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Floating mine that launches five spiny projectiles


— Description, Sonic the Hedgehog Encyclo-speed-ia

The Asteron[1] (テルスター[2] Terusutā?, lit. "Telstar") is an enemy that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a mass-produced, starfish-based Badnik model created by Dr. Eggman. Asterons are simply designed and are located usually on walls and are able to self-destruct and fire its five sharp parts in many directions.

Appearance[]

The typical Asteron has a simple, flat starfish-shaped appearance. Its core body is colored light-yellow and in the middle of its body is a gray hole with a red eye in the hole. All five points on the Asterons also have gray spears on their tips. Asteron's appearance in Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is more detailed, even though it only involves slight changes.

Game appearances[]

Sonic the Hedgehog 2[]

Asteron-sprite

The first appearance of this Badnik was in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, where it served as an enemy. This time around, this Badnik is referred to as Asteron[1] (テルスター[2] Terusutā?, lit. "Telstar"). In this game, the player encounters them in Metropolis Zone.

In gameplay, the Asterons hide on top of walls, where they cannot be harmed. When the players are inside their area however, their eyes start to blink red and yellow rapidly while they slowly float toward the player. After a few seconds of movement, they will self-destruct, leaving their star points, which are like spears, to fly in five different directions simultaneously. Also, upon their self-destruction, they release no Animal and do not award the player any points.

In certain parts of Metropolis Zone, there are narrow vertical passages scaled by running up a screw on nuts. Along these shafts are about four to six Asterons. Their threat is increased as their spear attack can cause the player to fall off the nut, thereby often requiring the player to move away to scroll the screw off-screen to reset the nut at the bottom.

In the 2013 remaster of the game, a couple of Asterons are present at the beginning of the Metropolis Zone segment in Boss Attack Zone.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I[]

Asterons make a reappearance in Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I, with a slightly different design. They are featured at Mad Gear Zone, which again has the same Badniks. Despite that, these Badniks retain identical patterns from previous appearances, but the player is once again not able to destroy these Badniks. In this game, before their self-destruction, these Badniks spin around.

Sonic Mania[]

AsteronMania
AsteronMania2

In Sonic Mania, and its expansion Sonic Mania Plus, Asterons appear as both obstacles and enemies in Press Garden Zone Act 2. In gameplay, arrow columns will periodically fire sideways-aligned Asterons into walls. Because of the sideway view of them though, these Asterons appear as first glance as simple spears. Touching these Asterons while they are in flight will damage the playable characters. If these Asterons are allowed to hit the walls however, they can be used as platforms by the player for a few seconds before they fall off.

During the boss battle with the Heavy Shinobi, the Asterons are used as shurikens by the aforementioned Hard Boiled Heavy when he jumps. At first, he throws only one Asteron at a time, but the more damage he takes, the more Asterons he will throw at once, with three being his maximum. When they are thrown into the wall or floor, the player can Spin Attack or Spin Jump them to destroy them (though they do not drop an Animal). However, if they are left alone for a second, they will start flashing before detonating and releasing damage-inducing spikes in five different directions.

Other game appearances[]

Sonic the Hedgehog Pocket Adventure[]

Asteron Pocket Adventure

The Asterons make their next appearance in Sonic the Hedgehog Pocket Adventure, where they are featured at Gigantic Angel Zone. As Gigantic Angel has many identical gimmicks and elements from Metropolis Zone, it has also the same Badnik models with similar attack patterns. However, Asterons are seen hovering in the air and the player is able to destroy these Badniks before its self-destruction, thus freeing the animal inside of it. Asteron Badniks are also seen flashing red before they explode.

Powers and abilities[]

Asterons have the ability to levitate in midair. As their main offense, they self-detonate themselves, causing them to release deadly spikes in five different directions.

In other media[]

Books and comics[]

Sonic the Comic[]

Asteron

An Asteron, from Sonic the Comic #67. Art by Ferran Rodriguez.

In the Sonic the Comic series published by Fleetway Editions, the Asterons were some of the Badniks in Dr. Robotnik's army. Some of them were unleashed on the civilians in Metropolis Zone just to remind its residents of who ruled the city. However, thanks to the Freedom Fighters, the Asterons were destroyed.

Archie Comics[]

Asteron Archie

A group of Asterons, from Sonic the Hedgehog #229.

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, several Asterons guarded the Metropolis Zone during Operation: Clean Sweep, which Sonic faced on his way to the core of Dr. Eggman's base.

After the Super Genesis Wave rebooted the timeline, Asterons became virtually identical to their game counterparts. These Asterons were stationed in the Metropolis Zone as the Badniks used by the Metropolis Egg Army.

IDW Publishing[]

AsteronIDW

An Asteron, from Sonic the Hedgehog #51.

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by IDW Publishing, Sonic, Tails, and Belle were pursued by a horde of Badniks during their escape from the Eggperial City, with an Asteron being among them.[3]

Trivia[]

  • In the Debug Mode of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, it is possible to destroy Asteron Badniks simply by Spin Jumping on them and freeing animals inside them if these Badniks are not set on to walls. Because the original game does not let the player to have the chance to destroy these Badniks, animals inside them are apparently killed after the Badnik's activation and self-destruction.
    • There are actually a couple places in Metropolis Zone where it is possible to destroy an Asteron without cheating or hacking, as the badnik will have a small part of its body exposed beyond the parameter of the wall just before it self destructs. In these circumstances, Sonic can destroy them and they will release an animal. However, given the scarcity of this opportunity, it's unknown whether this was intended or if it was a development oversight when designing the levels.
  • In the credits for 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2, an Asteron can be seen releasing an Animal after their self-destruction (similarly to the Iwamodoki from Sonic & Knuckles), despite the fact that this never occurs in any of the Asterons other appearances (as usually the Asteron explosions do not count as player kills).[4]
  • The Asteron and Crawl are the only Badniks in Sonic the Hedgehog 4 that are not featured on the game's website.
  • Asterons appear as enemies in the Sonic the Hedgehog Level Pack in LEGO Dimensions, during the Metropolis Zone segment. Due to their complex design requiring more bricks, they are considerably larger than Sonic in this game.

Gallery[]

Artwork[]

Gallery

Screenshots[]

Gallery

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sega Genesis) United States instruction booklet, pg. 15.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sega Mega Drive) Japanese instruction booklet, pg. 51.
  3. Sonic the Hedgehog #51, "Escaping the Empire"
  4. [eShop JP] 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - Credits. YouTube. NintenDaan (21 July 2015). Retrieved on 29 August 2023.
Navigation templates to Asteron


Main article (Knuckles in Sonic 2) · Staff · Manuals · Glitches · Beta elements · Gallery · Pre-releases (Nick Arcade, Simon Wai) · Re-releases (2006, Dash!, Crash!, 2013, 3D, Sega Ages)

Main article · Staff · Glitches · Manuals · Beta elements · Gallery · Re-releases (Plus)
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