Mirage Saloon Zone

general stuff goes here

Act 1 (Normal)

It's Sky Chase again!

This is one of the most obvious references in the entire game. When playing as anyone but Knuckles (who gets his own version of Act 1), Act 1 is an extended homage to Sky Chase Zone from Sonic 2, where you stand on the Tornado in a fairly slow auto-scroller, surviving against waves of Badniks as you try not to let your impatience get to you. As well, many of the Badniks that appear here are also nods to Badniks that are seen in Sky Chase.

todo: add comparisons (idk if itll be pictures or videos)

Bark, Bean, and Fang

At the end of Act 1, after defeating the Uber Caterkiller and watching Heavy Magician fly away with your signpost, one of three obscure characters from very early on in the series will appear riding an Armadiloid to shoot down the Tornado.

todo: add images of all three encounters

These are Bark the Polar Bear, Bean the Dynamite, and Fang the Sniper (also known as Nack the Weasel, though he's only ever called that in his debut game). Bark and Bean both made their debut in Sonic the Fighters (1996), where they're both playable fighters. They went on to never appear again until Mania.

todo: add images of bark and bean as they appear in sonic the fighters

Fang, on the other hand, originated in the 1994 Game Gear title Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble, where he serves as one of the titular three troubles. In this game, he serves as a boss at the end of every Special Stage. Fang has since made very few appearances, even having a period of 21 years without any major appearance between Sonic the Fighters and Mania.

todo: add images of fang as he appears in triple trouble

Act 1 & Knuckles

Wanted posters

(fun fact: this was our first ever submission!)

Plastered on many of the walls in Knuckles' Act 1, as well as Act 2, are wanted posters of Bark, Bean, and Fang. I wasn't aware that anyone was wanting Bark back, but, who am I to complain?

But, while we're here, it's also worth mentioning that these three characters have very similar cameos in Sonic Generations, where all three of them can be seen on wanted posters in City Escape.

todo: add images of the posters in city escape

Act 2

info on stuff that only appears in act 2