2024 is the year of Shadow the Hedgehog
No need to wait, the Year of Shadow is finally here! (photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the most iconic video game characters of all time. Ever since the release of the first Sonic game in 1991, the franchise has sold over 160 million copies and continues to grow strong, with one of its most recent titles, Sonic Frontiers (2022), selling over 3.5 million units. In addition, the franchise has produced two highly successful live-action films, with the second movie making over $405 million worldwide. 2024 is shaping up to be a good year for the franchise, as not only is the third movie coming out this winter, but Sonic won’t be the main focus this time around. Instead, this year's focus will be on the fan-favorite character: Shadow the Hedgehog.
Shadow the Hedgehog was created by Takashi Iizuka, the current head of the Sonic Team, and Shiro Maekawa, first appearing in Sonic Adventure 2 (2001) as an antagonist and arch-rival to Sonic. Shadow was designed to be just as cool, if not, a cooler version than the blue blur himself. In-universe, Shadow was created to be “The Ultimate Life Form” by Professor Gerald Robotnick, grandfather of Dr. Ivo “Eggman” Robotnick, the franchise's main antagonist. After his best friend, Maria Robotnick, was murdered, Shadow chose to seek revenge by destroying the planet. After remembering Maria’s dying wish, however, to protect the earth and its inhabitants, Shadow sacrifices himself to save the planet from a greater evil.
Sonic Adventure 2 was meant to be Shadow’s only appearance, but due to fan demand and popularity, his death was reversed and he continued to make appearances in future titles as an antihero. Shadow was so popular that he got his own game titled Shadow The Hedgehog, which was released in 2005. Shadow is also set to appear in the third Sonic the Hedgehog film, which is going to be released winter of this year, loosely adapting the plot of Sonic Adventure 2. It was recently confirmed that mega-star Keanu Reeves will be voicing Shadow in the film. Shadow is also set to appear in a new title called Sonic X Shadow Generations, a remaster of Sonic Generations (2011), which features an additional campaign revolving around Shadow’s past.
With Shadow making major appearances this year, Sega decided to launch a campaign about him called “Fearless: Year of Shadow”. According to Sega, the purpose of the campaign is to have fans “embrace their inner Shadow.” The announcement was made on Tuesday, Apr. 9, with two trailers being posted on social media. Alongside an appearance in the movie and the newest game title, the Year of Shadow will also bring a Shadow-themed Lego set and motorcycle. The Shadow-themed motorcycle had just completed the first part of its tour that started in the MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin Texas, from Apr. 12-14. There will also be upcoming “Fearless” events for Sonic mobile titles, such as Sonic Dash (2013) or Sonic Forces (2017), in which the player has the chance to unlock variants of Shadow in those games. Finally, the Sonic Symphony, a live music performance of various songs from the franchise, will now be posting remixes of songs and original scores for Shadow.
The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise has a massive cast of characters and it’s nice to see Sega bring attention to someone other than the main protagonist. As a Sonic and Shadow fan myself, I’m excited for this Year of Shadow, and I can assure you that every Shadow the Hedgehog fan feels the same way.