Secret Facts About Sonic the Hedgehog

In the early 1990’s, a superspeed hero zoomed into our lives and changed the gaming landscape for years to come, Sonic! Sega launched this character in 1991 as a response to Nintendo’s Mario and Sonic quickly became a global icon. Designed with the same blue as Sega’s logo, Sonic became instantly recognisable with her incredible speed.  

Since the debut, Sonic has starred in many games, comic books, animated series, and movies. Sonic simply became a cultural phenomenon! Read more about Sonic’s evolution and his relentless fight for freedom against his arch nemesis, Dr. Robotnik, also known as Eggman.  

Here are a variety of fun facts about Sonic the Hedgehog you probably never knew:  

The Original Design

Early versions of Sonic saw the character as a rabbit that would attack and grab onto objects using its ears! Sega realised the rabbit didn’t quite fit what they wanted, and eventually were stuck between a hedgehog and an armadillo… and along came the character we all know today, Sonic the Hedgehog.  

Sonic’s Real Name

Sega tried a few options, Designer Naoto Ohshima noted that one name was Mr Needlemouse, this was after a translation had gone wrong. However, the team settled on Sonic as they wanted something that related to speed. Years later, Project Needlemouse became a code name for the Sonic the Hedgehog 4 game, a little nod to Sonic’s history.  

Based on the comics between 1993 to 2017, Sonic has a middle name, Maurice! A former comic writer also suggested Sonic’s actual first name is Olgilvie.  

Could you imagine Sonic being called Olgilvie Sonic Maurice the Hedgehog!  

Why is Sonic Blue

Sonic’s blue was chosen to match Sega’s logo colour. However, according to Yuji Naka, the programmer behind Sonic’s design, his blue fur was meant to represent peace and trust. Which fits perfectly with his character as the hero is passionate about instilling peace and has fought endlessly to reach that goal.  

Santa Claus Inspired Sonic

Sonic’s beginnings took inspiration from different people, including Santa Claus. Taking from Santa’s familiarity, Ohshima decided on red shoes as a nod to Santa. While Sonic’s boot design and belt was inspired by Michael Jackson.  

Sonic’s Girlfriend

In the early stages of development, Sonic’s creator, Naoto Ohshima, designed a human girlfriend for Sonic named Madonna. She was tall and had a similar look to Jessica Rabbit. Madonna was eventually not included as the team wanted to ensure their content was child-friendly and didn’t want to play into the damsel in distress narrative as this was too similar to the Mario Bros franchise. 

Sonic Needs Sleep

A fact we can all relate to. Sonic needed 8 hours of sleep a night to ensure his speed and powers were not affected. We may not all have Sonic speed of light movement, but we can all agree a 8 hour sleep is perfect.  

Sonic’s Age

Sonic seems to have a mysterious skincare routine as the character does not seem to age. According to the team, Sonic is 15 years old in all of his adventures!  

Can a Hedgehog Swim

Sonic had been created as a character who was able to run on water, but unable to swim. This was wrongly put in place as the developers assumed hedgehogs couldn’t swim. However, real hedgehogs can swim, but the developers stuck to Sonic being unable to master the breaststroke to keep the character consistent.  

Nuclear Waste Created Sonic

So, Santa wasn’t the only colour scheme tied up in Sonic, but the character was also born on Christmas Island. This was based on a real island in the Pacific Ocean, Kiritimati. Due to previous testing on the island, it is said that the waste left behind has turned into bizarre animals, which Sonic had emerged from.  

A Hidden Message

Here is a secret you probably never knew, there is a hidden message in the Sonic game. The way this message wasn’t inserted into the game had a lot of controversy. Naka, the programmer behind Sonic, didn’t approve of Sega saying no to a post-game credit scene. Instead, Naka included a list of names to credit everyone involved in the making of Sonic and added the font in black text on a black background, making the text invisible. Only those with a special code were able to view the text!  

Here you have it, interesting facts about Sonic you probably never knew. Explore our Sonic toys range to find the perfect gift for a Sonic fan. Whether they are a movie fan, or an original game fan, we have everything you need.  

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