Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball/Walkthrough

Toxic Caves
In this level you need to collect 3 Chaos Emeralds before defeating the boss, Scorpius. The overall layout of this level is as follows:

You start at the bottom in a little corridor, just above the water. Run to the right and enter a plunger to be launched into the lower pinball table.

Lower table
The first objective is to hit two small drop targets at the top of the table, one on either side of a vat of slime that contains a Chaos Emerald. Each drop target is located just above a group of three bouncy worm heads. Hitting both targets drains the slime from the vat (allowing you to get that emerald later on), and opens up a pair of sewer pipes on the sides of the table.

Now enter the left pipe to go to the left pinball table, or the right pipe to go to the right table. You will have to visit both tables in either order.

If the ball drains at the bottom of the table, you will land on a small platform. Jump back up quick, before a mechanical serpent grabs you. If he does grab you, spam the flipper buttons to escape.

Safety lids can be opened by hitting the lower two targets, and a bonus Loop-de-Force can be obtained by going through the loop after draining the slime.

Left table
There is a railway switch you have to hit at the right side of the table - follow the path indicated by a row of round red lights.

After you've hit that switch, make your way to the top of the table by either:
 * Shooting up the sewer pipe on the left 4 times (the first 3 times are to break the barrels), OR
 * Going around the loop directly above the flippers 3 times to open a door leading to an upper ledge (the loop contains a counter showing how many times you've visited it).

In the upper right corner of the table you will find a flipper that shoots you into the boss room. If you don't have all 3 Chaos Emeralds yet, you'll fall into a minecart. Read on further down below.

If the ball drains in the left table, you will either fall into deadly slime or, if you land precisely between the two flippers, into a floating metal barrel. If you haven't done so yet, press right to paddle over to a Chaos Emerald sitting in the slime vat you drained earlier. You can now jump in and get it.

Right table
(The right table is a mirror copy of the left table, so these instructions are the exact same as for the left table, but with reversed directions - left becomes right and vice versa)

There is a railway switch you have to hit at the left side of the table - follow the path indicated by a row of round red lights.

After you've hit that switch, make your way to the top of the table by either:
 * Shooting up the sewer pipe on the right four times (the first three times are to break the barrels), OR
 * Going around the loop directly above the flippers three times to open a door leading to an upper ledge (the loop contains a counter showing how many times you've visited it).

In the upper left corner of the table you will find a flipper that shoots you into the boss room. If you don't have all 3 Chaos Emeralds yet, you'll fall into a minecart. Read on further down below.

If the ball drains in the right table, you will either fall into deadly slime or, if you land precisely between the two flippers, into a floating metal barrel. If you haven't done so yet, press left to paddle over to a Chaos Emerald sitting in the slime vat you drained earlier. You can now jump in and get it.

Minecart
If you came in from the left table, press right to go down the track all the way to a Chaos Emerald. Conversely, if you came in from the right table, press left to travel to another Chaos Emerald. This requires you to have activated the railway switch on the table earlier, else you won't reach the emerald.

Once your minecart trip is over you'll find yourself at the bottom of the level. Make your way back up to either get more emeralds, or if you have all 3 emeralds, go to the boss room.

Boss room
Remember, the boss room is accessible via two pipes:
 * In the upper right corner of the left table, and
 * In the upper left corner of the right table

Once you have all three Chaos Emeralds and enter this room, the boss fight against Scorpius starts. Shoot up onto one of the upper ledges next to the boss, then jump onto the boss right between his body and tail to rapidly bounce around and deal a ton of damage. Hit the boss a few more times after his tail falls off to beat the level.

Lava Powerhouse
In this level you need to collect 3 Chaos Emeralds before destroying the boss, the Roboiler. The overall layout of this level is as follows:

You start at the bottom on a pair of bellows. Jump up and the bellows will blast you into the lower left table.

Lower left table
Break the door in the upper right part of the table. This will take 3 hits. You can do this by either:
 * Directly hitting the door, OR
 * Rolling into the cannon at the left side of the table, which will fire you towards the door.

Once the door is open, go through it to get to the lower steam room.

Lower right table
(The right table is a mirror copy of the left table, so these instructions are the exact same as for the left table, but with reversed directions - left becomes right and vice versa)

You never have to visit this table. But if you accidentally fall in, here are the the instructions anyway...

Break the door in the upper left part of the table. This will take 3 hits. You can do this by either:
 * Directly hitting the door, OR
 * Rolling into the cannon at the right side of the table, which will fire you towards the door.

Once the door is open, go through it to get to the lower steam room.

Lower steam room
Press any button to trigger a burst of steam from the floor, which propels you up a bit.

A large number of Clucks will start flying around. Bounce on top of the Clucks to enter the central pipe in the ceiling. This pipe will take you upwards to the first Chaos Emerald. Quickly move left or right so you don't fall back down, and follow the path into the upper steam room.

Upper steam room
The upper steam room works the same way as the lower one. This time there are two ceiling pipes, and either one will take you to the boss room. But before you can start the boss fight, you will have to visit the upper left table and upper right table first, in either order, to get the remaining Chaos Emeralds. The tables can be accessed at the far ends of this steam room.

Upper left table
There is a pipe blocked by a cork in a loop on the right side of this table. Hit that cork 3 times to break it and enter into a shaft directly below a Chaos Emerald. Quickly spam the flipper buttons to trigger bursts of steam that will carry you up to the emerald. After grabbing the emerald, use the pipe to your right to drop back down to the lower steam room. Go back to the upper steam room, and then onwards to another table or, if you have all 3 emeralds, up towards the boss.

Upper right table
(The right table is almost a mirror copy of the left table, so these instructions are the exact same as for the left table, but with reversed directions - left becomes right and vice versa)

There is a pipe blocked by a cork in a loop on the left side of this table. Hit that cork 3 times to break it and enter into a shaft directly below a Chaos Emerald. Quickly spam the flipper buttons to trigger bursts of steam that will carry you up to the emerald. After grabbing the emerald, use the pipe to your left to drop back down to the lower steam room. Go back to the upper steam room, and then onwards to another table or, if you have all 3 emeralds, up towards the boss.

Boss room
Remember, the boss room is accessible via two pipes in the ceiling of the upper steam room.

Once you have all three Chaos Emeralds and enter this room, the boss fight against the Roboiler starts. Shoot up into the large metal boiler vessel, either via a small hole at its bottom or by going up around the sides. Periodic steam bursts will temporarily block the side paths, but keep trying until you make it into the boiler. Now bounce around and hit the four robot heads. Each time you destroy a head, you'll fall out of the boiler and will have to make your way back in. The level is completed once all heads are dead.

If the ball drains in the boss room, it will fall all the way down to the very bottom of the level, where you'll hang on a chain above a vat of lava. Swing the chain back and forth by alternatingly pressing left and right, then jump off, and follow the path back towards one of the lower tables. Be careful: if you fall into this area too many times, the chain will break! At that point you'll fall directly into the lava, which will kill you.

The Machine
In this level you need to collect 5 Chaos Emeralds before destroying the boss, the Veg-O-Machine. The overall layout of this level is as follows:

You start at the bottom in the right table.

Right table
On the right side of the table, there is a metal wheel with a Chaos Emerald inside. The wheel is constantly turning, and you can only enter it when the entrance pipe is pointing to the lower left. A little display directly above the flippers will show you the wheel's orientation.

If you shoot directly upwards, Sonic will bounce around in a little power room. Hit the power room three times to freeze the wheel, timing your third hit carefully to strike when the wheel is pointing to the lower left corner.

Now the wheel should be frozen, and you can grab the Chaos Emerald inside. You'll then be sent to the right elevator.

If you freeze the wheel in the wrong orientation, hit the power room three more times to make it start spinning again (and then three more times to freeze it again).

Right elevator
The plungers at the bottom of the elevator shaft will launch you up a bit, onto a platform with a flipper. Keep the flipper button held down to catch and trap Sonic at the bottom of the flipper. Now the elevator platform will rise up. At the top, shoot Sonic to the upper right ledge, then jump onto the moving platform.

The upwards route leads into the boss room. If you don't have all 5 emeralds yet, you'll want to jump into the left funnel instead. You will grab a Chaos Emerald and drop down into the prison block afterwards.

Prison block
This large room is filled with bouncy bumpers. Each bumper is connected to a prison cell; when a bumper is hit enough times its cell will open and release an animal.

The central prison cell doesn't contain an animal, but a Chaos Emerald instead. Use one of the plungers at the bottom of the room to launch yourself up, and bounce around until the central cell breaks open. The emerald will fall straight down into a pit, ready for you to grab.

Once you've obtained the emerald from the prison cell, leave the prison block using the lower-left tube. You'll land directly on top of another Chaos Emerald before falling into the left elevator shaft.

Left elevator
The left elevator works similarly to the right elevator: the plungers at the bottom of the elevator shaft will launch you up a bit, onto a platform with a flipper. Keep the flipper button held down to catch and trap Sonic at the bottom of the flipper. Now the elevator platform will rise up.

If you ride the elevator all the way up, you can reach the boss room. But if you don't have all 5 emeralds yet, you shouldn't go there yet. Instead, as you go up the elevator, count the pinball lanes that you pass (indicated by rows of lights). Shoot yourself up the fourth lane, and you'll reach a Chaos Emerald.

Boss room
The boss room is accessible going all the way up either the left or right elevator, getting on top of the moving platform, and then jumping further up. You'll come across two badnik birds holding up a bridge with ropes. Kill the badnik closest to you, then drop down into the plunger below to be launched to the boss room.

Now it's time to destroy the Veg-O-Machine. Launch yourself up to the electrical beam on either side of the machine, and from there keep bouncing against the overhead pipe until it breaks. Repeat this process to break the pipe on the opposite side of the machine as well.

Once both pipes feeding the machine are broken, get into the machine via the small hole at the bottom. Bounce around inside enough times to destroy the machine.

Showdown
In this level you need to collect 5 Chaos Emeralds before defeating the boss, Robotnik. The overall layout of this level is as follows:

You start in the center table.

Center table
There is a Chaos Emerald at the top of the center table, but it's protected by 4 metal doors. Hit the triggers directly next to the emerald to open the doors, and once all 4 of them are open, shoot directly upwards in a straight line to grab the Chaos Emerald.

You can leave the center table via passages in the upper left and right corners, or a hole in the roof directly above where the Chaos Emerald was. From here, you can fall into a shaft either to the left or right of the center table. There are three lanes at the top of each shaft for you to choose; the lane closest to the center of the level will take you to one of the outer pinball tables, while the lane furthest from the center of the level will take you back to the center table. After you've escaped from the center table, you'll need to visit both the left and right tables in either order.

Left table
Shoot the trigger in the right pathway 3 times to open the 3 metal doors above the flippers. Next, go up through the path that was previously blocked by those doors to hit a sock that will launch you to a Chaos Emerald.

The route to the Chaos Emerald can take you back to the center table. You can also leave the left table by going through the leftmost upward shaft, which provides easy access to the leftmost outer area.

Left outer area
At the far left end of the level, beyond the left table, lies another emerald. You will have to get above the pinball tables first, then make your way over as far left as you can. At the left edge of the level, you can drop down onto a platform with a hook. Jump onto the hook to reveal a flipper. Use the flipper to launch yourself up into a Chaos Emerald. After you get the emerald, you'll slide back into the left table.

Right table
Launch yourself up into the rightmost shaft. You'll destroy a wasp the first time; the second time you'll grab onto a hook. Drop down onto the platform below you, and spin dash to the left to reach a Chaos Emerald.

The route to the Chaos Emerald is one way to escape the right table, and provides easy access to the rightmost outer area. Another way is to take the leftmost path up, which will drop you into a shaft that can lead back to the center table.

Right outer area
(The right outer area is a mirror copy of the left outer area, so these instructions are the exact same as for the left area, but with reversed directions - left becomes right and vice versa)

At the far right end of the level, beyond the right table, lies another emerald. You will have to get above the pinball tables first, then make your way over as far right as you can. At the right edge of the level, you can drop down onto a platform with a hook. Jump onto the hook to reveal a flipper. Use the flipper to launch yourself up into a Chaos Emerald. After you get the emerald, you'll slide back into the right table.

Upper girders
Once you have obtained all 5 Chaos Emeralds, it's time to travel all the way to the top of the level to get inside Robotnik's ship and fight him. There are various paths you can take. Directly in the center of the level, above the center table, you will find bombs raining down from Robotnik's ship. You can jump from bomb to bomb to make your way up into a hole at the bottom of Robotnik's ship.

Alternatively, use the pairs of flippers above the left or right tables to launch yourself far up towards Robotnik's ship. You can also use spin dashes from horizontal platforms above the left or right tables to reach metal hooks. When grabbed, these hooks will reveal flippers that allow you to launch yourself high up.

Below the ship's wings are hooks you can grab onto to reach a door. Or, if you manage to launch yourself really high all the way on top of the ship's wings, spin dash into the ship's window to break into the boss room from the side.

Boss room
It's time to defeat the evil Robotnik once and for all. You have to smash into the window cover protecting Robotnik 10 times, but he deploys two mechanisms to defend him:
 * Claws will grab Sonic and dump him into the bottom corner of the room.
 * Socks will launch Sonic sideways into the ship's windows. The third time you hit a window, it'll break, sending you flying out of the boss room altogether and all the way down to the bottom of the level.

Disable Robotnik's defenses by hitting the trigger directly underneath him. The trigger effects operate on a cycle:


 * 1) Enable a claw
 * 2) Enable other claw
 * 3) Disable a claw <--- START HERE
 * 4) Disable other claw
 * 5) Disable socks

When you enter the boss room, hit the trigger three times to disable both claws and his socks. Now the way to Robotnik is open, so launch yourself up onto his window and smash it as often as you can.

At some point, the message "SMELL MY SOCKS !!" will appear at the top of the screen. This means Robotnik has reactivated his socks. You'll want to disable those socks again, but because of the trigger effect cycle you'll have to hit the trigger five times: twice to enable the claws, twice to disable them again, and a final fifth time to bring down the socks. Now continue hitting Robotnik until you get another "SMELL MY SOCKS !!" message, at which point you'll have to hit that trigger five more times - this cycle will repeat until you've hit Robotnik 10 times. At that point, he is finally defeated. Congratulations, you have beaten Sonic Spinball!