and it launched straight into another. It was a loop. After 3 minutes, Sonic couldn't take it. His body was flying everywhere, causing me to throw up. Dead.
Sonic - 3.
Discord 11: Tidal Tempest, Zone 3. Boss time. This was the same boss, except the bubbles were gone and Dr. Robotnik would use the laser from Stardust Speedway, Zone 3 on Sonic. At 15 seconds, the laser shot through Sonic's skull, splitting it in the process. Dead.
Sonic - 2.
Discord 12: Metallic Madness, Zone 2. In this stage, you have the tubes where you can change your direction. Except, at the end of every right path was a saw blade. I went right because I thought it would help me complete the level faster. It flung Sonic's insides everywhere. Dead.
Sonic - 1.
The Final Discord
I was completely unsure where this was in the code. It was a house, or at least, the outline of a house. Sonic was so weak he could barely walk. Then, Metal Sonic and Creepy Sonic came in front and behind of Sonic. A text box appeared. "Test Subject: Ready", said Metal Sonic. Both of them jabbed Sonic, Metal with his hand, Creepy with a knife. I saw the whole outcome. Finally they hung Sonic on the roof. I remember where I saw this sprite. It was unused in the game, and it was Sonic with some "blood" coming from his neck.
The score tally played, saying "Sonic made a Good Future in Discord 13." The screen went to a purple background. Text boxes appeared.
Metal: "Ready to Clone?"
Creepy: "Yes, the fun will be infinite."
Metal: "Starting Cloning..."
Metal: "Completed."
Creepy: "The eye color is different, that way, no one will care about the last one!"
All these were voiced over, as the CD technology allowed that. Then, on a Green background, the date that this CD was made showed. "November 26, 1998."
I was trying to think why this date was familiar. Then, it hit me. This was 1 day before the Japanese release of Sonic Adventure, the first game to use the Modern Sonic design. Was this SEGA's explanation of how Modern Sonic came to be?
I still wonder this today. I have long sold the game, but the thoughts are still in my memory. Perhaps this was the way that SEGA was originally going to introduce Modern Sonic, with the death and cloning of Classic Sonic.
Credited to FocusSight64
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