Sonic.EXE- He Just Keeps coming back huh?

Okay, so I was originally going to post this blog on Halloween, but due to a lot of factors, such as the "Roblox Players When They Learn Steam Exists" blog almost being ready for release, alongside the original draft of this blog being really bad and, honestly, a complete mess, I decided to remake this from the ground up.

And before you ask, no, I'm not posting the original draft. It was that bad. I also deleted it.

So, Sonic.EXE, huh? That's a name that'll either fill you with nostalgia or pure rage (especially if you're a Sonic fan). Somehow, this guy has stayed relevant for...

googles how old the original creepypasta is

15 YEARS!?

Oh my days...

But yeah, somehow this little evil rodent has stayed relevant for fifteen whole years, and honestly, I think there's a good reason for that.

For one, the original story by JC-The-Hyena was so bad that people started making videos reading it aloud and laughing their asses off. The writing was rough, and the story itself wasn't exactly winning any awards, but the core idea wasn't actually half bad. Even if the execution was poor, there were some genuinely interesting concepts buried underneath it all. Because of that, the internet became fascinated with the idea of an evil version of Sonic that wasn't just another Eggman creation.

It wasn't until around 2012 that someone named MY5TCrimson made a fangame based on the story called "Sonic.EXE - The Game." That's where Sonic.EXE really became a household name in the creepypasta community. Tons of YouTubers covered it, and the game spread like wildfire across the internet.

Now, much like the original story, I don't think the game itself is all that special. It tries way too hard to be scary, and there isn't much gameplay to speak of. Most of the experience boils down to "hold right until something happens." On top of that, it barely feels like a Sonic game at all. The visuals are mostly edited Sonic assets with minimal changes, while the soundtrack pulls music from various other pieces of media.

Still, despite all of that, the game ended up cementing Sonic.EXE as one of the biggest creepypasta characters on the internet.

For a good while, JC himself apparently considered MY5TCrimson's adaptation canon. However, if you know anything about Sonic.EXE, you probably know what happened around 2021.

JC was exposed for a lot of awful stuff that I'm not really going to get into here. What I will mention is that he no longer owns Sonic.EXE. Ownership was handed over to three people: JoeDoughBoi, Raven, and Shei.

As of writing this, Joe's interpretation of the character is probably the version most newer fans are familiar with. This version, known as 2011X, serves as a complete reboot of the original story. What's impressive is that it takes a lot of the ideas from JC's version that were either underdeveloped or poorly executed and turns them into something genuinely interesting.

Alongside that, Joe also released a full remake of MY5TCrimson's game called SONIC 2011.

Now, yes, technically it's still "hold right until something happens," but there's so much more effort put into it this time. The story has been completely revamped, the artwork is entirely original, and honestly, it looks fantastic. The soundtrack is also original and absolutely slaps.

Fun fact: the composer who worked on some of the music used in the original 2012 game returned to contribute music for SONIC 2011. For example, the song featured in Hill and the infamous Eggman level has connections to a track known as "Hill.Gym." Learning that was honestly a huge surprise to me.

Overall, SONIC 2011 is exactly how you reboot the Sonic.EXE concept.

But it didn't stop there.

As of writing this, Joe is also working on the continuation of the story through a series of games known as Soulless Sonic, with the first entry, SonicPC, currently in development.

Needless to say, I'm pretty hyped for it.

Before Joe took over Sonic.EXE, a lot of other creators had already thrown their hats into the ring when it came to making their own takes on the whole "evil Sonic that isn't Metal Sonic" concept.

Some of the earliest and most popular examples are Sonic.EXE: Nightmare Beginning and Sonic.EXE: Spirits of Hell.

Unlike the original game, these projects attempt to tell a more complete story while actually taking place within the Sonic universe, or at least some version of it. Another thing that made them stand out was their use of multiple endings. Depending on the choices you make, you can unlock different endings, encounter different levels, and experience content that isn't available in other playthroughs.

And somehow, much like Sonic.EXE itself, these games are still relevant today and have even received reboots of their own.

More modern attempts at reinventing the formula include Sonic The Executable, an upcoming game by Syrolander.

What I really like about this project is how it completely reimagines the original creepypasta. Instead of just being "evil Sonic kills people," it draws inspiration from classic horror works like The Thing, Alien, and other horror icons to create something that feels more like an actual horror story.

Another fantastic modern take is Sonic.EXE Rewritten by DashMaster and MayeIsHere.

And before I continue, every project I mention in this blog will have its game page or source linked at the end.

Anyway, what I love about Rewritten is that it actually has gameplay.

Unlike the original 2012 game, you're actually platforming and interacting with the world instead of just walking to the right for twenty minutes. Similar to SONIC 2011, it also features a completely original soundtrack, fantastic sprite work, and some genuinely creative ideas.

One thing I especially love is how the game lets you play as Sonic normally at first, almost tricking you into thinking you're playing a regular Sonic fangame before things slowly start going wrong.

The developers also regularly post progress updates, which is always nice to see.

So yeah, I'd highly recommend checking it out.

Another project I'd love to talk about is STAR✪SOLDIER SONIC: DREAM OF FREEDOM by Gear-0-Shift.

And I know what you're thinking:

"With a title like that, how the hell is this related to Sonic.EXE?"

Well, I'm glad you asked.

This project takes place in an alternate version of the Sonic.EXE mythos where almost everything is flipped on its head.

The characters in the game are generally considered equivalents to X and his victims, but they're also complete opposites in terms of personality, goals, and themes.

In simpler terms, it's basically a bizarre role-swap AU for the Sonic.EXE concept itself.

Instead of X being the all-powerful monster hunting victims, the roles are reversed.

What makes the project even cooler is that, on the surface, it plays like a normal Sonic game. The horror elements aren't constantly shoved in your face. Instead, they're hidden away in places you're meant to discover yourself.

I genuinely struggle to put into words how much I love this project.

Every time Gear posts a new redesign, story update, or gameplay concept, it somehow ends up looking even cooler than before. Normally I'd be annoyed if a creator kept redoing stuff over and over, but honestly? Every revision feels like an improvement.

It's awesome, and I highly recommend checking out Gear's work in general.

Of course, I can't talk about Sonic.EXE's continued survival without mentioning the second major reason it's still alive today:

Friday Night Funkin': VS Sonic.EXE.

Honestly, this mod showed up at the perfect time.

Throughout the late 2010s and early 2020s, Sonic.EXE was slowly fading into obscurity. Most EXE content was either trapped in low-effort kids' content on YouTube or suffering from the fallout of the various controversies surrounding the character.

Then VS Sonic.EXE arrived and effectively jump-started the entire community.

Suddenly, people were making fan art again. New interpretations started appearing. Fan games were being developed. People who had never even heard of Sonic.EXE before were discovering the character.

To put it simply, this mod gave Sonic.EXE a second chance.

So, as much as people love making fun of the funny beep-boop rhythm game, we probably have it to thank for keeping our favorite evil hedgehog from completely disappearing.

And while we're talking about EXE music, I'd also be committing a crime if I didn't mention Sinister Minds by Sturm and Markey Jauz. That album goes unbelievably hard.

Before I wrap things up, I want to mention one final project: Sonic Nightmare by MadnessPrime and AriftheSpriter.

It's a reimagining of an older EXE character called Sonic.Err, who's set to appear in an upcoming ROM hack.

And yes, you heard me right.

A ROM hack.

The project is heavily inspired by old concept art and early ideas from the classic Genesis-era Sonic games, and from everything shown so far, it's looking incredibly promising.

Much like the other projects I've talked about here, it actually seems committed to being a proper Sonic game first and a horror experience second. That's something I really appreciate, because a lot of EXE projects forget that they're supposed to be based on Sonic games in the first place.

The visuals look fantastic, the concept is interesting, and overall it's easily one of the EXE projects I'm most excited to see more of.

Final Thoughts

And honestly, I think that's the real reason Sonic.EXE has survived for so long.

It isn't because the original story was some timeless masterpiece.

It wasn't.

It isn't because the original game was revolutionary.

It wasn't that either.

Sonic.EXE survived because people saw potential in the idea.

Over the last fifteen years, countless artists, musicians, writers, spriters, animators, and developers have taken a simple concept and transformed it into something much larger than anyone could've expected.

Whether it's SONIC 2011, Soulless Sonic, Sonic.EXE Rewritten, Sonic The Executable, STAR✪SOLDIER SONIC: DREAM OF FREEDOM, Nightmare Beginning, Spirits of Hell, or even the massive impact of VS Sonic.EXE, every generation of creators has found a new way to reinvent the formula.

At this point, Sonic.EXE isn't really a single character anymore.

It's become its own creative community.

Some creators lean into psychological horror. Others focus on cosmic horror, tragedy, mystery, action, or completely bizarre alternate-universe concepts that somehow work anyway.

And honestly?

I think that's pretty cool.

Fifteen years later, we're still getting new games, new stories, new music, and new interpretations of a creepypasta that most people expected to die off years ago.

Sure, there have been controversies.

Sure, there have been bad projects.

And sure, there have been more than a few terrible stories.

But despite all of that, people keep creating.

People keep experimenting.

People keep improving on the idea.

So whether you're a longtime fan, someone who grew up watching YouTubers play the old games, or somebody who's just discovering this weird corner of the internet for the first time, one thing is clear:

Sonic.EXE really does just keep coming back, huh?

here are the links for the things i mentioned above (if i miss anything please let me know! since i finished editing this around 9:06 PM-)

SONIC 2011 and Sinister Minds

Sonic The Executable + Syrolander's twitter

Sonic.EXE Rewritten

TAR✪SOLDIER SONIC: DREAM OF FREEDOM + Gear's twitter

MadnessPrime's twitter