There was never a credit to Sonic Team in the game, the original reviews in the official Sega Magazine, or the prototypes. It is all poorly sourced rumor which fanboys came up with because it was on the Sonic Mega Collection it seems. This Ristar from Sonic Team or from this supposed Rabbit prototype needs to stop. Localization alterations in both Genesis/Mega Drive games:

Some beta differences can be found at Ristar Cluster, take note that it also discusses the Game Gear version of the game when my analysis is focusing on the Genesis/Mega Drive one: This means the “STAR” cheat’s effect was eliminated earlier in development (or replaced by another code) and is only referenced as an easter egg. When it is inputted in one prototype it proclaims that “Star Star Mode” has been enabled, but it changes nothing in the game. It does not seemingly change the game and is likely an easter egg of sorts. The enigmatic “STAR” cheat, exclusive to the Japanese retail copy, makes the game ask about a player’s wish and displays a shooting star. Four prototypes (in the beta phase) were leaked by the Hidden Palace site, but are close to completion.Ī specific prototype is named Dexstar, proving that several title changes occurred after the Feel prototypes. Oddly enough, an enemy in the final is a rabbit that attacks with its ears, and a valid cheat is “FEEL”. The protagonist had shoes similar to Sonic’s, and, although still sporting an orb shape, had two horns that resembled rabbit ears. The game was named Feel in older builds, and the character had a distinct appearance. Sonic Team settled for a platforming game with an emphasis on speed for their blue hedgehog, but did not discard the rabbit idea from their minds. A rabbit that could throw and grab objects was amongst the several ideas for Sonic. Ristar’s origins date back to the brainstorming sessions of Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis.

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