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| Sonic Spinball |
[View Rear]
Overview
Story
Notes
Cheats / Secrets
Last Updated: 12.26.05 |
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Developer:
Sega Technical Institute
Publisher:
Sega
Platform:
GEN(MD)
Players:
1-4
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 11.23.93
 November 1993
 12.10.93
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Rereleases
RealArcade (PC):
Sonic the Hedgehog
Nintendo Gamecube:
Sonic Mega Collection
Sonic Gems Collection
Sony Playstation 2:
Sonic Mega Collection +
Microsoft XBox:
Sonic Mega Collection +
Nintendo GBA:
Sega Smash Pack
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Staff Credits:.
Producer:
Yutaka Sugano
Game Concept:
Peter Moraweic
Programmers:
Dennis Koble
Lee Actor
Ken Rose
Steve Woita
Jason Plumb
Earl Stratton
Dave Sanner
Scott Chandler
Game Designers:
Peter Moraweic
Hoyt Ng
Art Director:
John Duggan
Artists:
Katsuhiko Sato
Tom Payne
Craig Stitt
Brenda Ross
Kurt Peterson
Music & Sound:
Brian Coburn
Barry Blum
Howard Drossin
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| Overview |
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Sonic Spinball is probably the only spinoff in the whole series worth playing. While it's based around pinball, it manages to integrate the Sonic formula quite well. It was also the first Sonic game to be created entirely in the United States.
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Rather than just going for a high score or single target like in the much less impressive Sonic Pinball Party (GBA), the game presents you with tasks to complete to move on to the next areas. Sonic can use the spindash and jump just like before, but yes, it's pretty choppy movement because it doesn't use the same engine. But the focus is on pinball, not platforming here...and pinball is one thing it certainly does well.
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| Story |
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Dr. Robotnik has built a new secret base, the Veg-O-Fortress, inside a volcanic island. While he's obviously not good at keeping secrets because it towers above everything around it, he has created a nice defense system. Sonic has managed to find the location of this base...and that's where the game essentially starts. The Fortress's defenses shoot down the Tornado, sending Sonic and Tails into the sea. Sonic re-emerges without Tails in a poison-filled cavern where he must try to collect the Chaos Emeralds (they just happen to be there) and make his way into the fortress to destroy Robotnik's factories and rescue Tails. There are 17 emeralds this time around instead of the usual seven. |
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Toxic Caves
These caves are full of poisonous waste...which means "don't drink the water" for Sonic. The enemies present almost no problem in this stage, but first time players might accidentally be eaten by the creature that lurks around the bottom platform of the first area. There are three Chaos Emeralds in the Toxic Caves.
Boss: Egg Scorpion. This robot has a huge Eggman head on it, but make no mistake - the Eggman himself is nowhere to be seen here. Your first objective is to knock off its tail, which you can do by getting into the little hole between it and his body. Once the tail is gone, hit the targets that appear on the celing above it to make a bunch of rocks fall onto its head, ultimately crushing it for the win.
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Lava Powerhouse
If the Toxic Caves were toxic, then take a guess on what Lava Powerhouse will be like - that's right, lava'd. The volcanic portion of the mountain is put to full use as a power plant for the Veg-o-Fortress. Sonic doesn't really like swimming, so he probably shouldn't try swimming in molten rock either. There are three Chaos Emeralds to collect in the Lava Powerhouse.
Boss: Roboboiler. Coming in first place in the "creepiest boss" category of Sonicdom is the Roboboiler. These heads evidently have something to do with controlling the power of the lavahouse, so it's your job to take them out. You can damage them by landing inside the bowl-shaped container they float around in. Each time you hit them, the heads will cough up a little lava. Take no worry though, as Sonic is somehow immune to it. After a while, the heads will break apart. |
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The Machine
The central part of the Veg-O-Fortress is its roboticizer facility, or "The Machine." This is the place where all the cute and fluffy animals you freed in Sonic 1 & 2 are turned into robots. Most of the lasers in the stage are bad ideas, but there are a few kinds that can help you earn bonuses There are five Chaos Emeralds in the Machine.
Boss: Veg-O-Machine. You're not really fighting a "boss" forsay, but rather demolishing a machine. Start off by destroying the tubes on either side of the machine by repeatedly bouncing into them. After they're gone, hop in and do the same thing you did in the last two stages. |
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Showdown
The volcano is erupting and the fortress is falling apart. Amazing what a little hedgehog can do, huh? Robotnik has decided that it might be a good idea to leave, so you should probably do the same. Of course, in classic Sonic fashion, you can't leave before saying goodbye to the Eggman. The desired direction is up, so be careful not to fall. There are a whopping six Chaos Emeralds to collect during the Showdown.
Boss: Dr. Robotnik. Robotnik is escaping from the fortress. Actually, he's hovering just above it at a distance from which it is very convienant for you to jump onto his ship. It's easy to fall back down to the level during the fight, and there's not really any good advice for me to give to prevent it. Basically, you need to break his windshield to get him. He's somehow made this difficult with an elaborate pinball arm system that grabs you every time you try to approach his side to hit the glass on the top. Unfortunately for him, he's also placed the arm rotation controls outside of the ship. It's the well-lit, big button just below him. Press the button until there aren't any arms guarding a side and go on up. From there, it's the same strategy you've used on every boss.
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| Notes |
Musical Mishap
STI had a party on the last day of Spinball's development to celebrate the completion of the first Sonic game made entirely in the USA. Some of the members of the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 team stopped by to look at the final product and were surprised to find the original Sonic theme jingle remixed on the title screen. Unknown to the American developers, Sega didn't own the rights to the song - they were still held by Dreams Come True, the band that wrote it and promoted Sonic in the franchise's earliest days. The licensing fee was outisde of STI's budget, so the music team composed the tune you hear in the final game at the last minute before it went gold.
We've got a copy of the original tune here:
Click Here to Download - 52.5 KB |
Hidden Palace Zone?
Craig Stitt, the artist for Sonic 2's canned Hidden Palace Zone, was also the lead artist for the Toxic Caves level in Spinball. If you look closely, you'll see that the backgrounds are nearly the same! Stitt confirmed that the Toxic Caves were based on the lost level in an interview with ICEKnight, which you can read over at Sonic Database.
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American Invasion
The American side of Sonic was shown for the first time in the games with Sonic Spinball. Throughout the game, you'll recognize characters such as Scratch and Grounder from the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog TV show along with the cast from the Archie Comics series.
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| Cheats / Secrets |
Level Select
At the Options screen, press A, DOWN, B, DOWN, C, DOWN, A, B, UP, A, C, UP, B, C, UP in sequence. Return to the title screen to see the same title screen you were looking at before. Where's your level select? Sort of hidden. You'll jump to a level depending on what button you hold when you press start:
A + START = Lava Powerhouse
B + START = The Machine
C + START = Showdown
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