Sonic the Hedgehog was created in 1991 as Sega’s mascot to rival Nintendo’s Super Mario. The character has inspired several sequels and appeared on various gaming platforms. Sonic has undergone some image changes but remains recognizable. The games were strictly G-rated, and Sonic has also appeared in comics and an animated TV series. Sonic became a huge star and even has a fruit fly gene named after him. New characters have been added, including the darker Shadow the Hedgehog.
If you’ve been a gamer for a few decades, you probably remember the beginning of the Sonic the Hedgehog character, for the Sega Genesis System, and the first Sonic game released in 1991. Created to rival the popularity of Nintendo’s Super Mario, this cheerful hedgehog blue, with the ability to bounce, dart, and sometimes roll straight across rock, was a big hit for Sega. Sonic, who doesn’t look much like a hedgehog to expect for his somewhat spiky blue hair and cartoonish face, has inspired several sequels and launched onto other platforms, especially with the death of the Genesis system, just as he was always running ahead to defeat the evil Dr. Robotnik and to rescue cute little animals trapped by Robotnik’s nefarious designs.
Sonic the Hedgehog was designed specifically as a new mascot for Sega, and its early design and features are the result of collaboration between Yuji Naka, Naoto Oshima and Hirokazu Yasuhara. She has since undergone some image changes, but her basic look remains recognizable despite slight artistic recreations from time to time. After Sonic 1, also known as Sonic the Hedgehog, Sega built on the popularity of the hedgehog with a stream of sequels. These include Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic Spinball, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine and Sonic 3.
Early games had Sonic running across various screens in a side-on perspective. From the second game onwards, Sonic was joined by other characters including the fox, Miles Tails, who could use his tail like a helicopter to lift himself off the ground and fly, and Knuckles the Echidna, who was excellent at climbing and smashing through the rock. The games were strictly G-rated, especially the first one, with Sonic bouncing off “enemies” to free the animals trapped inside them.
Sonic the Hedgehog has switched to a 3D perspective, a little difficult for players to get used to Sonic 3D Blast game released for Sega Saturn and Genesis. More games followed, and with the Sega platforms declining in popularity, Sonic appeared on many other gaming systems, including the Nintendo Game Cube and Sony Playstation. The old games are still classics and have been played for most of the major gaming platforms.
In addition to becoming a major player in the world of video games, Sonic the Hedgehog got his own animated TV series in 1993, appeared in comics and occasionally makes cameos in other video games. The little hedgehog became a huge star by having a balloon in the Macy’s Day Thanksgiving Parade and even has a fruit fly gene named after him. New friends have joined its cast of characters, including the much darker Shadow the Hedgehog released in 2005, who uses weapons, a big change from previous games.
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