My Blue Obsession

James Stanfield

Obsessions. Most people have at least one. It’s something they go home and enjoy after a long, and perhaps tough day at school or work. While I don’t normally talk about mine with people other than long-time friends, there is one thing that I am extremely obsessed with. Without it, I have absolutely no clue where I would be as a human. Anyone want to take a guess?

Sonic the Hedgehog. The fictional, blue, anthropomorphic hedgehog.

The games. The music. The stories. Allow me to go into a bit more detail.

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Sonic games have a unique characteristic in that they reward you for carrying as much speed as possible. Since the start, the games have included a timer that counts how long you take to finish a level. Sonic Heroes kept a record of your fastest time. This was the birth of my interest in “speedrunning,” or finishing an objective in a video game as fast as possible. Besides playing the games themselves, this is one of my longest running sub-hobbies. When I have, or had, free time, taking the time out of my day to play through my favorite stages or games as fast as I can is one that I always go back to. I did just that recently.

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During the weeks prior to the fall semester, I had set a goal that I was going to speedrun through 2011’s Sonic Generations, my favorite game of all time, in less than 80 minutes. My fastest completion before Aug. 11 was one hour and 22 minutes.

It’s 1:30 A.M. on August 11. The thermometer said 66. I wouldn’t have known if it wasn’t for its display. I was so tired, numb from the cold, eyes dryer than the desert and wanting to close.

I started the grind session at 9 P.M. on August 10. Two runs died an hour in, and one finished slightly ahead of my personal best. That wasn’t enough for me. I started my fourth run.

“This is the one.” I fought my lackluster endurance for over an hour, playing the best I had ever recorded. I fought my bad luck, which didn’t rear its ugly head into the run. I fought my muscles, using every bit of nerve I had left to remember the right buttons to push at the right times.

I won the war. One hour, 16 minutes, and 11 seconds.

“IT’S OVER!” I screamed. It was 3 A.M. I had no regard for the ones in my house sleeping or even my neighbors. I set a goal that I thought would take months to beat and destroyed it in a matter of days.

One character I like has the mindset of not giving up no matter the challenge and going about things his way. This was the same mindset I had when pushing myself to beat this goal. This is the same mindset you could apply to many of the challenges you take on. School, a tough task at your job, anything. You never know where that level of determination will take you until you make it. I didn’t know how high I would place on the leaderboards when I finished. When I did, I rounded off the top 20.

The ending credits melody capped off the performance that I had just concluded. It was a story I couldn’t write better.

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Music. You listen to it in your car, you listen to it while writing. The themes and soundtracks from the Sonic series influenced my decision to become a musician. Themes such as The World Adventure from Sonic Unleashed drove me to some of the best experiences in my life. I was able to perform Festival Disney with the NSU Middle Lab orchestra and the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. with the Natchitoches Central High School orchestra. The music adds to the game. But then, there is the story.

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If your game is story driven and it isn’t good, it doesn’t matter. But, if you have a simple story, tell it in a great way. If you have a silly story, go all out in telling it. A great example of this is 2008’s Sonic Unleashed, a simple, silly story told by master storytellers and presented in an absolutely stunning way with supporting visuals, soundtrack, and a cast that brings so much energy and emotion to their characters.

When I got Sonic Unleashed, I sat and watched the opening cutscene of the game. At the beginning, I was so happy to see my favorite blue hedgehog kicking ass. By the end of it, I was crying because the tables turned in a dramatic way. Sonic was tortured in his semi-invulnerable form and defeated (for now).

Later into the game, a scene occurs where Sonic and this game’s supporting protagonist, Chip, have a talk overlooking a sunset. They talk about what Chip’s character is. He’s the opposite of this game’s version of the devil, Dark Gaia. After Sonic was defeated, Dark Gaia is unleashed onto the planet, and starts affecting everyone’s minds. Sonic, now knowing who Chip is, says that Chip must be the reason his mind wasn’t affected.

It wasn’t.

“I haven’t done anything, Sonic. You’re the reason you haven’t changed at all. You’re too strong to lose yourself!” Chip tells Sonic. “You never doubt yourself, no matter what. You never give in to the night, or to the darkness inside your heart.”

This was the second time this game made me cry in almost 13 years.

It took me that long to realize that the story was about not forgetting who you are and staying true to yourself in the face of serious trials, pain, and darkness. While watching this scene, it made me think about all the things that have happened in my life that required me to stay true to myself and not give in to darkness. It wasn’t just tears of sadness; it was also tears of joy.

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So, is my love for Sonic the Hedgehog truly an obsession, or is it a passion?

In my view, obsessions have a negative connotation. Being passionate about something means that you find inspiration, or joy in it during the toughest times in your life.

When I’m down, I’ll listen to one of the series’ many selections of music. When I’m bored, I’ll launch one of the games and forget about the world for an hour. When I’m with close friends, we converse about series lore and other topics, and some of our best inside jokes come from these conversations.

I am passionate about Sonic the Hedgehog. I am happier with a fictional, blue, anthropomorphic hedgehog in my life than I would be without it. I have done things not many people get to do because of his influence on my life.

Tony Renteria, former columnist for The Current Sauce, NSU alumni, and a good friend of mine, was talking with me about some of the things that inspire who he is as an online content creator. The words he said during that 2 A.M. conversation will stick with me for a long time.

“I wear my inspirations like a badge of honor.”

It got me to thinking, why did I ever feel ashamed or scared to admit what I’m passionate about to people?

Maybe the answer to that question is not important. I’m ready to wear that badge of honor. You should wear yours, too.