Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a 1991 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Genesis/Mega Drive.

It was released in North America on June 23 and in PAL regions and Japan the following month.

Players control Sonic the Hedgehog, who can run at near supersonic speeds; Sonic sets out on a quest to defeat Dr. Robotnik, a scientist who has imprisoned animals in robots and seeks the powerful Chaos Emeralds.

The gameplay involves collecting rings as a form of health, and a simple control scheme, with jumping and attacking controlled by a single button.

Development began in 1990 when Sega ordered its developers to create a game featuring a mascot for the company.

The developers chose a blue hedgehog designed by Naoto Oshima after he won an internal character design contest, and named themselves Sonic Team to match their character.

It uses a novel technique that allows Sonic’s sprite to roll along curved scenery which was based on a concept by Oshima from 1989.^[2]

Sonic the Hedgehog, designed for fast gameplay, was influenced by games by Super Mario series creator Shigeru Miyamoto. The music was composed by Masato Nakamura, bassist of the J-pop band Dreams Come True.

Sonic the Hedgehog was very well received by critics, who praised its visuals, audio, and gameplay.

It is widely considered one of the greatest video games of all time and became one of the best-selling video games of all time with approximately 24 million copies sold worldwide.

It established the Genesis as a key player in the 16-bit era and allowed it to compete with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.

It has been ported to multiple systems and inspired several clones, a successful franchise, and adaptations into other media. It was followed by Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in 1992.

Gameplay – Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a 2D side-scrolling platform game.

The gameplay centers on Sonic the Hedgehog’s ability to run at high speed through levels that include springs, slopes, bottomless pits, and vertical loops.^[3]

The levels are populated with robot enemies, inside which Dr. Robotnik has trapped animals; destroying a robot frees the animal, but is not necessary to complete the game.^[4]

The player must also avoid touching spikes, falling into bottomless pits, being crushed by moving walls or platforms, and drowning, which may be prevented by breathing air bubbles from vents.^[5]

Sonic’s main means of attack is the spin attack, in which he curls into a ball and spins his body, damaging enemies and certain obstacles upon collision. This may be performed by jumping or rolling.^[6]

At the start of the game, the player is given three lives, which may be lost if Sonic collides with hazardous enemies or objects while in possession of no rings, falls to the bottom of the level screen, or exceeds an act’s ten-minute time limit.

Signposts act as checkpoints to allow Sonic to return to the most recently activated post when he loses a life.^[7]

The time resets when he returns to the checkpoint.^[8]

The game ends when the player runs out of lives,^[9] although the player may return to the beginning of the act with three lives if they have any continues.^[8]

Scattered around each level are gold rings.^[6]

Collecting 100 rings rewards the player with an extra life.^[6] Rings act as a layer of protection against hazards: if Sonic holds at least one ring when he collides with an enemy or dangerous obstacle, all his rings will scatter.^[4]

He can recollect some of them again before they disappear. If he is hit without holding any rings, he loses a life.^[6]

Shields and temporary invincibility can be collected to provide additional layers of protection, but certain hazards, such as drowning, being crushed, falling into bottomless pits, or running out of time, kill Sonic regardless of rings or other protection.^[3]