It's actually just random- (I'm at work so I'm just recalling what I think I know and will update this later) The eyelids are blue in Sonic Adventure, orange in Sonic Adventure 2, then blue in Heroes and Shadow, then change randomly. In some of the old artwork his eyelids are either blue or orange, or even just white, only blinking with his pupils. Then in the Sonic Advance games there are inconsistencies again- it's based on the art style of the game and/or laziness. I don't really take notice, though it IS an irk. I'll compile a list later and see the trends. I own pretty much all the games.
Wrong; Sonic's eyelids are fleshy in Sonic Adventure. They're blue in Sonic Adventure DX :v: Coincidentally, Sonic Adventure DX showed up around the same time as Sonic X...
Oh, really? I learned something new then! I only ever owned DX so I just assumed that it was the same- I mean, they didn't bother fixing the glitches, why suddenly notice the eye colour!? Anyway, after doing some proper research, it does seem to coincide with the release year of Sonic X, in fact, I think they changed it partly because on the 3D models it just didn't look very good: Another reason why I believe this is the case is because within the few months of Sonic X airing in Japan, Sonic Advance 2 was released, and this kept the muzzle colour eyelids. They probably didn't put much thought in to it until changing it for the then upcoming 3D game Adventure DX. There's also the fact that other characters like Tails and Shadow have their body colour the same as their eyelid colour too, so it makes sense to have some consistency between all character designs- I mean it's not like eyelids are separate to facial skin in real life is it? Whilst the muzzle colour for eyelids is cool on classic Sonic, it doesn't really suit the new modern design in 3D- I'm glad they changed it for that. Still, it was cool in Sonic Advance 1 & 2, but was changed for Sonic Advance 3 to blue in 2005.
It doesn't make much sense having two round ears always visible as two circles whatever the angle, but hey cartoon designs.
Related to that, why did they replace rolling with sliding and why was the somersault a move for a while when it's essentially just rolling into a slide? They serve the same function, just make him roll. If only someone could hack SA2 to remove the somersault and make rolling an acceptable way to get under those tiny spaces in whatever levels require it.
I just think of it as the old Kintobor storyline explanation: If Sonic ran fast with normal shoes, they would just burn up due to friction: Hence why he wears special sneakers. The one that always bugged me was how the hell did Amy make her way through the whole Metallic Madness to meet Sonic after the final boss? I guess she just found a backdoor or something!
Why the hell Sonic needs to re-acquire the Light Speed shoes in SA2, when it's mandatory in SA1 to collect. Like, what the hell happened there? Did Sonic run into massive debt and have to sell them off?
Sonic CD, Sonic 2006, and Sonic Generations all agree: the timeline is such a mess that all continuity errors can be explained away by default.
The same reason Samus has to recollect basic things like the Morph Ball, or why Mega Man doesn't start Mega Man 2 with six Robot Master weapons + Magnet Beam. Bag of Spilling, more or less. It is kinda silly from a plot point of view, but since it makes perfect sense from a gameplay standpoint, most people don't bat an eye.
I've always believed that Sonic is naturally fast. I don't like the idea that his speed can be taken away from him by taking off his shoes. If Sonic had special shoes that could handle his speed without ripping apart from friction or whatever else, I'd be willing to believe that, but shoes that grant him the ability to run fast? No. That's like saying Superman can't fly without his cape on. I've always thought the reason for the Speed Shoes monitor in the classic games was because of association. You see sneakers in a game based on running and speed, you'll naturally think that it will make you go even faster. At the very least, it's a temporary upgrade to Sonic's shoes. Many games have given Sonic upgrades to his shoes to allow him to do even more things. But I think Generations has the right idea by just giving Sonic the abilities naturally and let him use them when the situation calls for it. Collecting the upgrades in previous Modern Sonic titles was kind of silly, and a bit tedious.
Or it was probably designed to be a simple representation of Sonic's feet, because we never see them ingame, so we all know it's a power-up related to the feet.
The way Sonic's gone since the Dreamcast days. Sure, I lurve Sonic Heroes, and Shadow the Hedgehog was questionable at best, but if I stand them side by side to, say, X-treme's premise, I realize what could have been and have a sad. It could have gone that way, instead...
Probably my biggest one would be when Knuckles appears; exactly what's going on with the Master Emerald? What's protecting it from being stolen from someone while he's busy assisting Sonic with matters on the surface? Did he make some elaborate booby traps, find some assistants a la the Chaotix, or something else entirely? It's something I've always wanted SEGA to give some semblance of an official statement on: Knuckles' duty is to protect the Island and the Emerald, so what's to keep Eggman from taking it and harnessing his power while they're distracted fighting his main forces down below? He could easily dispatch a small squad to nab the thing and gain access to one of the strongest power sources on the entire planet. Maybe I just think too much into it, but really, exactly what's keeping the Emerald safe?
