Piko Piko Hammer


 * For the use of objects with the same name, please see Piko Piko Hammer (disambiguation).

The Piko Piko Hammer (ピコピコハンマー) is Amy Rose's signature weapon. It is a large yellow and red hammer that Amy mainly uses in combat to crush her enemies, perform better movements on her behalf, or execute special techniques.

Concept and Creation
The Piko Piko Hammer was originally based on a popular Japanese children's toy of the same name. The phrase "piko-piko" is an onomatopoeia for the chirping sound that these hammers make when struck (which can also be heard in several games when Amy attacks).

The Piko Piko Hammer made its first appearance in Sonic the Fighters, in which Amy used it as a part of her combat moves. She was given the hammer as a weapon in order to strengthen her tomboyish nature (note that this is also the reason why she is a playable character in the game). As a result, she does not punch.

Appearance
The Piko Piko Hammer mostly resembles that of a sledgehammer or a mallet. Originally, the Piko Piko Hammer looked perfectly a real-life Piko Piko Hammer, having a red center head with flexible yellow ends, and a pink handle attached to the head. In Sonic Adventure, the Piko Piko Hammer received an updated design, where it was given a larger head in the shape of a red cylinder with raised rectangular sections on the midsection of the head, a solid yellow dishes on the ends, and a brown handle attached to the head.

From Sonic Adventure onward, the Piko Piko Hammer has mostly maintained a consistent design, though the raised rectangular sections on the midsection of the head have since then been removed from it and have only been seen on the Piko Piko Hammer in a few games since then (in Sonic Rush they were also colored yellow). Also, in Sonic Adventure 2: Battle and Sonic Heroes, the head of the Piko Piko Hammer has the opposite color scheme, having red ends with a yellow center instead of yellow ends with a red center.

The size of the Piko Piko Hammer varies between some games. In most cases, the Piko Piko Hammer is slightly bigger than Amy's head, while in some other games it can be much larger, such as in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing where the Piko Piko Hammer is much larger than the Pink Cabriolet when Amy uses it as a part of her All-Star Move.

Traits
Despite its colorful and innocent appearance, the Piko Piko Hammer is a highly powerful weapon, being durable enough to repeatedly smash clean through armored robots and yet graceful enough to be used in a variety of moves at high speed. Even powerful characters, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, is filled with dread when Amy threatens them with the Piko Piko Hammer, hinting the height of power and danger that this weapon possesses in Amy's hands. When Amy not using it, the Piko Piko Hammer is hid away in a hiding spot that remains unknown to this day, but she can pull it out of nowhere when she needs it on a moment's notice.

Usage
The Piko Piko Hammer is mainly used by Amy in combat and is a vital part of her Hammer Attack techniques. In battle, Amy uses the Piko Piko Hammer to either knock others away and far into the air, or bring its entire weight down on enemies in a downward swing, crushing her opponents with devastating force. By spinning around with the Piko Piko Hammer, Amy can turn herself into a top that mows down everything in her path, or even stir up whirlwinds to send opponents flying. Also, by slamming it into the ground with enough force, the Piko Piko Hammer can generate huge shock waves. It is also used by Amy to mimic Spin Attack maneuvers, such as the Spin Jump.

Besides combat, the Piko Piko Hammer is also used by Amy to improve upon her own movements. By hammering the Piko Piko Hammer into the ground, Amy can use the released force to give herself extra high jumps, and by spinning it around like a helicopter rotor, she is able to briefly fly through midair.

When not using it directly, Amy is able to strike fear into other characters by displaying strength and fury with her Piko Piko Hammer.

Variants
Throughout the Sonic the Hedgehog series, other types of Piko Piko Hammers besides Amy's regular hammer has appeared. These Piko Piko Hammers differs between each in appearance, and can possess traits unique to them.

In Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut, Amy can obtain an Upgrade called the Long Hammer, which is an upgraded version of her regular Piko Piko Hammer, by clearing a Whack-a-mole minigame in the Egg Carrier Adventure Field. This Piko Piko Hammer increases the radius of Amy's attacks.

In Sonic Advance 3, when selecting Amy as the leader or the sidekick, her partner will obtain a uniquely stylized Piko Piko Hammer, allowing them to use the Hammer Attack.

As seen some game, Amy is shown to posses a much larger Piko Piko Hammer besides her regular one. In Sonic Advance 3, Amy can use this Piko Piko Hammer as a part of her Big Hammer Attack when having Knuckles the Echidna as her leader or sidekick, allowing her to attack with much more power. This Piko Piko Hammer reappeared again during the credits of Sonic's story in Sonic Rush when Amy was chasing after Sonic.

Archie Comics
The Piko Piko Hammer appears in the Archie Comics' Sonic the Hedgehog and its subsequent spin-offs as Amy Rose's signature weapon. It features the same design it had in Sonic Adventure.

In the comics, the Piko Piko Hammer was created as a by-product of Amy's usage of the Ring of Acorns. After absorbing the Ring of Acorns's power to make herself older, Amy additionally obtained limited wish-granting abilities that allows her to wish forth the Piko Piko Hammer whenever she wants. However, it was not only until after she first arrived in the Station Square that she discovered her ability to wield it.

Since discovering it, the Piko Piko Hammer has become Amy's most trusted asset in battle, and she has incredible proficiency in wielding it. The Piko Piko Hammer is as well a powerful and durable melee weapon, though it is not quite indestructible.

Sonic X
The Piko Piko Hammer appeared in animated television show Sonic X and the following comic series of the same name published by Archie Comics as Amy Rose's signature weapon. It also features the same design it had in Sonic Adventure.

Like in the games, the Piko Piko Hammer is Amy's personal weapon that she is able to inexplicably pull out of thin air. As seen in A New Start, Amy appears to have an inexhaustible supply of Piko Piko Hammers, seeing that she was able to conjure up another Piko Piko Hammer out of nowhere by just by waving her hand after she had thrown her first one into Dr. Eggman's Grand Egg Imperial.

In the comics, it is suggested that Amy has some sort of connection to her Piko Piko Hammers. In Sonic X #10, when Amy, Sonic, Knuckles, Tails and Rouge were trapped in a virtual reality by Eggman, Amy said that she could not "feel" her hammer while she was within the illusion.

Trivia

 * In Tails Adventure, the "Hammer" weapon is known as the Pikon Hammer (ピッコンハンマー) when the Game Gear is set to Japanese. This can be though of as a prototype of the Piko Piko Hammer, as it predates its first official appearance.
 * In Sonic Advance 2, there is a Badnik called Piko Piko, which wields a toy hammer similar to Amy's.
 * The Piko Piko Hammer has an anti-counterpart used by Rosy the Rascal called the Anti Piko Piko Hammer.
 * It has been stated that Amy battles enemies with her hammer to impress Sonic or when in danger.
 * The only Sonic universe where Amy doesn't use her hammer as her favorite weapon is "Sonic the Comic", where she uses a bow or a crossbow instead.
 * In Sonic Unleashed, Amy's ability to use the huge hammer is underlined when defeating the boss of Shamar, the Dark Guardian. After the level is over, Sonic the Werehog exclaims "I know little girls that are better with a hammer than you are! Well, one, anyway."
 * Luigi's Squeaky Mallet in Mario Power Tennis/Power Tour looks like Amy's hammer, both being "toy hammers" of sorts.
 * An accessory of Amy's Piko Piko Hammer, made by Jazwares, was released in late-2012 along with Amy.
 * The Ultra Hammer from the Paper Mario series bears an uncanny resemblance to the Piko Piko Hammer.
 * It is unknown where Amy stores her hammer and where she pulls it out of for use. The question was even parodied in Sonic X and her trophy info in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
 * In Sonic the Fighters, Amy's hammer isn't referred to as the "Piko Piko Hammer" but the "Magical Hammer".
 * In some games, the hammer can be used to hit Springs, causing her to catapult quite a bit further, and can be used like a spring in Sonic Adventure and sometimes in the Sonic Advance games.
 * It is possible that Amy has different "versions" of Piko Piko Hammers, as seen in Sonic Heroes, where she uses the Air Hammer which utilizes the power of the wind. In Sonic Advance 3, she has a huge brown mallet when teamed up with Knuckles, and her normal red and yellow hammers.
 * Amy's hammer was mentioned in Sonic and the Black Knight in the final cutscene when Sonic says "Yikes! No Amy, wait! Put down that hammer!". Thus, in the multiplayer mode of the game, Amy is playable and instead of a sword, her weapon is a hammer.
 * Amy's hammer has been shown at time having the ability to randomly show pink hearts.
 * The Piko Piko Hammer's modern 3D model in mainstream games differs from the modern appearance shown in the comics, cartoon and some earlier spin-off games.
 * In Sonic Battle it is referred to as "Love Hammer".
 * The Piko Piko Hammer also appear in Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA 2nd in the accessories room. This accessory is unlocked if the player clears "サウンド"(Sound) in easy mode. It is also Rin Kagamine's favorite item as gift.
 * The Piko Piko Hammer is the most recurring weapon in the Sonic series, unless one counts Eggman's Egg Mobile as a weapon.
 * In Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, during a mission that can be given by Amy about Goombas being on a rampage, Amy says her Piko Piko Hammer has no effect on Goombas for some reason, which is ironic since, in the Mario series, Goombas are the basic enemies, which can usually be defeated by being stomped on or even by smashing them with a hammer.
 * Knuckles' Piko Piko Hammer in Sonic Advance 3 is the only variation of the hammer studded with a spike at the top.
 * It is also the only version that has anything extending past the head.