Sonic (Super Smash Flash 2)

Sonic is a veteran starter character in Super Smash Flash 2. Unlike in the series, he is not the only fighter of his series, as appears alongside him. Sonic's sprites are custom-made and based on his appearance in and modern Sonic games such as and . Sonic is voiced by Jason Griffith, albeit via recycled voice clips from and Sonic Unleashed. Most of his moveset comes from SSB4 and , which have a majority of his moves taken from and .
Sonic is currently ranked 20th on the tier list, placing him in the A- tier. He appears to have a decent playerbase but lackluster representation in online tournaments. Normally, he places low to mid in tournaments that his players participate in.
== Attributes ==
Sonic is a middleweight who has outstanding mobility like in his home series. He unsurprisingly has the fastest running speed and among the fastest walking and air speeds in the game. With his above-average falling speed, Sonic can travel across the stage at a blinding speed despite his average gravity and slow air acceleration. Additionally, these traits make him able to easily and effectively utilize a rushdown playstyle.
Sonic's neutral attack, tilts, and throws deals decent damage and has minimal lag, making them hard to punish. His grab game is average, it is fairly easy to land thanks to his speed. Sonic's pummel is quick, allowing him to rack up a fair amount of damage before throwing an opponent. Up throw is a reliable combo starter and can chaingrab fast fallers. It has decently damaging combos beginning at 0%, as well as Spring Jump follow-ups beginning at medium percentages. It also has KO potential, although it KOs reliably at very high percentages. Down throw sends opponents at a low angle with high base knockback, which makes it excellent for starting combos and tech-chases. Back throw moves Sonic backward, which makes it useful for setting up for immediate edgeguarding. It also has KO potential due to its high base knockback, especially if it is used near the edge. Lastly, forward throw is his least useful throw, as its main purpose is for forcing the opponent away from him.
Sonic also has a strong air game. Neutral aerial is a great combo starter because of its low landing lag and launching angle. Up aerial has KO potential near the upper blast line and is great for combos, while its minimal lag makes it deceptively safe. Forward aerial is useful for starting and finishing combos thanks to its sourspot's launching angle and its sweetspot being a meteor smash. In certain instances, its sourspot can combo into itself at low percentages thanks to Sonic's fast air speed. Back aerial's clean hitbox is strong, making it one of his few reliable KO options like his up aerial and forward aerial. Lastly, down aerial is a stall-then-fall, it is Sonic's least effective aerial but it lacks startup, can be useful for combos, and its clean hitbox can meteor smash.
Sonic has useful special moves. Homing Attack deals consistent damage and homes in on the nearest opponent, making it useful for punishing missed or laggy attacks and breaking edgeguards. allows him to not only move across the stage but also deal damage upon contact. It hits multiple times and moves faster than his dashing speed, making it a reliable alternative to dashing. Jumping out of Spin Dash allows Sonic to hop while spinning, making him a jumping hitbox for a brief moment. It also gives him additional protection while chaining into other attacks and recovering. The mobility of the move combined with Sonic's already impressive speed makes him capable of racking up more damage in a short amount of time, and can clank and cancel out certain moves like 's fireball. Light Dash is one of Sonic's most reliable KO options, especially when sweetspotted. It can also be used as a recovery move to grab the ledge. Spring Jump is a useful recovery that goes very high and is one of the few recovery moves that does not cause helplessness, enabling Sonic to attack and dodge during his descent. The spring that is dropped can be useful both onstage and offstage by allowing him to pressure and gimp opponents, respectively.
Mastering Sonic's speed is important to perform at higher skill levels. Sonic players often take advantage of a variety of dash-related techniques like dash-dancing and dash canceling, which can be used for mind games during gameplay. Players also run away in one direction and then quickly turn back around to bait opponents or to avoid them altogether rather than roll-dodging. This allows the player to not be as easily punished and instead be able to punish their opponent's mistakes. In general, Sonic can often win neutral due to his speed and maneuverability onstage with fast attacks that can be used to approach with.
However, Sonic has some weaknesses. His KO potential is held back by his most reliable KO options (forward smash, down smash, forward aerial, back aerial, up aerial, and Light Dash), requiring good positioning and having noticeable startup and ending lag. While Sonic's ability to quickly rack up damage is respectable, he struggles to KO, which often results in opponents living up to very high percentages. He may also struggle to land due to his slow air acceleration, leaving him vulnerable to juggling. Sonic can also have difficulty dealing with camping and projectiles since they can severely limit his movement options. Some of his attacks are also punishable, which allow openings for opponents to punish when missed. His recovery can be predictable because of how linear it is with Spring Jump being his only vertical recovery option. Although Light Dash can be used for reads, using it in mid-air puts Sonic in a helpless state until he lands, leaving him temporarily vulnerable to punishes and self-destructs when used recklessly.
Overall, Sonic has strong neutral and offensive play with the potential to rapidly damage his opponents. But like other characters of his archetype, he has trouble KOing often.
== Moveset ==
=== Ground attacks ===
Attack 	Description 	Damage
Neutral attack	Performs two punches, followed by a kick. Its first and second hit are capable of jab locking and the final hit can be easily followed up with another move due to its lack of ending lag. Based on Sonic's Punch + Punch + Kick combo from Sonic the Fighters.	
Neutral attack	Performs two punches, followed by a kick. Its first and second hit are capable of jab locking and the final hit can be easily followed up with another move due to its lack of ending lag. Based on Sonic's Punch + Punch + Kick combo from Sonic the Fighters.	
Forward tilt 	Plants his hands on the ground and kicks both legs forward. Its minimal startup lag makes it useful for spacing and starting tech-chases. Based on Sonic's Horse Kick from Sonic the Fighters. 	8%
Up tilt 	Performs a 540 kick, similar to 's up smash. Its vertical range makes it a useful anti-air attack and can be used for combos. However, it has poor horizontal range. Resembles Sonic's Skip Kick from Sonic the Fighters. 	
Up tilt 	Performs a 540 kick, similar to 's up smash. Its vertical range makes it a useful anti-air attack and can be used for combos. However, it has poor horizontal range. Resembles Sonic's Skip Kick from Sonic the Fighters. 	
Down tilt 	Performs a legsweep while moving slightly forward. Its diagonal angle can easily start combos from low to mid percents. Resembles Sonic's Leg Throw from Sonic the Fighters and his Foot Sweep from and Sonic Unleashed. 	9%
Dash attack 	Performs a Spin Dash followed by a flying kick, hitting four times. Its minimal startup lag can allow it to pressure opponents and set up or extend combos, although it has noticeable ending lag. Resembles the Somersault attack from . 	
Dash attack 	Performs a Spin Dash followed by a flying kick, hitting four times. Its minimal startup lag can allow it to pressure opponents and set up or extend combos, although it has noticeable ending lag. Resembles the Somersault attack from . 	
Forward smash 	Spins his arm behind him before punching forward. Its high knockback growth and good range makes it one of Sonic's best KO options. However, it has noticeable ending lag. Based on Sonic's Wind-Up Punch from Sonic the Fighters. 	
Up smash 	Performs a jumping Spin Dash, hitting five times. It has moderate startup and low ending lag, making it useful for starting aerial combos. However, it KOs at extremely late percents despite being a smash attack. 	
Up smash 	Performs a jumping Spin Dash, hitting five times. It has moderate startup and low ending lag, making it useful for starting aerial combos. However, it KOs at extremely late percents despite being a smash attack. 	
Up smash 	Performs a jumping Spin Dash, hitting five times. It has moderate startup and low ending lag, making it useful for starting aerial combos. However, it KOs at extremely late percents despite being a smash attack. 	
Down smash 	Performs a split kick, similar to 's down smash. It has the lowest amount of startup lag out of Sonic's smash attacks. It hits on both sides and is also a semi-spike, which makes it useful for edgeguarding. However, it has noticeable ending lag. 	
=== Aerial attacks ===
Attack 	Description 	Damage
Neutral aerial	Curls into a ball and spins in place, hitting twice. Its diagonal angle can lead to combos from low to mid percents. Based on Sonic's Air Spin from Sonic the Fighters and his Insta-Shield technique from . 	
Forward aerial	Somersaults forward with an overhead axe kick. Its sweetspot is on his foot, which meteor smashes opponents, making it one of Sonic's best KO options. Its sourspot is useful for extending combos and has KO potential near the blast line at very high percents. Based on Sonic's Sonic Eagle from Sonic Battle and his forward aerial in Project M.	
Forward aerial	Somersaults forward with an overhead axe kick. Its sweetspot is on his foot, which meteor smashes opponents, making it one of Sonic's best KO options. Its sourspot is useful for extending combos and has KO potential near the blast line at very high percents. Based on Sonic's Sonic Eagle from Sonic Battle and his forward aerial in Project M.	
Forward aerial	Somersaults forward with an overhead axe kick. Its sweetspot is on his foot, which meteor smashes opponents, making it one of Sonic's best KO options. Its sourspot is useful for extending combos and has KO potential near the blast line at very high percents. Based on Sonic's Sonic Eagle from Sonic Battle and his forward aerial in Project M.	
Back aerial 	Performs a hook kick that has sex kick properties. Its impressive damage output and high knockback growth makes it one of Sonic's best KO options, especially when used for edgeguarding. However, it has noticeable startup lag, which can make it somewhat hard to land. 	
Back aerial 	Performs a hook kick that has sex kick properties. Its impressive damage output and high knockback growth makes it one of Sonic's best KO options, especially when used for edgeguarding. However, it has noticeable startup lag, which can make it somewhat hard to land. 	
Up aerial 	Performs an upward scissor kick, hitting twice. Its minimal startup lag makes it safe and can be a viable KO option near the upper blast line, especially as a follow-up from Spring Jump. 	
Up aerial 	Performs an upward scissor kick, hitting twice. Its minimal startup lag makes it safe and can be a viable KO option near the upper blast line, especially as a follow-up from Spring Jump. 	
Down aerial 	Kicks diagonally downward, boosting in that direction. It is a stall-then-fall and it has a sweetspot that meteor smashes only at the beginning of the move. Resembles Sonic's Stomp Dive from Sonic the Fighters and his Sonic Rocket from Sonic Battle. 	9%
=== Grab and throws ===
Attack 	Description 	Damage
Grab 	Reaches both hands out to grab. 	
Pummel 	Knees the opponent. 	1%
Forward throw	Performs a stretch kick. It lacks KO power but is useful to force opponents offstage. Resembles Sonic's Top Kick from Sonic Battle. 	10%
Back throw 	Quickly backflips with the opponent twice before performing the tomoe nage, a judo throw. It can start tech chases at low percents and KOs relatively well at very high percents. 	11%
Up throw 	Throws the opponent upwards and sharpens his quills to stab them. It is a great combo starter at low percents and KOs reliably well at very high percents, making it one of the strongest up throws in the game. 	9%
Down throw 	Pins the opponent to the ground and then Spin Dashes onto them, hitting three times. Its diagonal angle can start or extend combos from low to mid percents. Resembles Sonic's Double Spin from Sonic the Fighters.	
Down throw 	Pins the opponent to the ground and then Spin Dashes onto them, hitting three times. Its diagonal angle can start or extend combos from low to mid percents. Resembles Sonic's Double Spin from Sonic the Fighters.	
=== Other attacks ===
Attack 	Description 	Damage
Floor attack	Performs a legsweep around himself while getting up. 	8%
Ledge attack	Spin Dashes forward while climbing up. Resembles the Cliffhanger Flip from .	7%
=== Special moves ===
Special move 	Name 	Description 	Damage
Neutral special move	Homing Attack	Curls up into a ball while briefly ascending, homes onto the nearest opponent, and then rams into them. It is a useful edgeguarding option and can be used as horizontal recovery. It can also be used as a follow-up from various moves. Additionally, Sonic will perform a pose if he successfully lands the attack, and the animation can be canceled with any action. 	8%
Side special move 	Light Dash 	Charges up before dashing forward at a blinding speed, damaging opponents on his way. Its sourspot deals little damage and knockback, but its sweetspot KOs reliably well at high percents, making it one of Sonic's best KO options. It can also be angled up or down and used as horizontal recovery. However, the sweetspot can be hard to land due to the move's noticeable startup and ending lag. 	
Side special move 	Light Dash 	Charges up before dashing forward at a blinding speed, damaging opponents on his way. Its sourspot deals little damage and knockback, but its sweetspot KOs reliably well at high percents, making it one of Sonic's best KO options. It can also be angled up or down and used as horizontal recovery. However, the sweetspot can be hard to land due to the move's noticeable startup and ending lag. 	
Up special move 	Spring Jump 	Boosts high into the air with a spring that appears underneath him. Although its primary use is for recovering, it is also useful for partaking in combos. When used on the ground, the spring remains stationary for a few seconds, allowing Sonic and any other character to keep bouncing off of it until it vanishes. When used in mid-air, the spring falls down and can be used to attack or gimp opponents underneath Sonic. 	
Down special move 	 	Curls into a ball and starts rolling towards his opponents quickly. Button mashing is required in order to charge the move. It has great combo potential thanks to its ability to be followed up or canceled with any aerial and special attack. Additionally, the move's momentum can be carried over to Sonic's air speed by immediately performing either up aerial or forward aerial while holding the jump button, giving him a burst of speed in mid-air.	5%
Final Smash 	 	Gathers the Chaos Emeralds and uses them to transform into his super form. When activated, Sonic is invincible during its duration and can fly in any chosen direction. The longer the direction is held, the more powerful his ramming attack will be. However, Sonic is susceptible to self-destructs if he goes too far into the horizontal or bottom blast zones despite being invincible. 	
Final Smash 	 	Gathers the Chaos Emeralds and uses them to transform into his super form. When activated, Sonic is invincible during its duration and can fly in any chosen direction. The longer the direction is held, the more powerful his ramming attack will be. However, Sonic is susceptible to self-destructs if he goes too far into the horizontal or bottom blast zones despite being invincible. 	
=== Misc. ===
Misc. 	Description 	Description 	Description
On-screen appearance	Spin Dashes onto the stage from the foreground and strikes a pose. 	Spin Dashes onto the stage from the foreground and strikes a pose. 	Spin Dashes onto the stage from the foreground and strikes a pose.
Taunts 	Neutral 	Somersaults and then crosses his arms with his index finger pointing out from one hand (one of his poses from ), while making a "tsk" sound three times.	
Taunts 	Side 	Performs the Super Peel Out, a technique from , while grinning and saying "You're too slow!". 	
Taunts 	Down/Up 	Performs the windmill, a breakdancing move, while saying "Come on, step it up!". 	
Idling 	Looks at the camera for a moment while tapping his foot impatiently. It is his idle animation from the Sonic the Hedgehog games for the Sega Genesis.	Looks at the camera for a moment while tapping his foot impatiently. It is his idle animation from the Sonic the Hedgehog games for the Sega Genesis. 	Looks at the camera for a moment while tapping his foot impatiently. It is his idle animation from the Sonic the Hedgehog games for the Sega Genesis.
Victory theme 	A remix of the fanfare that plays whenever an act is cleared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. 	A remix of the fanfare that plays whenever an act is cleared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. 	A remix of the fanfare that plays whenever an act is cleared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
Victory pose 	Stops running on-screen and then gives a thumbs up while saying "Sonic's the name, speed's my game!". 	Stops running on-screen and then gives a thumbs up while saying "Sonic's the name, speed's my game!". 	Stops running on-screen and then gives a thumbs up while saying "Sonic's the name, speed's my game!".
== Changes from v0.9b ==
Sonic has received a mix of buffs and nerfs, but he was mostly buffed overall. He has gained a lot from his moveset based on his appearance in SSB4 and Project M. Changes to his moveset and the knockback in some of his moves gives him better combo ability and more KO options. Additionally, his recovery and edgeguarding ability are also better, improving his neutral game. These changes allows him to compete against the roster better. However, the range and KO options in some of his moves has been nerfed. Despite the nerfs he was given, he has great mobility and approaching options, good recovery, and good edgeguarding game.
=== Aesthetics ===
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=== Attributes ===
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=== Ground attacks ===
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=== Aerial attacks ===
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=== Grab and throws ===
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=== Special moves ===
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== In competitive play ==
=== Match ups ===
=== Notable players ===
==== Active ====
* Dewdropp
=== Tier placement history ===
In tier lists for demo v0.6, Sonic was seen as a top tier character ranking 3rd of B tier on the first list and 1st of S tier on the second list. In demo v0.7, Sonic was seen as a high-top tier character where he ranked 6th of B tier on the first list and 4th of A tier on the second list. In demo v0.8b, Sonic had his worst tier position yet where he ranked 19th of K tier and was seen as a bottom tier character. However, in demo v0.9a, Sonic would once again make his way back into the top tiers where he ranks 1st of S tier and he was once again seen as the best character in a demo. In demo v0.9b, Sonic dropped to 20th of B tier where he was seen as a mid tier character. However, the changes in the metagame showed that Sonic was not as effective like he was in the previous demo, so he then dropped down to 27th of C tier on the second tier list of demo v0.9b, where he is unfortunately seen as a bottom tier character again. He would remain in that tier until Beta's tier lists, 1.0 and 1.1, where he saw a small rise to being a low tier character at 32nd and 33rd place, respectively. In Beta 1.3 he began to see a meteoric rise as he flew up to 18th place, making him a low-high tier character. Finally, Beta 1.3.1 only dropped him to 20th place, currently making him a top 20 character.
== Gallery ==
=== Costumes ===
=== Artworks ===
Sonicbig.gif|Sonic's DOJO!!! art.
Sonic Art1.png|Sonic's first artwork, used in the character selection screen from v0.3a to v0.4a. Taken from .
SonicPre0.9.png|Sonic's second artwork, used in the character selection screen from v0.5a to v0.8b, and in-game from v0.5a to v0.5b. Taken from Sonic Advance.
SonicInG.png|Sonic's third artwork, used in-game from v0.6 to v0.8b. Taken from Sonic Rush Adventure.
SonicOld.png|Sonic's fourth artwork, used in demo v0.9a.
Sonic main.png|Sonic's fifth artwork, used in demo v0.9b.
Sonic Beta.png|Sonic's sixth artwork, used from Beta 1.0 to Beta 1.1.
=== Screenshots ===
Sonic 1.png|Sonic and running towards Mario and , who are jumping on .
Sonic 2.png|Sonic hanging on the ledge while is grabbing on Lake of Rage.
Sonic 3.png|Sonic crouching while tries to hit him with his down aerial on Lunar Core.
Sonic 4.png|Sonic and running on the track of Sand Ocean.
Sonic 5.png|Sonic and running on Green Hill Zone.
Ball - Sonic.png|Sonic's ball version.
=== Early designs ===
Sonicpic1.png|Sonic taunting on Green Hill Zone.
Sonicpic2.png|Sonic running away as chases him on .
Sonicpic3.png|Sonic hitting Kirby with his forward smash on Comet Observatory.
Sonicpic4.png|Sonic using Spin Dash as runs on Green Hill Zone.
DOJOTaunt.png|Sonic taunting on Sky Sanctuary Zone.
Sonic1.png|Sonic using Light Dash on on Central Highway.
Sonic2.png|Sonic using Spring Jump with Mario above him on .
Sonic3.png|Sonic and Captain Falcon running on the track of Sand Ocean.
Sonic4.png|Sonic using Spin Dash on on Sector Z.
=== Designs ===
Old Design - Sonic.png|Sonic's early design used in demo v0.3a to v0.9b.
New Design - Sonic.png|Sonic's current design used in Beta onward.
=== Misc. ===
SSF2 - Classic mode - Sonic.png|Sonic's congratulations screen on Classic mode.
SSF2 - All-Star mode - Sonic.png|Sonic's congratulations screen on All-Star mode.
Sonic and Tails Team Up.png|Sonic and Tails from 'Reach for the Stars' Trailer.
Sonic and Tails Team Up 2.JPG|Sonic and Tails from 'Reach for the Stars' (Sonic 30th Remastered) Trailer.
== Trivia ==
*Sonic, along with , , , Mega Man, and Black Mage are the only characters so far to wear their default costumes in team Battle when they are on the blue team.
*Prior to Beta 1.3.1, Sonic can outrun Sand Ocean with the aid of the Super Mushroom item.
*Sonic is the first character so far to be 1st on a tier list twice (demos v0.6 and v0.9a respectively), the second being Meta Knight.
**He is also the first character to rise from the "Kirby tier" directly into S tier during the transition from demo v0.8b to v0.9a.
*Sonic's first early artwork was based on a victory pose that he makes in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. 
**Sonic's second early artwork was based on his up smash charging animation from Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
== External link ==
*Sonic's v0.8 dev blog (old)
Category:Starter characters
Category:Third-party characters
Category:Veteran characters
Category:Super Smash Flash 2
Category:Super Smash Flash series
Category:Characters in Super Smash Flash 2
Category:SEGA