On November 7, Sega held the Sonic 35th Official Fan Meeting here in Malaysia. Sonic the Hedgehog series Creative Director Kazuyuki Hoshino and Sound Director Tomoya Ohtani, members of Sonic Team, came down to Kuala Lumpur to meet up with Sonic The Hedgehog fans in the country in a special, private event.
This is the second time Sonic Team members came by to the country for an event like this. Hoshino in particular was the special guest for last year’s official fan meeting event.
This stop of seven in the Sonic 35th Official Fan Meeting Tour corresponding to the seven Chaos Emeralds, took place at Regno KL.
Gamer Matters, alongside other members of the media, were in attendance to witness this fan gathering.
What’s It Like Attending The Sonic 35th Official Fan Meeting At Kuala Lumpur
Fans were treated to a special talk by Hoshino and Ohtani, which followed up with the reveal of a special art created for the event: Sonic The Hedgehog experiencing the local delicacy of nasi lemak and a glass of teh tarik on the side.
For the uninitiated, nasi lemak, literally fatty rice in Malay, is dish composed of rice steamed in coconut milk (which resulted in the namesake fattiness) complemented with sambal, crunchy anchovies, a slice of boiled egg and sliced cucumbers. Believe it or not, this hearty meal is usually consumed as breakfast, but as the art here suggests, it’s also perfectly normal to have around the late night at a mamak joint. Y
ou’d typically see locals eat nasi lemak with their bare hands, but Sonic gets a pass: the sambal stains on his gloves would be a nightmare to wash out. Teh tarik, literally pulled tea, is not too dissimilar to the more popular Thai milk tea, but its claim to fame that traditionally the hot drink is “pulled” by having it poured between two mugs over and over which produces the foamy finish up top of the glass.
The fans the turned up to the Sonic 35th Official Fan Meeting in Malaysia are proper fans. If they’re not cosplaying as their comfort character, they came with matching fan-made T-shirts. Some gave away fan-made stickers. At least one person rock up with a functioning Sega Dreamcast, which is a rarity to find one here compared to other retro (yes, it’s more than 20 years old now) consoles.
The fans were loud and proud, and they sure were lucky: some of the lucky draw winners not only walk home with special merch, some even earned themselves a piece of Sonic history.
There were also game setups available, naturally. In-between the sessions, fans got to try out Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and play some 4-player split-screen racing, as well as got their hands on Sonic Pico Park, the new multiplayer co-op puzzler by Tecopark.
Fans signed and doodled on the big Sonic 35th Official Fan Meeting Tour board. One of the eye-catching ones for us was a doodle of Sonic and Shadow with the caption “Jom mamak!”
A mamak restaurant is a Indian-Muslim eatery usually seen in Malaysia that serves all kinds of food and almost opens at every hour of the day. Little did they know that, as implied by the special art, Sonic did hit up a mamak.
Interview With Sonic Team’s Kazuyuki Hoshino and Tomoya Ohtani
Kazuyuki Hoshino and Tomoya Ohtani also took the time to talk to the media attending. The following are their full response to our questions through an email exchange.
With the success of the movies, are there any particular aspects from the Sonic The Hedgehog movies you would like to see make it into a Sonic game?
Hoshino: “I don’t particularly look to bring elements from the movies back into the games, but as a pure fan and audience member, I am always eagerly looking forward to each film.
“Sonic 3 featured so many scenes from my personal favorite game, Sonic Adventure 2, and ‘Shadow’—a character I designed—had such a fantastic, active role. On top of that, he was voiced by an actor I really admire, which made the whole experience feel like a absolute dream.
“Then, at the very end of the movie, ‘Metal Sonic’ and ‘Amy’—two more of my original creations—made their appearance. It looks like they’re going to play major roles in the fourth film, so I really hope everyone goes to check it out!
“And naturally, I’d love to see ‘Rouge’ make her big-screen debut someday, too.”
Ohtani: “Starting with the third film, there’s been a noticeable increase in music quotes and cues drawn directly from the game soundtracks. Speaking as both a fan and from the sound team’s perspective, it has been fascinating to hear how BGM originally created for the games gets arranged to fit the cinematic staging of a Hollywood movie!
“I’m really looking forward to hearing which tracks they decide to bring over and adapt for the next installment as well!
Other than Sonic himself, among Sonic and his friends who would excel in a game of Puyo-Puyo?
Hoshino: “As far as Sonic’s friends go, I can’t really think of anyone off the top of my head who would excel at it—but his archenemy, Dr. Eggman, could undoubtedly be considered a master. After all, the game Mean Bean Machine even made an appearance in Sonic Mania!
By the way, I’m personally terrible at it. The absolute best I can manage is a 2-chain combination—anything beyond that is purely up to luck!
What would you like to say to the Malaysian fans who have continued to support the Sonic series and show their love for the franchise?
Hoshino: “To all our Sonic fans, we’re back after one year!
“As this year marks Sonic’s 35th anniversary, our fan meetings have been a wonderful opportunity to look back on these past 35 years together. Thank you so much for your unwavering support!
“We will continue to expand Sonic across all kinds of media, including games, so let’s keep enjoying this journey together!”