Transcript of the 2017 Sonic the Hedgehog panel at South by Southwest

The following is an electronically-converted script for the official Sonic the Hedgehog panel at South by Southwest 2017. The script was published by Sonic the Hedgehog archivist ‘AstroSeedP’, and converted by Tails’ Channel editor Ryan Scarlett.

This is not an exhaustive document as some Japanese text were omitted due to technical restraints. For the original scanned copy, please visit this link.


SXSW 2017
Gotta Go Fast: The Official Panel of Sonic the Hedgehog
Proposed run of show
Date: March 16, 2017 @ 5:00 PM

Panelists

Special Guests

  • Takashi lizuka – Head of Sonic Team
  • Roger Craig Smith – Voice of Sonic the Hedgehog
  • Mike Pollock – Voice of Dr. Eggman

SEGA Staff

  • Austin Keys – Translator for lizuka-san (may be off-stage translating)
  • Aaron Webber – Moderator / Host

Introduction

INTRODUCTION (5-7 Minutes)
Panelists: All

The lights dim, and the voice of Dr. Eggman booms across the room.

EGGMAN: AHAHAHAHA! Well, what do we have here? A room full of Sonic fans, is it? Here at South by southwest? Well, too bad for you, but this is MY Panel now!

I, Dr. Eggman, the world’s greatest evil genius, will be formally taking over SXSW for my new base of operations. As my empire rises, all of you will soon quake with fear as you get a load of–

SONIC: Whoa! Hold it right there, Eggman! Worry not, folks — Sonic the Hedgehog has arrived!

EGGMAN: …You have got to be kidding me. I wrote that whole dramatic introduction and you just speed in like this and steal my thunder? You’re the true villain here, you know.

SONIC: As if! Remember that time you took over my Twitter feed without my permission? Twice, actually.

EGGMAN: (Dismissively) What? Social Media is the future, you know! You just happen to have a lot more followers than I do, that’s all. You can’t blame a guy for trying to connect with his fans!

Sonic: They’re my fans, Eggman. And look — there’s a ton of them here in the audience today!

EGGMAN: Oh, I don’t know about that, Sonic. I think I see some Dr. Eggman supporters seated among them, too! In fact, I bet you there’s more Eggman supporters here than Sonic supporters!

Sonic: You’re on, Eggman! Guys and gals, I’m gonna need your help for this part. We’ll give you a chance to cheer for each of us. Whomever gets more cheers wins. Deal, Eggman?


EGGMAN: Deal! Eheheheh! I know you’re all feeling particularly evil today. Plus, I brought evil ham if you cheer for me. No, really, I’ll buy your votes with Ham. I’m not above bribery. Anyway, on three, cheer if you support ME, Dr. Eggman! Ready? One, two… three!

[AUDIENCE CHEERS]

Sonic: Heh, not bad. Now it’s my turn. On three, cheer if you support the fastest, coolest thing alive. All set? One, two… three!

[AUDIENCE CHEERS — PROBABLY LOUDER}

EGGMAN: (If Sonic had more cheers) Hm… let’s call it a tie.

SONIC: Haha, I don’t know about that… but let’s get started! Welcome to South by Southwest’s Gotta Go Fast Panel: The official panel of Sonic the Hedgehog, everyone! Are you ready to get started?

[ANOTHER CHEER]

SONIC: It’s time for Eggman and I to get outta here, but the actual guests today are OK too, I guess.

EGGMAN: I’ll be back for you all later… but for now, let’s see which name I draw randomly out of this hat… ah, here it is! Oh, it’s this guy again. Please welcome your moderator and host for today’s panel, the man behind Sonic’s Twitter and social media: Aaron Webber!

[AARON ENTERS]

AARON: Thanks so much, Sonic and Eggman! Hi everyone — I’m Aaron, and I’ll he your host today as we take a look at the future of Sonic. But before we get started, please join me in welcoming to the stage our special guests for today’s panel!

First, a man who has been a part of Sonic’s history since the early 90’s. Working first on titles like Sonic 3 when he started, he was also a hugely influential part of games like Sonic Adventure, Adventure 2, and pretty much every Sonic game from then till now. He’s been working on Sonic games for over twenty-four years. Please welcome the head of Sonic Team: Takashi lizuka!

[IIZUKA-SAN ENTERS, SITS DOWN, SAYS THANK YOU]

AARON: Next, a voice actor who took on the role of a speedy blue hedgehog in the late 2000’s, and has been the iconic voice of our favorite hedgehog for all of his recent games, and his TV show, Sonic Boom! An avid supporter of children’s hospitals, this man is willing to dedicate his time and his passion to the things he believes in — here all the way from Los Angeles, please welcome Roger Craig Smith!

[ROGER ENTERS, SITS DOWN, SAYS THANKS]

AARON: Next, a particularly nice individual who happens to play a particularly evil individual — and someone who has been the voice of Dr. Eggman for over thirteen years. Starting with the animated show Sonic X, he has seen the good doctor win, then lose, then almost win, and through it all, keep on trying to take over the world. He’s also the voice of Dr. Eggman in the TV show Sonic Boom, and if there’s one thing he loves in this world, it’s Evil Ham. Please welcome to the stage a guest who flew in from New York to join us — Mike Pollock!

[MIKE ENTERS, SITS DOWN, MAKES EVIL QUIP]

AARON: Finally, last but certainly not least, we have a special guest from SEGA here to help interpret from or to Japanese as needed. He’s the director of product development at SEGA of America, and is a crucial player and contributor for every Sonic game we work on. Here, as the English voice of lizuka-san today is the fantastic Austin Keys!

[AUSTIN ENTERS / STANDS AT SIDE [TBC], MAKES FUN “THIS ISN’T MY JOB” TRANSLATOR COMMENT] [ALL PANELISTS SIT]

AARON: Whew! [TO PANELISTS] OK, well, how’s it going today guys?

[ROGER/MIKE/IIZUKA all answer.]

AARON: Audience, how are you all feeling today?

[AUDIENCE CHEER]

AARON: We have a fun panel for you today, and we’re going to go a little quickly through some of it so that we can add a 10 minute Q&A section at the end, which we didn’t have time for last year. We also have a special gift for each of you in the room that we’re going to reveal at the end, so please stay tuned till then!

ROGER: How about the people on the livestream?

MIKE: Hi Twitch chat!

AARON: Much love to the thousands of people watching on Twitch right now, and yes, we also have something that our viewers on the livestream will be able to check out at the end. But we know you guys are really here for all the reveals, right?

[AUDIENCE PROBABLY CHEERS]

AARON: As we get to our first game, let’s take a moment to look back on everything that’s happened since last year, right here at SXSW.

[LIGHTS DIM, PLAY RECAP VIDEO]

[Asset needed: 2016 Highlight video — ~1m. To be made by AYZ.]

Total
0
Shares
Previous Article

Tails' Channel launching "Tails' Channel Takes", a new foray into opinion-based programming

Next Article

EXCLUSIVE: Panel script for Sonic SXSW 2017 uncovered by archivist

Related Posts