Sonic. Goes fast. Does loop de loops. Grabs rings. You get the gist. When Fortnite began teasing their upcoming “Gaming Legends” season, the IP pit has hardly been subtle about the inclusion of Sega characters, including their most iconic needlehog. With the season’s trailer online, we finally have a peek at what Sonic might be looking like packing heat.
The live service megalith is no stranger to Saturday morning cartoons, real life superstars, Thomas Pynchon characters and more. The newest update will take specific aim at video game icons. Speculation of which characters would be thrown into the battle royale has been simmering for over a week. Just a few days ago, Persona 5’s Joker was confirmed to be entering the mix, though it would hardly be the first time the Phantom Thieves started blasting in someone else’s games.
Now with an official trailer, we get a peek at some of the familiar faces joining the party. In it, we get a glimpse at characters and cosmetics stemming from Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, Mega Man, Mortal Kombat, Tetris, Pac-Man and Epic’s own dormant cartoon mascot Jazz Jackrabbit. Above all, we see Sonic the Hedgehog, zipping through Green Hill Zone alongside Fortnite’s default mug Jonesy.
The hedgehog has been a poorly kept secret. Ahead of Epic’s official hype reel, Sonic’s socials already started posting promos for a tie-in comic, which features Shadow and Knuckles as well. Some have wondered how Sonic would look in the shooter, and Fortnite’s answer is the same as all their less-humanoid guests: Make them an abomination. Sonic’s arms and legs are stretched proportionate to a human’s, while his head remains a Macy’s Day Parade balloon.
Once upon a time it was Shadow the Hedgehog who got a gat. And while sentiments have evolved over the years, it was still pretty corny. Now Sonic gets a gun. Knuckles gets a gun. They’re all getting fully rendered guns. And since Doctor Eggman is also included in the update, I suspect I know where they will be aiming them when the update goes live on August 20th.