Sonic Wings Special (1996). Play online

Summary

Sonic Wings Special (known as Aero Fighters Special in North America) packs together the three earlier Sonic Wings installments into one vertically‑scrolling shooter. The PlayStation edition added fresh graphics, new pilots, Time Attack and a two‑player mode, plus an unlocking system where secret fighters unlock whole new teams like NATO and a hidden “Secret” squad. Each of the seven main teams has two pilots and up to two fighter variants, totalling 26 craft; finishing a run with a pilot reveals their hidden plane and new endings.

The game’s stage routing is deliberately branching: after the first level you randomly face three out of five possible stages, and later you choose between two divergent paths at three different checkpoints. Only nine of the seventeen stages appear in a single play‑through, encouraging replay. The PAL PS1 version omits memory‑card saving, but the NTSC release lets you save anytime during a round.

After more than two decades the title resurfaced in Hamster’s Console Archives line for Switch 2 and PS5 in March 2026, giving new players a chance to experience its quirky, comic‑flavoured air combat.