sonic the hedgehog!

official sonic character sprite from sonic advance 3.

what is sonic the hedgehog?

sonic the hedeghog is a japanese series of video games released by sega initially created to be a rival to the nintendo-owned series, super mario bros. the series has gotten several side-media throughout the years, most notably comic books, tv shows, and movies. this shrine is mainly focused on the games, however, since that is what i primarily enjoy this series for! the first game, sonic the hedgehog for the sega genesis, released in june 23rd, 1991 in north america before releasing in many other countries in the following month. although sega started off making their own video game consoles, they would soon become multi-platform instead, their first multi-platform sonic game being sonic heroes released in december 30, 2003 for xbox, playstation 2, gamecube, and windows operating systems. the series is often known for how its quality has varied throughout the years, perhaps its most notorious game being sonic the hedgehog (2006) released in november 14, 2006 in north america. said game was very negatively criticized amongst both the general public and long-time fans for nearly every aspect of the game besides its soundtrack. after this point, sonic would struggle to get back on its feet. however, as of writing this, its most recent game has been a sort of new generation for the series that i at least have high hopes for, said new game being sonic frontiers released in november 8th, 2022.

the sonic the hedgehog games vary in plot. in the majority of games, you play as a blue anthropomorphic hedgehog named sonic, who fights against dr. eggman, previously known as dr. robotnik, to stop whatever evil plan he has up his sleeve. dr. eggman mostly aims to cause destruction to the planet in some way, typically for world domination or to build amusement parks in his name. he also often enslaves creatures, whether they be woodland critters or otherworldly aliens, to power up his robots and other creations. sometimes, though, sonic faces other antagonistic foes who aim to cause destruction in their own ways for their own reasons. in some cases, sonic's friends tag along with him on his adventures. i'd say his most known friends are miles "tails" prower, knuckles the echidna, amy rose, shadow the hedgehog, rouge the bat, silver the hedgehog, blaze the cat, and cream the rabbit.

my history with sonic the hedgehog!

i was a heavy nintendo kid, so it took me a long time to get into sonic. my older brother had been into sonic when i was younger, so i was always surrounded by it whether i liked it or not. eventually, in 5th grade (so when i was about 10), i became friends with a boy who was really into the series and insisted i got into it. i agreed, catching up on the series in any way i could. although i would play sonic heroes multiplayer with my brother when i was younger, at this point, the first games i would play for myself were sonic adventure 2, shadow the hedgehog, and sonic gems collection. i especially loved playing sonic r... why? i just think its a fun and silly game! i've been very into the series ever since, continuing to play the games and learn more about the series!

official tails character sprite from sonic advance 3.
official knuckles character sprite from sonic advance 3.

how do i feel about sonic the hedgehog?

i adore sonic! i honestly don't know where i would be without it, i have such a huge love for this world and its characters! its inspired me and my creativity, to express myself and be true to myself, and to hold onto my beliefs and do what i think is right. its helped me make sense of the world around me, my feelings, and my morals. i love the diversity of the characters, everyone coming from different branches of life and all fighting for one common goal - for freedom and peace. i love sonic himself, how despite it all he gives everyone the benefit of the doubt, he strives for what he believes in and no matter how tough times get, he keeps going. that's inspiring to someone like me, y'know? i unironically view this series as therapeutic, its such a cheesy and sweet series with the lessons it tries to teach and how it teaches these lessons, but that's what i love most about it. its unapologetic about what it is, y'know? even though recently the series has been playing things a lot more safe, i really hope sometime in the future the series can go back to those unapologetic ways, i hope it can take its own lessons and be true to itself no matter what the world has to say about it. at this point, though, even if the series goes to utter shit, i can't see myself hating it XD it's just so dear to me, and i know the community is so big it'll carry it on its shoulders, anyway.