Silver the Hedgehog

Silver the Hedgehog
Silver the Hedgehog
'Sonic the Hedgehog' character
	File:Silver-large.png Silver the Hedgehog as he appears in Sonic the Hedgehog
First game	Sonic the Hedgehog 2006

Silver the Hedgehog (シルバー・ザ・ヘッジホッグ Shirubā za Hejjihoggu) a new character in the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series. He is a white male anthropomorphic hedgehog who hails from the future. In an interview with IGN, a SEGA representative stated that Silver is white because Sonic Team was running out of colors to make their main characters, and that his official color is indeed white, as opposed to silver. He is playable in the 15th anniversary version of Sonic the Hedgehog as well as Sonic Rivals.

History

Sonic the Hedgehog

The official Sonic The Hedgehog Website says this: "Silver lives light years in the future where psychic abilities are the norm. The happy people of his planet are very powerful and they regularly move objects with their mind using telekinetic powers. One day, Silver witnesses the start of a cataclysmic event that will surely wipe out his entire planet. Without hesitation, he races back in time to stop the Iblis Trigger. With the very future in his hands, he will use all his power to defeat this evil-doer. Does he have the wrong guy?"^[1]

Silver hails from a distant future, which was brought to ruins by the Flames of Disaster. He and his partner Blaze battle the evil monster Iblis every day, for their world was destoryed many years ago. However, no matter what they do, they can't defeat Iblis, for it continues to revive itself after its destruction. Silver decides that in order to defeat the Iblis, he must destroy the Iblis Trigger that caused its formation. After gathering data from Mephiles the Dark, Silver learns that the Trigger is Sonic the Hedgehog, a hedgehog that resembles Mephiles and Shadow the Hedgehog. Silver travels back in time to stop the Iblis Trigger and save his world. ^[2]^[3]

Sonic Rivals

Silver is another one of Sonic's rivals, backed by his confirmed playable appearance in Sonic Rivals which features three other rivals: Knuckles the Echidna, Shadow the Hedgehog and Metal Sonic. He is apparently responding to some distress signal, though he doesn't know who is sending it. Eggman Nega is somehow linked to this distress signal, unbeknownst to him. He is also given two alternate costumes.

Personality

Silver has "a strong sense of justice" and it is, in part, this personality trait that motivates him to head back into the past to correct the future. Also, he belives in standing up for those who can't stand up for themselves. (It is this trait that led him to accept Blaze when everybody else was teasing her for her pyrokinetic abilities.) Sonic Team was originally thinking about making Silver's personality similar to Shadow, however they did not want to have similar characters.

Although seemingly serious in nature, an interview states that Silver is young and slightly immature. ^[4] When it was stated that Silver will be "young", it was unknown if Shun Nakamura, the interviewed, meant he is physically young or simply has a childish nature. To further add to this statement, a recent gameplay clip, as well as clips on the Sonic Rivals website have showcased Silver's voice, which apparently appears to sound young and naive.

Abilities

Silver, unlike Sonic or Shadow, does not possess super speed. Instead, he commands telekinetic abilities, which are apparently quite normal in his time. As such, he is capable of manipulating objects around him. In Sonic Rivals, he is also capable of confusing his enemies. Like the other hedgehogs, Silver has the ability of Chaos Control.

Super Silver

By harnessing the excess power of Super Sonic, Silver was able to transform into Super Silver. In Super Form, Silver's fur becomes a light golden color, and his quills raise in the same fashion as Super Sonic's. Silver's mane also becomes a deep gold. This marks the second time in recent Sonic history that a Super form was obtained by using the power of another.

In Super Form, Silver gains increased speed, increased defense, and the ability to fly. His telekinetic powers also have an improved range. He is able to grab objects at a wider distance.

Original Designs

Official concept artwork released by Sonic CulT (which was at first thought to be fake, but has since been confirmed as official) shows an early design of Silver.^[5] The main differences from the current final design include a long orange mane around his neck, and bright blue eyes. His boots are also quite different. It is unknown however whether Yuji Uekawa, the main character designer of the Sonic series, actually produced the artwork.

More concept art of Silver was released in an interview with IGN, which were generally less similar to his current design. Notable designs include a hedgehog wearing a futuristic headset and another with markings on its quills. It is also revealed that Silver was originally was named "Venice" ^[6] (Which may be a referance to a real life city of water, similar to the one in the game)and was considered to be a mink, but that idea was later abandoned. Silver is said to have gone through over 50 designs before reaching his final look. ^[7]

Relationships

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Blaze the Cat - She is from the same time as Silver, and is confirmed to not only appear, but be a playable character in the next-gen Sonic game, Sonic the Hedgehog. Although Blaze is shy around strangers and strict with herself, she works well with Silver as a partner and they both, secretly, harbor strong feelings for each other. Blaze views Silver as a younger brother, to hid her true feelings from him, and, together with him, they constantly work together to fight Iblis in the future. Silver is, also, emotionally dependent upon Blaze. Before she sacrifices herself at the end of Silver's story in Sonic the Hedgehog, Blaze reveals she always liked how naive Silver was. Silver's theme song states that he blames himself for Blaze's death and wants nothing more then to be freed from the guilt he feels.

Amy Rose - In Sonic the Hedgehog, Amy mistakes Silver for Sonic but they in turn team up to help each other find who they are both looking for, unknown to Amy that they are both looking for the same person. Her appearance with Silver has been confirmed via the official screenshots of the "Dusty Desert" level. Amy's alliance with Silver was only temporary; she became his friend and promised to help him find the "Iblis Trigger". She left him upon finding out that he intended to kill Sonic. She also seemed hurt when she found out about his plan, indicating that she thought he was a new friend.

Sonic the Hedgehog - In Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic is referred to, by Mephiles, as being the "Iblis Trigger" that set Iblis free years before Silver's time. Silver is bent on stopping Sonic from unleashing Iblis onto the world but, over time, Silver begins to draw a liking to Sonic. It is unknown how the two will interact in Sonic Rivals.

Mephiles the Dark - In Sonic the Hedgehog, Mephiles, a creature with a resemblance to Shadow, informs Silver that Sonic is the "Iblis Trigger" that set Iblis free years before Silver's time, but, over time, Silver begins to see Mephiles as more of a threat than a friend.

Knuckles the Echidna - Silver and Knuckles are both rivals in the next-gen game for PSP, Sonic Rivals and they, also, both appear in Sonic the Hedgehog.

Shadow the Hedgehog - Silver and Shadow are both rivals in the next-gen game for PSP, Sonic Rivals, and they both also appear in Sonic the Hedgehog. In Sonic the Hedgehog, when Silver first meets Shadow, he mistakes him for Mephiles and this and other events help Silver learn more about Mephiles and his intentions. It is unknown how the two will interact in Sonic Rivals.

Metal Sonic - Silver and Metal Sonic are both rivals in the next-gen game for PSP, Sonic Rivals. Other than this, no further information about them is known.

Theme Song

Silver's theme song, entitled 'Dream of An Absolution', is a very notable song for it strays from the standards set by recent Sonic games within the last 5 years. For one, the lyrics sound almost romantic, which could denote that the song could be a reference to how he feels about Blaze the Cat. Secondly, the genre is, more or less, Techno. The music resembles, not only the music found in the game, Sonic Riders, it also seems to have a notable resemblance to 80's music. Noteworthy, too, is the fact that the theme bears a resemblance to Gamma's theme song from Sonic Adventure. Also, the part before the chorus resembles a part of Sonic The Hedgehog 1's Green Hill Zone theme.