Sonic Flash Back

Sonic Flash Back is a side-scrolling installment in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. The game is divided into two episodes, with the first half released in June 23, 2021 for Sonic's 30th anniversary, while the second half is released on November 24, 2021 (for Sonic 2's anniversary). This game serves as the successor of the Sonic Mania game, with the concept of returning to old zones (and going to new zones) returning into this game. The game was developed by the team who made the previous Sonic Mania title (Christian Whitehead, HeadCannon, etc.). The game was made for the PS4, Xbox One & the Nintendo Switch.
==Gameplay==
Sonic Flash Back is a side-scrolling platformer, similar to previous 2D Sonic games, in which the player control one of the eight characters (Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Mighty, Ray, Vector & Espio), where they go into a Zone, play two Acts, defeat the boss & go to the next Zone. Each character will use their special abilities to navigate each zone (ex. Knuckles' gliding, Tails' flight), with each ability being usable to find hidden locations, leading to power-ups or shortcuts.
New to the game is branching paths, where after completing a Zone, the player will have a choice to either go to one of the two Zones. (ex. Once the player completes Sensational Silva Zone, they have a choice to go to Sand Shower Zone or Press Garden Zone). However, it is not necessary to complete all Zones.
Special Stages return in the game, which are found in Giant Rings (Note: the player needs a minimum of fifteen rings to activate a Giant Ring). These Special Stages are similar to the ones in Knuckles' Chaotix, where the player needs to collect a required number of Blue Spheres (within a time limit), on a pseudo 3D hexagonal tube road. Once the player successfully completes the Stage, they will be rewarded with a Chaos Emerald (Hyper Emeralds in Episode 2). With all seven Emeralds, the player can activate a Super form, making them more stronger.
Bonus Stages also return, which are activated by hitting a signpost (which is the gumball machine from Sonic 3 + Knuckles)
Usually scattered around a stage are Item Monitors, which a player can get special abilites. All Shields return in the game, but in the event that the same type of Item Monitor is hit twice, they are granted more abilities (and they take three hits to be deactivated). These Monitors include:
*1-Up: Gives the player an extra life
*Speed Shoes: Gives the player a drastic increase in speed (for a short period of time)
*Invincibility Monitor: Makes the player invincible for a short period of time
*Shield: Gives the player an extra hit, without losing rings.
*Blue Rings: Combines all collected Rings after getting hit, and makes the Combined Rings bounce slower than regular rings.
*Flame Shield: Gives the player a fiery dash in mid-air & can burn certain items (spiky logs, oil)
**Volcano Shield: Allows Sonic to dash in the air harder, and at maximum speed, the player can turn into a fireball of fire, killing any enemy that comes into contact with.
*Bubble Shield: Saves the player from drowning & can bounce higher than regularly.
**Aqua Shield: The player can move faster underwater, and the shield can reflect any enemy projectiles.
*Thunder Shield: Attracts groups of rings & gives the player a double jump
**Lightning Shield: Each ring the shield attracts is worth two rings, and the player can now activate a Triple-Jump.
==Story==
The story begins in Palmtree Panic Zone, where Sonic, Tails & Amy are relaxing on the Zone's shores. But all of a sudden, they see a massive Buzz Bomber airship, disposing mulitple Badniks over the grasslands. To add insult to injury, the get a call from Knuckles & the Chaotix, informing the trio that Dr. Eggman has stolen the Master Emerald. The eight all agree to rendevous at Palmtree Panic, so everyone runs off and begins an adventure
==Characters==
===Playable Characters===
Image 	Description 	Abilites
Sonic the Hedgehog 	The fastest thing alive, the high-speed hedgehog we all know and love returns to stop the insidious schemes of Dr. Robotnik. 	
*Insta-Shield
*Drop-Dash
*Super-Peel-Out
Miles "Tails" Prower 	Ever since their meeting on the West Side Island, Sonic is never seen without his best friend: Tails. Despite his age, he is extremely smart. 	
*Flight 
*Can lift other characters
*Swim
Knuckles the Echidna 	Being the devout guardian of the Master Emerald, Knuckles ain't the most friendliest companion to Sonic, but he is willing to help the hedgehog on his adventure. 	
*Glide
*Climbing walls
*Punch
Mighty the Armadillo 	Being Ray's best friend after their escape on Eggman Island, Mighty is returning to adventure, with his buddy Ray. 	
*Hammer-Drop
*Durable armor
Ray the Flying Squirrel	A young squirrel who is friends with Mighty, Ray is returning for a third adventure, with his friend Mighty. 	
*Air-Glide
*Aerial Dive
Amy Rose 	A tomboyish hedgehog with a knack for tarot cards, Amy is Sonic's self-proclaimed girlfriend, who is going on her first adventure with her idol. 	
*Piko Hammer
*Double Jump
TBAVector the Crocodile	The head-honcho leader of the Chaotix Detective Agency. Despite his size, he has a laid-back attitude, but he never backs out of a world-domination attempt by the vile Dr. Eggman.	
*Slow descent using bubblegum
*Drills through enemies
TBAEspio the Chameleon 	Vector's right-hand man, Espio is a specially trained ninja who can turn invisible & has extremely quick actions. 	
*Camoflauge
*Tornado Attack
===NPC===
Image 	Description
Dr. Eggman 	The main antagonist of the advenre. A power-hungry mad scientist with a lust for world-domination, Dr. Eggman is on search for the seven Chaos Emeralds again to take over the Islands & then the world, and then the universe.
TBAMetal Sonic 	A robotic doppelganger of Sonic, Metal Sonic is arguably Dr. Eggman's most dangerous creation yet. The doc has big plans for him, but it needs both the Chaos & Super Emeralds though.
TBAFang the Sniper	A vile weasel mercenary hired by Dr. Eggman to take care of the hedgehog's parade, Fang can only be fought in a random Zone (after the player completes it). He is only fought seven times, and after each battle, he will only become stronger.
TBAScrambled Squad	
The successors of the Hard Boiled Heavies from Sonic Mania, who are the antagonists of the first episode. The Squad contains five members.
*Scrambled Brawler: The maroon-colored Eggrobo who has massive boxing gloves & a protective headgear (Boss of Casino Night Zone)
*Boiled Bandit: The orange colored Eggrobo, who carries a sack full of Badnik remains, which it can use as an advantage. (Boss of Sand Shower Zone)
*Fowl Pilot: The teal-colored Eggrobo. He rides an Egg Mobile-like helicopter, armed to the teeth with guns & cannons (Boss of Hill Top Zone)
*Cracked Empress: The purple-colored Eggrobo, who is the only female of the group. She is a vampire-like robot, who can turn into bats. (Boss of Melancholy Manor Zone)
*Heavy General: The red-colored Eggrobo who is the leader. He commands a large Eggrobo army off the coast of Eggman Island. (Mid-Boss of Eggman Island Zone)
==Zones==
===Episode 1===
Palmtree Panic Zone	
Palmtree Panic Zone	From Sonic CD, Palmtree Panic is a tropical resort on Little Planet, but ever since Eggman's invasion on the island, there's no time for a vacation just yet.
Palmtree Panic Zone	
Act 1 is a faithful combination of all the first zones in Classic Sonic history (Emerald Hill, Angel Island). Loops, corkscrews and dashing quickly through the lake dominate this zone here. It's not difficult.
The mid-boss is a massive Moto-Bug tank called the Motor-Bugger, who is mechanizing Palmtree Panic.
Act 2 takes place at the invaded section of the Palmtree Panic. It resembles the Bad Future version of this Zone from Sonic CD. Palmtrees are now equipped with spinning blades, the water is covered in oil & a Buzz Bomber battleship is hot on your tail.
If you survive through all of this, try to take down the mad doctor's EGG-HVC-002. After Eggman's defeat, the player takes a shuttle loop out of Little Planet & into Beach Beauty Zone.
Beach Beauty Zone	
Beach Beauty Zone	
The first original Zone of the game: Beach Beauty is a collection of archipalegos, that connect Never Lake to the West Side Island. The scenery may look breath-taking, but it is actually swarming with Eggman's Badniks. Many cruise ships owned by Dr. Eggman can be seen drifting around the Zone. 
(Note: After completing the Zone, the player has a choice to either go to Aquatic Ruin Zone or Casino Night Zone)
Beach Beauty Zone	
Act 1 takes place on the seaside. They may look harmless, but look out for the thrown beachballs, the collapsing docks & the clams holding secret treats in their mouths. Many sandcastles appear in the Zone, which can lead to underwater sections.
The boss is a Sub-O-Sushi, a Chopper submarine/Badnik dispenser. After it's defeat, the dock explodes, sending the player lost at sea.
Act 2's first half takes place aboard a cruise ship, where the player can ride waterslides & run amok through the cabins. After a certain checkpoint, the ship explodes & the player needs to use pieces of floatsam & cargo boxes to stay afloat.
The boss is the Dive Eggman II (which the player now uses the Egg Mobile from Tidal Tempest). After the boss, the player takes the said Egg Mobile to either Aquatic Ruin or Casino Night Zone.
Aquatic Ruin Zone	
Aquatic Ruin Zone	
From the popular Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Aquatic Ruin is remnants of a previous civilization, lost in a flooded lake in a deep forest. However the ruins are still hostile, with shooting arrows, booby traps & loads of Dr. Eggman's Badniks located all over the ruins. 
(Note: This Zone can entirely be skipped for Casino Night Zone)
Aquatic Ruin Zone	
Act 1 resembles the original 2 Acts from its debut game: Sonic 2. Run through the ring-filled logs, but look out for the collapsing pillars, the arrow booby traps, Grounder ambushes from the walls & the murky waters which continously rise up & down. .
The boss is the Tonkachi Grounder: a hammer-nosed Grounder, who acts similar to the Death Egg Robot from Sonic Mania. It uses its hammer to make parts of the ruins collapse on the player. After its defeat, the Tonkachi Grounder falls off-screen, leading to the next act.
Act 2 takes place in the underground part of the ruins. The level will take notes from Tidal Tempest & Marble Garden now, like the inclusion of the spinning-fast tops that cruise through the water with ease (from the Marble Garden) & complicated undewater mazes, with moving blocks & false walls (from Tidal Tempest). The Bubble gimmick from the 8-bit Sonic 2 returns in this Zone.
The boss is the Egg Wheel (Egg Mobile in a massive wheel with spikes), which tries to chase you down a winding downwards path (the opposite of Labyrinith Zone's boss), until it becomes vulnerable to hit. 
After the boss, the player gets trapped in a whirlpool (similar to the ones in Hydrocity in Sonic Mania), sending him/her straight to Sensational Silva Zone.
Casino Night Zone	
Casino Night Zone	
Another Zone from the acclaimed Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Casino Night Zone is a large urban metropolis, built by Eggman for leisure. Enjoy the neon lights & breath-taking scenery, but be aware of the big bad pinball machines & test your luck on the slot machines, gambling tables & love testers galore!
(Note: This Zone can entirely be skipped for Aquatic Ruin Zone) 
Casino Night Zone	
Act 1 resembles it's original 2 Acts from Sonic 2, with the pinball bumpers, slot machines & the mini-elevators leading to treasures. But there's more gimmicks to it, like the card roads (from Sonic 4's Casino Street), the unused love tester from Studiopolis Zone, loads of balloons & circus cannons (from Oil Ocean).
The boss is Dr. Eggman's Spinball System, where Sonic must hit Eggman's cockpit, using the pinball bumpers.
After the mini-boss, the city suffers a huge blackout, beginning Act 2. The player needs to find switches (similar to the ones from Sandopolis), to turn the lights back on. Other than that neon lights & the Batbot Badniks can be used as sources of light.
The player will eventually fall into a boxing arena, where the Scrambled Brawler (the first of the Scrambed Squad) is fought. While his attacks are powerful, the player needs to drop a light on the Eggrobo to deal damage on him.
After Scrambled Brawler's destruction, the player gets captured by artifical vines, taking him/her over to Sensational Silva Zone.
Sensational Silva Zone	
Sensational Silva Zone	
The second original Zone & the fifth Zone overall. Sensational Silva Zone is an abandoned carnival deep in a overgrown jungle. Despite this, the carnival rides are still operational, but they are made deadly by Dr. Eggman's coding. There's a castle in the middle of the carnival, overgrown with fauna.
(Note: After this Zone, the player has a choice to either go to Press Garden Zone or Sand Shower Zone)
Sensational Silva Zone	
Act 1 starts out as a stereotypical jungle level at nighttime, with balancing over vines & riding logs over streams. But after a certain checkpoint, carnival gimmicks will be added into the play, with broken teacup rides, extremely fast roller coasters & merry-go-rounds.
At the end of the level, a massive castle rises from the ground, with a massive knight Super-Badnik called Nighty-Knight as the mini-boss. It acts like the Sandopolis mini-boss. 
Act 2 will take place in the interior of the castle, which it is revealed as a secret base for Dr. Eggman. While there's many artifical vines which can capture the player, there's many gimmicks taken over from Stardust Speedway's first act from Sonic Mania (like the carnivorous beanstalks & the bungee vines).
The boss is an Egg-Viper prototype, called the Hiss-o-Tron, who is fought in the basement of the castle. It slithers quickly through holes on the walls, with automatic turrets on its sides. 
After the Hiss-O-Tron's defeat, the player will take a sewer route system to either go to Sand Shower or Press Garden Zone.
Press Garden Zone	
Press Garden Zone	
A Zone from Sonic Mania, Press Garden is Dr. Eggman's printing factory for his own propaganda, situated over a Japanese snowy forest. While it was destroyed in Sonic Mania, Dr. Eggman rebuilt the factory, this time it now manufactured propaganda manga books. Marvel at the snowy forest's beauty at your own risk, as Badniks are running amok.
(Note: This Zone can be entirely skipped for Sand Shower Zone)
Press Garden Zone	
Act 1 now takes place in the snowy forest, that was the main setting of Act 2 in the original game. The level is full of snowblowers which can freeze the player on contact. These said snowblowers can be used to solve puzzles throughout the level. Massive wood-chopping machines (cutting down tree stumps) & frozen objects in ice cubes will also appear in the level too.
The boss is a revamped Hei Hou from the Mushroom Hill Zone. Aside of his usual chopping wood (which can either bounce or be sent straight at the player), it can use its axe as a defense mechanism (similar to Shiversaw).
After the Hei Hou is defeated, it accidentally breaks open the doors to Dr. Eggman's propaganda factory, beginning Act 2. The spinning umbrellas, the typewriter blocks & the Launch Base gimmicks all return in this level, but new unused gimmicks from Sonic Mania also appear. The ink jars for example, are needed to get past certain conveyor belts. Many newspapers & massive stamp pressers also appear too.
The boss of Press Garden is the Tentaclinko, Dr. Eggman's Super Badnik squid. It uses its three tentacles to shoot random kinds of ink to use on the player, and each ink has a different effect on the player.
After the boss, the player will take a minecart to Gimmick Mountain Zone.
Sand Shower Zone	
Sand Shower Zone	
The third original Zone, taking place deep in a sweltering desert, next to Mirage Saloon & Oil Ocean Zone. The heat is so unbearable, it can hurt the player if they bask in it too long, so the natives built an underground network below the sands. Meanwhile on the surface, many fossils and bones from dinosaurs can be seen lying in the desert sands.
(Note: This Zone can be entirely skipped for Press Garden Zone)
Sand Shower Zone	
Act 1 takes place at over the barren sweltering desert, with the sun giving the desert so much heat, that it could drain the player of their rings if they bask in the heat for too long. Luckily, there's a huge ant-farm like network under the sands (a la Mystic Cave Zone). There's also hidden caverns if the player dares to climb the high mesas, leading to certain treats.
The boss is Sandhorn, (which bears resemblance to the Sonic 4's Sandworms) who is fought over two pits of quicksand sinkholes. The player needs to hit the eight red orbs on it's body to defeat it.
(Note: The player can also fight the Sandhorn underground if they take that route, it's acts like a harder version of Hiss-O-Tron)
After Sandhorn's defeat, a damaged Moto-Bug crashes into the player, sending him straight into one of the sinkholes, beginning Act 2. The level takes even more resemblance to Mystic Cave Zone, with the activatable drawbridges & the infamous "Pit". A new gimmick to this Zone is that there's a load of dinosaur bones, which can send the player to certain areas. As the level progresses, the desert cave turns into a junkyard for scrapped Baniks & alcoves with Rings. 
The boss is Boiled Bandit, the second member of the Scrambled Squad. It uses its sack to create random hybrids of Badniks scraps (ex. a Moto Bug/Buzz Bomber hybrid, which he can fly around in). Every time he's hit, he loses rings, which the player can take.
After the Boiled Bandit's defeat, the player finds a mossy elevator, taking him/her to Hill Top Zone.
===Episode 2===
==Badniks==
===Palmtree Panic===
*Moto Bug (Green Hill)
*Anton
*Pata-Bata
*Masher (Emerald Hill)
*Newtron (Green Hill)
===Beach Beauty===
*Crabmeat (Green Hill)
*Turbo Spiker (Hydrocity)
*Jawz (Labyrinth)
*Clamer (Carnival Night)
*Zaririn (Aqua Lake)
===Aquatic Ruin===
*Chop Chop
*Grounder
*Whisp
*Sweep (Angel Island)
*Strange Relief (Marble Garden)
*Mega Chopper (Hydrocity)
===Casino Night===
*Crawl
*Tubinaut (Studiopolis)
*Shutterbug (Studiopolis)
*Roller (Spring Yard)
===Sensational Silva===
*Bloominator (Angel Island)
*Slicer (Metropolis)
*Coconuts (Emerald Hill)
*Woodrow (Press Garden)
*Ga (Collision Chaos)
===Press Garden===
*IceBomba 
*Juggle Saw
*Splats (Sonic 1 (unused))
*Star Pointer (Ice Cap)
*Spidal Trap (Robotnik Winter)
===Sand Shower===
*Burrobot (Labyrinth)
*Skorp (Sandopolis)
*Gator (Dust Hill (unused))
*Rattlekiller (Mirage Saloon)
*Crawlton (Mystic Cave)
*Scarabesque (Oil Desert)
==Bosses==
==Trivia==