2.0:Arid Canyon Zone Act 1

Single Player levels
MAP13: Arid Canyon Zone Act 1
GFZ MAP01 MAP02 MAP03	THZ MAP04 MAP05 MAP06	DSZ MAP07 MAP08 MAP09
CEZ MAP10 MAP11	ACZ MAP13	RVZ/BMZ MAP16 MAP17
	ERZ MAP22 MAP23 MAP24
Secret levels
SRB1 Remake
Special Stages
Circuit stages
Capture the Flag stages
Match stages

MAP13, Arid Canyon Zone Act 1, abbreviated as ACZ1, is the first act of Arid Canyon Zone, the fifth zone in Sonic Robo Blast 2 v2.0. It takes place in a mostly dried-out canyon, featuring rope pulleys that the player can hang on to, quicksand, slippery oil, crumbling and falling rocks, and horizontally moving platforms. The stage layout consists mostly of large and open outdoor rooms, which often feature several death pits, interspersed with underground caves. Tumbleweed and cacti are common scenery elements, and machinery can be found in some caves.

Three enemies are introduced in ACZ1: The Green Snapper is a turtle enemy with a ring of spikes around its side, harming players who spindash into it. The Bird Aircraft Strike Hazard is a vulture-like enemy that lines up vertically with the player and then dashes at them. The Minus tunnels underground until it reaches the player and then jumps out of the ground.

Walkthrough

First section

You start off on a diagonal spring propelling you to the top of a cliff. Jump down into the valley below and turn right at the pool of water. In front of you are three rope pulleys. Jump into the rope of the first one to hang on to it, but beware of the Minuses tunneling in this area. Now jump from rope pulley to rope pulley to get to the cave entrance in front of you. Here the path splits.

Left

Proceed through the tunnel and jump over the pit in the following outdoor area. Now jump on the crates in front of you to reach the high ledge next to them. From there, walk upstairs and turn left. A BASH will fly towards you, so either dodge it or destroy it. Next you have to jump across several platforms above a death pit. The dark brown platforms will crumble when stood upon, so don't stay on them for too long. After making it across the pit, you will reach a bridge. Turn right after the bridge and head towards the area with a stack of rope pulleys. Here the paths merge.

Right

On this path you have to jump across platforms over a quicksand pit. If you fall into the quicksand at any point inside the cave, you have to backtrack to the beginning of the path to try again. The quicksand will slowly pull you under, but you can escape it by jumping repeatedly. If you sink in too deep, the quicksand will kill you. Make your way across the platforms until you reach a row of diagonal yellow springs. The platform with the springs has a Minus on it, so be careful not to get hit by it. The yellow springs will propel you to another platform with a row of red springs, which will propel you outside. Now continue forward, crossing the pool of slippery oil. After walking across a fenced ledge, turn right and head towards the area with a stack of rope pulleys. Here the paths merge.

Main section

Grab on to the lowest rope pulley and simply continue jumping upwards across the rope pulleys until you reach the ledge in front of you. Now walk upstairs and jump across the row of spikes to reach the first Star Post. After another row of spikes, you will come to a platform that will collapse and fall into a pit when you stand on it. Jump off and into the valley in front of you before it hits the bottom. Here the path splits again.

Left

To your left you should see an opening between the walls. Go through it and turn right to find a cave entrance with a Super Sneakers Monitor. If you use it, be careful not to run directly into the following pit. After ascending a staircase guarded by two Minuses, you will reach a row of springs that allow you to cross a pit and reach a ledge with another row of springs that will propel you up another ledge. In the next area, jump across the two crumbling platforms to reach an outdoor area with a staircase. Jump over the gap in the staircase to reach a bridge. Walk over the bridge and continue until you reach a short tunnel.

After the tunnel, turn left to see a small staircase made of crumbling blocks. Jump over them and then continue forward into another cave. This cave contains two rope pulleys above a pit. Jump onto the first rope pulleys and then to the other one to make it to the other side. After walking past a fenced area, you will reach another outdoor room with a bridge in front of you. Jump down to the bridge, walk over it and look around the pillar to see a chair lift. If you jump on it, it will take you across the pit. On the other side, the path makes a U-turn. Jump across the pit and into the cave in front of you. Continue forward and pass quickly over the brown floor, which will crumble. After walking across a small bridge, you will come to a pit with three stalagmites. Each of the stalagmites has a crumbling brown platform around it; use it to reach the top of the stalagmite and continue to the next one. After crossing the pit, continue forward and turn right. After passing through a short tunnel, you will reach an outdoor area with the second Star Post.

In the center of the room is a large crack in the floor with pools of oil surrounding it. Jump over the crack, but be careful not to lose control in the slippery oil. Enter the cave in front of you and turn left. After a while, parts of the floor will rise up towards the ceiling. Just before they start rising, they will sink in slightly, so if you're standing on a part of the floor that's sinking, leave it quickly to avoid getting crushed. After the floors have risen, continue through the openings between them to reach a red spring, which will propel you into an outdoor area. To your right you should see a hole in the floor that leads down into a pit of water. Jump down and and the cave in front of you to reach the third Star Post. Here both paths merge.

Forward

Head into the tunnel in front of you. On the other side, jump down into the valley below. Cross the death pit in front of you by using the two pillars. Now cross a pool of water to reach a row of red springs taking you to a fenced ledge. Continue to the left until the path makes a U-turn. A Super Sneakers Monitor will be directly in your path. Continue forward through the pools of oil and jump over the rows of spikes, but be careful not to lose control in the slippery oil. After a while, you will reach a red spring taking you to a higher ledge. From there, descend down the staircase in front of you to reach the room where the paths split, but this time from a higher ledge that wasn't accessible before.

Turn left to enter an area with another large staircase going upwards. Walk up the staircase, but be careful to avoid the Green Snappers on it. Jump across the pit in front of you and continue until you reach an area with a large pit and a bridge crossing overhead. Work your way up across the steps along the outer edge. Beware of the pools of oil and the rocks falling from above. Cross the bridge and use a row of yellow springs to reach a ledge with a rope pulley. Ride the rope pulley across the pit and enter the cave on the other side, where you will find the second Star Post.

Ignore the oil pit with the large machine in front of you and head left instead. You will enter a cave where parts of the ceiling will crumble and fall on it, so keep running at full speed to avoid them. You should now come to a valley with a large fence blocking the path to your right. Next to the fence you should see a cave entrance blocked by debris. Spindash into it to clear the debris and enter the cave. Here, jump across the wooden beams suspended over the pit to reach a yellow spring. The spring leads into a diagonal spring that will propel you to a high ledge back in the valley, but now on the other side of the fence. Jump down and continue to your left to reach a large tunnel with a bottomless pit. Use the two horizontally moving platforms to cross it and reach another valley. At the end of the valley you should see a hole in the floor that leads down into a pit of water. Jump down and and the cave in front of you to reach the third Star Post. Here both paths merge.

Final room

After walking through the cave, you will reach a large outdoor valley with a death pit and several rope pulleys high above it. Grab on to the first rope pulley and let it carry you to the second one. The third rope pulley isn't directly connected to the second one, so you have to jump down slightly to your right to reach it. After the fourth rope pulley, you have an option to continue forward or to your right. Head right and jump down to the diagonal rope pulley with leads towards a large cave. Near the cave entrance are two ledges that you can use to rest. In the cave, you have to jump across several more rope pulleys until you reach a large hole leading into the mountain. Jump into it to end the level.

Points of interest

Extra lives

• At the beginning, jump to the ledge to your left containing a row of rings. Around the corner to the right, you should see a tiny ledge high above the cave entrance. Jump onto it and from there, spindash-jump to the other side to get an extra life.
• Take the left path after the first Star Post. Right after the Super Sneakers monitor at the start, you will come across a pit. In the near left corner of the pit, directly next to the edge, is a small platform with an extra life and a red spring to get you back up.
• On the left path of the second path split, just before you enter the cave with the two rope pulleys, jump down to your right next to the large fence. Hidden between several springs is an extra life.
• Get a Whirlwind Shield and enter the left path of the second path split (there is one in plain sight on this path). After the cave with the two rope pulleys, you will pass by a fence with a small hole in it. Jump through it and press spin to reach the ledge directly to your your left. Double jump to the ledge on the other side of the valley and turn left to see a high ledge next to the path after the bridge that you crossed before. Spindash and double jump to it. Now just walk forward until you get to the extra life monitor.
• From the previous extra life, spindash and double jump to the ledge where the falling rocks spawn.
• Before you enter the cave with the floors that crush against the ceiling on the left path of the second path split, you can see two cracks in the floor. An extra life is located down in the pit where the two cracks meet. Jump down and bounce off the monitor to get back up.
• Take the forward path after the first Star Post and continue until you reach the room with the falling rocks and the bridge crossing overhead. Once you get to the rope pulley, you will pass by a rock to your left with an extra life. Jump down from the rope pulley to reach it.
• In the final area with the rope pulleys, there is a section where you can either take a rope pulley forward or one that heads towards the cave to your right. Take the one that goes forward and continue until you reach a ledge with an extra life.

Shields

• Located high above the entrance to the first cave, below the extra life, is an Elemental Shield.
• If you take the right path at the beginning, you can see a big machine in the right corner of the cave. On top of it is a Force Shield. Instead of using the red springs to leave the cave, land on their platform and jump to the shield from there.
• In the same room, the wall of the ledge where the bridge starts is intangible. Walk through it to enter a small alcove containing an Armageddon Shield.
• After exiting the cave on the right path at the beginning, you can see a pit with several large platforms and falling rocks to your right. Climb up the highest platform while avoiding the rocks to get a Whirlwind Shield.
• In the first outside area on either path of the first path split, there is a very high ledge that divides the two paths (to your immediate right on the left path and to your immediate left on the right path). Fly or climb up there to get an Armageddon Shield.
• Take the forward path after the first Star Post and proceed until you pass by the Super Sneakers. In the following room, in the middle of the path, you can find an Attraction Shield.
• In the same area, you can see a tall rock standing out from the pit to your left. Fly or climb on top of it to find an Armageddon Shield.
• At the beginning of the left path after the first Star Post, after you take the two rows of yellow springs, there is a Whirlwind Shield Monitor in plain sight.
• After the chair lift on the left path, before you enter the cave, there is an Attraction Shield right next to the wall.
• After the stalagmite pit on the left path, turn to your left. There is a small notch in the floor, containing a Force Shield.
• In the valley with the second Star Post on the left path, fly or climb on top of the large pillar in the center of the room for a Whirlwind Shield.
• If you took the left path at the second path split, when you get propelled out of the cave to where the paths merge, you will fly over a ledge with a Whirlwind Shield and two Super Ring Monitors. Backpedal slightly to land on it and get to them.

Super Sneakers

• On the left path at the beginning, after jumping up the crates, a Super Sneakers monitor is to your left.
• If you take the left path at the second split, a Super Sneakers monitor is in plain sight at the start of it.
• If you take the forward path at the second split, a Super Sneakers monitor is in plain sight after taking the red springs in the first room.
• In the valley with the large fence on the forward path of the second path split, there is a cave to the left from the entrance. Jump to it from the entrance to get a Super Sneakers monitor.

Invincibility

• After the large bridge on the left path of the second split, you will come across a staircase made of several crumbling rocks. Instead of jumping on them, jump down towards the pit that is in front of you when you enter the room. Keep close to the wall to land on a narrow ledge containing an invincibility monitor and a red spring to get back up.
• On the forward path of the second split, after the narrow path with oil and spikes, you take a red spring to proceed. Once you've let that spring take you up, look to your right to see a platform with an invincibility monitor.

Hidden tunnel

At the beginning of the level, turn on noclip in the console and walk into the wall to your left. After a while, you should come to an unused part of the map. It features a paved road going through a tunnel.

Speedrunning

• Because of the complex layout of this stage, Tails has an extreme advantage here, despite his low speed. The paths overlap several times, allowing a player with flight ability to skip large parts of the stage. This is very useful just before the first Star Post. To the right is a fence with a hole, where Tails can fly through to skip a considerable part of the level. After that, he can fly to the left at the horizontally moving platform, and directly to the exit of the cave up to the left. Several critical obstacles such as rope pulleys can be simply flown over. Because of this, Tails is by far the most useful character for speedruns in this stage, being able to finish it in just above one minute.
• As Sonic, you can bounce off a Green Snapper at the second path split to access the balcony-like ledge to the right of the room. Since this allows you to skip a substantial part of the forward path, it is actually quicker in this case than the other path.