Ozzy's Gaming Corner - Sonic Turns 30!
On this day, 30 years ago, 23 June 1991; Sega introduced the world to it's new mascot which was intended to rival Nintendo's Mario! And didn't he do just that?
Sega wanted someone that would be marketable, something that would help boost its sales back when they actually made consoles and there wasn't such a thing as an Xbox or Playstation. Atari died out, Nintendo was it's main contender in the early years of Console Wars, aswell as being the most dominant of the two. There were many different concepts, the famous blue hedgehog was almost called Mr Needlemouse for example. (Really, Sega?!) But after some time, they settled upon Sonic, a hedgehog that can't swim! (Hedgehogs are actually great Sega).
Sonic wasn't your typical platformer either, where Mario and any others from that era were quite slow, Sega chose a completely different direction. The goal was to complete each act and zone as quickly as possible, even going as far as giving a time over should you take longer than 10 minutes to complete a single act. There was a fair bit of exploration aswell; whether you decided use the top route or the bottom route there were always hidden item boxes to find.
This concept seemed to work and in what is now known as the Classic era, we ended up with Sonic 1, 2, 3&Knuckles and Sonic CD. All of which were fantastic games and which I will remember fondly even 20 years from now. The games throughout the years now have had many mixed reviews, recently for example Sonic Mania which was a nice throwback to the side scrolling era was well recieved and Sonic Forces... not so much so.
But whatever happens with the games, Sega accomplished their goal way back then, Sonic most certainly did rival Mario as a Mascot. 30 years old and I don't think there's many people who hasn't heard of the blue blur in one way or another - When it became apparent that Sonic was a huge hit, many cartoons and tv shows appeared on the scene, my favourite being The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. There are also many, many comics out there too.
But my favourite thing of Sonic, above all is the music that's come out of it. Sonic 3 & Knuckles actually had the one and only Michael Jackson as a composer which many people might not know as he wasn't credited through his own choice. But one that will always stand out for me is Green Hill Zone, everytime I hear it, no matter how many times I've heard it before, I always get goosebumps as it is a fond memory of a time many years ago for me.
Anyway, enough ramblings and nonsense from me, tell me if you have any memories from Sonic!
Happy 30th Birthday Sonic!
(PS, I feel so fucking old)
