About Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a video game character and the hero of the video game series released by Sega, as well as numerous spin-off comics, cartoons and books.

The first game in the franchise was released in 1991 in order to provide Sega with a mascot to rival Nintendo's flagship character Mario. Since then, Sonic has become one of the world's best-known video game characters, with his series having sold over 45 million copies.  In 2005, Sonic was one of the first game character inductees into the Walk of Game, alongside Mario and Link.

Sonic embodies the wind, as he is free-spirited, adventurous, cherishing his freedom to live as he wants above all else. He is impatient and will often jump into situations without thinking as his confidence is unshakable, even in the most dire circumstances.

Sonic is known as "the fastest thing alive," and can run backwards just as well as forwards. Many of his abilities are variations on the tendency for hedgehogs to roll into tight balls for protection. Sonic's primary offensive maneuver is the basic Spin Attack (or "Sonic Spin Attack"). As Sonic jumps or runs, he curls up and spins into a spiky ball that can damage, destroy or burrow through many obstacles.