Best queer Sonic the Hedgehog ships as Sonic x Shadow Generations arrives

Sega’s new instalment in the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series, Sonic x Shadow Generations was released earlier this week. To mark the occasion, here are some of the best queer Sonic ships.

One of the first things noted about the recent remaster of the original 2011 platformer, complete with an expansion of Shadow the Hedgehog’s back-story, was its name.

Sonic x Shadow is a phrase typically used when shipping a pair in fan fiction. Shipping refers to fan-made content that puts two characters in a relationship when they are not canonically in one.

While some have argued it might be an attempt by SEGA to hide some of the fan-fiction, the game’s release appears to have done the opposite and thrust it into the limelight.

With that, here are some of the best queer ships of Sonic the Hedgehog characters.

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Espio x Silver

While not the most-thought-of ship, Espio the Chameleon and Silver the Hedgehog have a popular enough relationship to warrant more than 100 stories on the fan-fiction site AO3.

The duo have met several times over the course of the Sonic the Hedgehog canon, but usually aren’t the centre of attention, typically seen fighting together in the background while the plot’s central forces are the focus of the plot.

A 2022 issue of the IDW Sonic the Hedgehog comic, titled “Future Growth”, is probably to blame for this surge in popularity. Silver opens up to Espio about his anxieties regarding protecting the fate of his friends and is calmed down by the chameleon in an unexpectedly touching and emotionally raw moment for the action-packed comic. The pair have been shipped by fans ever since.

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Team Chaotix

The misfit detective-for-hire trio, Team Chaotix, gives polyamorous throuple energy which hasn’t been lost on the shipping community.

The group first appeared in the underwhelming SEGA 32x title Knuckles’ Chaotix, but their popularity grew after appearing in Sonic Heroes. Since then, Vector the Crocodile, Espio the Chameleon and Charmy Bee have been a fan-favourite poly ship.

According to AO3, there are at least 261 works which feature the detective agency, many of which have them as a poly throuple, often mixed with Knuckles the Echidna or Mighty the Armadillo, who also featured in the 32x game.

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Bunnie x Sally Acorn

A surprisingly popular ship, given that neither character appears in a main Sonic the Hedgehog game, Sally Acorn and Bunnie Rabbot have a heartfelt relationship in the Archie brand Sonic comics, as well as the titular television show.

The couple are often shipped in fan art and are popular enough for a fan club to have been established in 2011. Their pairing is largely thanks to their chemistry in the television show, as well as their moments of vulnerability in the comics.

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Rouge x the Master Emerald

Now we’re not suggesting that Rouge the Bat is romantically interested in the Master Emerald, but the jewel thief’s obsession with the seven chaos emeralds has prompted some pretty wild observations over the years.

Rouge, who is a queer favourite, first set her sights on the magical green emerald following her debut in Sonic Adventure 2. Since then, she has tried to thwart Knuckles the Echidna, who is charged with guarding the powerful gem.

There’s no doubt that Rouge is enamoured with the jewel and will stop at nothing to get her hands on it. If that isn’t a kind of love, we don’t know what is.

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Sonic x Shadow

You can’t compile a list of popular queer Sonic the Hedgehog ships to celebrate Sonic x Shadow Generations and not talk about the blue blur himself. Sonic and Shadow have been shipped so many times that the collective content could probably fill the Grand Canyon.

First encountering each other in the 2001 cult classic Sonic Adventure 2, the pair have since become friendly rivals and share a dynamic that has generated more than 4,800 stories on AO3.

Whether it’s their triumphant teamwork in stopping the Biolizard destroying Earth, or joining forces to quell Solaris before it consumes time, Shadow and Sonic’s relationship has cemented them as one of the biggest ships in modern fiction.

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