Ring


 * For other uses of the term, see Ring (disambiguation).

The Ring (リング), also known as the Gold Ring, is the most distinct object in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Rings serve as a unique health system in gameplay throughout most of the series; in most cases, as long as the players hold even one Ring, it will protect them from losing a life upon taking damage. Instead, the players lose a portion of their Rings, though the amount varies between games. Aside from this, Rings has serve many other purposes in different games, and collecting them grants things like extra lives, Continues and points.

Though of unknown origin, Rings can be found everywhere on earth and other places beyond time and space. They are most commonly found everywhere in the different games' levels, but can also be obtained from Item Boxes, Badniks and other sources.

Appearance and background
The Rings' design is based on either the basic and round-edged wedding rings or solid brass round rings. The size of Rings varies in certain games; in-game sprites and models show them being about half the size of the playable characters, while certain cutscenes or promotional material show them being small enough to be held in the palm of the hand. On their own, they spin around in one spot and either lie close to the ground or float in midair.

While appearing nothing out of the ordinary, Rings contain an unspecified form of energy referred to as "Ring Energy" which has energizing effects on machines, living beings and Super States. Rings' unique properties also allow large amounts of them to carried at once, although it is not known where one puts them as they apparently disappear when picked up; not even a genius like Tails knows for sure where they go.

It is not known where Rings come from and no backstory has been given for them, except that they are spread all over the world of Sonic the Hedgehog. Aside from the main setting on earth, Rings are known to exist in underground caverns, on-board space stations, in outer space, on natural satellites and alien planets, inside cyberspace and even in alternate dimensions.

Functionality
Often the most common item in the games, Rings can be found everywhere in the primary playable levels. Generally, they are arranged in large clusters or in strings along pathways, off ramps, above Springs, around shuttle loops, along Grind Rails, or simply in midair. In general gameplay, the player can collect Rings by simply touching them. When this happens, they disappear, only leaving behind a small sparkle effect while a chime can be heard.

The most recognizable and prevalent attribute of Rings is their function to prevent their holder from being defeated. In general, possessing even a single Ring prevents a character from losing a life upon taking damage from things such as impacts with enemies, enemy attacks or damage-inducing obstacles. If a (unshielded or non-invulnerable) character takes damage while holding Rings, they drop their Rings which are then scattered in a circular pattern and bounce around the environment, while the player gets stunned and pushed backwards. However, there are certain dangers Rings cannot protect against, such as being crushed, falling into bottomless pits, failing missions with a time limit and drowning. In the pre-mentioned cases, the player's Ring count will reset to zero should they restart the level. Taking damage without a Ring will result in the character's aforementioned defeat.

During the brief period where the players drop their Rings after taking damage, there is a chance to collect the scattered Rings, but they will eventually all disappear after a while. Also, upon taking damage and dropping the Rings, the player is given a momentary period of invulnerability (which is represented by the playable character rapidly flashing between visible and invisible). The amount of Rings the player drops when taking damage varies between games. In most cases, the player will drop all of them when taking damage, while in other games, only a portion of them will be dropped. The Rings' scattering pattern also varies in many later games, like in Sonic Rush where they bounce farther away the more hits the player takes. However, the player will not usually lose Rings if the playable character possesses any type of Shield and/or invincibility.

In several games, fewer "recoverable" Rings are displayed on-screen when they are dropped than the number actually lost. While this amount varies, the maximum is usually around twenty; fewer are dropped in games on the Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear, about fifty are dropped in Sonic Rush, and about thirty-two in all the episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. Regardless, it is impossible for the player to recover all their Rings when they drop them, unless they only carry a few of them.

Rings are normally earned by picking them up from the levels, but they can also be earned in other ways, depending on the game. Various games has Super Rings and similar power-ups which grant multiple Rings, Badniks in Sonic Advance 3 release Rings upon defeat, and completing Action Stages in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) give Rings for the Town Stages as awards. Many Zone gimmicks can as well reward the player with Rings. Once the player collects a hundred Rings, the player is usually awarded with an extra life and even sometimes with another one after collecting two hundred Rings. Likewise, the player earns points or sometimes continues by collecting Rings. The player can also complete certain requirements for unlocking extra features by obtaining Rings. Collecting and holding fifty Rings in several games will summon Star Circles or Giant Rings that lead to Special Stages, and in other games collecting enough Rings when passing checkpoints in the Special Stages will grant a Chaos Emerald.

Aside from the aforementioned cases, the Rings serve other purposes. In the various games, they have been used as currency in Shops as exchange for items, payment to unlock special moves in gameplay, or assist with moves such as the Boost or Light Speed Dash. Rings are as well essential to fueling a Super State or similar forms of transformations (which in many cases can be activated after collecting fifty Rings). While in this state, the player's Ring count will typically decrease steadily, and once it reaches zero, the playable character reverts back to their normal state.

Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit)
In their first appearance in Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit), all the player's Rings will be scattered when taking damage. Additional Rings can be found inside Super Ring Video Monitors. Collecting 100 or 200 Rings grant an extra life, and each Ring held adds 100 points to the player's score at the end of an Act.

Holding fifty Rings at the end of the first two Acts of each Zone summons the Giant Ring above the Goal Plate that lead to the different Special Stages. Rings are also found in the Special Stages, where they give the player points, a Continue when collecting fifty of them, and an extra life when collecting 100 of them.

Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit)
In Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit), Rings share many of their attributes from their 16-bit counterpart. This includes the player losing all their Rings when taking damage. Additionally, the player can get extra Rings by breaking Super Ring video monitors. However, after earning an One-Up by collecting 100 Rings, the player's Ring count will reset to zero. Also, when Sonic takes damage, not all Rings are scattered. Instead, only two Rings are scattered, which immediately vanish. As such, when the player drops Rings in this game, they become irretrievable. Usually, Rings are not found in the third Act of each Zone. The Bonus Plate also rewards the player with ten extra Rings when they get the Ring panel. By holding over fifty Rings at the end of each Act, the player enters the game's Special Stage where a huge amount of Rings lie scattered about and can be collected for extra lives.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)
In Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit), the Rings' mechanics are the same as in the original Sonic the Hedgehog. The player will drop all their Rings when taking damage, and collecting 100 or 200 Rings gives an One-Up. Likewise, at the end of an Act, the player receives 100 points for each Ring held. Also, in addition to monitors with Super Rings, the game also features Casino Night Zone which has the slot machine gimmick which rewards the player with different amounts of Rings (or takes some away) depending on the slot combinations. If the player manages to collect all Rings in an Act and finish said Act without losing any, the player receives a Perfect Bonus worth 50,000 points.

When the player has both Sonic and Tails out, only Sonic can lose Rings from damage. Tails can collect Rings, but both him and Sonic share the same Ring count. In the game's multiplayer mode, both playable characters can collect Rings for their own respective score. The total score after these races partially depends on how many Rings each player has.

By obtaining fifty Rings, the player can make the Star Circle appear when passing a Star Post to enter the Special Stages with. Here, the player has to collect a certain amount of Rings along stage's route within different sections to get a Chaos Emerald. Inside the Special Stages however, both Sonic and Tails can lose ten Rings when they hit a bomb. After getting all seven Chaos Emeralds as Sonic, the player can collect at least fifty Rings to transform into Super Sonic. When using super transformation however, the player's Ring count will drop one Ring per second until the Act is completed or the player runs out of Rings and the super transformation ends.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (8-bit)
In Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (8-bit), Rings function like in the previous 8-bit installment. This includes the player earning a 1-Up every time they collect 100 Rings, the player losing all the Rings they hold when taking damage, and the player's Ring count restarting from zero after getting 100 Rings. Like before, the player can also earn extra Rings by opening Super Ring Monitors. However, unlike in the previous game, the player can pick up Rings after dropping them. Also, at the end of the first two Acts of each Zone, the Bonus Panel will reward the player with ten extra Rings if they get the Ring panel. However, Rings are not featured in the third Act of each Zone.

SegaSonic the Hedgehog
In SegaSonic the Hedgehog, Rings are used to fill the playable characters' Health Gauges rather than protecting against damage. When the player completes the stage with over 50% of the Ring score, they are rewarded with a Ring Bonus and a pre-amplified Health Gauge.

Sonic the Hedgehog CD
In Sonic the Hedgehog CD, the Rings' mechanics are the same as in the previous main installments. This includes the Rings granting a 1-Up after the player collects 100 of them, all the Rings a playable character hold being dropped when taking damage, and each Ring adding 100 points to the player's score at the end of each Zone. One can also earn extra Rings by breaking Super Ring monitors. Numerous Rings can also be found inside the ceilings or behind walls which can only be collected by entering another timeline of the Zones with the Time Warp Plates. In addition, if the player is holding at least fifty Rings at the end of the first and second Zone of each Round, it will summon the Giant Ring, though which the player can enter the Special Stages. There, the player is sometimes rewarded with twenty Rings for destroying a UFO, or a multiple of twenty Rings if the player hits more than one Ring-yielding UFO in succession. The Special Stages also have Chopper Blocks that can take away the player's Rings. Also, when concluding a Special Stage, the player receives 200 points for each Ring collected at the score tally.

Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball
In both the 16 and 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball, the Rings' only function is to bestow points, granting 12,500 points for each collected. Collecting all Rings from the Level in the 16-bit version of the game summons the Star Circle that leads to the hidden Bonus Stages.

Sonic Chaos
In Sonic Chaos, Rings function much like in the 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2. This includes the player losing all their Rings when they take damage, the player earning extra Rings when opening a Super Ring video monitor, the player being able to recollect Rings when dropping them due to damage, and the playable character's Ring count restarting from zero every time they obtain 100 Rings.

If the player collects 100 Rings as Sonic, he will instantly be warped to a Special Stage. Special Stages in this game have both regular Rings and sometimes Giant Rings, the latter which grants 10 regular Rings each. Within the Special Stages, the player will earn an Extra Life every time they collect 100 Rings. Because Tails is unable to enter Special Stages, he instead earns an Extra Life from getting 100 Rings. Also, each Ring held adds 10 points to the player's score at the end of an Act.

At the end of the first two Acts of each Zone, the Bonus Plate will reward the player with ten extra Rings if they get the Ring panel. However, the third Act of each Zone has Rings spread out in certain places to prevent protection during boss battles.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles
In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, its add-on continuation Sonic & Knuckles and their lock-on version Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, Rings function like in the 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2. This includes the player getting a 1-Up for every 100 Rings they collect and dropping all their Rings when taking damage. Also, monitors in these games include Super Rings which grant extra Rings, and each Ring obtained adds 100 points to the player's score after completing an Act. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 also introduces the Lightning Shield which can pull in nearby Rings, though a Ring pulled toward the playable character will fly away from them if they are hit or grab a different shield just before the Ring is collected. In the Competition mode of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the player can only hold one Ring at a time which is generally used to defend against Self-Propelled Bombs.

In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, collecting fifty Rings and then passing a Starpost will summon a Star Circle that can warp the player to the Gumball Machine Bonus Stage. In Sonic & Knuckles on the other hand, collecting fifty or more Rings and then passing a Star Post will summon a Star Circle that can take the player to the Glowing Sphere Stage, while holding 20-49 Rings when passing a Star Post will call forth a Star Circle that leads to the Slot Machine Stage. In the locked-on version, all three types of Bonus Stages can be unlocked in the same case with the right amount of Rings: the Slot Machine Stage with 20-34 Rings, the Glowing Sphere Stage with 35-49 Rings, and the Gumball Machine with fifty or more Rings. The Glowing Sphere- and Gumball Machine Bonus Stages in particular feature gray Gumballs, which grant ten Rings each. Meanwhile, the Slot Machine Stage normally includes slot machine gimmicks that, like in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, will grant Rings when getting the right formations.

In Special Stages, Rings can also be found. Collecting fifty Rings in a Special Stage grants a Continue and collecting all Rings in a Special Stage gives a Perfect Bonus. Also, if the player collects blue Spheres from the edges of sphere clusters, all the spheres will turn into Rings.

Once all Chaos Emeralds and/or Super Emeralds are collected, the Giant Rings used to access the Special Stage grant fifty Rings when touched instead of transporting the player to a Special Stage. Also, when holding at least fifty after getting all the Chaos Emeralds/Super Emeralds, the player can turn Sonic into Super/Hyper Sonic, Knuckles into Super/Hyper Knuckles, or Tails into Super Tails. When using these transformation however, the player's Ring count will drop one Ring per second until the Act is completed or the player runs out of Rings and their transformation ends.

Noticeably, when beginning the The Doomsday Zone, the player starts out with fifty Rings in their possession.

Sonic Drift
In Sonic Drift, Rings are spread out over all the race tracks. After the player collects at least two Rings, they can perform the character's Special Power by pressing up on. The player will as well lose a Ring by driving into obstacles or by getting hit by Mines.

Sonic Drift 2
In Sonic Drift 2, Rings can be found along the different race track. After the player obtains least two Rings (three if playing as Metal Sonic), they will be able to trigger the playable character's Special Power by pressing up on. The player will also lose a Ring whenever they collide with an obstacle or a Mine.

Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble
In Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble, each Ring adds 100 points to the player's score after completing an Act. While collecting 100 Rings will grant a 1-UP, it keeps the Ring count from increasing further. This game is also the first in the Sonic the Hedgehog series where the player does not lose all their Rings when taking damage; instead they only drop thirty Rings in each instance of damage. Also, getting the Ring panel on the Bonus Panel grants ten extra Rings.

To enter the game's Special Stages, the player must hold fifty Rings while breaking a Chaos Emerald Monitor in order to open a Star Circle into the Special Stage. Additionally, Rings are spread out in the Special Stages' 2D Stages and 3D Stages. In the 2D Stages, Rings can be collected in order to earn additional 1-UPs like in regular Zones, and in the 3D Stages it is required that the player collects a certain amount of Rings to get to the boss fight with Nack.

Sonic the Hedgehog's Gameworld
In the Japanese version of Sonic the Hedgehog's Gameworld, Rings are featured in the "Slot Machine" and "Poker Game" minigames. Here, the player can put bets by inserting Rings. Also, in the "Roulette Game" minigame, getting one of five images that show the Ring symbol doubles the amount of points. None of these minigames are featured in the international version.

In the "Sonic vs. Robotnik" minigame, attacks have been altered in the international versions to both Sonic and Robotnik tossing Rings at each other, depending on what picture the game randomly selects.

Knuckles' Chaotix
in Knuckles' Chaotix, the Rings' mechanics are slightly different. While the playable characters will drop all their Rings when taking damage, the Rings will scatter from the immediate propinquity after being dropped, meaning the player can only recover a few of them. In this game, both the player and Combi Partner can lose Rings when taking damage, although only the Combi Partner can drop one Ring at a time in a 1-player game. In a 2-player game however, both characters will drop all their Rings when taking damage. The player can also call their Combi Partner back to his position, though at the costs of ten Rings. The Ring count can also become negative if the player uses the call command without sufficient funds. Also, after completing an Act, the player receives 100 points on the result screen for each Ring currently held. If the player holds a negative number of Rings on them however, that number multiplied by 100 points will be subtracted from the player's score.

If the player takes damage with no Rings (or a negative count), they will temporarily lose their Combi Partner. In a 2-player game, the first character to take damage while both are out of Rings leaves the screen. Should the player take damage with no Rings and no partner, or call the Combi Partner back to the point that their Ring count reaches negative 99 or lower, they will be dropped back into the World Entrance, as the game does not use the life system.

Badniks in this game are powered by normal-sized, synthesized Dark Rings, which will disintegrate when released and cannot be collected. The game also features Super Rings in Monitors, along with the exclusive Combine Ring power-up which combines all the player's Rings into a single one. When taking damage with this power-up in play, the player will only drop one large Ring which will fully restore the player's Ring count when picked up. However, if left untouched, this Ring will eventually implode and release all the Rings.

To access the game's Bonus Stages, the player must obtain at least twenty Rings and find the hidden Giant Ring in the Act. To access one of the Special Stages instead, the player must hold at least fifty Rings when arriving at the end of an Act to summon a Giant Ring that leads there. Noticeably, when entering the Special Stages/Bonus Stages, the player's Ring count from when they entered them will be carried over to them. This means, for example, that if the player held 120 Rings when entering a Special Stage/Bonus Stage, then they will start a Bonus Stage/Special Stage out with 120 Rings in their possession. In addition, while in a Bonus Stage/Special Stage, the player's Ring count serves as the level timer, which will decrease by one Ring each second; should it run out, the player will be expelled from these Stages. Also, there are Rings spread across the Special Stages and Super Ring blocks floating in the Bonus Stages. Collecting them will extend the player's time limit in these Stages. Both the Special Stages and Bonus Stages also have hazards that each will subtrack ten Rings from the player's total when the playable characters collide with them.

Tails' Skypatrol
In Tails' Skypatrol, Tails wields a single Ring in his hand which he can use as a boomerang-based weapon in gameplay. This Ring has multiple functions, such as destroying breakable daruma blocks or enemies, flipping switches, and latching onto poles or bars.

Tails Adventure
In Tails Adventure, Rings are used to replenish Tails' health meter rather that protecting from attacks. The player is unable to recover dropped Rings after taking damage, and the amount of Rings Tails loses when taking damage depends on the severity of the damage he receives. If the health meter reaches zero, the game ends.

The player starts the game with a health meter that only contains ten Rings. However, collecting a Chaos Emerald will increase the health meter by ten Rings, except for the last one, which will increase the health meter to a maximum of 99 Rings. Rings usually drop out of breakable walls and different defeated enemies, but can also, in very rare cases, be found in certain sections of the Stage. One of the game's usable items, Fang, can also make every defeated enemy drop a Ring.

Sonic the Fighters
In Sonic the Fighters, Rings are spread everywhere from the playable characters whenever they get hit by an attack. However, they are only animations and thus have no impact on the gameplay.

Sonic Labyrinth
In Sonic Labyrinth, Rings grant an extra life after collecting 100 of them. They only appear in long string formations in the Scroll Zones of the fourth round of each Zone, where they are used to protect Sonic during boss battles. Despite that, Rings cannot be retrieved after dropping them when taking damage. They also appear in the game's Bonus Stage where every regular Ring is worth twenty-five Rings.

Sonic 3D Blast
In Sonic 3D Blast, Rings work like in previous main installments. This includes the player losing all their Rings when taking damage and earning extra Rings when opening a Super Ring TV. Collecting 100 Rings also grants an Extra Life and each Ring held at the end of an Act adds 100 points to the player's score.

In the first two Acts of most Zones, Tails and Knuckles can be found standing around. When bringing fifty Rings to one of them, the player will be transported to one of the game's Special Stages. Even if the player does not have enough Rings, Tails and Knuckles can deposit them, while the player finds more. In Special Stages, the player has to collect a certain amount of Rings within different sections to ultimately receive a Chaos Emerald. In the Sega Saturn version of Special Stages in particular, there are plates that reduce the required Ring amount required for the sections of these Stages' routes. If the player can jump through this plate, it will grant extra Rings. Oppositely, there are as well Bombs in the Special Stages that will make the player lose ten Rings when they hit them.

Sonic Blast
In Sonic Blast, Rings work much like in Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble. When taking damage, the player loses ten Rings, and collecting 100 Rings grants an Extra Life, although it restarts the Ring count from zero. The player can also open Super Ring TVs to receive extra Rings. Bonus Panels also grant different amount of Rings depending on the playable character; its Ring panel grants ten extra Rings, while both the Sonic and Knuckles panels grant thirty Rings if playing as the respective character. Each Ring held by the playable character is also worth 100 points at the end-of-Act tally.

In each Special Stage, the player has to collect fifty Rings to receive the reward in the Special Stage (which can be either a Chaos Emerald or an Extra Life).

Sonic Jam
In Sonic Jam, Rings are spread around the hub area known as Sonic World. There are also Time Attack Games, with three challenges in particular centering around collecting a certain amount of Rings around Sonic World and then returning to the Jump Stand-looking switch within the shortest time.

Sonic R
In Sonic R, Rings are spread out on the racing tracks in string formations for the playable characters to collect. They can also be obtained from Item Panels, which grant either five, ten or twenty Rings.

In this game, Rings are used to unlock special features while racing. By automatically trading a certain amount of collected Rings when approaching a certain gimmick, the player can unlock Ring Gates that lead to hidden Chaos Emeralds or detours, or use Accelerators for a short burst of speed. Dr. Robotnik and the Eggrobo can also use Homing Missiles on rival racers by paying at least ten Rings for each shot.

Sonic Adventure
In Sonic Adventure, Rings function much like in earlier main installments; they grant extra life after collecting 100 of them and each Ring adds 100 points to the score at the end of an Action Stage. Item Boxes with 5 Rings, 10 Rings and Random Rings also appear which grant multiple amount of Rings, and when Knuckles use Dig, Rings can pop out the ground. There is also the Magnetic Shield power-up that can draw in Rings. Sonic Adventure also introduces the recurring Light Speed Dash move which lets Sonic dash along strings of Rings. Some switches also summon shinning Rings, which can be used for the Light Speed Dash, to travel obligatory paths. Like in the 2D games, the player will also drop all their Rings when taking damage, resulting in the Rings being scattered in a circular pattern, much like in the aforementioned games. For Sonic, Tails, Amy and E-102 Gamma in particular, B-rank missions in Action Stages require the player to finish with a certain amount of Rings.

Rings have different purposes in the various Action Stages. Sonic's version of Casinopolis, where the player has to collect at least 400 Rings to reach the Chaos Emerald/Capsule in a chamber, has several gimmicks related to gathering Rings. Here, there are both special slot machines that drop Rings when bouncing on them, and traditional ones on the 777 Slots Pinball table that grant different amount of Rings (or take them away) depending on the formations. There are also two pinball tables where the player has to gather 100 Rings to be transported back to the main hall or fall into Casinopolis's sewer section. Hitting a Bumper on pinball tables also grants one Ring, and on the Card & Pinball table, there are cards that grant different amounts of Rings as well. Additionally, there are floating crowns that drop Rings after scoring on the bowling lane in Twinkle Park, and the Hanging Bells in Speed Highway drop Rings when hit.

In Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut, there are several missions based around collecting Rings in certain situations. Also, in the same version of the game, the player will bank the Rings they have after clearing each Action Stage, which can be used as currency to purchase items at the Black Market.

During Super Sonic's fight with Perfect Chaos, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat.

Sonic the Hedgehog Pocket Adventure
In Sonic the Hedgehog Pocket Adventure, Rings function like in the main 2D games. In addition to the player dropping all their Rings when taking damage, getting 100 Rings grants a 1UP. Also, each Ring held at the end of each Act adds 100 points to the player's score.

Cosmic Casino Zone features slot machines which grant different amount of Rings (or takes them away from the player), depending on the slot combinations. Item boxes with Super Rings also appear.

To enter a Special Stage, the player must have fifty Rings on hand at the end of first Act of a Zone to summon a Giant Ring leading there. Like in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the player must collect certain amounts of Rings within different sections of the Special Stages to get a Chaos Emerald. However, in the Special Stages there are bombs that each will subtract ten Rings from the player's Ring count when collided with. Also, in the game's Advanced Time Trial mode, the player must clear an Act with at least fifty Rings to record the score. Additionally, in the Duel mode "Get the Rings", two players compete by collecting Rings.

During Super Sonic's fight with the final boss, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat.

Sonic Shuffle
In Sonic Shuffle, playable characters can win or lose Rings by participating in Mini-Events or Mini-Games. When a game ends, all collected Rings are banked in a score tally to be used to buy art and special features from the Sonic Room. Rings also affect the player's overall rank after clearing a board.

On every board, there are two spaces: blue Plus Ring Spaces and red Minus Ring Spaces, which namely adds or subtracts three Rings from the player's score. When Precioustones appear on the game board, the amount of the Ring gained or lost is doubled on both spaces, and if the player continues landing on either spaces for consecutive turns, it will multiply the Ring amount up to five times. If the player lands on too many Minus Ring Spaces or Plus Ring Spaces, Dr. Eggman will activate Light Mode or Darkness Mode, which turns all Minus Ring Spaces into Plus Ring Spaces and vice versa.

In Battle Spaces, the player loses Rings if they do not pick up a card of higher value than the opponent's. Many regular and "Accident" Mini-Games reward the winner with the most Rings, while those on the 2nd and 3rd place lose most of their Rings, and the fourth player earns nothing. During a game, Rings are also used as currency to buy Force Jewels from Jewel Shop Spaces. If the player picks up Dr. Eggman Card, one of the doctor's roulette choices involves taking all the player's or the opponents' Rings. Also, when stepping on the Void Precioustone Space, the player can pay fifty Rings to have Void steal a Precioustone from an opponent and give it to the player.

Sonic Adventure 2
In Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, Rings appear in strings and clusters. Collecting 100 Rings grants an Extra Life, and each Ring adds ten points to the score right after collecting it. Additionally, the player will drop all their Rings when taking damage and is able to use the Light Speed Dash on trails of Rings. Collecting Rings also affects the total score and rank at the end of each stage though in Mission 1, 4 and 5 of most stages, collecting every Ring in the stage awards an automatic A-Rank. Like in Sonic Adventure, different amount Rings can be earned from 5 Rings, 10 Rings and 20 Rings that are contained inside Item Boxes and Floating Item Boxes. The game also features the Magnetic Shield power-up that can draw in Rings.

In stages for Sonic, Shadow, Knuckles, Rouge, Tikal, Chaos, Metal Sonic and Amy, Rings protect normally the player from taking damage. However, Tails, Dr. Eggman, the Chao Walker and the Dark Chao Walker use Rings to refill their Health Gauge, although ten Rings only restore a small portion of it.

Passing Point Markers with a certain amount of Rings grants the player the following items:

Pressing switches or using the Mystic Melody at Ancient Ruins sometimes summons Ring strings for the Light Speed Dash. In this game, most stages also have a second mission that requires the player to collect 100 Rings in the stage.

In Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, all Rings collected from a cleared stage are used as currency to purchase items at the Black Market. In the original and expanded multiplayer mode in Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, collecting different amounts of Rings also enables the playable character to use special attacks against their opponent.

During Super Sonic and Super Shadow's fight with the Finalhazard, the player will start out with fifty Rings in each playable character's possession. However, the player's Ring counts will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or one of the characters runs out of Rings, which will result in the playable character's defeat. However, while using one of the playable characters against the Finalhazard, the other will be on standby and slowly regenerate their Rings.

Sonic Advance
In Sonic Advance, the Rings follow the traditional mechanics they exhibit in the earlier main installments. This includes the player dropping all their Rings when the playable character sustains damage, the player receiving an Extra Try for every 100 Ring they collect, and the player receiving 100 points on the result screen for each Ring held at the end of an Act. Also, the player can open 5 Rings, 10 Rings and ? Rings boxes in order to earn multiple Rings. The game also features the Magnetic Barrier power-up that can draw in Rings. In addition, the Rings the player collects in the main scenario of the game will be amassed in the Tiny Chao Garden where the player can use them as currency to buy fruit and other objects for raising Chao. In the Tiny Chao Garden, Rings can also be obtained through playing minigames.

In the Special Stages, the player has to collect a certain amount of Rings within different sections of each stage to earn a Chaos Emerald. While in the Special Stages however, the playable character can lose ten Rings when they hit an obstacle. Additionally, in the Single-Game Pak Play's "Collect the Rings" mode, up to four players compete by collecting Rings.

During Super Sonic's fight with Super Egg Robot in The Moon Zone, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat. Also, when playing in The Moon Zone, many of the Super Egg Robot's trap pods contain Rings, which Super Sonic can collect by charging into them at the right time.

Sonic Advance 2
In Sonic Advance 2, the Rings work much like they did in the previous title. This means that the player drops all the Rings they hold when their playable character gets hurt, that the player gets a 1-Up for every 100 Ring they collect, and that the player is rewarded 100 points on the result screen for each Ring they hold at the end of an Act. Also, the player can open 5 Ring Bonus, 10 Ring Bonus and Random Ring Bonus boxes in order to earn multiple Rings. The game also features the Ring Magnet power-up that can draw in Rings. In addition, the Rings the player amasses in the main scenario of the game are transferred to the Tiny Chao Garden where the player can use them as currency to buy fruit and other objects for raising Chao. In the Tiny Chao Garden, Rings can also be obtained through playing minigames.

Because Sonic Advance 2 is more fast-paced compared to previous games, Rings will affect each playable character's ability to accelerate in gameplay: the more Rings the player has, the faster their character gains speed.

When entering one of the Special Stages, the player has to collect 300 Rings within two minutes. Accomplish this, and a Chaos Emerald will be rewarded. Exclusively to the Special Stages, the player can collect Rings consecutively to form combos, which can double, triple, quadruple and so fourth the Rings the player obtains. There are also red and black pods called Extra Rings (エクストラリング) scattered around the Special Stages, with each one granting five extra Rings. Additionally, in the game's Single-Game Pak Mode, up to four players compete by collecting Rings. During Super Sonic's fight with the final boss in True Area 53, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat.

Sonic Advance 3
In Sonic Advance 3, the Rings have the same mechanics they exhibited in the previous two Sonic Advance titles. As such, the player will drop all their Rings when their playable character receives damage, be awarded with a 1-Up for every 100 Ring they collect, and earn 100 points for each Ring held at the end of an Act. Also, the player can open 5 Ring Bonus, 10 Ring Bonus and Random Ring Bonus Boxes in order to earn multiple Rings. The game also features the Ring Magnet power-up that can draw in Rings. In addition, all the Badniks in this game are powered by Rings; destroying a Badnik will release a single Ring that the player can collect. The game also introdues the Bu-bu, a Badnik that can absorb the player's Rings when they drop them nearby it.

In the Special Stages of Sonic Advance 3, the player's objective is to collect a certain amount of Rings that appear throughout the stages within different sections to earn a Chaos Emerald. However, there are both bombs and Badniks in the Special Stages that can make the player lose Rings. The latter, however, will grant extra Rings when destroyed with a Spin Jump. There are also gates in the Special Stages that, when flown through, allows the player to double the amount of Rings the player obtains for a short time.

During Super Sonic's fight with the Ultimate G-merl in Nonaggression, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat.

Sonic Pinball Party
In Sonic Pinball Party, Rings appear in the Basic or Story mode of the game. Collected Rings are used for purchasing eggs in Chao Garden mode or as stakes in the gambling minigames in Casinopolis.

Rings appear in all the stages on the Sonic-themed pinball table. By shooting the ball through the Ring Loop in the right upper corner four times and then into the Feature Hole, the player can activate Ring Mode, which will make Rings appear around the table which are each worth a huge amount points. Ring Mode lasts for two minutes and every Ring collected will respawn.

In X-Zone, the player has to gather at least 500 Rings and defeat Dr. Eggman to access the Moon Zone, the final stage on the Sonic pinball table.

Sonic Battle
In Sonic Battle, users of the Sonic Drive attack will throw a temporary Ring out of nowhere, which they will then Spin Attack towards, damaging all foes in their path.

Sonic Heroes
In Sonic Heroes, Rings function much like in Sonic Adventure 2. Collecting 100 Rings grants a 1 UP and each Ring adds ten points to the player's score right after collecting it. Collecting Rings also serves as one of the ways to charge up the Team Blast Gauge. In addition, the player drops all their Rings when their playable character takes damage. The player can also use Ring trails in this game to perform the Light Dash.

In this game, Rings power-ups can be obtained from Item Boxes, Floating Item Boxes, and Target Switches. Bouncing on all three circles on a wide spring also grants a Rings power-up.

Casino Park and BINGO Highway feature singular and traditional slot machines, which grant Rings or take them away, depending on their formation. BINGO Highway also features the Bingo gimmick, where the player can collect neon chips along the routes to fill out the bingo grids and earn huge Ring bonuses. In regards to enemies in this game, the Egg Magicians can drain Rings from the player. Also, many secondary missions for Team Rose, and the missions for Team Chaotix in Casino Park, involves clearing the stage with a required amount of Rings.

One of the game's multiplayer modes, the Ring Race, involves collecting more Rings than the opponent within the time limit.

During Team Super Sonic's fight with Metal Overlord, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat.

Sega Superstars
In Sega Superstars, the Rings appear in Sonic's Speed Chute minigame, which involves the player directing Sonic/Shadow down a Sonic Heroes-esque Special Stage. In this minigame, one of the objectives is to collect as many Rings as possible along the chute in order to get the highest possible score. However, colliding with a spiked Bomb in the chute will make the player loses some Rings (unless the player assumes their Super State by collecting all the Chaos Emeralds). Other than that, the Rings do not exhibit most of their common gameplay characteristics, such as granting 1-Ups when collecting 100 of them, the player being able to pick up dropped Rings, and the Ring count decreasing when using super transformation.

In Sonic's version of the minigame, the player will lose ten Rings when colliding with a Bomb. Furthermore, on Sonic's result screen, each Ring in Sonic's possession will add ten points to the player's score. In Shadow's version of the minigame on the other hand, the player will lose fifty Rings when colliding with a Bomb. In return, each Ring Shadow holds at the end of the minigame will grant the player 15 points.

Sega Superstars Tennis
In the console version of Sega Superstars Tennis, Rings play a pivotal role in several Sonic the Hedgehog-related missions in Superstars Mode. In those missions, Rings behave much like they do in the Sonic games. This include the Rings protecting the playable character from defeat, the player dropping a portion of their Rings when taking damage, and the player's dropped Rings fading away after a while if not picked up. The player can also open 10 Rings power-ups, which appear in certain missions, in order to earn extra Rings.

In gameplay, the player typically has to collect as many Rings as possible while dodging damage-inducing projectiles in order to earn the highest score possible. Such missions have a set Ring amount for the player to collect in order to clear them, but the player can exceed that limit in order to earn higher scores. Out on the field, Rings can be found on the tennis courts where they usually appear in different sets and formations. Also, once a set of Rings have been collected by the player, a new set will appear. In the "Ring Chase" mission though, a new Ring will appear whenever the player collects one. In addition, if the player does not collect a Ring quick enough, it will eventually fade away on its own.

Certain missions may use the Rings in unique ways. The "Collect Moving Rings" mission has Rings that move around on the tennis court; the "Collect Rings in Order" and "Ring Chase" missions have the player pick up Rings in a certain order since any Ring picked up out of order is not added to the player's Ring count; the "Chaos Emerald Chase" mission has the player collect all the Rings on the field in order to earn Chaos Emeralds; and the "Score With Rings" mission lets the player earn extra points from collecting Rings if they collect Rings in quick succession.

Sonic Jump (2005)
In Sonic Jump, Rings work much like they do in the main installments in the Sonic series. This include the Rings granting an Extra Life after fifty of them have been collected and the player receiving 100 points for each Ring held at the end of each Act for their total score. Though the player also drops unrecoverable Rings when taking damage in this game, the player only loses ten Rings for each instance of damage.

Rings in Sonic Jump are scattered around in cluster or trail formations. If the player completes an Act with at least fifty Rings in their possession, they will earn a fragment of a Chaos Emerald. By completing all Acts with at least fifty Rings held in each of them, the player will unlock the Bonus Zone and the real ending of the game.

Sonic Jump 2
In Sonic Jump 2, which is essentially a remake of the original Sonic Jump, the Rings behave exactly like they did in the original Sonic Jump title.

Sonic Jump (2012)
In the 2012 remake of Sonic Jump, the Rings' functionality is expanded further. In the Acts though, they just serve to protect the playable character from losing a try. This means the Rings do not grant the player an extra life when the player collects 100 of them, nor can Rings be retrieved when dropping them. Also, unlike the original Sonic Jump, the player drops all their Rings when taking damage. However, the Rings in a player's possession can be stored outside gameplay by completing an Act in Story Mode or losing the game in Arcade Mode. Within Acts, the player can also find Ring banks, which resemble stereotypical safes, which can bank the player's Rings when they touch them. In addition, because the game uses the free-to-play concept, the player can buy storable Rings through microtransactions. Stored Rings can be used as currency to unlock additional playable characters, purchase/upgrade power-ups or buy wallpapers in the Shop.

The game also has two TV power-ups centering around Rings. Ring Time temporarily turns all enemies within range into collectable Rings and the Magnet can pull in Rings.

Sonic Jump Fever
In Sonic Jump Fever, the Rings have very few of their standard mechanics. Though they can be collected in the Zones, they do not protect the player from losing a try; take damage once and the playable character will be defeated, regardless of the Rings they carry. In return, the player will not lose any Rings when taking damage and when restarting their climb. Also, when triggering Fever mode in a Zone, the player will fly through a sublevel where strings of Rings can be collected. The Rings the player collects over the course of a Zone will later be stored when concluding said Zone. Stored Rings can be used as currency by the player to upgrade the playable characters' power-ups, purchase searches for Chao in the Chao Forest, and buy certain Booster items.

Certain Chao equipped to the playable character can help the player gather Rings in Zones. Any Neutral type Chao can help the player collect Rings, and any Hero type Chao will reveal hidden Rings for the player to collect.

Aside from collecting them in the Zones, the player can acquire Rings in other ways. The player can also earn Rings from the Prize Wheel or by logging into Facebook. Also, for every Zone, there are preset leaderboards with randomly generated scores from the game's cast. By scoring higher than the bottom seven characters, the player will be rewarded 600 Rings when the Zone changes. By scoring in the top 3, the player will be rewarded with 1000 Rings and the price for coming in first position are 1600 Rings. In addition, because the game uses the free-to-play concept, the player can buy storable Rings through microtransactions.

The game also has two TV power-ups centering around Rings. Ring Time temporarily turns all enemies within range into collectable Rings and the Magnet can pull in Rings.

Shadow the Hedgehog
In Shadow the Hedgehog, Rings function much like in Sonic Heroes. This includes each Ring adding ten points to the player's Normal score when picked up and the player being able to use the Light Speed Dash on strings of Rings. However, simply collecting 100 Rings does not award the player with a 1-Up this time. In addition, the playable character only drops ten Rings in this game when taking damage.

Like in Sonic Adventure 2, touching a Save Point with a certain amount of Rings will reward Shadow with a specific power-up:

Like in the previous main installment, the player can obtain extra Rings from Rings power-ups, which can be found in Item Boxes and Floating Item Boxes. Shadow the Hedgehog also features the Magnetic Barrier power-up that can draw in Rings. The game also introduces transparent Rings placed along regular ones or in trails. These Rings cannot be collected normally, nor will they grant points, but they still enable the Light Speed Dash.

The Hero Mission in Circus Park involves collecting 400 Rings to complete the Stage. In the same Stage, hopping through fire hoops or hitting bells will grant Rings. Also, when the player gets the Ring Fever combination on the Egg Dealer's slot-machine mechanism, Eggman's Rings will spray out in the center of the arena.

The Rings are also mentioned in the game's storyline. When entering Circus Park, Tails will mention that Dr. Eggman used Rings from all over the world to built Circus Park. he then enlists Shadow's aid to recover those stolen Rings, initiating the Hero mission for Circus Park.

Sonic Rush
In Sonic Rush, Rings work almost like in the Sonic Advance games. Every 100th Ring collected grants a 1 Up and each Ring held by the playable character adds ten points to the player's score when completing an Act. Also, when taking damage, the playable character will drop all their Rings. However, Sonic Rush is the first game where the dispersion of the Rings occurring when taking damage becomes greater for each hit, making it harder to recover them. The game also includes 5 Ring Bonuses and Random Ring Bonuses, which can be obtained from both Item Boxes and Floating Item Boxes, and the Magnetic Barrier that can draw in Rings.

In the Special Stages of Sonic Rush, the player has to collect a required amount of Rings within the stages' different sections in order to get a Chaos Emerald. Along these routes, there are both regular Rings and metallic Rings with an "5" in their middle on the edges of the routes which grant five Rings each. There are also Dash Panels which guide Sonic through strings of Rings automatically. Also, if the player hits the Trick Spring, it will send Sonic into mid-air where the player can complete a Real-Time Interaction to earn five, ten, or twenty extra Rings, depending on how quick the player is. Also, destroying Battle Flappers grant three Rings each. However, there are also hazards in the Special Stages that can take Rings away from the player.

In terms of Ring-related gimmicks, Dead Line features octagon-shaped devices that will suck the player's Rings in should they drop them near them.

During Super Sonic and Burning Blaze's fight with the Egg Salamander in Exception, the player will start out with fifty Rings in each playable character's possession. However, the player's Ring counts will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or one of the characters runs out of Rings, which will result in the playable character's defeat.

Sonic Rush Adventure
In Sonic Rush Adventure, Rings exhibit many of the same functions they had in Sonic Rush. Every 100th Ring collected grants a 1UP and the Rings collected over the course of an Act can give 1,000-5,000 points (which depends on the Rings collected) on an Act's result screen. Also, when taking damage, the playable character will drop all their Rings, with the dispersion of the Rings occurring in these distances becoming greater for each hit, like in Sonic Rush. The game also includes 5 Ring Bonuses and Random Ring Bonuses, which can be obtained from Item Boxes, and the Magnetic Barrier that can draw in Rings.

In the Sea Stages in Sonic Rush Adventure, Rings lie on the water surfaces along with Random Ring Bonus Item Boxes. In Sea Stages, each Ring grants 100 points. In addition, collecting Rings in these stages fills the Boost Gauge and keeps the Combo Count going while using the Wave Cyclone or Aqua Blast. Rings can also be picked up from far away using the stylus while piloting the Ocean Tornado and Deep Typhoon. Also, shooting enemies or obstacles with said vessels grants four Rings each.

During Super Sonic and Burning Blaze's fight with the Egg Wizard in Deep Core, the player will start out with fifty Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in the playable characters' defeat.

Sonic Riders
In Sonic Riders, Rings do not protect the player from losing a try, as the game does not include defeats. In this game, Rings are scattered across all the tracks in formations. The player can also open Rings Item Boxes in order to receive extra Rings. The game also features the Magnetic Barrier power-up that can draw in Rings.

Out on the tracks, collecting Rings allows the player to increase their parameters and improve their attacks by leveling up; getting thirty Rings raises the player's level from one to two, and getting sixty Ring raises it from two to three. In case the playable character is attacked by another racer or they fall off the course however, the player will lose all their Rings and their level will reset to zero.

In Mission Mode, several missions center around collecting Rings within a time limit. Collecting enough Rings is often the key to earning high mission ranks.

When using the Chaos Emerald, Sonic will start out a race with thirty Rings in his possession, before transforming into Super Sonic. As Super Sonic, the player will be using Rings when performing attacks, the Air Boost and the Air Slide. In addition, the player's Ring count will be decreasing slowly over the course of a race until the player either finishes the race or runs out of Rings, which will result in Sonic reverting back to normal. However, collecting any amount of Rings after Sonic has reverted will turn him back into Super Sonic.

After the player clears a race, their accumulated Rings from the race will be saved. They can afterward be used as currency to purchase Extreme Gears from the Black Market.

Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
In Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity, Rings once again do not prevent the loss of a try since the Sonic Riders games do not include defeats. In this game, Rings are scattered across all the tracks in formations. The player can also open Rings Item Boxes in order to receive extra Rings.

While out racing, the player can collect Rings and use them as payments to activate their Extreme Gear's Gear Parts. The Magnetic Barrier Gear Part in particular can draw in nearby Rings. Different Gear Parts require different amounts of Rings to be activated though. Also, if the playable character is attacked by another racer or they fall off the course, the player will lose all their Rings.

In Mission Mode, there are as well several missions that focus on the playable characters collecting Rings.

When using the Chaos Emerald, Sonic will transform into Super Sonic whenever he collects even a single Ring. Once Sonic has transformed though, the player's Ring count will be decreasing slowly over the course of a race until the player either finishes the race or runs out of Rings, which will result in Sonic reverting back to normal. Also, whenever Super Sonic collects sixty Rings, he will automatically engage the Super Sonic Boost, which will make him burn through his Ring count much faster.

After the player clears a race, their accumulated Rings from the race will be saved. They can afterward be used as currency to purchase Extreme Gears from the Black Market.

Sonic Free Riders
In Sonic Free Riders, because the game does not include defeats, the Rings do not serve to protect the playable characters from losing a try. In this game, Rings are scattered across all the tracks in formations. The player can also open Rings Item Boxes or use the Ring Can power-up in order to receive extra Rings. The game also features the Ring Eater Gear Part that can draw in Rings.

In the racing gameplay, collecting Rings allows the player to increase their parameters by leveling up; getting thirty Rings raises the player's level from one to two, and getting sixty Ring raises it from two to three. In case the playable character takes damage or they fall off the course however, the player will lose all their Rings and their level will reset to zero.

In Sonic Free Riders, there are several missions that center around collecting certain amounts of Rings within a time limit. In such missions there are special Rings that can give multiple Rings instead of just one.

When using the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic will transform into Super Sonic whenever he collects thirty Rings. Also, when Kick Dashing, Super Sonic will engage the Super Sonic Boost, which will cause the player's Ring count to decrease slowly over the course of the race until the player either finishes the race or runs out of Rings, which will result in Sonic reverting back to normal.

After the player clears a race, their accumulated Rings from the race will be saved. They can afterward be used as currency to purchase Extreme Gears and Gear Parts from the Shop.

Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Rings have their standard attributes. They can as well be found in Action Stages, Town Missions, and occasionally Town Stages. In Town Missions in particular, collecting Rings may even be a part of the mission objective.

In this game, collecting a single Ring adds ten points to the player's score, while getting 100 gives a 1-Up. Like in several previous games, the player will also lose all their Rings when taking damage. In addition, after completing an Action Stage, the player gains 100 points for their total score for each Ring in their possession. Rings power-ups are also featured inside Item Boxes. In gameplay, the player can also use the Light Speed Dash as Sonic and Shadow to travel along trails of Rings. Sonic can also also unlock the Thunder Guard Custom Action that lets him draw in Rings.

Unlike in previous games, enemies like the Egg Gunner can fire rounds that only make the player drop one Ring per hit, without the player receiving invulnerability as a side-effect. Additionally, when completing Action Stages or Town Missions, the player is rewarded with a varying amount of Rings depending on the rank they receive:

All residual Rings from the Action Stage and Rank Bonuses will be deposited in the player's total Ring score, which can be used to purchase Level Up Items at Shops.

Sonic Rivals
In Sonic Rivals, Rings have many of their standard attributes and appear in either strings or cluster formations. However, they do not grant an extra life after 100 of them are collected because the game does not include a life system. Also, when taking damage, the player only loses ten Rings. After completing an Act, each Ring held by the playable characters adds 100 points to the player's total score.

When facing bosses in the game, the Rings in their arenas will respawn after being picked up. The game also features the Magnet Power-Up that can pull in Rings.

Sonic Rivals 2
In Sonic Rivals 2, Rings behave just like they did in Sonic Rivals. This means that they do not grant an extra life after 100 of them are collected (as the game does not use the life system) and that the player only loses ten Rings whenever they are injured. Also, like before, every Ring that the player holds when completing an Act will add 100 points to the player's final score. In gameplay, the Rings appear in either strings or cluster formations. Collecting them also helps fill the player's Signature Meter.

When facing bosses in the game, the Rings in their arenas will respawn after being picked up. The game also features the Magnet Power-Up that can pull in Rings.

Certain Zones in Sonic Rivals 2 require that the player has collected a certain amount of Rings, depending on the playable character, to finish a Act. Sonic Rivals 2 also features "Knock Out" and "Ring Battle" Acts: in "Knock Out", the player has to make the opponent drop all their Rings, and in "Ring Battle", the player has to collect more Rings than their opponent.

The Rings also play a role in the game's story. Knuckles and Rouge go in search of Rings to fuel their Emerald Detector, and Espio and Silver go looking for Rings to recharge Silver's ESP powers.

Sonic and the Secret Rings
In Sonic and the Secret Rings, Rings retain their standard functions. However, collecting 100 Rings does not grant the player an extra life as the game does not include a life system. Also, when taking damage, the playable character only loses twenty Rings. At the end of a Mission, the player will receive a Ring Bonus based on how many Rings the player has collected over the course of the Mission and the player's overall performance (which includes the number of times the player has taken damage, whether or not the player has been defeated, and whether or not the player failed the Mission).

In Missions, Rings appear normally and in string formations, and can be found inside clay cups or treasure boxes. The game also introduces Rich Rings that grant twenty Rings each. From the start of the game, the player can only carry fifty Rings at most. However, the player's Ring count limit increases as the player progresses and Sonic's level rises. The player can also equip Skills that let the player utilize special abilities and mechanics related to Rings. Those include:


 * Chain Bonus: Bonus experience is earned when collecting Rings in succession.
 * Collection Present: Limits the total number of Rings. When Rings reaches 100, experience is gained.
 * Power Restart: Gives additional Rings when restarting after defeat.
 * Ring Bonus: Adds addition Rings to counter at game start.
 * Ring Exchange: Each Ring collected counts as 2 Pearls.
 * Ring of Zero: When Ring Count is 0, the amount of experience gained increases.
 * Ring Saver: Reduces the number or Rings lost when damage is taken.
 * Soul Barrier : Soul Gauge increases when you lose Rings.
 * Sub C Devourer: When landing off a Jump Cancel, exp is gained but Rings are used.
 * Sub M-Grind: Maximum grind speed increases but gradually consumes Rings when in use.
 * Sub S Devourer : Soul Gauge increases when landing but Rings are consumed.
 * Sub S-Barrier: Increases Soul Gauge as Rings are used but greatly lowers defense.

Each World in the game also includes Missions involving collecting certain amounts of Rings or obtaining a specific number of Rings in quick succession.

Sonic and the Black Knight
In Sonic and the Black Knight, Rings are almost completely absent. While they retain their classic presence as the game's health system, they are in most Mission replaced with clusters of yellow fairies. This type of fairies grants the player Rings when they touch them, and will give the player a certain amount of Rings depending on the size of their clusters. In addition, yellow fairies do not appear as often as normal Rings do. However, both normal Rings and Rich Rings appear in the Legacy Missions. In those Missions, Rings appear normally in string formations. The game also features Ring Containers which grant one Ring each when broken.

In gameplay, Rings retain their standard mechanics. However, collecting 100 Rings does not grant the player an extra life as the game does not include a life system. Also, when taking damage, the playable character only loses twenty Rings. The player can also make use of Skills by equipping swords or combat styles that let the player utilize special abilities and mechanics related to Rings. Those include:


 * Crest of Wind: Increases running speed at a cost of 1 Ring per second.
 * Ring Bonus: Start with 5 rings.
 * Ring Present: Rings increase with each Soul Surge attack.
 * Ring Present+1: Rings increase with each Soul Surge attack.
 * Ring Present+2: Rings increase with each Soul Surge attack.
 * Ring Rescue: Rings increase based upon 'hit count.'
 * Ring Rescue+1: Rings increase based upon 'hit count.'
 * Ring Rescue+2: Rings increase based upon 'hit count.'
 * Soul Barrier: Soul Gauge increases whenever Rings decreased.
 * Soul Resurrection: Soul Gauge energy used for health when Rings are gone.

In different missions, the player can perform Acts of Chivalry, which involve the player trading some of their Rings for an item with townspeople by performing a Real-Time Interaction. Other Missions also involve the player giving a certain amount of Rings to townspeople, collecting specific amounts of Rings, and collecting enough Rings in quick succession.

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
In Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, Rings can be collected from trails or different formations around each of the game's overworlds; once a Ring has been collected, it will not respawn again unless the player deletes the current save profile and starts a new game. The player can see how many Rings they have collected from a particular area at the top of the screen. It also shows how many Rings that have been collected out of the total amount available in the area.

The player can use Rings as currency for purchasing items from Shops; Rings can also be obtained by selling items in Shops. If every party character get knocked out in a battle, the player can retry at the cost of some Rings. Also in battle, when the team flees or has to chase opponents, Rings can be found on the ground or in the air and can be collected.

Sonic Unleashed
In Sonic Unleashed, Rings are found in both the daytime and nighttime Action Stages/Stages. While Rings serve as a part of the player's health system in both the daytime and nighttime levels, their mechanics differ between them. In the daytime levels, where one plays as Sonic the Hedgehog, the Rings retain their basic functions from previous main titles when protecting the player from losing a try. In the nighttime levels on the other hand, where one plays as Sonic the Werehog, the player collects Rings to refill their Life Gauge, although the Rings only refill a small portion of such gauges. In addition, the player will not drop Rings when taking damage in the nighttime levels. Also, in the daytime levels, picking up Rings will fill up the player's Ring Energy Gauge/Boost Gauge, which is needed to use the Sonic Boost, which can attract nearby Rings as a side-effect. The player is also able to use the Light Speed Dash on strings of Rings as Sonic. Aside from the mechanics mentioned above though, Rings exhibit different functions and purposes between the different versions of the game.

In the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version of Sonic Unleashed, Rings can be found in both Action Stages, Town Stages during missions, and Entrance Stages. In the daytime levels, Sonic only drops fifty percent of his Rings when taking damage (provided he is holding forty or more). In addition, in the daytime levels, the player will receive a 1UP for the first 100 Rings they collect. The player also earns 100 points for their total score for each Ring held at the end of an Act in both the daytime and nighttime Action Stages. The Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version of the game also features Super Rings not contained in Item Boxes. Also, the Rings that the player collects during Acts, boss battles and missions will be deposited into the player's total Ring score after completing an Act. They can then be used to purchase objects from Shops. The player also pay Rings to a Don Fachio Hot Dog Vendor in order to participate in specific missions, some of which include completing Action Stages with enough Rings in Sonic's possession. Also, during Super Sonic's fight with Perfect Dark Gaia, the player can collect Rings in order to refill Super Sonic's Life Gauge.

In the Wii/PlayStation 2 version of Sonic Unleashed, Rings are only found in Stages. In the daytime levels, Sonic only drops a portion of his Rings when taking damage (provided he is holding enough of them when damage occurs). In addition, in the daytime levels, collecting thirty, sixty and ninety Rings completely fills up the Boost Gauge and extends its size by one unit. Collecting Rings also increases Sonic's speed, though losing them will decrease the Boost Gauge level relative to the amount picked up. The game also features large golden Rings that can grant five, ten, twenty, thirty, fifty or even one hundred Rings when picked up. Also, collecting enough Rings during a main nighttime level will impact the Rank for that level. There are as well several daytime missions that require that the player collects a certain amount of Rings within a time limit. Also, during Super Sonic's fight with Perfect Dark Gaia, the player will start out with twelve Rings in their possession. However, the player's Ring count will slowly decrease over the course of the battle until the player either wins the fight or runs out of Rings, which will result in Super Sonic's defeat. Additionally, using the Super Sonic Boost costs ten Rings each time.

Mario & Sonic series
In the Mario & Sonic crossover sports games, Rings, along with Coins from the Super Mario games, are featured as collectible items in the Dream Events of each game. In Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Rings and Coins appear in Dream Ski Cross and Dream Snowboard Cross events, where collecting five Rings/Coins will activate a Special Action for the playable character.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4
In all three episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4, Rings have similar attributes from earlier installments. Obtaining 100 Rings grants an extra life and each Ring is worth 100 points at the end of each Act. Like in Sonic Rush though, the Rings will scatter farther away each time the player takes damage. Super Rings are also featured as Item Box power-ups.

To enter episodes I and II's Special Stages, the player must hold at least fifty Rings at the end of each Act to summon the Giant Ring. Both incarnations of the Special Stages have Rings scatter around, which must be collected in certain amounts to progress. In the Special Stages of Episode II, the player is required to collect set amounts of Rings within different sections to get a Chaos Emerald. Unlike in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the player's partner, Tails, does not lose Rings in the Special Stages when taking damage.

Casino Street Zone features slot machines, which give different amount of Rings or takes them away, depending the combination. Exclusively on the console versions, Casino Street Zone Act 2 includes card gimmicks which grant ten extra Rings. Additionally, depending on how well the player executes the combo attack from the Special Combination power-up in episode II, the player is granted a large amounts of Rings.

Sonic Colors
In Sonic Colors, Rings function like in earlier installments. In the Wii version of the game, each Ring is worth 100 points at the end of each Act, but the player is not rewarded with extra lives by collecting them. Aside from being found on the surface and in midair, Rings are also found in the soil sections for the Yellow Drill. Rings will also sometimes appear after pressing switches. Sonic Colors introduces as well Red Star Rings, which can be collected to unlock Acts at the Game Land. After unlocking Super Sonic, the player can transform into him after collecting at least fifty Rings, though the player will lose one ring for each second Super Sonic is active. At the score tally after completing an Act, if the player hits the score numbers and the Rank enough times, they drop Rings and extra lives. Similarly, bosses will drop Rings when they are defeated, though the Frigate Orcan, Frigate Skullian and Nega-Wisp Armor will occasionally drop Rings from breaking ]]s or after taking a hit. The Game Land Acts likewise include several Ring-based gimmicks: Goal Rings drop Rings after touching them, the Punching Balls release Rings when attacking them, and the slot machines grant certain Ring amounts based on the slot formations.

In the Nintendo DS version of the game, collecting 100 Rings grants an extra life, and the Rings held at the end of each Act adds to the "Ring Bonus" of the total score. Several missions in the game are likewise based around collecting Rings. Additionally, the game include 5 Ring Bonuses and Random Ring Bonuses in Item Boxes.

Sonic Generations
In both the console/PC and Nintendo 3DS versions of Sonic Generations, Rings are found in everywhere, except in the White Space. Collecting 100 Rings grants an extra life and holding Rings at the end of an Act earns the player a Ring Bonus. In this game, both Classic and Modern Sonic lose eighty percent of their Rings when taking damage (provided they have twenty or more). For Modern Sonic, collecting Rings also fill up the Boost Gauge. The game also features Red Star Rings (console/PC versions only) and Super Rings, which are worth ten Rings each, but as Monitor items in the first Acts and as separated items in the second Acts.

On the console/PC version of the game, there are Skills that center around Rings. For Classic Sonic, the Ring Time Skill lets the player turn every enemy on the screen into Rings for a short time. For Modern Sonic, the Ring Energy Bonus Skill makes Rings fill up the Boost Gauge faster, while the Endless Boost Skill lets the Boost Gauge stay full at the cost of preventing the player from obtaining Rings. Both characters can also use the Safety Net Skill that lets the player start an Act with ten Rings, the 10-Second Rings Skill that causes dropped Rings to remain for ten seconds before they disappear, and the Super Sonic Skill that lets the player use the super transformation after collecting at least fifty Rings. When using super transformation, the Ring count drops by one for each second, though it drops faster when using Super Sonic Boost as Modern Super Sonic.

During the rival battle with Shadow on the console/PC version of the game, Shadow, one of the game's bosses, can collect Rings. To defeat him, the player must reduce his Ring count to zero. Casino Night, featured as downloadable content in console/PC version and as a regular Stage in the Nintendo 3DS version, also has slot machines, which grant different amount of Rings depending the combination. In the Nintendo 3DS version, Bumpers likewise grant Rings when hit.

Aside from gameplay, the English version of the game also has Classic Tails asking Modern Tails where Sonic managed to keep all the rings he collected throughout his adventure, with the latter bashfully admitting that he doesn't know as he kept forgetting to ask Sonic himself during the ending.

Sonic Dash
In Sonic Dash, Rings have their standard functions, except the player cannot recover dropped Rings due to the fast-paced gameplay, and collecting 100 rings will not lead to an extra life.

In gameplay, the player can collect Rings during each run to charge the Dash Meter and then bank them when moving between route sections using Springs. Banked Rings can be used to purchase upgrades for future runs. Also, one of the power-ups used in this game is the Magnet that can draw in Rings.

Sonic Lost World
In both the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Lost World, Rings have the same attributes. In Wii U version, each Ring grants 100 points to the player's score at the end of each Zone. During the initial release of Wii U version of the game, collecting 100 Rings did not grant extra life, but it was later fixed in the 3.0.0 version patch. Additionally, using running or Parkour will attract nearby Rings. The game also features Super Rings as both Item Boxes or separated items and missions that include collecting a certain amount Rings. In the Nintendo 3DS version of the game, there are also 5 Ring Bonuses not contained in Item Boxes and Big 50 Rings in Item Boxes.

In gameplay, using Color Powers like Indigo Asteroid, Crimson Eagle and Orange Rocket will attract nearby Rings. Several Zones in the game also present their own exclusive Ring-based gimmicks: Windy Hill Zone 3 and Silent Forest Zone 3 have small ice crystals on the ground that grant Rings if the player moves through them. Tropical Coast Zone 3 and Lava Mountain Zone 2 have golden Minecarts with Rings that the player can break with the Homing Attack to collect its Rings along the Grind Rails. Frozen Factory Zone 2 features a snowball gimmick, where the player curls into snowball which makes Rings stick to its surface until they are absorbed by passing a Star Post. Then, there is Frozen Factory Zone 3 with its slot machines which can give or take away Rings depending on its formation, and its bumpers that grant Rings by hitting them.

In the Wii U version's DLC level Yoshi's Island Zone, Rings are replaced by Coins, though they function like Rings. There are also enemies like the Sprinkler that drops Rings, and the Tarantula that summons Rings when defeated.

Sonic Runners
In Sonic Runners, Rings retain their regular basic attributes, except each only grant a single point after being collected, and when dropping them, the player is unable to recover them. Additionally, Rings can be used to keep a combo going when collecting Crystals. The game also features Super Rings as separate items (or inside Item Boxes as rewards for completing an episode or as purchases from the shop).

When the player passes a Star Post, all the player's collected Rings are banked in the total score. Once done with a stage, all the Rings the player has collected are banked as well, and can be used to purchase items.

While the player advances through the Episode Maps, Ring bonuses sometimes appear, which the player can obtain upon reaching their points on the Episode Maps. The Item Box power-up Magnet and Color Powers, such as Cyan Laser and Indigo Asteroid, can attract nearby Rings for a short time as well. When the player performs the Spin Attack through Shuttle Loop, they will attract the Rings and Super Rings in the middle of the loop hole; otherwise, the player will miss them. During the battles against Dr. Eggman, Eggman also drops a huge amount of Rings from the Egg Mobile every time he is hit.

Sonic Runners Adventure
In Sonic Runners Adventure, the Rings possess their damage-negating attributes. Like in Sonic Runners, the player will lose all their Rings permanently when taking damage during a run. The game also features Super Rings as non-Item Box objects.

In like Sonic Runners, when the player passes a Star Post, all their collected Rings will be banked in the total score. Once done with a level, all the Rings the player has on hand will be banked as well. The game also has Bonus levels where the player can collect extra Rings after a level. The banked Rings themselves can be used to purchase Booster items, unlock and upgrade playable characters, and buy Buddies.

Whenever the player collects three hundred Rings during a run, they activate their character's special ability. The Magnet Booster item can attract nearby Rings for a short time as well. Much like in Sonic Runners, the player also attracts any Ring/Super Ring in the middle of a shuttle Loop when they run through said loops. The same attraction effect occurs when the characters pass through a Rainbow Ring. During the battles against Dr. Eggman, Eggman also drops a huge amount of Rings from the Egg Mobile every time he is hit.

In Looped levels, Rings do not respawn with every lap (unlike enemies and obstacles). As such, after the player has collected a Ring in a Looped level, they will see a shining sparkle in its place on the next lap.

Sonic Mania
In Sonic Mania, and its expansion Sonic Mania Plus, the Rings work pretty much like they did in the main Sonic games for the Sega Genesis. When dropping a large amount of Rings in this game however, several of them scatter from the immediate propinquity (like in Knuckles' Chaotix), meaning the player can only recover a few of them.

Collecting 100, 200 or 300 Rings in this game gives an extra life, and at the end of an Act, the player receives 100 points for each Ring held. Monitor power-ups in this game that affect the player's Ring count include the Super Rings that grant ten Rings each, and the Lightning Shields that draws in Rings. The game also reuses the Hyper Ring, which now causes the player to drop six slightly larger Rings (each one containing a fraction of the player's lost Rings) when taking damage, which are much easier to collect. Also, after completing all the Special Stages in the game, the Giant Rings that are found in the Acts will award the player with fifty Rings upon being touched.

Like in past games, when the player plays with both Sonic and Tails (or Knuckles and Knuckles in "& Knuckles" mode) in Sonic Mania, only the character the player controls can lose Rings when taking damage. The accompanying character can also collect Rings, but both of them share the same Ring count. In the game's Competition mode, both playable characters can also collect Rings for their own respective score. The number of Rings the players have after their multiplayer competition helps determine the winner.

By passing a Star Post with at least twenty-five Rings on hand, the player can access one of the game's Bonus Stages, which also contain Rings. Collecting all Rings in a Bonus Stage grants the player a "Perfect" score which awards a Gold Medallion. Also, if the player collects blue spheres from the edges of sphere clusters in a Bonus Stage, all the spheres turn into Rings. Also, by passing a Star Post after beating all Bonus Stages with a perfect rank while carrying at least twenty-five Rings in Mania Mode or fifty Rings in Encore Mode, the player will enter the Pinball Stage.

In Special Stages, the Rings serve as a timer which depletes over time. Once the player has no Rings, they will leave the Special Stage. Additional Rings can be collected in order to extend the player time limit, while touching harmful obstacles will take Rings away from the player.

Sonic Mania and Sonic Mania Plus also features the super transformation mechanic, which can be initiate by holding fifty Rings after unlocking the chosen character's Super State. Like in past games, using the super transformation causes the Ring count to drop by one for each passing second.

Sonic Forces: Speed Battle
In Sonic Forces: Speed Battle, the Rings work much like they did back in Sonic Dash. Like in the aforementioned game, the player here is unable to recollect dropped Rings due to the gameplay's fast-paced nature. Also, when taking damage in this game, the playable character will only lose ten Rings.

In gameplay, the player can collect Rings during each of their runs to improve their performance. Each playable character can carry up to one hundred Rings; the more Rings the characters hold, the greater their movement speed becomes. After a race, the players get to keep the Rings they have collected. These Rings can be used to buy power-ups and bonuses, or upgrade characters. Also, power-ups like the Electro Boost can be used to draw in Rings.

Sonic Forces
In Sonic Forces, unlike in previous Sonic games, collecting 100 Rings does not give an extra life, as there is no extra life feature in the game. When playing the game on Normal difficulty, the max number of rings the player can collect is 100, and the player will lose 20 rings upon being hit (assuming there are more than 20 Rings collected). In hard mode however, the max number of rings is 999, and the player will lose all of their Rings upon being hit.

Sonic Forces has variations of Wispons equipped with skills that require collecting 100 rings. These skills range from:
 * Invincibility - Lets the player become invincible for a short amount of time.
 * Bonus Points - Gives the player a 2x points multiplier until they get hit.

In early demos and before the Day 1 Patch, players would not be able to recollect their rings upon being hit - regardless of which difficulty is selected. This was initially done to balance the game's difficulty, but was changed in the Day 1 Patch - most likely due to the response made.

Team Sonic Racing
In Team Sonic Racing, Rings appear on all the courses in the game and can be collected over the course of a race. After a Ring has been collected from the track, another one will soon after appear to take its place. Power-Type characters also earn Rings when destroying breakable obstacles.

In this game, holding on to a stock of Rings will increase the playable character's top speed by up to thirty percent, but being spun out or colliding with a hazard will cause the playable character to lose them all. When Rings are dropped in this game, they will scatter around the playable character, leaving them to be get picked up by the player's character or the other racers, or fade away. Regardless, the playable character will not lose a try in case they take damage without wielding any Rings.

Rings can also be used to build up the racers' final score after a race. In addition, any Rings the player is holding onto when they reach the finish line are converted into Credits which can be used at Mod Pods to purchase Bonus Boxes and Mods.

Rings play important roles in certain events. In the Ring Challenge events, the player has to collect Ring in order to earn points. Also, drifting while collecting Rings in Ring Challenge will earn the player extra time to complete the challenge. Also, in the Vampire Race, the player's held Rings decay one by one over time, meaning they have keep collecting Rings from the race tracks or from other racers with the aid of the Violet Void.

Blue Ring
Blue Rings are loose variations of Rings and objects that appear in Sonic Colors. They are found in Acts with Blue Wisps, and touching them will grant points. When the player uses the Blue Cube Color Power, Blue Rings will turn into Blue Blocks, which cannot be collected nor break, and vice versa.

Dark Ring
Dark Rings are synthesized Rings that appears in Knuckles' Chaotix. Dark Ring come in either regular Ring or Giant Ring variations, which are reddish-brown, and are used by Dr. Eggman to power his Badniks and his mechs. When the player destroys a Badnik or one of Eggman's mechs, a Dark Ring will pop up and disintegrate completely.

Dash Ring
Dash Rings are Ring-based game gimmicks. In gameplay, the player can use them to dash through mid-air by passing through them. Dash Rings are either designed as mechanical rings or simple orange-colored Rings. An sub-variation of the Dash Rings are called Rainbow Rings, which grant extra points or allow Trick Actions.

Dummy Ring
Dummy Rings refer to items used by Miles "Tails" Prower and Rouge the Bat in Sonic Heroes and Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). They are used as a part of the playable characters' attacks, and can either cause explosive damage or paralyze enemies upon touch. Dummy Rings look identical to regular Rings, but they cannot be collected.

Giant Ring
Giant Rings are larger variations of regular Rings. They can either be summoned at the end of each Zone's Act by collecting fifty Rings or be found behind in hidden areas. Giant Rings are used as transportation devices to Special Stages, or in very few cases grant a huge amount of Rings to the player.

Power Ring
Power Rings are special types of Rings which appear in Sonic Runners. They are regular Rings which have accumulated a special energy as a result of being out in nature for a long time, giving them special powers, like empowering beings far beyond what regular Rings are capable of and repairing machinery.

Red Star Ring
Red Star Rings are a more common variation of Rings which were introduced in Sonic Colors. Red Star Rings are slightly larger, red rings with a star in their center. Usually, Red Star Rings are collectible items found in each Act/Zone, which can be used to unlock different features upon collecting them, such as new Acts in Game Land, concept artwork, or music tracks. Sometimes, they are also used as a game's premium currency.

Revival Ring
The Revival Rings only appear in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood as consumable items. They can revive one knocked-out party member while restoring ten percent of his/her Health Points.

Ring of Life
The Rings of Life only appear as consumable items in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood. It can be used to revive any party member while fully restoring his/her Health Points.

Special Ring
Special Rings only appear in Sonic Advance 2, where the player has to collect seven of them in each Stage to enter Special Stages. They are sligtly larger than regular Rings, with upward-pointing wings and a star in their center.

Super Ring
Super Rings are the most commonly used variations of Rings, which are often found inside Item Boxes. Such Item Boxes have a Ring icon on them, and breaking them will grant the player ten extra Rings.

World Ring
The seven World Rings are magical items in Sonic and the Secret Rings, which bind the reality of the world of the Arabian Nights together. During the game, the Erazor Djinn sought the World Rings to conquer the Arabian Nights, and used Sonic to get them. Each World Rings come in a different color and represent a different emotion. Like the Chaos Emeralds they can also empower beings, though their collector's life must be sacrificed to unlock their power.

Sonic the Comic
In Sonic the Comic published by Fleetway Editions, Rings, here referred to as the Golden Rings of Mobius or Mobius Rings, are an apparently naturally-occurring phenomenon on Mobius. However, they only played a small role in the early issues before being nearly completely removed from the comics. The Golden Rings served as a vital component in the Retro-Orbital Chaos Compressor and were the catalyst for Sonic's first transformation into Super Sonic. Dr. Ovi Kintobor's mind was as well preserved by imprinting it on a Golden Ring.

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
In the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, the Rings are blue objects from the Special Zone which are needed to access other locations from the Special Zone. In "The Mobius 5000", Sonic and his crew used them to take a shortcut during a race.

Archie Comics
In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, Power Rings were originally natural byproducts of Chaos Emeralds. They were artificially created by the brilliant Overlander scientist Nate Morgan as a clean alternative to fossil fuels to protect Mobius' environment. After Morgan's banishment from his home city, the Mobian Sir Charles Hedgehog aided him in mass producing Power Rings to be used by the Kingdom of Acorn, allowing Mobotropolis to move out of the medieval ages and into a new Golden Age. In the years that followed, the Power Rings were also used to increase the power and capabilities of certain individuals, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower and Knuckles the Echidna.

Following the Super Genesis Wave, Rings became a power source naturally produced by Lakes of Rings all around Sonic's World.

Sonic the Hedgehog (TV series)
In the Sonic the Hedgehog television series, the Power Rings were invented by Sir Charles Hedgehog for Sonic to battle villains. They are generated by a machine, powered by the Power Rock, which is located in the Power Ring pool in the Great Forest. One Power Ring rises to the surface every day (two very day later on) and if not caught, it sinks back underwater.

The Power Rings' energies can only be harnessed by Sonic, which he can use to temporarily boost his speed. Additionally, they can be used to temporarily restore the free will of a roboticized victim and block a Roboticizer.

Sonic X
In the anime series Sonic X and its comic series published by Archie Comics, the Rings are used by Sonic and his allies to give Sonic a power boost, much like the Power Rings in the Sonic the Hedgehog television series and the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs. Tails usually has them loaded into his various aircrafts so he can deploy them to Sonic during battle.

Sonic Boom
In the Sonic Boom franchise, Rings appear in the series' video games where they serve the same role as their mainstream counterparts. In line with the series' primary focus on comedy, their functionality and purposes have occasionally been used for jokes.

Merchandise
Rings are featured as part of many action figures or collection releases, many of them being manufactured by Jazwares. "Single Figure Packs" line has Sonic action figure with two Rings as extras. For the release of Sonic Generations, Jazwares produced Commemorative Statue of Classic and Modern Sonic running on a large Ring base.

The "Collector's Edition" of Sonic Generations for PlayStation 3 includes collectible bronze Ring. For the "Roleplay" line, Jazwares produced a large Gold Ring toy, that make their sound effects from the games. Good Smile Company has produced Nendoroid figures of Sonic the Hedgehog with a Ring as one of its extra accessories.

Trivia

 * The iconic Ring chime is heard in almost every game in the franchise, while being altered in several handheld games or having only at a slightly lower pitch in Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut. In early games for the Sega Genesis and its add-on accessories, the sound effect is programmed to be heard between the left and right speaker as the player keeps collecting Rings.
 * The Ring chime sound is made up of the Yamaha DX7 Sound Sources "ROM 128"B patch "Sloe Bells".
 * By using Debug Mode or cheat codes in early installments of the series for Sega Genesis and its add-ons accessories, the Ring counter's limit is seen to be 999 Rings or even beyond. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, if the player collects more than 999 Rings, the counter will use letters in place of numbers in the hundred spot (i.e A93 Rings instead of 1,093 rings).
 * Rings can form significant formations in several games, usually being arrows pointing to the direction. Examples include the first Special Stage of Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit) having further section with Rings formatting "SEGA" and one point at Sonic's Final Egg in Sonic Adventure having Rings formatted as a silhouette of Sonic's head.
 * The Light Speed Shoes in Sonic Unleashed are said to be made of the same material as Rings.
 * Rings are acknowledged several times as being part of storylines in certain games. These include games like Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic Rivals 2. A joke was made in Sonic Generations in which both Classic and Modern Tails were discussing about how many rings Sonic collects and where he puts them.
 * Rings are mentioned in the cartoon Gravity Falls by the character Dipper Pines. In episode 10 "Fight Fighters", he rattles off a string of different video game power-ups, one of which happens to be "rings".
 * Rings are not the only form of currency in Sonic's world - for instance, when Sonic Colors is set to Japanese, the cutscene before the Tropical Resort boss has different dialogue in which Dr. Eggman, Sonic and Cubot haggle the price of the ride using yen. Yen is also referenced in some of Eggman's in-game announcements.
 * Rings are also seen in Wreck-It Ralph; first when Sonic gets hit by an escape pod Ralph is piloting and later during the credits when it shows Sonic battling Eggman and also gets hit.
 * According to the [[media:SonicJumpInfographic.jpg|promotional ad]] for Sonic Jump (2012), Sonic has collected 70 billion Rings since his debut in 1991, which are enough to ask 70 billion girls to marry him.
 * Not even Takashi Iizuka, the head of Sonic Team, is sure of where Sonic puts all his Rings.