I'm not sure if I can post this here, or if it'll serve any purpose for anyone here, but I'll still try my luck. Yesterday, in a conversation with @Jmtshaw on Discord, came to me that in the Sonic Adventure Music Experience 2016 a presentation was made regarding the Saturn Project that came to be Sonic Adventure. A couple images were added to SA1's Development Section, a few days ago, showing a few concept images of said project: The one who snapped those photos sure must have been brave, since photos and recording were forbidden. According to this article from SEGA Nerds, those images were displayed while the composers explained that they had to compose tracks for the game by just checking said concept images, so it's quite likely that not much in terms of playable characters, plot and gameplay had been talked about at the presentation. However, from those few images, one may see that stuff like the Beta Windy Valley, the Tornado part, Mystic Ruins and maybe even Angel Island, Red Mountain and Lost World might've been in mind since the very onset of the project. Unfortunately, I couldn't find much more about it. I'm making this thread to expose these tidbits to whoever, like me, may have yet to find out about this, and to possibly pick up interest from any member here that might've been at the event itself and could have something else to add to this matter. I sure hope this thread helps someone.
It's like gazing into an alternate timeline. It makes a lot of sense that the next big Sonic game like that would expand on the lore of Angel Island after Sonic 3K, and as you point out, everything present here that's also in the final Sonic Adventure is the elements that took place on Angel Island.
There could've been other images displayed at the presentation that shed some more light to what could've been planned from the onset of the project. It'd depend of whatever testimonies we could get from people who might've been there at the time.
It is also important to not that the Sega Saturn Sonic Game was going to be a RPG, since they wanted to concentrate on the Story, who knows what the result would have been... -Nexeno
I kinda wish they'd try a Sonic RPG again. There's potential if they get a decent writer, but unfortunately that has yet to be realized. If a plotless series such as Mario can have an RPG then Sonic can too. Hell give it to the guys who make the Mario and Luigi games, just make it Sonic & Tails or something.
That's interesting seeing the Mystic Ruins area since I was always under the impression they only went with that concept after their Central and South America trip. Are we sure these were in fact presented as being from when it was still a Saturn game? Part of me feels like it's more likely when the project was moved away from Saturn.
It seems you're right, according to the more detailed development section from Retro. The trip seems to have really happened after the decision to move production to the DreamCast, with what little was made to the Saturn until then becoming JAM's Sonic World. And that means one less myth for me to hope to know more about... Well, with those images seemingly being CGI, it may be that they went first with the Saturn Models, before deciding to give them the Adventure-style overhaul design to better suit the upcoming generation of gaming. Still, is it me or has the Development Section of SA1 gotten an update in intel as of late? I don't remember such juicy information being there the last time I read that page.
mainjp pointed out to me that the model of sonic looks like the one used in the mission cards in SA1, even seemingly not having his joints welded together smoothly.
Looks cool! Ok maybe someone could clear this up for me... is the tiny floating island that holds the master emerald in Mystic Ruins supposed to be Angel Island? I always thought it was laughably small...
That's part of Angel Island. Adventure's Angel Island also includes Red Mountain and Ice Cap, and I'm assuming other things we just never see in the game.
And then to make matters more fun the lost world ruins in the jungle used to be part of Angel Island but it fell off for some reason. And Angel Island just happens to fall less than a mile away from that. How convenient :v:
Plot convenience, indeed. And to not forget that the Master Emerald was, in S3K, in an underground area called Hidden Palace. The need for such conveniencies led to some plotholes, but oh well. Regarding the OP, I guess the Saturn was truly ill-fated for any kind of ambitious 3D Sonic Game to be produced, JAM's Sonic World and R being potentially good enough examples of it.
I liked how they referenced the fact that the snow level in SA1 is the same snow mountain from Angel Island in S3&K by naming it IceCap. Just like the Death Egg Zones in S2 and S&K are the same location =D Of course, the Sonic 2 remaster broke the "same level name = same place" rule with Hidden Palace Zone :v: Is that an assumption or a fact? I always assumed that when Angel Island was created, the area where the Knuckles Clan's city/Lost World was located was left behind as a result of being separated from the Emerald shrine area by water.
You know, i always assumed the Master Emerald being on the surface in SA1 was a direct nod to the Knuckles Route end scene. So Hidden Palace, Sky Sanctuary and then just the surface spot. Weird progression none the less. And the mystic ruins were just the part of angel island that weren't lifted with the rest. If you go to the end of the out cropping by Tails workshop you can see the fallen Angel Island in game. Wish I was on my PC so I could find my screencaps. My question is why did they add buildings to the end of ice cap that weren't there in beta images?
I think they added those to make it look like a ski resort. There are NPCs in Station Square that mention that one can go ski in IceCap, implying that it had become a tourist spot after Angel Island fell next to Mystic Ruins. No, I'm pretty sure that Angel Island was created after the original Perfect Chaos incident. The Chaos Emeralds were no longer in place to negate the Master Emerald's power, resulting in this one lifting the landmass.