Ever since he first burst onto the scene back in 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog has followed one simple rule: gotta go fast. With the help of Sega's now infamous "blast processing," the blue blur made a name for himself as one of gaming's speediest protagonists, making Mario seem significantly slower by comparison in the process. Three decades on, and the high-speed hedgehog shows very few signs of slowing down.
The swiftness with which Sega's long-standing mascot speeds through stages can make playing his many games incredibly enjoyable, but it also making them the perfect candidates for speedruns. As a result, there's a fairly sizable community of runners aiming to tear through Sonic titles at record-breaking pace, although some of the blue blur's outings are slightly better suited to the pursuit than others.
10 Sonic Mania
Being the most recent 2D Sonic game, Sonic Mania has several advantages over its predecessors. For one thing, it is readily available on all modern consoles, but it also offers several quality of life upgrades that make the game a lot more palatable than some of those which came before it. As a result, it is a great place for would-be Sonic speedrunners to start their journey.
There are plenty of categories to choose from, most of which can be completed in one hour or less. For those looking for something a little speedier, there are also leaderboards for each individual stage and these can typically be completed in under two minutes. It's also an incredibly fun game to play, which definitely helps considering how many runs it will likely take to claim one of the top spots.
9 Sonic Lost World
Perhaps as a result of being trapped on the Wii U until fairly recently, there aren't too many people running Sonic Lost World right now. This is a shame, really, as the game is one of the better 3D Sonic games of the past few decades and at times does an excellent job of making players feel as though they're truly travelling at break-neck speeds.
A full game run will take new players a couple of hours at first, although over time they should be able to bring this time down closer to the one hour mark. Due to the small number of people who run the game, securing a spot in the top ten on one of the many leaderboards is very achievable, even for those who are new to the game or speedrunning itself.
8 Sonic Generations
Sonic Generations is a great game for those who enjoy both 2D and 3D Sonic games as it arguably offers the best of both worlds. It can serve as a nice nostalgia trip for older players too, while also providing them with ample opportunities to go fast. Even for players who only really like one type of Sonic game though, the speedrunning community has them covered when it comes to recognized run types.
There are individual leaderboards for both classic and modern stages as well as Any% and 100% categories. There are enough people running the game for new players to learn all of the required strategies to compete at the highest levels, but not too many so as to make cracking the top ten overly difficult. A full game run can also be completed in under one hour, making it a fairly speedy game to run.
7 Sonic Heroes
Those looking for a hectic experience full of blind jumps and frame perfect inputs would do well to check out Sonic Heroes. Granted, a lot of people aren't fond of these types of runs due to the pressure it places on the player and the ease with which an entire run can be ruined, but to others, this type of high-stakes scenario is what speedrunning is all about.
Like the Adventure games that preceded it, Heroes' main story is broken up into smaller campaigns and each of these can be completed in under an hour. There is an All Stories category too, although those looking for a real challenge should consider pushing for the top spot on the Rail Canyon leaderboard. It can be completed in under one minute, but requires an insane level of skill to do so and is therefore a great stage in which to hone one's skills.
6 Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Sonic The Hedgehog 2 is probably the easiest of the original 2D Sonic games to run, making it incredibly popular with players who are just starting out their Sonic speedrunning adventure. This can make claiming one of the top spots on the leaderboards a little challenging, although it also means there are plenty of resources available for those hoping to improve and perfect their runs.
The best players are able to complete the game's main story in under 20 minutes, with many of the stages taking fewer than thirty seconds to complete. Of course, these kinds of times will likely be far beyond the reach of first time players. With just a little bit of practice, however, sub one minute stage times should be easily achievable and players can then begin to work their way down from there.
5 Sonic Adventure
The first true mainline 3D Sonic game, Sonic Adventure is an excellent game to speedrun thanks to the way that its main story campaign is segmented. It consists of seven short story campaigns, each one of which is made up of several simple and easy to complete stages. This allows players to focus on a single character if they so wish, which can in turn make obtaining a spot on the leaderboards a lot easier.
Each of the seven heroes' stories can typically be completed in around 30 minutes, with some taking considerably less time. Players can therefore get a lot of runs in while learning all of the required strategies before eventually going on to tackle an all stories or 130 Emblems run. It also means that players can skip over the terrible Big the Cat fishing stages if they so wish.
4 Sonic Unleashed
Sonic Unleashed is pretty divisive among members of the Sonic fanbase, although when it comes to speedrunners, most are in agreement that it demands a high degree of skill and memorization. Some of the stages are incredibly long, it's full of intricate skips and players will also need to improve their combat skills if they want to push for the top spots on the leaderboards.
Completing the entire game can be achieved in a little over two hours, although it's perhaps better for new runners to focus on the All Day Stages category when they're first starting out. There aren't too many variables to worry about here, so it's a great place to begin and really get to grips with the game's core mechanics.
3 Sonic 3 & Knuckles
Sonic 3 & Knuckles isn't the most forgiving of Sonic games when it comes to speedrunning, but it is one of the most rewarding. Many still consider it to be the best 2D Sonic game ever made and while that's perhaps a matter for debate, there can be no denying that it's a lot of fun. There's also a fairly high skill ceiling, allowing players to grow and improve as they play.
There aren't too many people submitting runs for the game at the moment, which can be something of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, simply submitting a complete run will guarantee players a spot in the top ten in all but a few categories. It does mean, however, that there's not too much information available for those looking to push their runs to the next level.
2 Sonic The Hedgehog
The very first Sonic game is perhaps one of the most difficult to run, owing to the fact that there is no way to instantly increase Sonic's speed. A high amount of skill is therefore required, meaning that runners will actually need to get better at the game to improve their run times rather than simply memorizing enemy positions and strategies.
The very best runners can complete a glitchless main story run of Sonic the Hedgehog in under 20 minutes. Granted, those just starting out will likely require quite a bit more time than that, but not to the point where a single mistake is ever going to cost them hours of playtime. The game's not overly competitive either, so climbing the leaderboards is definitely possible with enough practice.
1 Sonic Adventure 2
Sonic Adventure 2 is by far the most competitive 3D Sonic game when it comes to speedrunning, and for very good reason. There are six main full game categories, with most typically taking one hour or less to complete. All Stories runs will take longer though, as too will attempts to collect all 180 emblems. As a result, the individual story campaigns are an excellent place for new runners to start.
A competitive game may not seem like a good recommendation for beginners at first glance, but there are a lot of advantages to taking on a game with a lot of people running it. For one thing, routes and strategies for each stage have already been finely tuned and optimized, while the competitive nature of some of the categories can also really help runners to push themselves to the next level.