Monitors (referred to in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 as Item Boxes) are staple objects in the Sonic the Hedgehog games. These breakable objects appear as small boxes resembling computer monitors/televisions, or bubbles, depending on the game's time. If the player breaks them open, they will receive a power-up or bonus, with a few exceptions.
Monitors (like most badniks) can be broken from directly above or from the sides, assuming that the character is performing either the jumping or rolling spin attack. When one is suspended in the air (e.g. hidden in a tree in Green Hill Zone) or stuck to the ceiling), striking it from below causes it to fall to the ground. When playing as Knuckles, they can also be broken by gliding into them.
The Advance series, and some 3D games have these powerups inside capsule-like objects. These can be broken by touching them, with the exception of Sonic Advance.
Monitors in more recent games (Besides Sonic 4 and the Classic gameplay of Sonic Generations) have become non-existent, with the last major 3D title to have any being Sonic 06, in which they were removed entirely by the final game. Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors removed Monitors entirely, with the only remnants of any sort of monitor being the 1-Up Life icon, which is no longer in a monitor, and can be picked up like a ring. There are now slightly larger rings, which act as a Super Ring monitor. Speed Shoes are no longer needed, as Sonic can run as fast as them with the Sonic Boost. Invincibility and shields are also no longer needed, as the Sonic Boost acts as a ram-able shield, eliminating the need for either.
In early Sonic games, monitors were modelled off real computer monitors.
Recurring monitors
- Super ring gives the player 10 rings in all games except the Advance and Adventure series, where the number of rings is specified (5, 10, 20 or 40) or randomised (1, 5, 10, 20 or 40).
- Power Sneakers increase the character's speed temporarily.
- Shield monitors grant the player a shield (available in various types since Sonic the Hedgehog 3) that protect them against one hit from an enemy or hazard.
- Invincibility monitors grant the player temporary invincibility.
- Extra life gives the player an extra life (1-up). The icon is usually the face of the character being played as. In Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)'s two-player competition mode, Sonic and Tails have their own monitors that give them an extra life, regardless of who broke it. The game's scrapped Hidden Palace Zone features a Tails monitor, which functions like a normal 1-up monitor regardless of the character being played as.
- Dr. Eggman monitors cause one hit of damage to the player character. This is the only type of monitor that harms rather than rewards. It debuted in Sonic 2, although graphics for it existed in Sonic 1.
Rarer monitors
- Teleport (Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)) - switches Sonic and Tails' positions in competition mode and debug mode
- Switch (Knuckles' Chaotix) - switches the characters' positions for a certain amount of time
- Combine Ring (Knuckles' Chaotix) (Sonic Mania) - protects your rings so if the first player is hit, they only lose one ring. They have a few seconds to get that ring, otherwise it breaks into all the lost rings. Getting the single ring recovers all your lost rings. It is notable that a similar monitor exists in Sonic CD but has no use.
- Big and Small (Knuckles' Chaotix) - resizes the character who breaks the monitor for a certain amount of time. Small characters have a limited range of motion, while big characters cannot be held.
- Change Character (Knuckles' Chaotix) - This monitor cycles between faces of possible characters. When broken, the second player becomes whoever was pictured at the time for a certain amount of time.
- Emerald (Sonic Triple Trouble): transports the player to a special stage.
- Stopwatch (Sonic Chaos and Sonic Triple Trouble): In Sonic Chaos this stops the special stage timer for a few seconds. In Sonic Triple Trouble it resets the special stage timer.
- Pogo (Sonic Chaos and Sonic Triple Trouble) gives the player a small spring that sticks to their feet.
- Rocket shoes (Sonic Chaos and Sonic Triple Trouble) allow Sonic to fly around temporarily.
- Snowboard (Sonic Triple Trouble) monitors grant Sonic a snowboard that he can ride.
- Skateboard (Sonic Generations) monitors appear in Classic City Escape, allowing Sonic to ride around loops and use Jump Pads to reach higher portions of the level.
Unimplemented monitors
- Blank ("Sonic the Hedgehog 1 (16-bit)") a monitor available only in that game's debug mode and it does nothing.
- "S" (Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit)) ("Sonic CD") (Sonic the Hedgehog 3) monitors are only available in that game's debug mode. They grant the character 50 rings and instantly transform them into their super form, irrespective of how many emeralds they have. The "S" monitor was also hidden in Sonic 1, and was only viewable via hacking; it did nothing. It exists in Sonic CD, also in debug mode only, where it acts as a combination of Speed Shoes, invincibility, and a shield.
- Goggles (Sonic the Hedgehog 1 (16-bit)) probably protected Sonic from drowning in the same way as a water shield does in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and later games. Their functionality was not programmed in the finished game; they can only be implemented through hacking and do nothing. (In the iOS/Android remake, it can be placed in debug mode, where it acts as a shield, but only underwater. It does not, as commonly believed, affect Sonic's ability to hold his breath.)
- Pogo (Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit)) possibly going to have the same affects as the one from Sonic Triple Trouble; only viewable through hacking and does nothing when broken.
- Stopwatch (Sonic CD) can be placed using debug mode, but has no effect other than to freezing certain level elements (animation, etc.)
Gallery
Monitor Sonic Advance 2.png
List of monitors
Known in this game as video monitorsMedia:Sonic1 MD US manual.pdf[1].
Notes
Notes
On the Mega Drive, Sonic 2 features monitors which contain "super items"Media:Sonic2 MD US manual.pdf[10]. During normal gameplay, monitors are largely the same as those found in Sonic 1.
Notes
The English manuals for Sonic 3 refer to the concept of "Sonic power-ups"Media:Sonic3 MD US manual.pdf[15], but do not explicity name the objects said power-ups come from. Strictly speaking they are not just "monitors" in Sonic 3, but entire computers, as they are (loosely) modelled after the Macintosh Color Classic, a computer released by Apple in early 1993. They even come complete with disk drive and Apple logo.
Notes
Notes
Sonic 3D has items which can be found in TVs (as well as other places)Media:Sonic3D MD US manual.pdf[30].
Sonic Adventure radically changed the design of its Item BoxesMedia:SonicAdventure DC US manual.pdf[32] in order to better suit its 3D world. Rather than resembling computer screens, they are clear tubes with a rotating symbol inside. This makes them visible from more angles, and would be a design shared with future 3D titles.
Sonic Advance has boxes with items in themMedia:SonicAdvance GBA US manual.pdf[35].
In the console/PC versions of Sonic Generations, monitors are found only in Classic Sonic's Acts. Some of these only appear in specific Challenge Acts.
Notes
In the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Generations, monitors are found for both Sonics.
Items in Sonic Mania are contained in Item BoxesMedia:SM PC DIGITAL MANUAL UK V10 LR.pdf[37] although they take the appearance of monitors from other classic games.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 [Competition and Encore Mode only Competition and Encore Mode only]
- ↑ Edit mode only
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 File:Sonic1 MD US manual.pdf, page 8
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 File:Sonic1 MD JP manual.pdf, page 21
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 File:Sonic1 GG US manual.pdf, page 9
- ↑ File:Sonic1 GG US manual.pdf, page 8
- ↑ File:Sonic1 GG US manual.pdf, page 11
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 File:Sonic2 GG US manual.pdf, page 8
- ↑ File:Sonic2 GG US manual.pdf, page 9
- ↑ File:Sonic 2 GG JP Manual.pdf, page 14
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 File:Sonic 2 GG JP Manual.pdf, page 15
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 File:Sonic2 MD US manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ File:Sonic2 MD US manual.pdf, page 22
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 File:SonicCD MCD US manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 File:SonicChaos GG US manual.pdf, page 10
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 File:Sonic Chaos Game Gear JP Manual.pdf, page 17
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 File:Sonic3 MD US manual.pdf, page 14
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 File:Sonic3 MD US manual.pdf, page 15
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 File:Sonic3 MD JP manual.pdf, page 18
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG US manual.pdf, page 10
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG US manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG US manual.pdf, page 11
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 21.5 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG JP manual.pdf, page 19
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG JP manual.pdf, page 13
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 File:SonicTripleTrouble GG JP manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 24.4 24.5 24.6 24.7 24.8 File:Chaotix 32X US manual.pdf, page 20
- ↑ File:Chaotix 32X US manual.pdf, page 21
- ↑ File:Chaotix 32X US manual.pdf, page 22
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 File:Chaotix 32X JP manual.pdf, page 29
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 28.4 File:Chaotix 32X JP manual.pdf, page 30
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 File:Chaotix 32X JP manual.pdf, page 31
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 30.4 File:Sonic3D MD US manual.pdf, page 9
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 31.3 31.4 31.5 31.6 File:Sonic3D Sat JP manual.pdf, page 16
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 32.2 32.3 32.4 32.5 32.6 32.7 32.8 File:SonicAdventure DC US manual.pdf, page 13
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 33.4 File:SPA NGPC US manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 34.4 34.5 34.6 34.7 34.8 34.9 File:SonicAdventure2 DC US manual.pdf, page 21
- ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 35.3 35.4 35.5 35.6 35.7 35.8 File:SonicAdvance GBA US manual.pdf, page 22
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 36.4 File:SonicGenerations 360 UK manual.pdf, page 12
- ↑ 37.00 37.01 37.02 37.03 37.04 37.05 37.06 37.07 37.08 37.09 37.10 File:SM PC DIGITAL MANUAL UK V10 LR.pdf, page 17
- ↑ 38.0 38.1 File:SM PC DIGITAL MANUAL UK V10 LR.pdf, page 21
- ↑ 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 39.4 39.5 39.6 39.7 39.8 39.9 https://www.sonicthehedgehog.com/mania/manual/jp/index.html?pid=13 (Wayback Machine: 2019-05-11 14:57)