Flashback to 1990: Sega prez Hayao Nakayama wants a character that will be to Sega what Mickey Mouse is to Disney. The word is sent out to Sega employees to come up with a character who everyone can easily relate to. The submissions ranged from a retarded bulldog to an all-American wolf, but in the end, two in particular stood out: a stylized rendition of a hedgehog and a caricature of Theodore Roosevelt in PJ's. You know which one made the cut, but so popular was Teddy that he worked his way in anyway as the villain. That's right, our very own Eggman evolved from this midget rendition of a dead American President, although the argument that he's actually a spoof of Nintendo's mustachioed mascot holds credence in some circles. Take your pick. (Thanks to Michael "G. Silver" Stearns for those scans.)

   Once the character was decided upon, up-and-coming programmer Yuji Naka was set loose upon the project. Naka-san's previous credits included work on: Girls Garden for the NG-1000; Great Baseball, F-16 Fighting Falcon, Hokuto No Ken (aka "Fist of the North Star"), Spy vs. Spy, Space Harrier, Outrun, and Phantasy Star on the Master System; Super Thunderblade, Phantasy Star II, and Dai Makai Mura (aka "Ghouls & Ghosts") on the Genesis. His right-hand man was aspiring artist Naoto Ohshima, who concentrated on character and world creation while Naka worked on game design and implementation.

   The original concept was of a character who would attack baddies by running and hurling objects at 'em. Naka, however, felt that the acts of running, picking something up, and throwing it involved too many processes. (Ironically enough, that ability was later worked into Sonic's arsenal with the advent of Sonic Adventure.) The pursuit of something simpler led them to the idea of a rolling attack. A simple round ball didn't seem very threatening, so they gave it a spiky edge. Sonic the Hedgehog is born! (Thanks to Mary "Solly" Yamasaki for the scans below, which were first shown in an old issue of the now out-of-publication MegaForce magazine.)

Concept Art 1, Concept Art 2, Concept Art 3, Concept Art 4.

   The impact Sonic had on the videogame industry was far greater than what even Sega itself had expected, and the blue blur's complete and ongoing legacy can be found on the following pages. It's been ten fast first years, but I have a feeling the ride's only just begun...

   At the center of this endless struggle lie the mysterious Chaos Emeralds: seven precious jewels that hold legendary power. The Emeralds, it is said, distribute life energy to all things. In a new twist introduced with Sonic Adventure, this "life energy" seems to consist of both positive and negative forces. In Sonic 3, a central Master Emerald was introduced, although its relation to the Chaos Emeralds is unknown. Actually, the seventh Emerald wasn't introduced until Sonic 2...originally, there were only six. Well kids, now you know why they call them "Chaos" Emeralds. Whatever the case, they're at the center of the vast Sonicverse, even if they do take on slightly different implications in each new game.

   The Sonic world itself is best described as fantasy sci-fi. Environments and locations range from tropical resorts to sparkling cityscapes to crumbling ruins and everything inbetween. Some are a bit more on the realistic side (especially in the recent games), but most are downright surreal. The style changes slightly with each successive game, but a typical Sonic scene can be easily identified by the unnatural loop-de-loops dotting the landscape and the spinning Rings floating around all over the place.