Editing Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) (section)

===Background and conception===
During the late 1980s, [[Sega]] had limited success with the [[Sega Mega Drive]] ports of its games for [[arcade system]]s. Regardless, they sought a stronger foothold against its main competitor, [[Nintendo]].<ref name="lame title">{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/features/essential-50-sonic|title=Sonic Boom|last=Kennedy|first=Sam|publisher=[[Wikipedia:1Up.com|1Up.com]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604011401/http://www.1up.com/features/essential-50-sonic|archivedate=4 June 2011|accessdate=24 September 2014}}</ref> Earlier on, in 1988, [[Sega|Sega of Japan]] started an in-house competition to find a character that could stand his ground against Nintendo's [[Mario]]<ref name="megatech">{{cite journal|title=Sonic: A brief history|journal=[[Wikipedia:MegaTech|MegaTech]]|date=20 January 1994|issue=No. 26|page=24|url=https://archive.org/details/mega-tech-26/page/24/mode/2up}}</ref> in a game capable of selling more than 1,000,000 copies. This led to both programmers and designers at Sega specifically working on a brand new character to rival Mario for the next three years.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Feature: When did you get yours?|journal=[[Wikipedia:Mega (magazine)|Mega]]|date=December 1992|issue=4|pages=16–20|url=https://retrocdn.net/images/1/14/Mega_UK_03.pdf#page=18}}</ref> Eventually, in 1990, Sega ordered its [[Wikipedia:List of Sega software development studios|in-house development studio]] to develop a game that involved a mascot for their company.<ref name="alive">{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/01/27/sonic-the-hedgehog-vc-review|publisher=[[Wikipedia:IGN|IGN]]|last=Thomas|first=Lucas M.|date=20 January 2007|title=Sonic the Hedgehog VC Review|accessdate=23 February 2014}}</ref><ref name="retro">{{cite journal|journal=[[Wikipedia:Retro Gamer|Retro Gamer]]|issue=100|date=February 2012|title=The Making of Sonic the Hedgehog|pages=46–49|location=Bournemouth|publisher=[[Wikipedia:Imagine Publishing|Imagine Publishing]]|issn=1742-3155}}</ref> Sega wanted a character to compete with Nintendo's flagship mascot Mario; Sega president [[Hayao Nakayama]] in particular wanted a character as iconic as [[Wikipedia:Mickey Mouse|Mickey Mouse]].<ref name="lame title"/> Sega had previously used [[Alex Kidd]] as their own flagship mascot during the Sega Master System era, but because he was considered too similar to Mario, he was deemed unsatisfactory.<ref name="alive"/>

[[File:Sonic1earlyconcept.jpg|thumb|225px|Early drafts of a game called "''Twin Stars''" that would evolve into ''Sonic the Hedgehog'', by [[Naoto Ohshima]]. The two boys with red and blue hair are twin brothers and the protagonists of this game, while the character in the background is a villain called "[[Thirteen]]".<ref name="TwinStars">{{Cite web |url=https://twitter.com/NaotoOhshima/status/1616849524710068227 |title= Action game draft |work=Twitter |publisher=@NaotoOhshima |date=21 January 2023 |accessdate=21 January 2023 |quote='''[[Naoto Ohshima]]''': I made a draft of the game. An action game about twin brothers who protect the dream world from Nightmare World's boss 'Thirteen'. It evolved into Sonic. 私はゲーム原案書を作った。 ナイトメア世界のボス「サーティーン」から夢の世界を守る双子のアクションゲーム。 ソニックに進化した}}</ref>]]
Over time, the team at Sega would develop ideas for characters, an [[Wikipedia:game engine|engine]], and gameplay mechanics. Various characters were proposed to star the game. These included a wolf, a bulldog, a robot, and a warrior character. Around 1989, [[Naoto Ohshima]] also made a concept of a game called "'''''Twin Stars'''''", which saw two brothers protecting a dream world from a dimension known as the "Nightmare World" and a villain called "[[Thirteen]]", who was called that because of the number being [[Wikipedia:13 (number)#Luck|associated]] with misfortune. While this concept was scrapped, aspects such as the smooth terrain, the [[loop]]s, and the speed remained.<ref name="TwinStars"/>