History VideoGame / SonicTheHedgehogSpinball

* CollapsingLair: After the final stage, Robotnik's Veg-o-Fortress collapses as Mount Mobius erupts.

* ReplacedTheThemeTune: Creator/SegaTechnicalInstitute, who developed the game, used a remix of the ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' theme for the title screen, assuming it was owned by Creator/{{Sega}}. In reality, the first game's music was owned by the game's composer, Masato Nakamura, and the team likely would've been sued had they used it. The team found this out shortly before the game was scheduled to be shipped, so Howard Drossin quickly (as in, ''that night'') made a replacement tune and re-dumped the cart. However, this was done during the manufacturing process, resulting in the original version accidentally seeping into the North American market in ''very'' limited quantities.

* BewareMyStingerTail: Scorpius, the boss of the Toxic Caves, has a tail that drops toxic goo on the player.
* BonusStage: You are taken to a bonus stage at the end of every level, and there are more within the levels themselves if you are able to collect all of the rings.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Taking cues from ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'', ''Spinball'' is noticeably darker than the rest of the ''Sonic'' games, bordering on nightmare-inducing at times. The actual process of animals getting roboticized is shown more explicitly here than any other game by far, and it looks [[PainfulTransformation incredibly painful]]. Additionally, many enemies are ''[[SurrealHorror very creepy]]'', such as Scorpius, the first stage boss. It's a giant robotic scorpion with Robotnik's head, that lets out [[HellIsThatNoise inhuman screams]] [[https://youtu.be/SqR23N_2AQA?t=101 every time you hit it.]]

* GoombaSpringboard: You're required to bounce off the heads of Clucks in Lava Powerhouse to progress. Thanks to the game's questionable hit detection on this matter, it's nowhere as easy as it should be.

** There's also the optional side challenge of collecting all the rings in each level for a big point bonus.

* InCaseOfBossFightBreakGlass: The final bosses.

* MinecartMadness: In the Genesis version, the first stage, Toxic Caves, has a segment where Sonic must ride a mine cart that will take him to rooms where the second and third Chaos Emeralds are held. To access them, Sonic must first pull the switches that unlock the paths to these rooms. There are also pinball flippers that act as switches by changing the direction of the mine cart. If Sonic collects the second and third Chaos Emeralds before he collects the first, the mine cart disappears and Sonic falls straight into the slime vat where the first Chaos Emerald is held.

* OneHitPointWonder: Rings in this game do not give you anything other than points. If Sonic falls into a death pit and there aren't any Ball Savers in play, he's toast. Justified, since it's a pinball game, and having rings save you would defeat the purpose of a pinball game.

* PinballZone: Pretty much the whole game.

* TakeYourTime: While the banner in Showdown warns you that Robotnik is getting away, he'll never actually escape. Needless to say, given how huge and complicated the level is? It's not a bad thing.

** The port included in the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance iteration of ''[[CompilationRerelease Sega Smash Pack]]'' is almost exactly the same as the original version (the only difference is the sound). This means [[CameraScrew the levels have not been adjusted for the GBA's smaller screen resolution]]. Also, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking the ending is slightly glitched]].

* NonIndicativeName: Veg-O-Fortress? Veg-O-Machine? Are they pronounced with a soft 'g' or a hard 'g'?

* DevelopersForesight: Normally you can only access the upper area of Toxic Caves when you drain the slime. However, if you manage to get up there through glitches or cheating, trying to grab the Emerald before the slime is drained will kill Sonic.

* ObviousRulePatch: There's a bit in the first level's minecart area where you ''could'' put Sonic on an endlessly looping track for infinite points... but after a few loops, he'll halt the minecart and yell at you (through the score display) to cut that out.

* NonIndicativeName: Veg-O-Fortress? Veg-O-Machine? [[NoPronunciationGuide Are they pronounced with a soft 'g' or a hard 'g']]?

** The ball savers in the beginning area of Lava Powerhouse are always activated when you enter the stage, meaning Sonic can only die if he falls between the flippers. Of course once used, you'll have to re-activate them.

* CompositeCharacter: Robotnik would look no different than his appearance in the games, if not for the fact that his uniform takes inspiration from his ''[[WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM SatAM]]'' counterpart. This is even clearer in this [[http://www.theemeraldstarpost.co.uk/TESP/GameInfo/PHP/Removed/Spin_Fortress.jpg concept artwork]] for the game.

* DeathThrows: If Sonic falls into lava/toxic waste/anything that causes him to lose a life, he'll slowly fall off the screen with his hands in the air.

** The goal of each level is to collect all of the Chaos Emeralds. Doing so shuts down the factory's power.

** "TOO BAAAD", which is triggered by Sonic dying. Unless that was his last life, in which case you get "[[GameOver GAME OVER]]".

* OneHitPointWonder: Rings in this game do not give you anything other than points. If Sonic falls into a death pit, he's toast. Justified, since it's a pinball game, and having rings save you would defeat the purpose of a pinball game.

* ScaryScorpions: The boss of Stage 1, Toxic Caves, is Scorpius, a giant robotic scorpion with Robotnik's face.
* SensoryAbuse: The notorious options menu theme.
* SmashingSurvival: If you get caught in Rexxon's mouth, you have to rapidly smash the buttons to get loose before he eats you.

* SuperDrowningSkills: Sonic famously cannot swim, and is saved from drowning at the beginning of the game. Fall into the water again, and [[HaveANiceDeath he won't be so lucky]]. The sprite of Rexxon appearing as Sonic falls into the water hints he was probably eaten.
* SwallowedWhole: Rexxon will gulp you down if you don't mash the buttons enough. His sprite appearing when Sonic falls into the water also suggests this. [[HaveANiceDeath TOO BAAAD]].
* TakeYourTime: While the banner in Showdown warns you that Robotnik is getting away, he'll never actually escape.

''Sonic Spinball'', sometimes called ''Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball'', is a [[DigitalPinballTable pinball game]] spinoff (no pun intended) of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog''. It was originally released for the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis/[=Mega Drive=] in 1993 as a hold-over for ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]'', along with a UsefulNotes/GameGear (and UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem in Europe) version. Notably, this game was not produced by Creator/SonicTeam but by the U.S.-based Creator/SegaTechnicalInstitute, the same team who developed games such as ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', ''VideoGame/KidChameleon'', ''VideoGame/ComixZone'' and ''The Ooze''.

* AnimatedAdaptation: The ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' episode "Attack on Pinball Fortress", in which Sonic, Wes Weasley, and Sergeant Doberman break into Robotnik's fortress to get their hands on Robotnik's stupidity ray gun. Plotwise, it actually isn't anything like the game, but they do include a boss fight with a Scorpius wannabe from the game's first level.

* {{Expy}}: The Machine stage was created based on concept art for Cyber City Zone (or more famously, Genocide City Zone), a zone cut from the development of ''Sonic 2''.

* NintendoHard: The game is basically four gigantic pinball tables (all of them tough as hell, especially the last one) that all have to be beaten with '''no continues or passwords.''' Good luck with that.

* NonIndicativeName: Veg-O-Fortress? Veg-O-Machine?
** NoPronunciationGuide: Are they pronounced with a soft 'g' or a hard 'g'?

* WidgetSeries: The game is arguably among the weirdest (and creepiest) games in the overbearingly Japanese ''Sonic'' franchise, but it was actually put together by an American team - hence the ''[[WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM SatAM]]'' influences and the dark vibe. This WHAT status was actually used in the game's marketing in Japan; ''Spinball'' was [[GratuitousEnglish heralded]] as "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3fjPux-86o AMERIKKANO FANKAY AKSHON!]]" "[[http://info.sonicretro.org/images/5/5d/Spinball-box-jap.jpg from U.S.A.]]"

* FinalBoss: Of course it's Robotnik. Similar to ''VideoGame/DrRobotniksMeanBeanMachine'', Robotnik is only fought as the FinalBoss and not several times beforehand.

** ''Spinball'' remains one of the very few games to feature characters from a non-game medium: in this case, the cast of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogSATAM''. Most games released afterwards very rarely reference the non-game universes, with the next game to feature non-game characters, ''VideoGame/SonicForcesSpeedBattle'' only coming 25 years later.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: There are sixteen Chaos Emeralds in the game. At the time, the Chaos Emeralds were only gameplay gimmicks: in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1'' there were only six of them, ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'' [[{{Retcon}} retconned another one into existence]], ''Videogame/SonicTheFighters'' (which was directly approved by Yuji Naka) featured eight, and ''VideoGame/SonicCD'' features seven Time Stones, [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute which look exactly like Chaos Emeralds]], which were retconned ''again'' to have time-altering powers in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006''.

---> '''Lava Powerhouse:''' "BOGUS DUDE..."\\

[[JustForFun/TheOneWith The one where]] the standard gimmicks of a PinballZone are featured in every single level.

The one where the standard gimmicks of a PinballZone are featured in every single level.

* BossArenaIdiocy: The ''entire game''. All those convenient pinball mechanisms? Part of Robotnik's Pinball Defense System, [[AllThereInTheManual as stated in the manual]]. Which he designed and built despite the fact that Sonic's signature ability has been [[RollingAttack curling into a ball]] since the very first game. Even official sources, namely the Museum section of ''Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection'', snark at Robotnik's reasoning. [[JustifiedTrope Of course,]] it wouldn't be out-of-character for [[InsufferableGenius Robotnik]] to pick an inappropriate moment to try and [[CherryTapping show off]].