Green Hill Vs Emerald Hill: Which Zone is More Memorable?

Green Hill Zone.


I'm not saying: "It's where it all started, so it's much more memorable". Not at all. Green Hill Zone is not just a better zone (level design), but it also have a more memorable and catchy music and always gave me that feeling that I can't really express in words, like this excitement. It has a way more "rustic" feeling to it that almost incorporates Sonic perfectly, it's almost like that zone was made especially for him in the same way that Mario fits so well in his zones. Emerald Hill didn't had this feeling in it, it almost looked like the zone was forjed for another game and Sonic was placed in there later on. Altough I gotta admit that Emerald Hill is way more pretty than GHZ, but it's one of the most forgettables zones in Sonic 2. I'm not really sure if it's because of Chemical Plant which almost takes the whole focus of the entire game, or its because its level design beeing so linear and boring.

So yeah, that's it. When I close my eyes with this question on my mind, I only see Green Hill Zone. <3


Edit:
Oh yeah, before I forget... Just so it don't see that I played GHZ first and that's why I like it better, my first Sonic game was S3&K (which Angel Island is by far, my favorite on this whole "First Zone Love" state), after that I played Sonic CD, and I remember how I liked Palmtree Panic, but at the same time felt very confused by the whole level design which kind of made me stay away from Sonic CD 'till my 10~11yo when I felt like I was "mature" enough to play it and understand it (which I did and loved every single minute on that game). After that, since I didn't owned a console, I wasn't able to play Sonic 1 nor 2 and that kind of killed me on the inside, I played Sonic 1 on my cousin's Master System and altough I liked it, it was weird, didn't looked or played good as S3&K did.
It was 'till my 12yo when I became to really dig deeper into the internet when I found a brazilian website (which is up 'till this recent days and it's by far one of the best and most complete Sonic fansites around the globe) called Power Sonic (http://www.powersonic.com.br/) which had a section of Emulators & Roms and I was finally able to play Sonic 1 and 2. I played Sonic 2 first and loved it as well, even if I missed that cool red dude and the elemental shields, and played Sonic 1... My first reaction to it was "where the hell is the spin dash?". I found the game sort of boring due the lack of spin dash and the levels weren't all of that fancy like they were on the other games. But it has an essence that none of the other two had (Sonic CD had it also), it was that Sonic essence that we all know and love, freakish places, weird and almost comic bosses and enemies, surrealistic enviroment... I don't know I felt so engaged by the game it was the same feeling I had while first playing S3&K or my Monkey Island games, that glimmer in my eyes that screams "Wow! This is amazing!". I also had this glimmer on Sonic 2, but wasn't really 'till Chemical Plant came stealing the scene. Emerald Hill didn't gave me the same feel as AIZ, PP and GHZ did.

 

Green Hill for me

 

Green Hill Zone. Masterful level design which encouraged the building of momentum and mastering of the playing field to turn it into a pinball machine. Emerald Hill, and the Spin Dash, was very dumbed down in comparison and always felt kind of bland to me.

 

Green Hill.

The level is better, theme music is better and the background is more vibrant.

The only thing Emerald Hill did was the corkscrew.

 

Green hill is more memorable because it's jam packed with bottomless pits. I hate it, I hate that those up and down platforms between the spikes aren't solid on the sides, and in general the design of GHZ makes me mad whenever I play it, I feel like they've given us a lot of path options and said "okay, now take this one because the bottom ones all suck".

EHZ is more fun to me, but less memorable. It's specifically the things I don't like that really stand out most to me in GHZ, and EHZ has nothing of the sort.

 

Green Hill.
Green Hill definitely has better level design. I remember playing Sonic 2 more than Sonic 1 as a kid, but Emerald Hill was short and the boss was pathetic. Green Hill's boss isn't terribly hard either, but it's definitely harder than Emerald Hill's.

On the other hand, to this day I still like the Emerald Hill music more than that of Green Hill. And Emerald Hill definitely looks a lot better. Green Hill's music is catchier though, helping with memorability.

 

Despite my preferences, I have to go with Green Hill. It's what non-Sonic fans (as in people who are familiar with him, and may have played the first few games, but nothing more) instantly think of when his name comes to mind. It's the level that keeps coming back in 2D games (and even a 3D one) for nostalgia purposes. Plus, just about everyone who's played a Sonic game can recognize it's music. Ask a gamer if he knows this song, hum or whistle the few notes. 9 out of 10 times, he/she'll say "Oh yeah, that's, uh, from... Sonic, isn't it?" Emerald Hill, while a better and more vibrant stage IMO, simply isn't as well-known. If you hummed or whistled a bti of Emerald Hill's music to someone with only a passing knowledge of Sonic, chances are, he might not recognize it.

In short, Green Hill, because it's the most-well known stage out of the whole series.

 

I think in general, Green Hill is more iconic, but personally for me, Emerald Hill is more memorable, for a lot of the same reasons OP mentioned. I wasn't able to play a Sonic game until Sonic 2, so Emerald Hill was my first hands on Sonic experience. Not only that, but me and my bro spent countless hours playing Sonic 2 when we were kids, so the entire game, and Emerald Hill being that it's the zone we've obviously played the most, it's just very nostalgic to me.

 

I seriously doubt that. Sonic 2 is the more popular game by far, it was packaged with the system and shattered sales records at the time, why would it not be the most widely recognized? I'm sure it got a lot more exposure from the non-Sonic playing pleb crowd because of all the two player features. If GHZ is more well-known, it's only because that's the narrative Sonic Team has established for us, it's the only classic Sonic zone they ever want to acknowledge the existence of.

That's precisely why I can't fucking stand it, actually! It's been done to death. It's ugly. The level design is a bit better for presenting a modicum of challenge, but people only remember this franchise for being fast, and EHZ sure tops GHZ for that. The music is in a somber key- that's notable and rare for a platformer of that era and I feel like I should love it for that, but I sure don't, so what gives? I wonder if I might've preferred it years ago before the entire zone got worn out? I don't even want to hear it now. Fuck GHZ.

The title of this thread should really be "Which game have you played first?"

 

Well, Emerald Hill was the first Sonic level I ever played, but Green Hill is a lot more vibrant, and it's level design is a lot better. Emerald Hill is very flat both ways in comparison. So my vote's with Green Hill.

 

Green Hill.

It has more going on in it, and just feels more full than emerald hill, With the breakable walls, swinging platforms, spike logs and S-Tunnels.

In comparison, Emerald Hills corkscrews and caves don't really measure up.

 

I voted Green Hill Zone. The clincher for me is Act 2, basically speedrunner-porn.

 

Green Hill Zone will be the inevitable winner, due to the fact many would probably start at the first game and thus be their first zone, barring the bundling of Sonic 2 with the Mega Drive, and the Zone has been repeated constantly, so it's better etched into recent memories.

 

I voted Emerald Hill because like many others already, it was the first Sonic Level I played (Genesis Bundle) and experienced. Its theme, in my opinion, properly set the tone for Sonic 2. Though I love basically all of Sonic 2's entire OST, Emerald Hill's bassline is beautiful, (with Casino Night 2P as a personal close second) and I grew up valuing it(as my dad is a bassist after all). Though Green Hill's Level Design is better in some ways, Emerald Hill's artwork is significantly better, and more detailed in my opinion.

 

Green Hill is way more iconic, but Emerald Hill is more memorable for me, for the same reasons the OP listed. I started watching AoStH sometime in Kindergarten, and got the Genesis 2 packed with Sonic 2 for my sixth birthday in 1994.

SIDE NOTE: I actually very recently remembered that I watched the cartoon before I ever got the game. I had a flashback to the first time I beat EHZ's boss and hit the capsule. The animals started coming out, and my Dad asks me what those are. I replied, "I dunno, but I'm not stickin' around to find out!" and stood on top of the capsule to avoid them. I was quoting an episode of Adventures, there. Plus I was so jumpy after having FINALLY beat that tough-as-nails boss that I didn't want anything to kill me, haha.

I really do enjoy Green Hill. I think the imagery and music are a notch better, and it's a perfect introduction to the Genesis series. But as a level, I enjoy Emerald Hill a lot more. Sonic 2's level design gave you a lot more freedom to either explore OR go quickly, and I've always tried to speed run, haha.

 

Green Hill Zone by far.

I dunno why, but it just feels so much more natural of a level than Emerald Hill Zone. EHZ... just feels a bit stale and not that memorable. It has the same theme and vibe as GHZ, but honestly I don't care for it much as an intro level. It's just not that particularly engaging, and in a platformer that's not a good sign. Hell, I think Emerald Coast is a much better intro level than EHZ but that's a subject for another day.

Really, in general I just think Sonic 1 trumps 2 in so many ways. The level design was so much more clever and subtle, S2 to this day feels a bit... dumbed down? It's not a bad game by any stretch, but I still maintain that it's the most overrated game in the series and I consider it the weakest out of the classic games (Including CD into that).

Also when I was a kid I always wanted to know what the hell was on that Island in the background of GHZ. I never did find out.

 

It's most definitely Green Hill zone!!! Nothing compares to the feeling and the reminiscent background and theme music of this wonderous level!!!! That's why there have been so many re-incarnations of the level in other sonic games(SA2,Sonic Battle,Sonic Chronicles,Sonic Generations etc.) And Green Hill was the reason almost all first levels in the sonic games look almost similar (Tropical,lush green, forest setting).