Why does Sonic appeal to Chris and others with autism?

[Metagross]

I've decided to finally get it together and make my own topic because I really want some opinions on this. I apologize if this has been asked before, I searched and didn't find anything on the forums.

So, why is it that Sonic the Hedgehog is so often loved by people on the autism spectrum? I've seen so many out there, including people I've gone to school with or seen online, and nearly every single autistic or person with aspergers I have come across has a deep admiration for Sonic the Hedgehog. I mean, go on deviantart, I don't think I need to explain it any further. Not only that, but these people usually love Sonic and the franchise in a much more profound way, that it actually influences their lives like it has with Chris. I have a few ideas as to why, but I would like to hear some discussion. I'd also like to hear why you think Chris thinks it's a prize because, let's face it... Sonic the Hedgehog is far less than the greatest story ever told...I doubt the Sonic Protein has anything to do with it either.

 

[Hollywood Hulk Hogan]

Brother, some questions are better off not asked

 

[Metagross]

The seeds of curiosity are planted in my mind.

 

[Some JERK]

Ignore the sage wisdom of the Hulkster at your own peril...

 

[hm yeah]

I can't conclusively answer this, but...

On an older incarnation of this forum, a person said that Sonic The Hedgehog deeply influenced his life and the way he viewed the world. The Legend of Zelda games (namely Link's Awakening, Ocarina, and Majora) deeply influenced me, especially with their themes of exploration and great big awesome dungeons all over the place, sometimes hidden right under your nose. I asked him if it was something like that, but all he said was that it deeply influenced him and introduced him to the furry fandom.

I have no clue how running real fast through loops and dropping rings, or drawing dognose people affect one's life, though.

Oh, and the ReDeads haunted my dreams for quite some time.

 

[snowkitten91]

Maybe it has something to do with the whole "attitude" thing that Sonic has always had going on since he was created that makes autistics think he's such a cool character to follow as some sort of role model? http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MascotWithAttitude

 

[Metagross]

Maybe it has something to do with the whole "attitude" thing that Sonic has always had going on since he was created that makes autistics think he's such a cool character to follow as some sort of role model? http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MascotWithAttitude

This was one of the things I was thinking too. The too-cool attitude is something Chris often exhibits and I see a lot of in the people who idolize Sonic so I think this might be one of the biggest factors.

 

[snowkitten91]

In fact, here's a Facebook post he made when he encountered an article about SEGA wanting to replace Sonic as its mascot (I think it was fake) and he specifically mentions the attitude thing:

SEGA, Sonic was praised a lot better than Mario, because Sonic has more attitude, is stronger and faster, and he talks in his games more than the catchphrase-spewing plumber did.

[cwc]Facebook[/cwc] "Sega Mascot Contest" April 29, 2013.

Btw, I also grew up with Zelda, hm yeah (my first game was Ocarina of Time).

 

[CWC Tok]

I can't conclusively answer this, but...

On an older incarnation of this forum, a person said that Sonic The Hedgehog deeply influenced his life and the way he viewed the world. The Legend of Zelda games (namely Link's Awakening, Ocarina, and Majora) deeply influenced me, especially with their themes of exploration and great big awesome dungeons all over the place, sometimes hidden right under your nose. I asked him if it was something like that, but all he said was that it deeply influenced him and introduced him to the furry fandom.

I have no clue how running real fast through loops and dropping rings, or drawing dognose people affect one's life, though.

Oh, and the ReDeads haunted my dreams for quite some time.

I think the question, though, is not why a childhood video game character could influence someone ,but why has Sonic spawned such a bizarre fanbase when contemporary video game franchises, such as Mario or Link, have not.

 

[potrzebie]

I think partly it's due to the easily distinguishable characters, and stock personalities. They're all bright, colour coded, and don't require any thought, since they're your basic character archetypes. And it's such a distinctive art style that it's easy to imagine new characters, the only effort being picking an animal and a colour.

Aside from the design choices being appealing and easily understood by those of any mental level, throw in a heaping of nostalgia, too. It brings back good memories of a responsibility-free time of their life, when they could waste hours playing a Megadrive/Genesis.

Plus, Sonic 1, 2 and 3 were masterpieces.

 

[Himawari]

Adding on to what potrzebie mentioned, I think the characters' HUGE eyes may also play a part. Those eyes make it very easy to express the characters' feelings and emotions, such that even autistics, who may have troubles identifying emotions from real-life subtle expression changes, can pick up on them.

 

[LM 697]

Autistics are slow and Sonic is fast.

 

[Count groudon]

Well, sonic was pretty much a retarded mash up of pop icons like Michael Jackson and Bill Clinton. This was a failed attempt to get kids to bond with sonic like a cool friend.
However most kids (read: anyone not in the autism spectrum) just saw it as fun little game about a blue porcupine, autistic kids seemed to view it as helping their old pal sonic out through an amazing adventure.
So my theory is that these guys just fell for Sega's little plan and just kinda view sonic as some kinda constant imaginary friend that needs their help to stop a fat guy with a hard on for robots.

 

[Bgheff]

From what I understand, autistics attach to none human characters better. So Mario, which is human, is less attractive than Sonic, who is not human but has human characteristics. At least, this is what i've heard from some people who were into Sonic and Megaman. They aren't people, so they like them more.

 

[PrimeCutDiggityDog]

From what I understand, autistics attach to none human characters better. So Mario, which is human, is less attractive than Sonic, who is not human but has human characteristics. At least, this is what i've heard from some people who were into Sonic and Megaman. They aren't people, so they like them more.

I have aspergers and I have no idea what you're talking about. -.-

 

[Batman VS Tony Danza]

From what I understand, autistics attach to none human characters better. So Mario, which is human, is less attractive than Sonic, who is not human but has human characteristics. At least, this is what i've heard from some people who were into Sonic and Megaman. They aren't people, so they like them more.

I have aspergers and I have no idea what you're talking about. -.-

But if he was a rollerblading cartoon dog that could talk then you'd totally get his point.

 

[MysticMisty]

From what I understand, autistics attach to none human characters better. So Mario, which is human, is less attractive than Sonic, who is not human but has human characteristics. At least, this is what i've heard from some people who were into Sonic and Megaman. They aren't people, so they like them more.

I have aspergers and I have no idea what you're talking about. -.-

Ditto. Mario has always been my franchise of choice as a matter of fact. Sonic is OK, but I guess my ass burgers has been mild enough to pick up on Sonic being fake cool. Like, not only does his coolness come from a load of middle aged executives that are extremely out of touch with today's youth, they also had to include educational morals as well (Sonic Sez).

I think autistics can closely identify with Sonic is because of the fake cool factor. They don't pick up on the fake aspect of it because of how desperately they want to be cool, and hang out with the (genuine) cool kids. Chris, of course, not only sees himself as the definition of (fake) cool, but he wants Sonichu to be a good role model as well.

 

[Bgheff]

From what I understand, autistics attach to none human characters better. So Mario, which is human, is less attractive than Sonic, who is not human but has human characteristics. At least, this is what i've heard from some people who were into Sonic and Megaman. They aren't people, so they like them more.

I have aspergers and I have no idea what you're talking about. -.-

Thats what i've heard two other people with Aspergers say. If you have a different opinion, go ahead and share it. More information the better.

 

[PrimeCutDiggityDog]

No opinion. That just sounds really out of left field from my perspective as someone with aspergers.

 

[CWC Tok]

Well, sonic was pretty much a retarded mash up of pop icons like Michael Jackson and Bill Clinton.

I was ready to give you a stare until I Googled this and found out that, yes, apparently Bill Clinton has been an explicitly stated influence on Sonic. What an odd world we live in.