Steel Container

The Steel Container (アイアンコンテナ) is an object that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a Container made of metal, which can be found in various levels throughout the Sonic series. Due to its composition, it is sturdier than Wooden Containers, but more fragile than Unbreakable Containers.

Description
Possessing a simple, cubic-shaped design, the Steel Containers are depicted as being made of steel or iron. Other than that, their superficial design has varied since their introduction in Sonic Adventure 2. In gameplay, the Steel Containers are some of the most basic Containers of them all. However, what is perhaps best known about them is that the player can only break them with certain attacks, or attacks enhanced by certain Level Up Items.

Steel Containers typically serve as obstructions that the player will encounter along the paths in the various levels. They mostly lie on the ground, typically along walls and edges. They can also lie around in different formations that take the form of walls, pillars or rows that the player either has to get around or break through. In other cases, the Steel Containers can also be used as stepping stones or stairs to reach higher areas. In some cases, the Steel Containers can also hide items and gimmicks underneath them or inside them (such as Item Boxes or Switches) which can be uncovered when the Steel Containers are destroyed.

Throughout the Sonic series, there have been a few instances where the Steel Containers can be used by the playable character. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) and Sonic Unleashed for example, the player can use them as weapons against enemies by throwing the Steel Containers at them.

Sonic Adventure 2
The Steel Containers made their first appearance in Sonic Adventure 2 and its remake Sonic Adventure 2: Battle where they serve as major gameplay objects. In this game, the Steel Containers are detailed and heavy gray crates with dark gray edges and a black GUN logo on each side. In stages where Badniks are the primary enemies instead of GUN robots, however, they have a black Eggman Empire symbol on them instead.

In gameplay, the Steel Containers can be broken with the Fire Somersault, Punch Attack, Kick Attack, or Vulcan Gun, but only if the user is equipped with either the Flame Ring, Bazooka, Hammer Gloves, Iron Boots or Large Cannon Level Up Item. In addition, they are immune to attacks (enhanced or otherwise) like the Spin Dash and Homing Attack. Breaking a Steel Container in this game grants the player twenty points, except in Crazy Gadget where they score nothing because the Containers in that stage are an entirely different object (because of their reaction to Gravity Control Switches).

Steel Containers are commonly placed in rows or other formations, and appear in every stage. Some of them also hide Item Boxes, Switches and other objects, while others block obligatory or secret pathways. In fact, it is not uncommon for the player to find a way blocked by Steel Containers before acquiring the Level Up Item for breaking them, which is the game's way of keeping the player from getting to certain objects prematurely.

Sonic Heroes
In Sonic Heroes, the Steel Containers received a more colorful design. In this game, they are light gray crates with a red-framed blue circle containing a white five-pointed star on each side.

In gameplay, the Steel Containers can only be destroyed with attacks from Power Type characters. Like in Sonic Adventure 2, Steel Containers will sometimes hold Item Boxes inside them. However, the player does not gain any points from breaking them in this game. Because they usually block pathways, the Steel Containers are often stacked in two-boxed towers, sometimes with different types of Containers added to their mix.

Shadow the Hedgehog
In Shadow the Hedgehog, the Steel Containers are more diverse. In this game, they come in two distinct designs based on their affiliation. The Containers belonging to GUN are camouflage-colored with green edges and the GUN logo on them, and the Containers belonging to the Eggman Empire are light gray-colored with red edges, yellow corners, and the Eggman Empire decal on them.

In gameplay, the Steel Containers contain weapons and Item Boxes that are released when the Steel Containers are destroyed. This can be done with attacks like the Punch or Slide. Alternatively, the player can pick up Steel Containers, carry them around, and throw them in order to destroy them. The assortment of weapons they release depend on the Steel Containers' logo. For example, opening an Eggman Empire-marked Steel Container will mostly release weapons associated with the Eggman Empire. In addition, destroying a Steel Container in this game will grant the player fifty dark points.

Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), the Steel Containers returned to a uniform look. In this game, they are white-colored crates with dark gray edges and a red-framed blue circle containing a white five-pointed star on each side.

In gameplay, the Steel Containers cannot be destroyed by pretty much anyone or anything, except for Shadow, who can destroy one with his Chaos Snap. Besides that, they are the most common Containers in the game. Normally, the Wooden Containers lie around within the Action Stages, although some of them can also be found in Town Stages, Town Missions, and during boss fights. If the player is using any playable character other than Silver, the Steel Containers serve the same purpose they had in previous games. If the player is using Silver however, they can pick up the Steel Containers with Psychokinesis, carry them around, and throw them as projectiles that deal damage when impacting enemies or breakable objects. It should be noted that when thrown, the Steel Containers will bounce off in a random direction upon hitting something. Also, if the player drops a Steel Container in an inaccessible part of a level (like a bottomless pit), the Steel Container will respawn in its original resting spot.

In Silver's version of Radical Train, there is a Steel Container in one section that can be broken by activating a Switch. This Steel Container is used to add weight on a crane so that it can lift up another crane connected to it, much like how the other Containers of the same kind work in the Action Stage. The player must destroy this Container in order to traverse the cranes before it respawns.

Sonic Rivals 2
In Sonic Rivals 2, the Steel Container is featured as one of the collectible cards in the game. This card in particular depicts its appearance from Sonic Adventure 2. To collect it, the player has to successfully use fifty Power-Ups in gameplay.

Sonic Unleashed
In the Wii/PlayStation 2 version of Sonic Unleashed, the Steel Containers reappeared in gameplay. In this game, they are dark gray metallic Containers with a X-shaped mark on each side.

In gameplay, the Steel Containers cannot be destroyed by any means. They can be found in various stages and behind the unlockable doors in several Gaia Gates. In several cases, the Steel Containers serve to block the paths in a level. In the levels where Sonic the Werehog is playable on the other hand, the player can pick up Steel Containers, carry them around, and throw them as projectiles that deal damage when impacting enemies or breakable objects. The Steel Containers are also vital to various gameplay puzzles for Sonic the Werehog, where Sonic has to pick them up and use to hold down Switches or block fire plumes from exhaust vents.

Sonic Colors
In the Wii version of Sonic Colors, the Steel Containers appeared in gameplay once more. In this game, they are colored gray with dark gray edges and no hallmarks on them.

In gameplay, the player can break Steel Containers by stomping on them. In some cases, there are also rows of Steel Containers that extend across pits and along edges, forming floating Steel Container layers that the player can break through. However, there are occasions where they work much differently than in previous appearances; the player is unable to break them normally on narrow routes, but they are able to move them left or right in one swift motion by kick boosting them. When send flying this way, they will destroy any enemy caught in their path.

Sonic Generations
In both the console/PC and Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Generations, the Steel Containers appear in gameplay once more. In this game, the typical Steel Containers resemble gray metal crates with colored edges and no hallmarks on them. In certain levels on the console/PC version though, the Steel Containers' coloration is different.

In the console/PC version of the game, the Steel Container can be broken normally at any time by stomping on them. Other than that however, they serve no special purposes outside those of the standard Container. In this version, they appear in both the stages and Challenge Acts.

In the Nintendo 3DS version of the game, the Steel Containers are vulnerable to the same attacks as their console/PC counterparts are. In addition, the player can target and destroy them with the Homing Attack. In this version, the Steel Containers appear in the stages and missions. While the most common Containers in this version are the Wooden Containers, the Steel Containers are the most common ones in Tropical Resort. Also, during the boss battle with Silver the Hedgehog in Tropical Resort, the hedgehog will sometimes resort to throwing Steel Containers at Sonic with his psychokinesis.