Sonic The Hedgehog is fast. In fact, that's kind of his whole gimmick. He runs fast, he talks fast, everything he does is at Mach speed. But, how fast is max fast for the fastest thing alive? Well, depends on who is currently writing the character. He's a kids mascot, and the complexity of in-universe analyzing his speed depends on the context. But, for the sake of consistency, we'd say that his max speed just about exceeds the speed of light. But, what about other speedsters in video games? Who has the potential to outrun the blue blur at his best? There are few that can and many that can't, and we'd like to look a bit deeper into both sides.
10 Faster Than: Samus Aran From The Metroid Series
For this article, we tried to pick characters that were known for their speed. It kind of deflates the thesis statement if we picked slow characters for all the ones Sonic is "faster than" you know? So yeah, no Slowpoke or Bowser on this list. But, one Nintendo icon that is known for their speed-based ability is Samus Aran, the renowned Bounty Hunter. Samus isn't all about speed but one of her best abilities is her Shine Spark where she builds up enough speed to activate it and charge through whatever is in her way. It's a fun power to use and looks great visually, but has little chance of coming close to Sonic at jogging speed.
9 Slower Than: The Flash From Injustice 1 & 2
Sonic's top speed only really gets ridiculous when it comes to the Archie comics, or at least it seems so. Comic book writers like to explore every aspect of the characters' powers and take them to their upper limit. But, there is one sonic-speed superhero who has been through the wringer of comic book exaggerations, and that's The Flash. DC's poster boy runner, The Flash can outrun Death itself. And luckily, since he appears in both the Injustice games (and maybe the third), he absolutely works as a game character that could run laps around this little hedgehog.
8 Faster Than: Nintendo's Mascot Mario
This shouldn't even be a question, yet there are a series of games that put these two in the same Track & Field competition. Sonic and Mario at the Olympics are some neat games, probably one of the weirder crossovers, but still, cool nonetheless. But, there should be absolutely no way Mario could ever beat Sonic in a relay race or the 100-meter dash.
Heck, anything that uses your feet Sonic should win at. We get that Mario is known for his jumping ability, but the Plumber is pudgy and speed contributes to distance and momentum much more than innate ability does.
7 Slower Than: Zell From Final Fantasy 8
Okay, this entry is pretty dumb, we admit it, but only because it's such a hyper-specific inclusion. Zell from Final Fantasy 8 isn't exactly known purely for his speed. The guy is a martial artist and primarily uses his fists in a fight. So, yeah, he's pretty strong. And, punches and martial arts are the two factors most people think of when this tattooed anime fact pops into their heads. But, Zell also uses the Duel system in-game, where he can unleash a variety of moves based on the button combination pressed. And, his final one, called My Final Heaven, shows him gather energy and then run around the entire globe in a second or two before he unleashes a devastating punch. Again, he runs the entirety of the planet, and while Sonic has been shown to do that, it doesn't seem like something the Blue Hedgehog can do consistently.
6 Faster Than: Kabal From Mortal Kombat
We mentioned Mortal Kombat earlier and it feels like now is the time to go a bit more into what we meant. Kabal is the trademark "fast kid" in Mortal Kombat, though he can't seem to outrun his dark past or those awful pigtails.
Kabal isn't a great guy, but he has great running form, and he's always fun to play as. But, he's superhuman levels of fast, not super-duper human. Sonic is at the very least super-duper if not cosmic deity levels of quick, so obviously this Black Market Mercenary isn't catching the Blue Blur anytime soon.
5 Slower Than: Sam Gideon From Vanquish
Alright alright, maybe Sam Gideon from Vanquish (one of Platinum Games best titles) isn't faster than Sonic, but in a race, he'd sure be able to beat him. Sam's Augmented Reaction Suit or ARS is fantastic. It gives the user superhuman strength, speed, defense, and reaction time. And, once the limiters are released, these benefits are increased by an exponential amount. Basically, while limitless max speed Sam couldn't compare with Sonic, he'd be able to keep up and win in a fight. The bullet-time the suit gives him is similar to the frozen-time ability Sonic showed in the recent live-action film, and his strength while wearing it is much greater. If Sam was allowed to trip or even fight Sonic while racing him, he'd almost assuredly win.
4 Faster Than: Faith From Mirrors Edge
Faith from Mirrors Edge is fast for a normal human. In fact, she's one of the most dexterous and speedy humans in a realistic setting. And, if speedrun versions of characters were applicable for this article, she might even be faster than Sonic. But, by default, Faith speed peaks out at something still within the human realm of ability. But, if it was a race in a Parkour-esque concrete Jungle, even we wouldn't be sure who the winner would be. as runner vision shouldn't be underestimated.
3 Slower Than: Jimmy/Fastpass From South Park: Fractured But Whole
Jimmy Valmer from South Park has a secret of his own, and that secret is the fact that he's actually the Superhero Fastpass! Fastpass is the Flash-homage hero from the South Park: Fractured But Whole game, and he's real dang fast. Obviously, his speed is a dark-humor play on the fact that Jimmy has Cerebral Palsy that affects his legs and requires him to move slow and rely on crutches.
But, when he's Fastpass, his speed is unmatched! In particular, using his Ultimate Attack in Fracture But Whole shows him running around the entire globe twice in just a few seconds, giving Sonic a run for his money.
2 Faster Than: The Mail Man From The Legend Of Zelda
We wanted to include at least one character from the Legend of Zelda series, namely because they're known for being fast to Speedrun, and also because of their trademark bunny ear item that made it into Super Smash Bros. But, upon doing our research, we had a hard time figuring out who to pick. Do we choose Darmani III the Goron, who was the Goron Mask In Majora's Mask? Do we pick the Bunny Mask itself, which causes Link to run at a much faster pace? No, the right answer is the Post Man, a reoccurring character from Multiple LoZ games that always takes pride in his absurdly fast running speed. Of course, this oddly-dressed dude can't outrun Sonic, but we're sure he'd at least try his best.
1 Slower Than: Kirby On A Warpstar
And finally, we'll end on a character faster than Sonic that no one would probably expect, Kirby. Kirby is a character beloved by many, and one loved even more by Masahiro Sakurai himself, the creator of the Smash Bros. games. If you deep dive into Kirby Lore, you'll find that this pink blob is more than it appears, in every sense of the word. But, what you might not know is that Kirby on his trademarked Warp Star is absolutely faster than Sonic. Leaving aside the fact that it moves faster than light, we know that it goes faster simply because, in the opening to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Sonic gets caught by the beams of light and Kirby doesn't! Case closed.