Marble Garden Zone

Marble Garden Zone, Act 1

Marble Garden Zone is the third zone in Sonic 3. You start this zone falling from the sky (again...), but by holding Down, you can get a lightning shield right at the start of the zone.

Glitches

• With Knuckles, you can get into Sonic's boss area in act 2. Use the blue spinning top to smash through the walls, then stand on the spikes, climb up the left wall and hit the stone face. Repeat this another two times and you're through. It's easier as Hyper Knuckles as you can glide faster and can stand on spikes without losing rings.
• Sometimes, Tails will not appear for the boss, causing you to die.

Villains

Act 1 boss

Act 2 boss

Badniks

• Mantis — Green mantis with pointy (sharp) legs.
• Turbo Spiker — A badnik with fake spikes that serve as a spring for Sonic.
• Bubbles — A blue, spike-wielding bubble.

Mid-boss

Second easiest mid-boss in the game. Just like Sonic 2's Mystic Cave Zone boss, this boss burrows through the ceiling and back. Hit it whenever you can. With Knuckles, there is a rotating spiked platform that you can stand on to compensate for Knuckles' lower jump height.

Boss

Robotnik wants a battle in the sky this time, it seems. The first thing he does is smash the ground. While he's doing this, jump and hit him as many times as possible - 4 if you have no shield and no Super/Hyper Sonic or 7 if you do. After this, Tails will airlift you (or himself, if you're playing as him) so that you can jump and hit him.

Playing as Knuckles, the boss is completely different. Eggrobo will send some spiked wire through the ground and ceiling, which you must avoid. Then he will appear and collect the wire back in again. While he does this, hit him 2 or 3 times each time.