Warp Point

Warp Points are teleporter gimmicks, which have been first featured in Sonic & Knuckles and later made another appearance in Sonic Generations. Warp Points are illustrated as big, glowing, purple marble orb with a small structure around it. Warp Points are able transports its user to the higher levels in the game after stepping on to it.

Sonic & Knuckles
In Sonic & Knuckles, they are featured at Hidden Palace Zone and Sky Sanctuary Zone. In Hidden Palace Zone, they are set on large altars and are used to transport to the Sky Sanctuary Zone, where they are used more regularly. It can be used to transport to the another one, that is located at the higher section of the zone. Warp Point transports the player as large warp wave at high speed. When the player lands to the higher Warp Point, he/she is able to progress in the Zone. The higher Warp Point does not work similarly like lower one, as it only works as link to the transporting wave.

At the end of Sonic's version of Sky Sanctuary Zone, Mecha Sonic destroys one of them, as making no escape for the player and challenges him to the fight. Knuckles' version of the Sky Sanctuary Zone has only one Warp Point at the linear arena, where final battle against Mecha Sonic takes place.

Sonic Generations
These Warp Points make another appearance in console versions of Sonic Generations, where these gimmicks can be found at both classic and modern acts of Sky Sanctuary. They work exactly as they had in Sonic & Knuckles. The only known difference is that higher Warp Point, where the player gets transported, does not have marble orb, but only the hole, where the player gets transported from. Warp Points are also seen in few Challenge Acts, including Knuckles: Buried Treasure and Amy: Topsy-Turvy. In the Aerial Paradise challenge act, they are also set on walls and ceilings.

Trivia

 * If the player has Knuckles in locked-on version of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 the yellow and blue teleporter plates at Carnival Night Zone and IceCap Zone work the similar way.
 * Background pillars of Sky Sanctuary in Sonic Generations are seen to have similar, but larger and different colored marble orbs as a part of them.