=-SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG=-
--------------
Hidden Key Location Guide

By Miles Tails Prower ([email protected])


-=Table of Contents:=-
--------------
0) Updates
1) Introduction
2) Basic Hidden Key Information
3) Hidden Key locations
 3.1) Stage 1 levels
        3.1.a) Westopolis
 3.2) Stage 2 levels
        3.2.a) Digital Circuit
        3.2.b) Glyphic Canyon
        3.2.c) Lethal Highway
 3.3) Stage 3 levels
        3.3.a) Cryptic Castle
        3.3.b) Prison Island
        3.3.c) Circus Park
 3.4) Stage 4 levels
        3.4.a) Central City
        3.4.b) The Doom
        3.4.c) Sky Troops
        3.4.d) Mad Matrix
        3.4.e) Death Ruins
 3.5) Stage 5 levels
        3.5.a) The Ark
        3.5.b) Air Fleet
        3.5.c) Iron Jungle
        3.5.d) Space Gadget
        3.5.e) Lost Impact
 3.6) Stage 6 levels
        3.6.a) GUN Fortress
        3.6.b) Black Comet
        3.6.c) Lava Shelter
        3.6.d) Cosmic Fall
        3.6.e) Final Haunt
 3.7) Last Story levels
        3.7.a) The Last Way
4) Contact Information
5) Legal stuffs
6) Credits and Thanks
7) Final Word


0)
-=Updates=-
--------------

Ver. 1.1
-Added updates section >_>;
-1up.com (http://1up.com/), Cheat Code Central (http://www.cheatcc.com/) and
Neoseeker (http://neoseeker.com/) have asked about hosting my FAQ. Added
them to the list of sites that can host it under Legal Stuffs.
-Fixed description for Circus Park's 1st key. It told you the key was in front
of a checkpoint, but it didn't mention which one. It's the second checkpoint.
-Fixed description for Sky Troop's third key. The key's down the right path,
not the left.
-Fixed small spelling error.

Ver 1.0
-FAQ submitted to GameFAQs (http://www.gamefaqs.com/)

1)
-=Introduction=-
--------------
I'd like to start off with saying this is the first FAQ I've written and I had
a blast doing it. I know there's a lot of GameFAQs members out there, as well
as players in general that have played this game and wondered about the keys.
Where are they? What do they do? How can I get them? To be honest, I wasn't
too interested until a topic on the Gamecube Shadow the Hedgehog board talked
about a cage in The Doom that just didn't seem to open. I was curious and even
managed to find a way around opening the cage when SHADOW JACKY came in and
mentioned the keys in that level. I found them pretty fast, reported the
location of them, and even found out the keys were the answer to the mystery
of this unopening cage. That's when I decided that just maybe I could find
them in every level and hey, even write a FAQ about it while I'm at it.

So here you are. A week or so of hard work later, going through every level
and finding every key, and here's a list of them, ready for you to get. The
list includes the key locations in every level, organized by the easiest order
to get them in, the location of the five key door, and what's behind the door.
Good luck and happy key hunting.

This is version 1.1 of the FAQ. Updates will most likely include spelling or
description errors, easier ways to get keys, or other sites being able to host
the FAQ.

2)
-=Basic Hidden Key Information=-
--------------
For those of you who are new to this game or just new to key hunting in
general, this is how it works. Each level has five keys hidden somewhere in
it. There's also at least one door with five keyholes in the level somewhere.
Finding all five of the keys will open up this door revealing something
behind it. Sometimes useful, sometimes not a bit, sometimes even a little
odd. The keys will save after beating the level, meaning you can't find a
key, pause the game and choose to quit if you expect to keep any of the keys
that you found. Once all five keys are found and saved, you can access the
key door any time you'd like. While I don't have Expert Mode unlocked,
SHADOW JACKY has informed me that the keys are also in Expert Mode, but will
NOT save upon completing the level.

Now the moment you've all been waiting for...

3)
-=Hidden Key Locations=-
--------------

3.1)
-=Stage 1 levels=-
--------------

3.1.a)
-=Westopolis=-
--------------
-Key 1: The section where you first run into the poisonous red plants will
bring you to a path with a hole on either side, three Black Arms creatures
and a zip pad that will shoot you off to the second checkpoint. Jump across
the hole on the left for an extra life. Across the hole on the right is the
key.
-Key 2: After the second checkpoint, laser blasts will knock down a couple
walkways so they sit at a slant. Run up the second one up against the right
wall and there's a pulley at the end of it. Grab hold to pull yourself up and
the key is sitting right in front of you.
-Key 3: Drop down and use the zip pad to shoot yourself back down to the
street. Jump towards the right wall before the slope goes down and use your
homing attack on the two GUN drones floating there. The key's on the second
platform. Move fast though or a laser blast will take out the first platform.
-Key 4: Right after the third key is checkpoint number three. Directly to the
left of this is a gate that you can roll right under. You should already see
the dumpster ahead of you sparkling. Destroy it to find the key.
-Key 5: Right behind the goal ring is a zip pad that will throw you into
another fall through some buildings like the start at the level. Immediately
move yourself in the lower left corner. Be very careful of the helicoptor as
the blades will hurt you. This may take a couple trips down to get without
the helicoptor getting in the way. It's easiest to move to the left then move
down and around the helicoptor at the last second. If you miss, just use the
last checkpoint to warp back to the fifth one.

Door location: After the third checkpoint you'll run through town, pass a
couple buses and eventually run through a loop. The zip pad right after the
loop will shoot you onto the fourth checkpoint. The door is just to the right.

Behind the door: A rapid fire gun with 20 shots and an armored car.

3.2)
-=Stage 2 levels=-
--------------

3.2.a)
-=Digital Circuit=-
--------------
-Key 1: After the second checkpoint you'll slide down some green poles and
make your way to a hyperspeed section. Hold right immediately after the first
firewall on the right side and you'll turn onto a path with they key on it.
-Key 2: After the hyperspeed section, you'll be shot up to a platform with
three GUN drones. The key is in plain sight right under them. There's even a
"?" icon next to it to make it easier to find.
-Key 3: After the fourth checkpoint is a set of horizontal poles that move
upwards. Grab a hold of the left side of the bar farthest to the right and
ride it up.
-Key 4: Past the fifth checkpoint is a series of spotlights to ride on that
will take you to different platforms. The third platform (which will have two
GUN drones instead of one like the previous two) has a key on it. Simply let
the spotlight take you to it.
-Key 5: Passing the Chaos Emerald goal ring and taking the warp portal above
it will lead you to the final checkpoint. Foreward from that will be a
spotlight. Use it to travel up, hold up and use your homing attack to make it
to the far green platform. A bridge of green squares will make a bridge in
front of you, leading to the key.

Door location: To the left of the fourth checkpoint.

Behind the door: A warp portal that takes you to a platform near the next
hyperspeed section. It lets you enter another section of it with some rings
and items.

3.2.b)
-=Glyphic Canyon=-
--------------
-Key 1: Right after you run into Knuckles you'll reach a wide open space with
some Black Arms and a staircase behind them. Run to the right of the staircase
and the key will be behind a small pilliar sticking out of the ground.
-Key 2: Go up the staircase and have the zip pad shoot you off to the next
part. Run towards the "?" icon and jump up to the platform. It's just low
enough that you can grab onto it and pull yourself up. The key's resting on
the ledge.
-Key 3: Continue on until you reach the third checkpoint. In front of you is a
small staircase with a door directly after it. To either side of this
staircase is a fence you can smash with your homing attack. Smash the left
fence to find a key behind it.
-Key 4: Not for quite a while more in the level. Make your way all the way to
the sixth checkpoint. Run foreward and hit the springs, move move yourself
backwards towards the camera. You'll land on a green platform with the key
in the middle.
-Key 5: At the very end of the level, after the last (I believe it's the
third) tornado ride. You'll be thrown into an area with a lot of Black Arms
creatures and a staircase in front of you leading to the goal ring. The key's
to the left of the staircase.


Door location: Right after the fifth checkpoint. Jump or light dash across
the platforms in front of you and keep running straight. You should run right
into it.

Behind the door: You'll run into a Black Hawk, one of the flying Black Arms
creatures. Defeat it and climb aboard for a ride to the sixth checkpoint
complete with some ring boxes and a flame shield.

3.2.c)
-=Lethal Highway=-
--------------
-Key 1: Soon after you run into the tank for the first time, part of the road
will collapse in front of you. Instead of dropping down, look to your right
and you'll notice a speed pad in front of a small ramp. Use this to shoot
yourself across the gap. You'll run into the key next to a "?" icon to the
right side.
-Key 2: After the second checkpoint you'll go inside a tunnel that turns to
the left. To the left of this room is a wall with sandbags stacked up on it.
Raise your red gauge by smashing everything and defeating GUN soldiers and
use Chaos Blast near this wall. A key's right behind it.
-Key 3: Right after that room, you'll run back outside, see a piece of the
road fall right in front of you, and watch the tank make a pass through the
area. Jump on top of the road that fell, go left, then backwards. They'll be
a small section of road with a red flaming car at the end. Destroy the car
to find a key inside.
-Key 4: Long after the third checkpoint, the road will explode and collapse
twice. Drop down where the second explosion happened and go backwards as far
as you can. There's a Black Arms cage way out there with a key in it. Just
defeat the guards that appear.
-Key 5: Soon after the final checkpoint you'll take a rocket up to a path with
a rail on it. After you get off the rail, run backwards on the road to find a
flaming yellow car at the end of the path. Destroy the car and find the key.

Door location: A bit after the second checkpoint. After the part where the
road falls in front of you and the tank flies by you'll go inside a tunnel
that turns to the right. The door's on the right side of the room.

Behind the door: Two of those huge whie gun turrets the GUN mechs drop in
later levels. This should be just enough to destroy the tank early on in the
level.

3.3)
-=Stage 3 levels=-
--------------

3.3.a)
-=Cryptic Castle=-
--------------
-Key 1: Past the checkpoint you'll ride a balloon to the first platform that
you'll need to use the flames to light the torches. There's a rail on that
platform. Grind up the rail and go around the left side of the castle pilliar.
-Key 2: After checkpoint five, use the slime trail to make your way to the
next platform. Then go backwards into the castle. At the end of the path is
a Black Arms protected cage with a key inside.
-Key 3: After passing the area with the key door, you'll be inside a section
of the castle with a series of walls you need to break to continue. After
the first wall, you'll be in a room with some barrels and a couple of wooden
cabnits. Smash the cabnit on the right side to see a breakable wall behind it.
Smash through the wall and collect your key.
-Key 4: Light the lantern in the room with all the Chao in it to open up a
path to the left. Go through and reach the section with the Black Hawk.
Defeat it and take a ride. The key will be under the seventh horizontal
pilliar on the right side.
-Key 5: Make your way back to the sixth checkpoint and go the route you'd take
for the normal mission. At the three rail line up before the goal ring where
the skeleton chases you, when the camera switches in front of you, jump onto
the left rail. They key's near the end.

Door location: After the fifth checkopoint is a trail of slime. Use it to get
to the next platform, then take a ride on the balloon. You should see one of
those floating balls that when hit, will bounce you up to one of the lanterns
used in the dark mission. Run past that and bounce on the next ball to find
yourself in front of the door.

Behind the door: Slight shortcut through the part of the castle with all the
breakable walls. Includes a bunch of rings and an electric shield.

3.3.b)
-=Prison Island=-
--------------
-Key 1: Right after the first top secret disc is a "?" icon telling you about
the panel you can jump on to spring yourself foreward. Jump over the panel
instead and break the wooden crate. Collect the key inside.
-Key 2: Continue foreward and jump on one of the Air Saucers to start surfing
down the green slime. Watch out on the left side because partway down they'll
be a panel you can surf onto. Get onto it and jump to spring yourself up onto
a platform full of Black Arms. Destroy them all to open up a cage on the same
platform holding a key.
-Key 3: Run past the third checkpoint and you'll reach an area with a right
turn with jail cells to the left, followed by a left turn with jail cells on
the right. You'll know it's the right place because it should be the first
section of this level you run into the giant worms. There should even be a
"?" icon nearby. Go to the left turn and look to the left. There will be a
small room inside of the wall with a wooden crate in it. Smash the crate and
find the key inside.
-Key 4: Another platform surfing section after the forth checkpoint will bring
you down a slope to see a large section to the right with some GUN mechs on
it. Get onto the platform and make your way to the far right side. In the
corner is a wooden and a metal crate, but just in front of it is a giant slab
on the ground. Press X in front of the slab to flip it over, revealing a key
below it.
-Key 5: Triangle jump above the goal ring to move past it and to the sixth
checkpoint. Another surfing section is up ahead. Make your way down the steep
slope avoiding all the junk in the way. At the end of it is a platform
extending out of the middle. Surf down the slime to the right of this
platform and grind down the rail. Use the platform's double jump at the end
of the rail to grab the key floating there.

Door location: Continue from the third checkpoint and you'll wind your way
around some prison cells (the same cells that the third key is around). Right
after the prison cells is a panel on the ground to boost yourself up to the
next section. Behind the panel on the wall is the door. It's right in front
of you, you'd almost have to be blind to miss it.

Behind the door: Two tank turrets. The explosion radius of these things when
you shoot something is enormous.

3.3.c)
-=Circus Park=-
--------------
-Key 1: Right in front of the second checkpoint is a path that branches off to
the left and the right. Jump between them off the platform and use your homing
attack on the blue ball in the middle. It will bounce you up and into the key.
-Key 2: Behind the third checkpoint. Grab it and go backwards as far as you
can on the platform below it. There's a key in the Eggman crate.
-Key 3: Right after the fifth checkpoint is a rope you grind down that leads
to a platform with a rocket on the top section and two GUN drones down below.
Behind the drones on the far end of the platform is a key.
-Key 4: After taking the rocket and parachuting down, you'll wind up in front
of another triangle jump section. Drop down and look behind you to see a
series of barrels to jump across with a key on top of the last one.
-Key 5: After the circus tent you'll end up at a zip line ride. Get on and
hold left and you'll eventually run into the key.

Door location: After the fourth checkpoint there's a triangle jump section.
Jump to the end to find the door in front of you.

Behind the door: Another shooting gallery. Good if you're really bad at
collecting rings but you should have no problem getting 400 without this
thing.

3.4)
-=Stage 4 levels=-
--------------

3.4.a)
-=Central City=-
--------------
-Key 1: Go right at the start of the level. Pick up the bomb in front of you
and throw it foreward into the wall. Hit the springs that appear there, go
up, and hit the first checkpoint. Detonate the first big bomb there and go
up the platform and tilts over. In the section right before the area you
triangle jump across, a helicoptor will come down. Grab a hold of it and
have it lift you onto the roof. Destroy the two Black Arms soldiers that
appear on the roof and collect the key in the cage.
-Key 2: To the left of the third checkpoint is a big wall of sandbags with a
"?" icon next to it. Build up your dark gauge (destroying the GUN mechs
around the large bomb nearby should be enough) and use Chaos Blast near the
wall to destroy it. There's a key behind the wall.
-Key 3: Destroy the wall next to the fourth large bomb and climb up the pole
to reach the fourth checkpoint. Destroy the Black Arms in the area (there
should be a soldier, a giant, and two Black Hawks) and a cage will open up
with a spring. The spring will launch you up onto a platform which you can
use to jump to another platform on the other side of the street with a key
on this. Two notes for this key - 1: If you're using the turret to take out
the Black Arms, be careful not to destroy the platforms on the side of the
buildings. 2: If you're lucky, you can use your homing attack off of the
Black Arms to climb your way up to the key without having to unlock the
spring.
-Key 4: Destroying the two GUN mechs around the final large bomb will not
only open the cage holding the bomb, but open a cage near it next to the
building with a key in it. Just go to the building right of the bomb and
turn around.
-Key 5: Follow the road, passing the final checkpoint just a bit, and keep
your eyes open on the left wall. One of the buildings will sparkle a bit.
Shoot it with a rocket launcher (take one from a GUN mech earlier on in the
level, there's some near the third large bomb that have the weapon) and
collect the key behind the wall. Note, Chaos Blast will NOT work on this
wall.

Door location: Moving foreward from checkpoint three will bring you through
a tunnel and into an ooze filled street that you need a car to get through.
The door's right across the street to the left a bit.

Behind the door: An Air Saucer. Not very useful from what I've seen.

3.4.b)
-=The Doom=-
--------------
-Key 1: Near the very start of the level. Run into the second room and
trigger the elevator in it. Ride it to the top and wait for it to lower so
you can hop on the top of it. The key should be hovering above the platform
next to the elevator.
-Key 2: Keep going until you reach the room with a huge slope. It's the room
that starts off with a big slab on the floor and a GUN mech right behind it.
Run about halfway up the slope and rev up a spindash. Jump when you get about
three-forths up the slope and you should fly up into the air. Right above the
middle of the room are two platforms: One has an extra life, the other has a
key.
-Key 3: In the same room there should be a bomb regenerator at the end.
Normally you'd throw a bomb at the wall ahead of you to the left of this
thing, but turn to your right and you should see another cracked wall. Throw
the bomb at it, the third key's just inside.
-Key 4: A few rooms ahead is a three way split room. There will be a fan
blowing on the right side of the split and a dead end with a couple GUN
soldiers and crates in it. Jump on the pilliar in the left corner and turn
around. You should see a pulley that you can jump onto. Have it pull you up
and jump off onto the platform with an extra life on it. Turn towards the
fan and there should be the key floating right above it.
-Key 5: A few more rooms ahead and you should be in an area with a cage in
the middle that has a single ring in it. Use the elevators to get to the top
of the room and keep moving foreward through the rooms. You'll eventually
reach a room where GUN soldiers burst out of the walls. In the far right
corner of this room are some GUN crates stacked up. Jump on top of these and
you can reach a platform above. Look towards the wall to see more GUN crates
stacked up against it. Smash them and collect the last key behind the wall.

Door location: The first three way room in the level. In front of the
unlocked door right before the holes in the wall that the GUN soldiers come
out of should be a pulley to the left. Use it to bring yourself up to a
platform with the key door.

Behind the door: A switch that will open the cage containing a single ring.
Steping on this open cage will trigger the platform next to it to move
outside. Ride on it and follow the path for a huge shortcut to the end of
the level. This shortcut should get you an easy A on the normal mission.

NOTE: You can also trigger the switch without opening the cage by using your
punch, punch, kick combo right next to it. And if you really want the ring
inside, suck it up with the Egg Vacuum.

3.4.c)
-=Sky Troops=-
--------------
-Key 1: After the tail of rings used for the light speed dash, you'll find
the GUN jump mech and hop up some platforms that will eventually lead to a
large slope with some pilliars rolling down it. Before going up the slope,
stand in front of it and look to your left. The key's right behind the
doorway you ran through.
-Key 2: Right after the third checkpoint, make your way past the room with
the second crystal and through the loop until you hit the zip pad that brings
you to the next section. Run up the staircase leading to the open area and
look to your left.
-Key 3: Soon after the fourth checkpoint, the path will branch off into two
paths. Run down the right side until the slope stops. The first Black Arms
creature should actually be staring right at the key. It's in plain sight to
the left on the wooden platform just before the large mounted cannon.
-Key 4: Running foreward some more will get you to a section that will have
two zip pads and a switch next to them. The switch triggers a trail of rings
that leads to a zip ring that will push you onto a platform with a mounted
cannon. The key's sitting right next to the cannon on the right side, again
in plain sight.
-Key 5: After checkpoint six, you'll take a ride on a Black Hawk. About
midway through the ride you'll fly through a giant tunnel. Jump off here and
make your way to the end of the tunnel back where the weather's sunny again.
There's two platforms under you just out of sight, so be careful when you
jump down to land on them. One platform has a rocket to take you to the final
area. The platform in back of it has the final key.

Door location: Right in front of you after checkpoint six.

Behind the door: Another Black Hawk that will take you to the end of the
level slightly faster.


3.4.d)
-=Mad Matrix=-
--------------
-Key 1: There's a blue platform between the blue and green terminals that has
a key on it. Take the right path when you first get to the section that
splits the level up.
-Key 2: In the yellow terminal. There's a section with a color puzzle wrapped
around a square platform. Solve the puzzle and move to the left side of the
puzzle. When it raises, it will pass a key.
-Key 3: In the green terminal. After checkpoint five you'll go through a
couple moving platform sections. At one point there will be a color puzzle
with two panels vertically stacked, a red one and a green one. The key is
directly behind these panels. Move fast to get it.
-Key 4: In the red terminal. Right in front of the first color puzzle,
there's two platforms on the left and right sides and a key between them.
Jump onto one of these platforms and wait for a purple cube to float by and
under the key.
-Key 5: Way past the goal ring floating out in the middle of nowhere. Just
keep going straight towards the purple cube in the distance.

Door location: On a platform directly in the middle of the four terminals.
Navagate through the hyperspeeds paths until you find it.

Behind the door: An alternate path to the red terminal. Yup. That's it. No
special items, weapons or anything along the way. This is just about the most
useless door in the game.

3.4.e)
-=Death Ruins=-
--------------
-Key 1: The first pulley will take you to a platform with two GUN soldiers,
two Black Arms soldiers, and a spring which will bounce you into some elastic
substance that will shoot you off to the second checkpoint. When the elastic
stretches back, jump to get yourself out of it and onto a platform with a key
on it.
-Key 2: After the third checkpoint is a rail section that will wrap around a
large pilliar with some platforms on it. Get onto the first platform you can.
This platform should have three GUN soldiers on it with a GUN cage that has a
shield inside. In the far left corner of this platform is a pole below the
platform you can slide down onto another small platform with a spring. The
spring will take you to a second rail. You can see several gray platforms
near the base of the wall that this rail takes you down. It can be hard to
find a good section of the rail to jump off to get to one of the platforms
on the side of this wall and work your way down, so instead try jumping off
the rail early and falling down to one of these gray platforms. One of the
lower ones has a key on it. The lowest one will move up when jumped on to get
you back up.
-Key 3: Checkpoint five will lead you up a small water section. After getting
up that you'll be on a path with a cage blocking the left side. The right
side has a small hole in the ground with a red slime path starting point and
a spring behind it. Just to the right of this is a wall you can destroy to
reveal a small ledge with a key on it.
-Key 4:After checkpoint six, you'll find a red slime path to the right. Ride
on it to wind up in a room with a triangle jump section in front of you. The
trick to this key is getting high enough up the wall to get the key. Jump on
top of the wooden gun crate and start your triangle jump by jumping onto the
wall from here. This should give you enough height to grab the key near the
end of the hallway.
-Key 5: Past this key is a door that will lead you to a room with a vertical
pole. Slide down the pole and get into the next room. There should be a Black
Arms Cage and a large platform in front of you. To either side of the large
platform is a small path with a Black Arms soldier and a breakable wall at
the end of it. Break the wall and peak around the corner to see a key behind
a small waterfall.

Door location: After the third checkpoint, make your way down the rail until
you pass a small group of GUN drones. There's a couple platforms off to the
right you can jump down to. One of the platforms has a zip pad that will
throw you over to a platform with the fourth checkpoint and the door.

Behind the door: A room with a few rails, some extra lives and some rings.
Grind down the rails and use your homing attack to get the item boxes
floating off away from the rails. The end of the path has a warp portal that
will take you back above the key door.

3.5)
-=Stage 5 levels=-
--------------

3.5.a)
-=The Ark=-
-------------
-Key 1: Right behind you from the start. How 'bout that? I'm sure you knew at
least one level would pull this trick on you.
-Key 2: After the third checkpoint, you'll fly down through part of the ARK,
then wind up near a series of platforms with giant defense turrets on them.
Jump down onto the platforms and make your way down them. The second to
lowest platform has two lines of rings under it and a key at the end of the
ring lines hiding under the third platform.
-Key 3: After the fourth checkpoint you'll fly through a small tunnel with
flashing yellow lights running through it. After getting out of the tunnel,
watch the lower part of the screen very carefully and you'll make out a
platform in the distance. Wait until you're close to the wall and jump off
the Black Hawk to land on the platform. There's two gun crates and a key on
it.
-Key 4: After the fifth checkpoint, fly foreward until you see a platform
with a tunnel below you. Jump onto the top of the tunnel and drop down to get
inside it. The key's at the close end of the tunnel.
-Key 5: Past the goal ring, just run down the tunnel.

Door location: Right after the sixth checkpoint is a ton of defensive units.
Fly through those and jump down onto the platform after them. The door's at
the end of the platform.

Behind the door: Three extra lives.

3.5.b)
-=Air Fleet=-
--------------
Key 1: First triangle jump oppertunity. Avoid the lasers and get to the door
at the end to find the key behind it.
Key 2: When you reach the section that splits the path up into two ways,
take the right path. Keep an eye out for a large brown container with a
wooden crate on top of it. The crate has a key inside.
Key 3: Soon after the first outside section of the level, you'll wind up in
a huge circular room. Go to the right side of the room and travel up the red
slime. Move around the walkway to find the key between two roadblocks.
Key 4: Another fork in the road after the fourth checkpoint. Go right again.
You'll soon find a gun turret. The key's in a crate to the left of it.
Key 5: After the seventh checkpoint, you'll find another large circular room.
Go left and up the red slime path to get to the walkway. Run around and
you'll find the last key between two large brown containers.

Door location: Near the start of the level. First pulley you go up will pull
you right past it.

Behind the door: Now this is a fun one. Behind the door is an Air Saucer.
And remember those electrified rails you saw every now and then in the
level? This thing can grind on them. You'll start with one in front of you
that will bring you to some guns and an extra life. With some careful saucer
riding, you can make it to two more electric rails that will both take you to
rooms with some extra lives, guns, and a heal unit for the saucer in case you
take some damage on the way there. You can actually ride the saucer up until
the very end of the level. If you run into any steep slopes, just use the
saucer's double jump constantly to get up them.

3.5.c)
-=Iron Jungle=-
--------------
-Key 1: Right after the third checkpoint is a left turn. Look to the left
to see a GUN drone floating in front of a small room. Use your homing attack
on the drone to get up into the room and smash the cases on the platform to
find a key behind them.
-Key 2: After the fourth checkpoint is another one of those rooms you drop
into with three Shadow drones in it. Defeating the Shadow drones will raise
the platform in the middle up so you can get out. Jump into the room and
turn around. There's a door behind you that has some crates and a key behind
it.
-Key 3: Take the lower route after checkpoint five, grinding down the rail.
It will lead you to another checkpoint and drop you into a room with three
more Shadow Androids. Turn around and the key's in some red cases behind you.
-Key 4: This one takes some backtracking. Use a further checkpoint to get
back to checkpoint five, only this time, take the upper route. It will
eventually lead you to a checkpoint and a vertical bar you can climb down
into a room with a GUN mech in it. Destroying the mech will open the cage to
reveal a spring to get out of the room. Right behind the caged spring is a
platform just out of view of the camera. Run to the edge and rotate the
camera to see the platform and the key.
-Key 5: Right next to the goal ring, behind those red barrels on the left.

Door location: Right after the second checkpoint when you go through the
door and drop into the room with some Eggman robots. Drop into this room and
look behind you.

Behind the door: Three tank turrets. These things would probably take out
Eggman's balloon pretty fast.

3.5.d)
-=Space Gadget=-
--------------
NOTE: This level seems to be a real odd one for key finding. Note that some
of these keys are more difficult to get then most other levels and getting
some of them require methods that probably aren't the ones Sonic Team
intended. At least it seems that way.

-Key 1: After the first checkpoint you'll get to a slope with a gravity
switching device at the end. Switch gravity and it will take you down to
another slope. Instead of going down, use your spin dash to get speed, then
jump across to the platform above. Go down this slope instead to see a key
at the end by the speed pads. Be very careful of the speed pads though,
because they'll boost you in the opposite direction, away from the key.
-Key 2: You should notice this one on top of a platform directly before the
second checkpoint. When you hit the checkpoint, turn around. Notice the
light sticking out of the side of the platform? You're going to have to
bounce off of that. This isn't easy at all and will probably take a few
tries to get right.  Jump on top of one of the lights on the ground nearby,
then jump as high as you can and use your homing attack to dash towards the
light on the side of the platform. If you're lucky, you'll bounce up high
enough to get onto the platform with the key. If the light breaks and you
aren't up there, just jump off the side, lose a life and try again.

NOTE: SHADOW JACKY has played through Expert Mode and says the platforms are
rearranged in this section of the level, making it much easier to get this
key. Unfortunately, he also claims gaining keys won't save while in Expert
Mode. I've yet to unlock this, so I can't say for myself.

-Key 3: Take the dark path foreward, destroying the second defense unit and
dropping down the hole where the panels used to be just before the second
checkpoint. Keep moving foreward until you reach the next checkpoint (the
sixth one) This is where the level starts to get pretty confusing, especially
if you're looking for keys. Make your way into the room with the fourth
defense unit (one of the rooms that shoots lasers from three circles on the
ground) Make sure the room's right side up and the gravity's normal. If it
isn't, there should be a gravity switch somewhere in the room that fixes it.
Jump onto the defense panels and look at the wall behind the defense unit.
A key's hidden in the right corner. Just jump off the defense panels and use
your homing attack to make it up there.
-Key 4: After the last checkpoint, go into the next room, fall straight down,
use the springs on the other end to get back up. Then, go right to find
another spring. Use it to get up to a beam. Run to the right of the beam.
Spindash at an angle near where the beam connects to the wall, and use this
section as a ramp to get enough height to jump over to the beam in front of
you. The key is lying on the middle of this beam.
-Key 5: You're going to need to warp back to the normal path, either by using
a checkpoint or the warp portal at the end of the dark path. Look above the
goal ring. The key's floating there just out of reach. That means you have to
go all the way through the normal path, then at the section where gravity
switches, putting you onto a rail that winds around and takes you to the
platform with the goal ring, you're going to need to jump off instead and
fall towards the ring. This part's tricky because you need to aim it just
right, weaving between the meteors near the end of your fall. If you're
lucky, you'll fall just on top of the key. If not, go to the fifth
checkpoint and try again.

Door location: Right before the fourth checkpoint. You'll run head first
into it.

Behind the door: A warp portal that leads you to a platform high above the
goal ring. A zip pad will throw you foreward and down into some speed rings
that will shoot you right to the goal.

3.5.e)
-=Lost Impact=-
--------------
-Key 1: Get to the first room with the elevator section going up. Head
upwards until you finish riding the last elevator. Look off the ledge to see
a vertical pole. Jump off the ledge and grab onto the pole, climbing up to
the top of it to find a key.
-Key 2: After the second gun rail line section, go through the right door on
the right wall. The room will have a zip pad that will lead you into a series
of springs that takes you up to a small room with a couple wooden gun crates.
Jump on top of one of the pilliars in the back of the room and jump to the
other. The key's floating up in the air between them.
-Key 3: After the fifth checkpoint you'll ride a gun rail line out to meteor
field. Stop the gun right when you get outside and look to your right to see
a platform with a rocket on it. Ride the rocket up to a platform with a key.
-Key 4: In the room with the last checkpoint, above the gun rail line doorway
you can in from. Go up the platform to the right, get on the ledge and jump
up to to platform to grab a hold of it and pull yourself up.
-Key 5: Make sure you have an explosive weapon ready. Go through the door
closest to this key (the right door on the right wall) and you'll run into a
wall with a crack in it. Shoot it with a rocket to blow the hole open,
revealing an extra life, a ring box and the last key.

Door location: After the third checkpoint, go through the left door on the
right wall, take a left at the split, through the hole in the wall, right,
left at the two way, then left again at the next two way. You'll see a pulley
hanging from the ceiling that will take you to the door.

Behind the door: An armored car of all things. Too bad it's kind of hard to
take it much of anywhere...

3.6)
-=Stage 6 levels=-
--------------

3.6.a)
-=GUN Fortress=-
--------------
-Key 1: The very first room of the level, behind one of the big brown
containers near the GUN soldiers and Black Arms soldiers.
-Key 2: In the room where you use the turret to destroy two GUN mechs to open
up the cage in the center. The cage will let you use the zip line to get to
the walkway surrounding the room. When you get off the zipline, go right.
It's between a couple of those big brown containers, almost in plain sight.
-Key 3: Keep going until you get to the next big room similar to the one the
last key was in. When you get on the walkway surrounding the room, you'll
run left until you find a pulley. Instead of using the pulley, run past it.
There's a key at the end of the path.
-Key 4: After the fourth checkpoint the path will split, giving you the
option to go up a pulley, or straight through a door. Go through the door
and get to the second mainframe computer (those big blue ones you need to
destroy for the dark mission). The key's right behind the computer,
surrounded by roadblocks.
-Key 5: Right after the five key door is a narrow room with trapped walls.
Triangle jump between the walls before they close in on you and make it to
the end to find an extra life and the last key.

Door location: You're most likely going to run face first into this door, so
it's almost impossible to miss. After the fourth checkpoint, just keep going
foreward in the level. You'll run right into the door.

Behind the door: An armored car and a nice path to drive it down, complete
with some rings and three extra lives.

3.6.b)
-=Black Comet=-
--------------
-Key 1: At the start of the level, wind your way up the platforms instead of
going straight through the poison fluid stream. Defeat both GUN mechs so the
platform to the left of the room rises. Follow the path it leads you to and
go down the red slime stream. Go across the bridge to your left and look
behind the rocks at the very end.
-Key 2: Hop on an Air Saucer next to the second checkpoint and move along the
right wall. There's a small path hidden around the far right that will lead
you to the second key.
-Key 3: The sixth checkpoint is in a large room that will have you spiraling
down platforms and rails. Get to the bottom of this room and through the
hallway into the next. When you get into the new room, look to the left.
There's a key just sitting there.
-Key 4: This one isn't even hidden. It's in plain view of the main path. Go
foreward two rooms from checkpoint seven and you'll be in a room where you
drop down to fight two worms. Instead of dropping down, you'll see a soldier
appear in front of you to the right a little bit. The key's behind him, by
the panel on the wall with the glowing red outline. You should see it
sparkling already.
-Key 5: In back of the goal ring. Use one of the air saucers to jump into the
poison liquid.  The key's behind one of the tentacles close to the last
checkpoint.

Door location: In front of the fourth checkpoint is a large airship and a
path that branches off three ways. Go to the left side to find the door.

Behind the door: Two tank turrets and a Shadow crate.

3.6.c)
-=Lava Shelter=-
--------------
Key 1: Right after the first checkpoint, triangle jump between the walls
until you reach the door at the end. A key will be behind it.
Key 2: After another rail section you'll go through a small hallway with a
couple of lasers and into a room with a pulley in the middle. Ride up the
pulley and go through the door to get into the next hallway. Early in the
hall is a grating on the ground you can pick up and flip over. Drop down
into the path it makes and go down the slope to find a key.
Key 3: Grind the rail after the third checkpoint and it will lead you to a
narrow hallway. Triangle jump between the walls until you reach the door at
the end. A key will be behind it.
Key 4: Soon after the huge room with the rail spiriling down, you'll reach a
section where the rail will split into three. Quickly jump to the right rail.
Key 5: Use the final checkpoint to backtrack to checkpoint number four.
Activate the lava defense system inside the room ahead and use the newly
made platforms to make your way to checkpoint number five. Continue on
through the level, activating one more lava defense system. After scaling
your way up this huge room, you'll eventually get to a door and the key will
be right in front of you.

Door location: Omega pretty much gives this one away. Soon after finding him,
you'll go through a series of rails and drop off into a small room at the end.
He'll blurt out "Secret room detected to the right." I'm sure you can figure
it out from there. If you need to backtrack to get to this door for any
reason, it's right next to the first checkpoint.

Behind the door: An Air Saucer and some basic Egg robot guns. The platform
lets you float over lava and if you ride it to the room with the pulley
mentioned in key 2, you can go through the bottom door which will lead you
to three extra lives.


3.6.d)
-=Cosmic Fall=-
--------------
-Key 1: Make your way past the first checkpoint until you reach the zipline
section. Ride on it and hold left. The key's about halfway down the rail.
-Key 2: After the third checkpoint, you'll cross some falling platforms until
you reach the one at the end with a trail of rings that goes up. The platform
will slowly rise up this trail of rings. A key will pass by near the upper
right section of the platform. It might be a bit hard to grab with the camera
angle.
-Key 3: After the fourth checkpoint, there will be some platforms rotating in
place in front of you. Make it across these series of platforms to the last
one without falling to find the key.
-Key 4: Pass the goal ring and use the zipline to bring yourself to the sixth
checkpoint. Get on the jumping mech and jump up the platforms to get to a
series of pulleys. Let them take you up to a platform with an Artificial
Chaos and a few crates. Go right after getting on this platform to see a
rotating platform with a key on it. Be careful getting this one, this can be
a tricky key.
-Key 5: Keep working your way through to the computer room until you reach a
series of platforms with zip pads that throw you high up into the level.
You'll spend quite a while falling at the end of this. Use this time to aim
yourself near the top right of the platform you're falling down to. The
closer you get, the more you can make out a key on the very top of a pilliar
on the right side of the platform. Land on the pilliar and get your key.

Door location: Right in front of the fifth checkpoint.

Behind the door: A switch that opens up a nearby door with an extra life in
it. The switch also creates ring trails that will take you through the rest
of the level in seconds. Very helpful for getting that A rank on the Hero
mission.

3.6.e)
-=Final Haunt=-
--------------
-Key 1: After the second checkpoint, run foreward and defeat the two elite
Black Arms soldiers. Then, run behind the platform the checkpoint was on to
see a Black Arms cage lowered with a key in it.
-Key 2: Run past the third checkpoint, through a couple loops, and into a
room with a few Black Arms giants. There's a slope on the right side of this
room. Run up it and destroy any rocks in your way. There's a key sitting
right up there.
-Key 3: After checkpoint four is a room with a few Black Arm elites.
Defeating them will open up two cages; one with a spring and one with a
vacuum gun. Run past the cage with the vacuum gun and up to the wall, then
look to the right. You'll see a key at the end of the hallway.
-Key 4: At the end of the room with the key doors (a way after the fifth
checkpoint, you'll know when you get there) you'll follow a light speed ring
trail that will take you up and out of the room. The next room will have a
platform on either side, and a lower platform in the middle that leads to a
rail into the next section. Use the platforms at the end of the rail you're
on to jump over to the other side where a few elite Black Arms troops are.
Take them out and run to the end of the platform to find the key.
-Key 5: Now warp back to checkpoint four and trigger the switch, opening the
path in front of you. Tame and fly on the Black Hawk unti it drops you off in
front of the door. Go back into the middle section and take the path on the
right. There's a key sitting just in the middle of the end of the path.

Door location: Quite a way after the fifth checkpoint (or a little bit after
the fourth if you're taking the dark path), you'll run down a long path with
a zip pad at the end that will take you to a platform with four Black Arms
soldiers. Defeating them will lower a platform that will bring you to the
door. Use the red slime path next to this door to bring you to a platform
with a second door. Then after the seventh checkpoint you'll be at an
intersection that will branch off three ways. There's a key door on the left
and right paths. That's right, there's four key doors.

Behind the door: Mounted cannon turrets. Every last one of them.

3.7)
-=Last story levels=-
--------------

3.7.a)
-=The Last Way=-
--------------
-Key 1: The room after the first Black Arms battleship has a giant and a red
slime path on the wall. Jump down to the left and take out the two worms to
lower the cage. There's a key inside.
-Key 2: The first Black Hawk flight drops you off on a bridge between two
paths. Run toward the end of the left path instead of the right. There's a
key in the corner.
-Key 3: After the large circular room with rails spiriling down it, you'll be
dropped off into a room that has some Black Arms soldiers shooting you from
floating platforms. Get on these platforms and use them to jump over to the
path on the left, where there's a key near the far wall.
-Key 4: This is easily the hardest key to get in the level, and your timing
with Chaos Control is going to have to be pretty good. After the fourth
checkpoint, you'll be forced to use Chaos Control to get through a couple
rooms. The second instance, you'll be in a long path full of worms. The end
of the path has a door at the top right that you can't get to without Chaos
Control. Fill up your blue gauge and run back a bit from the end of the path
(run back until the end of the path is just barely out of sight) Now wait
for the blue gauge to almost empty out completely and use Chaos Control when
it's almost gone. If you're lucky, you'll have just enough to get to about
the door and stop in front of it. If you skip the door and wind up in the
middle, lower path of the next section, you're going to have to go back and
try again. You should be on the right side of the room and at the end of the
path, you'll see some Black Hawks you can use your homing attack on to get
across to the left. Jump over to the left side and defeat the Black Arms
soldiers to lower the cage and grab the key.
-Key 5: The room with the fourth key is also the same room that has the fourth
checkpoint. Continue from there, going through a couple loops and you'll end
up in a room with three Black Arms giants. Make your way up the platforms on
the right then when you turn left, keep going foreward instead of using the
zip pads. Defeat the giant at the end and collect the key in the cage it
opens up.


Door location: When you first encounter a Black Arms battleship, run to the
middle of the room and take the right path.

Behind the door: A warp portal that will take you right to the fourth
checkpoint.

4)
-=Contact Information=-
---------------
Need to contact me for some reason? Having trouble getting a key? Description
doesn't make sense? Found something that needs correcting? Death threats or
applause? Send them to ( [email protected] )

5)
-=Legal Stuffs=-
---------------
This FAQ was created by Miles Tails Prower. Feel free to print, download and
view, etc. but if anyone makes a profit off of this, that's no good.
This FAQ was originally hosted on GameFAQs (http://www.gamefaqs.com/)
I have also given permission to 1up.com (http://1up.com/) ,Cheat Code
Central (http://www.cheatcc.com/) and Neoseeker (http://neoseeker.com/)
to host this FAQ as well.
6)
-=Credits and Thanks=-
---------------

First of all, a big thanks to these people.

SHADOW JACKY: For helping along the way, finding keys, giving suggestions,
and inspiring me to do this whole thing in the first place.

RocketDarkness: For finding the one key that I just couldn't. I spent hours
upon hours trying to find the 5th key in Cosmic Fall, and I'd probably still
be looking if I didn't see your post.

celebiz: For the original hidden key project, and the topic on the topic on
the Gamecube board "Shadow The Hedgehog Collab Guide"

This topic also led on to the help and support of many others. Pages of
support went into this topic. Too much for me to sort through and thank
everyone individually, so I'm thanking you all in this sentance here.

My Gamecube: For not exploding after being on for days at a time

My mother: For not killing me when I woke her up playing this game at 4 in
the morning.

Ceej/CjayC: Because what FAQ wouldn't be complete without thanking him?

7)
-=Final Word=-
--------------

Shenanigans.

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