Sonic the Hedgehog (ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ Sonikku za Hejjihoggu) is the titular main protagonist of Sega's flagship franchise, Sonic the Hedgehog. Created in 1991 as a new mascot to replace the previously unsuccessful Opa-Opa and Alex Kidd, and to competently compete against Sega's rival, Nintendo, Sonic gained enough popularity to become a mascot and earn notoriety in the hands of Sega.
Sonic has appeared in a number of video games released by Sega, as well as numerous spin-off comics, cartoons, books. Debuting on June 23, 1991, SEGA released the first game in the series, Sonic the Hedgehog, since then having sold over 80 million copies across all games by 2011.
Artist Sega of America designer Sonic team and programmer Sega are generally credited with the creation of the character.
Quick Answers
Who voiced Sonic the Hedgehog in the United States?
What was the premise of the SatAM series?
What was the premise of Sonic Underground?
What was the premise of the Sonic anime OVA?
What was the premise of Sonic X?
Development
|
Appearance
History
Games
Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)
Other media
Sonic Comic
Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW Publishing)
Sonic Prime
Other appearances
Segagaga
Sonic Pinball Party
Sega Superstars series
Mario & Sonic series
Sega Splash Golf
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
Phantasy Star Online 2
Sonic Boom series
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal
Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom
Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice
LEGO Dimensions
Puyo Puyo!! Quest
Sega Heroes
In Sega Heroes, Sonic is a playable blue epic hero who was added on the game launch. He has the following gameplay characteristics:
| Hero | Rarity | Skills | MAX Skill Mana Costs | Traits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Epic | Spin Dash Sonic Boom Gotta Go Fast |
10 | Campaign Barrage Original Bold Speedy Virtuous |
Sonic Forces: Speed Battle
Chain Chronicle
Sonic at the Olympic Games (2020)
Other media
Sonic the Comic
Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics)
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog (TV series)
Sonic the Hedgehog (OVA)
Sonic Underground
Sonic X
Wreck-It Ralph
Hi-sCoool! SeHa Girls
Sonic Boom (TV series)
Sonic the Hedgehog (film series)
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic Drome Home
Knuckles
Animation
Sonic the Hedgehog is a video game series and media franchise and for sega the franchise follows sonic an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog who battles the evil doctor eggman a mad scientist sonic team USA created by sega sonic hate doctor eggman For other uses, see Sonic the Hedgehog is a supersonic there have been several animated television series featuring Sonic. Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was the first and featured Sonic, voiced by Jaleel White, and Robotnik, voiced by Long John Baldry. It had a very comical take on Sonic and Tails's adventures and battles against Robotnik. SatAM (A colloquial name for a cartoon simply titled "Sonic the Hedgehog"), originally broadcast on Saturdays on ABC, was broadcast concurrently with the syndicated Adventures series in the United States. Sonic was voiced by Jaleel White, and Robotnik was voiced by Jim Cummings. The Archie comics were based heavily on this series's continuity; both SatAM and the comics are far darker and more brooding than Adventures. It ignored the game series and was instead set in the 33rd century. Sonic belonged to a team of "Freedom Fighters" trying to free their planet from Robotnik, who had already conquered the world and ruled as a psychopathic tyrant. Sonic Underground, a combined Franco-American-British production, ignored the continuity of the previous series and introduced two siblings and Sonic's mother, additionally putting a heavy emphasis on music both in the lore and in the episodal structure. The plotline of Robotnik already being in power and Sonic being tasked with toppling his rule is retained, however. White returned to voice Sonic, with Samuel Vincent providing his singing voice, while Robotnik was voiced by Gary Chalk.
Additionally, there was an anime OVA in Japan which featured Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Eggman, and Metal Sonic among others, based on Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2. Sonic was voiced by Masami Kikuchi in Japan, and Martin Burke in the United States where the OVA was marketed as Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie. Another anime production, called Sonic X, involves a massive Chaos Control blast that results in Sonic and his friends being transported from his world to Earth (however, Season 3 mainly takes place in Sonic's own world). Like the other television series, it has an original storyline not present in any of the games, although it can be viewed as an elaboration upon the Sonic Adventure games' expanded universe. Music from the games is used during select key moments in the series, and several animation sequences strongly resemble cut-scenes from the console titles. In addition, the characters' designs are based upon the more recent Sonic games' character designs. Sonic is voiced by Jun'ichi Kanemaru in the Japanese version, and by Jason Griffith in the English version.
Books and Comics
Sonic's first comic appearance was in a promotional comic printed in Disney Adventures magazine, which established an origin for Sonic involving the transformation of kindly scientist Dr. Ovi Kintobor into the evil Dr. Ivo Robotnik.
The American comics published by Archie Comics are largely based on the settings established by the ABC SatAM cartoon. Following the Super Genesis Wave, the Archie Comics came more in line with the main games and remained so until their cancellation, after which they were superseded by the IDW comic series. In the United Kingdom, Fleetway produced Sonic the Comic, which strayed heavily from previous Sonic canons. One of its most famous and drastic changes was the relegation of Super Sonic to a psychopathic alter-ego of Sonic. The printed version of Sonic the Comic was discontinued in 2002, but many of the staff have continued the series online as Sonic the Comic Online. An unofficial continuation of the Archie Comics continuity is also known to exist.
In Japan, Sonic manga have been published by various companies. One particularly notable publication is the one by Shogakukan. In this series, Sonic is an alter-ego/transformation of the much younger Nicky (In a way curiously similar to how Sonic the Comic handles Super Sonic, albeit without the vile change of personality), who is also a hedgehog. Both are unaware of the other's existence and have no memories of each other.
Sonic comics and books have also been published by Sirène (Sonic Adventures), Troll Associates, Virgin Books, Ladybird, and Fantail. Sonic comics were also present in the British newspaper News of the World, and a promotional comic was produced by SEGA of America itself in 1991.
Personality
Sonic has been described as being "like the wind", and is noted for being free-spirited and adventurous. He enjoys relaxation, but is never one to rest in the face of injustice. He is extremely benevolent, and willingly puts himself at risk to help others, taking on any challenge that confronts him without hesitation. He shows that it takes determination and faith to overcome a problem. He is never the one to back down from a fight, he always puts others before himself.
Sonic is an all around, fun-loving kind of hedgehog, but is very impatient, often jumping into situations without thinking. He displays an interest in rock music. Some official character art and a television commercial for Sonic Adventure suggests that he has a personal hobby as a DJ. Furthermore, it is displayed in Sonic Rush for the Nintendo DS that Sonic also enjoys breakdancing as it is one of his primary ways for filling up his Tension gauge. His battle moves in Sonic Battle are also based on breakdancing, as mentioned in the attack descriptions. Lastly, he breakdances in Sonic Advance 3 if he finishes a level in a short enough time. His favorite food has always been chili dogs, seen in both his comic book and video game continuities.
In Sonic & Knuckles, a mural deep in Angel Island's Hidden Palace foretells the battle between Super Sonic and Eggman for the Master Emerald that would occur in the game's "Doomsday Zone". Knuckles initially misread the mural to mean that Eggman would protect the Master Emerald from a villainous Sonic, but he eventually realized the truth. There is also speculation that Gerald Robotnik had studied Echidna culture, and that at some point had seen the mural and that image played a hand in the appearance of Shadow the Hedgehog, given that Shadow looks similar to Super Sonic's Sonic Adventure design, although this is entirely speculation, not yet proven to be true.
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006),(while Sonic and friends were still on Earth) Silver the Hedgehog, born 200 years into the future of Earth, is led to believe that Sonic is the "Iblis Trigger", the one responsible for starting a situation which plunges the world into ruin. This turns out to be a half-truth created by Mephiles the Dark. The threat in question, Iblis, was sealed within Princess Elise who had grown emotionally attached to Sonic. Mephiles misinformed Silver in the hopes he would kill Sonic, which in turn would cause Elise enough trauma to release the seal on Iblis. The word Iblis relates to the equivalent of Satan in Islamic culture.
Sonic's home planet is Mobius. He lives at a location known as South Island (location of Green Hill Zone) during, and (according to early written material from Sonic Team) was originally born on Christmas Island.
Although Sonic has always lived on Earth to players living in Japan during the 1990s 16-bit era, the name was however used in the Japanese manual of Sonic Spinball just like the English one, players elsewhere then believed that Sonic's homeworld was called "Mobius" because of localized information provided by some later American and European instruction manuals. This name stemmed from a mistranslation of the word "Mobius" in a 1992 Sega Visions interview with Yuji Naka; he was in fact referring to a Mobius strip used in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. However, games produced since 1999's Sonic Adventure have clearly taken place on Earth, and all of them use the same story and names regardless of the language they are played in. Sonic Adventure 2 was the first game of the franchise to consistently use the term "Earth" in-game, a standard which holds true down to the present day. Its remake Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, and subsequent game Shadow the Hedgehog even show views of Earth from space.
In other media, the following locations are used:
- Printed media: Sonic's true home planet is Mobius.
- Sonic OVA: Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie took place on a planet known as "Planet Freedom". During the course of the movie, it is explained that the world is split into two dimensions: The Land of the Sky, which is home to Sonic and his friends, and the Land of Darkness, where Dr. Eggman resides. It is heavily implied that this planet is a future version of Earth.
- Sonic X: Sonic's home in the Sonic X anime series is an unknown planet in an alternate reality that shares the same space as Earth, as revealed in Episode 49. This logically suggests that the planet is indeed an alternative Earth(Mobius) in another dimension, although this has not been explicitly confirmed. This planet however appears only briefly in the show, with the majority of the action first taking place on "our" Earth, and later in outer space.
Powers and abilities
Sonic is known as "the Fastest Thing Alive", with the ability to run at speeds higher than Mach 1 (one source states his top speed is about 765 mph, though it's not confirmed if it's true or not). He can run backward just as well as forwards. In the games, his super-speed has not been explained, although according to the official American Sega website, he was born with this ability. A promotional comic printed in Disney Adventures magazine and other publications in 1991 established an origin story (later used in numerous British publications including Stay Sonic and Sonic the Comic) in which his running ability was achieved through training on a high-tech treadmill until he surpassed the speed of sound. Stay Sonic also gave his fastest recorded speed was 761mph, while in the Sonic the Hedgehog comics, a response to a piece of fan mail stated that the fastest he ever ran was Mach 15 and that in his super form, he can travel at faster than the speed of sound. It has also been suggested that in the comics, Sonic has run so fast that time had stopped around him for a little while and that in Super Sonic form his speed is incalculable. In both Stay Sonic and the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon, Sonic's distinctive "Power Sneaker" shoes are used to protect his feet from the heat arising from the friction involved when running at such speeds. Soap shoes with a similar design and color scheme were featured in Sonic Adventure 2, which introduced Sonic's ability to grind on rails.
In the original 2D games, once Sonic had reached his top speed, he ran with his arms fixed pointing forwards. However, in the 3D titles, Sonic CD, and the Sonic Advance series, his top-speed running animation was altered so that his arms trailed behind him and that he leaned forwards more. This animation is copied by most of the other, super-fast characters.
Many of his abilities are variations on the tendency for hedgehogs to roll into tight balls for protection. His primary offensive maneuver is the spin jump (or "Sonic Spin Attack"). As Sonic jumps, he curls up and spins round, damaging any enemies which come into contact with him. This ability was enhanced in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 with the introduction of the "Insta-Shield", which allows Sonic to momentarily surrounds himself with a spherical force field, giving him a split-second's worth of protection, and slightly increasing his attack range while jumping. Sonic has also been known to hold back his power when fighting strong enemies, because of this, many fans believe that Sonic is not the toughest character in the series.
He can also curl into a ball while running, allowing his momentum to carry him along in an equally dangerous attack. Although well-protected, in this position, he cannot maintain his top speed, and curling up limits the amount of control he (and the player) has over his movements. The "Spin-Dash", introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, allows Sonic to quickly accelerate into this roll from a stationary position. The "Super Peel-Out" introduced in Sonic CD (also known as the "Figure Eight" move in the comics, so called due to the shape his feet take when he does this) accelerates him in a similar manner, but allows him to remain running in an upright position and the camera sticks to Sonic when in maximum speed.
Another of Sonic's moves is the "Homing Attack", introduced in Sonic Adventure. Sonic performs the Homing Attack in midair during a jump, speeding towards a target in his ball form to damage or destroy it. Sonic can perform multiple Homing Attacks in rapid succession; as he bounces off of one target, he can aim for another one and attack it. Alternatively, Sonic can use the homing attack to hit a single target multiple times.
Sonic can run or bounce across the surface of water, but he cannot swim. In the early games, Sonic could hold his breath underwater for a period of time, but in the 3D Sonic games, landing in water is usually the equivalent of instant death. In the Fleetway comic book Sonic the Comic, his inability to swim was one of his major weaknesses for a long time, while his fear of water is often alluded to in the animated series Sonic X and Sonic Underground'.
Sonic's basic abilities may be enhanced through the use of various items. The Chaos Emeralds, a common feature of most Sonic games and comics, allow him to transform into his "Super form" of Super Sonic, and also give him the ability to trigger Chaos Control like Shadow the Hedgehog. Power-ups featured in the Sonic games have ranged from temporary items such as the Flame, Thunder, and Aqua Barriers featured in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Knuckles and the numerous gems featured in the 2006 Sonic the Hedgehog game, to more permanent accessories such as the Light Shoes of Sonic Adventure.
Weaknesses
Relationships
Miles" Tails "Prower
Tails is Sonic's best friend, sidekick & surrogate brother who always wants to help him, Sonic helps Tails too and always stick together & work for each other. When Tails crashed his plane, Sonic went to rescue him, and when Sonic was in Prison Island, Tails went to rescue him.
Knuckles the Echidna
Sonic and Knuckles used to be rivals but are now friends. Knuckles once hated Sonic when Eggman tricked him into thinking that he stole the Master Emerald but as far as we know they are very close friends.
Amy Rose
Amy Rose is Sonic’s closest friend and sees herself as his self-proclaimed "girlfriend", even though Sonic himself greatly says otherwise. Almost anytime he sees Amy within eyesight or hears her within earshot, he wants to run away from her.
Despite the fact that Amy has a crush on Sonic, she can get mad at him on occasion. In "Sonic Riders" when Sonic chose to dive straight into Dr. Eggman knowing well that Amy was being held hostage, Sonic figured that Amy would've been okay with it. Afterwards, Amy takes out her Piko-Piko Hammer and starts to chase after Sonic.
Dr. Eggman
Dr. Robotnik is Sonic's enemy and hates Sonic, because he always stops his evil plan. Eggman wants to kill Sonic, so he can be evil without Sonic ruining his evil plans. He tries all the time, but never gets access. He sometimes had evil plan to destroy Sonic and always tells Sonic his evil plan for unknown reasons. So Eggman creates all his evention to destroy Sonic and conquer the world, but Sonic breaks them and they hate each other.
Eggman Nega
Eggman Nega tries to kill Sonic for ruining his evil plans in the Sol Dimensions, but hates Blaze more.
Avatar
Sonic and Avatar are good friends as partners. They help each other destroy the Phantom Ruby from Infinite and Eggman.
Shadow the Hedgehog
Shadow is Sonic's arch-rival. As they always fight for the Chaos Emerald and showing off who the fastest hedgehog.
Big the Cat
Sonic and Big don't have a chatty relationship, but Sonic would always help him whenever he is in trouble.
E-102 Gamma
Sonic taught Gamma was a threat until Amy explained he was a hero for helping her, and Sonic became to leave him alone, and they are neutral to each other.
Sage
Sonic is friendly with Sage even tough she working for Eggman, Sage and Sonic help each other in Cyber Space to get Tails, Knuckles and Amy back to normal.
Friends/allies
- Miles "Tails" Prower (best friend, sidekick and teammate)
- Knuckles the Echidna (best friend and friendly rival)
- Amy Rose (close friend, one-sided love on her side)
- Blaze the Cat (closest friend)
- Cream the Rabbit
- Big the Cat
- Team Chaotix
- Shadow the Hedgehog (arch-rival)
- Rouge the Bat
- E-123 Omega
- Silver the Hedgehog
- Marine the Raccoon
- Yacker
- Avatar (helper)
- Honey the Cat
- Tikal
- Chip
- Sticks the Badger
- Tangle the Lemur
- Whisper the Wolf
- Jewel the Beetle
- Lanolin the Sheep
- Trip the Sungazer
Crossover
- AiAi
- Ulala
- NiGHTS
- Amigo
- Arle Nadja
- Carbuncle
- Amitie
- Ringo Ando
- Phoena
- Pirika
- Dreamcast
- Sega Saturn
- Mega Drive
- Hatsune Miku
- Kagamine Rin
- Kagamine Len
- Megurine Luka
- KAITO
- MEIKO
- Mario
- Luigi
- Princess Peach
- Princess Daisy
- Yoshi
- Donkey Kong
Non-canon
Neutral
- E-102 Gamma†
- Jet the Hawk (ability rival)
- Storm the Albatross
- Wave the Swallow
- Bean the Dynamite
- Bark the Polar Bear
- Chaos
- Sage
Crossover
- Wario
- Waluigi
Non-canon only
Enemies
- Dr. Eggman (arch-nemesis)
- Infinite
- Fang the Hunter
- Orbot
- Cubot
- Metal Sonic (rival enemy)
- Time Eater
- Mecha Sonic
- Eggman Nega
- Deadly Six
- Mephlies the Dark
- Black Doom
- Dark Gaia
- Silver Sonic
- Dr. Starline
- Rough the Skunk
- Tumble the Skunk
- Mimic the Octopus
- Surge the Tenrec
- Kitsunami the Fennec
Crossover
- Bowser
- Bowser Jr.
- Dremagen
Non-canon only
- Snively Robotnik
- Naugus
- Scourge the Hedgehog
- Lyric the Last Ancient
Cameos and popularity
Sonic has proven to be an extremely popular character. After having been around only three years, he had already surpassed Nintendo's Mario in popularity according to a June 1993 Q-Survey in the Gameplayers magazine. As a result of this popularity, he has been referred to in various parts of culture. One of a class of genes involved in fruit fly embryonic development, called hedgehog genes, has been named "sonic hedgehog" after the character.
Sonic has sometimes appeared in relation to various sports teams Sega have sponsored. Between 1993 and 1997, Sega sponsored the JEF United Ichihara Chiba football team, during which period Sonic appeared on the team's uniform. During the 1993 Formula One championship, Sega sponsored WilliamsF1, which won the season. Sonic was featured in the cars, helmets, and rival McLaren used to paint a squashed hedgehog after winning races over Williams. In the 2K series of sports games, Sonic can be picked as a logo to be placed on the uniforms of the created team.
Sonic has also made appearances as a character in parades. In 1996, Sonic was the first video game character to be seen in a Rose Parade. Sonic was also in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade; the only other video game character to ever be in the parade was Pikachu.
Other references are present in television programs, including a brief appearance in the episode of The Simpsons entitled "Marge Be Not Proud". Voiced by Dan Castellaneta, he appears (along with Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, and fictional pro golfer Lee Carvallo) attempting to convince Bart Simpson to steal a video game. Other humorous references to Sonic have appeared in TV series such as Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (in the episode "Camp Capers"), Megas XLR, 15/Love and Space Ghost Coast to Coast. The Sonic character and games have also made brief appearances in films, including Jingle All The Way, Hitch and Wayne's World . He was also mentioned in an episode of MADtv & Roseanne.
It was once rumored that Sonic and Tails were unlockable characters in Super Smash Bros. Melee by clearing Cruel Melee. This turned out to be a hoax when the cheat was entered. In August 2006, however, it was confirmed that Sonic was the most requested third-party character to appear in its sequel Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Nintendo Wii. Around the same period of time, Tips & Tricks reported that Nintendo has already contacted Sega and Yuji Naka, but Nintendo is still waiting for a final decision. In the October 2006 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that Sonic would be a perfect character for Brawl. On October 10th, 2007, Sonic was officially announced for Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the Smash Bros. Dojo.
Trivia
Coming soon
External links
- Sonic the Hedgehog on Sonic Wiki Zone
- Sonic the Hedgehog on Sonic Channel
- Sonic the Hedgehog on Wikipedia
Sega characters
|
|---|
Sonic Portal
| |
|---|---|
You are visiting a page about
| |
| |
Sonic the Hedgehog
| |
| Characters: All · Sonic · Tails · Knuckles · Amy Rose · Cream · Big · Shadow · Rouge · E-123Ω · Dr. Eggman · Metal Sonic · Tikal · Blaze · Marine · Sticks · Mighty · Ray · Deadly Six · Sally Acorn · Scourge | |
| Articles: Series · Games · Bosses · Badniks · E-Series · Animal Friends · Chao · G.U.N. · Archie · Sonic SatAM · AoStH · Sonic Underground · Sonic X · Sonic Boom · Sonic Prime · Knuckles | |
|
Sega All-Stars | 
|
|---|---|---|
| Characters: Sonic · Tails · Amy Rose · Knuckles · Shadow · Dr. Eggman · Big · Metal Sonic · NiGHTS · Reala · Amigo · Alex Kidd · Opa-Opa · AiAi · MeeMee · Ulala · Pudding · Beat · Gum · Akira Yuki · Jacky Bryant · Gilius Thunderhead · Billy Hatcher · Vyse · B.D. Joe · Zobio · Zobiko · Mobo · Robo · Ryo Hazuki · Joe Musashi · Chuih · ChuPea · ChuBei · ChuBach · AGES · Football Manager · Shogun · General Winter · Willemus | ||
| Games: Sega Superstars · Sega Superstars Tennis · Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing · Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed | ||