Goal Rings are a giant rings resembling normal rings. In many Sonic games, including Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog and more, the objective of some or all of the stages is to reach the Goal Ring. In Sonic Adventure 2 the goal ring is a giant ring with the words GOAL in it. Sonic Heroes' goal ring has a star if you complete the mission or a back arrow if the level was incomplete to restart. This marks the first, and currently only, time that the Goal Ring could be homing attacked to reach. In Shadow the Hedgehog, inside it is usually a Chaos Emerald, representing the Neutral mission (though in some cases, like in Lava Shelter, it represents a sided mission).
Goal Rings also appear in Sonic Generations. They only appear when using Modern Sonic in the game.