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The Chronology of Sonic the Hedgehog; Hoo boy...
Topic Started: May 16 2013, 12:33 PM (2,165 Views)
FiniteZero May 16 2013, 12:33 PM Post #1
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Good vibes.
 Okay, this is to talk about what order the Sonic games happened, going ONLY by the content of the game. Not the manual, not the order it was released, but the content of the game. Though, fan-theories will be used to glue the gaps, so feel free to debate whether this timeline works or not. This will go by three things:
1) Story. This, ironically, is the factor that decides the least. This handles how characters interect, and what characters are present.
2) Appearances. This handles what Sonic and co look like in the games.
3) Abilities. This is the biggest factor. This is exactly what it says on the tin: the abilities that Sonic and co have.

Here is the chronology of the games I consider canon:
1) Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis. Eggman and Sonic meet and clash for the first time.
2) Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Game Gear. Sonic and Tails meet for the first time, but Tails is kidnapped. Sonic has yet to obtain the spin attack. He faces the prototype of Silver Sonic, and defeats him.
3) Sonic CD. Here, Sonic begins to learn the Spin Attack but doesn't quite have it down yet, thus explaining why it's a bit wonky.
4) Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for Genesis. Sonic and Tails meet and take on Eggman. Sonic perfects his spindash. Eggman has rebuilt Silver Sonic, and is busy repairing Metal Sonic. Sonic defeats Silver Sonic once again.
5) Sonic Chaos. Tails is beginning to master flight, but doesn't quite have it down yet.
6) Sonic 3 & Knuckles (Sonic playthrough). Sonic and Tails meet Knuckles, Tails perfects his flying. They encounter the third version of Silver Sonic, now Mecha Sonic, who can repair himself.
7) Sonic 3 & Knuckles (Knuckles playthrough). Knuckles gets back at Eggman, who is busy preparing his next plan. Encounters Mecha Sonic, and defeats him for good.
8) Sonic Triple Trouble. Eggman tricks Knuckles once again, and hires Knack. Unleashed the newly-repaired Metal Sonic. Knack fails horribly at his job, so Eggman never hires him again.
9) Sonic Blast. Knuckles is pissed and wants revenge... again.
10) Sonic 3D Blast. Sonic encounters the homing shield, but needs the shield to use the ability.
11) Sonic Generations (Classic Sonic). After returning from the future, he practices the homing attack.
12) Sonic Adventure. Some years have passed, Sonic is older. The constant exposure to chaos energy has given him green eyes, which he only had before when in Super mode. He has perfected his Homing Attack technique.
13) Sonic Advance 1. Sonic is a bit older.
14) Sonic Advance 2. Sonic meets Cream, and is getting faster.
15) Sonic Adventure 2. Shadow and stuff.
15.5) Eggman repairs the moon somehow.
16) Sonic 4. Modern-ish look, Sonic still has the spin attack and the homing attack.
16) Sonic Heroes. Shadow returns, Metal Sonic stuff also.
17) Sonic Battle. Shadow gets told about his past and stuff happens with a robot or something.
18) Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow gets high and has some really weird dreams about aliens afterwards.
19) Sonic Rush. Sonic learns to boost to win. Also meets Blaze.
20) Sonic Unleashed. Werehog incident.
21) Sonic Rush Adventure 2. More stuff.
22) Sonic Colors.
23) Sonic Generations.

This is getting long, so feel free to discuss.
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Nado The Rabbit May 17 2013, 03:52 PM Post #2
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Hydrocity Act 2
 THIS.

There is one thing that confuses me though, is still where Sonic CD takes place. I've never played it, but isn't the spindash just a gameplay issue? If that's so, I wouldn't make that a reason for it's placement in the timeline. I'm thinking, Metal Sonic is more advanced than Silver Sonic. So shouldn't Sonic 2 take place afterward?

Also, if Sonic CD takes place after 3&K, it has to be before Sonic 4. Meaning Sonic 4 wouldn't be a direct sequel to 3&K.

Well, at least this isn't the Zelda Timeline.
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Ravenfreak May 18 2013, 07:01 PM Post #3
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Sonic and Raven! :3
 I always thought Sonic CD took place right after the first game, it's very similar to the first one in terms of item boxes and graphics as well. (In the 510 beta there's a S monitor just like in the first game however you can never see the S monitor in normal gameplay in both. You'd have to hack Sonic 1 to see it and it does nothing while in Sonic CD it's a debug item.) However I really like where you placed Sonic 2 8-bit in the timeline and would definitely make sense since Sonic doesn't know to perform the Spin dash, everything else falls into place perfectly. ;)
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YamiShadow May 18 2013, 08:19 PM Post #4
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 This looks pretty good to me. About the most debatable thing on that list is the position of Sonic Battle, but I've had enough debates regarding whether that's before or after Shadow the Hedgehog to realize that however good Sonic Battle might be, it utterly destroys my sense of a coherent timeline.

I mean, Shadow knows a bit about his past in Sonic Battle. But at the start of Shadow the Hedgehog he doesn't, so therefore this implies it should be after Shadow the Hedgehog.

There's some other elements-- including the fact that it was released before Sonic Heroes-- which imply that it shouldn't be that late in the timeline. I recall reading from a plot director that Sonic Battle is indeed canon, but its placement in the timeline was controversial even when the game was released. Not even Sega can agree on when it should take place.
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AegisReflector Jun 19 2013, 12:01 PM Post #5
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Angel Island Act 1
 Does Sega consider the MS/GG Sonic installments canon? I never did, and I feel if you take them all out, it makes the storyline less confusing and still makes sense.

As far as I'm concerned, Sonic's storyline is pretty much like Mario and Zelda; there can be a million theories and both companies always confuse the hell out of us out of which one came first. I think Generations summed up the background of the evolution of Sonic very nicely, so I would put my faith in that first.

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YamiShadow Jun 21 2013, 02:50 AM Post #6
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 As far as I'm aware, Sega hasn't said anything regarding the canonity of the master system and game gear installments in the series. But in the case of the MS/GG 'versions' of Sonic 1 and 2, I believe they were treated as alternative versions of the first and second games, so their events might be possible to regard as an alternative timeline rather than a part of the running plot. As for the remainder of the MS/GG titles... I'm honestly not sure. Whenever I try to think through the canonity of the series myself, I don't include them. But, I suppose that doesn't necessarily make them canon.

To be fair on Sonic's storyline though, it is a step up from Mario. The Mario games don't really do a running plot, nor do they even put a particularly large amount of effort into the lore that they build up throughout the games. What happens in one game is almost definitely completely irrelevant to the rest. I believe this may be the case with the Zelda series as well, short of a brief move into a running plot format with Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. With Sonic, in contrast, we had a (fairly) consistent basic lore to look at between Sonic 1 and 2. Between Sonic 2 and 3, we actually have a running plotline to keep us going with the story. With the first Sonic Adventure, the way they say Knuckles is tricked "again" implies that it considers Sonic 3 canon, and thus the games before it as well by extension. Amy also pretty much confirms that Sonic CD is canon in the same game. SA2 has some clear plot ties to the first SA. Sonic Heroes continues Shadow's story, whatever debating might be made over the quality of the decision to bring Shadow back to life. Shadow the Hedgehog extends Shadow's story further. Sonic '06 is essentially a messed up time paradox, but it fits within the canonity being that we've got yet another implied extension to Shadow's story. Essentially, after SA2 Shadow is our evidence that there is some sort of a canonity. Unleashed breaks this pattern and does some things that I find questionable with the backstory of the Chaos Emeralds, but a lot of research and debating has brought me to the conclusion that it isn't lore-breaking, if nothing else.
Edited by YamiShadow, Jun 25 2013, 04:08 AM.
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