Toxic Caves


 * See also: Sonic Spinball



Toxic Caves, known as Toxic Pools in some versions, is the first level of Sonic Spinball for the Mega Drive / Game Gear / Master System, leading on to Lava Powerhouse. As with other stages in this game, Sonic must bounce through the pinball-like level, acquiring Chaos Emeralds which are in turn used to access the boss. In this stage, there are 3 to find.

Toxic Caves is a disgusting, slimy dungeon, filled to the brim (literally) with horrible green ooze which is all kinds o' deadly. The level encompasses the half-submerged caves at the foot of Mt. Mobius, where Sonic washes up after being blasted off the Tornado during his and Tails's approach to the Veg-O-Fortress. In keeping with Eggman's general ethos regarding environmentalism, the Fat Man is using the caves as a dumping ground for kilotonnes of radioactive slurry produced by the Fortress' cruel industry. Rusted sewer pipes snake through rocks dripping with flourescant green pollution, and the waters below are patrolled by an immense robotic sea-serpent.

Boss


A giant mechanical scorpion with Robotnik's face (and apparently his distaste for movement, too), Scorpius generally just sits at the top of the level, periodicly spitting drops of green toxicity out of his stinger. To defeat him, simply leap into the gap between his bodt and his tail; Sonic will rattle around like... well, like a pinball, inflicting vast quantities of damage. Although if you want to make the environment do the work for you, hit the 4 switches above the boss to initiate a landslide of rocks that'll smash him up.