Sonic the Hedgehog

See the difference?

Yes, another article about the blue hedgehog, but this article follows a much more serious side in this hedgehog's lifespan; the people behind him. Though really, it mostly follows his good and bad games.

Before i start off, i would like to point out that this hedgehog has been in my life since 2001 when i first played his sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, at my friend's house. Since then, i was hooked and would eventually buy the Sonic Adventure series of games, though i would stop after that as his future games blew, though we will get to that in a little bit.

Starting off, i would like to point out the glory years in this hedgehog's lifespan. I will not go on to talk about every game he was in, but i will talk about one game of each series.

Sonic Technical Institute (1990-1998)


These were the guys behind the good Sonic the Hedgehog games. For those who were born during Sonic Adventure onward, you don't know what your missing. Sonic Technical Institute failed to make a 3D game which resulted in its shutdown, but we'll get to that in a little bit. Lets talk about one of their creations.

Sonic Spinball (1993)


Ah, yes, Sonic Spinball. Truly one of my favorites for its catchy music and gameplay, though to be honest, i stopped playing after the first level as the game got more hard and less fun after Toxic Caves. This game was very addictive and you could play it for at least three hours before you got bored of losing a lot (as this was a very difficult game). Though if your an expert at it, then this is the Sonic game for you. This game wasn't exactly on the speedy side of the series, as Sonic mostly bounced around a lot and barely did any running. He still had the spindash also, though it wasn't exactly very useful (other than to glitch up the game). You could not run and jump at the same time, as when you were building up running speed and attempted to jump, Sonic would just jump in the same area where the button was pressed, and wouldn't go any farther. Its like trying to jump over a hurdle. Just as you have all that speed built up and finally jump, your body just stops moving and you find yourself going higher, but not moving over the hurdle. Overall, this game is very good, and would be a good edition to any gamers collection.

Sonic X-Treme (1994-1996)


Here is where Sonic Technical Institute went wrong; Sonic X-Treme. This game suffered so many delays that it resulted in the people working on the game getting sick. Not sick as in of working, but sick as in sick, ill, diseased. The people almost died trying to finish this game. Though from the leaked footage shown in 2006, this game looked very promising. Too bad it never made daylight.

Sega Studio USA (1999-2008)
This is the company that began making the bad games in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. The worst part of it; the redesign of our favorite hedgehog, though i will talk about that later.

Sonic Adventure (1998)


Beginning with this game, the hedgehog's design changes and he enters into the 3D line of gaming. Well this game was actually pretty good for a fresh start in the hedgehog's life after his original team nearly died, it was very fast paced as well, almost to that of the original Sonic the Hedgehog games from 1991-1994.

Sonic Heroes (2003)


Here is where the hedgehog met his downfall. Sonic Heroes, a game that introduced new gameplay elements that would ruin the fast paced era of our beloved hedgehog, and would result in him entering a line of weird games that aren't really fast at all. After this game, other Sonic games came out that were not even remotely related to speed and agility, the hedgehog's main features. I would talk more about this game, but it was just plain terrible.

Sonic Generations (2011)


After eight years of disappointment, Sonic Team Japan alone (and thank goodness for that, as Sega Studios USA might have ruined it if they hadn't closed down) created this masterpiece called Sonic Generations. For the first time in ten years, the hedgehog was fast and furious once more. Sonic's original design finally made his 3D debut in this game as well, and the hedgehog finally had a good game for the first time since Sonic Adventure 2.

The Designs

Just a little short commentary on Sonic's designs. As shown in the picture above, Sonic got green eyes, gained a little height and lost his chubbiness as well. He got longer ears and his spiky hair became a part of his body (well in his original design it looked like as though he had blue hair if looked at real closely). His shoes gained an accessory, yellow rings, that were on the sides. The most noticeable change to me was his nose, as it looked more pointy and that just bugged me, though at the same time it also humored me as it made him look more funnier. On a final note, Sonic's original look is my favorite just because of how retro it looks. It also looks more detailed to me, but you guys can decide on that.

That about wraps it up for Sonic the Hedgehog's history. Sonic will always be my second favorite SEGA character.