The snowblower^[1] is a gimmick that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. They are radiators which can be part of a Zone's structures or simple obstacles that are set around the area. When the player touches it, they will frozen in a layer of ice.

Game appearances[]

Sonic the Hedgehog CD[]

In Sonic the Hedgehog CD, the Windows 95 version, and the 2011 remaster, snowblowers are known as exhaust vents.^[2] In these games, they appear as gray icy exhausts installed in the ceilings that fire out cold flames.

In gameplay, the exhaust vents only appear in Wacky Workbench Zone 1. There, they will occasionally sputter and momentarily cease firing, though only for a couple of seconds. If the playable character does come in contact with the blue flame, it will freeze them. The ice block containing the frozen character will then fall to the ground, upon which the playable character will break out of the ice and lose Rings. It is possible to avoid taking damage, however, if the player presses the assigned jump button in quick succession.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3[]

In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and the lock-on game Sonic 3 & Knuckles, snowblowers are seen set on ice ceilings in IceCap Zone. These machines start firing freezing air down on the player, if they stay too long beneath them, with the playable character getting trapped inside an ice block and taking damage a few seconds later. The player cannot destroy these snowblowers, meaning they have to simply avoid them.

The Egg Froster in IceCap Zone Act 2 has the same functionality as snowblowers, as the player has to avoid the robot's freezing air blasts.

Sonic 3D Blast[]

In Sonic 3D Blast, purple and yellow colored snowblower poles appear in Diamond Dust Zone which can blow freezing air momentarily in a linear direction. When the player steps into the front of the snowblower pole, Sonic will be frozen. While the player does not lose Rings from being frozen, the Flickies can fly away. Robotnik's freezing mobile at Diamond Dust Zone Act 3 possesses a similar functionality; if the player touches the small pods on the mobile's side, Sonic will be frozen.

Sonic Advance 3[]

Similarly-functioning machines appear in Sonic Advance 3, where they can be found in Twinkle Snow. Here, they are placed at the edge of long gaps or the right side of the high slope. Unlike in previous game, these machines do not hurt the player, as they are useful for getting launched high into the air, similar to Springs, while being frozen at same time. The characters will thaw out after they land on solid ground.

Sonic Lost World[]

In the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Lost World, Frozen Factory features icy exhausts on floors and walls, which function similarity to the snowblowers from previous games. In this game, they will at certain times stop blowing icy air for several seconds, but will soon after resume. If the player runs into the front of the icy exhaust, Sonic will get frozen. At certain sections, the player has to create a snowball to block the icy exhaust's vent.

Sonic Mania[]

In Sonic Mania, and its expansion Sonic Mania Plus, gray and orange snowblowers similar to those in IceCap Zone in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 can be found in Press Garden Zone Act 2. These machines are mounted on the ceilings and will freeze those that get underneath them, unless they have a Fire Shield equipped. When frozen, the playable characters are encased in non-hazardous ice blocks that can slide around at great speed and mow down obstacles. As such, the snowblowers are just as much an obstacle as a gimmick in Sonic Mania.

Trivia[]

• Both the Ice Ball in Sonic Adventure and the Heavy Shinobi in Sonic Mania have similar ability to freeze the playable character. While the player has to wait for the playable character to shatter out of ice, their attacks do not inflict damage.
• One of the many unused objects in Press Garden Zone appears to be a giant acetone sprayer that looks and acts similarly to a typical snowblower, though with a different function.
• In the UK published interactive book Where's Sonic Now?, the snowblowers are depicted as Badniks. In the book, they look similar to their appearance in IceCap Zone, but with an additional pair of eyes.

Gallery[]

Screenshots[]

Gallery
Sonic the Hedgehog CD. Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The functionality of Egg Froster in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Sonic 3D Blast

References[]