Stardust Speedway

Stardust Speedway, sometimes referred to as Stardust Speedway Zone, is a recurring Zone in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a region on Little Planet which is best known for being the site of the first clash between Sonic the Hedgehog and Metal Sonic.

One of the fastest levels in Sonic history, Stardust Speedway is a highway adorned with musical instruments above an enormous city; like its namesake implies, the city glows with many lights.

Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Stardust Speedway's first appearance was in Sonic the Hedgehog CD, as the game's sixth Round. Stardust Speedway is the most fast paced Round in the game, and due to its nature, it's also the largest Round of the game.

At the of the Round, Metal Sonic appears and challenges Sonic to a race; should Sonic win, he will rescue the captive Amy Rose.

Sonic Generations

 * Main article: Metal Sonic (Sonic Generations)

Stardust Speedway appears in Sonic Generations as the setting of the rival battle between Classic Sonic and Classic Metal Sonic. As opposed to the original race/battle, Dr. Robotnik is absent and instead the path Sonic is on is crumbling behind him, forcing Sonic to move ahead. The battle (as well as the music) is set in the bad future timeline of Stardust Speedway.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode Metal
The level returns in Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode Metal in a cutscene showing the defeat and revival of Metal Sonic. The level appears exactly as it was in Sonic Generations.

Sonic Mania

 * Main article: Stardust Speedway Zone (Sonic Mania)

In Sonic Mania, Stardust Speedway re-appears as the sixth Zone in the game. The first Act takes place in the past of Stardust Speedway, which has plant life growing everywhere. The second Act takes place in Stardust Speedway Zone's present, which is more urbanized and industrialized. At the end, Sonic, Tails and Knuckles faces Metal Sonic who was awating them for a rematch.

Archie Comics

 * Main articles: Stardust Speedway (Archie) and Stardust Speedway Zone

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, Stardust Speedway Zone was an area within Collision Chaos Zone - a Zone created by Dr. Ivo Robotnik and used as a trap for Sonic the Hedgehog, in which Amy Rose served as bait. In Stardust Speedway, Sonic races and defeat Mecha Sonic so he could save Tails and Amy.

After the Super Genesis Wave, Stardust Speedway became much more similar to its game counterpart, being a Zone under Dr. Eggman's influence on Little Planet and having the same role it had on the games.

Trivia

 * Stardust Speedway is one of the Zones with most different versions of its music.
 * In Sonic the Hedgehog CD, there's 7 versions, including Present, Good Future and Bad Future for both soundtracks, and the Past version.
 * In Sonic Generations, there's two versions, including the Metal Sonic boss fight remix (which is composed of Present and Bad Future JP themes), and a unlockeable remix of the Bad Future version (US version)
 * In Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II, the JP Bad Future theme appears in the Metal Sonic race in the Death Egg mk.II Zone.
 * In Sonic Mania, there's three versions, Act 1 based on the Past version, Act 2 based on the Present version, and the Metal Sonic boss theme based on the Bad Future version, all of them based on the Japanese soundtrack.
 * In Sonic Forces, the Metal Sonic boss fight features a remix of the Bad Future version, this time from the US soundtrack.
 * Stardust Speedway in Sonic Generations is the same in Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode Metal. Interestingly, the same music has been remixed in Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II for the exact same circumstance: an obstacle course race against Metal Sonic.
 * In the opening cutscene of Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode Metal, after "A long time has passed...", Stardust Speedway is shown in the bad future.
 * In Sonic Generations, the unlockable remix of the North American/PC theme is listed as Stardust Speedway Zone.