History Main / BonusStage

[[quoteright:300:[[Franchise/CrashBandicoot http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/CaptureCrash122_1505.png]]]]

* In ''VideoGame/TheAdventuresOfLomax'', when you defeat 100 enemies, the exit at the end of the current level will bring you to a bonus stage, where you have a limited time to collect loads of money. The stage itself is entirely made out of money, too. No enemies to be found, and dying only brings you to the next level.

* ''VideoGame/LadyBug'' for the ColecoVision had the Vegetable Harvest Screen as a reward for [[SpellingBonus spelling S-P-E-C-I-A-L]], while the arcade original simply gave the player a free game credit.

* ''VideoGame/LadyBug'' for the ColecoVision had the Vegetable Harvest Screen as a reward for spelling S-P-E-C-I-A-L, while the arcade original simply gave the player a free game credit.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' was probably the one with the largest number of different kinds of bonus area/level. Underground coin rooms, beanstalk coin rooms, the slot-machine MiniGame, the Memory Mini Game, the ''treasure ship''...
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' had, in addition to coin rooms, a MiniGame where Mario must hit various cycling blocks and try to get 3 shapes in a row to win [[OneUp 1-Ups]]. It was accessed by accumulating 100 stars via breaking the tape at the end of the level.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand'' on the GameBoy, in addition to coin rooms, taking the harder-to-reach exit to a stage would lead to a bonus game where, depending on your timing, you could get lives or a power-up. One room, notably, exaggerates this trope by having all of the space in the room except for the floor and exit pipe filled completely with coins. It was impossible to collect all coins unless you used a thrown Super Ball (which, unlike other Mario games' fireballs, can collect coins, bounce at a 45-degree angle upon hitting a surface, and are unaffected by gravity).
*** A few of the coin rooms have SpikesOfDoom, allowing you to ''die in a coin room''.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'' had scattered Warp Pipes that lead to various rooms with free stuff available. Some contained dice which could give coins, Star Bits, or {{OneUp}}s. Others contained many coins that, if collected soon enough, gave a 1Up.

* In rather similar fashion to some of the Mario games, ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' has loads of secret areas filled with goodies, some of which behave more like part of a normal level and some of which behave more like levels in their own right.

* The first ''Franchise/CrashBandicoot'' had bonus stages that could be gotten to by collecting three of certain items. The later games had one on each level, which you just had to step on a pad to get to. Some levels had a second pad that only appeared if you get that far without dying, which leads to a more-dangerous-than-normal-play Death Stage.

* ''VideoGame/MarioBros'' had the enemy-free "Test Your Skill" stages, where the objective was to collect coins within the time limit.

** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand'' on the GameBoy, in addition to coin rooms, taking the harder-to-reach exit to a stage would lead to a bonus game where, depending on your timing, you could get lives or a power-up.

** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' has hidden rooms that contain many bananas, banana coins, and balloons. Collecting everything reveals a Puzzle Piece necessary for OneHundredPercentCompletion. Falling off does not result in death.

* The US manual for ''{{Deathsmiles}}'' [[SchmuckBait advertises the Ice Palace in MBL as this]]. Under normal conditions, it is exceptionally easy to rack up points and max out your lifebar (scores of over '''''[[PinballScoring 11 billion]]''''' from the stage by itself are not unheard of, making it the single high-scoring stage). Unfortunately, if you happen to be [[NoDamageRun doing too]] [[HarderThanHard good]], the background will be red instead of blue, and you'll have to contend with it at Rank 999, where accumulating points is much more difficult.

* In AmericanFootball, the "extra point" and "two-point conversion" qualify. They come after a major score, and failure usually has no consequence other than not getting the extra points. However, in extreme cases, [[EpicFail it's possible for the other team to score]].
** Much the same applies to a conversion in RugbyUnion.

* The credit rolls of the ''VideoGame/TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series have you continue playing. Some modes have you simply continue playing as the credits roll, with no effect on your score or grade. Some others, like ''[=TGM2=]''[='=]s and ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Master mode, have the "disappearing roll," in which pieces vanish 5 seconds after locking down; in ''[=TGM3=]'' clearing lines during this part will add a small fraction of a whole grade. Then there's the infamous "invisible roll" in which pieces vanish upon locking; in ''[=TGM2=]'', this is required to earn the Grand Master rank (failing will net you an M grade instead), and in ''[=TGM3=]'', this nets even more grades per line clear, and clearing enough lines ''and'' surviving are just part of the [[http://www.tetrisconcept.com/wiki/index.php/Tetris_The_Grand_Master_3#GrandMaster_Requirements requirements]] for ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Grand Master rank.[[hottip:*:And believe me, those two requirements alone are hard enough. How hard? Well, out of the millions who've played ''Tetris'', only '''''3''''' of them have this rank.]] Finally, ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Shirase credit roll has you playing with fully-visible double-sized pieces, but has no effect on your grade.

And here's a little [[WastedSong bonus tune]]\\

* ''VideoGame/WreckingCrew'' had a find-the-coin bonus minigame after every fourth stage.

[[quoteright:300:[[Franchise/CrashBandicoot http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/CaptureCrash122_1505.png]]]]

[[AC:ActionGame]]

[[AC:ActionAdventure]]

[[AC:FightingGame]]

[[AC:FirstPersonShooter]]

[[AC:MazeGame]]

[[AC:{{MMORPG}}]]

[[AC:PlatformGame]]

[[AC:PuzzleGame]]

[[AC:ShootEmUp]]

* ''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders''

[[AC:TurnBasedStrategy]]

[[AC:Non-Video Game]]

----

* You access these in ''AngryBirds'' by hitting the golden eggs in some levels.

[[AC:ArcadeGame]]
* Various arcade-style games, such as ''VideoGame/{{Gauntlet}}'', ''VideoGame/MarioBros.'', ''Binary Land'' had bonus stages after completing a certain number of regular stages.
* ''VideoGame/WreckingCrew'' had a find-the-coin bonus minigame after every fourth stage.
* ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble''
** ''BubbleBobble Part 2'' for the NES: In each bonus game after each BossBattle, Bub must play volleyball or one-on-one basketball (both [[LuckBasedMission Luck-Based]] and [[TimedMission Timed]], and there's [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks a really weird twist to the "basketball" game in there]]) or get more of a certain item than [[ThatOneBoss his opponent]]. These games are very NintendoHard too, and [[UnWinnable the player will lose more than he/she would win]]. Bonuses range from various point bonuses to a huge item and/or five extra {{One Up}}s.
** Getting more of a certain item than the opponent does, however: that's a ShoutOut to the original game which has a bonus game - In the first Bubble Bobble, the player(s) race to get the most of a type of item on the screen in a time limit.

* ''Mighty Bomb Jack'' has an unusual inversion in sending players to a torture room if they collect too many bonus items.

* In ''{{Ristar}}'', each level contains a secret entrance to a bonus stage where you must complete a task within a time limit to get a special item; collecting enough of these would unlock passwords that you could enter to modify various aspects of gameplay.

%%[[/folder]]

* The credit rolls of the ''TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series have you continue playing. Some modes have you simply continue playing as the credits roll, with no effect on your score or grade. Some others, like ''[=TGM2=]''[='=]s and ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Master mode, have the "disappearing roll," in which pieces vanish 5 seconds after locking down; in ''[=TGM3=]'' clearing lines during this part will add a small fraction of a whole grade. Then there's the infamous "invisible roll" in which pieces vanish upon locking; in ''[=TGM2=]'', this is required to earn the Grand Master rank (failing will net you an M grade instead), and in ''[=TGM3=]'', this nets even more grades per line clear, and clearing enough lines ''and'' surviving are just part of the [[http://www.tetrisconcept.com/wiki/index.php/Tetris_The_Grand_Master_3#GrandMaster_Requirements requirements]] for ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Grand Master rank.[[hottip:*:And believe me, those two requirements alone are hard enough. How hard? Well, out of the millions who've played ''Tetris'', only '''''3''''' of them have this rank.]] Finally, ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Shirase credit roll has you playing with fully-visible double-sized pieces, but has no effect on your grade.

----

* In the original ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'', going down certain pipes or climbing up hidden vines would take you to hidden areas filled with coins. Later games in the series kept these in-level bonus areas but added entirely separate levels, sometimes hidden, sometimes not, in which you could get loads of points, lives, or items.

* In the first 16-bit ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' game, collecting enough rings during a level would unlock a bonus stage (Special Stages) at the end of the level where you could try to win a Chaos Emerald. In later 16-bit era games, these areas would become accessible during the levels rather than after them, and would later be accompanied by additional types of bonus stage (called oddly enough, Bonus Stages) that didn't contain Chaos Emeralds but did contain power-ups and the like, but these were still treated as separate stages rather than as parts of the stage you came from; your score would be tallied at the end of them just like at the end of any other stage.

* As sort of a weird example, in ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'', each regular level would be followed by "Andy Asteroids?", a race with Psy-Crow. Beating him would allow you to go on to the next stage without incident and possibly rack up an extra continue, while losing to him forced you to fight him before going on to the next stage.

* ''VideoGame/StarTrekEliteForce 2'' has a BonusStage which is a direct pastiche of ''SuperMarioBros''; you even have go drop down a giant pipe to get to it.
* The first ''Videogame/CrashBandicoot1996'' had bonus stages that could be gotten to by collecting three of certain items. The later games had one on each level, which you just had to step on a pad to get to. Some levels had a second pad that only appeared if you get that far without dying, which leads to a more-dangerous-than-normal-play Death Stage.
* ''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders Extreme'' has bonus rounds that are activated by shooting red or flashing [=UFOs=]. Inside, you have to shoot a certain number of armoured or evasive invaders within a time limit. Your reward? When you exit, your cannon becomes a WaveMotionGun for at least 15 seconds.
** ''Space Invaders Extreme 2'' streamlines this feature by having the main stage keep going while the bonus stage takes place on the top of the screen, which you have to shoot upwards to.
* In ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'', after every two or three rounds, your character got to beat the crap out of a car or pile of oil drums for extra points.
** And ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII 3rd Strike: Fight for the Future'' has two bonus stages in which you destroy a car or tech [[JokeCharacter Sean's]] basketballs.

* The credit rolls of the ''TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series have you continue playing. Some modes have you simply continue playing as the credits roll, with no effect on your score or grade. Some others, like ''[=TGM2=]''[='=]s and ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Master mode, have the "disappearing roll," in which pieces vanish 5 seconds after locking down; in ''[=TGM3=]'' clearing lines during this part will add a small fraction of a whole grade. Then there's the infamous "invisible roll" in which pieces vanish upon locking; in ''[=TGM2=]'', this is required to earn the Grand Master rank (failing will net you an M grade instead), and in ''[=TGM3=]'', this nets even more grades per line clear, and clearing enough lines ''and'' surviving are just part of the [[http://www.tetrisconcept.com/wiki/index.php/Tetris_The_Grand_Master_3#GrandMaster_Requirements requirements]] for ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Grand Master rank.[[hottip:*:And believe me, those two requirements alone are hard enough. How hard? Well, out of the millions who've played ''Tetris'', only '''''3''''' of them have this rank.]] Finally, ''[=TGM3=]''[='=]s Shirase credit roll has you playing with fully-visible double-sized pieces, but has no effect on your grade.
* ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble Part 2'' for the NES: In each bonus game after each BossBattle, Bub must play volleyball or one-on-one basketball (both [[LuckBasedMission Luck-Based]] and [[TimedMission Timed]], and there's [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks a really weird twist to the "basketball" game in there]]) or get more of a certain item than [[ThatOneBoss his opponent]]. These games are very NintendoHard too, and [[UnWinnable the player will lose more than he/she would win]]. Bonuses range from various point bonuses to a huge item and/or five extra {{One Up}}s.
** Getting more of a certain item than the opponent does, however: that's a ShoutOut to the original game which has a bonus game - In the first Bubble Bobble, the player(s) race to get the most of a type of item on the screen in a time limit.
* A [[TheGoldenAgeOfVideoGames classic example]] is the Challenge Stages of ''{{Galaga}}''.
* The US manual for ''{{Deathsmiles}}'' [[SchmuckBait advertises the Ice Palace in MBL as this]]. Under normal conditions, it is exceptionally easy to rack up points and max out your lifebar (scores of over '''''[[PinballScoring 11 billion]]''''' from the stage by itself are not unheard of, making it the single high-scoring stage). Unfortunately, if you happen to be [[NoDamageRun doing too]] [[HarderThanHard good]], the background will be red instead of blue, and you'll have to contend with it at Rank 999, where accumulating points is much more difficult.

* ''VideoGame/BatmanDoom'', unusually for a vanilla ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' mod, has one of these. During your first boss fight with the Scarecrow, mayor Kroll is tied to a ticking bomb in the vicinity. If the bomb explodes, the level ends and you go to the next one (map16) like normal. But if you manage to actually defeat Scarecrow before the explosion, you go to map31. It's a big, empty (and thus somewhat creepy) city map where you're trying to collect a bunch of random bonuses before you can access the exit and continue onto map16. This is also where you can access the SecretLevel.

* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' had hidden rooms that contained many bananas, banana coins, and balloons. Collecting everything would reveal a Puzzle Piece necessary for OneHundredPercentCompletion. Falling off would not result in death.
* In AmericanFootball, the "extra point" and "two-point conversion" qualify. They come after a major score, and failure usually has no consequence other than not getting the extra points. However, in extreme cases, [[EpicFail it's possible for the other team to score]].
* In ''Videogame/{{Oasis}}'', bonus stage where most of the map consists of large oasis. There is also a single town. Once the glyph and the city is discovered, victory is guaranteed.
* ''VideoGame/AladdinVirginGames'' has special tokens you can collect to earn a chance to play as Abu in Agrabah or the Cave of Wonders.
* Similarly, ''VideoGame/TheLionKing'' has bugs that can be collected to play bonus games as Timon or Pumbaa.
* In ''VideoGame/AladdinCapcom'', the "A Whole New World" stage is a bonus level with no enemies.
* ''VideoGame/{{Battletoads}} in Battlemaniacs'' had continuous scrolling bonus stages following the second and fifth levels. The object was to collect the bowling pins or dominoes for points and avoid the black ones and enemies.
** The ''VideoGame/{{Battletoads}}'' ArcadeGame had a ''Street Fighter II''-like timed stage after the third level to demolish a Rat Fighter like the one from ''Battletoads and Double Dragon''.

* ''SpiralKnights'' periodically and randomly inserts bonus stages into their dungeons. These levels are full of money, items, [[ExperiencePoints Heat]] and [[GreenRocks Minerals]], with no enemies to attack.
* In ''VideoGame/SpaceHarrier'', stages 5 and 12 have you [[DragonRider leap onto a friendly dragon]] and score points by flying into everything in sight.
* ''VideoGame/JackieChansActionKungFu'' has hidden bells in many places. When Jackie picks up a bell, he is instantly transported to a "special stage," where he can win points, by punching/kicking things or jumping on clouds, that can be spent on health, continues, and Psycho Waves. There's a show of fireworks for a perfect score.

* ''VideoGame/{{Jaws}}'' has a bonus stage involving bombing jellyfish from a plane.

* ''[[VideoGame/BombJack Mighty Bomb Jack]]'' has an unusual inversion in sending players to a torture room if they collect too many bonus items.
----

* Various arcade-style games, such as ''{{Gauntlet}}'', ''VideoGame/MarioBros.'', ''Binary Land'' had bonus stages after completing a certain number of regular stages.
* ''Wrecking Crew'' had a find-the-coin bonus minigame after every fourth stage.

* The first ''CrashBandicoot'' had bonus stages that could be gotten to by collecting three of certain items. The later games had one on each level, which you just had to step on a pad to get to. Some levels had a second pad that only appeared if you get that far without dying, which leads to a more-dangerous-than-normal-play Death Stage.

* Contains opportunities to get large amounts of points, {{One Up}}s, continues, {{Power Up}}s, and even ChaosEmeralds.

* In rather similar fashion to some of the Mario games, ''DonkeyKongCountry'' has loads of secret areas filled with goodies, some of which behave more like part of a normal level and some of which behave more like levels in their own right.

* ''DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' had hidden rooms that contained many bananas, banana coins, and balloons. Collecting everything would reveal a Puzzle Piece necessary for OneHundredPercentCompletion. Falling off would not result in death.