SHC2017 expo2017 31 S3K Mania Special Stages By MainMemory

This is a ROM hack created for the Sonic Hacking Contest 2017 (SHC2017) expo. It was made by a hacker known as MainMemory and is built from Sonic 3 & Knuckles (S3K) code, but it replaces the original special stages with ones recreated from Sonic Mania. The result is a set of 3D-style bonus stages that run on original Sega Genesis hardware, blending modern design with retro execution. It's a fan-made conversion, not an official release, and it shows what the community can do with the older engine.

The player enters these special stages by collecting enough rings in the base game, but here the focus is purely on the stages themselves. Each stage has you running through a 3D tunnel, collecting blue spheres while avoiding red ones and reaching the goal at the end. The controls are identical to the original S3K special stages: you move left and right to steer, and the perspective shifts to simulate depth. The objective is to collect a certain number of spheres to earn a Chaos Emerald, just like in Sonic Mania.

This hack is worth trying if you are a Sonic fan curious about how modern elements could be squeezed onto a Genesis. It is not a full game, just a set of special stages, so it is a very specific and niche item. For players who love the Special Stage format from Sonic Mania and want to see it implemented on 16-bit hardware, this is a neat technical demonstration. It was never sold commercially, so it remains a curiosity for archivists and modding enthusiasts.