Clock Work Zone

This is a sub-page of Proto:Sonic the Hedgehog (Genesis).

Clock Work Zone, being an early version of Scrap Brain, still has a lot of work remaining on it. Not being accessible through normal means, requiring Level Select, like Labyrinth Zone, void of any objects, and not even having an Act 3 makes it very incomplete compared to its final version.

Palette#

Proto	Final (Act 1)	Final (Act 2)

Clock Work Zone's palette in this build is missing many of the palette colors present in the final.

A teal color is present in this prototype's palette, used for a small foreground decoration light in many of this Zone's chunks. In the final game, this light cycles between red and yellow instead.

General#

Clock Work is displayed as "CLOCK ORK" on the title card due to a W lacking in the title card sprites. The game doesn't even attempt to load a W, but does reserve spacing for one. This is due to the way the letters are loaded into VRAM: all 128 tiles are filled with the rest of the font, making it impossible to actually include a W without cutting into already used parts of VRAM.
Both Acts lack any objects aside from the player starting positions.
The debug list contains Rings, Static Monitors, and Crabmeats using the title screen tiles for their graphics.
The animals assigned to this Zone in this build are Pocky and Flicky (the rabbit and blue bird). In the final game, the animal assignment is swapped with Green Hill Zone's animal assignment (Pocky and Cucky, the chicken).
Pits usually fail to kill Sonic, either warping him to the top of the stage, or letting him stand below the level.

Watch on YouTube

Act 1#

Proto
Final

Act 1 seems to have the layout seen in early magazine screenshots, as it uses the same background, itself being a copy of Act 2's foreground layout.

Diagonal conveyor belts are present that aren't seen in the final game. They aren't animated, nor do they function.
Also present alongside the diagonal conveyor belts in the level are odd, non-solid pieces of machinery that resemble a horizontal pole or tightrope. It's unknown what purpose they would have served, though judging from their placement in the level they likely gave some form of vertical momentum.
The bottom path is significantly different from the final game, after passing the section with the crushing blocks. The middle path merges directly with the bottom path partway through the level.
The level cannot be beaten as it lacks a signpost.

Proto	Final

At the start of the level, the trapdoors are placed at different elevations in the prototype. The first trapdoor is placed higher up than the second trapdoor, and the floor slants downwards slightly between the two trapdoors.
There is less space between the two trapdoors in the final game.
This section also ends with a quarter-pipe in the prototype.

Proto	Final

Getting onto the upper path at the start of the level is easier in the prototype, as the left-most piece of land is much lower and can be reached with a regular jump. In the final game, Sonic has to climb up a set of flipping platforms instead.
The next piece of land is also much easier to get to, as there's a convenient diagonal conveyor belt in place in the prototype. This was replaced with another set of flipping platforms in the final game.
This second piece of land is a lot bumpier with steps that go up and down in the prototype, compared to the final which is relatively flat for a while.

Proto	Final

Continuing from the section detailed above, this piece of land ends early in the prototype and isn't very interesting. The final game adds in a pit with goodies to spice things up, and rises significantly in elevation at the end.

Proto	Final

Taking the lower path instead at the start immediately greets the player with a rather broken-looking chunk arrangement. There is no space in this tunnel for the mechanical block obstacles that Sonic may get crushed by. This setpiece is also much shorter and smaller than in the final game.
This exact same chunk layout is reused a bit further into the lower path, as well as occupying the spot where the mechanical block crushers are at the start of the middle path.
Notably, this matches with concept art revealed at GDC 2018.

Proto	Final

In the final game, the end of the mechanical block crusher sections will always bring you out into a slightly more open area without walls. The prototype likes to keep you confined in a thin tunnel for a while instead.

Proto	Final

Originally, the middle path followed up the mechanical block tunnels with a long tunnel curving upwards. The final game changes this to a platforming section involving vanishing blocks.
Due to the chunk used to create this tunnel exit, the area above unfortunately lacks floor borders.

Proto	Final

The set of steps to the right of the first checkpoint encountered in the Act are shorter and uniform in length in the final game.
The floating platform above, which is part of the top path, was made a lot smaller. The wall connecting this platform with the ground below was also removed.

Proto	Final

The ground to the left of this pit was changed from sloping downwards, to simply being flat.
This pit seems like a simple jump in the prototype. In the final game, the right side of the pit is much further down, and is actually a place you don't want to land in because it's a part of another larger and dangerous pit.

Proto	Final

The ground at this point is higher up in the final game than in the prototype, making the pit deeper even though the pit's own position didn't change.
The middle path in the final game continues to the right of this pit, with sections where it's possible to fall down to the lower path. In the prototype, the middle path ends shortly after this point and completely merges with the lower path.
The ground to the right slopes downwards in the final game, while in the prototype it forms steps instead.

Proto	Final

Spanning above these two pits are a diagonal conveyor belt and two odd pieces of machinery. In the final game, these are replaced with a set of three conveyor belts holding flipping platforms.

Proto	Final

Past the conveyor belt and odd machines, this piece of land originally had a small path running through it. This path below doesn't go on for too long, and quickly joins up with the path above again.
Falling down this pit in the final game would send you back down to the middle path. In the prototype, you'll remain on the top path.
The diagonal conveyor belt here was replaced with flipping platforms.

Proto	Final

As the Act 1 wheel obstacles don't appear to exist in the prototype, this section works a bit differently. It's not immediately clear how to progress forwards, but there's a small gap at the top that Sonic can squeeze through, though it's unclear if this was intended or not.
To the right of this area in the prototype is a completely blank section; development may not have been started on that part of the level yet.

Proto	Final

The tunnel area near the end of the upper path looks a lot better than the other tunnel areas in the Act.
Because of how narrow these tunnels are, jumping either doesn't work or can behave somewhat peculiarly if you jump into a narrow section.

The upper path leads directly to the end of the level. The lower path connects up to the bottom of a very deep pit, instead of opening up to an area with long platforms and Ball Hogs like in the final game. There's no clear indication of how the player would climb up the pit and presumably objects would need to be placed to facilitate this.

To the right of this pit is yet another pit; however, this one is bottomless.

The actual end of the level doesn't look like much of an end. It's unknown if there was more level layout planned past this point, though this isn't too far off in position from where Act 1 ends in the final game.

Act 2#

Proto
Final

Even more unfinished than Act 1, not even having a background. Without any objects present, spinning wheels and teleporters don't function; Debug Mode is required to explore the level.

Interestingly, the level starting point is in the top left of the level, far above the final Act 2's starting point, hinting at a possible layout difference from earlier in development.
Based off of the level layout, the prototype Act 2 seems to have been designed as strictly linear, with no possible alternate paths to take unlike the final Act 2.
While some sections of the level are recognizable, others are completely different from what ended up in the final version of the Act.
Smaller rotating disc platforms are present that are nowhere to be seen in the final release.
A couple teleporters are placed facing towards another teleporter only a short walking distance away. In the final game, there will always be a decent amount of obstacles and distance between two teleporters.
As with Act 1, bottomless pits are bugged and often will send you flying.
The level cannot be beaten due to lacking a signpost. Hacking in a signpost will take you to the Scrap Brain Zone Act 3 described in the next section, whereas the final game technically takes you to Labyrinth Zone Act 4 (which is treated as the actual Scrap Brain Zone Act 3).

Proto	Final

The corridor where you start in the final Act has another elevated step present.
The ceiling is the same height throughout, whereas in the final it goes from a lower ceiling to a much higher ceiling.

Proto	Final

These small wheels were more or less replaced by small caution-striped platforms.
The positions of the large wheels were adjusted.
To the right of the wheels, the lower section leading directly to a teleporter is absent due to the level's linearity. The upper path is the only path available.

Proto	Final

The prototype has space for two trapdoors in this area, rather than just one. As there's no lower path, these are simply enclosed pits.
There's a piece of land to the left that you would first land on before tackling these two presumably-trapdoored pits. In the final game, the wheel section extends out more to the right, occupying that space instead.
The ceiling was made higher in the final game.

Proto	Final

The large wheels are placed differently, and the caution-striped platforms largely took the place of the smaller wheels. Another large wheel was placed near the end of the section.
This area is a bit wider in the prototype than in the final. Accordingly, the first wheel is farther away from the entrance.
The entrance and exit to this area are a bit lower in the prototype.
The ceiling is once again a uniform height here, while the final game's ceiling is lower on the left side and higher on the right side.

Proto	Final

After the second wheel section, and right before a teleporter, the ceiling was made a lot lower.

Proto	Final

Two of the pipes between teleporters appear to have a very broken look, as the chunk used doesn't appear to work with the chunks around it at all.
This specific pipe in the screenshot, which connects from the teleporter that is directly to the right of the previous comparison, is also one chunk longer in the prototype.
The chunk to the right of the broken-looking chunk uses slanted angles. In the final game, these pipes are always completely straight in-between turns.

Proto	Final

This section in the prototype actually lets you walk into a pipe connected to a teleporter, which feels rather odd.

Proto	Final

The left side of this pit is the same height as the right side in the prototype. In the final game, the left side is higher up, since the lines of flipping platforms bring the player upwards.
The ceiling of this area was made lower in the final game.

Proto	Final

This area consists of a set of downward uneven steps in the prototype. In the final game, the elevation doesn't change much, and there's a conveyor belt instead.
The teleporter this section leads to is actually the position where the player starts in the prototype.

Proto	Final

The ledge near this teleporter is a lot longer in the final game.

Proto	Final

This ledge, right before a series of crumbling platforms, is longer as well.
There are 4 pits in this section in the prototype, rather than 5.
In the final game, falling through the crumbling platforms after the first pit will drop you onto a different path. Because of the prototype Act 2's linearity, all of these pits look and work the same as the first pit.

Proto	Final

After getting past the crumbling platform section, the prototype features a cluster of small conveyor belts before a line of regular conveyor belts.
- The final game moves them to below the crumbling platforms, as part of the area below, and spreads them out a bit more. Meanwhile, the line of regular conveyor belts was moved more to the left.

Proto	Final

There's only one entrance to the section with Ball Hogs in the prototype Act. In the final game, this is the second-lowest entrance.
This entire section is positioned in a different area in the prototype.
The elevator that most likely led to this entrance, leads to the lower-most entrance instead in the final game.
The platforms spanning this section are shorter in the prototype, and the section itself is narrower and takes up less vertical space.
The exit to this section is from the top in the prototype, necessitating a climb upwards, whereas it's closer to the bottom in the final game.

The end of this level features another bottomless pit. This pit is actually in the same spot as the bottomless pit at the end of Act 1. Going up the bottomless pit reveals the same quarter-pipe chunk, placed in the exact same position as the one in Act 1.

Unlike Act 1's ending, the area before the bottomless pit is fairly flat and could reasonably fit a signpost.

It's unknown if the cutscene transition to Act 3 was planned at this point in development; this build does not have any associated code for it.

Act 3#

It doesn't exist!

Act 3 (Stage ID 02) is Final Zone in the final game, but it is an empty level. Labyrinth Act 4 in this build is empty, with no unique title card. It has the exact same chunks as the previous two acts, which may indicate that this was repurposed for the Final Zone.

An entry for Clock Work Zone Act 3 is visible in the level select, but will do nothing when selected.

Forcibly accessing the Clock Work level with the Act number set to 3 will simply load an empty level with a blue background, albeit with a "Clock Ork Zone Act. 3" title card as seen in this video.

To make the Clock Work Zone Act 3 entry in the level select point to this level, open the ROM in a hex editor and change the bytes starting at address 27F0 from 85 00 to 05 02. Alternatively, use Pro Action Replay code FFFE10:0502 to load Act 3 when entering any stage.

Act 4#

Is the exact same as the final.

Changed Chunks#

Proto	Final

The left-hand slope was shrunk down, the right-hand tunnel narrowed, and a wheel was added.

Proto	Final

A new, right-angled space in the tunnel was added for the final.

Proto	Final

The only thing remaining from the prototype's chunk is the bottommost part of the slope, moved up, but even that was shortened.

Proto	Final

This zig-zag tunnel chunk was opened up for the final.

Proto	Final

The entrance for the pipe is taller...

Proto	Final

...as is the exit for the pipe.

Proto	Final

This noodly chunk was flattened out for the final...

Proto	Final

...and so was this one.

Proto	Final

The ground was raised up, and more detail added.

Proto	Final

A ledge was removed, and the middle ledge is the new default height, for this chunk in the final game.

Proto	Final

Largely unchanged, with this chunk elevated for the final game.

Proto	Final

Similarly, this chunk was raised by the final game.

Proto	Final

Both a wall and floor were added to this lonely slope chunk for the final game.

Proto	Final

Borders were added to the top of this chunk for the final game.

Proto	Final

The corridor is both shorter, and the wall extended to the left edge, in the final game.

Proto	Final

As opposed to this hallway, which is taller in the final game.

Proto	Final

A small technology decoration was replaced with an X shape in the final game.

Proto	Final

Several technology decorations, below the pipe, were replaced with X shapes for the final game.

Proto	Final

This chunk was lowered, with a second platform instead of a smaller wheel, for the final game.

Proto	Final

The two small wheels were replaced with platforms in the final game.

Proto	Final

The topmost ledge was extended, and the bottom ledge was both thinned and straightened out, for the final game.

Proto	Final

The bottom ledge was removed, and top ledge thickened out, for the final game.

Proto	Final

The tunnel is narrower, with borders added, in the final game. Also, a lot of technology greebles were moved around or replaced.

Proto	Final

This diagonal conveyor belt was replaced with a similar spinning platform belt in the final game.

Proto	Final

Same as above, but lower.

Proto	Final

Three mini-conveyors were reduced down to two for the final game.

Proto	Final

Identical to Chunk 48.

Proto	Final

A single decorative greeble had another-shaped one added on top for the final game.

Proto	Final

Same as Chunk 50 above.