Turns out that Sonic the Hedgehog is canonically a homeless drifter and always has been. I did not know this. I doubt you knew this? I mean I figured he just went somewhere. Hedgehogs live in little burrows, right? Or perhaps hedges? Anyway, not Sonic, he's too fast to be tied down by concepts such as "home."
This is something I've learned due to a clarification by one of Sonic's professional story managers, who herds the hedgehog's canon like eagle-eyed Polyphemus watches his sheep. Per Automaton, in the latest Sonic the Hedgehog Annual comic—that's your 2025 edition, the Sonic Fact File is not correct—which required a clarification from one Chris Hernandez, professional Sonic the Hedgehog lore wrangler.
"Sorry to burst the bubble so late here! This was something we caught early on but it looks like an older draft got through on accident. Sonic doesn't have a home, he's still a drifter," said Hernandez via twitter.
The comic stated that Sonic's home was in Green Hill Zone, the iconic and much-lovedf first level of the original Sonic the Hedgehog game. This was, of course, simply not true and Mr. Hernandez is professional employed to be sure you—and the writers of Sonic the Hedgehog tie-in comics—know it. It's on them. Not on him.
Either way it's not so bad as all that. Sonic could just currently live in Green Hill Zone's wild rolling plains, roughing it amid the waterfalls and coconut palms and bizarre looping rock formations and perfectly parallax effected scrolling backgrounds.
Sorry to burst the bubble so late here! This was something we caught early on but it looks like an older draft got through on accident. Sonic doesn't have a home, he's still a drifter. Will work on making sure this doesn't happen again! Thanks for catching this!💙🦔 https://t.co/y389FgvxcjNovember 13, 2024
If this all seems strange to you, well, this is a more common job than you think. I've met more than a few of them in my time writing about games. There are lore managers for everything from Sonic to Halo to My Little Pony or Warcraft or League of Legends and yeah that's someone's full-time salaried job and no you can't have it, it's their job already. Don't ask, I've tried.
Anyway, I'm off to watch extremely upsetting 1973 western film High Plains Drifter, but the whole time I'm going to imagine Clint Eastwood as Sonic the Hedgehog.
