Sonic the Hedgehog is one of those video game characters that transcends to barriers of character design, original intent, and actual game content.
While Sonic is known by millions for things like Sonic Colors, Sonic CD, Sonic Boom, and the crown jewel of them all, Sonic Adventures 1 and 2, he is most known as a general vibe and jokey meme icon.
Our blue buddy first debuted over 30 years ago in the year 1991.
Nowhere in the games does Sonic consume chili dogs like a mad man, repeat “Gotta go fast!” over and over, or any of the silly things people use the Sonic character to make jokes of.
The only real joke is Sonic Forces. Sonic is more of an idea than a character, but he is also a character.
We highly recommend Sonic Generations; it gives you a big-picture appreciation of the Sonic Team’s work over the years. Pretend that Sonic 2006 did not happen, please.
Sonic Heroes was a better game than that confusing thing.
Sonic’s Age
Hedgehog years don’t have a natural analog to human years, but people want to know, for whatever reason. His age varies from game to game, as well as in the movies.
In general, he’s young, often a “kid” for the most part. He’s always old enough to date Amy Rose, though, whose age matches his for the most part.
How Old Is Sonic?
There’s no single answer. He’s a superpowered blue hedgehog that can talk. He can absorb chaos emeralds to turn into a god-like Super Sonic. Is there a big difference between him being 10 or 17 in that context? Nah.
In his earliest incarnations, Sonic was a pixel character in classic arcade game cabinets. Sonic is 10-11 years old in the earliest games in the series but 15-17 in every other game.
His mental maturity and behavior stay the same across all games, except for the time he wished for a million tissues and kissed a human. (Real thing. Not a joke.)
The early games are when he’s blasting through the 2D Green Hill Zone and such, busting open animals taken captive by the nefarious Dr. Eggman.
Later games like Sonic Adventure have him battling apocalyptic monsters like Chaos and Shadow the Hedgehog. (Shadow was just misunderstood in the end.)
How Old Is Sonic in the Movies?
In a confusing twist, Sonic is younger in the brand new feature films than he is in the contemporary games. It’s not clear why. Sonic is 13 years old in the movies. This doesn’t really serve the story in a significant way.