Sonic Team
Sonic Team is a video game development team which is a subsidiary of Sega. The team was formed with the express purpose of creating a mascot for Sega to compete directly with Nintendo's Mario. The studio was initially comprised of 15 people, called Sega AM8, and these 15, with the leadership of Naoto Oshima and Yuji Naka, they produced the original Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Genesis. The game was an instant success and instantly propelled Sega to being one of the top video game companies in the industry. Sega AM8 later renamed itself after their Breakthrough Hit, calling itself Sonic Team.
As suggested by their name, they are best known for the development of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Sonic Team directly develops the main series console games and only supervises development on spinoffs and handheld titles in the series developed by other companies.
However, they have produced other well-known games besides their namesake series. Other titles they have developed include NiGHTS Into Dreams, Phantasy Star Online, and Ristar.
Games and game series produced by Sonic Team:
- Sonic the Hedgehog series
- Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
- Chu Chu Rocket
- NiGHTS Into Dreams
- Phantasy Star Online
- Puyo Puyo series (Puyo Pop onward)
- Ristar