Just a heads-up. You people might want to get this book. http://www.readonlymemory.vg/sega-mega-drive-genesis-collected-works There's Sonic 1 design documents in it that I don't think have appeared anywhere online before, alongside concept art and interviews with lead Sonic staff (Yuji Naka, Naoto Oshima, Akira Nishino, Kazuyuki Hoshino) and a brief description of four of Sonic 1's levels, as they were originally envisioned. I think the book's great, and I'm really supportive of the people behind it, so I've got no personal interest in devaluing it by putting all the best bits online, but here's a hastily taken photo of Sonic 1's original ending storyboard from the design documents.
So, Sonic's band friends were shown during the ending. But if Sonic is falling in the sky... where was he ? Scrap Brain isn't set in the sky, so... Sky Base ?
Hmm... seeing that Sonic is falling from the sky in that art, could've Sonic 1 16-bit and 8-bit been planned to be even more alike than we thought at one point? I know that Sonic 1 8-bit doesn't have him falling at the end (he is teleported instead), but it seems that at one point both games would have the final level in the sky.
Or Death Egg. One of the adds features a giant Death Egg looking place. Doubt it was called Death Egg at the time, but it was some big looking station.
So in addition to Madonna, Vector, Sharps, Max and Mach, Sonic also had a giant bird friend. We have our prototypical Freedom Fighters, complete with its own Dulcy.
Geez, things were so, so different early in development... I really wonder at what point the team decided to scrap everything, because it really looks like they had a lot planned and, according to that one beta screenshot, actually executed, before they changed absolutely everything and formed what we got in 91 onwards. And like Machenstein said, oddly it seems Sonic was goinf down a route closer to what we'd see with the TV show, complete with out of place characters. ._.
How would the franchise have differed from what we have now if all of these characters were introduced in the original game? Kind of strange to think about it, but I doubt we'd have Amy Rose, Tails, Knuckles, hell, any of the characters we're used to now.
Hard to do so from that storyboard alone- so unless someone has a better image of whom the bird is supposed to be (or the big rabbit to the left on the panel where Sonic lands- reviving the old rabbit concept as a separate character?), not happenin :P
EDIT: I've just noticed that all of them are wearing the same shoes. The Rabbit's feet are no on show but I wouldn't be surprised that he has the same shoes as everyone else.
I had entirely forgotten the drummer rabbit. So that's one- is the big bird meant to be Chirps there?
To me yes and no. Yes as in he's one of Sonic's band mates and no it's a different type of bird. It's possible that between those slides and the band picture Chirps had a redesign. I assume that Sonic Team wanted a bird character to be in the group but changed the design in the band so the group would look more aesthetically pleasing. If you think about it a bird that big in the band would look out of place.
Yep, it's definitely Chirps. (edit, I meant Sharps) As you can see, the rest of the band are identifiable below waiting for Sonic once he lands, and when Chirps and Sonic join them, it completes the band. The rabbit's on the left, Vector in the middle facing left, and the Monkey waving him down on the right. There's a tonne of little animals dotting the area too. The design on the 5th slide matches that of Chirps, and there's no reason to suggest it could be any other character either. Make note that as this is a sketch, all of the characters are quickly drawn with less features and less emphasis on proportions. I have the book, and it's quite clear in there too. />
The design of Chirps has definitely gone from and eagle to a chicken. Locky might be the spiritual successor to that design
