Sonic Heroes

Team Sonic
Team Sonic is the main team of Sonic Heroes. One day, Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, and Knuckles the Echidna receive a letter from the maniacal Doctor Eggman. The doc tells them of his new ultimate weapon that will be ready within three days, thereby challenging them to try and find it. Now the three have joined up to stop the mad doctor's plans as Sonic heroes.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Knuckles the Echidna

The gameplay for this team requires one to race through the levels as quickly as possible, with intermediate difficulty settings. Sonic leads the group as they move over the winding courses, getting them to the goal ring with time to spare. However, if a high ledge needs reaching or a flying foe needs a good beat-down, Tails can take charge with flight to carry his teammates to victory. Whether an army of eneimes or a solid barrier blocks the way, Knuckles can take them down easily, and his group gliding ability can handle almost any crevice. The dream team works together to take down the Eggman with speed and attitude. Team Sonic's abilities are very similar to Team Dark's, with the exception of the Power character's combos (Instead of firing Gatling guns, Knuckles triggers volcanic eruptions) and the Team Blast. Team Sonic's Team Blast, Sonic Overdrive, enables Sonic to use the Light Attack by pressing the B button in midair near an enemy or group of enemies for a short time. The Light Attack is extremely powerful and can wipe out non-boss enemies just as quickly and easily as the Team Blast itself can.

Team Dark
Team Dark's common cause to find Dr. Eggman. Rouge the Bat, the founder of the team and its resident flyer, wants to find Eggman's secret treasure. Shadow the Hedgehog, the speed specialist, wants to know his true identity and why he was left inside a pod. E-123 Omega, the fully-armed robot, is angry with Eggman for abandoning him and wishes to prove his power to him.
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Rouge the Bat
 * E-123 Omega

The missions of Team Dark are the most action-oriented in the game, calling for them to blast through giant hordes of enemies to reach the goal ring, and therefore recommended for experienced players. To accommodate for this, Team Dark has some of the more offensive techniques at its disposal. Shadow uses the Homing attack to blast through rows of Eggman's flunkies; Rouge, besides being able to launch her companions out at enemies in the air, can attack enemies on her own with powerful kicks or misleading ring-like bombs; Omega can also launch his friends outwards, after which he can transform his arms into formidable gatling guns to take out whole groups of foes.

Team Rose
The characters of Team Rose are trying to find their friends. As Amy Rose looks for Sonic, she meets up with Big the Cat and Cream the Rabbit. Big is on the hunt for his little friend, Froggy, while Cream is looking for Cheese the Chao's brother, Chocola. With a picture in the newspaper (being carried off by who they believe to be Sonic) as their only clue, the three join up to form the team and find them all.
 * Amy Rose
 * Cream the Rabbit plus Cheese the Chao
 * Big the Cat

The style of play for Team Rose is the simplest in the game, with fewer enemies and longer flight times, and is designed for younger players. Amy leads in the speed formation, and though she's not as fast as Sonic, she does have her useful Piko Piko Hammer, which she can use to smack enemies, smack her friends at her enemies, and to swing around poles. Cream can fly her teammates over long distances, and when she's alone, she can send her Chao, Cheese, to attack for her. Big uses his fishing pole to attack, which can also pop out into a parasol to help the team glide over cliffs and catch air currents.

Team Chaotix
Team Chaotix is made up of the speedy ninja Espio the Chameleon, the powerful leader, Vector the Crocodile and the air-headed flying ace Charmy Bee. Notably missing is Mighty the Armadillo, who appeared along with them in Knuckles' Chaotix.
 * Espio the Chameleon
 * Charmy Bee
 * Vector the Crocodile

The story is that Team Chaotix is a detective agency. One day they get a mysterious call from a stranger that claims that if the job he has for them is completed he will have a large amount of money. Espio, being the mysterious guy of the group does not think that the case is fit for him but Vector reminded him of the number one rule, "We never turn down work that pays!"

In Sonic Heroes, the missions of Team Chaotix are unique and/or unusual. Whether it's collecting hermit crabs or destroying golden turtle robots, their goals are unlike those of any other team. In addition, they have unique skills that set them apart from the others. Espio, for instance, can become invisible in order to avoid enemy fire and to pass through laser barriers, while Charmy can activate special flowers to transport the group to another flower on the other side of the level. This team is recommended for those looking for a change of pace from the general "reach the end" style of play.

Stage 00: Sea Gate (Tutorial)
This in this stage, the player is guided by Omochao through an explanation of how to play Sonic Heroes. Playable only by Team Sonic or Team Rose. (It's a requirement for Team Rose, but it's optional for Team Sonic.)

Stage 01: Seaside Hill

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Find 10 hermit crabs / Find all 20 hermit crabs

Stage 02: Ocean Palace

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Rescue the Chao in the palace / Rescue the Chao without being detected

Boss: Egg Hawk
A fight against a giant hawk-shaped airship as it flies around a circular highway. Players can damage several sections on the wings, but only need to damage Dr. Eggman directly if they want to win.

Stage 03: Grand Metropolis

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Defeat all 85 enemies / Defeat all 85 enemies within 8 minutes

Stage 04: Power Plant

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 9 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Defeat the 3 Gold Camerons / Defeat the 5 Gold Camerons

Boss: Team Versus

 * Team Sonic: versus Team Rose.
 * Team Dark: versus Team Chaotix.
 * Team Rose: versus Team Sonic.
 * Team Chaotix: versus Team Dark.

Stage 05: Casino Park

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Collect 200 Rings / Collect 500 Rings

Stage 06: BINGO Highway

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Collect 10 casino chips / Collect all 20 casino chips

Boss: Robot Carnival

 * Team Sonic: Defeat 12 waves of enemies.
 * Team Dark: Defeat 12 waves of enemies.
 * Team Rose: Defeat 8 waves of enemies.
 * Team Chaotix: Defeat 12 waves of enemies.

Stage 07: Rail Canyon

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes

Stage 08: Bullet Station

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Destroy 30 capsules / Destroy all 50 capsules

Boss: Egg Albatross
A fight against a giant hawk-shaped airship as it flies around a circular highway. Players can damage several sections on the wings, but only need to damage Dr. Eggman directly if they want to win.

Stage 09: Frog Forest

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 5 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Get to the Goal Ring without alerting frogs / Get to the Goal Ring within 4 minutes without alerting frogs

Stage 10: Lost Jungle

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Find 10 Chao / Find all 20 Chao

Boss: Team Versus

 * Team Sonic: versus Team Dark.
 * Team Dark: versus Team Sonic.
 * Team Rose: versus Team Chaotix.
 * Team Chaotix: versus Team Rose.

Stage 11: Hang Castle

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Find 10 keys / Find 10 keys without being detected

Stage 12: Mystic Mansion

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 7 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Blow out all 60 red torches / Blow out all 46 blue torches

Boss: Robot Storm

 * Team Sonic: Defeat 13 waves of enemies.
 * Team Dark: Defeat 14 waves of enemies.
 * Team Rose: Defeat 6 waves of enemies.
 * Team Chaotix: Defeat 14 waves of enemies.

Stage 13: Egg Fleet

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 9 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Get to the Goal Ring without being detected / Get to the Goal Ring within 6 minutes without being detected

Stage 14: Final Fortress

 * Team Sonic: Get to the Goal Ring / Get to the Goal Ring within 9 minutes
 * Team Dark: Get to the Goal Ring / Defeat 100 enemies
 * Team Rose: Get to the Goal Ring / Collect 200 Rings
 * Team Chaotix: Find the 5 keys / Find the 10 keys

Boss: Egg Emperor
A fight against Eggman in a giant armored Eggpawn Mech. Players must strike the multi-colored Eggman orb in the center of the Egg Emperor's armor to win.

Last Boss Ver. 1: Metal Madness
All four teams fight against Metal Sonic, who has transformed himself into a hideous beast, using the power of Perfect Chaos.

Last Boss Ver. 2: Metal Overlord
Team Super Sonic fights against a further mutated Metal Sonic, who has now gained the ability to fly.

Enemies
Dr. Eggman: The egg-shaped, moustached antagonist of the series. Eggman has a passion for building robots and weapons which he attempts to use to conquer the world. In this game, he has built the Egg Fleet, a giant army of battleships that resemble fish. However, Eggman is not the main villain in the game and has fallen to the wrath of one of his own creations.

Metal Sonic: Metal Sonic is the robotic counterpart of Sonic, built by Dr. Eggman. Metal Sonic has betrayed Eggman in this video game, taking the destruction of Sonic into his own hands. He has obtained a data-copying ability as well as an emperor-like design. In the Final Story, Metal Sonic transforms into a giant metal dragon called the Metal Overlord.

EggPawn: Grunt Soldiers of the Eggman Army, and the ones you will encounter the most often. These guys bear the most resemblance to Eggman himself, and carry all manner of weaponry: Automatic Rifles, Rocket Launchers, Shields, Lances, and more.

Flapper: Similiar to EggPawns, you will encounter Flappers extremely often. Generally, they hover in one place, stationary, although some fly around with search lights in order to call in re-enforcements upon spotting you.

Rhino Liner: Found only in the Rail Canyon/Bullet Station stages, Rhino Liners travel along grind rails in an effort to knock you off.

Falco: Smaller versions of the Egg Hawk boss. Usually only found in the Egg Fleet stage.

Klagen: Giant purple and blue squid-like robots. If a Klagen catches a teammate in it's capture beam, that teammate will be unusable until the Klagen is defeated.

Cameron: Turtle robots. Generally can only be defeated by flipping them over on their backs and striking their stomachs. Have giant cannons mounted on their backs.

Other characters
Froggy: Big's "polliwog pal" who lives with him in the Mystic Ruins. Froggy has been kidnapped by Metal Sonic, along with Chocola Chao. Metal Sonic copies Chaos' data from him.

Chocola: Chocola is a brown Chao and Cheese's brother. Chocola was kidnapped along with Froggy, by Metal Sonic. Metal Sonic copies Chaos' data from him.

Chaos: A mysterious liquid lifeform who protects the Chao from harm. He is not shown in the game, but does have a role to play in the game, as Metal Sonic kidnaps Froggy and Chocola and copies Chaos' data from them, as they have both encountered Chaos. Chaos' power allows Metal Sonic to melt into a weird liquid.

Chao: Cute creatures who can be bred and trained by you in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2. They appear in some of the levels with Team Chaotix, as well as some bonus stages.