Item Box

Item Boxes (アイテムボックス), also referred to as Video Monitors, Monitors and Item Capsules, are common objects in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. First appearing in the original 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog, Item Boxes contain various kinds of power-ups or bonuses which can be used by the player. Placed on the ground, mid-air or even hidden in many places of Zones, the player can break open it to get power-up or item by simply attacking the Item Box.

Description
Item Boxes are usually placed on the ground, but these containers are also set to float on the mid-air or they are placed in hidden areas or Zone's environment like palm trees. Item Boxes can also found floating in the mid-air. Item Boxes can be break open by attacking them, usually by Spin Jumping on them, performing Spin Attack or any other attack. Homing Attack will target Item Boxes the same way as it will target enemies, and some chasms can be crossed by using Homing Attacks on a string of floating Item Boxes. Also, certain playable characters can use weapons to break Item Boxes. In some games, if the player can hits a floating Item Boxes from below, it will make it drop to the ground where it can be broken easily. If the player holds the jump button while destroying a Monitor, the bounce back is the same as that of a Badnik; that is, the longer the distance the player fell onto the monitor, the higher he will bounce back up. The player can land normally on the Item Box, if the playable character does not perform Spin Attack or any other variation. Since Sonic Advance 2, Item Boxes can be open by simply touching them in certain games. After breaking it open, the item icon, that is seen in the Item Box will pop out and the player has gotten the power-up or item.

Items in these containers are variable in each game. Items can give Ring, time or score bonuses (Super Rings), are protective against hazards and enemies (Shield and Invincibility), affect the player's speed (Power Sneakers and Speed Downs), give different upgrades or weapons (Rocket Shoes and Mines), recover energy (Fly Charge and Damage Recover), grant extra lives or even cause damage to the player instead of helping them (Eggman Marks). Some of items can't be used normally in-game instead of using Debug Mode such as S items.

The appearance of Item Boxes have changed on several occasions. In the early games of the series, Item Boxes took the form of grey, rectangular computer Monitors with the icon of the power-up contained inside shown on the flickering screen. Even though they have got replaced in later games, Monitors sometimes have make appearances in recent games, such as Sonic the Hedgehog 4 and Sonic Generations. Since Sonic Adventure, Item Boxes had a redesigned to look more like glass capsules with a picture of the item or power-up floating inside. Variously, Item Boxes have seen having aid base beneath them or containers just float in the mid-air. In recent games such as Sonic Lost World, Item Box's appearance have been simplified with glass dome and red top and bottom covers.

Some of the 3D Sonic games use some form of the Item Boxes until since Sonic Unleashed, as being replaced with completely different items instead of item boxes such Super Rings and floating extra lives. Despite that, both usage of Item Boxes have been varied considerably at recent games in some form.

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)
Item Boxes first appear in the original 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog, where they are called Video Monitors. The Video Monitors are presented as simple, grey cubic televisions with a static screen. This game presented for the first time the Video Monitor items Super Rings, Shields, Power Sneakers, One-Ups and Invincibility.

Monitors also appear in the 8-bit version of the game with same name, where they are also called video monitors in American instruction manual and have all the power-ups from 16-bit counterpart. The game also introduces the Arrow Monitors which would be replaced by the Star Posts.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2
In 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the Video Monitors have the same appearance and power-ups. Like in the first game, the player can hit the Monitor from below, as it drops down to the ground, but it can also crush the player. Video monitors are referred to as Item Boxes in the multiplayer mode of the game, where its power-ups can be randomized. The multiplayer mode features Teleportation power-ups which only appears in this game and Robotnik monitor, which actually first appeared as an inoperable object from Debug Mode in the original Sonic the Hedgehog. In multiplayer mode, each of players can win the round depending on how many monitors are broken.

In the 8-bit version of the game with same name, Item Boxes appear more generally and are called as 'Monitors. Monitors here have the same power-ups as in the 16-bit version of the game, excluding the Shield. The game also features Arrow Monitors as well.

Sonic the Hedgehog CD
In Sonic the Hedgehog CD, Monitors appear normally and retrain all the power-ups from the original Sonic the Hedgehog. In the game's Special Stages, if the player blows up one of UFOs, the player can receive Monitor power-ups like Super Rings or Power Sneakers.

Sonic Chaos
In Sonic Chaos, Video Monitors appear generally and have all the power-ups from the previous titles. The game also introduces the Rocket Shoes power-up, which can only be used by Sonic. However, the game does not feature Arrow Monitors. This is possibly due the fact that all Zones are being quickly passed in the game.

Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball
In 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball, Item Boxes are featured as hidden objects in small chamber in the corners of each stage. These items are usually extra lives, continues and certain variants with the Japanese kanji for "look" (見る). These variants are hints to secret codes that can be used in the game.

Sonic Drift
Sonic Drift features two different types of Monitors on the racing tracks. Red monitors gives a burst of speed and blue monitors gives Invincibility with a 8-bit variation of "You Can Do Anything".

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles
In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic & Knuckles and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, monitors contain almost all the power-ups from previous games. In this game however, monitors are designed as a light grey device instead of general grey cube. Monitors can pop out if the Goal plate falls down on a certain spot.

Despite having no normal shield, the game introduces three new shields Monitor power-ups, which include the Flame Shield, Water Shield and Lightning Shield. As the player enters the first and second Bonus Stages, these new shields and Rings can be collected from multiple colored floating orbs. Both games also features the Eggman Marks which inflicts harm on the player.

The Competition Mode features different kinds of Monitor power-ups, which include Super Rings and Power Sneakers. Competition Mode does not feature monitors, as their power-ups are collected from small bubbles.

Sonic Triple Trouble
In Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble, the Monitors' appearance and featured power-ups are the same from earlier games, including the Rocket Shoes.

This game also introduces new Monitor power-ups, such as the Hyper Heli-Tails which let the player fly at high speeds, the Pogo Springs at Meta Junglira Zone, the Jet Boards at Robotnik Winter Zone and the Propeller Shoes at Tidal Plant Zone. The last two can only be used by Sonic. To enter Special Stages, the player has to find emerald monitors which are hidden in every first and second acts of zones. In Special Stages with platforming, there are also the Time Bonus which extends the time the player can spent in the Special Stages.

Sonic Drift 2
Sonic Drift 2 features differently colored Monitors lying on the tracks. Like in Sonic Drift, the red ones grant a boost in speed and the blue ones makes the racer invulnerable. There is also two new types of Monitors: the yellow ones makes the racer jump and the black ones allows the racer to set up Mines. To utilize the Monitors' effects in this game, the player has to press up on the D-pad after obtaining them. The blue monitor's invincibility play the same jingle from Sonic the Hedgehog 3.

Knuckles' Chaotix
In Knuckles' Chaotix, Monitors appear normally and include Rings, shields, power sneakers and invincibility. New Monitor power-ups in the game are the Combine Ring which combines all collected Rings into one when they are lost, the Swap and Change which switch the playable characters, the Grow that enlarges the user, and the Shrink that shrinks the user.

Sonic 3D Blast
In Sonic 3D Blast, the Monitors are featured in an isometric perspective. In addition to Rings, invincibility, power sneakers, 1-UP and shield, the game includes two new shields. The Red Shield is like the Flame Shield from Sonic the Hedgehog 3, although without the midair dash, and the Gold Shield that enables the Blast Attack.

Sonic Blast
In Sonic Blast, there are 8 different power-ups in the game. In addition to the Rings, Shield, Power Sneakers, Invincibility and Arrow Monitors, there are now separate 1-UP monitors for Sonic and Knuckles, which do nothing, if the player opens them with the opposite character. There are also Eggman Marks and monitor with question mark, which gives a random power-up.

Sonic Jam
In Sonic Jam, Monitors appear briefly as hidden objects in Sonic World. These Monitors included cheat codes and major information from the games featured in game's compilation.

Sonic Adventure
In Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut, the Monitors are redesigned as glass capsules with the power-ups' icon floating inside them which are showed on the screen below after braking them. Some of these Item Boxes are set on the ground or floating in the mid-air. If the player is using Sonic, he can target them with his Homing Attack.

Sonic Adventure features the basic power-ups such as Power Sneakers, Invisibility, Shield, the Magnetic Shield and extra life. However the Super Ring Item Boxes are given a new concept where they give different sets of Rings from five to ten. There are also Super Rings with question marks on them, which can grant one, five, ten, fifteen, twenty or even forty Rings. The game also introduces the Explosion that destroys all enemies nearby.

Sonic Pocket Adventure
In Sonic the Hedgehog Pocket Adventure, the Item Boxes reuses their original grey monitor design from the earlier titles. The game features all five basic power ups from previous games.

Sonic Adventure 2
In Sonic Adventure 2, the Item Boxes have almost the same look from Sonic Adventure. In addition to the Item Boxes floating in midair, those on the ground have aid bases to hold them. Sonic Adventure 2 also introduces the item box balloons, variants of the Item Boxes which resemble red balloons floating in midair.

The Item Box power-ups featured in Sonic Adventure 2 are almost the same as those from Sonic Adventure. The game also introduced the Health power-ups for Tails and Eggman to restore their Health Gauge.

Sonic Advance series
In the Sonic Advance games, the Item Boxes include all the basic power ups from Sonic Adventure. In Sonic Advance, Item Boxes have a slightly different shape as their glass section is more cubic, but in Sonic Advance 2 and Sonic Advance 3, they are more round and the player can break open them now by simply touching them.

Sonic Heroes
In Sonic Heroes, the Item Boxes and its balloon variants reappear, though the Item Boxes in this game are shaped like triangular prisms with three screens to show the power-up's icon. Item boxes can also be found inside of Cages that power type characters can break.

Both Item Boxes and balloons have feature the same power ups from Sonic Adventure 2. The game also introduces Item Boxes for Power Cores to level up the characters, Team Blast Rings which recharges the Team Blast Gauge and Fly Charge which fills up the Fly Type characters' Flight Gauge.

Sonic Rush series
In Sonic Rush and Sonic Rush Adventure, Item Boxes look again like the classic monitors, but with a coloration more akin to the Item Boxes in the Sonic Advance series.

Item Box Power-ups featured in both games include five-Ring Super Rings, random Ring bonus (ranging from one, five, ten, thirty and up to fifty), Shields, Magnetic Shields, Speed Up, Invincibility and extra lives. Both games also introduce the Tension Bonus which fills up the Tension Gauge one level and the Max Tension Bonus which fills the Tension Gauge to maximum.

The multiplayer mode in both games features Item Boxes with random Ring bonuses, a power-up which can slow down other players, a variant of Max Tension Bonus which fully depletes the other player's Tension Gauge in addition to its single player usage, Confusion which scrambles the other player's controls birefly and Attract which brings the other player where the opponent is.

Shadow the Hedgehog
In Shadow the Hedgehog, Item Boxes look similar to how they looked Sonic Heroes and feature the same power-ups from Sonic Adventure 2. Many Item Boxes are also floating indirectly in the air and can break open using weapons. The game features also introduces the exclusive Heat Barrier that damages surrounding enemies and Damage Recover which restores the health of vehicles.

Sonic Riders series
All three Sonic Riders games feature Item Boxes on the tracks with different power-ups to take advantages of the Extreme Gear's features. Item Boxes in these games also look slightly similar to those in Sonic Adventure 2. There can appear up to more than eight Item Boxes in a row on the tracks and all of them give randomized items which are indicated by the question mark icon on them.

Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Item Boxes look the same from Sonic Adventure, but with more details. The Power-ups they contain are largely the same as in previous games. Peculiarly, after getting an Item Box with an extra life in these, they exact Item Boxes become empty should the player lose a life.

This game introduces the Gauge Up power-up, which replenish the Action Gauge. Power-ups like the Shields were also programmed into the game, but were never featured in the final product. Tails can also throws Item Boxes as a part of his Dummy Ring-related attacks.

Mario & Sonic series
In Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games and Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Item Boxes and Balloon Item Boxes are featured in Dream Events. The Power-ups they contain in these games include Bombs, Shields and Speed Shoes. They can also contain extra items from the Mario games such as Super Stars, Mega Mushrooms, Green and Red Shells.

Sonic Unleashed
In the Wii and PlayStation 2 version of Sonic Unleashed, Item Boxes are called Item Capsules. These objects are dispersed throughout the stages and puzzles in the Gaia Gates, and when breaking open, it gives Sonic an item. These items mostly include collectibles like movies, hints, music, and artwork, but also sometimes give the player an extra life. In the night stages, many Item Capsules contain Dark Gaia Force which helps the Werehog charge his Unleashed Gauge, restore his health or contribute to the total score at the end of the stage.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing series
In Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, item boxes appear throughout the tracks. When collected, the player can get weapons, power-ups, or sometimes All-Star Move.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4
Item Boxes make a reappearance in all three episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. In these games, hey have a slight resemblance to the original Monitor design, albeit with a few differences. They all contain Power-ups similar to the ones from original Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II, features some of Monitors that hover in mid-air. The game also introduces golden monitors (called "Special Combination") in Oil Desert Zone and Sky Fortress Zone. These Monitors grant a Combo Attack performed by Sonic and Tails when they are opened.

Sonic Colors
In the Nintendo DS version of Sonic Colors, the Item Boxes' appearance is similar to ones seen in Sonic Advance 2 and Sonic Advance 3. In this game, they can been opened by using Homing Attack which also works for Wisp Capsules.

The Item Boxes in this game contains Super Rings, Shields, Thunder Shields, 1-Ups and Invincibility in the Acts. In versus mode, there are different Item Boxes which the player can use to throw obstacles at the other player, which include Springs, spike balls and Egg Balloons.

Sonic Generations
In Sonic Generations, Item Boxes are given their Monitor design from earlier games. Several classic power-ups for the Item Boxes appear here, such as Super Rings, Invincibility, power Sneakers and 1-Ups.

In the console/PC version of the game, Item Boxes only appear in Act 1 of the Stages. They player can also buy shield power-ups from the Skill Shop as Skills, which include Shields, Flame Shields, Aqua Shields and Thunder Shields. The game also introduces the Skateboard item for moving down slopes faster. In the Nintendo 3DS version, Item Boxes appear in all acts, including Modern Sonic's Acts.

Sonic Jump (2012)
In the 2012 version of Sonic Jump, Item Boxes are given the regular Monitor design. They contain many familiar power-ups from previous games, but also includes Magnets, bombs and different set of Shields.

Sonic Dash
Item Boxes are featured in Sonic Dash, as the player runs towards it, they contain ten rings or magnets, that are similar to ones from Sonic Jump. The appearance of Item Boxes is identical to ones from Sonic & All-Stars Racing. Item Boxes can be found at normally at corners, but also behind of walls, Totem Poles or any other obstacles as well.

Sonic Lost World
In Sonic Lost World, the Item Boxes are given a more basic appearance, with a more round glass capsule and large red cups on the top and bottom. In the Wii U version of the game, Item Boxes found in-game usually appear as containers for Wisps, rarely containing other items like Super Rings, but are featured more generally in the Nintendo 3DS version where they grant Super Rings, elemental shields, Power sneakers and Invincibility, and can be found under rocks, in mid-air and inside other breakable objects and structures.

In the Wii U version, many of the mentioned power-ups are rewarded by completing certain missions in Zones, finding random drops on the map of the Lost Hex, or being gifted by other players through Miiverse. Item Boxes cannot be homing attacked in the Wii U version, but can be locked on in the 3DS version.

Item Balloons are also featured in the Tropical Coast Zone 2 and 4 in Wii U version, which the player can only reach with the Orange Rocket. If the player succeeds, the balloon reveals a golden cannon inside it which they player can use to aim the Orange Rocket elsewhere.

Sonic Runners
In Sonic Runners, Item Boxes retain their appearance from Sonic Lost World and are set on the pathways or floating in the mid-air. The Item Boxes can contain different types of Wisps, regular Shield, Magnets, Invincibility, and Combo Bonus. Like in Sonic Lost World, they are also featured as Equippable Items, which can be picked up by touching them on the screen. Super Ring Item Boxes appear as separated items, but also as Equitable Items, and they can be acquired as reward after getting a high enough score.

Balloons
There is one alternative form of item boxes: the balloons or floating item boxes in Sonic Rush. These balloons are red and they have a white and blue circles with a star on them. They act like capsules, except that they are always floating in the air. Since they don't have a picture, there is no telling what each one contains. Balloons sometimes contain special bonuses that do not appear in item boxes, like the wing, which gives Knuckles an extra boost into the air as he glides. They first appeared in Sonic Adventure 2, continued on Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog, and Sonic Rush and has been used only in spin-offs such as Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games.

Target Switch
The Target Switch is an Item Box variant that only appear in Sonic Heroes. These switches appear as targets floating in midair. If the player tries to fly too close to it, the Target Switch will start spinning and cannot be hit. To earn its power-up, the player has to hit the Target Switch with Thunder Shoot from a safe distance.

Item Boxes
Key: SA1 = Sonic Adventure, SA2 = Sonic Adventure 2, SH = Sonic Heroes, ShTH = Shadow the Hedgehog, STH = Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), SR = Sonic Riders, SRZG = Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity

Items
In the Competition mode of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, power-ups which were not contained in Item Boxes were introduced. Instead they could be collected simply by touching them. Such power-ups when first introduced were initially held inside small floating bubbles during Competition Mode, allowing faster usage of them during races.

Games like Sonic Unleashed, Colors and Generations would later pick up this concept for more classic and common power-ups, but without anything encapsulating them.

Key: S3&K = Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles (Competition Mode), SU = Sonic Unleashed, SC = Sonic Colors, SG = Sonic Generations, SLW = Sonic Lost World

Stay Sonic
Monitors have been given some sort of a back story in Stay Sonic. As planning to use his Retro Orbital Chaos Compressor to contain all the negative energy of the planet within six emeralds, Doctor Ovi Kintobor required a seventh gem to stabilize the process, but could not locate one himself. To broaden his search, he set up a network of monitors across the entire planet that served as an interlinked communications system, allowing the people of Mobius to pass along any information to him that they could about the final emerald's potential whereabouts.

Sonic the Comic
Monitors also appear in Fleetway's Sonic the Comic, as sharing the same kind of background from Stay Sonic. The another one of Kintobor's creations was an artificial duplicate of Sonic known as an Extra Life, which was stored within one of the planet's many monitors.

Unfortunately, the Extra Life was never needed and so remained trapped in its monitor for years, slowly becoming corrupted and bent on revenge, until it duped Tails into freeing it by pretending to be the real Sonic. After besmirching Sonic's name by causing chaos in the Emerald Hill Zone, the Extra Life was sucked back into its monitor by Tails, and the box was then kicked into space by the real Sonic.

Archie Comics
In the Archie Comics's Sonic the Hedgehog comics, monitors or item boxes hasn't been seen until one item box has been seen to being developed in Sonic Universe #38, which has been created by Hope Kintobor and possibly G.U.N. It was originally invented to be device to help E-123 Omega during combat battles.

However Snively teleported himself to the GUN laboratory and tries pleasing Hope being part of their family and rule the world with him and Regina. Hope disagrees to join him after the conversation and activates the item box which has Flame Shield in it, forces the Snively to leave him and activates the alarm. Snively leaves the place and Hope has been seen crying alone with Flame Shield still on it at the laboratory where later Omega finds him.

Trivia

 * Monitors from original Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog CD are based on the basic CRT monitors, while Monitors in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles bear resemblance to Apple's Macintosh from the mid 1980's. Later on, Monitors in Sonic the Hedgehog 4 seem to be loosely based on modern flat-panel LCD TV, while Sonic Generations brings back the original CRT design.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles are only games, where the player is able to get crushed by the fallen Monitor. Normally in games such as Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) and Sonic CD, Monitors usually are seen bouncing on Sonic's head and falling simply to the ground without damaging him or simply being broken open in other games.
 * In Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I, Sonic does not get crushed by fallen Monitor, but instead he sinks through the ground and gets stuck. This is regular in-game glitch, that is possible to happen often in corner sections.
 * In Sonic Generations (3DS), monitors simply bounce repeatedly on Sonic's head until he moves out of the way. Jumping straight underneath them will not break them.
 * In earlier games, when the player has both Sonic and Tails, Tails couldn't destroy monitors as his own. This was although possible in Simon Wai and Nick Arcade prototypes of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, as Tails was a "copy-paste" programmed character of the main playable character.
 * There are certain monitors at above sections that can't be reached with Sonic or Tails in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. However, with lock-on technology of Knuckles in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Knuckles can reach these sections that have those monitors.
 * Although Item Boxes don't appear at Competition Mode of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, one Item Box can be seen at options menu of Competition Mode as items can be set on and off.
 * The same way, Tails Adventure doesn't feature Item Boxes, although one can be seen upper left corner of gameplay hud, showing the amount of the rings that player has.
 * City Escape has advertisements of different things in Sonic Adventure 2 as one of them being Item Boxes with ten rings and various other power-ups.
 * In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, an extra-life monitor can be seen at top of loop in Green Hill stage.