Adventures Of Sonic The Hedgehog, TV Cartoon Adventure, made its debut on this date in 1993. 10 things you might not know about Sonic the Hedgehog.
He was created by the Japanese game designers Yuji Naka and Naoto Ohshima.
Sonic was created because Sega wanted a character which would be as popular as the Nintendo character Mario. Initial drafts of the proposed character made him a Rabbit who could pick things up and attack with his ears. However, this was rejected almost immediately because they wanted a fast paced game and a rabbit stopping to pick things up would slow it down too much. They started looking at animals that could roll and the final choice was between a Hedgehog and an armadillo. Even though Sega feared that Americans wouldn’t know what a hedgehog was, the hedgehog won.
Even once they’d decided on the species, there was still a way to go before Sonic as we know him emerged. He was originally named Mr Needlemouse and was the leader of a rock band. The rabbit was a member of the band along with a parakeet who is often mistaken for a Chicken, a Monkey and a Crocodile. Sonic was also a skilled break dancer and had a girlfriend, a human woman called Madonna.
In the games as we know them, Sonic’s love interest is a tomboyish Pink hedgehog called Amy Rose. At least, she believes she is his girlfriend and wants to marry him although Sonic isn’t really that interested. She’s not as strong or as fast as the other characters but follows them around nevertheless, trying to attract Sonic’s attention. She has a Hammer which she uses to defend herself.
Sonic’s best friend is Tails, a Fox cub with two tails. Tails is his nickname. His actual name is Miles Prower, a pun on “miles per hour.” He also has a friendly rival called Knuckles the Echidna, who is a red echidna.
His arch enemy is Doctor Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, who is a mad scientist who tries to steal the Chaos Emeralds and take over the world. He is a bald man who wears Black, Red and Yellow clothes, has a large moustache and pince-nez Sunglasses.
Sonic is billed as “the world's fastest hedgehog” and was indeed the fastest video game character ever when the game was first released. His power to run at supersonic speed is down to the “power sneakers” that he wears, rather than a superpower. If he manages to collect all the Chaos Emeralds, he becomes even faster and gains the power of flight. His eyes then turn red and his body turns from blue to gold in this “super sonic” form. Sonic's catchphrase is “Gotta go fast!”
His main weakness is that he can’t swim. This is because Yuji Naka believed that real hedgehogs couldn’t swim. Sonic sinks like a stone if he lands in water. Except, that is, in the Sonic the Hedgehog Adventure Gamebooks, in which he does have the ability to swim.
The music in the game is provided by Japanese pop group Dreams Come True, formed as a trio in 1988. Their music can also be heard in Sleepless in Seattle and The Swan Princess.
There’s a hidden message in the game. Sega had banned post game credits, but Yuji Naka believed the names of the people who’d worked on the game should be displayed. So he did so, but in a sneaky way. At the beginning of the game, he included them all, but in black text on a black background and so invisible to anyone who didn’t have the cheat code.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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