Silver the Hedgehog

Silver the Hedgehog (シルバー・ザ・ヘッジホッグ) is a fictional character in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. He is an anthropomorphic hedgehog hailing from at least two hundred years into the future where his role is to protect his time by changing the catastrophes of the past, thus preventing the ruining of his era. For his mission, Silver makes use of his psychokinesis, an ability from his time that is considered the norm, which allows him to move objects with the power of his mind.

Silver is a kindhearted and well-meaning individual, driven by a strong sense of justice to right the wrongs of the past to uphold peace, though he is somewhat naive and immature. Despite the monumental tasks he may have on hand, he is an optimist and will do whatever is required to protect the world.

Concept and creation
Silver's creation was inspired by Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) early development stages, where the development team was making huge levels with multiple paths through them. With a new physics engine giving a lot of depth to the game experience, they decided they wanted to include a new character with unique abilities for an alternate way to play through the levels. This lead to Silver being given his psychokinetic powers. Early drafts describes Silver as having "special powers" of unknown origin drawn from the Chaos Emeralds, but this was rejected in the final game. Shiro Maekawa based Silver's character on Future Trunks from the Dragon Ball series.

According to Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection interview with Sega developer Shun Nakamura, Silver's abilities were originally designed for a different action game with the character not meant to make an appearance. During the development of Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) in 2005, another action game Sonic Team developed, yet later cancelled, named Fifth Phantom Saga featured core gameplay mechanics that focuses on the use of abilities similar to Silver's. Wanting to incorporate features emphasizing Silver's abilities, the team sought to give the character new attributes that no other Sonic characters had. The design team developed over fifty different concepts for the character before reaching his final look, where early sketches included a hedgehog-like animal wearing a futuristic headset and markings on its hair. When the team first started and had no idea what direction to follow, someone came up with the idea of a character with Sonic's scarf-like hair, but in more volume. From this idea, the team pursued the idea for a mink named "Venice" (ヴェネツィア), after Venice in Italy, the place Soleanna is based on. However, the developers ultimately decided against this, fearing a mink would not blend in with the rest of the characters. After much discussion, the team finalized Silver as a hedgehog.

The next thing to do was choosing the color of the character. Orange was originally used for his fur for exploration, but they soon moved away from that in favor of a white-gray fur. While developing the character models and textures, they focused on using the hardware to develop the textures rather than just using simple white-gray, which led to Silver's color and name.

Appearance
Silver is a very light gray (almost white) anthropomorphic hedgehog with white fur on his chest surrounding his neck with gold eyes and tan skin. He has two large spines at the back of his head, while at the front of his forehead there are five distinct spines flared up and back, the two final ones covering up most of his ears.

For attire, he wears white gloves with cyan circles with lines sticking out of the bottom leading to his golden bracelets accented in cyan. The tops of his boots are of a similar fashion with a red gem set in gold. The rest of his boots are navy blue, white and cyan.

Personality
Silver is best described as having "a strong sense of justice" and it is this personality trait that motivates him to head back into the past to correct the future. He believes in standing up for those who can't stand up for themselves. This led him to accept Blaze when everybody else was teasing her for her pyrokinetic abilities. When he pursues an enemy, he does so with a relentless determination. He makes alliances and rivalries very easily and takes people's word without question; this makes him easily tricked by others. According to his character profile in Sonic Generations, he is an optimist (though as stated by himself in Sonic Forces, while an optimist, he is also a realist).

Although seemingly serious on the outside, an interview states that Silver is young and somewhat immature. Blaze comments on this several times and describes him as naïve and insecure when he is alone. Silver is also a regular sweetheart, always ready to protect those in need and lend a helping hand. He generally keeps a positive attitude and never gives up hope, no matter how objectively hopeless the situation.

Silver wears his heart on his sleeve. He feels anger and joy intensely and loudly, but his sadness is silent and hardly, if ever, marked by tears. He lets his rage control him and cheerfully remarks on the things that make him happy, but hardly says a word in his sadness, though it is visible to everyone. However, though he may feel sad, he never gives in to despair, always looking for a solution the right way. His determination and little regard for pain can make him a very frightening opponent.

Silver is very courageous and brave, willing to fearlessly sacrifice himself for another in a heartbeat. Utterly unflinching in the face of danger, he is courageous almost to the point of foolishness and is the focus on snuffing out evil with little regard for his own safety.

Despite Silver's naivete and general lack of critical thinking, he is not outright slow-witted. Even Eggman Nega called him perceptive, and Silver was the first to see through his otherwise perfect disguise. With little information to draw upon, he lets his intuition guide him, but as a relatively isolated person, he has little understanding of interpersonal relations or the subtle tools of manipulators.

He apparently has a competitive streak and gets a little snotty and a prickly attitude in the heat of the moment, as seen in Sonic Rivals 2; when you play as him and pass your rival, he'll say, "I'm better." or if you win a race or battle, he says, "Who's the best?" In Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity, when you win a race he says, "I am not to be trifled with!" and in Sonic Free Riders he sneers "'LATER!'" upon cruising past a fellow competitor. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), he generally refers to the Iblis monsters and Eggman's robots as "trash," and typically congratulates himself with a smug tone upon dispatching a roomful of them.

When meeting anyone that gets in his way, particularly in Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2, Silver can be very short-tempered and bossy towards anyone that's not explicitly helping him in his mission, sometimes even becoming directly hostile and start a fight on a bad choice of words.

When Silver is not focused on his current mission or does not have a task at hand, however, he is very friendly, helpful, and a good companion to have around.

Psychokinesis
Silver's main power is his psychokinesis, the ability to manipulate the environment around him with the power of his mind. Silver is a definite master of this skill, being able to telekinetically grab and move up to several objects many times his own size and weight as both a single- or collective mass, his most impressive feat being his Meteor Smash attack where he forms a compressed ball of objects over twenty times his own size and could potentially weigh a net total of several tons. However, it is unknown how much he can grab at once. Silver can also use his psychokinesis on himself to enable him to not only hover but also fly at speeds rivaling Sonic's. Also, his psychokinesis doubles as a force field, as seen in Sonic Forces when he used this ability to fight a powerful being like Infinite to a brief standstill. Granted, Silver did get overpowered by Infinite, but he still hit him with enough force to make him drop a Phantom Ruby prototype.

Silver's psychokinesis is a powerful force of its own. With it, he can exert enough pressure to bend half a meter thick steel bars, crush robots with a single grab, and immobilize others' movements completely. When repelling objects with his psychokinesis, Silver can throw them with enough force and speed to crush metal, fly tremendous distances, and even stun enormous monsters such as Iblis. Additionally, Silver can also use his psychokinesis to grab onto certain non-solid objects, such as fireballs and certain types of energy blasts.

Silver can also use his psychokinesis to project pure psychic energies that he can manipulate into energy-based attacks, such as sharp blades, pulses to strike his targets at all ranges, and an even burst of energy that can paralyze his targets.

Besides the offense, Silver can apply his psychokinesis for his other abilities. He can use it for the ability of ESP, giving him extra-sensory perception that allows him limited telepathy, but so far only enough to induce limited vertigo in others. He can also use it to teleport himself over short distances instantaneously by warping space.

Physical abilities
While not shown during his introduction, Silver is capable of moving at super speeds which are an innate talent that members of the hedgehog species possess. As seen in Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2, Silver is capable running at speeds comparable to Sonic and Shadow's, without wearing down. Also, as another example, he is also seen on the loops within Crisis City from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), able to maintain his running speed without falling, like Shadow was seen if done in a similar manner when finishing the first stage of Crisis City.

Silver has incredible physical durability and endurance as seen in the console/PC version of Sonic Generations, where he withstood several hits from Sonic's Homing Attack, slid along the ground for long distances without harm, and even managed to survive being buried under what could be worth several tons of debris.

Silver has proven himself to be very acrobatic and agile, being able to jump and move gracefully through midair, both with and without the aid of his psychokinesis, and can grind on rails at high speed to match up to various character's, such as Sonic and Shadow while wearing combat boots, of an exception to stay in a single pose, which his skills are nigh-incomplete, as a testament to his balance and agility. He also has lightning fast reflexes and senses, being able to mimic and cope with approximately even Sonic and Shadow's movements. Additionally, he can do amazing feats as well, such as picking up objects while moving through midair at high velocity, catch bullets with his psychokinesis, or causing any monster he comes into, to be suspended, in anyway combining his impressive accuracy with his psychokinesis, he is able to throw enemies and heavy objects at the same speed as the projectiles, without his arms getting tired.

Silver has demonstrated the ability to harness the power of the Chaos Emeralds to empower himself or even perform Chaos Powers. So far, the only Chaos Power he has been able to perform is Chaos Control, which lets him warp time and space, sealing anybody along with him into another dimension that he can choose. However, this was mentioned by Blaze the Cat, at the end of Silver's Story from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), and he can empower himself by enhancing his own abilities, or to an additional extent, give him unlimited Psychic Energies for his psychic attacks.

Combat skills
Silver is one of the most powerful and profound fighters in the series, as he can fight on par with the most battle-experiences individuals in the series. He has been hinted to hold about the same power as Shadow the Hedgehog, and in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) he was able to fight Shadow to a stalemate and almost brought Sonic to the brink of death, though Sonic was being careless during their fight in the latter case.

Fighting style
In combat, Silver relies heavily on his psychokinesis and using the environment to his advantage. Unlike most other characters who utilize close combat, Silver focuses on long-range attacks. When fighting, Silver constantly keeps his distance from the enemy, as he needs a moment to concentrate for an attack, which will leave him vulnerable. If an opponent does get too close, however, he can grab them with his psychokinesis and throw them away.

Silver's main method of attack is picking up objects around him with his psychokinesis and hurtle them at his opponents. Occasionally, he can also rearrange these objects into colossal conglomerated shapes as more effective means of attacking, such as giant balls to bowl over opponents and train-sized battering rams. If projectiles are shot at him, Silver can grab them in his psychokinesis and throw them back at the opponent, effectively allowing him to turn his opponents' power against them.

When times call for it, Silver is capable of going on the offensive with hand-to-hand combat, as seen in his battle with Shadow in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), and in Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2 where he would attack enemies with physical strikes. However, his proficiency with this type of combat is unclear, as he has only demonstrated a limited range of punches and Spin Attack maneuvers. He seems unskilled, given his reckless, telegraphed, and easily blocked charges at Shadow during their fight, and it may be that Silver will only use physical combat as a desperate last resort.

Techniques and moves
Most of Silver's signature techniques and moves revolve around the use of his psychokinesis, which has a broad range of applications. His most of his offensive attacks involving using the objects around him as projectiles and discharging psychokinetic energies.

Silver's most used technique is his Psychokinesis, which lets him pick up objects around him for him to manipulate, and bend and move objects. His Levitate technique, which he uses to make himself airborne, increases his speed and movement abilities to levels matching those of the fastest and most agile characters in the series. Also, his Teleport Dash allows him to dash small distances at light speed.

With his Grab All technique, Silver can grab and manipulate everything around him or objects that come too close to him, and send them flying at his enemies. To throw objects with greater force while they are in his psychokinetic grab, Silver can use his Hold Smash and Psycho Smash to charge up his psychic energies and use them to throw objects at high velocities. Also, in Sonic Generations, Silver can perform a powerful attack called Meteor Smash, where he gathers a large ball of surrounding objects and launches it, after which it rolls along the ground, crushing anything in its path.

By channeling and manipulating his psychic energies, Silver can perform unique energy-based attacks, like his Psycho Shock and Psycho Smash that let him charge pulses of energy that can paralyze opponents and machinery, and with his Psychic Knife, Silver can form and throw a sharp and deadly blade of energy at the enemy. He can also perform his ESP move, which sends out a wave that attacks the minds of others, leaving them disorientated and confused.

In Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2, Silver is shown to utilize the Spin Attack where he curls tightly into a concussive ball while in locomotion to damage, mow down, or burrow through obstacles and foes. With the Spin Jump he attacks foes by landing on them, with the Spin Dash he curls up and shoots forward at high speed to break barriers or mow down enemies, and with the Homing Attack he homes in on an enemy to attack.

Super Silver
By using all seven Chaos Emeralds, Silver can enter a Super State, transforming him into Super Silver. In this state, all of Silver's abilities far surpasses his normal ones, including his psychokinesis which has been greatly amplified. He is as well able to fly without his psychokinesis and is nearly invulnerable. However, this transformation consumes a lot of energy and requires Rings to be maintained.

Color Powers
By harnessing different variants of Hyper-go-on from Wisps, Silver can use specific Color Powers to transform into a certain form, such as a drill, a laser or even a planet, each one possessing its own unique abilities. So far, Silver has been able to transform into the Cyan Laser, Yellow Drill and Indigo Asteroid. However, these transformations require a steady supply of Hyper-go-on to be maintained.

Weaknesses

 * Silver will lose his focus when using psychokinesis if he is caught off guard or hit by a surprise attack.
 * If he overuses his psychokinesis, Silver can become extremely fatigued, and will need Rings to regain his energy.

Blaze the Cat
Blaze the Cat is Silver's best friend who is like an older sister to him. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) exclusively, she has lived with him in his time period for a while. She works with Silver as a partner and because she is able to sense his flames, it is she who informs him when Iblis reincarnates. They constantly work together to beat the infant Iblis back into the lava from whence it came. Silver is also emotionally dependent upon Blaze; he becomes very insecure when alone, and it is usually Blaze who helps Silver back on his feet. Before she vanishes from their world at the end of Silver's story, Blaze reveals that she always liked Silver's naivete, leaving Silver deeply saddened after he is forced to seal her in another dimension. Ironically, while Silver's main enemy is a creature called the Flames of Disaster, and controls fire, Blaze also controls fire, which is why Iblis could be sealed inside Blaze.

In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Silver respects Blaze and looks to her for guidance, validation, and emotional support. He was also one of the few who did not tease Blaze about her pyrokinesis. Aside from that, they both share the same core desire to help others and bring evil to justice at any cost, and they both pursue their goals with unwavering determination. Because they share ideas and because Blaze's logical mind grounds Silver's more emotional one, she keeps him pointed in the general vicinity of the right direction. Her maturity and focus make up for Silver's immaturity and inexperience.

After the defeat of Solaris, the timeline was altered and it appears that Silver's encounter with Blaze was erased, leaving them with no personal relation or knowledge of each other.

Silver and Blaze reappear together in the DS version of Sonic Colors in the 3rd mission on the Sweet Mountain where Silver points out how their fighting styles are similar. While Silver was not able to recall his memories of his partnership with Blaze in Sonic the Hedgehog, he was able to recall the familiar feeling of having worked together with her. In Sonic Generations, Blaze and Silver can be seen talking to each other at Sonic's birthday party.

Even though the erasing of timelines left Silver and Blaze with limited personal knowledge of each other, references about their former partnership has been presented many times in the series after Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), such as in Sonic and the Black Knight where Sir Galahad and Sir Percival (Silver's and Blaze's counterparts) are described as companions and in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (DS version), where Silver and Blaze reappear together and challenge the player to a Ice Hockey and Dream Ice Hockey (Fever Hockey) game.

In Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games and Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Silver and Blaze have a unique gold medal pose if they work together in a team event.

Sonic the Hedgehog
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Sonic the Hedgehog is claimed by Mephiles to be the "Iblis Trigger" that set Iblis free years before Silver's time, thus dooming the world to ruin. Initially, Silver was bent on stopping Sonic from unleashing Iblis into the world, speaking of the "Iblis Trigger" with contempt. However, he found his resolve and hostility towards Sonic wavering after seeing the way that Amy revered him as a hero. He changed his mind entirely after Shadow explained that Mephiles lied to him about Sonic and seeing the Iblis' origin. He, therefore, helped Sonic through Kingdom Valley, and the two of them eventually befriended. Since Elise blew out the Flames of Disaster at the end of the game, Sonic and Silver never met during this adventure leaving them with no personal relation or knowledge of each other until later games in the series.

In Sonic Rivals, he and Sonic encounter each other for the first time. Sonic isn't fond of Silver's "attitude" when they meet and the two did not exactly see eye-to-eye, so they battle each other throughout the rest of the game. At the end of the game, though, Silver willingly teams up with Sonic and came to respectfully acknowledge his bravery. When they meet again in Sonic Rivals 2, Silver is again competitive towards Sonic and his partner, Tails. In these games, at least, Silver seems to find Sonic and his carefree attitude annoying, harboring an opinion of the blue hedgehog similar to Shadow's. It's likely that Sonic's apparent inability to take things seriously rubs Silver the wrong way.

In Sonic Generations, Silver's relationship with Sonic seems to have improved and is a lot friendlier. After he is convinced that Sonic is the real Sonic and not an imposter, Silver happily hands over his Chaos Emerald and, later, gladly accepts Sonic's challenges to a rematch, claiming that it should be fun. After time was restored, Silver, along with Shadow, shows up and celebrates at Sonic's birthday party. In Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Silver, after being defeated in Cubyrinth, casually asked how Sonic was doing. This could mean that Silver only feels hostile towards Sonic when he worries that Sonic might interfere with his plans to save the future. In relaxed situations, the two seem to be friendly rivals.

In Sonic Forces, Silver's relationship with Sonic became stronger than ever when he teamed with Sonic's friends to protect the Earth from the Eggman Empire. He mourned but accepted the thought of Sonic might be dead at the time after it was learned he was defeated by Eggman's new lieutenant, Infinite. However, when Sonic was discovered to be alive and imprisoned on the rebuilt Death Egg, Silver aided in helping Sonic escape and teamed-up with him once more to win the War to Take Back the Planet.

Shadow the Hedgehog
The two first met in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), when Shadow stopped Silver, who mistook him for Mephiles, for from killing Sonic. After their fight, the two ventured back in time together using a dimensional rift to learn the truth about Iblis, Mephiles, and the Solaris Project.

Shadow the Hedgehog seems to be impressed by Silver's powers and his determination; most specifically how quickly he learns to induce Chaos Control. Keeping in mind that normally Shadow does not concern himself with other people and prefers to work alone, he takes Silver under his quills surprisingly easily when going into the past. At the same time, Silver seems slightly in awe of Shadow and by the end of their time together is much more mature.

Since the events of that game were erased, they did not canonically meet until Sonic Rivals. At first, Shadow did not trust Silver's speculations about Dr. Eggman's true identity. After realizing that he was right, the two helped each other in the Meteor Base. At the end of the game, Silver refers Shadow, and Sonic, as brave. In Sonic Rivals 2, however, they're not allies; they fight each other at some points and Silver was very vocal when warning Shadow not to get in his way. They also work together in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games to save Omochao and a Chao. In Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games they have a special winning animation, with Silver posing much more aggressively than usual in an interesting attempt to mimic Shadow's stance. While they have their differences, they work together well, and Silver admires and respects Shadow. In Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, they also have a winning animation where they acknowledge each other in a neutral way.

Amy Rose
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Amy mistook Silver for Sonic. Amy, who thought he was simply looking for someone, offered to help him if he would help her. Unable to deny her offer, Silver was dragged along with Amy unwillingly for a while, and found her a distraction, while Amy became his friend and promised to help him find the "Iblis Trigger". Eventually, though, Silver's helpful nature kicked in and he set aside his quest momentarily to help her search through Dusty Desert.

Silver's alliance with Amy ended up being only temporary, which ended once Silver found Sonic and tried to kill him. When Amy found out that Silver intended to kill Sonic, she left Silver, which disappointed him, he did seem as if he was going to call her back, but didn't upon realizing that it didn't matter, she would leave anyway. Strangely, when they meet again after Sonic dies and Mephiles and Iblis fuse, she bears no hard feelings towards him for his past actions and encourages him in the fight against Solaris. Because of what happens at the end of the game, Silver and Amy never met. In Sonic Forces, Silver was being optimistic and realistic with Amy about Sonic and Tails, and after having beaten Eggman's forces, they look at each other.

Espio the Chameleon
Espio the Chameleon appears to be one of Silver's closest friends. The two met only in Sonic Rivals 2. Before they met, Espio was given an assignment by Vector the Crocodile to find out information about the recent Chao disappearances. He began to investigate Silver, a prime suspect, which the hedgehog found annoying. Eventually, the two set aside their differences and teamed up in order to stop Eggman Nega and his plans. Once they completed their mission, the two bid each other farewell, in hopes of meeting each other again. In Sonic Forces, they work in the Resistance together, with Espio agreeing with Silver that they will have to continue without Sonic and Tails.

Mephiles the Dark
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Mephiles the Dark takes advantage of Silver's gullibility and frustration at the constant resurrection of Iblis to manipulate him into releasing the monster in the past. He informs Blaze and Silver that Sonic was the "Iblis Trigger", the one responsible for releasing the Iblis onto the world, and uses his powers to send them back in time in order to assassinate him. In reality, Sonic's death would serve as the catalyst. Silver initially believed Mephiles' lies with blind faith, but his encounter with Sonic and Amy began to make him question his intentions. Eventually, Silver lost all faith in him and viewed him as an enemy when he discovered the truth about Mephiles after travelling to the Solaris Project with Shadow.

Knuckles the Echidna
Silver and Knuckles have a small rivalry with each other. Normally, they don't pay much attention to each other, though they have had heated battles with one another occasionally. In Sonic Forces, Knuckles was the first person Silver warned about Eggman's attack, which led to the War to Take Back the Planet. Silver seems to be one of Knuckles' most trusted lieutenants and they work well together.

Dr. Eggman Nega
Eggman Nega is Silver's arch-enemy. In Sonic Rivals, it is revealed that the two are enemies and are from the same future. Silver is one of the few characters in the game, and later on its sequel, that knows that Nega is actually disguising himself as Eggman. Silver battled Eggman Nega, however Nega's device malfunctioned, and he himself was turned into a card. They clash again in Sonic Rivals 2. According to Silver, he has been chasing Eggman Nega for a long time.

Friends/allies

 * Blaze the Cat (best friend, older sister figure (Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) only))
 * Espio the Chameleon (good friend)
 * Vector the Crocodile
 * Charmy Bee
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Rouge the Bat
 * E-123 Omega
 * Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Amy Rose
 * Knuckles the Echidna
 * Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Princess Elise
 * Classic Sonic
 * Avatar

Rivals

 * Sonic the Hedgehog (friendly rival)
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Knuckles the Echidna
 * Rouge the Bat
 * Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Metal Sonic (also enemy)

Enemies

 * Eggman Nega (arch-enemy)
 * Eggman Empire
 * Dr. Eggman
 * Orbot
 * Cubot
 * Metal Sonic
 * Iblis
 * Mephiles the Dark
 * Solaris
 * Ifrit
 * Metal Sonic 3.0
 * Infinite