Special Stage (Sonic 3D Blast)


 * ''For Special Stages in general, see here.

Special Stages are a series of special levels in Sonic 3D Blast. All three original releases of the game for Sega Genesis, Sega Saturn and PC differ drastically from each in terms of aesthetics and gameplay mechanics.

However though, all three versions of the game share the method for entering the Special Stage: the player must have at least fifty Rings in hand and find Tails or Knuckles around the Zone. When Sonic finds one of his friends, the player shares Rings with either Tails or Knuckles in order to be transported into the Special Stage. The player can also go to Tails or Knuckles for depositing already obtained Rings and then find more. By collecting all seven Chaos Emeralds, the player is able to access the Final Fight Zone for the final showdown against Dr. Robotnik.

Sega Genesis version
Special Stages (referred to as Bonus Stages in manual) in Sega Genesis version of Sonic 3D Blast come in two aesthetic variants depending on with whom Sonic is about to share Rings with. Tails' version has steel bridges with brighter background, while Knuckles' version of the Special Stage has wooden structured bridges with more darker background. The player's goal is to collect required amount of Rings on the route before reaching the one of three checkpoints. Ring requirements remain the same in all Special Stages (50, 100, and 150 Rings in order) and after passing through the third checkpoint, the player receives a one of the seven Chaos Emeralds at the end of the bridge.

In these Special Stages, Sonic is moving constantly forward along a bridge, as the player can move sideways by pressing left or right on and perform the Spin Jump for jumping over Mines or climbing over hump points of the bridge. Rings are found on large groups as well Mines, which can damage the player by subtracting 10 Rings from your total per hit. If the player does not have any Rings while hitting mines, he poses his death animation and the player exits the Special Stage without receiving the Chaos Emerald. The player also exits the Special Stage, if he/she has not collect enough of Rings before reaching the latest checkpoint.

After receiving the Chaos Emerald at the end of each Special Stage, the player gets Ring Bonus and Emerald Bonus of amount 10,000 points. After receiving all Chaos Emeralds, the player can go back into previous Special Stages to receive extra lives as rewards.

Sega Saturn version
The Special Stages in the Saturn version of Sonic 3D Blast is different. Much like Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic will have to run through a quarterpipe course with the objective being collecting a certain amount of Rings to pass each checkpoint. A gimmick that exclusively appears in these Special Stages include a number gate that will slowly count down and when touched, it will stop counting down and based on the number it stopped at, it will give that many number of rings.

PC version
The PC version's Special Stages don't differ much from the Saturn version but their layouts have been slightly altered to provide an easier gameplay.

Trivia

 * The background music of the Sega Mega Drive version appear in Sonic Adventure's Windy Valley as a remix.
 * The models of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles in the Sega Saturn version are the same as the ones seen in Sonic R.