Sonic Superstars: A guide to every boss, the hidden Chaos Emeralds, and more

Sonic Superstars is a great platformer, whether you’re a longtime Sonic fan or brand new to the series. But with exciting levels and creative new ways to play, it can make your head spin at times. We’ve put together a guide to everything you need to know in Sonic Superstars, whether you’re stuck at a certain boss, can't find that last pesky Chaos Emerald, or are still thinking about jumping into Bridge Island Zone Act I.
 

Game Modes

From the start, there are three different ways to enjoy Sonic Superstars: Story Mode, Battle Mode, and Time Attack.

Story Mode is a traditional platforming experience. The Sonic Superstars story consists of eleven Zones, each featuring one or more different stages (or Acts) to play through. These can be experienced either solo or multiplayer, and players can pick from Sonic, Amy, Tails, and Knuckles.

Each character has its own unique benefits—Sonic is faster than everyone else, Amy has a hammer that can double jump, Tails can fly, and Knuckles can hover and hit enemies with his fists. After completing Story Mode, you’ll also unlock Trip the Sungazer, who can climb up walls.

Battle Mode consists of three different rounds of minigames against seven other players, either online or offline. Minigames are chosen at random, and range from a battle arena to speed races to trying to survive a stage set on killing you. You can spend in-game currency to customize what your character looks like here, choosing from different patterns, body styles, and colors. Playing through the Story Mode and unlocking achievements gives you more options in the Shop.

For the hardcore speedrunners, Time Attack lets you test your speed in whatever Zone you choose. You can set personal goals for yourself or judge your times against a worldwide leaderboard.
 

The Zones

Each of the eleven different Zones in Sonic Superstars has a boss you’ll need to face—some of them even have two. Here’s a reference sheet for how to tackle the main bad guy in every Zone.

Bridge Island

Bridge Island is the first Zone in Sonic Superstars’ Story Mode, and it’s fairly easy to tackle. There are two Acts and two bosses, but neither is very difficult. You’ll need to avoid a robotic fish at the end of Act I. While Sonic is all about speed, the key here is to not go too fast—you can actually run too far ahead and be crushed when the fish jumps forward and destroys parts of the level. Keep a steady pace and you’ll reach the finish line with no problem.

In Act 2, you’ll encounter Doctor Eggman for the first time. You’ll need to hit him from underneath whenever he’s stationary. Using the Avatar skill here is helpful as it will attack him multiple times and end the battle almost as quickly as it began.

Speed Jungle

Despite its name, Speed Jungle’s two Acts and accompanying bosses are not all about speed. In Act 1, you’ll face a robotic bug that shoots a conveyor belt tongue out at you. Dodge, and you can use it to jump up and hit him. Avatar also helps get a few hits in here.

In Act 2, you’ll face Doctor Eggman in a giant sphere. Dodging his abilities is key, and you can jump on the blue ones to turn them around and hit him. He also has an ability where he swings a pole down in the center of the screen, and it’s hard to both hit or dodge him—use Avatar here to get several hits in.

Sky Temple

The Sky Temple Zone only has one Act, and it’s a flying Doctor Eggman. You’ll need to jump up on rocks to make sure you stay alive. At one point, Doctor Eggman will use an ability that locks onto you with a red bullseye—once he’s done this, you can jump on him or use Avatar to deal several hits as quickly as possible.

Pinball Carnival

There are two Acts in the Pinball Carnival Zone. In Act 1, you go up against a giant robot clown. There will be tokens with clown faces on them scattered around the area, and you’ll need to hit all of those before jumping on the clown’s head. (Note: If you jump on his body, you’ll just bounce off.) You can also use Avatar while you’re getting the tokens—there are a few short moments where he’s vulnerable in between attacks, and Avatar can dish out damage during this brief period.

In Act 2, you’ll meet Doctor Eggman yet again. Much of the battle here involves dodging what he throws and using the rings on the map to aim and hit him. If he sets up for an attack within jumping range, you can hit him by jumping or using Avatar.

Lagoon City

The Lagoon City Zone has two Acts to complete. In Act 1, you’ll fight a robotic jellyfish. Random bugs will spawn in, and it’s a good idea to kill these as soon as possible so they don’t overwhelm you. When the jellyfish is on the ground, you can jump on it—just keep in mind that he can electrocute things, so don’t jump on him if he’s surrounded by rippling yellow energy.

In Act 2, you’ll face Doctor Eggman once more. This fight is split into a few different stages, and you’ll need to hit the red button on Doctor Eggman to progress through each one. The stages require you to dodge rockets and ride the currents behind them to move upward. You’ll do this several different times to get to Doctor Eggman.

Sandy Sanctuary

The one Act in Sandy Sanctuary pits you against Doctor Eggman in a giant drill. You’ll need to dodge all the projectiles he throws and avoid him when he pops up to your level and destroys platforms. He’ll throw enemies at you, too—jump on the ones that look like a drill to knock them back at him.

Press Factory

There are two Acts in the Press Factory. In Act 1, you’ll fight a mecha monkey. You’ll need to play the dodging game again until he comes to the front of the screen on the same level as you. Once he does this, you can jump on him—as long as there’s no yellow electric energy surrounding him.

In Act 2, Doctor Eggman is back with a mecha suit and a giant pillar he’ll use to crush you. Here, you’ll need to dodge both Doctor Eggman and the pillar, as well as platforms that rise and fall every time Doctor Eggman smashes the ground. Every so often, Doctor Eggman will power up for a massively charged smash and will get the pillar stuck. This is your cue to jump on his head. It’s especially easy to do this by using Tails, flying to the stuck pillar, and jumping from there. Per usual, you can also use Avatar here to get hits in quicker.

Golden Capital

The two Acts in the Golden Capital Zone are unique, and both can be a bit challenging. In Act 1, there’s a golden piggy bank that takes all of your coins as soon as you begin the fight. This means you only really have one life. He’ll chase you around an endless square, and you can jump on him at random moments when he isn’t charged with electricity. If you’re struggling with this fight, using Tails and simply flying instead of being chased around can make it much easier.

In Act 2, you’ll face off against Fang the Sniper on a flying platform. There are several stages to this fight, and you’ll need to dodge lasers, lava, and fire constantly. In the rare times that Fang is on your level, you can jump and hit him. However, you’ll have to do this quickly.

This fight is meant to be pretty difficult, and there are a lot of coins scattered around to help you stay alive. Keep in mind that you can use the entire screen and slow down or speed up the platform you’re on. Don’t be afraid to slow down until you can fully see what you need to avoid!

Cyber Station

The only Act in the Cyber Station Zone pits you against Doctor Eggman and a tiny robot. The robot will be the main thing attacking you, and you can hit it once it comes to your level. Just make sure to dodge the constant barrage of attacks it throws at you in the meantime.

But be warned: There’s a fake ending to this boss fight. When it triggers, you’ll need to hit Doctor Eggman, not the army of fake robots he summons.

Frozen Base

The Frozen Base Zone bosses play similar to run-and-gun platformers. In Act 1, you’ll be terrorized by a giant bird that throws all sorts of debris at you. Dodge the incoming projectiles, and when the bird comes up to your level, you can jump on it. Tails is incredibly useful here, and it’s helpful to stay on the top platforms despite the fact that they’re conveyor belts.

In Act 2, you’ll be in a rocket ship. You essentially just need to hold down the attack button and dodge everything coming at you.

Egg Fortress

The final Zone in Sonic Superstars is Egg Fortress, where you’ll take on Doctor Eggman in a giant robot costume. While there are two Acts here, you’ll only fight him at the end of Act 2. As the final boss fight of the game, it’s pretty difficult. When Doctor Eggman shoots rockets at you, you’ll need to jump on the blue ones to send them back at him. However, you have to maneuver around the platform and hit them back from behind him to actually do damage to him. There aren’t many chances to do this, so the battle is quite long.

Character Levels

As you traverse Sonic Superstars’ Zones, you’ll occasionally find levels where you play as a specific character. While there are rewards during each stage (like fruit and coins) these levels are more for story purposes and don’t include any major bosses.

Fruit Levels

The fruit that you gather can give you access to special levels in a few Zones as well. These levels help you grind coins to unlock more customization options in the Shop.

Trip’s Story

After completing Story Mode, you unlock Trip’s Story. This is essentially a New Game+ mode, taking you through the Sonic Superstars story again, but at a higher difficulty and with Trip as the only character you’re allowed to use.

Not only is this a good way to challenge yourself, but it enables you to earn more coins for the Shop. If you’re trying to make the perfect Battle Mode character, then Trip’s Story is a great resource.

Chaos Emeralds

As you make your way through Sonic Superstars’ Story Mode, you’ll come across giant rings around the maps. Touching these will warp you to special levels, and you’ll teleport around an infinite map trying to touch a moving Chaos Emerald. There’s little strategy to these—if you fail, you can restart the level and try again.

There are seven Chaos Emeralds total, and they each grant you a new power. You’ll unlock them in the following order, so if you accidentally miss one, you’ll need to go back to get all of the skills.

Here’s each Chaos Emerald and its corresponding power in the order that you’ll unlock them:

• Dark Blue: Unlocks Avatar, letting you summon a bunch of clones for a brief period of time that attack everything on screen.
• Red: Unlocks Bullet, a mini-teleport that lets you dash through the air.
• Purple: Unlocks Vision, revealing hidden paths, coins, and other secrets when you use it.
• Light Blue: Unlocks Water, which lets you turn into a water blob and travel up streams.
• Green: Unlocks Ivy, which creates a branch you can climb on.
• Yellow: Unlocks Slow, which slows down time.
• White: Unlocks Extra, which gives you a special attack move.

The Chaos Emerald levels can be found in the following Zones and Acts:

• Bridge Island Act 1
• Sky Temple Act 1
• Speed Jungle Sonic’s Level
• Sand Sanctuary Act 1
• Press Factory Act 1
• Golden Capital Act 1
• Cyber Station Act 1

If you miss a Chaos Emerald and progress further in the game, don’t worry—none of them are necessary for getting through Sonic Superstars. That said, Avatar is incredibly helpful for boss fights—it’s the first skill you’ll unlock and is impossible to miss.

Sonic Superstars is available now on the Epic Games Store.