Editing Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) (section)

==Promotional==
When it came to the packaging and release, game-package illustrator Akira Watanabe stated that his goal was to make the characters "colorful", using clear lines and [[Wikipedia:Gradation (art)|gradation]] to "finish them neatly".<ref name="Sega illustrations">{{cite book|title=Sega Video Game Illustrations|year=1994|publisher=Nippon Shuppan Hanbai (Deutschland) GmbH|isbn=3-910052-50-9}}</ref> According to Watanabe, the developers asked him to create a package design "similar to pop art;... without being particular to conventional packages" – something "original" and "stylish".<ref name="Sega illustrations"/> However, the game was not revealed until the January 1991 International [[Wikipedia:Consumer Electronics Show|Consumer Electronics Show]] because Sega wanted to wait until the right time and because they saw an opportunity to "steal the show". At the show, ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' was believed to be the most impressive game shown, and won the CES award for innovation.<ref name="Zone2">{{cite book|title=The History Of Sonic the Hedgehog|date=2013|publisher=UDON Entertainment Corp|location=Ontario|isbn=978-1-926778-96-9|pages=34–41|chapter=Zone 2 A New Face In The Magazines|editor=Les Editions Pix'n Love}}</ref>

Sega of America CEO [[Tom Kalinske]] wanted reassurance that ''Sonic'' would not fail. The global head of marketing, Al Nilsen, became involved, and play-tested the game across the United States with ''Mario'' fans: they were shown ''Mario'' and then played ''Sonic the Hedgehog''. Ultimately, 80 percent preferred ''Sonic the Hedgehog'', and the game was shown at the 1991 Summer Consumer Electronics Show.<ref name="Blur">{{cite book|last=Stuart|first=Keith|editor-last=Wall|editor-first=Darren|title=Sega Mega Drive/Genesis Collected Works|year=2014|publisher=Read-Only Memory|isbn=978-0-9575768-1-0|pages=20–24|chapter=The Blue Blur}}</ref> Eventually, ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' was released in North America on 23 June 1991,<ref name="edge"/> and in [[Wikipedia:PAL region|PAL regions]] and Japan the following month.<ref name="mean">{{Cite journal|last1=Leadbetter|first1=Rich|first2=Paul|last2=Glancey|date=July 1991|url=http://www.meanmachinesmag.co.uk/review/152/sonic-the-hedgehog.php|title=Mega Drive Review: Sonic the Hedgehog|journal=[[Wikipedia:Mean Machines|Mean Machines]]|issue=10|pages=42–44|issn=0960-4952|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305061318/http://www.meanmachinesmag.co.uk/review/152/sonic-the-hedgehog.php|archivedate=5 March 2016|accessdate=9 February 2012}}</ref><ref name="Mega Drive Master List – Sega">{{cite web|publisher=[[Sega]]|url=http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/md/soft.html|title=<nowiki>[</nowiki>セガハード大百科<nowiki>]</nowiki> メガドライブ対応ソフトウェア（セガ発売|language=Japanese|accessdate=18 December 2015|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121124020335/http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/md/soft.html|archivedate=24 November 2012}}</ref> In November 1991, Sega of America [[Wikipedia:Pack-in game|packaged it with]] American Genesis consoles,<ref name="Chicago">{{cite web|last=Lynch|first=Dennis|title=Super NES, Sega Genesis in 16-bit duel|url=https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/clip/78009949/super-nes-sega-genesis-in-16-bit-duel/|accessdate=8 September 2021|publisher=[[Wikipedia:Chicago Tribune|Chicago Tribune]]|date=29 November 1991}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=puMDAAAAMBAJ&q=sonic+the+hedgehog&pg=PA76|title=Games for Grown-Ups: Speedy sprites|journal=[[Wikipedia:Popular Mechanics|Popular Mechanics]]|issue=168|publisher=Hearst Magazines|date=December 1991|page=76|accessdate=3 January 2017}}</ref> replacing ''[[Wikipedia:Altered Beast|Altered Beast]]''. This tactic enabled Sega of America to sell fifteen million Sega Genesis units.<ref name="Zone2"/> Genesis owners who bought their consoles before the switch could request free copies of ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' by mail.<ref name="edge"/> Sega of America created a marketing campaign, making Sonic its new mascot.<ref name="retro"/>