Knuckles the Echidna

"I'll probably be on this floating island forever, guarding the Master Emerald again. I may not know the whole story behind this, but perhaps it's better that way."

- Knuckles the Echidna


 * Knuckles redirects here. For other meanings of the word, see Knuckles (disambiguation)

Knuckles the Echidna (ナックルズ・ザ・エキドゥナ) is a red 16-year-old anthropomorphic echidna, who is both physically powerful and highly resilient. He has a white crescent symbol on his chest.

Knuckles' name is derived from the four knuckles, two on each hand, which are actually sharp spikes. According to official Sonic Team polls, Knuckles is the fourth most popular character in the series, behind Tails, Shadow and Sonic.

His first game appearance was in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, released on February 2, 1994 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. He was described as being 15 years old when he made his debut, but since Sonic Adventure, he is now given the age of 16. Knuckles has two spikes on each hand, and his dominant trait is his strength and that can be used to dig. He can also glide by trapping air under his dreadlocks, can climb up walls with ease, and is very skilled at a wide variety of martial art forms.

Conception and creation
During conception of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the development team wanted to create a new rival for Sonic. The final design of Knuckles was the result of dozens of possible designs inspired by numerous different animals. The emphasis of the character was to break walls. Knuckles shoes were based on the Jamaican flag, like how Sonic's shoes were probably based on the American flag.

First Encounter with Sonic
Knuckles lives on Angel Island, which hovers in the sky thanks to the power of the Master Emerald, which he is charged with guarding. Knuckles is the last surviving member of the Echidna people who once inhabited the island, though it is later revealed that he is not the last of his species entirely. Due to his rather remote location and the fact that he rarely strays far from his duty, Knuckles is often alone, and as thus can be quite distrusting, but on the other side, he is often naive, which lends to his gullibility. One example of this gullibility is the belief that he held throughout Sonic the Hedgehog 3 that Sonic and Tails were attempting to steal the Master Emerald and that the infamous mad scientist Dr. Robotnik was trying to protect it.

Dr. Robotnik, of course, had lied to Knuckles, and was planning on using the emerald to power his space station, the Death Egg. In the Hidden Palace Zone, Robotnik's betrayal was revealed to him very bluntly, as Dr. Robotnik had broken into the Master Emerald chamber. After an altercation with Sonic, and then witnessing Robotnik stealing the Master Emerald, Knuckles attempts to reclaim it. Knuckles gets electrocuted by Robotnik, and after he recovered, he realized that Sonic was on his side. He aided Sonic by granting him passage to a teleporter that would lead them the the Sky Sanctuary, by smashing walls that blocked a transporter module. After teleporting to the location, he then activated the bridge that allowed Sonic to continue farther, but was unable to provide any more assistance due to exhaustion. After the Death Egg was destroyed and the Master Emerald was secured, Knuckles saw Sonic and Tails off, presumably feeling gratitude.

Unfortunately for Knuckles, the peace did not last for very long, as a surviving EggRobo from the Sky Sanctuary managed to ambush the echidna while he relaxing with his animal friends. It turned out that the robot was working with Mecha Sonic&mdash;who survived Sonic's earlier battle with it&mdash;in an attempt to capture Knuckles, and presumably use the Master Emerald for their own ends. However, right after being captured by the EggRobo, Knuckles managed to evade Mecha Sonic's attack at the last second, resulting in EggRobo's destruction, and he then fought against Mecha Sonic. He managed to briefly defeat it, but Mecha Sonic reactivated and then used the Master Emerald to power up to its super form. Knuckles eventually managed to defeat Mecha Sonic in the ensuing battle and save the Master Emerald, with Sonic saving him when Sky Sanctuary was destroyed along with Mecha Sonic.

Joining the Team
Knuckles then joined Sonic and Tails in their quest to stop the villain. Knuckles has been a (sometimes reluctant) friend to Sonic and Tails since then, sharing many of their adventures, getting tricked by Dr. Eggman, and catching the thieving eye of a certain bat named Rouge, who tries to steal the Master Emerald, for herself (Sonic Adventure 2).

Knuckles has a variety of different costumes in the game.

Having His Own Game
Aside from appearances in the main Sonic series, Knuckles featured prominently in Knuckles Chaotix, a relatively unknown spin-off title developed for Sega 32X. The game also introduced Team Chaotix, a group of comical misfits.

Super Transformation Revealed
In Sonic & Knuckles/Sonic 3 & Knuckles/Knuckles in Sonic 2, Knuckles is able to use the Chaos Emeralds to go Super, changing into Super Knuckles. In Sonic 3 & Knuckles, he is able to use the Super Emeralds to change into Hyper Knuckles.

Steel-Fisted Hero
Knuckles appears as a playable character in Sonic Heroes, as the power member of Team Sonic. Knuckles along with Sonic and Tails chased Dr. Eggman throughout the world in an attempt to prevent him from using his new "ultimate weapon". However, at the Final Fortress they met with Team Dark, Team Chaotix and Team Rose and found out that Metal Sonic was the real mastermind behind the plot, who had locked the real Eggman in a cell and impersonated him all the time. The other teams gave their Chaos Emeralds to them and distracted Metal Sonic, who had transformed into Metal Madness, while Team Sonic use the Chaos Emeralds to turn sonic into Super Sonic, also resulting in Tails and Knuckles gaining a ball type flame shield. Then they set off to the skies to fight against Metal Sonic, After Metal Sonic was defeated Knuckles watches Amy chase after Sonic and states "Sonic sure has his hands full", just as Rouge passes him saying she will look for more treasure which he disagrees to and chases her. Knuckles is last seen running with Sonic and Tails as they head off to find a new adventure.

Dealing with Shadow
In Shadow the Hedgehog, he helps out in the Glyphic Canyon, Central City and the Black Comet stage in which the player can choose to help him get to the Center of the Comet so that he can attempt to destroy it with his bare hands. He also appears in the Black Comet Egg Dealer boss battle. He appears in the Last Story cutscenes and is the first to be paralyzed by Black Doom.

No Longer the Last
He has an important part to play in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood for the Nintendo DS, in which he encounters an extant tribe of Echidnas (the Nocturnus Tribe) who had warred with his people (the Knuckles Clan Echidnas) in ancient times. On Voxai Colony Alpha like the rest of team he is under the Overmind's control saying the following "Must protect Overmind" until he is freed. When Knuckles gets captured by Ix the history of the Nocturnus Clan is revealed. At first it seems like Knuckles is going to join Ix but declines, saying that he stole the Master Emerald, that it does not belong to him and he will find a way to help Shade's Clan his own way before fighting Ix. In the game, Knuckles is a playable character, although he is not available for the second to final battle (he is containing the power of the Master Emerald, and in the final battle it's Super Sonic versus Super Ix). He is of the Power Class, which means that he can hit hard and pierce armor. He also has a wide range of navigational skills, as he retains the ability to glide, climb and destroy obstacles from previous games. He is the second strongest and has the second highest defense in the game, losing both titles to E-123 Omega.

My Alternate Arabian Sailor Self
In Sonic and the Secret Rings, Knuckles took on the persona of Sinbad the Sailor from Arabian Nights. He is sought out by Sonic and Shahra as they need his help to stop the Ifrit Golem, one of the Erazor Djinn monsters. After freeing him from his prison, he tells them they can use his water blue World Ring to weaken the Ifrit Golem, but they had to take it back of the band of pirates who stole it from him. He is last seen following Sonic on his last adventures through the Arabian Nights as Sonic sought out a way to return home. He also appeared as a playable character in Party Mode.

The Ambidextrous Knight
Knuckles is in Sonic & the Black Knight. He is portrayed as Sir Gawain of the Knights of the Round Table, and uses the Galatine, two swords. He is guarding the cave when Sonic approaches him. Gawain thinks he is stealing the Dragon's treasure and attacks. After being defeated, he attempts suicide to avenge his honor since he failed his king's orders, but Sonic asks him if there is more to being a Knight than serving a king. He later helps with stopping Merlina's corruption of the Kingdom. Other than looking like Knuckles, Sir Gawain seems quite gullible like Knuckles originally was, and defends the dragon's treasure, a parallel to Knuckles because he defends the Master Emerald. His Soul Surge is Gail Meteor.

Hot on Blaze
In Sonic Rush, he had a few minor appearances. The first was when Cream introduced him to Blaze. He got the wrong idea when Blaze told him that she didn't have any Chaos Emeralds (they were Sol Emeralds) and he attempted to attack her, but ended up being buried under some rocks. His second appearance was when he was saved by Sonic and Tails. He told them what happened and then got angry and destroyed the boulder allowing Sonic and Tails to continue on. The third appearance was when he caught up with Blaze wanting payback, but he was distracted by Amy long enough for Cream to fly Blaze away. The last appearance was when he was with the others. He had no hostile intentions towards Blaze at that time (implying that he had been informed about Blaze and why she was there). Knuckles joined the others in giving Blaze the support she needed to recharge the Sol Emeralds.

Colorful dis-respect
Knuckles is a supporting character in the DS version of Sonic Colors and his role mainly consisted of being antagonized and singled out by his own friends. He seen in a confrontation with Orbot and Cubot and then challenges Sonic to a race. After losing against Sonic, Knuckles talks to them. Tails asked him if Eggman tricked him into entering the Intergalactic Amusement Park. Knuckles denies this several times despite Sonic and Tails' skepticism. Knuckles is then seen again arguing with Rouge. Sonic cuts in and tells Knuckles to calm down. Knuckles yells saying that Rouge is always up to something. Rouge asks Knuckles if he got an invitation from Eggman, Knuckles replies that Eggman's invitation was about his amusement park and so that is why Knuckles in at his Interstellar Amusement Park. Rouge tells him that he did get tricked because that invitation was written by her. Rouge then runs off with Knuckles very irritated and Sonic trying to console him by saying that at least he wasn't tricked by Eggman but that did not make Knuckles feel any better.

Conforming Two Sonics
Knuckles appears in the console version of Sonic Generations. Knuckles and the others were celebrating Sonic's birthday party. Suddenly, the Time Eater captures him and ends up in Sky Sanctuary. If Classic Sonic rescues Knuckles, asks him if he "gained weight" as Classic Sonic rubs his stomach somewhat sadly in response. If Modern Sonic rescues Knuckles, he thanks him, but says he didn't need any help and states it's good to have his sanctuary back. In the Center of Time, he was alongside Amy encouraging both Sonics in their latest endeavor against both Classic and Modern Dr. Eggman. After they were defeated, Knuckles and the others returned back to the right time where they continue celebrating.

Knuckles also appears in a Green Hill mission where he races Classic Sonic and in a Sky Sanctuary mission where he digs up medals for Modern Sonic.

As a powerful athlete
Knuckles also appears in the game Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games. In the game he is a power-type character. His main rival is Wario. Knuckles signature move is the Screw Driver on the Wii and Spiral Uppercut for the DS version.

SEGA cameo
He also makes a cameo appearance in Sega Superstars Tennis in the Green Hill court, and in Super Smash Bros. Brawl (in the unlockable Green Hill Zone stage where he, Tails, and Silver run through the shuttle loop in the background).

A Real Power Racer
Knuckles appears as a playable character in the racing game Sonic &amp; SEGA All-Stars Racing. His All-Star Move is Emerald Power, which allows Knuckles to glide above the track and unleash an earthquake that stuns all opponents.

In the console versions, Knuckles is playable from the start, but in the iOS version, the user needs to pay 500,000 SEGA miles to play as him.

He returns as a racer once again in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, though he's changed his quad for a strange backward trike influenced by himself in this game.

Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie)
As in the games, the Archie Comics version of Knuckles is the guardian of the Master Emerald. However, in the Archie Comics, he is actually the latest in a long line of Guardians, collectively known as the Brotherhood of Guardians.

In the Archie Comics, the echidnas eventually returned from their mysterious disappearance (the only continuity in which they have done this en masse), and Knuckles was reunited not only with his people but his large family as well.

Knuckles has many enemies in this continuity, including the echidnas of the Dark Legion and the super-powerful Enerjak (an identity he was once brainwashed into assuming himself). He also has a long-standing love interest in the form of a former Dark Legionnaire Julie-Su, and the two of them have a daughter named Lara-Su in various alternate futures.

Many echidnas believe that Knuckles is a legendary Avatar, destined to deliver the world from suffering.

Fleetway's Sonic the Comic
In the UK publication Sonic the Comic, Knuckles is not only the guardian of the Master Emerald but the Chaos Emeralds and the Floating Island as well. Although he was duped by Doctor Robotnik during the comics adaptation of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, he remained skeptical enough to conceal the fact that he possessed the Grey Emerald, which could control the other Emeralds and which he eventually used to defeat Robotnik after being betrayed.

His uncertainty of the fate of his own people greatly affected him, even more so when the only other echidna he met (Doctor Zachary) proved to be a genocidal madman.

In this continuity, Knuckles was in fact over 8000 years old and had been the leader of the echidna armies under Pochacamac, fighting the Drakon Empire. However, he retained no memory of this, having presumably survived to the present day by being in suspended animation.

Sonic X
Knuckles first appears in Sonic X walking in the sewers of Station Square with Amy. He is also seen spending most of his time with Rouge.

Personality
Knuckles is honest, independent, short-tempered, headstrong, devoted to his duty and somewhat gullible. He is very serious and usually likes to be by himself, but can be relied upon to help out whenever the planet needs saving. In all versions of the Sonic universe Knuckles has a rivalry in some form with Sonic. This might however stem from the fact that he appears to be sometimes jealous of Sonic's independent nature and freedom.

Despite his rough and somewhat distrusting demeanor, Knuckles holds a strong belief in the good of others, but because of his lack of social ingenuity, it makes Knuckles very gullible and that of being easily tricked by Eggman into believing Sonic is the bad guy has become a recurring theme in the Sonic series, even to the point of being a running gag (particularly when Sonic shouts, "Way to go, Knucklehead!", or, "You let Eggman trick you again?!"). According to the Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity instruction booklet, he has gotten better about this and is more suspicious concerning Eggman's trickery. But despite this rivalry, he is always willing to help out his friends in situations. He is also shown to feel quite angered whenever he finds out that he's been tricked but quickly regains enough of his composure to immediately start working towards a resolution as evidenced by "Sonic and Knuckles" when he helps Sonic gain entrance to Sky Sanctuary and "Sonic Adventure" when he subdues Chaos 4 in his story.

Knuckles is relatively stubborn and is loyal to his duty, although he does go with Sonic and company to save the world far more often than his counterparts in other continuities. Knuckles is said to be shy around women in his bio in Sonic Jam, which is not consistent with the new games, but can be backed up by the way he acts awkwardly around girls like Amy, Blaze, and Rouge. Knuckles is simple-minded (but not necessarily dull witted), often choosing force to be the solution.

However, despite being a silent loner, Knuckles is also heroic and kind-hearted, as proven in Sonic Adventure 2 when Knuckles wanted to hunt Rouge down for stealing his Master Emerald. He finds her, and the two engage in a fight, during which Rouge trips causing her to fall into lava, but is saved by Knuckles before she does. Another reference is in Sonic Rush, when Blaze got away from Knuckles when he was going to hurt her, when she got away along with Cream, Cream told her, "Don't get this wrong Blaze, but Knuckles is actually a nice guy!" and the last reference is when in Sonic Rivals 2, Knuckles seems to be more caring to Rouge than she is to him, like when they got separated Knuckles said, "I hope Rouge is alright!" He is seen also coming to the rescue of Shade the Echidna in Sonic Chronicles when she almost falls off angel island as a result of an explosion caused by Ix. This occurred even before Knuckles and Shade became allies.

Knuckles seems to have matured somewhat in Sonic Generations. While he still displays some aggressive, headstrong and stubborn behavior, he is shown being better to acknowledge his shortcomings and displays more personal restraint and better social interaction. He still displays some rivalry towards Sonic and tries to hide his feelings of being impressed with Sonic's abilities by saying phrases like, "You weren't half-bad." or "Thanks for the help, not that I needed it!". However Knuckles gives strong support to Sonic before the fight against Time Eater.

Abilities
Knuckles possesses immense superhuman strength, so strong that he can split the hydrogen in the air by punching with a technique known as Deep Impact (In the game Sonic Battle, this move can result in an instant KO on weaker opponents). Another feat of strength is that he can punch the ground with enough force to cause fissures. Knuckles' strength is believed to be the equivalent of Sonic's speed, which would make him able to lift and press 100 metric tons, being stronger than all characters. His monstrous brute strength also enables him to perform other amazing feats such as punching holes right through thick steel, shatter boulders to smithereens and lift objects many times his own size and weight. His super strength seems to lie in his upper body, particularly in his arms and hands (or fists). He also possess near-maximized endurance; capable of taking some major punishment (like in the Sonic X episode "Zelkova Strikes Back" where Zelkova smashed Knuckles twice and when the two knuckles on one of his hands shatters after delivering a serious blow to Zelkova). Knuckles can also attack with Fire Punches, as shown in the games Sonic Advance 1, 2, and 3, Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Heroes and Sonic Battle (However, in Sonic Adventure 2, Knuckles needs the Hammer Gloves to attack with Fire Punches). Knuckles can hold out against an army of robots (If they stay down).

He is also shown to be very fast on his feet, but still not quite as fast as Sonic or Shadow. Unlike Sonic, however, Knuckles can swim. He can glide in the air by apparently trapping air under his dreadlocks, and so far he is the only one who knows how to access and utilize the powers of the Master Emerald, other than Tikal the Echidna. He can also sense the Chaos Emeralds from a distance. Knuckles is also a proficient burrower, able to dig into any wall or floor. In some games, Knuckles can also use the spines on his gloves to attach to walls climb up surfaces with ease.

Like Sonic and Shadow, Knuckles can use the power of the Chaos Emeralds or the Master Emerald. Also Knuckles (Archie Comics) has achieved the ability to access the force known as "The Chaos Force", allowing him to perform Chaos-based abilities without the use of any emeralds. But this ability has been passed down from his ancestor, Steppenwolf and anyone with his bloodline can access the Chaos Force.

POW Moves
In Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood Knuckles' POW moves consist purely of strong offensive moves with extra effects that slows the opponents down, makes them vulnerable or distracts them. These are:


 * Uppercut (アッパーカット): Knuckles delivers a quick and powerful uppercut to his foe, piercing armor.
 * Quake Punch (クエイクパンチ): Knuckles punches the ground, causing a shock-wave that may stun the opposing team.
 * Revolver Slam (リボルバースラム): Sonic spinballs into Knuckles, propelling him into an enemy through the air, then he punches the foe as he falls. This ignores armor and may leave the target vulnerable.
 * Knuckles Express (Knuckles Dive ナックルズダイブ): Shadow propels Knuckles with Chaos Control on an arc as he punches them. All foes caught in the arc may be distracted.
 * Knuckles Sandwich (Knuckles Throw ナックルズスロー): Sonic and Amy spinball jump, then Knuckles catches them and hurls them into an enemy with great power. Impacts may stun the target.
 * Hard Line (Fly High Drop フライハイドロップ): Knuckles hurls Shade up into the air; at the apex of her ascent, Shadow teleports above Shade, and throws her up even higher. Shade then comes cannoning down on top of the opponent fists-first, delivering a considerable amount of damage and likely distracting the target.

Transformations
Like Sonic and Shadow, Knuckles has the ability to power up into stronger forms of himself, usually by using Chaos Energy from the Chaos Emeralds and Super Emeralds. These transformations grants Knuckles overall improved physical abilities, such as greater strength and speed, and abilities he did not have access to before. In contrast to popular belief, Knuckles did not transform in Sonic Heroes, but is instead granted a Super Shield from Super Sonic that gives him super transformed traits.

Super Knuckles
With the seven Chaos Emeralds, Knuckles is able to become Super Knuckles. When Knuckles is in his Super form, he gains invincibility and all his powers and natural abilities are enhanced up to their full limit. Super Knuckles is several times faster and more powerful, and can climb walls twice as fast and fly. He however need rings to maintain this transformation.

Hyper Knuckles
Knuckles can also transform into an extended version of Super Knuckles, called Hyper Knuckles. In this form Knuckles is faster and stronger than Super Knuckles and he can destroy all on-screen enemies by gliding into a wall, causing the stage to shake. He also have the ability to fly at a fast speed without staying in the air long enough to reach the speed when he is in normal form. Hyper Knuckles is also incapable of drowning. Like Hyper Sonic, Hyper Knuckles has an after image effect when moving.

Transformations in other media
In the Archie Comics, Knuckles can use 7 Chaos Emeralds to turn into Hyper Knuckles, and use the Master Emerald to turn into Super Knuckles. (In Sonic the Hedgehog #141, the term "Hyper Knuckles" for his first transformation was scrapped in favor of "Super Knuckles", which correlates with the naming convention used by the games.) As both, Knuckles appears in a hot pink form, and Super Knuckles has the same powers he has in the games. Also, before his death, Knuckles was also able to turn into a green-colored Chaos Knuckles. Chaos Knuckles was incredibly powerful, he had all kinds of Chaos powers and he overloaded two Chaos siphons. His Chaos powers included Chaos Blast, the full limit of Chaos Control, healing ability, mind control and several others. This was Knuckles' most powerful form, but he lost this power when he came back from death. Chaos Knuckles was the most powerful Chaos entity on Mobius when he appeared. Another abnormality in Chaos Knuckles was that his form was permanent, and Knuckles would have remained in that state if not for his death.

Game-specific abilities
In Sonic Adventure, Knuckles can use the Maximum Heat Attack to do a punching version of Sonic's Light Speed Attack. In Sonic & Knuckles/Sonic 3 & Knuckles/Knuckles in Sonic 2, Knuckles does not have the ability to jump quite as high as Sonic or Tails. This is extremely apparent if the level select code is successfully used to play as Knuckles in the Sonic & Knuckles version of Death Egg Zone, which is normally only accessible to Sonic and Tails. Knuckles can only clear the level through use of the debug code.

In Sonic Heroes, Knuckles can use a move called Fire Dunk in which he uses Sonic and Tails as fire balls to destroy their enemies.

In Sonic Heroes, Knuckles can slam the ground and kick up tremors to attack enemies. The range and power increases as Knuckles collects energy cores. At Level 3, Knuckles can kick up a small volcanic eruption, spewing fireballs at all enemies.

Around the time of Sonic Heroes and Sonic Battle, Knuckles had begun to lose some of his speed but gain a lot more power. In Sonic & Knuckles, Knuckles has the ability to glide as his hair puffs out and catches the air. This move reappears in Sonic Heroes under the name of 'Triangle Dive'. Knuckles holds onto Sonic and Tails, gliding with his dreadlocks. Using this move and huge fans, it is possible to go up instead of floating down.

In Sonic Battle, he demonstrates geokinesis, being able to control and summon rocks, described as "supernatural control of earth" in the game.

Knuckles can use the Mystic Melody which causes something to happen when played in front of a shrine (but in Sonic Adventure 2, so can everyone else). In the 2P Battle Mode in Sonic Adventure 2, collecting 20 rings allows him to punch the ground and stun the opponent. Collecting 40 rings allows him to utilize a move known as the Thunder Arrow, which shocks the opponent and makes them dizzy. Finally, 60 rings allows him to do a move called Power Flash and the opponent can't move for 10 or 20 seconds.

In the game Sonic Riders, Knuckles is a power-type character, and can bash his way through certain obstacles. When someone gets near him, or he catches up to them, he punches the opponent in one of two different ways - one being a normal punch and the other being one that leaves opponents in a screw form for a second or two. In Sonic the Fighters Knuckles can activate the Knuckles special where he spins around the opponent and punches them until they fall.

Relationships
''[Note: Relationships unique to the Archie Comics version of Knuckles, including family members, are listed at Knuckles the Echidna (Archie character). See also: Knuckles the Echidna (disambiguation)]

Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic is Knuckles's good friend and rival, They have known each other for a long time, but their relationship seems to be somewhat complicated. The two do not understand their differences and they often cause fights. Sonic being cool and cheeky and Knuckles being tough and serious. It is also mentioned in Sonic Heroes that Knuckles is somewhat jealous of Sonic's freedom and care-free attitude.

Knuckles is often tricked by Dr. Eggman into believing that Sonic is the bad guy, that causes them to get into fights and Sonic teases Knuckles when ever this happens which he does not take very well, but since then he has gotten better with this and is more aware of Dr. Eggman's plans. With Sonic's speed paralleling Knuckles' strength in every way, their fights are always climatic. (A similar rivalry is existent with Shadow in both Sonic and Knuckles, as all three have fought each other numerous times.)

The rivalry has all but disappeared in some continuities and in others it is a sort of game between the two, actually serving as the plot for the game Sonic Rivals, where Dr. Eggman (really Eggman Nega in disguise) captures Tails and the Master Emerald and turns them into cards. Knuckles tells Sonic that he must get to Eggman first and save the Master Emerald, so Sonic decides that they should race each other which Knuckles agrees on.

Overall, Sonic and Knuckles are good friends and help each other in many situations. The two show good teamwork in battle as seen in Sonic Heroes, and in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).

In Sonic Generations, it is shown that Knuckles is actually impressed by Sonic and has belief in his abilities, but does not directly want to admit it. This is shown when Knuckles responded, "Thanks for the help, not that I needed it!" after Sonic saves Knuckles and also when Knuckles told Sonic when he was not "half bad" after fixing the time, beating Time Eater and saving his friends.

Dr. Eggman
Knuckles is constantly tricked by Dr. Eggman. In Sonic 3, Eggman had tricked him saying that Sonic's the enemy who is stealing the Chaos Emeralds, because of Knuckles simplicity he had believed Eggman and had caused to play tricks on Sonic and also fighting him. Knuckles has also been tricked by Eggman in Sonic Advance 2. Knuckles was tricked by Eggman again in the TV show Sonic X, but as the games pass by, Knuckles has stopped falling for Eggman's tricks as mentioned in the guide for Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity. Knuckles has also shown a rough attitude towards him in the Sonic Rivals series.

Rouge the Bat
Rouge the Bat is Knuckles' rival. Knuckles and Rouge have been fighting over the Master Emerald ever since the two met. Rouge was designed to be Knuckles' compatibility just like how Shadow was designed to be Sonic's compatibility when it comes to basic rivalry and skills.

In Sonic Adventure 2, when Knuckles purposely shatters the Master Emerald to save it from Dr. Eggman, Knuckles and Rouge both go looking for its pieces. Eventually, Knuckles has to hunt Rouge down for the remaining pieces, and the two have their final confrontation at the level, Meteor Herd. But during their fight, he saves her life instead because she slipped on a narrow beam and was going to fall into a burning pit of lava. After the rescue, Rouge and Knuckles share a long moment gazing at each other, before Rouge snatches her hand away and retorts with ungratefulness by teasing that he just wanted to hold her hand. In the end, Rouge gives him the remaining pieces of the Master Emerald and complains that, "They stink like echidnas do!", to imply her stubbornness to give him a direct, "Thank you". Knuckles gathers the shards to complete the Emerald and glances over to her, muttering, "I'm sorry if I hurt you...", and runs off. Before the scene fades out, Rouge gives a thoughtful smile over her shoulder before also heading out.

In Sonic Heroes, they don't have much interaction with each other. At the end of Team Dark's story, Rouge commented that she would go look for the Master Emerald, "since that irritating echidna is here." However, in the last scene, she went to Knuckles and coquettishly hinted about going to look for someone else's treasure, then he ran after her saying "She never gives up, does she?".

In Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, codex states that, "there's a sort of unstated connection between Rouge and Knuckles that neither are overly willing to explore." Rouge even admits that Knuckles is cute but just not her type during the game.

In Sonic Rivals 2, the two are teamed up. Rouge's reason for this is because she had a mysterious client who told her that if she found all the Emeralds, she would be rewarded, so she believed with Knuckles she might find her client to know exactly who he was. When Sonic first saw Knuckles and Rouge together, he teased them, saying, "Are you two are on a date or something?" Rouge fights Ifrit to get Knuckles back to normal. Throughout the game, Rouge seems to be more hostile with Knuckles, like when they got separated in the end of the game, Knuckles was trying to save Rouge by forcing her into a different dimension, but Rouge wouldn't listen, thinking that he was just trying to deceive her, when they got separated, Rouge says, "That echidna left me! When I find him, he's gonna pay for this!" and when Knuckles got separated he says, "I hope she's okay". Later, when Knuckles saves Rouge from being controlled by Ifrit, Knuckles says, "Rouge! Are you alright?" but when Rouge saves Knuckles from Ifrit, she doesn't say anything, she was just waiting for him to get into his senses again. However, Rouge also assisted Knuckles as a teammate. When Silver shouted at Knuckles during their "talk" with Eggman, Rouge did not like it and full of anger she replied to Silver "Hey, watch your mouth, kid! Don't take that tone with us!" At the end of the game, when Knuckles found the Master Emerald, Rouge steals it from him, just like in Sonic Adventure 2.

In Sonic Colors, Knuckles explains to Rouge that he is at Starlight Carnival because he received an invitation from Dr. Eggman, but proving that he did not get tricked. Rouge tells him that the invitation was written by her, causing Knuckles to burst in anger.

In Sonic Generations, Knuckles and Rouge oddly seem to be friendly to each other at the party, as they are seen setting the table, eating, smiling and talking to each other.

Friends/Allies

 * Sonic the Hedgehog (Best Friend, Rival)
 * Miles "Tails" Prower (Good Friend)
 * Amy Rose
 * Cream the Rabbit
 * Cheese the Chao
 * Vector the Crocodile
 * Espio the Chameleon
 * Charmy Bee
 * Blaze the Cat
 * Silver the Hedgehog
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Rouge the Bat (Also rival)

Rivals

 * Wario (in the Mario & Sonic series)
 * Rouge the Bat (Friendly rival)
 * Blaze the Cat (Formerly)
 * Sonic the Hedgehog (Friendly rival)
 * Storm the Albatross (Rival in strength)

Enemies

 * Doctor Eggman
 * Metal Sonic
 * Fang the Sniper

Trivia

 * According to the Sonic 3 manual, Knuckles' favorite food is grapes.
 * In Sonic Generations, once the Sky Sanctuary and Knuckles are restored, you can see grapes growing on a tree behind Knuckles. This is an Easter Egg for Knuckles as grapes are his favorite food.
 * In Sonic Chronicles, depending on the players choices after shutting down the 2nd generator in Metropolis Ground Zero, Shade will call Knuckles "A descendant of Pachacamac" which suggests he is somehow related to Pachacamac and Tikal.
 * Strangely, in Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles, the cutscene Knuckles is slightly pinker than the playable Knuckles. This is due to the palettes conflicting with the HUD items, the playable Knuckles was able to be perfected so this wouldn't happen.
 * Knuckles has been tricked six times all together in the TV shows he stars in. Twice in Sonic Underground, and four times in Sonic X.
 * In Sonic 3 & Knuckles, finishing the game with only the Chaos Emeralds leaves a picture of the character's Super form on the Game Select screen. If the game is completed with Knuckles, an image of Super Knuckles is shown. In this image, he appears to be the same color as Knuckles, but with a bright purple aura. A similar effect was used in episode 3 of Sonic X.
 * Due to space limitations, in Sonic Drift 2, Knuckles' name is spelled "Knucles".
 * In the Mega Drive games he is playable in, the letters K.T.E. (Knuckles the Echidna) are by his life icon, instead of "Knuckles". That's because the name display couldn't support more than than five letters, like on "Sonic" and "Tails".
 * Knuckles's eye color has varied in the Sonic series, changing from blue to purple. In Sonic Battle, he is actually portrayed with both eye colors (blue for the fighting and purple for the cutscenes.)
 * He and Shadow were originally confirmed to appear in Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors.
 * Knuckles' music was one of the reasons for the Mild Lyrics warning in Sonic Adventure 2. "Unknown From M.E.", "Deeper" and "Kick the Rock!" were among them.
 * Knuckles and Amy are the only 2 Sonic characters who appeared to have "aged"; Knuckles going from 15 to 16, and Amy going from 8 to 12.
 * Knuckles is the only playable character in Sonic '06 who doesn’t finish a level/boss/town mission. Despite this, Knuckles does have a victory pose. This can be seen if the player glitches the levels to the end with Knuckles, the victory pose is almost identical to his Sonic Adventure 2 victory pose.
 * During multiplayer on Sonic Heroes, the white crest symbol on Knuckles' chest will disappear while he is taunting the opponent.
 * In Sonic Rivals 2, the player can unlock an Eggman costume for Knuckles.
 * Knuckles could be considered the only non-hedgehog playable character in Sonic Rivals. However Metal Sonic should count as well, due to being a robot.
 * Knuckles' socks have been miscolored five times:
 * In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic Triple Trouble and Sonic & Knuckles, Knuckles' socks were colored yellow during cutscenes as it interfered with the HUD palette.
 * And in Sonic Drift 2 and Sonic 3D Blast, Knuckles' socks were colored blue.
 * In the 2D games, the crest on Knuckles' chest is colored peach. But in Sonic Adventure and afterward, it's colored white.
 * One of Knuckles' nicknames is "Knuckle," as stated in the Japanese manual of Sonic 3.
 * In Sonic Battle, Sonic once calls Knuckles a "spiky-headed mole". This is a pun on how echidnas and moles have the same burrowing prowess. It is also be a play on the Japanese term for echidna, which literally translates as "needle-mole".
 * He is also mistakenly referred to as a mole in the Sonic OVAs.
 * Knuckles seems to be easily confused, as shown in Zero Gravity. When Eggman was explaining about a strange rock he found one day, Knuckles simply comments "Huh?" with Eggman retorting "Shut up and listen!"
 * If you pause at the right moment, in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 or Sonic and Knuckles when the sign twirling in the air, instead of Knuckles you'll see Blue Knuckles.
 * Super Sonic is invincible to any damage, but somehow Knuckles knocked the Chaos Emeralds out of him in Sonic 3 and Knuckles. This indicates that Knuckles is the only one powerful enough to knock him out of super form.
 * In Sonic 3 and Knuckles, if one glitches Knuckles into Sonic's part of the level, Tails will still fly him up so he can defeat Dr. Robotnik. It is the only time this can be done without a cheat.
 * In Sonic Colors, Knuckles is the only one of the "Side Quest" characters to have five poses. All the others have four.
 * Knuckles has personality traits similar to Blaze the Cat, being as how they both take their jobs very seriously, and aren't good at making friends. Ironically, their current new English voice actors are spouses.
 * Knuckles, during his 2005-2010 appearances, coincidentally had the same voice actor combination as Lee-Pai Long from Shaman King; Nobutoshi Kanna in Japanese and Dan Green in English.

Solo

 * In Sonic Adventure, Knuckles' theme song is called "Unknown From M.E." It is a mix of hip-hop, jazz, pop, and R&B. This song was performed by Marlon Saunders and Dred Foxx. This theme also appeared in Sonic and the Black Knight when Sir Gawain appears and when the Medal Of Gawain item is equipped.
 * In Sonic Adventure 2, Knuckles' theme song is also known as "Unknown From M.E." but has a faster pace and a greater focus on pure rap, and performed by Marlon Saunders and Hunnid-P.
 * Knuckles also has his own percussion theme in Sonic 3 & Knuckles.

Shared

 * In Sonic Heroes, Knuckles' team, Team Sonic, theme tune is called "We Can," and actively mentions him in the lines; 'And Knuckles by our side, makes this a safer ride.'
 * In Sonic Riders, Knuckles' theme, shared with Sonic and Tails, is an instrumental called "High Flying Groove."

Gallery
For more see: Knuckles the Echidna/Artwork.

Memorable quotes

 * "Still got it!" - Winning in Sonic Rivals 2.
 * "Ah finally..." - Restoring the Master Emerald in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "As far back as I can remember, I've been living here on this dark island... Always guarding the Master Emerald from anything that could harm it. I don't know why I was given this job... Why it was my fate... Destined to be here... forever!" - Knuckles thinking about his life at the beginning of his story in Sonic Adventure.
 * "The servers are the seven Chaos. Chaos is power. Power is enriched by the heart. The controller is the one who unifies the chaos. Only you can do this. STOP THE CHAOS EMERALDS!" - Knuckles pleading with the Master Emerald to neutralize the power of the Chaos Emeralds in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "It's closer..." - When the Emerald Radar turns red.
 * "I found 'em!" - When finding the three pieces of the Master Emerald in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Yeah, I feel good!" - After getting a B Rank.
 * "What do you think you're doing Shadow!?" - Knuckles when Shadow destroys a G.U.N. robot or soldier in Shadow the Hedgehog.
 * "Hey good going." - Knuckles when Shadow defeats a Black Arms alien in Shadow the Hedgehog.
 * "Hand it over Eggman. I'm losing my patience." - Knuckles demanding Eggman to give him the Emerald Detector in Sonic Rivals 2.
 * "No time for games..." - Knuckles when he is about to use a special attack in the 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Get down!" - Knuckles after unleashing the Hammer Punch special attack in the 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Take this!" - Knuckles after unleashing the Thunder Arrow special attack in the 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Take that!" - Knuckles after unleashing the Power Flash special attack in the 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Look who's calling who a thief." - While Eggman was stealing the Master Emerald and Rouge called him a thief in Sonic Adventure 2
 * "I will protect the Master Emerald." - When starting a multiplayer stage in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "That's a good one, YOUR Emerald. Talking to you is a waste of time!" - Knuckles before his second fight with Rouge in Sonic Adventure 2
 * "Just enough to pass." - Getting an E Rank in Sonic Heroes.
 * "Whew, that was tough." - Knuckles when defeating Metal Overlord in Sonic Heroes
 * "Well if I can't convince them, then I'll just let my fist do the talking!" - Being the last one still on the field when facing Team Rose in Sonic Heroes
 * "No way!" - When Knuckles tries to dig on something like metal or steel in Sonic Adventure
 * "Did she say red mutt?" - After Wave calls him a red mutt before leaving with Storm on the Babylon Garden in Sonic Riders
 * "Stone Fists! - After wining a fight in Sonic Battle
 * "It's not me! Blame Sonic!" - When talking to Rouge in the Japanese version of Sonic Battle
 * "I feel some strange energy..." - While walking around in the Space Colony ARK right before Sonic Chaos Controls in front of him in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "As much as I hate to admit it, I think Tails is right about this." - Knuckles after hearing Tails' plan to defeat Perfect Chaos by helping Sonic go Super in Sonic Adventure
 * "We've no time to waste. We've got to defeat it now!" - Knuckles' frustration with Solaris ready to consume time itself in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).
 * "I'll probably be on this floating island forever. Guarding the Master Emerald, again. I may not know the whole story behind this. But perhaps it's better that way. I am at peace once more." - Knuckles thinking once again about his role as Guardian of the Master Emerald in the ending of his story in Sonic Adventure
 * "I'm unstoppable!" - When Knuckles speeds up in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games on the Wii
 * "Don't get in my way!" - When starting a race in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
 * "Anytime! Babylon Rouges!" - When finding the Babylon Rouges in MeteoTech
 * "Let's go... Yah!!" - About to perform a Gravity Dive in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
 * "It's a pretty famous ruin among us treasure hunters." - Knuckles explaining the Gigan Rocks to Sonic, Tails, and Amy in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
 * "Stooop! I get it, okay?! It just floats and that's good enough﻿ for me!" - Knuckles asking Tails to stop explaining how an Extreme Gear floats in Sonic Riders
 * "I sure don't wanna fall off." - Knuckles when the player turns the camera too much in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure DX.
 * "A trap!? What have you done Eggman!?" - Knuckles confronting Dr. Eggman at the top of Crimson Tower in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity.
 * "Outta my way!" - When attacking in Sonic Riders and Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity.
 * "It's over..." - Knuckles after dying in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Yeah! This is perfect!" - After getting an A Rank.
 * "I am one with the Master Emerald" -Starting a treasure hunt on 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure 2
 * "My emerald, my destiny" Getting a piece of the emerald on 2-Player mode of Sonic Adventure.
 * "If that's what you thought, you should've given me them in the first place." Knuckles after Rouge gives him the pieces of the Master Emerald in the Last Story in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Stop attacking the good guys!" Knuckles when Shadow destroys a G.U.N robot or soldier in Shadow the Hedgehog.
 * "I must...protect...the Master Emerald..." - Knuckles, after losing to Rouge in their first, and only, battle on the ARK, in Sonic Adventure 2.
 * "Alien Scum!" - Knuckles when Shadow defeats a Black Arms alien in Shadow the Hedgehog.
 * "Damn! A dead end! Looks like we have to take our chances with the tornado!" - Knuckles, after arriving to a tornado in Glyphic Canyon in Shadow the Hedgehog.
 * "Hmph. I'm just warming up!" - Sonic Heroes.
 * "Thanks, Sonic! You did a good job back there! Hey, did you gain weight?" - Knuckles after Classic Sonic rescues him at Sky Sanctuary in Sonic Generations.
 * "Thanks for the help. Not that I needed it! But it's good to have my sanctuary back." - Knuckles after Modern Sonic rescues him at Sky Sanctuary in Sonic Generations.
 * "I'll handle the treasure hunting!" - Knuckles before the Sky Sanctuary mission with Modern Sonic begins.
 * "Come on Sonic, smack him!" - Knuckles cheering Sonic to keep going in Sonic Generations.