The video game Sonic the Hedgehog was created by Sega in 1991, meant to rival the Mario franchise. The game was designed by Naoto Ohshima, Yuji Naka, and Hirokazu Yasuhara, with Naoto who designed the character himself, Yuji who developed the speedy gameplay, and Hirokazu who created the level designs. In development there were concepts where he was a rabbit, wolf, and even an old guy with a mustache, who, if you don’t recognize that, later became the game’s antagonist, Dr. Eggman, and then it was finally settled that Sonic would be a hedgehog for his ability to curl into a spiky ball as an attack. His look itself was meant to be a blend of japanese and american styles, his color (blue) matching the Sega logo, and his shoes inspired by none other than Michael Jackson! Sonic first appeared as a decoration in 1990 in the game Radmobile, and then finally his own game in 1991.
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