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A movie and a video game. Different things that are alike.

From the Games:

  • Robotnik's mushroom Sonic doll has tan arms like Sonic does in the main series.
  • Sonic snowboards down an icy mountain as he does in Ice Cap in both Sonic 3 & Knuckles and Sonic Adventure. It culminates in him snowboarding from an avalanche, which also happened in Adventure.
  • While not the first time he has lost his rings in the films, the way Sonic loses them here, scattered out of his bag, is similar to the way he loses them when hit in all of the games.
  • Robotnik's new vehicle more closely resembles the Egg Mobile from the video game series.
  • One of Robotnik's new Badniks appears to be shaped after a bee or a wasp, giving them a resemblance to Buzz Bomber, one of the most iconic Badniks.
    • The Badnik that Robotnik deploys from his wrist to scout out the labyrinth consists of a marble-sized drone with four smaller beads orbiting in sync, essentially making it a miniature Orbinaut.
    • Another one of Robotnik's signature works appears: a Death Egg Robot, now a hundred times bigger. Size-wise, it resembles the Titanic Monarch, the colossal robot that serves as the final Zone of Sonic Mania. The concept of a bigger version of the Death Egg Robot comes from the Sonic & Knuckles Death Egg Zone Act 2 final boss, Giant Eggman Robo.
  • Before Wade captures Agent Stone, the latter is playing with a Robotnik dress-up game. One of the outfits is identical to the one that the Classic Robotnik wore, while another is the thin-but-still-fat Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) that emphasizes his large belly.
  • The temple holding the Master Emerald bears a resemblance to the one seen in the Mystic Ruins from Sonic Adventure, as well as the Gaia Temples from Sonic Unleashed.
  • Sonic can be seen sporting a mohawk early on in the film, bringing to mind the American redesign where his quills were put in a row to match a mohawk, albeit differently from how it looks in the film.
  • Much like what he does to Sonic in the opening of Sonic 3, Knuckles punches the Master Emerald's power out of Robotnik. And accidentally shatters the emerald itself while doing so. Luckily, he has the means to fix it after gathering the shards.
  • When Sonic tries to save Knuckles from drowning, a large air bubble comes up, which Sonic inhales to get more air, just like he would in any underwater stage. Also, a brief section of the drowning theme can be heard when Sonic is about to run out of air.
  • Before shattering, the Master Emerald loses its glow and turns gray, just like the Chaos Emeralds do when they are drained of their energy in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Unleashed.
  • Agent Stone is chastised for not knowing how to operate weapons in the Death Egg Robot. He later manages to activate some after finding an instruction manual, whose cover is printed in the aesthetic style of Sega Genesis instruction booklets.
  • Robotnik's "coffee"-making contraption makes reference to the plethora of spike traps in the original games by impaling a caricature of Sonic on some.
  • On the computer in Tails' lab you can see various background processes running labeled; ExtremeGear, SeaFoxDecode, and ChaoGardenFeed.
  • An interview with Team Sonic threw in a small nod to Tails' Player 2 status in the Genesis games, where, whenever he'd get knocked out of action, he'd fly back in seconds later.
  • Sonic's phobia of water is a nod to drowning in the game being a common source of Nightmare Fuel for players, not helped by the infamous drowning theme music.
  • When Sonic nudges Knuckles into siding with him, the former calls the latter "Knucklehead". "Knucklehead" is a term Sonic would call Knuckles in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Advance 2 due to the latter's dumber antics.

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991):

  • As Sonic calls for Tom's help, Tom's ringtone is Green Hill Zone.
  • The temple housing the Master Emerald is heavily inspired by Labyrinth Zone, and was later confirmed by the film's soundtrack to be the film's portrayal of the zone. References include:
    • Owl reliefs on the walls, and crystal formations on the ground.
    • Sonic arrives in the temple via a series of steep, diagonal water streams built into the ruins, incredibly similar to the ones most memorably seen in Labyrinth Zone's Act 3 (that Sonic would fall down infinitely until the player solved a puzzle to escape them).
    • And of course, it's the location where Sonic nearly drowns, with the infamous drowning theme playing.
  • When Eggman summons the Orbinaut-esque machine to map out the labyrinth, his gloves' beeping plays the intro notes to Final Zone.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2:

  • The tagline for the movie takes from two others in to the series' history: the original Sega Genesis' own "welcome to the next level", with a "2" added to spice it up like the original Sonic the Hedgehog 2 did with its "are you up 2 it?" tagline.
  • Appropriately enough, one of the film's posters is a recreation of the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 US cover art, except with Tails standing behind Sonic rather than next to him.
    • The way Jim Carrey's hand rests on the "2" makes it look like he only has four fingers, just like the Eggman from said cover art.
    • Also, looking closely you can see Knuckles' eyes in the "2", similar to the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 US cover art.
  • The Tornado bi-plane was introduced in the game as Sonic's vehicle before he passed it down to Tails. In the movie, it was owned by an unnamed human and used to fly a banner over Rachel and Randall's wedding before Tails commandeers and repurposes it.
  • Tails' device shows version number 11.21.92 in small text. Nov. 21, 1992 is the Japanese release date of the game Sonic the Hedgehog 2, where he first appeared.
  • One of the traps in the temple is the spike booby trap that comes out of the wall from Mystic Cave Zone.
  • The post on the film's Twitter account celebrating the film being the number one film in the world is a recreation of the game's title screen.
  • Just like at the end of the game, Sonic has to fight Robotnik while he operates a giant mech modeled after himself at the end of the film. The Death Egg Robot theme can even be heard as Robotnik builds it.
  • Super Sonic once again debuts in Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
    • Likewise, so does the Spin Dash.
  • The pixel art music video that plays during the credits uses sprites from the originally unused Sonic 2 version of Hidden Palace Zone, specifically the large breakable Emerald and the tube holding it.
    • Also during the credits, when Sonic turns into Super Sonic, he flies in the same pose from the All Emeralds Ending.
  • Close to the release of the DVD and Blu-Ray versions, the official Twitter pages released a commercial for the DVD in the style of the infamous ''Sonic 2'' commercial that parodied infomercials.

Sonic 3 & Knuckles

  • Sonic and Knuckles' fight and Robotnik's betrayal and theft of the Master Emerald are almost identical to the way they play out in the game. In addition, they take place in a hidden palace.
    • Before Sonic arrives, Robotnik plans to electrocute Knuckles and run off with the Master Emerald, similar to the game.
  • While Sonic turns Super in the Sonic 2 game early if he collects all seven Chaos Emeralds and 50 rings, he quickly goes Super via Master Emerald during S3&K's final battle. In the movie, the Master Emerald shatters during the final battle, but Sonic manages to wield the power of the seven Emeralds inside.
  • The "Snot Cannon" on Robotnik's giant robot is a reference to the similarly humorous nose-mounted flamethrower on S3&K's Giant Eggman Robo.
    • It is also powered by the Master Emerald and has a laser as one of its primary attacks in much the same way.
  • Knuckles punches the Master Emerald out of Robotnik in much the same way he knocks the Chaos Emeralds out of Super Sonic at the start of Sonic 3.
  • During the credits, when Robotnik is defeated, he turns to face the camera the same way he does when he takes damage in S3&K.

Sonic Adventure:

  • Sonic often calls Robotnik "Eggman" after the villain's return. While it was always "Dr. Eggman" in Japan, it was initially an insult in the US release of Sonic Adventure before it was universally retconned and established as his official name/nickname post-Sonic Adventure 2.
  • The Master Emerald's role is similar to what is described by Tikal, one of Knuckles' ancestors in the game, as a conduit of sorts to control the Chaos Emeralds' power. The movie version has the same purpose to some extent, as the Echidna warriors "forged" the seven Chaos Emeralds into the Master Emerald. It also allows the wielder to turn their thoughts into power.note 
    • Here, the Master Emerald is used as a vessel for containing the Chaos Emeralds, not unlike how in the game it was used to contain Chaos 0.
  • While absorbing the Master Emerald, Robotnik exclaims "Chaos is power!", which is part of Tikal's prayer. He conveniently leaves out the part that this power is "enriched by the heart", something that Sonic thematically uses when becoming Super Sonic to save his adoptive parents Tom and Maddie.
  • The film proper opens with Sonic standing on top of a skyscraper and watching several police cars go by below him, just like the opening scene of his story in that game. The police cars' sirens even sound almost identical to the ones in the Adventure games.
  • The water erupting from the sewers in the Blue Justice scene echoes Perfect Chaos' formation in Station Square during the climax of the game.
  • Sonic is briefly shown bouncing and running through an ancient stone tunnel with stone block obstacles and flame jets bursting around him, similar to a section of the Lost World stage.
  • Similarly, some of the snake-head carvings in the labyrinth are based on set dressing from Adventure's Lost World.
  • The music video for "Stars in the Sky" features Sonic doing the box art pose for Sonic Adventure. He pulls the same pose during the dance-off in Siberia in the film itself.
  • Agent Stone refers to Knuckles as a "porcupine", possibly in reference to his theme from Sonic Adventure, Unknown from M.E., doing the same.
  • Knuckles's Image Song from Sonic Adventure, "Unknown from M.E.", has the lyrics: "Unlike Sonic, I don't chuckle; I'd rather flex my muscles." Here, he has a very serious demeanor, and both his Heroic Build and casually catching a Spin Dash are certainly flexing.
  • Robotnik's giant robot knocks down Tails' plane, causing it to lose one of its wings and spiral towards the ground, much like what happens at the end of Sky Chase Act 1.
  • Robotnik setting up a Macguffin Delivery Service by hinting at his plans, watching Sonic act, and then swooping in to get the Master Emerald is exactly how he gained the Chaos Emeralds in Sonic Adventure.
  • Knuckles being able to rebuild the Master Emerald from shards brings to mind the identical ability that his game counterpart had in the Sonic Adventure games.

Sonic Adventure 2:

  • The Guardian Units of Nations, a.k.a G.U.N., makes their live-action debut with a logo that uses both the big "G" from the Sonic Adventure 2 version of their logo and the olive branches from the Shadow the Hedgehog version.
    • Like in Sonic Adventure 2, they capture Sonic, except here instead of doing it because they mistook him for a different hedgehog, they do it because of Sonic's own shenanigans.
    • Like in the game, The Stinger reveals that Project Shadow is reported to have existed 50 years ago. The file containing his existence was buried in Robotnik's database as in the game, his grandfather, Professor Gerald Robotnik is responsible for the project. While Shadow's purpose in the movie universe is currently unknown, the game's Shadow had been sealed in a capsule on a remote island for 50 years when G.U.N tried to capture him.
    • A G.U.N. helicopter with the identification SA-2 appears, just like the one Sonic escapes from in the Hero side story intro. It also has the tail identification LB622-15A, referencing Sonic's anniversary date, particularly the 15th anniversary being the start of the Summer of Sonic.
  • When Eggman takes the power of the Master Emerald, among the abilities it grants him is teleportation. He is very likely using Chaos Control as it is depicted in Sonic Adventure 2 (while latter games would more play up the time control aspect).
  • When Sonic whales on Knuckles using his Spin Jump, he repeatedly slams him into the ground in a manner similar to using the Bounce move.
  • Knuckles performs his Spiral Claw attack as the heroes charge Robotnik's giant robot.
  • In the junior novelization, Robotnik states his middle name is Gerald, in reference to his grandfather in the video game series, Gerald Robotnik.

Sonic Heroes:

  • Robotnik harnessing the power of the Master Emerald, then using it to conjure a tornado of scrap metal that then forms into a Humongous Mecha, is akin to Metal Sonic's transformation into Metal Madness.
  • Project: Shadow featuring the eponymous hedgehog suspended in a capsule who ominously snaps his eyes open resembles Shadow's introduction in the Team Dark storyline.
  • During the final battle, Robotnik deploys Badniks with chrome casings, as opposed to their usual white, similar to the stronger versions of Badniks from Heroes.
  • During the final battle, Knuckles palms Sonic in ball form, and then throws him in a Fastball Special towards a drone, exactly how he does with Sonic and Tails in power formation in the games. The trio also run towards the Mecha in the same exact formation.
  • The "power bump" when Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles put their fists together mimics a similar scene prior to the fight against Metal Overlord.

Sonic Rush:

  • The fight in the temple has Sonic and Knuckles attacking each other with what seems to be this universe's incarnation of the Boost, similar to the Sonic vs. Blaze fight in the game that introduced the mechanic, Sonic Rush.
    • The pair also ram into each other at high speeds, creating a pose similar to the one from the fight against Hyper Metal Sonic in the Sonic OVA and the fight against Blaze in Sonic Rush.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4:

  • Knuckles smashes through a truck of Splash Hills Spring Water.
  • During the finale, Tails and Sonic perform an attack that heavily resembles the team-up moves from Episode II where they spin around as a ball together.

Other Games:

  • Alongside Tom's comments that Sonic is "pretending to be Batman", a shot of Sonic posing in front of a night sky brings to mind one of the bizarre Sound Test Easter Egg images from Sonic CD.
  • The Longclaw Hologram delivers a similar line and Sonic word-for-word quotes from Blaze's speech about the Chaos Emeralds in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), namely that the Master Emerald can turn "thoughts into reality/power".
  • Agent Stone's coffee shop is named the Mean Bean, a reference to Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine.
    • When he converts the coffee shop into a Supervillain Lair after reuniting with Robotnik, a large screen shows the Eggman Empire insignia from the more recent games.
  • The Miles Electric is a small multipurpose PDA Tails invented before meeting with Sonic, which debuted in Sonic Unleashed, albeit as a large tablet.
  • The masked people who attack Robotnik at the start of the film could be a reference to the Babylonians, considering the seemingly advanced tech and the bird-like masks (the leader's mask in particular resembling Jet). The lettering on the owl statue was also confirmed by Tyson Hesse at the early-access fan event to be based on their alphabet.
  • The way the Master Emerald's powers are treated is reminiscent of the Phantom Ruby from Sonic Forces, with Robotnik's transformation bearing a few notable similarities to Infinite. He floats rather than walking, has an eerie reverberation effect on his voice, and reshapes the world around him to his liking with his newfound powers in order to exact revenge on the hedgehog who's humiliated him. The Death Egg Robot is also closer in scale to the ones we saw besieging the City in Forces than the one from the game the movie is named for, despite its head more closely resembling the "Classic" Death Egg Robot.
  • During the finale of the film, at the end of Super Sonic's attack on Eggman's Death Egg Robot, the final move he does to cap it all off? Tap the robot with his foot to send it collapsing down, exactly like his first appearance in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) when he saves Elise from Eggman.
    • Before that, however, Eggman tries to beg for mercy when faced with the super-powered Hedgehog, much like in the beginning of Sonic Unleashed.
    • Just like '06, Sonic's transformation is not only caused by the Chaos Emeralds, but also an Act of True Love, though it's familial instead of romantic here.
  • In The Stinger, the design of Shadow's pod makes it look like two slitted eyes from a black face are overlooking him — a reference to Black Doom, his co-creator from his self-titled game.
  • Sonic using breakdancing in conjunction with smashing Robotnik’s drones carries over from Sonic Battle, which first introduced this.
    • After besting him in the temple, Knuckles prepares to crush Sonic by lifting a loose chunk of ruin over his head, mirroring his "Rock Free Fall" Ground Shot technique from Battle.
  • Tails fights primarily with various gadgets and weapons, like in Tails Adventure.
  • When Sonic charges his Spin Dash he maintains a ball shape as opposed to shifting into an oval, like in Sonic CD.
  • One of the Super Sonic sprites in the credits is based off an unused sprite from Knuckles Chaotix.
  • While Heart's "Barracuda" appears for whole excusable reasons, it still has some connection to the series, as "BARACUDA" (B, A, Right, A, C, Up, Down, A) is the level select code for Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island.

From Non-Video Game Media

  • In this deleted scene when Robotnik is drinking lattes containing some Magic Mushrooms we see him warp into the Robotnik from Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog complete with a large mouth, big fat body, and beady eyes.
  • At one point in the film, Sonic and Tails wear winter clothing that resembles the former's "Bob Beaky" disguise in Sonic the Comic.
  • Sonic's skateboard in the house scene is modeled on an equivalent from an older piece of promotional artwork.
  • Robotnik gaining powers from the Master Emerald is similar to the ending of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog's Chaos Emerald arc and the Robotnik Reigns Supreme arc from Sonic the Comic.
    • Both those arcs feature Robotnik transforming into a giant, which one could take the Giant Eggman Robot as an approximation of.
  • The yellow backpack Tails wears is similar to the one his Sonic the Hedgehog (SatAM) counterpart wore in the episode Drood Henge.
  • This GIF, released as part of the film's marketing, features Sonic impatiently tapping his foot with the text "I'm Waiting" behind him in reference to both an idle animation from the Genesis games and his catchphrase from Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog (SatAM).
  • Sonic's idea for dealing with Robotnik at the climax, basically using the doctor's hatred for him specifically to make himself into a distraction that creates an opening for other characters to perform the actual objective, is pretty much his entire modus operandi in Sonic the Hedgehog (SatAM).
  • This CKN interview shows that Knuckles likes grapes like his mainline counterpart, which is also shown to be the case in the film proper.
  • Knuckles warning Tom and Maddie that Sonic is not himself anymore in his super form is likely a nod to how Super Sonic is portrayed in Sonic the Comic.
  • The climax of the movie is very similar to issue 229 of the Archie comic series, with Sonic about to be crushed by Robotnik's Death Egg Robot, but being saved at the very last second by transforming into Super Sonic, who proceeds to absolutely demolish the robot.
    • Also, the Master Emerald being created from the Chaos Emeralds is similar to the origin of the pre-Super Genesis Wave Master Emerald being formed from fourteen Chaos Emeralds.
  • In this universe, G.U.N. forms in response to Sonic's antics and seem to operate on handling extraterrestial threats like him, which calls to mind the organization S.O.N.I.C.X., a group from the Archie Sonic X series that was dedicated to capturing Sonic and his friends.
  • In the junior novelization, Knuckles at one point refers to Sonic as a “Child of Mobius”, with Mobius being the name of the planet the characters lived on in early Western Sonic media.
    • Also in the novelization, Robotnik screams "I! HATE! THAT! HEDGEHOG!" and Sonic says "Way past cool", both catchphrases the characters used in early Western media.
  • The Death Egg Robot’s size, movements, and armaments are very similar to Metal Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie. Sonic even rides a missile right back into it like in the show. Similarly, that mecha was also faced by Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles.
  • If one looks closely during the pixel-art retelling of the film's events that plays over the credits, Tails can be spotted wearing his flight goggles from the OVA when the tornado attacks Eggman's robot.
  • One of the background processes on Tails' computer is TailsTubeRender, referencing the Youtube series that started just before the movie was released.
  • Robotnik referring to himself as being "Rehatched" after donning his new outfit could be a nod to Sonic the Comic where he gained a redesign by transforming into and hatching from an egg.

Sonic X:

  • As in the first movie, Sonic says the theme song's iconic line "gotta go fast" (this time when psyching himself up to face his fear of water and run across the ocean).
  • In their fight in Sonic 3 & Knuckles, Knuckles is shown being able to easily block a Spin Dash from Sonic. Also in Sonic X, Knuckles actually had difficulty holding back a Spin Dash from either Sonic or Shadow. During their first fight in this movie, Knuckles does it once again… only now doing it with one hand while walking forward.
  • On the topic of the climax, the final battle between Super Sonic and the Death Egg Robot brings HEAVY reminders of Super Sonic's first appearance in Sonic X, including him catching Eggman's giant robot's punch and destroying its hand (albeit in the opposite order), and completely blitzing the machine before it goes down. The lead-up is even quite similar, with Sonic being badly battered and bruised from Eggman's giant robot, and his human companion(s) being endangered by Eggman as well before he goes Super to stop the doctor.
  • Sonic drowning in a deep pool of water, trying futilely to jump to the surface, with another character swimming down and saving him is exactly what occurred in the first episode of Sonic X, only there it was Chris who saved him, rather than Knuckles.
  • Part of Sonic and Knuckles' fight at the temple has Sonic nonchalantly dodge Knuckles' Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs, which is similar to their fight in "Cracking Knuckles".
  • This isn't the first time G.U.N. has had an undercover agent infiltrate the life of a human family Sonic is living with, as seen with Mister Stewart and the Thorndykes.
  • During the baseball game, Knuckles uses his fist instead of the bat to hit the ball like he does in "Unfair Ball".
  • Sonic rides a missile just like Knuckles does in "Beating Eggman, Part 2".

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