(Minor Update: Bomberman Act Zero now has a ratio of 44%, still making it worse then the regular Bomberman's worst game.)Sonic the Hedgehog has been around for 15 years. He's had his share of high and low times, from great and terrible games to amazing and awful cartoons. So you're probably thinking that this column is going to be some kind of tribute to all of Sonic's best and worst times and personal memories right? WRONG!
See, during those 15 years, Sonic has been following a trend from nearly the very beginning and it still continues to this very day. What trend you ask? It's the trend of adding yet ANOTHER character to the roster of Sonic characters. It almost seems that every time he comes out with a new game, they add a new character, and they probably won't stop until they've got every known species known and unknown into the game and then some. So in this week's Gaming Trends, we look back on 15 years of Sonic characters, from the best and worst adds to the nearly forgotten, plus a crazy idea I had for all of them.
Miles "Tails" Prower
After Sonic became an established character, Tails debuted in the sequel as Sonic's sidekick. Tails is able to fly and also has a high I.Q., plus also built their plane "the Tornado". Besides helping Sonic out, Tails is able to fight well on his own and has starred in several (through crappy) games of his own. Tails is basically the Luigi to Sonic's Mario, except he has many different traits that separates him as his own character. One problem with Tails though his that his character has very little depth or background story.
Overall: Every hero needs a sidekick, so Tails was necessary. Even not as a sidekick, Tails is still a good character, but needs more depth.
Knuckles the Echinda
Knuckles started out as Sonic's rival in Sonic 3, and even though they are still rivals sometimes, he quickly became a good guy. Knuckles is the typical "tough exterior, soft interior" kind of character. He's got a hefty background story about guarding the master emerald and also starred in his own crappy game, however these days Knuckles seems to get more softer as times goes on. He also seems to get stupider as time goes on, because he's been tricked by Robotnik over and over again. When Shadow arrived, Knuckles eventually became just another sidekick instead of a rival.
Overall: A hero needs a rival, except this one is an idiot. Now with Shadow being Sonic's rival, Knuckles' role has been reduced.
Amy Rose
Amy is the annoying girlfriend that keeps following Sonic around since Sonic CD. Like Tails, she too doesn't have much of a background story besides being in love with Sonic. She's able to fight by using her hammer, but that doesn't make her any less annoying to play as. Still, a character like her would eventually have to come, so it's not really surprising.
Overall: The Sonic series needed a girl character, so she was necessary. But that still doesn't mean I want to play as her in an adventure game.
Metal Sonic
It's basic logic. Sonic is powerful, so Robotnik makes robot as powerful as Sonic. Although Metal Sonic's debut wasn't spectacular (debuting on Sonic CD and kidnapping Amy? Ugh.), he's exactly the kind of arch-nemesis that fits well within the Sonic storyline. Even though he made the perfect nemesis, he didn't really get to shine until his return in Sonic Heroes. Between Shadow switching sides, Rouge working for herself, and all the other robots sucking, you'd think Robotnik would've kept Metal Sonic around a lot.
Overall: A true villianous rival that captures the whole real vs. robot war between Sonic and Robotnik. Glad he came back even if for one last time.
Big the Dumbass
He's stupid and has no real abilities. Like Cream, he too completely sucks.
Overall: Worthless. Should've been a one-game wonder.
Gamma/Omega
Gamma was in Sonic Adventure as part of the E-100 series of robots. Gamma however was quickly killed off after saving his brothers and getting blown up. A reincarnation of sorts did appear in Sonic Battle as Chaos Gamma, so he might still stick around. Omega debuted in Sonic Heroes as the E-100 who's pissed at Robotnik for deactivating him. While they don't have any depth to their characters, they do fit the role of being a boss character or at least a mini-boss of sorts.
Overall: Decent sub-characters that make good mid-game bosses, but they won't really be missed if they disappeared.
Shadow the Hedgehog
Shadow debuted in Sonic Adventure 2 for Sonic's 10th Anniversary. He was a lot like Knuckles was: hefty background story, strong abilities, and was Sonic's rival. Shadow's story was so deep that he too got his own game which turned out really crappy too (have you noticed a pattern yet?). Making Shadow's game have dark overtones his one thing. Giving him guns and vehicles to control? That was just ridiculous and it didn't work out in the end. Now with his background story fully explained, it will be interesting to see what he'll do next.
Overall: He came along and pretty much took over Knuckles' previous role of being Sonic's rival. Great background story and abilities, but sticking him with a gun to make him look "cool" turned out to be a really bad idea. He needs a better game then what he was given.
Rouge the Bat
Also debuting in Sonic Adventure 2, Rouge was supposed to rival Knuckles with similar abilities. But she almost instantly became a good guy of sorts and has a soft spot for Knuckles. Besides being a government agent, there's not much to her besides that she, unlike Amy, actually has breasts.
Overall: A Sonic character with breasts? Who exactly is she supposed to be appealing too? Rouge in the end is basically a pointless character that should be taken off.
Cream the Rabbit
She whines like a little bitch and is barely able to defend herself. Besides being a sidekick of sorts to Blaze, Cream is also pointless.
Overall: Besides her near-broken powers in Sonic Battle, Cream sucks in every way.
Blaze the Cat
All I know is that she's from some other universe just like Sonic, has abilities just like Sonic, has villians just like Sonic, and she becomes good friends with Cream. Was there a real point to her being here?
Overall: Pointless and soon to be "one-game wonder".
NOTABLE: Sonic AM/Archie Comics
This was an alternate universe of Sonic, where Sonic is part of a group called the "Freedom Fighters" and they try to bring down Robotnik's robot empire. This universe is very popular amongst Sonic fans as it just about gets everything right with lots of character depth and amazing storyline. This AU also has it's own roster of characters that don't appear anywhere else, so here now is a quick look at some.
Sally: She's a princess yet really tough. She's basically Sonic's matured sidekick and quite possibly girlfriend.
Rotor: A lot like the modern day Tails, except he's more of a mechanic then a fighter.
Bunnie: Got a southern accent/charm and is also able to fight, which isn't surprising seeing how she's about ¾ robotic.
Antoine D'Coolette: The annoying guy that thinks he's smart but isn't, yet he'll be able to pull through for you in the end.
Snively Kintobor: Robotnik's nephew who started as a lackey but eventually was able to kill his own uncle.
There is also the AU of Sonic Underground, but the less I have to say about that weird crap the better. Same with Sonic Shuffle and Sonic Riders.
THE OBSCURE
These characters have been nearly or totally forgotten.
The Chaotix: Epsio is somewhat cool, Vector and Charmy suck, and Mighty needs to come back sometime.
Ray the Sqiurrel: One game and he's gone. He won't be missed.
Fang the Sniper/Nac the Weasel: Came and went like nothing. Also won't be missed.
Bean and Bark: Appeared in Sonic Fighters, cameoed in Fighters Megamix, and disappeared. Not missed either.
A CRAZY IDEA OF MINE
I doubt that Sega is going to be killing off any of the pointless characters sometime soon. So with so many characters now and in the past, an idea came to my head: What if Sonic had his own RPG? Here's a few reasons why I've come up with that:
1.It's one of the few genres Sonic has yet to crossover.
2.They already have an element system of sorts with speed, flight, and power.
3.They've got over a dozen characters to make playable or at least make cameos.
As for how it should be played, I'm thinking of something very similar to how the Mario Bros. RPG's are like, and as a rule of thumb, Sonic would ALWAYS have to be in the party. What do you guys think of this idea?
Sonic started off as a lone hero, but then 15 years and many alternate universes later, he'd have a cast of over 50 characters. This trend isn't going to stop either, because even MORE characters were revealed in Sonic's latest games. Who knows, we might even get another alternate universe with even more different characters. Expect to completely lose track by Sonic's 20th Anniversary.
