Blastoid (Hydrocity Zone)

For the Badnik that appears in Carnival Night Zone, see Blastoid (Carnival Night Zone).

Blastoid,^[1] later known in Japan as Ponter (ポンター, Pontā^?),^[2] is an enemy in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a mass-produced, cannon-based Badnik model created by Dr. Robotnik.

Appearance

Blastoid resembles miniature version of an artillery bunker. It is a small blue and yellow colored Badnik with small eyes and cannon, that fires energy projectiles.

Game appearances

Sonic the Hedgehog 3

In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and its lock-on continuation Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, the Blastoids are encountered in Hydrocity Zone.

In gameplay, Blastoids sit statically. When approached though, a Blastoid will fire three orange projectiles in the player's direction at a 40° angle, but it is unable to aim. Blastoids are not much of a threat, but they can catch the player off guard. They are commonly found on collapsing bridges, ledges, or on top of large loops, where they can be tough to avoid. In underwater sections, lone Blastoids are required to be defeated to make platforms crumble and open lower paths for the player.

The Spin Jump or Spin Dash defeats Blastoids easily. However, due to the fact Blastoids fire projectiles, precaution must be taken when timing a jump. The projectiles they fire can also be deflected by any shield available, like the Water Shield, which is common in Hydrocity Zone.

Sonic Mania

In Sonic Mania, and its expansion Sonic Mania Plus, the Blastoids appear as enemies. In terms of design, they look exactly like they did in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. In these games, they are encountered in Hydrocity Zone again.

In gameplay, the Blastoids behave just like in their debut game: when the player gets close, they will fire three projectiles in a 40° angle, which can be deflected by shields. Their projectiles are also unable to pierce the Air Bubbles that the player can ride through the Zone. Also, upon destroying a Blastoid, it will release an Animal.

Trivia

• One of the enemies in Sonic Advance 3, the Clam, has an identical attack pattern to the Blastoid.
• In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, Blastoids are only ever encountered exclusively within Act 1. They can be placed in Act 2 using Debug Mode. However, their sprite appears to use Jawz's textures (the latter of which is exclusive to Act 2). It is likely they use each other's sprites to match the corresponding Act's palette.

Gallery

Sonic the Hedgehog 3

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References