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30 Years of Sonic - What does the franchise mean to you?

Discussion in 'General Sonic Discussion' started by HEDGESMFG, Jun 23, 2021.

  1. Billy

    Billy

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    My earliest memory is of playing Sonic 1, around the age of three. I distinctly remember my mom showing me how to beat the boss of GHZ. This was around 1996, so Sonic wasn't the newest/hottest thing anymore, but I still loved it. Even after we got a PlayStation in late '97/early '98 (I can't remember exactly when) I still played our Genesis all the time. We also had Sonic 2, Sonic Spinball, and S&K (but not Sonic 3).

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    I guess I'll also mention I got into SatAM and AoSth by way of pre-owned and rented video tapes.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    I still mostly enjoy this classics, I'm very into the technical workings behind the games I love (I'm a software developer, professionally), I'm a history nerd and I love to see things that were cut out of games and imagining what-if. All of these things are catered to by this board. And I must enjoy this community, since I at least lurk nearly every day.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Too many to count. Dressing up and pretending to be Sonic almost every day for a time when I was a kid (I wouldn't respond to any other name than "Sonic"). Learning about and playing Sonic Adventure by way of one of my older brother's friends, who owned a Dreamcast. Joining SSRG and SWS2B and learning about ROM hacking. Creating a crappy Sonic fan website, which gave me my first exposure to writing code. Meeting friends via Sonic forums and fan games (one of my best friends I met in a match of SRB2). Sonic Mania reveal.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    Like a lot of people, I'm hoping for consolidation between new and old Sonic styles. For me, this would take the form of a modern 3D Sonic title that incorporates the physics and momentum style gameplay from the classics. There's been some fan projects/tech demos with this goal in mind, but I'd love to a full fledged game take this concept and run with it.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    Actually planning on playing some SRB2 Kart with my friend mentioned earlier. Will probably also do a playthrough of Sonic 1, if I have time.
     
  2. cornholio857

    cornholio857

    The Great Cornholio Member
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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    When my parents bought me my Sega Genesis is 1991 with the Sonic pack-in. It was one of the early releases that had a High Definition Graphics Model 1 complete with the EXT port on the back.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    Sonic 1 video game when I got my Genesis.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    The gameplay, the music, the surreal and awesome graphics of the Classic games and most importantly, the great memories. A lot of my childhood video game experiences are with the "Dude with 'Tude"
    blasting through and exploring all the great Zones with that kick ass soundtrack. Because of this I have a MASSIVE Classic Sonic merch collection ranging from Sonic nurse scrubs to Sonic the Wall Pillow that I collected through the '90s.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    My favorite was when I got Sonic 2 on Christmas 1992. At the time I thought "How could they make Sonic even better?!". Once I popped in that Sonic 2 cart I was like "Oh yeah, THIS is how you can make Sonic even better!"

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    Just a great new Sonic game that gives myself and newcomers to the franchise the same excitement I had in 1991 and 1992 with Sonic 1 and 2.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    Sonic music playlists at work and classic trilogy playthroughs. Since Sonic 2 is my favorite I will probably playthrough twice. Get the Good Ending and the Bad Ending, best of both worlds.

    I also hope everyone here at Retro have an awesome day today celebrating 30 years of the "Dude with 'Tude". :thumbsup:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Jun 23, 2021
  3. Dark Sonic

    Dark Sonic

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    1 and 2. Sonic 2 was the 1st Sonic game I ever played back when I was 4. As I was 4 I don't recall seeing Sonic before then lol

    3. Sonic has always been a constant in my life. No matter how turbulent life can be or how depressed I've been or whatever, Sonic's always been there to cheer me up. Hell not even my name and gender remained constant, but Sonic has lol. I grew up with Sonic, as much as my edgy teen self wanted to deny liking things I love Sonic and the series has been a big part of my life. So I like coming here and talking about Sonic with other people who also grew up with Sonic

    4. Sonic Mania's unveiling was an incredible moment, but I can think of a few
    • Getting a Saturn and Sonic Jam for Christmas 97 (it was the 1st console I actually owned, prior to that I played my neighbor's Genesis)
    • Playing Sonic Adventure for the 1st time and being blown away at the graphics (it was 1999 after all lol)
    • Seeing Classic Sonic come back in the Generations reveal trailer
    5. I want to see Sonic succeed and grow. The past decade has been routed in nostalgia pandering and I want them to take risks again. Innovate, do something new, blow people's minds. I love Classic Sonic but keep him in his own things (and please consider a successor to Mania).

    6. Today honestly not sure, I have plans. But last night to celebrate I played through Sonic Mania's Encore mode (with a few QoL/improvement mods to make said mode less drab, but overall it was the vanilla experience). What a great game that is.
     
  4. Zephyr

    Zephyr

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    I love spending 30 minutes writing a post only for the page to auto-update into a cloudflare error. :eng99:

    What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    These first two questions basically share an answer. I was born in 1991, but my memories before 1997 (when I first began keeping track of my own thinking, age, etc.) are more fuzzy and I can't firmly date them. Either way, there are two distinct things competing for my earliest experience with the franchise, before the age of 5: the lava chase sequence from Marble Zone Act 2 in Sonic 1, and the SatAM cartoon opening.

    However, by the age of 5, our only Sonic game was Sonic 2, such that upon replaying Sonic 1 via the Sega Channel at the age of 6 I was confused by the lack of spin dash. Around the age of 5 or 6, my earliest 'friend group' (three kids living in the same apartment complex) were also all Sonic fans. My first experience with the Archie Comics was a "Sonic Kids" comic we had. Also around this time I watched AoStH for the first time. This all together forms my most fundamental frame of reference to the franchise.

    Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    The wiki is fantastic. The forums in turn are a fruitful place for discovery and discussion. As a result, this place is effectively the most academically useful place to "discuss Sonic" on the internet. This was true in 2008 when I joined after finding the YouTube comments section to be a waste of time, and it remains true today.

    I'm also turning 30 this year, and having been reflecting on my own thinking for a good 25 years at this point, I've lately been noticing things I don't think I'd have been in a position to notice with any less time spent reflecting, to be real vague and abstract. At the same time, more different generations of Sonic fans are online and interacting together here than ever. Some expected friction aside, it's interesting to see younger fans eager to wrestle with problems many of us are long exhausted from litigating. Especially fascinating to me are the implications this may have on the limitations of the accumulation of knowledge across an individual's lifespan.

    Fangames also kick ass.

    What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Mania's announcement, probably. Runners up include Generations' announcement, Unleashed leaking, and getting Sonic Adventure 2 Battle and a GameCube for my 11th birthday.

    What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    I'm excited to see the fangaming scene continue to experiment with gameplay mechanics, and bring more proof-of-concepts long discussed yet unseen to life. I'm likewise eager to see if, and how, the 'AAA' core of the game series will react to trends in the fangaming scene, as well as those in the larger industry.

    How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    Besides writing this post (twice lol), I'm planning to have a chili dog for dinner, and I might play some games!
     
    Last edited: Jun 23, 2021
  5. saxman

    saxman

    Oldbie Tech Member
    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I first saw Sonic in the H.A.G. commerial. (Was there more than one H.A.G. Sonic commercial? Only one exists on YouTube, but I thought I saw more than one as a kid.)


    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    I wanted Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis after seeing the commercial. As the months rolled on, I forgot all about it. Then Christmas came. Me and my brother always got one video game each. He got his. I couldn't find mine and was getting a little concerned. Then my brother suggested I look under the recliner chair. There it was! Sonic the Hedgehog. I was so excited. I played it and immediately was in awe with how different it was from any other game I had ever played. The realistic physics in particular was new territory, and it took me a lot of time to get used to it. I also remember how hard it was. And fighting Dr. Robotnik? That was really tough for me!


    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    Honestly, where else am I going to go? I spend time here because of my own history with the scene, hacking the ROMs and posting all my findings on my various pages, most prominently on the Sonic 2 Hacking Guide. It's partially from that experience that there exists a sort of built-in interest for me to see what else has been discovered about those older games. Whenever prototypes come along, it's always the highlight of my day to see them and play them. So I visit just to see if anything interesting has come up.


    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    It's really difficult to break it down to a single memory. I got excited everytime a new game came out back in the Genesis days. Sonic 2 peaked my interest because it was my favorite game character in a brand new game that looked fun. Same with Sonic 3. Sonic Adventure because it was Sonic's "comeback" of sorts.


    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    To be frank, I think the best days of the franchise are long gone. Could it surge back to the status it held in it's glory days? Sure. But everything comes and goes. Nothing is forever, and everything good can become tarnished. So for the next 10 years? I would like the series to maintain a fan base that will continue to propel it. But also, I hope the newer games can help the series become a lot more relevant again.


    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    I celebrate it in my head. I won't do anything showy today. I just think it's cool that it's come this far, and that gives me something to think about.
     
  6. CaseyAH_

    CaseyAH_

    human incarnation of Palmtree Panic 'P' Mix Member
    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    Honestly I can't even remember. Even if I reach my memories back to when I was like 3 or 4, I can remember myself already knowing and loving the Sonic franchise. I'm not even sure who would have introduced me to it so young because, even though a couple of my family members were "gamers", Sonic specifically was never something any of them showed a lot of interest in. So, essentially, Sonic has literally been part of my life for as long as I can remember.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    I'm pretty sure it was a demo of the PC version of SA1DX where you could play one level from every character's story (Sonic had Emerald Coast, Knux had Red Mountain, Gamma had Windy Valley, etc) that was on my mom's PC for some reason. If it wasn't that, it might have been Sonic X, but I feel like that happened later on.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    Sonic has been part of my life for 20 years, I see no point in not sticking around.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Basically any time a major prototype gets released and the entire fandom (briefly) unites in their collective enthusiasm about something. Being in the twitch chat during the S1 proto reveal and seeing so many people freak out over stuff like the purple flowers or wrecking balls was so much fun.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    Consistency, more so then anything else probably. I don't even care if that consistency means "good" or "just ok", I just want to be able to see a new game get announced and be able to go "Hey, that probably won't be bad."

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    OST binge.
     
  7. Overlord

    Overlord

    Now playable in Smash Bros Ultimate Moderator
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    A numbered questions thread.... eh, I'll allow it. =P

    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    Good question, but it was so long ago I genuinely do not remember. I do have a rip of a VHS recording of me opening my Mega Drive II with Sonic 2 for Christmas, does that count? =P

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    Tossup between aforementioned Sonic 2 and either AoStH or SatAM, both of which I watched episodes of but vastly preferred AoStH (thank you, Channel 4!) Got more into the franchise post-MD arrival.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    It's in my Routine *shot* Nah, some of my oldest friends are people I've met through this community and as much as some like to shit on us I think we've done alright. I don't think 10 year old OL would ever have figured as he took pictures of the Sega Bus at Longleat Safari Park in May 1995 that he'd end up meeting two heads of Sonic Team.

    4. What's your favourite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Last year excepted, I've done community meets every year for 18 years now. Been so many good moments at these whether it's stuff like Summer of Sonic or just hanging out with other Retroers. Also the Alton Towers trip Sega Europe organised was something I'll never forget.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    More games like Mania and Colours, less games like SA2 and 06, if I had to be brutally blunt. Personal opinion, please do not clog up this thread with quoted disagreement in an argument we've already held a dozen times before. Sonic has always worked better with a lighter and more minimal story, and having good controls helps a lot too. Sonic not being the constant butt of jokes like he was around the mid-00s has been a nice change in this last decade, I hope we never end up in that situation again.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    I'm actually busy pretty much all this evening with other things >_> I'll probably watch the symphony this weekend, I was just able to squeeze a bit of Sonic 1 into my lunch break today.
     
  8. BadBehavior

    BadBehavior

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    Nost sure about it since I might've forgotten it.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    The answer I always give is SatAM, because me and my friend were fans of The Nosalgia Critic, but he was also a fan of Sonic, so seeing him say it had "honest to god effort" (gee, statements about how much effort something has put into it won't bite me in the ass in the future), as well as wanting to get into Sonic for my friend, I started watching torrents of the show. Then I asked for the newest game coming out for christmas which was Generations. I cared that it was just old level themes, so I hoped that the next game would come out and be wholly original. (Yeah that was naive of me)

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    Because the community is one of the absolute best and discussing the games with them is an absolute pleasure. Not even being sarcastic. Ok maaaaybe a little, but im not letting the few bad apples spoil the whole bunch for me.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    I guess it was recently when I saw more people coming out of the woodwork reappraising the Adventure games and realizing that I wasn't alone in not just liking those title, but preferring them over what had come before and since.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    For the 3D games to be everything that Forces wasn't: good story, exploratory, good controls, no Classic Sonic etc. For the 2D games to start showing a creative spark rather than relying on Green Hill tier nostalgia bait. More Mega Man 11, less Mega Man 9. And maybe not being the constant butt of self deprecating memes he was the last decade would be nice. That was the real Dark Age of this franchise.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    The Symphony and Joshes marathon. If there's still time in the day, I'll even play P-06 to remind me of the greatness of all these fan projects.
     
  9. LuckyLagomorph

    LuckyLagomorph

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I wanna say watching my dad play Sonic 2 but I was extremely young at the time (like 3-4 years old) so the exact details are a bit fuzzy. I do remember my dad owning a Genesis and wanting to spend time with me through that. The Genesis was (and still is) my dad's favorite system and he successfully made it my favorite system as well thanks to him showing me Sonic 2.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    It has to be either getting to play Sonic 2 for myself or watching SatAM through either TV or VHS tapes that we rented. Sonic 2 was the first game I had ever gotten close to beating on my own, only stopping because the Death Egg Robo scared me for whatever reason lol.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    The franchise is so ingrained into my childhood that I couldn't leave even if I wanted to. It's probably the only thing I can look back on and smile, even with the series being where it's at today.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    It's a toss-up between bonding with my dad through Sonic 2 or learning about Super Sonic in Sonic 2. To this day that game is one if the few times he and I have really bonded and it's a memory I deeply cherish. And learning of Super Sonic's existence was the first time I knew something about Sonic 2 that my dad didn't. I still remember the confused look he had when I made Sonic turn into Super Sonic in front of him and it still makes me smile thinking about it.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    I hope that the 3D games become good enough that the franchise stops being the internet's punching bag. I don't actually think it'll happen as a lot of people still like to point at games like '06 and say Sonic has always been bad. But a man can dream.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    Considering the amount of times I've mentioned Sonic 2, you'd think I'd run through that game again. But nah, instead I'm going to play a little bit of Sonic 3 AIR (I still have yet to memorize the best path to get all the emeralds as quickly as possible) and possibly run through Mania with a friend. Aaaaand maybe get some chili-dogs.
     
  10. Frostav

    Frostav

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I have ADHD and it's very hard to remember my childhood, but I'm sure my first time was getting Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. I don't really remember a time without that game. I was born in 1995 and the Gamecube was the first video game console I had ever gotten (though I had a GBA for a few months before then I think).

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    As above, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. Yeah I'm one of those kids. One of the first video games I ever played. I don't really remember my first playthrough, but in a childhood mostly filled with early trauma, it's one of the few things that arouses a genuine sense of nostalgia for me.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    Even at its worst, Sonic is unlike any other platformer franchise out there. Everything from the groovy/rockin' music to the focus on narrative in the Adventure era to the character designs, Sonic is distinct. Even gameplay-wise its distinct, sometimes to a fault. No other platformer franchise has spawned games directly inspired by it so strongly as much. There's a reason people instantly peg Spark the Electric Jester and Freedom Planet as "sonic-likes"--the games really are like nothing else, in a genre where Mario-worship is so expected that it rarely goes even mentioned.

    The other reason is the fanbase: from the genesis oldheads making romhacks and 2D fangames, to the Adventure kids making 3D fangame engines and games, to the creative side of the fandom that draws fanart, writes fanfic, and designs OC's, I love the Sonic fandom. Even with all the fractures in it, I love every side, and I love when we all come together and enjoy something, such as Mania's triumphant depiction of the gameplay and presentation that made Sonic a household name. No other platformer franchise has a fanbase this proud and passionate.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    There's two of them really.

    The first was my first time playing Mania. Seeing the sheer passion on display, adoring the gorgeous art, and delighting in the references to so many parts of Sonic's past filled me with glee. I laughed in delight when Sonic time-travels in between the Stardust Speedway acts. When I beat the game, I had to immediately go back. Mania was more than an new game--it was a resounding example of the sheer passion the fanbase has for this series, so burning bright that even non-fans could see it clear as day. It was one of the few times the ENTIRE fanbase came together and delighted in a game.

    The other one was a few years later, watching Penny "Snapcube" Parker replay Unleashed all the way through. As an adult, I was able to appreciate just how much ambition Unleashed had, even with its stumbles. The moment that truly broke me was the final boss fight against Dark Gaia--as the music triumphantly swelled and the memories of the game's ending and my hours of enjoying the OST as a tween came back to me, I just broke out into tears, as goofy as that sounds. It was that emotional for me. I'm not ashamed of it. I can only hope Sonic makes me that feel that way again. I miss the days when Sonic plots had heart, emotion, and pathos, even if they were childish and cheesy about it...


    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    What I hope for? For the series to recapture the earnest passion of the classics and Adventure era, where Sonic Team just whole-heartedly jumped into things without a care for if it came off as cheesy. I want Sonic to have passion and a free-wheeling attitude like its eponymous character again, in all of gameplay, narrative, and presentation.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    Play some of the amazing fangames the series has given birth to, such as Robo Blast 2, honestly. Maybe play a bit of Mania. And hope Rangers is good XP
     
  11. Mana

    Mana

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    Toon Disney, I have faint memories of ATOSH on there.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    It was seeing a trailer for SA2 Battle that got me to get Advance (because I was a 5 year old kid and really thought it'd be the same game). That game got me into the Franchise then I eventually got Adventure 2 then I was hooked for life.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    There's nothing quite like Sonic games. I love the character and his world a lot. I loved the continuity of the 2000 games, the anime style of the Adventure games, and how varied each game can be. He's the coolest and I'll follow him anywhere.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Beating Sonic 3 and Knuckles every Saturday for a year after I finally got all the Emeralds and then UNDERSTOOD the game and fell deep in love with it. Can still memorize every map like the back of my hand.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    Just give me good games and storylines and I'm happy.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    Watched the Orchestra and I'm going to play through all of Sonic's stages in Adventure 1.
     
  12. JuiceCake

    JuiceCake

    Nickname: Kolix Member
    Awnsering the question (Obiously)


    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    It was probably watching Sonic X on Jetix and does DVD volumes

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    People near me intruduced me into the series when I was really small by telling me 'bout it, and let me say.. I was hooked... He was blue
    Sonic 1 on fusion emulator was the first time I played it

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    Today I don't really pay much attention to Sonic, but I guess this series of games has had an enormous inpact, musicly and artisticly, and of course, GAMING wise

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    Beating Sonic The Hedgehog on the Master System for the first time

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    That Sonic Team not giving us what we want, but try to build up their vision on how the franchise will go on, giving us an unexpectation, and deliviring with our satifaction

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    *Clocks hit 12 am, 24 of june*

    Uhhhh.....


     
  13. Ayu Tsukimiya

    Ayu Tsukimiya

    UGUU~ Member
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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I was probably under the age of five when I first saw him, so I can't remember clearly at this point lol. I'm 99% sure it was seeing/playing Sonic 2 at my cousin's house though.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    I know for sure the first game I played is 2, but whether I saw SATAM or AOSTH first in regards to other media is up in the air.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?


    While there have been quite a few turds released over my years on this forum, the many fangames, beta leaks, and entries like Generations and Mania just keep bringing me back to this series. I'll never be free.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?


    Probably playing the original Genesis titles and the Adventure games with my younger brother and cousins. God knows how many hours we spent raiding Chao or trying to get past Metropolis Zone.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    More betas and at least a few good games, I guess. Preferably something similar to the Adventure games, unrealistic as that is.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    Playing 1, 2, CD, and 3K in a row. Which I've already done!
     
  14. Brainulator

    Brainulator

    Regular garden-variety member Member
    I'm going to use spoiler tags to save space.
    It was 2008, I think. My special ed group was going over what movie to watch, having brought something over. I brought a VHS copy of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie while someone else brought DVDs of one of the Sonic cartoons. It must have been either AoStH or SatAM; I think the DVD releases of the time conflated the two in their packaging. I immediately but internally assumed a connection with Sonic Drive-In. I also expressed concerns over my belief that Sonic looked violent, so my pick won out instead. (There were more picks, I think, but this much I remember.)
    At some point circa 2013 or so, I got into YouTube Poop, and of course Dr. Robotnik from AoStH was involved. I think this led to my mom getting the first of the Archie Sonic Archives for me and/or my brother to read (I can't remember) and for me, everything snowballed from there.
    The high-speed, colorful, fun nature of the games and character have me too enamoured to quit on him.
    Just the hype for Mania. Getting the Sonic 1 prototype is also a plus.
    I hope Sega does good things with him. That, and more information on the inner workings and whatnot.
    Play the games and upload rips of semi-hacked music to YouTube.
    Happy 30th anniversary, Sonic! So much for "a less-renowned hedgehog".
     
  15. Bryn2k

    Bryn2k

    Still a thing. Oldbie
    It's late so I will have to answer the rest another time but my earliest Sonic memories were my brother getting Sonic 1 in late 1991 and having his ass kicked by the Spring Yard Zone boss. He hadn't sussed out that you don't bounce off Eggman into the adjacent pit he just created. It stuck in my mind for years and when I was playing Sonic 1 myself I dreaded getting to that point. Not that I ever did, I was 4 and the wrecking ball boss in Green Hill Zone would finish me off.

    I also remember being blown away by Sonic 2 when my brother got that and pretending to be the Death Egg Robot at school after he got that far. Our copy of Sonic 2 cost £39.99 in 1992... Christ that was a lot of money then, but what an investment.

    Again though I sucked at it and it took me ages to master the dreaded Chemical Plant rising water section.

    Sadly by 1994 my brother had grown out of playing games and we didn't get any more Sonic games until I got a Dreamcast in 2001.
     
  16. KingOfBunnies

    KingOfBunnies

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    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?
    I can't totally remember but probably looking through Gamecube games at Circuit City when that was still around way back in 2002 or 2003

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?
    Sonic Mega Collection on Gamecube once again in either 2002 or 2003. So does that mean technically Sonic 1 was the first Sonic game I played? :eng99: In terms of read, I had this comic called Sonic the Hedgehog Firsts which is like the first 4 or 5 issues of the Archie comic. I think watched was when I rented either a VHS tape of AoStH or SatAM. I do remember I rented the OVA way more than either of those series from Blockbuster. I basically always rented that tape.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?
    I dunno. Sonic's good and sometimes the things people make on here are good and I like to see that. Also, all the tidbits posted here are fun.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?
    Oh jeez. That's a hard one, honestly. Probably either Generations or Mania's announcement. It was so cool to see both of those as celebrations of the series.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?
    My hope is for more good games like Mania and Generations. But we'll see what the future holds. Hopefully we do get a Mania 2 announcement or something soon. Although if it wasn't announced in that Sonic Central, I'm a little worried.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?
    Maybe play Sonic 1. I was thinking about streaming it but I haven't really decided. I def plan on playing Sonic games today.
     
  17. Vanishing Vision

    Vanishing Vision

    Member
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    1. When I was very young, a friend showed me plush toys of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles that he had. I wasn't at all aware of Sonic at this point, and wasn't even sure if he told me these were characters from a video game. He mentioned Tails being afraid of lightning, which means he must have seen the OVA. I remember thinking Knuckles'... knuckles... looked cool.

    2. I was at summer camp, and some of the kids bought GBAs with Sonic Advance. It clicked that this was the game series those characters came from, and I was immediately captivated by the idea of running around loops in a platformer. Likewise, the "Sega blue sky" style that I've loved ever since playing Daytona USA when I was very young (before the time mentioned in bullet point 1, above), was apparent in Neo Green Hill Zone. I got my own copy as soon as I got home from camp, and shortly after, found a PC compilation that had CD, R, S&K Collection, and Smash Pack 2 with Sonic 2.

    3. There are interesting and informative conversations here, and it's a lot of fun to learn (and occasionally share) the different secrets and surprises throughout this franchise.

    4. In 2018, I was visiting a friend I have known since grade school, and we sat down and played through SA2's Hero Story together, switching after each stage. We, and a few others who have since moved away, were absolutely crazy about SA2B when we were in grade school, playing the versus mode religiously, raising Chao, helping each other clear difficult bits in the single player game, and even pretending to be the characters on the playground (I was Tails, thank you very much). The playthrough I had with my friend in 2018 was such a perfect cap to all of that childhood nostalgia. We talked and talked about the story, the memories we had about the game, cracked jokes and repeated the famous lines. Plus, it was around that time that I discovered the excellent scoring system in SA2, which not only reignited my love for that game, but kicked off an ongoing passion for score competition in games overall. I was blowing my friend's mind showing him all the tricks like the bounce bracelet chain extending, the top rocket handle in Metal Harbor, the Pyramid Cave hoops, etc.

    5. I hope that Sonic doesn't lose sight of its arcade design roots in an attempt to be more "modern", I hope the enormous potential to be an amazing, NiGHTS-style score attack challenge that this series has touched on with SA2 and a few other games is realized more fully.

    6. Just a lap through Sonic 1, as I usually do. Not very fancy, but I really love Sonic 1. I love the atypical level design, the abstract environments, and especially the music. The 30th Anniversary Symphony really highlights how incredible Nakamura's compositions are in the first two games, and the first is my favorite of the two soundtracks.
     
  18. _Sidle

    _Sidle

    Member
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    I definitely recall seeing him in someone's sketchbook when I was at recess one day. Basically around what you'd except a small child drawing the complex modern Sonic design would go, haha~
    Us kids were pretty cool with trading cartridges around (and getting them back to their original owners). At some point, a SonicAdvance3 copy was in circulation, and I got to play it for a little while. The ingame character spritework was super charming, and the gameplay frantic and fun. Hooked ever since from the Advance series and Classic series rereleases at the time!
    "When Sonic is good, DAMN is he the best there ever was." It's no secret that some incredible media, and constant fan output comes out of this franchise. There's nothing else quite this vast, and so varied. Even if I tap out for a bit, there's always something to look forward to when I get back!
    A lot of really good memories happened in relation to Mania's existence:
    • Took a nasty fall, and was lying in bed for awhile. Miraculously, I ended up flipping between sites and happened to land on the proper reveal of Mania live, missing out on all the tech issues.
    • On the last day of the year, I absolutely nailed a science final. On the ride home ready for summer vacation, a new Mania Adventures part went up. That scene of Mighty coming in to block Metal's swipe at Ray is forever etched into my mind, rewatching it over and over on the long trip.
    • Mania Plus's multiplayer is always a blast. Showing rookies the ropes, going head-to-head with old friends, the nail-biting Puyo tiebreakers, the upsets from grabbing rings+items instead of finishing first, the teleport boxes... it's a great gamemode all around. A hardboiled heavy recommendation.
    More of a past tense question, at this point. Watched the first half of the concert, then dipped out to watch a bud mess around streaming that Minecraft DLC + - and be the emotional support unit for that one emerald you have to beat all three stages in a row to access without dying. Brutal!   I had also been working on timestamps for the concert to throw in the respective thread, but Retro has given me three now FOUR gateway/timeout errors as I'm filling this out. Mysterious internet ghosts guiding me to bed, I see. I'll get to it tomorrow if I can.
    Happy anniversary, hedgehog :eng99:
     
  19. AeonicB

    AeonicB

    Oldbie
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    Freelance
    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I vaguely, hazily remember when my sibling and I had to choose between an NES Sports Pack or a Master System and we went with the NES. I remember seeing the 8 bit Sonic 1, and I'd probably make a different decision now.

    We also had the Sonic McDonald's toys. At the time I thought Knuckles was a Duck. Don't ask me why. :V

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    Either AoSTH or the classic games. My family was basically big on Nintendo from then on, but I had a passing interest in Sonic thanks to the cartoon and Moogle's Cavern, a best friend in Middle School who had a CD-X and introduced me to the Sonic games, then kept in touch with me on the phone for a brief bit and told me all about how awesome Adventure was (change my mind), and had a different friend who was part of both the GameFAQs Zelda Social Board and Sonic Area 51, introduce me to the latter. I dunno where they both are now, but I hope life has treated them well.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    Because these are all people whose name I recognize from my own growing up back in the late 90's early 00's, and I lurk often even if I don't necessarily post. Also the community-centric stuff from SEGA is amazing, even when the games themselves are rocky.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    Probably my friend, the one who enthusiastically recommended Sonic Adventure to me all those years ago. It convinced me to get SA2:B on the GCN when it came out, because DX wouldn't be out for quite some time, and I eventually played both games on the Dreamcast when my sibling got it for their birthday.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    Honestly, I hope SEGA keeps doing what they're doing now. Maybe a Mania 2. But we're getting the Retro 1 + 2 ports ontop of a Retro 3 port, I can't say I can ask for much. :thumbsup:

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    A bit late for this, but honestly I spent yesterday listening to the concert, playing the Minecraft pack, and trying to convince my partner's brother to play Sonic Generations or Colors, since, of the 3D Sonic games, he's only played 06 PS3 on a drunken bet. Yikes.
     
  20. NiktheGreek

    NiktheGreek

    Grumpy old bastard Oldbie
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    Writing for the best video game magazine in the world
    1. What is your earliest memory of seeing Sonic anywhere?

    I was only a tiny child, but I believe it was on a TV advert. Probably this one.

    2. What was the first Sonic related media actually you played/read/watched?

    Definitely the original Sonic The Hedgehog - my dad got a Mega Drive around 1992, and it came with Sonic. I used to make him fight Robotnik for me because I was a timid kid.

    3. Why do you still spend time here, reminiscing over the series today?

    20 years ago, I found a website that had information on Sonic prototypes. But I found more than that - I found a community, and made plenty of friends. In better times, I would be making plans to meet them in London, like I have done most years since 2003. I still have those friends, and I still have that major interest in Sonic. When I first saw the Sonic 1 prototype in early December last year, I was excited not only because I had finally seen one of my most wanted prototypes, but because I knew just how excited my friends would be to see it too.

    4. What's your favorite memory of the franchise over the past 30 years?

    I feel like Summer Of Sonic 2016 really encapsulates so much of what I love about the series. I got to meet my friends at a big Sonic event, for the first time in a few years. Sonic Mania was shown, and gave me a game to really look forward to. I got to speak to Deborah Tate, the former editor of Sonic The Comic. I got to meet Yuji Naka for the second time and Takashi Iizuka for the fourth time - and where five years prior I'd got them both to sign things they worked on, this time I was able to get them to sign the cover of the magazine I work on, which had a special Sonic 25th anniversary cover.

    5. What are your honest hopes for the next 10 years?

    A good game or two, more events to go to, and that my friends and I are all around to celebrate again.

    6. How will you celebrate the franchise today?

    What I did was stream Sonic 1 and Sonic 1 - you know, the Mega Drive and Master System versions. Chat was lively, I had a good time, and I even managed to show people secrets they had missed for nearly 30 years.