Sonic the Hedgehog 2 & Knuckles Tips 13 September 2001 (insert copyright and legal info here) Aster Azul asterazul@mac.com This guide is meant ONLY for people who have beaten Sonic 2 already and want to beat it with Knuckles. It looks best in 12-point or less Courier New. If you only need help with the last boss (oh, the horror!), just skip to the end. Intro A few days ago, as a sort of celebration for the next Sonic games coming out for Gamecube and GBA, I decided to beat all the Sonic game with every character and playing variation. I noticed, though, that the most difficult and interesting variation had to be beating Sonic 2 as Knuckles. It doesn't follow any known story-line or make sense, but playing through is a lot of fun. In places, it is also notably difficult, and I have even heard rumors that it is impossible. Not so! If you would like to try and you become discouraged or get stuck (I gave up last time I tried it, a few years ago) look here. Differences between 'Sonic 2 & Knuckles' and 'Sonic 2' When you start up Sonic 2, Knuckles will be sitting there in the giant ring and have his monicker written above. You won't be able to choose any character besides Knuckles as their are no menus. Playing as Knuckles, certain cute animals will be red colored instead of blue or orange, sign posts, computers, extra lives, etc. will bear Knuckle's grit-toothed visage. Shields will be light gray rather than blue. Knuckles seems a bit more purple while playing in Sonic 2 as well. Also, beating the bonus stages is not nearly as difficult as normal, the ring totals have all been decreased for Knuckles. When you hit a bonus post, your time AND your rings will be saved. If you want, you can get about 500 rings in some levels by using the bonus posts. There are some 1-ups and secret passages that seem impossible to obtain without Knuckles. On the other hand, some passages and especially bosses are much more difficult to reach and defeat with Knuckles, due to his lower jumps. Hit detection while Knuckles glides is also slightly off. The ending is slightly different, too. Stage Tips: Emerald Hill Zone: This game and some of its bosses will be easy for you if you get the emeralds early on. You can actually get six out of seven in Emerald Hill Zone if you're really good! Be careful when gliding with Knuckles here and other places. It's easy to lose your rings attacking with the fists move here, especially when attacking monkeys. Look out for secret passages in the walls here, and keep getting shields so you don't lose your rings between bonus posts. You can find a high p Car Boss: This boss is no more difficult than usual. Jump on him twice every time he runs past and you win with no sweat. Chemical Plant Zone: It's difficult to find bonus posts in the first act here unless you take the correct route. Take the highest path you can find and you'll run past a couple posts. There are a lot of Knuckles-only 1-ups you can find by climbing around here, especially in Act 2. It's possible and likely to have all the emeralds at this point. Super Knuckles helps out a lot during later boss fights, when your low jumps start to create difficulty. Goo Machine Boss: Very easy. Just don't fall into the Mega Mack on either side. You can win before he even attacks you if you bounce on his head while his filling his tank. Remember that the blue bits that bounce from the floor when he drops his goo also hurts you. Aquatic Ruin Zone: You can practically glide through the entire stage if you find a high point. In act one, get all the rings you can if you don't have all the emeralds. When you reach the first bonus post, jump over it and get some rings until you have 50, then come back. There are TONS of bonus posts in this Zone, plenty to get all the chaos emeralds. Just take the high path. Don't worry if you don't get them yet, though. Plenty more posts in the game. Watch out for the annoying bugs when you jump out of the water here. Totem Pole & Hammer Boss: This is where you might start to get annoyed by your low jumps. Arrows that hit the lowest segment of the pole are utterly useless. Only the arrows that hit the two middle segments can be jumped on, and only ones that hit second segment from the top allow you to jump to the top of the pole. To make it easier, jump on the poles the second the begin to rise from the ground. Now that you're on top, you can simply glide from one pole to the other continually, doing one damage to Robotnik each time. Don't worry, you won't get hurt or bounce off him. Good luck. Casino Night Zone: Only a few useful star posts here. You should only need a few emeralds by now. This zone is pretty close to normal, Knuckles's new abilities don't do much. You'll notice that instead of Sonic, Knuckles's face graces the slot machines! A few fun secret passages here that are easy to get with Knuckles. Zapping Casino Machine: This boss can be tough, so it's useful to be super here if you can. The easiest way to beat him is to grab the side of the arena and glide back and forth hitting him. Otherwise, you can beat him as if you were Sonic or Tails. (Spin dash up the side, bounce of the wall and hit him.) Make sure not to get hit be the little red bits that fly out of the spikes, especially when landing or coming back from a spin dash. Don't try to hit him from underneath either! Hill Top: There are a few bonus posts to get here. This level is nearly the same as with Sonic. You can glide instead of using the carts, though. The high path has more rings and bonus posts. Lava Boss: Same old. Just bump him when he comes out of the lava and avoid the fire. A cinch if you're super. Mystic Cave Zone: One of the most annoying in the game because of the crushers. Just be careful around floating boxes and you'll be okay. In the second act there is one particularly annoying and deep spike pit that is impossible to escape with Sonic, but Knuckles can climb right out. Digger Boss: This guy is harder than normal to beat because Knuckles can't hit him as many times as Sonic due to low jumps. Hit him as much as possible when he gets low enough and try to stand in the spot where the last spike fell during the earthquake. Lightning never strikes the same place twice, right? Oil Ocean Zone: There are quite a few Knuckles only 1-ups and ring boxes. Climb around whenever you see a shooting machine instead of jumping in, they're usually nearby so that they can taunt you as you fly helplessly by. Sub Boss: This is just like the Lava Boss. Jump on the sub about four times when he comes out the first time, dodge the tip of the flying spike, avoid the laser, and then get him again. Metropolis Zone: If you STILL don't have all the emeralds here, you're in trouble and you're on your own. It's nearly impossible to keep your rings until you find a star post here. This level is the hardest yet. Don't even bother trying to jump on the crabs, you'll almost always lose your rings. Be careful of the terrible mantises as well, dodging their blades is quite a skill in some levels. Become super as soon as you can. It's a lot easier in this level to simply climb the walls than to bother with the screws. You'll go much faster (especially if your super) and may find secret passages (there are a few that contain bonus posts.) Just watch out for those darned stars! Balloon & Laser Boss: I highly recommend arriving here with a load of rings and becoming super. You can't hit Robotnik when his balloons stop circling because he'll be too high in the air, so you have to attack when the balloons are flying wildly around him. This means either being invincible, or having rings to spare. One of the FAQs here says that this boss is impossible to beat with Knuckles, but it's not true if do it right. Sky Chase Zone: Pretty easy. It's hard to lose unless you actually spin dash off the plane. Don't worry too much about rings, there are no more ring bonuses. It's fun and ironic to see Tails riding Knuckles around in a plane that says 'Sonic' on it! Wing Fortress Zone: This Zone is thankfully easier with Knuckles. His poor jump keeps him from overshooting the platforms early in the level, even if he's super! If you want to skip all that platform jumping, there's a secret passage. After you see the first Clucker, defeat it and grab the wall to the right. There will be a platform with a shield, so grab it and the jump up straight into the fan. It will suck you right through to a later part of the level. Be careful, it's sometimes possible to get stuck doing this. There is ONE MORE bonus post here! This is the last in the game, so if you need one more emerald it's your last chance. It's right before the boss room inside the plane. Laser Boss: Jump on the spiked platform and hit the laser, but get out of the way when it blinks pink. It's harder than normal because, again, of Knuckles's low jump. As Super Knuckles, this is a cinch as long as you don't get crushed by one of the spiked platforms. After beating the boss there's an extra life for you if you jump through the wall past the barrier. Watch the cool cutscene and reflect again on the irony of Knuckles riding in Sonic's plane and being chauffeured by Tails. THE FINAL STAGE: This is the hardest part in the entire game and what made me give up the last time I tried. This boss is NOT meant for Knuckles, and it's extremely difficult and tedious. You should get a ton of lives for this part of the game to practice with. The Robo-Sonic should not be difficult for those who have already played this game, just jump on his head twice every time he stops. Remember that he will jump high on his fourth attack, so simply duck. And nowE Robotnik! If you remembering beating him as Sonic or Tails, it was relatively easy to just attack him whenever he took a step, even though it took precise timing and nerve. Well, Knuckles has a bit of a problem. He can't jump high enough to attack normally. Try it, and you'll simply die every time. So how do you win? YOU CAN ONLY ATTACK HIM WHEN HE LANDS. When he lands, he ducks very close to the ground and is vulnerable. But when he lands, he sometimes shoots his arms at you to defeat you, so you can only attack him when he doesn't use his arms. It's possible to attack him when he shoots his arms, but I do not recommend it. I've never pulled it off and survived. So what you have to do is run to the far right of the screen and charge your spin dash. Wait until the cursor locks on to you (a little target inside appears) and release your spin. He will shoot his arms at you, but you'll be so far away that he can't hurt you. Wait until both arms fire and run to the right again. Wait until the cursor locks on, and then step far enough away so that you're not crushed. When he lands, jump up and hit him. At this point, timing is critical. You must hit him in such a way so that you bounce of rather than pass through him, which happens sometimes. It may take a few lives to get the hang of this pattern and get used to the attack. I recommend only hitting him once each time. After you hit him, run to the other side of the screen and wait for him to fly away again. Then run to the right again, and repeat the dodging procedure for the spiky arms part. He will go in a simple pattern of arm attack, then walk, then arm attack, then walk again. Only attack him when he walks and keep the pattern in mind. One mistake, and you have to start from the beginning. Robotnik takes twelve hits and about 7:00 minutes to defeat, assuming you defeat Robo-Sonic quickly and use my strategy. Good luck, you need it! Just remember that it's possible and keep trying. Congratulations if you win! This, in my opinion, is the most difficult, tedious, and ruthless boss in Sonic history. Enjoy the ending. Knuckles will flash as he plummets to earth if you collected the emeralds and you'll see him fly into the screen. Good job! Thank the Sonic Team for making the fantastic Sonic game, and whoever designed the Lock-On Sonic & Knuckles Cartridge, you're a genius!!! Also thanks to my little brother Ben for figuring out the gliding trick for beating some bosses. *Aster Azul* P.S. If anyone knows how to find a Sonic CD rom, or a good Sega CD emulator for Mac, please tell me! This document Copyright 2001 Aster Azul