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Egg Mobile

From Sonic Retro

Revision as of 09:35, 3 July 2010 by Frozen Nitrogen (talk | contribs) (Unleashed Dreamcast cameo)
The Eggpod, from Sonic 2
Eggpod attached to the larger boss machine in Sandopolis.
Sonic takes a joyride in Launch Base Zone.

The Eggpod, also known as the Eggmobile or Egg-O-Matic (particularly in the Sonic the Comic continuity), is the principal conveyance of Dr. Ivo Robotnik. With its distinctive yellow/black hazard stripes and obsidian hemispherical underside, the Eggman had been seen flying his signature vehicle all the way from the original Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit), with the machine still appearing in later titles like Sonic Unleashed. In Sonic & Knuckles, both Mecha Sonic and Eggrobo are shown to be capable of piloting the Eggpod in combat, and during Act 2 of Sonic 3's Launch Base Zone, Sonic or Tails expropriate an Eggpod for themselves after the first of several bosses.

Boss fights

In Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit), the boss of Green Hill Zone is an unadorned Eggpod, with which Robotnik attempts to kill Sonic simply by ramming into him. Bosses in Sonic the Hedgehog (16-bit) and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (16-bit) typically saw the basic Eggpod sporting some sort of menacing attachment, like the iconic ball-and-chain. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the boss machines are larger and more intricate (like the Graviton Mobile), with the Eggpod functioning as a sort of cockpit (and detachable escape pod, for when Sonic inevitably defeats the Doctor). This dock-on adaptation is exploited by Sonic the Werehog in brilliant, cinematic fashion during Sonic Unleashed's Egg Dragoon boss fight, where Sonic tears the Eggpod out of its moorings as a method of finally defeating the boss.

It's not all boss fights, of course. Eggman also uses the Egg-O-Matic to carry things (like the Master Emerald in Sonic & Knuckles). It's also been used to grab Sonic (depositing him at the Doodlebug Mecha), Tails (kidnapped in the opening sequence of Sonic 2 (8-bit)), and later Knuckles (in Sky Sanctuary Zone, with disasterous results for the pilot Eggrobo).

Trivia

  • Paying close attention to Sonic Unleashed's cutscenes reveals that Eggman keeps a Sega Dreamcast under the Eggpod's chair.
  • Despite being repeatedly shown as perfectly capable of hovering under its own power, the Eggpod uses helicopter rotor blades to make its entrance (and exit) during the Drill Eggman boss.

Gallery

Eggmobile in action

Sonic '06 concept art

Unleashed Dreamcast cameo