A tribute to Sonic the Hedgehog
Some of you may be aware that the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise turned 20 today. Those that aren’t may want to skip this post, as I’m about to gush.
When Sonic raced onto the scene in 1991, I was three years old. Obviously I didn’t play games at the time, but I recall from a very early age watching my father sit for hours and play this strange looking game, where he would guide a “small blue pointy thing” around the screen. It was truly enchanting to watch, even though I didn’t really understand what the hell was going on.
A couple of years later, I began to understand what all the fuss was about, and set out to usurp my dad from his gaming chair, and pop myself snugly into the indentation he had made in the cushion from sitting there for so many hours.
I recall going through the stash of games my dad had amassed until I saw this familiar “blue pointy thing” from the past. I sat down, waited for my dad to set the system up, and readied myself to play. The rest is history.
Looking back, I can still see why Sonic stood out amongst all the other games my dad played. It was full of colour, character, awesome music and imagination. I found Sonic difficult to begin with, and it probably took me months to pass the Green Hill Zone. Literally months of playing the same thing over and over again. It sounds truly painful now, but I can tell you it was completely the opposite — I loved every second of it, and still do today.
As time passed and my dad brought home this space age device, the SEGA 32X add-on, compete with a whole bunch of games he wouldn’t let me play. Truth be told, I didn’t really care for the 32X, I just wanted to pull the thing out, stick it in the bin and play Sonic again.
I recall spending hour after hour drawing pictures of Sonic, watching the animated series’ and reading about him in kids’ magazines — all before getting into my Sonic the Hedgehog bed covers for a cosy nights sleep.
I’ve been thinking about that little guy all day. Video game characters have changed so much these days — we admire them from a distance in the same way we admire celebrities. It was different with Sonic, he was as close as you wanted him to be. He was alive, part of your life on and off screen — and to some degree, he still is.
Sonic may be 20 years old, but he’ll never be old in my eyes. That is exactly why I still play the same port from 1991, and enjoy it just as much now as I did when I was a child.
Happy birthday, Sonic.
