Summary
Since theSonicfranchise began in 1991, many new and interesting characters have been introduced. Subsequent games have featured many unique characters, each with skill sets and well-developed backstories. The usual familiar faces make up Sonic’s core allies, but even among the plethora of minor characters, there are many popular and powerful ones, both friend and foe.
Central to theSonicfranchise is many characters' ability torun at super-fast speeds. Even those who may not look like the usual hero possess skills and traits of their own. Coupled with their speed, they make for some formidable forces in battle. Many times they’ve worked together to defeatthe forces of Eggmanand his robot army.
Updated May 30, 2025, by Nadia Grace Mullings:With the planned upcoming release ofSonic Racing: CrossWorlds, fans ofSonic the Hedgehogcan look forward to exhilarating and competitive gameplay with plenty of high-speed action. TheSonicfranchise revolves around the very essence of speed, therefore, players can pretty much always expect to enjoy a thrilling sense of freedom when they play any of its entries. It’s true that many Sonic characters can move at quick speeds, though some characters are helped along by other gear or are fast only in a car. However, most characters can run at super-fast speeds by default, and even many underrated and often forgotten characters possess great speed which can rival that of Sonic himself.
One of the most dangerous villains Sonic and his friends have ever faced, Mephiles is a highly cunning character and possesses untold amounts of strength. Mephiles is a worthy rival especially for Shadow the Hedgehog, and really puts the hedgehog through his paces inSonic ‘06.
Mephiles can keep up with Shadow’s speed as seen in his other game appearances likeShadow Generations. Mephiles also appeared in the now-defunct mobile gameSonic Runnersas a Speed-Type character with some impressive stats.
The young raccoon from Blaze the Cat’s dimension, Marine first met Sonic and Tails in the events ofSonic Rush Adventure. Marine may be one of the series’ youngest characters, at only seven years of age, but she is especially known for her highly adventurous and energetic personality.
Despite her low stamina, she is shown to be a fast runner, and can even keep up with the likes of Sonic himself. Her outfit can be obtained in theMario and Sonic at the Olympic Gamesseries. InLondon 2012, her outfit is classified as a speed type due to very high acceleration and max speed.
Though he only appears in the originalSonic Riders, E10000R is known to be one of the fastest robots created by Dr. Eggman. This is because he possesses the same engine technology as the infamous Metal Sonic, which makes E10000R a worthy opponent especially when riding his Extreme Gear.
E10000R is the leader of the E10000G robots and can be unlocked as a playable character once a player has racked up 50 hours of gameplay.
Jet is mostly known for his continual boasting that he’s the fastest character on Extreme Gear. Earning the title “Legendary Wind Master’' Jet puts his superior knowledge and agility into making himself go even faster. He’s able to measure and ride wind currents and thus uses this to his full advantage when using his Extreme Gear.
Due to his formidable speed, Jet is suited as another close rival of Sonic himself. In theSonic Ridersseries, Jet is consistently trying to rival and outclass Sonic’s speed, claiming he can be faster than him on the gear. However, it remains to be seen if Jet is equally as fast on foot as he is on the gear.
Making his debut inSonic Lost World, Zazz is a Member of the Deadly Six and is especially known for his crazy and bombastic personality. He’s the fastest of the bunch and a highly dangerous individual.
Zazz mostly rides on his Moon Mech and can keep up with Sonic, possessing great agility and strength as well as speed. He also makes an appearance in the most recentMario and Sonic at the Olympicsgames as a Speed Type character.
Upon her debut on the Game Boy Advance, Cream is shown to be a graceful and polite character, inspired by her mother Vanilla’s instructions on the value of manners. It may seem surprising that this very young, sweet-natured rabbit can reach super speeds that almost rival Sonic’s, but Cream definitely can. As well as being intuitive and working out quicker routes, so she can catch her fast friends up, Cream is also capable of flight. She can flap her powerful ears to go really fast.
Cream is incredibly noble and brave for her age. She can’t evenly match Sonic’s speed, but a unique move, seen inSonic Battle, has Cream using a hopping type of sprint. This makes it hard for enemies to pursue her and yields great speed on foot.
Sonic’s original rival, Knuckles is a skilled echidna who can climb, swim, and glide swiftly, as seen in many gaming appearances. He can run quickly, able to keep up with Sonic and Tails, though isn’t quite as fast as them.
Knuckles is mostly known for his superior strength in his arms and fists, which makes himone of the strongest characters in the franchise. By comparison, his strength is equal to Sonic’s blistering speed. However, he can perform Spin Attacks and is capable of becoming Super Knuckles or even Hyper Knuckles, meaning both his strength and speed are massively increased.
Amy is typically seen as more of a power type, as she fights with her iconic Piko Piko hammer. Her vast amount of energy, including a frightening temper as seen in theSonic Xseries, makes her a character with great strength in battle. But, she also doubles up as a speedy character, too.
As well as having super speed like most of her friends, she can also use her hammer to propel herself forward while running. Though not at Sonic’s or many of her friends' speed levels, Amy can still go fast enough to keep up with them. Especially in earlier games, her cheery attitude and huge crush on Sonic gave her a greater incentive to maintain super speed, so she could chase the Blue Blur and hope to win his affection.
Silver debuted inSonic the Hedgehog 2006and was, alongside Sonic and Shadow, a main playable character with his own story campaign. Silver had a unique skill set but controlled much slower than his counterparts.
However, Silver has since been regarded as one of thefastest Sonic characters. His appearance in theSonic Rivalsduology, released in 2006 and 2007, sees him able to go up against some of the series’ speediest characters, showcasing his super speed. He’s also incredibly agile, has quick reflexes, and can match Sonic’s speed with his attacks inSonic Generations’ “Rival Battle.”
Despite his large frame, Omega can move at a speed close to that of Shadow the Hedgehog. Being the final most powerful of Eggman’s E-100 robot lineup, Omega is capable of intense speed thanks to his installed jet boosters and is incredibly acrobatic. Omega can grind on rails to achieve greater speed and has quick reflexes.
Despite his classification as a power type, he feels quick and nimble to play as, in titles likeSonic HeroesandSonic ’06. In theOlympic Gamesspinoff games, Omega challenges the player in Speed Skating and the 100m sprint, proving he is definitely a fast opponent.
