Sonic Spinball is a pinball game in which the player controls Sonic the Hedgehog, who acts as the pinball.[4] The majority of the game takes place within the "Pinball Defense System", which resembles a series of large pinball machines.[5] The game comprises four levels,[6][7] each containing numerous flippers that can be used to aim Sonic's trajectory and launch him through the level. Sonic can be maneuvered while airborne with input from the directional pad, which can be used for better positioning following an impact with a bumper or target or when Sonic is descending toward the drain, bumpers or flippers.[8]
The goal of each level is to collect all the Chaos Emeralds and subsequently defeat the newly accessible boss located at the top of the level. Some Chaos Emeralds are blocked off by obstacles that require Sonic to hit certain switches or bumpers in order to create a clear path.[9] The boss at the top of each level requires a specific strategy to defeat. A "status strip" at the top of the screen provides hints for defeating bosses, as well as encouraging messages when the player makes progress. The strip also tells the player how many Chaos Emeralds are left to collect in a level.[10] Following the defeat of an boss enemy, a bonus round is initiated.[11] These rounds are shown as Sonic playing a regular pinball machine. The player is given three balls to shoot around the board, the object being to accumulate points by hitting as many bumpers and targets as possible. At any point in the bonus round, the player may trigger a tilt shake that rattles the table and affects the ball's trajectory. If the tilt shake is used too often, however, all flippers will lock out, leaving the ball to fall down the drain. When the goal of the bonus round is fulfilled, or if all three balls fall through the flippers, the bonus round will end, and the next level will commence.[12] When all the game's Chaos Emeralds are collected and all four boss enemies are defeated, the player wins.[13]
Sonic starts the game with three lives. A life is lost when Sonic falls through a drain. An extra life can be earned by accumulating 20,000,000 points,[14] which can be accumulated by hitting bumpers, navigating through loops, collecting rings and destroying enemy characters.[15]
