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29:57 In defense of Color’s special stages, there is a penalty for picking up orbs before you need them. Most orbs do not respawn after you collect or knock them out. So, if you knock out a line of yellow orbs when you are supposed to collect blue orbs, you can’t recollect those yellow orbs, hurting your chances of beating the stage.
I love the Sonic 4 Episode 1 special stages. It is the better version of the Sonic 1's special stages since you can control the rotation and get the Chaos Emeralds easily.
14:00 chaomix, what are you talking about? You can't fall off the bridges in the special stage. They have invisible walls to the left and right. It's phisically impossible to fall off the bridge.
Yeah I don't know how managed to make this claim but then not show it? That's just weird. I'm also surprised not many people are mentioning this either.
@@sonicultimateyt1090 well, if you were specifically researching how hard every special stage is, I'd assume you'd at least want to see what happens if you failed it.
I really liked getting good at the base Mania Special Stages. I replayed Encore Mode a while back and wondered how I got 6 Chaos Emeralds the first time. Those ones don't mess around.
29:50 a little correction, collecting the orbs of the wrong colors _does_ penalize you as they don't respawn, meaning there are less orbs to get on the second and third acts
6:25 If you press the restart button in Origins after clearing a stage, it saves the Emerald, meaning you can literally get Super Sonic by *the first checkpoint* in the entire game
You can do the same thing in the original Genesis versions of the games, too, by resetting the console itself. Plus, "Sonic 3" and "Sonic 3 & Knuckles" have save files, anyway.
@@Compucles sonic 3 and knuckles.. yeah you can do that.. but sonic 1 and 2 don't save your chaos emeralds after you turn off the console or hit the reset button so the player would have to play ALL SEVEN (six for 1) again.. let alone that the draw distance in the original sonic 2 special stages was utter crap
I think the point of the special stages (at least in the earlier ones) is to be technically impressive, kind of like Sonic Team showing how they can make the Mega Drive sing. Sonic 2 and 3 try to do sprite scaling (an effect that Sega really liked back in the day) while Mega CD actually has an extra DSP chip for hardware accelerated sprite scaling. The cool thing about old hardware is that you had developers trying to see how much they could squeeze out of low specs, which I don't think you see as much these days.
Technically, you still see it anytime someone tries to make a Nintendo port of a multi-console game dating back to the Wii. Some do it much better than others.
In the original genesis games at least, Sonic 1 special stages aren't accessible in Scrap Brain at all. Meaning you only have 10 attempts to get the 6 emeralds. In Sonic 2, Sonic and Tails have separate ring counters so Tails hitting spike balls isn't necessarily on you. But playing with Sonic and Tails forces a higher target of rings so *shrug*. Sonic 3D Blast Genesis doesn't let you fall off the edges of the bridges, they are still on rail walls.
I'm gonna need a Citation for "falling off will immediately end the special stages" for 3D Blast at around 13:55 or so. I've played this game so many times that absolutely does not happen.
My favorite special stages are the ones from Sonic Rush. They have great music and the stylus controls allow for more precise movement and more intricate stage layouts.
I’m probably the one person who’s actually on board with Lost World’s special stages. The gyroscope was incredibly responsive, but not as overly sensitive as you would expect.(at least for me it was). It was pretty fun controlling Sonic like this while continuously turning the 3DS around like an idiot lmao. They’re more on the easier side and as you said they do kinda drag on, but I really enjoyed my time with them.
I enjoyed the SLW 3DS special stages. I agree with the consensus that the motion controls really shouldn't have been mandatory, but I feel the controls work really well at least.
The superstars special stages were so good in fact superstars is the only sonic game I’ve ever been able to legitimately get all chaos emeralds in with without using a debug mode
You did a disservice to Sonic 4: Episode II by not even mentioning the Combination Dash, the tether Sonic and Tails use during those Special Stages. They're a very unique gimmick and playing them co-op with a friend and trying to come up with the best route to take to maximize your ring count using this tether is unbelievably fun.
I'd personally consider Game Land in Sonic Colors Wii to be Special Stages. You access it by collecting Red Rings, and beating the levels gets you a Chaos Emerald.
I need to stress that Sonic 4 Episode 2 has a full Coop mode, and as thus the Special Stages gain a whole extra bit of teamwork and being competitive. Perhaps not a tier change but it's certainly a different vibe trying to mix working with your friend and use the boost rather than just zooming through alone.
Okay, for anyone who's currently playing Sonic Heroes and struggles with the special stages, I have two tips that will help. 1) Ignore the formation of the spheres and always use the Power formation, and my reasoning for this is simple: The Speed formation is too slippery and you can lose control of the characters in an instant, while the Flight formation will slow you down way too much. But the Power formation has a good speed without being too fast and without sacrificing too much control. 2) When you fill your boost gauge a decent amount, like to level 1 or level 2, move your team to the ceiling and start boosting. You become so much faster, and there's no obstacles in your way, so you can catch up to the Emerald much easier. After learning these two things, I've basically become a pro at the special stages, so I hope this helps.
I think it's interesting how most of these Special Stages are made to show off some capability of the hardware the game is on. All of the faux 3D ones are showing off that the hardware can pull off a form of 3D with clever programming, the Sonic Rush stages are made to make good use of the DS touch screen, and the Lost World 3DS stages are made around the 3DS gyro controls. Honestly, I think a big part of the reason most modern games don't have Special Stages is because they're mostly on hardware without any big gimmicks (and those that are make use of those gimmicks in the main gameplay). I mean, the Dreamcast's special feature was the VMU , and the Adventure games made use of that through the Chao Garden by letting you take the Chao with you in your VMU. Then for the Gamecube ports, they replaced that with the ability to transfer your Chao to your GBA if you hade a Gamecube-GBA link cable. I think the Chao Garden was seen by Sonic Team as a replacement of the special stages in previous games, and that might even be part of why they're never brought it back.
Well, the "Sonic Adventure" duology (and some others like "Shadow the Hedgehog") had you collect the Chaos Emeralds as part the story itself, so they couldn't have optional/failable special stages to collect them in those games. Although, your reasoning may be why they decided to weave collecting the Chaos Emeralds into the stories.
This is a video I’ve been suggesting in the discord for a while and I’m glad we finally got it. I have a very softspot for Knuckles Chaotix Special Stages, it also has the ring time limit thing that Mania has and the pseudo 3D I find very charming and it’s very satisfying to complete them. For Sonic Advance 2 there are mods which decrease the needed special rings required to like 3 or 4 to enter special stages and it’s honestly more bearable and that’s how the vanilla game should’ve been. Also there’s Sonic Advance 2 SP which fixes the level design too. I also like the Heroes Special Stages but Generations 3DS really did execute them better.
I think a lot of modern games haven't done Special Stages since they're usually tied to getting the Chaos Emeralds, which are usually now just part of the game's main story. Definitely a shame though. I've got a lot of nostalgia for Sonic Heroes' special stages but I remember even as a kid that they didn't control great. But I really like the aesthetic and the music, was happy to see them back in Sonic Generations 3DS! I think my favorite ones are Blue Spheres and Sonic Mania's special stages though.
My favorite have always been the Advance 3 and Sonic 4 Ep. 2 special stages. Advance 3 definitely felt like an improvement of the first Advance special stage with an increased draw distance, more variety in obstacles and boosters, and something that matched the Sonic speed that a lot of special stages do. They're my favorite, but Ep. 2 has some pretty great ones too. They're the best version of the half pipe for me, just feeling a lot better to control than the others. Plus, all the gimmicks with Tails were pretty cool, and he wasn't a complete hindrance in my experience, so that helps it out a bit. Also, after all the compliments you gave to the Superstars special stage, the B-Tier had me a bit confused. I thought it was gonna be in A-Tier. Haven't gotten around to playing Superstars, but it does look really unique, and I like the idea that they had for multiplayer so no one gets left out.
I remember testing if I was able to fall off of the special stages in Sonic 3D Blast (Genesis) and it is not possible, you simply can't escape the bridge. I played on Sonic Mega Collection, but I seriously doubt if that they changed the game so significantly for a collection of older titles. And no, they are not less lenient than the Sonic 2 special stages in any way. The Sonic 3D Blast stages are pathetically easy, but I've never completed Sonic 2's special stages for all 7 emeralds without the help of a second player. Probably because the turning tunnels don't give me enough time to react. And an edit for clarification, the Sonic Rush special stages were not at all a problem for me, so it's not the halfpipe formula that's the problem. It's specifically Sonic 2. Maybe it has a bad framerate on Sonic Mega Collection? Could that be it?
Sonic 3 & K’s special stages (Blue Spheres) are so notoriously difficult that I’ve never gotten past the first one. Sonic CD and 1 are my favourites though.
Also, Sonic 2 is probably lowest on my list of Classic Sonic games. It’s okay, but the special stages aren’t helping, and the Final Zone is basically impossible in any case. So on my own tier list, S is Sonic 1, A is Sonic CD, B is Sonic Mania and Superstars, and C is Sonic 3&K and Sonic 2
I’m gonna assume you played Lost World 3DS on an emulator cause there’s no way you didn’t mention how they’re gyro-controlled so you need to play them on a swivel chair or standing up
I sometimes wonder what it's like to live in the Special Stage, I believe Fang originally came from there (although I'm not sure if that was in the Game or Archie continuity). Also the Rush special stages was my first exposure to them (Sonic Rush being the first Sonic game I bought and played) afterwards the next game I played was Heroes with its special stages (PS2), suffice to say "whiplash" doesn't even begin to describe that childhood experience...
The reason, I think, for the Special Stages being excluded from the mainline 3D games has to do with their general role in the stories as Macguffins. It’s hard to really take a dramatic game’s plot seriously if it revolves around the characters completing obstacle courses in order to proceed to the next event.
@@rainbowsonic5501 I’m talking like the games whose stores are meant to be taken more seriously compared to others (whether they succeeded or not is up to debate) and were more narratively focused. Games like SA1, SA2, 2005‘s “Shadow the Hedgehog”, 06, and “Unleashed”. Collecting the Chaos Emeralds via the Special Stages were never once utilized in their gameplay.
@@geoffreyrichards6079 I still don't see how a special stage would hinder those stories that are more funny then dramatic in my opinion. I would have liked to have special stages in all the game you mention, but they are still great games without them, so it really doesn't matter.
@@rainbowsonic5501 My point, basically, is that the narratives are super reliant on certain characters possessing the emeralds at different points in the story. For example, SA1 opens up with Tails reuniting with Sonic by test piloting a new plane powered by the emerald, and likewise, Amy’s animal companion is revealed to carry an emerald with them and Big already has one as a good luck charm till a mutated Froggy eats it. And the exact amount of emeralds is exchanged between the different characters as the story progresses. You can’t really implement Special Stages in a narrative like that.
Hey chaomix i have a important character aspect and topic no one talks about eggman Nobody talks about the fact that eggman is an archeologist since he successfully found multiple ancient artifacts, murals, manuscripts, etc during his free time. I refuse to believe he got lucky and visited a few ruins. He has to have visited many ruins only to finally find something as he expressed on relief how it finally works. Like did he found others that didn't turn out right? Or something? He does so unleashing monsters or tools to control them to help his world conquest Examples include sonic adventure, sonic o6, sonic unleashed, i believe sonic lost world iirc, sonic boom if you wanna count that, sonic frontiers, and most recent and the one we actually see him do is in sonic superstars Although it is very subtle it should be safe to assume he has some archeology background along with his scientific background. Itll be amazing if you can yalk about it and dove deeper into it because l literally tried looking this up and not a single soul talked about it. Unless if someone did and i somehow missed it pls prove me wrong if so Ty
You can fall off the bridge in the 3D Blast special stage? I've never fallen off, nor have I found footage of that happening on the internet. I don't you fall at all.
32:40 I can understand why they changed the 50 rings mechanic after Sonic 2. By protecting their rings, it'll just slow down the player. But it would be cool if there was a thing that mixes the original 50 rings mechanic with the hidden rings mechanic. Maybe the special stages becomes easier if you have 50 rings
I think the bigger issue is that you lose your rings in "Sonic 2" when you enter a Special Stage, so you have to choose between trying for a Chaos Emerald or possibly dying if you get hit before you collect another ring. Plus, with that many rings, you're already at least halfway to 100 for an extra life, so you also have to start over on that front if you enter a Special Stage. It also potentially cuts into your Ring Bonus at the end of a level, which can cost you the chance to earn a Continue.
Chaotix's special stage deserved higher, honestly I personally really like that it's a bit of a trial and error special, except it actually lets you try again when you don't meet the quota, as long as you don't fall of a hole and still have rings. Which leads to the fact that the amount of rings you have at the beggining of the special stage is the exact amount you had upon entering, which, in lack of extra lives in this game, makes for a really good incentive to collect lots of rings. Also, the game has few obstacles and enemies, which is bad, but also good as you won't be as afraid to lose your rings and can just play normally instead. Aditionally, besides the camera and mobility issues, the special stages level design is super well tought with a bit of exploration and even branching paths: you can take one path, not meet the quota and then take a completely different path on the same act! Also, there are 25 acts in this game, if I'm not wrong, which gives PLENTY of opportunities to get all the Chaos Rings and then still do the extra special stages
A little something you forgot to mention for the Sonic Superstars special stages. They have also been slightly modified so that you can only get 1 Chaos Emerald per zone. If you enter a special stage in a zone you already found a Chaos Emerald in, (as well as after you get all of them) you instead try to catch a set of 5 medals, as the giant rings (or ring portals as some fans may call) are now blue.
Blue Sphere is certainly the best. Though I personally rank 3D Blast Genesis pretty high. Maybe there's not a lot of variety compared to other games, but it can be pretty tricky keeping your footing and avoiding all the mines. That plus the music makes for a great experience in my book. 3D Blast needs more love, it's such a fun game.
Well, the blue UFOs with the red stripes you don’t really need. The blue UFOs with the white stripes, the ones that give you the Speed Shoes, are the ones you _do_ need to destroy with the purple UFOs.
In the original release, all the UFOs were purple except the one that gives you extra time, which appears when you only have 20 seconds remaining on the timer. For more recent releases, some of the purple UFOs were recoloured blue. You still need to destroy these blue UFOs. Purple UFOs grant rings when destroyed, blue ones grant speed shoes.
*raises hand* I have a Neo Geo Pocket Color, one I've modded to have an LCD panel. One of my favorite handhelds. I feel like some of the criticism for older special stages doesn't take into account how the games display on their original hardware screens and while I don't really agree with many of the placements, nice video all the same.
I guess a plenty of people won't be agree with me, but I do love сolours' special stages. Even though they're not difficult, they're chilling and cosy in a way. They feel like a quiet and calm stroll through a safe place. I know they're too easy, yet I've played ds version just after rush and rush adventure, whose special stages were unbearably hard and irritating for me, that's why I NEEDED stages like this. P. S. My favourites are the ones from cd, sonic 3 and knuckles and just colours for ds. I want to apologise for my English if I made some mistakes. It's not my Mother tongue.
I think what happens when you get all 7 chaos emeralds should’ve also been considered, since it’s a bit of a letdown to do all that work just for a single boss fight. Lookin at you Advance trilogy
Definitely agree that Mania special stages are S tier, they're so fun that they're kinda addicting and _almost_ overshadow the base game weirdly enough.
I would've added Colors Wii since u CAN play as Super Sonic after doin the game land & red rings. I'd also count Frontiers cus the CS stages R treated like special stages. Gens might count in some ways too
I dunno if they changed it in later ports, but in the original Sonic 1, you could only get the giant ring in 10 Acts- they stop showing up at Scrap Brain.
1 thing I really wish you would have mentioned with lost worlds stages is they're controlled by the 3ds gyroscope. It's horrendous to control because you have to move your 3ds all around you to turn sonic.
I both love and hate the Sonic Mania special stages. They are definitly skill based and they kicked my butt. It took a bit of learning, but once I got them down I started and managed to beat them, it felt amazing. I definitly got an appreciation for them now.
For heroes, you can just switch to power formation and jump from a boost. It makes them so much easier since you can get the emeralds in less than 10s if done right.
Sonic Lost World also had something not mentioned in the video. I seem to recall you having to use the gyroscope to control it. Should be Z tier although I admit they were sort of fun with that gimmick. I am guessing they were played on a emulator otherwise you would have to stand up and rotate to get through those stages.
In reference to the SLW3Ds version, when you said "It isn't really Sonic-like at all." I completely heard: "He doesn't really Sonic, like at all." Which is something that can be aaid about both versions if the game LOL
29:09 fun fact: in the mobile version, Sonic's hands are glitched. He has an open hand and a closed hand at the same time, one clipping through the other. Permanently
Because of tails having a slight delay when playing alone as sonic & tails in sonic 2, i just get as many as i can as sonic & let tails just be my back-up rings
7:35 No, in their original power point form they aren't. And I'm not alone. The concept is really good but flawed in execution due to hardware limitations. It's not fun to play them on the Mega Drive. But the smooth remade versions of Sonic 2's special stages are perfectly playable and show how good they can be, so they deserve the B rank. But the originals get a D from me personally.
Lemme know if someone mentioned this before, but I believe Sonic 1 only has 10 chances to get into a special stage, unless the remaster changed something. You can make the large ring appear in the first two acts of every zone, except Scrap Brain. Apparently for Act 1, the Genesis version couldn’t handle the effects in the background combined with the large ring, if I remember correctly. Act 2 also ends with a cutscene, so I don’t believe it can appear their either. Ten chances for 6 emeralds is relatively tight, and any missed opportunities getting hit right before the end is pretty detrimental.
I honestly love most of the special stages but sonic 3&K special stage and sonic 1 special stage are 2 I really dont care for because i guess i just really domt like them all that much. I mean yes those 2 can be fun when your going fast but most of it at the beginning I just dont like. All of the other ones I really love alot! There are also a few I havent played a special stage on, like the advance series just because im not sure on how to activate them lol. Neverplayed chaotix game and barely played triple trouble and chaos and 3d blast. But I will change that next year to play 3d blast and Triple trouple and the advance series all the way even the special stages. 😁 Love this video and thanks for always making top tier content 😁🩵
Honestly I really like the Sonic 1 special stages. While most people find them tedious I think they're a fun little mini game, but I am a bit biased towards Sonic 1. 1, 3&K, and Rush are definitely my favorite special stages.
Thanks! I love the Special Stages in Mania and Rush, which I fully beat yesterday, but, my god, is Special Stage 7 a pain in the f-*RING SCATTER SOUND EFFECT*-ng ass
I’m kinda surprised Sonic Dimensions didn’t get a mention. Each time Sonic clears a Zone, he faces the Sonic 2 half-pipe to explicitly get a Chaos Emerald. The only rub is that you don’t have to be competent or meet any requirements, you get the Emerald at the end no matter what.
Something interesting about Sonic Chaos Special Stages, Tails can't enter these he just get extra Life when you get 100 rings, You just automatically get good ending with tails
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29:57 In defense of Color’s special stages, there is a penalty for picking up orbs before you need them. Most orbs do not respawn after you collect or knock them out. So, if you knock out a line of yellow orbs when you are supposed to collect blue orbs, you can’t recollect those yellow orbs, hurting your chances of beating the stage.
If you hit too many yellow orbs you can just make it impossible
I love the Sonic 4 Episode 1 special stages. It is the better version of the Sonic 1's special stages since you can control the rotation and get the Chaos Emeralds easily.
😊😊😊😊😊😊
I'm just now watching the video, and I wanted to see if someone already pointed this out.
@@MohammadAlliHasanPlus you can restart if you’re about to lose.
Gonna be real. The mania and the Sonic 3D blast (saturn) as well as the rush ones are honestly amazing imo.
true
They are amazing 😁
Yo what mic do u use? I need a cheap one bc I wanna make a commentary video
I really dont like Sonic Mania Special stages. They are sooo hard to find and they are sooo hard to complete. They control so bad... I really don
@@RaiginAnimator this one from a brand called shure
14:00 chaomix, what are you talking about? You can't fall off the bridges in the special stage. They have invisible walls to the left and right. It's phisically impossible to fall off the bridge.
Yeah I don't know how managed to make this claim but then not show it? That's just weird. I'm also surprised not many people are mentioning this either.
Are you talking about 3D blast?
@@Zac-w4z do you not see the time stamp?
Most people wouldnt test that they assume that sonic would fall
@@sonicultimateyt1090 well, if you were specifically researching how hard every special stage is, I'd assume you'd at least want to see what happens if you failed it.
13:00 oh look, the draw distance from Sonic Frontiers was actually inspired by this game! How genius.
Booo! Low hanging fruit
I really liked getting good at the base Mania Special Stages. I replayed Encore Mode a while back and wondered how I got 6 Chaos Emeralds the first time. Those ones don't mess around.
I really liked trying to find them alone without guides, it made me explore everything and really enjoy the game.
29:50 a little correction, collecting the orbs of the wrong colors _does_ penalize you as they don't respawn, meaning there are less orbs to get on the second and third acts
If you really think about it, the Cyberspace levels are technically special stages
They’re not special stages if you play them all the time. They’re supposed to be limited
I almost thought so too but I did a poll a few weeks ago and most people say they weren't, shrug
@@razorionxvii638 Huh, I guess so
No they're not
Guys, they said “technically”
6:25 If you press the restart button in Origins after clearing a stage, it saves the Emerald, meaning you can literally get Super Sonic by *the first checkpoint* in the entire game
@@BlueBlurred I'm not joking. I discovered this by accident when playing Classic Mode after failing one of the stages
You can do the same thing in the original Genesis versions of the games, too, by resetting the console itself. Plus, "Sonic 3" and "Sonic 3 & Knuckles" have save files, anyway.
@@CompuclesNo??
That’s how I got super sonic by the 2nd checkpoint
@@Compucles sonic 3 and knuckles.. yeah you can do that.. but sonic 1 and 2 don't save your chaos emeralds after you turn off the console or hit the reset button so the player would have to play ALL SEVEN (six for 1) again.. let alone that the draw distance in the original sonic 2 special stages was utter crap
I think the point of the special stages (at least in the earlier ones) is to be technically impressive, kind of like Sonic Team showing how they can make the Mega Drive sing. Sonic 2 and 3 try to do sprite scaling (an effect that Sega really liked back in the day) while Mega CD actually has an extra DSP chip for hardware accelerated sprite scaling. The cool thing about old hardware is that you had developers trying to see how much they could squeeze out of low specs, which I don't think you see as much these days.
Technically, you still see it anytime someone tries to make a Nintendo port of a multi-console game dating back to the Wii. Some do it much better than others.
In the original genesis games at least, Sonic 1 special stages aren't accessible in Scrap Brain at all. Meaning you only have 10 attempts to get the 6 emeralds.
In Sonic 2, Sonic and Tails have separate ring counters so Tails hitting spike balls isn't necessarily on you. But playing with Sonic and Tails forces a higher target of rings so *shrug*.
Sonic 3D Blast Genesis doesn't let you fall off the edges of the bridges, they are still on rail walls.
I'm gonna need a Citation for "falling off will immediately end the special stages" for 3D Blast at around 13:55 or so. I've played this game so many times that absolutely does not happen.
My favorite special stages are the ones from Sonic Rush. They have great music and the stylus controls allow for more precise movement and more intricate stage layouts.
I’m probably the one person who’s actually on board with Lost World’s special stages. The gyroscope was incredibly responsive, but not as overly sensitive as you would expect.(at least for me it was). It was pretty fun controlling Sonic like this while continuously turning the 3DS around like an idiot lmao.
They’re more on the easier side and as you said they do kinda drag on, but I really enjoyed my time with them.
I enjoyed the SLW 3DS special stages. I agree with the consensus that the motion controls really shouldn't have been mandatory, but I feel the controls work really well at least.
I am so glad I'm not the only one who enjoys these stages! The gyroscope controls honestly make this a fucking dream!
seriously, how are you even supposed to play them, i have to keep holding b to reposition myself to turn, love your videos btw
The superstars special stages were so good in fact superstars is the only sonic game I’ve ever been able to legitimately get all chaos emeralds in with without using a debug mode
In Sonic 3D Blast (Genesis)'s Special Stages, the narrow bridges have invisible walls on their sides, so you don't need to worry about falling off.
I don't know why this is the one type of comment that seems to go ignored lol
I have no idea where he got this idea that you can fall off the bridge
It's always good to see ranking in this channel and some of the special stages are fun to play
You did a disservice to Sonic 4: Episode II by not even mentioning the Combination Dash, the tether Sonic and Tails use during those Special Stages. They're a very unique gimmick and playing them co-op with a friend and trying to come up with the best route to take to maximize your ring count using this tether is unbelievably fun.
I'd personally consider Game Land in Sonic Colors Wii to be Special Stages. You access it by collecting Red Rings, and beating the levels gets you a Chaos Emerald.
I need to stress that Sonic 4 Episode 2 has a full Coop mode, and as thus the Special Stages gain a whole extra bit of teamwork and being competitive. Perhaps not a tier change but it's certainly a different vibe trying to mix working with your friend and use the boost rather than just zooming through alone.
Okay, for anyone who's currently playing Sonic Heroes and struggles with the special stages, I have two tips that will help.
1) Ignore the formation of the spheres and always use the Power formation, and my reasoning for this is simple: The Speed formation is too slippery and you can lose control of the characters in an instant, while the Flight formation will slow you down way too much. But the Power formation has a good speed without being too fast and without sacrificing too much control.
2) When you fill your boost gauge a decent amount, like to level 1 or level 2, move your team to the ceiling and start boosting. You become so much faster, and there's no obstacles in your way, so you can catch up to the Emerald much easier.
After learning these two things, I've basically become a pro at the special stages, so I hope this helps.
Tip 3) You do not have to mash the B button, you can just hold it. The flashing symbol next to the gauge is misleading
Yes, that too. I forgot about that one since it’s so natural for me.
17:50 crazy this was an official sonic game. For a second i thought he accidentally included sonic adventure 7 in this list
I think it's interesting how most of these Special Stages are made to show off some capability of the hardware the game is on. All of the faux 3D ones are showing off that the hardware can pull off a form of 3D with clever programming, the Sonic Rush stages are made to make good use of the DS touch screen, and the Lost World 3DS stages are made around the 3DS gyro controls. Honestly, I think a big part of the reason most modern games don't have Special Stages is because they're mostly on hardware without any big gimmicks (and those that are make use of those gimmicks in the main gameplay).
I mean, the Dreamcast's special feature was the VMU , and the Adventure games made use of that through the Chao Garden by letting you take the Chao with you in your VMU. Then for the Gamecube ports, they replaced that with the ability to transfer your Chao to your GBA if you hade a Gamecube-GBA link cable. I think the Chao Garden was seen by Sonic Team as a replacement of the special stages in previous games, and that might even be part of why they're never brought it back.
Well, the "Sonic Adventure" duology (and some others like "Shadow the Hedgehog") had you collect the Chaos Emeralds as part the story itself, so they couldn't have optional/failable special stages to collect them in those games. Although, your reasoning may be why they decided to weave collecting the Chaos Emeralds into the stories.
Ngl Blue Spheres music is FIRE❄️
This is a video I’ve been suggesting in the discord for a while and I’m glad we finally got it.
I have a very softspot for Knuckles Chaotix Special Stages, it also has the ring time limit thing that Mania has and the pseudo 3D I find very charming and it’s very satisfying to complete them.
For Sonic Advance 2 there are mods which decrease the needed special rings required to like 3 or 4 to enter special stages and it’s honestly more bearable and that’s how the vanilla game should’ve been. Also there’s Sonic Advance 2 SP which fixes the level design too.
I also like the Heroes Special Stages but Generations 3DS really did execute them better.
I think a lot of modern games haven't done Special Stages since they're usually tied to getting the Chaos Emeralds, which are usually now just part of the game's main story. Definitely a shame though.
I've got a lot of nostalgia for Sonic Heroes' special stages but I remember even as a kid that they didn't control great. But I really like the aesthetic and the music, was happy to see them back in Sonic Generations 3DS! I think my favorite ones are Blue Spheres and Sonic Mania's special stages though.
I actually like the Sonic 1 Special Stage. It's make simple than most of them
*it's more simple than most of them
The first Sonic's tierlist I was 100% on sync with it, insane
In the Genesis version of 3D Blast, you can't fall off the bridge. There are invisible walls there.
I'm gonna be honest. In my opinion I absolutely love the generations 3ds and heroes special stages. Especially gens 3ds with incredible music.
Note for 3D Blast Genesis, you cant actually fall off the bridge.
My favorite have always been the Advance 3 and Sonic 4 Ep. 2 special stages. Advance 3 definitely felt like an improvement of the first Advance special stage with an increased draw distance, more variety in obstacles and boosters, and something that matched the Sonic speed that a lot of special stages do. They're my favorite, but Ep. 2 has some pretty great ones too. They're the best version of the half pipe for me, just feeling a lot better to control than the others. Plus, all the gimmicks with Tails were pretty cool, and he wasn't a complete hindrance in my experience, so that helps it out a bit. Also, after all the compliments you gave to the Superstars special stage, the B-Tier had me a bit confused. I thought it was gonna be in A-Tier. Haven't gotten around to playing Superstars, but it does look really unique, and I like the idea that they had for multiplayer so no one gets left out.
I remember testing if I was able to fall off of the special stages in Sonic 3D Blast (Genesis) and it is not possible, you simply can't escape the bridge. I played on Sonic Mega Collection, but I seriously doubt if that they changed the game so significantly for a collection of older titles.
And no, they are not less lenient than the Sonic 2 special stages in any way. The Sonic 3D Blast stages are pathetically easy, but I've never completed Sonic 2's special stages for all 7 emeralds without the help of a second player. Probably because the turning tunnels don't give me enough time to react.
And an edit for clarification, the Sonic Rush special stages were not at all a problem for me, so it's not the halfpipe formula that's the problem. It's specifically Sonic 2. Maybe it has a bad framerate on Sonic Mega Collection? Could that be it?
Sonic 3 & K’s special stages (Blue Spheres) are so notoriously difficult that I’ve never gotten past the first one. Sonic CD and 1 are my favourites though.
Also, Sonic 2 is probably lowest on my list of Classic Sonic games. It’s okay, but the special stages aren’t helping, and the Final Zone is basically impossible in any case. So on my own tier list, S is Sonic 1, A is Sonic CD, B is Sonic Mania and Superstars, and C is Sonic 3&K and Sonic 2
a good tip about the sonic cd stages i only found out recently: holding down slows sonic down making turns easier to manage.
In Sonic 1, if you don't get all the Emeralds by Star Light Act 2, you're screwed, as Special Stage entry is disabled in Scrap Brain
I’m gonna assume you played Lost World 3DS on an emulator cause there’s no way you didn’t mention how they’re gyro-controlled so you need to play them on a swivel chair or standing up
yeah i was wondering about that too...
I'm pretty sure I hurt myself playing those special stages. It was either that or Pokemon Dream Radar. Possibly both.
technically, cyber space stages are special stages because you get keys to unlock the emeralds in frontiers
0:05 the overpowered yellow piss form😂😂😂
Quote of the year 😂😂😂
I guess a lot of modern games don't use them because the chaos emeralds are tied into the plot, so they'd need another reward for the special stages
I sometimes wonder what it's like to live in the Special Stage, I believe Fang originally came from there (although I'm not sure if that was in the Game or Archie continuity).
Also the Rush special stages was my first exposure to them (Sonic Rush being the first Sonic game I bought and played) afterwards the next game I played was Heroes with its special stages (PS2), suffice to say "whiplash" doesn't even begin to describe that childhood experience...
The blue spheres are especially fun in Sonic Mania. I managed to get gold medals for all of the special stages.
The reason, I think, for the Special Stages being excluded from the mainline 3D games has to do with their general role in the stories as Macguffins. It’s hard to really take a dramatic game’s plot seriously if it revolves around the characters completing obstacle courses in order to proceed to the next event.
How are Sonic games plot "dramatic"? xD
@@rainbowsonic5501 I’m talking like the games whose stores are meant to be taken more seriously compared to others (whether they succeeded or not is up to debate) and were more narratively focused. Games like SA1, SA2, 2005‘s “Shadow the Hedgehog”, 06, and “Unleashed”. Collecting the Chaos Emeralds via the Special Stages were never once utilized in their gameplay.
@@geoffreyrichards6079 I still don't see how a special stage would hinder those stories that are more funny then dramatic in my opinion. I would have liked to have special stages in all the game you mention, but they are still great games without them, so it really doesn't matter.
@@rainbowsonic5501 My point, basically, is that the narratives are super reliant on certain characters possessing the emeralds at different points in the story. For example, SA1 opens up with Tails reuniting with Sonic by test piloting a new plane powered by the emerald, and likewise, Amy’s animal companion is revealed to carry an emerald with them and Big already has one as a good luck charm till a mutated Froggy eats it. And the exact amount of emeralds is exchanged between the different characters as the story progresses. You can’t really implement Special Stages in a narrative like that.
I really like the 3DS version of Sonic Generations' special stages. They're super fun and not too difficult.
0:43 IM LITERALLY WATCHING THIS ON OPERA GX WHAT
Hey chaomix i have a important character aspect and topic no one talks about eggman
Nobody talks about the fact that eggman is an archeologist since he successfully found multiple ancient artifacts, murals, manuscripts, etc during his free time. I refuse to believe he got lucky and visited a few ruins. He has to have visited many ruins only to finally find something as he expressed on relief how it finally works. Like did he found others that didn't turn out right? Or something?
He does so unleashing monsters or tools to control them to help his world conquest
Examples include sonic adventure, sonic o6, sonic unleashed, i believe sonic lost world iirc, sonic boom if you wanna count that, sonic frontiers, and most recent and the one we actually see him do is in sonic superstars
Although it is very subtle it should be safe to assume he has some archeology background along with his scientific background. Itll be amazing if you can yalk about it and dove deeper into it because l literally tried looking this up and not a single soul talked about it. Unless if someone did and i somehow missed it pls prove me wrong if so
Ty
F tier is too high for sonic jam gamecom
I said in my mind: "Give it it's own tier"
GIVE IT -Q
Sick Pfp 😎
Y tier
Z Tier!
Bro didn’t even mention that Lost World's special stages use the 3ds' gyroscope, making them one of the most infuriating special stages to play :"v
You can fall off the bridge in the 3D Blast special stage? I've never fallen off, nor have I found footage of that happening on the internet. I don't you fall at all.
You absolutely cannot under any circumstance fall off the bridge. I am confused as to where he got this idea.
@@FlameEliwood Right?! It's so weird that he's never seen it yet he claims it's there.
@@HedgehogY2K I can only assume that he guessed this was thing that happened only because it looks like you could, but never played it himself
I'm looking forward to your fan game Chaomix, it looks fire!
It isn't a fan game, it's an actual game lol. But thank you!
Fun fact in the Saturn 3D Blast stages you can still roll in a ball and actually gain more speed going down slopes
32:40 I can understand why they changed the 50 rings mechanic after Sonic 2. By protecting their rings, it'll just slow down the player. But it would be cool if there was a thing that mixes the original 50 rings mechanic with the hidden rings mechanic. Maybe the special stages becomes easier if you have 50 rings
I think the bigger issue is that you lose your rings in "Sonic 2" when you enter a Special Stage, so you have to choose between trying for a Chaos Emerald or possibly dying if you get hit before you collect another ring. Plus, with that many rings, you're already at least halfway to 100 for an extra life, so you also have to start over on that front if you enter a Special Stage. It also potentially cuts into your Ring Bonus at the end of a level, which can cost you the chance to earn a Continue.
Chaotix's special stage deserved higher, honestly
I personally really like that it's a bit of a trial and error special, except it actually lets you try again when you don't meet the quota, as long as you don't fall of a hole and still have rings.
Which leads to the fact that the amount of rings you have at the beggining of the special stage is the exact amount you had upon entering, which, in lack of extra lives in this game, makes for a really good incentive to collect lots of rings.
Also, the game has few obstacles and enemies, which is bad, but also good as you won't be as afraid to lose your rings and can just play normally instead.
Aditionally, besides the camera and mobility issues, the special stages level design is super well tought with a bit of exploration and even branching paths: you can take one path, not meet the quota and then take a completely different path on the same act!
Also, there are 25 acts in this game, if I'm not wrong, which gives PLENTY of opportunities to get all the Chaos Rings and then still do the extra special stages
In true sonic fashion you should’ve based the ranking on S.A,B,C,D and E
The blue sphere ones will always be my favourite since they are the most fair in difficulty and are entirely skill based. Plus the music is amazing
A little something you forgot to mention for the Sonic Superstars special stages. They have also been slightly modified so that you can only get 1 Chaos Emerald per zone. If you enter a special stage in a zone you already found a Chaos Emerald in, (as well as after you get all of them) you instead try to catch a set of 5 medals, as the giant rings (or ring portals as some fans may call) are now blue.
Blue Sphere is certainly the best. Though I personally rank 3D Blast Genesis pretty high. Maybe there's not a lot of variety compared to other games, but it can be pretty tricky keeping your footing and avoiding all the mines. That plus the music makes for a great experience in my book. 3D Blast needs more love, it's such a fun game.
Playing the special stages on Sonic CD on my Samsung tablet is a canon event for middle school me. Now THAT was frustrating.
I don't think you can fall off the bridges in the 3D Blast Genesis special stages.
I know you cant. I don't know where Chaomix got the idea from. It's like he watched it and made an assumption but never played it himself
5:30 You're telling me that I didn't ever need to get those UFOs after all? This is positively earth-shattering.
Well, the blue UFOs with the red stripes you don’t really need. The blue UFOs with the white stripes, the ones that give you the Speed Shoes, are the ones you _do_ need to destroy with the purple UFOs.
In the original release, all the UFOs were purple except the one that gives you extra time, which appears when you only have 20 seconds remaining on the timer. For more recent releases, some of the purple UFOs were recoloured blue. You still need to destroy these blue UFOs. Purple UFOs grant rings when destroyed, blue ones grant speed shoes.
Superstars, Mania, Rush, Colors DS, Saturn 3d Blast, and Blue Spheres special stages are peak.
Hey Chaomix, since you ranked every special stage, can you please rank every stage (in basic)? I’m proud to be a Sonic fan and a Chaomix fan.
*raises hand* I have a Neo Geo Pocket Color, one I've modded to have an LCD panel. One of my favorite handhelds. I feel like some of the criticism for older special stages doesn't take into account how the games display on their original hardware screens and while I don't really agree with many of the placements, nice video all the same.
Your new intro is so grongalicious
I guess a plenty of people won't be agree with me, but I do love сolours' special stages. Even though they're not difficult, they're chilling and cosy in a way. They feel like a quiet and calm stroll through a safe place. I know they're too easy, yet I've played ds version just after rush and rush adventure, whose special stages were unbearably hard and irritating for me, that's why I NEEDED stages like this.
P. S. My favourites are the ones from cd, sonic 3 and knuckles and just colours for ds. I want to apologise for my English if I made some mistakes. It's not my Mother tongue.
Same its good
That cutscene in Sonic heroes where all the teams reveal their chaos emeralds is inaccurate. Team Rose should have had like 5 or 6 of them, lmao.
I think what happens when you get all 7 chaos emeralds should’ve also been considered, since it’s a bit of a letdown to do all that work just for a single boss fight.
Lookin at you Advance trilogy
I love the overpowered yellow piss form
I had a neo geo pocket color and that game when it came out. It's a neat little handheld. It still works.
Definitely agree that Mania special stages are S tier, they're so fun that they're kinda addicting and _almost_ overshadow the base game weirdly enough.
I would've added Colors Wii since u CAN play as Super Sonic after doin the game land & red rings. I'd also count Frontiers cus the CS stages R treated like special stages. Gens might count in some ways too
3&K and Mania are my favorites. I never got play Sonic Heroes but The Special Stages looks fun.
BTW I like your new intro screen, It looks amazing 👌💕
I dunno if they changed it in later ports, but in the original Sonic 1, you could only get the giant ring in 10 Acts- they stop showing up at Scrap Brain.
1 thing I really wish you would have mentioned with lost worlds stages is they're controlled by the 3ds gyroscope. It's horrendous to control because you have to move your 3ds all around you to turn sonic.
I love the Chaotix stages, probably nostalgia speaking but it was the first Sonic game I got the good ending in
Table of Contents
0:00 Intro
2:07 Criteria
2:28 Ranking EVERY Special Stage
35:04 Conclusion
36:11 End Screen
I both love and hate the Sonic Mania special stages. They are definitly skill based and they kicked my butt. It took a bit of learning, but once I got them down I started and managed to beat them, it felt amazing. I definitly got an appreciation for them now.
For heroes, you can just switch to power formation and jump from a boost. It makes them so much easier since you can get the emeralds in less than 10s if done right.
Sonic Lost World also had something not mentioned in the video. I seem to recall you having to use the gyroscope to control it. Should be Z tier although I admit they were sort of fun with that gimmick. I am guessing they were played on a emulator otherwise you would have to stand up and rotate to get through those stages.
These mini games put more fear through my veins than any sonic.exe game ever
In Sonic one, you can't enter special stages in Scrap Brain Zone, so you inly have 10 chances at the emeralds in the whole gane!
In reference to the SLW3Ds version, when you said "It isn't really Sonic-like at all." I completely heard: "He doesn't really Sonic, like at all."
Which is something that can be aaid about both versions if the game LOL
29:09 fun fact: in the mobile version, Sonic's hands are glitched. He has an open hand and a closed hand at the same time, one clipping through the other. Permanently
New Intro Is Great!
I love the new intro!
wow i had no idea the run series on coolmath was basically just the knuckles chaotix special stages turned into its own game
I'd argue generations main console version has special stages since you have to do the rival battles in order to unlock the emeralds
Because of tails having a slight delay when playing alone as sonic & tails in sonic 2, i just get as many as i can as sonic & let tails just be my back-up rings
5:29 The Speed Shoe UFOs are changed to blue in the 2011/Origins version
Almost every Sonic the Hedgehog special stage felt like a fever dream
7:35 No, in their original power point form they aren't. And I'm not alone. The concept is really good but flawed in execution due to hardware limitations. It's not fun to play them on the Mega Drive. But the smooth remade versions of Sonic 2's special stages are perfectly playable and show how good they can be, so they deserve the B rank. But the originals get a D from me personally.
Lemme know if someone mentioned this before, but I believe Sonic 1 only has 10 chances to get into a special stage, unless the remaster changed something. You can make the large ring appear in the first two acts of every zone, except Scrap Brain.
Apparently for Act 1, the Genesis version couldn’t handle the effects in the background combined with the large ring, if I remember correctly. Act 2 also ends with a cutscene, so I don’t believe it can appear their either. Ten chances for 6 emeralds is relatively tight, and any missed opportunities getting hit right before the end is pretty detrimental.
I honestly love most of the special stages but sonic 3&K special stage and sonic 1 special stage are 2 I really dont care for because i guess i just really domt like them all that much. I mean yes those 2 can be fun when your going fast but most of it at the beginning I just dont like. All of the other ones I really love alot! There are also a few I havent played a special stage on, like the advance series just because im not sure on how to activate them lol. Neverplayed chaotix game and barely played triple trouble and chaos and 3d blast. But I will change that next year to play 3d blast and Triple trouple and the advance series all the way even the special stages. 😁
Love this video and thanks for always making top tier content 😁🩵
Honestly I really like the Sonic 1 special stages. While most people find them tedious I think they're a fun little mini game, but I am a bit biased towards Sonic 1. 1, 3&K, and Rush are definitely my favorite special stages.
Thanks! I love the Special Stages in Mania and Rush, which I fully beat yesterday, but, my god, is Special Stage 7 a pain in the f-*RING SCATTER SOUND EFFECT*-ng ass
I’m kinda surprised Sonic Dimensions didn’t get a mention. Each time Sonic clears a Zone, he faces the Sonic 2 half-pipe to explicitly get a Chaos Emerald. The only rub is that you don’t have to be competent or meet any requirements, you get the Emerald at the end no matter what.
I was eating while watching this and when Sonic 4’s special stage popped up i almost threw my food up
You probably don’t know anyone with a Neo Geo Pocket because you and I and just about anyone here weren’t _born_ when the thing came out.
LOL And that's a fact.
Something interesting about Sonic Chaos Special Stages, Tails can't enter these he just get extra Life when you get 100 rings, You just automatically get good ending with tails