Classic Sonic: The Design

[SilentDoom]

One thing that always bugged me about the western cover art is how they copy&paste the (almost exact) same face onto each Sonic.

...And wtf is going on with the top ones eyes?

You know what really bothers me here? He has the EXACT SAME DAMN EXPRESSION for every picture.

They're even all facing the same way. God forbid Sonic faces to the left.

[batson]

One thing that always bugged me about the western cover art is how they copy&paste the (almost exact) same face onto each Sonic.

Wow, you could probably even make one of these with those pictures:

http://garfielddcfe.ytmnd.com/

And Eggman and Tails would take Jons place as the ones who actually do change expressions.

Edited August 30, 2012 by batson

[TheOcelot]

Now, this picture I do find interesting...

This is Sonic 3 Japanese art (also box art). Do you recognise this picture? Well you should do. This is the background picture on the Sonic Stadium forums! Why no American art?

Edited August 30, 2012 by MilesKnightwing

[Milo]

Japanese Classic Sonic curb-stomps boxart American Classic Sonic several miles into the ground in terms of better design, although I don't really mind American Classic Sonic. And there are some American Classic Sonic boxarts that actually look pretty cool, to be honest.

I'm baffled, however, that nobody has bothered to mention European Classic Sonic (based only on the Sonic 3 boxart), which I'm surprised doesn't get called out for being hit with the fugly stick with American Classic Sonic.

It at first looks promising, since they took a few cues of Japanese Classic Sonic (namely the color shading of his fur), but then ran the opposite direction by adding some of the worst aspects of American Classic Sonic (metallic look, mohawk spikes, recycled staple "smirk" look), and then bumped it up to eleven by making the mohawk spikes more pronounced. And then they went and added these Asain(-esque) eyes....ugh. And that's not going into what they did with Knuckles.

[NoahTH]

I found the best name for American Classic Sonic: Assface McGill. Help, I can't breath!

Source:

[Guest]

They're even all facing the same way. God forbid Sonic faces to the left.

The top and bottom pictures were originally facing right, so I flipped them to match in. But they still look exactly the same .

Wow, you could probably even make one of these with those pictures:

http://garfielddcfe.ytmnd.com/

That's makes me want to make a gif of it now 0__0. I wonder if there are any other Sonic's with the same face as this? I only picked out the ones I could remember off the top of my head.

EDIT: Nevermind, I just found tons more. Ok, i'm gonna make a gif xD

Edited August 30, 2012 by Guest

[Guest]

Edited August 30, 2012 by Guest

[batson]

We might as well just close this topic now because you just won it.

[Vertekins]

Compare to JP Classic Sonic's expressions and poses;

Infinitely more expressive, likeable and original than that awful, non-expressive parody of the character.

[batson]

The picture of the laughing Sonic at the top right sure seem mighty familiar...

[Tracker_TD]

Japanese Classic Sonic curb-stomps boxart American Classic Sonic several miles into the ground in terms of better design, although I don't really mind American Classic Sonic. And there are some American Classic Sonic boxarts that actually look pretty cool, to be honest.

I'm baffled, however, that nobody has bothered to mention European Classic Sonic (based only on the Sonic 3 boxart), which I'm surprised doesn't get called out for being hit with the fugly stick with American Classic Sonic.

It at first looks promising, since they took a few cues of Japanese Classic Sonic (namely the color shading of his fur), but then ran the opposite direction by adding some of the worst aspects of American Classic Sonic (metallic look, mohawk spikes, recycled staple "smirk" look), and then bumped it up to eleven by making the mohawk spikes more pronounced. And then they went and added these Asain(-esque) eyes....ugh. And that's not going into what they did with Knuckles.

...I actually like European Sonic.

>.>

[...]

I wonder if AmeriClassic Sonic was cursed to have his face stuck like that forever. =P

[TheOcelot]

I wonder if AmeriClassic Sonic was cursed to have his face stuck like that forever. =P

Nah, they were just lazy at SoA. Either that or afraid to try something different. The face portrays the same old emotion in every picture which is......coolness I guess?

Edited August 30, 2012 by MilesKnightwing

[Guest]

I wonder if AmeriClassic Sonic was cursed to have his face stuck like that forever. =P

Watching it again, he looks like he's rolling his eyes up, as if to say "Sigh... This pose, again? " while the artists were working on the pictures.

And It's fun watching his mouth grow and shrink.

Edited August 30, 2012 by Guest

[TheOcelot]

We might as well just close this topic now because you just won it.

You could do the same with the Sonic 4 Episode 1 and 2 art. Sonic looks virtually the same in both. Even more so than the US pictures.

Edit: Oops, I had two pictures of Episode 1. Now fixed, one of each. So easy to get them confused.

Edited August 30, 2012 by MilesKnightwing

[WarioBone]

I'm pretty sure that's the same model with its arm shopped or something. It has to be.

Why the fuck Sega thinks that dumbass face is good publicity is beyond me. It's not cool, it's not cute, it's not funny...it's just him going "HERM".

Edited August 30, 2012 by Kind-Hearted Jerk

[Guest]

You could do the same with the Sonic 4 Episode 1 and 2 art. Sonic looks virtually the same in both. Even more so than the US pictures.

Edited August 30, 2012 by Guest

[Rexeljet]

One thing I don't like about American Classic Sonic (among many other things that have already been said) is his quills, they're all rounded and don't look like they could hurt or destroy anything. On most Japanese classic Sonic pictures he looks nice and spiky like you'd expect from him.

I don't see why American Classic Sonic needed to be changed to the extent he was. I can understand the 'angrier' look, because at the time all American game boxarts were all angry and whatnot (like Kirby) but why did he need a mohican hairstyle? why did he need bandy legs? did having rounded quills really make him look more hip? They could have just redrawn Sonic's JP design with a scowl, without having to add all those unnecessary features.

As for European Classic Sonic, it's more the pose than the design that I think looks off. It kinda looks like he's trying to leap out of the box, but not in a particularly athletic way, and his eye formation looks a little off because he's scowling- I think that if he were drawn in a more friendly-looking pose, like the Japanese Sonic 1 box art, the design would look better.

[Guest]

Skip to 7:03 in this video and there is some really interesting info on Sonic's character design. And the woman responsible for melty metallic Sonic explains why she designed him that way, and how Sega of Japan hated it.

Edited August 30, 2012 by Guest

[...]

There's this thing I love about these sketches of Sonic by Naoto Oshima. It looks like a painting, yet it looks like it was colored with a marker. Not only does the Japanese design have better aesthetics, it has what the American design is missing. An imaginative art design. And it just looks cute. Especially the one with Sonic yawning. :'D

Edited August 30, 2012 by Felix

[TheOcelot]

There's this thing I love about these sketches of Sonic by Naoto Oshima. It looks like a painting, yet it looks like it was colored with a marker. Not only does the Japanese design have better aesthetics, it has what the American design is missing. An imaginative art design. And it just looks cute. Especially the one with Sonic yawning. :'D

Agreed. The only slightly strange thing is the very bendy, wavy arms. Doesn't look like there is any bones in them.

[Kiovle]

Agreed. The only slightly strange thing is the very bendy, wavy arms. Doesn't look like there is any bones in them.

I think Sonic's limbs being made out of jello is canon.

Edited August 30, 2012 by Kiovle

[...]

I think Sonic's limbs being made out of jello is canon.

Edited August 31, 2012 by Felix

[lounge]

[Purity The Hedgehog]

The american version sure ain't ugly but it sure ain't right either. I have to go with the Japanese version.