Sonic the Hedgehog has a long history, with lore spanning from countless video games, comic books, TV shows, movies, and more. And while not everything is considered canonical, some aspects of his character have managed to transcend their respective media and become a staple part of his character.
There’s no better example of this than with chili dogs. The favorite food of the titular hero, this food item originated from the comic books and became a recurring trope in the animated series. It became so well known that his love for chili dogs eventually made its way into the games themselves. But which games have the MOST chili dogs?
I’ve ordered this list by how many instances and whether they appear or are just mentioned. I also only checked for mainline and console games, so mobile games or similar weren’t considered.
Sonic Advance 3: One Very Disconnected Description
So disconnected, I’m not even sure if it counts. In the official Japanese strategy guide for Sonic Advance 3 for the Game Boy Advance, they mention that Sonic loves chili dogs.
Released in the 2000s, this was long after the animated series established the trait. Most games still made zero mention of it at this time, though, so this is still a step ahead of all the other games.
Sonic Frontier: One Description
Jumping ahead to one of the most recent Sonic games, Sonic Frontiers doesn’t show any chili dogs. The closest is a reference to one in the description of the Red Can, a junk item you can find in the fishing mini game.
“An empty red can. Perhaps it contained some chili con carne for chili dogs.”
If not for how well-known Sonic’s love for chili dogs was, this could easily have been disregarded as innocent flavor text (heh, ‘flavor’ text). But given the serious tones of the game, I can get why they didn’t want to have a more blatant display.
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing: One Description
No hidden notes or low-key messages here. During the character select screen, you can open a detailed info screen on each character, including likes, dislikes, and all that jazz. For Sonic, it lists his likes as “Running, adventure and chili dogs.”
As bothersome as the lack of an Oxford comma may be, it is a direct acknowledgement of Sonic’s favorite food. And since Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing isn’t exactly heavy with lore drops, I can forgive them for not having more.
I initially wanted to attribute the lack of plot and lore to being a racing game, but Sonic Riders managed to have quite an expansive lore and story to it. So that’s no excuse.
Team Sonic Racing: One Mention
Another racing game that gives a bit of lore (seriously, All-Stars Racing, way to drop the ball), A reference to chili dogs is made almost immediately. Team Adventure mode begins with Amy inviting Sonic and friends to a picnic after encountering them on the beach. Sonic agrees, saying he “always has time for a chili dog.”
Sonic himself expressing an interest in chili dogs beats out any description, for sure. Unfortunately, this still isn’t a visual confirmation of chili or dog, so it’s ranked low.
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: One Mention
This one is a weird one. A lesser-known title, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood was a turn-based RPG developed by BioWare for the Nintendo DS. Intended as a series, plans for future games were scrapped after EA bought out BioWare.
The game also has some controversy, after former Archie head writer Ken Penders sued Sega twice, claiming that the antagonistic force, the Nocturnus Clan, was a copyright infringement on his Dark Legion characters. The case was dismissed both times.
The end of the game breaks the fourth wall to provide a meta conversation between Sonic, Tails, and Omega, with the latter two essentially listing the credits off to Sonic. Once they’re finally done, Sonic invites them out for some chili dogs.
Sonic Forces: Two Mentions
With how fan-service-centric Sonic Forces was, I’m surprised that all we have for chili dogs are two individual mentions, and only one from Sonic. The first is when he defeats the Phantom Copy of Zavok, to which he quips “bring some chili dogs next time.”
The second reference is only in the Episode Shadow DLC, where Rouge The Bat remarks that Shadow and Omega are a good pair, saying they “go together like chili and hot dogs.”
Sonic Superstars: One Chili Dog
Finally! We’re at the point where chili dogs are actually shown visually. Sonic Superstars is very low-key about it. While running at max speed, there’s a chance for an animation where Sonic pulls a chili dog out of hammer space and shows it off.
A simple and elegant nod to the blue blur’s favorite food, this is one of the more charming ways to do it. It’s not obnoxious or ham-fisted, just a quick little reference.
Sonic And The Black Knight: Three Chili Dogs
Now we’re getting into the meat of it. The references here on will be blatant and numerous. In Sonic and the Black Knight, the beginning cutscene shows Sonic appearing in the fantasy realm through a portal, with two chili dogs falling with him. He catches them, then does a show-offy move where he throws eats one and throws the other into the air, defeating the nearby threat before it lands.
That’s two, but there’s actually a third one. Chili dogs are a collectible item on certain levels. Since it’s the same shtick for each, this only counts as one.
Sonic Generations: 12 Chili Dogs
Early on in Sonic Generations, there’s a cutscene where Sonic’s friends throw him a surprise birthday party, including an outdoor picnic. On the table, we see 11 chili dogs. More chili dogs are seen being eaten by Knuckles, Rouge, and Vector, but I’m assuming these are the same ones from the table.
The twelfth chili dog is the one that Tails gifts to Sonic afterwards, indicated by the bow wrapped around it. A weird gift, even for Sonic. But I’m not here to judge; I’m just here to count chili dogs.
Sonic Unleashed: 25 Chili Dogs
Not only does Sonic Unleashed have the most confirmable distinct chili dogs, it also has the greatest degree of mechanical usage, too. Throughout each world, you’ll encounter Don Fachio, a chili dog vendor cart. Even though they look identical, each vendor is a distinct person. They are holding one chili dog and will reward Sonic with a special, locally unique chili dog if he completes his challenges. Some varieties include the Brezy Dog, Braniac Dog, Scorcher Dog, and Sandy Dog.
Assuming each one is holding a unique dog, that totals to 18 chili dogs so far. Add in the Egg Dog sold by an Egg Fighter in Eggmanland, the photo of Sonic with a chili dog beside Chip during the end credits, and a photo of every vendor together (where only five chili dogs can be seen), then it totals up to 25 unique chili dogs.
If you were to claim that the chili dog the vendor holds only counts as one, since it appears to be a repeated character model for each one, that brings it down to 16 chili dogs, still ranking it highest.
