River Rush

River Rush is a sub-level in Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric. Essentially one straight water route, River Rush takes place on a river leading from the banks of Cliff's Excavation Site to the outer boundaries of the Pit. For this level, the player takes control of the Riptide.

Using Salty's Riptide, Team Sonic traveled down River Rush to find the Chaos Crystal in the Pit. Along the way, they were attacked by Dr. Eggman, but the team managed to escape.

Overview
River Rush takes place on a fairly wide river with tall river backs that winds through the landscape. At the beginning of the level, the river goes through a deep canyon in an orange, rocky region with a few sand banks and flora. Shortly after the beginning, there is a tunnel-like cave with statues and structures from the Ancients. At the exit of the cave, the landscape changes drastically from an almost barren rock area to a lush forest with thickets of grass on the ground and tall tress. At the end of the level, there is also a waterfall.

Story
After fixing the Riptide, Team Sonic got permission from its owner, Salty, to use the sturdy vehicle to sail down River Rush to the Pit where they could find one of the Chaos Crystals. On the way however, the team came under attack by Dr. Eggman, who had formed an uneasy partnership with Lyric and had agreed to help Lyric reclaim the map Team Sonic took from him. During the chase, Team Sonic escaped Dr. Eggman when they fell down a waterfall. However, Eggman believed they had died and that the map was lost. Despite fearing Lyric's wrath though, he left River Rush to report back to Lyric.

Gameplay
In River Rush, the player's objective is to reach the end of the river. The player therefore has to travel down its notorious water stream through the landscape. For this level, the player takes control of the Riptide, which is controlled by all four playable characters at the same time.

For River Rush, the player has to move down the river where they will encounter a series of barriers blocking the path. In order to proceed, the player has to clear out the enemies in those locations. However, the player is not able to backtrack the course. To destroy obstacles and enemies, the player can use either Sonic's fast, but weak Water Cannon, Amy's Ice Cannon for immobilizing enemies, or Tails' powerful, but slow Mortar Shot.

Hazardous environmental obstacles found in this level include rocks that inflict damage when touched, floating mines that create large explosions upon contact and Eggman himself that will fire indestructible cannonballs in random lines from his Egg Mobile.

Description
At the start of the level, the player first has to clear rocks blocking the path. Shortly afterwards, the player will encounter a barrier blocking the path and Swarmer Hives spawning Swarmers to attack the Riptide. To unlock the barrier, the Swarmer Hives must be destroyed. The player will then move into a cave while pursued by Swarmer Hives where they have to clear out the local Swarmer Hives to unlock the next barrier.

Upon exiting the cave, the player enters a new section where they have to both clear out Swarmer Hives while dodging mines and Eggman's artillery to open the next barrier. The player then has to complete three more sections with similar obstacles to arrive at the waterfall where Eggman will shoot at the Riptide. Dodge the shots until the Riptide goes over the waterfall and the level is completed.