Favourite levels in a Sonic the Hedgehog game?

[Nebagram]

So I got thinking, Sega spend all this money on new Sonic games when really, more people play the old classics in compilations for the 6th gen systems or on live arcade/virtual console. Taking a bit of inspiration from Pac-man CE- one of the most if not the most inspired franchise regenerations of all time- I hit upon the idea that what Sega should do is bundle together say, 15 or 20 classic levels from past Sonic games and release it as a 'best of Sonic', maybe focus on the online leaderboards or something. Say, limit it to Sonic Adventure 2 and before.

Pointless ramble about the idea's origins over, here would be my nominations-

Sonic 1- Green Hill Act 1 (GEN)- can't NOT have this one.
Sonic 1- Starlight Act 1 or 2 (GEN)- mainly for the music.
Sonic 1- Jungle Act 2 (SMS)- anybody who's played the MS version knows what a bastard this level is.
Sonic 2- Casino Night 1 (GEN)- almost iconic in its brilliance.
Sonic 2- Metropolis 3 (GEN)- also an absolute bastard.
Sonic 2- Aqua Lake 2 (SMS)- still for me the best 'water' level in any Sonic game.
Sonic 2- Scrambled Egg 2 (SMS)- classic and tough at the same time.
Sonic CD- Stardust Speedway 1 or 2- best level in CD imo.
Sonic 3- IceCap 1 (GEN)- by far the best bgm in any Sonic game, and a fantastic level to boot.
S&K- Leve Reef 1 and 2 (GEN)- both fantastic levels with great twists to them. My favourites out of all 14 zones of S3&K.
Sonic Adventure- Speed Highway- fastest level in the game (obviously I'm talking Sonic only) and imo the most fun.
Sonic Adventure 2- Green Forest- fast. Very fast. And a Sonic stage rather than Shadow's.

Think I've rambled on enough here.

[Trevelyan]

I love the bonus stages on Sonic 2, especially if you've got a friend playing as tails. The SMS master system Sonic1 had some good levels, been about 13-14 years since I played it however! I have fond memories of it though. I think Id miss levels in a bundle & the challenge of nailing a complete game, but I might turn to a bundle with a few mates.

[CosmicMonkey]

The first thing that springs to mind is the first (proper) level of Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast. It's fast, looks gorgeous and the section with the Killer Whale was awesome. I'm not proclaiming it to be the best level in a Sonic game, but it was certainly a damn good way to show off the new Sonic game. Playing this when it came out on Japanese import was amazing.

[MrSparkle]

first level of marble zone with the grass that lights on fire when you step on the little islands.

[Chuplayer]

The lava level in Sonic 3 or Sonic and Knuckles where you can see the background going to shambles and the fortress rise. Absolutely epic.

[Blitzwing256]

Genocide city level from sonic2 beta

[Ascending Wordsmith]

Definitely the Aquatic Ruins. It's the perfect blend of water and land in a Sonic stage, not to mention it's nicely tucked away at the feet of the mountains. There's a few nifty things I like about it as well. Some of the plant life hovers so low to the ground that Sonic rustles through the leafs causing some of them fall. Also, there's waterfalls, loops, hollowed logs, and Grecian columns all over the place. In some places, Sonic can even skid across the lake surface. Did I mention the AWESOME soundtrack for this level?