Boss Gate

The Boss Gate^[1][2][3] is an object that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. As its name suggests, it is a gate that grants access to its respective game's bosses.

Description

Boss Gates are portals of varying designs that can be found in the hub worlds of their respective games. By using or entering these portals in gameplay, the player will initiate a battle with one of the game's bosses. Because defeating a boss is needed to progress with the game, the Boss Gates are always obligatory to be used at one point.

Multiple Boss Gates can be found within each game. Each boss in such Sonic games will have their own Boss Gate. However, in order to use a Boss Gate, the player must first fulfill certain requirements. This can be finding the Boss Gate Key that will unlock the Boss Gate, or clearing a certain amount of levels.

Game appearances

Sonic Unleashed

The Boss Gate first appeared in the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 version of Sonic Unleashed. These portals are specialized Gaia Gates created thousands of years ago to give someone access to the nearby vicinity of the local Temple of Gaia.

In this game, the Boss Gates are circular pads with a red light emerging from them which displays the symbol typically associated with Dark Gaia. They are named "Boss Gates" by Professor Pickle due to the strong opponents that lurk behind them.^[1]

Boss Gates can typically be found in the Entrance Stages. The only exceptions are Eggmanland's Boss Gates, which are located in the Eggmanland Town Stage. To unlock a Boss Gate in most cases, the player has to obtain the Boss Gate's associated Gaia Key. Other Boss Gates are unlocked after the player clears a specific Act.

In the Wii/PlayStation 2 version of Sonic Unleashed, Boss Gates are not featured; instead, there is a door with star patterns on it inside each Gaia Gate that leads to the Boss Stage. The player can unlock these doors by assembling the matching Planet Tablet from the fragments collected in the Stages.

Sonic X Shadow Generations

Sonic Generations

In Sonic Generations, alongside the remaster Sonic X Shadow Generations, the Boss Gates are portals of unknown origin in White Space. Story-wise, the Boss Gates lead Classic and Modern Sonic through time into past battles with some of their biggest opponents.

In these games, the Boss Gates are floating portal made of gears, cogs, and locks. However, the Interior of the Boss Gates are much more elaborate, each featuring a large black and white hallway with white chandeliers and a wall with transparent glass cutting through the middle of said hallway. At each end of each hallway is a stone door that respectively leads to the boss and back to White Space.

In the console/PC version, the Boss Gates are located in White Space; they can be found at the right of each of White Space's three main Areas. To enter a Boss Gate, the player needs to have acquired all three Boss Gate Keys for it. After getting all three keys, the player only needs to approach the Boss Gate and enter it as it was a regular stage entrance. After clearing a Boss Gate, a Chaos Emerald is restored from its colorless state and passed on to the player.

In the Nintendo 3DS version, the Boss Gates have both a rival and a big opponent (Classic Metal Sonic and Big Arm in the first one, Shadow and the Biolizard in the second one, and Silver and the Egg Emperor in the third one). In order to open these gates, the player must restore all stages for each era. Once the player reaches a Boss Gate, they must defeat the rival in a race before they can battle the major opponent.

At the far end of White Space lies the Lair of the Time Eater, which features a Boss Gate much larger than the other ones. This one can only be activated by the Chaos Emeralds.

Shadow Generations

Boss Gates return in Shadow Generations, appearing nearly identical to how they do in Sonic Generations. These Boss Gates are located in White Space and require Boss Gate Keys to unlock. They are accompanied by a rearrangement of the Time Eater's theme, hiding the boss's identity when first approached.

In other media

Books and comics

Archie Comics

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, the Boss Gate from Sonic Generations first appeared in Sonic Universe #79. In this media, it is a man-made gateway through space and time controlled by the Onyx City Council who forced Gold to use her psychic powers to open it so they could dispose Silver and Prof. Von Schlemmer into it. While the heroes managed to escape from the gate, it still allowed the Second Devourer to enter their world through it.^[4][5][6]

Gallery

Models

Sonic Generations (console/PC)

Screenshots

Sonic Generations (console/PC)

Sonic Generations (console/PC)

Sonic Generations (Nintendo 3DS)

References