There’s no doubt that Sonic Frontiers signified a resurrection of blue hedgehog games, which for so long sat in the background and had a very different quality. We have also seen the rise of the character in theaters with his two films released to date, as well as in television series. And while this is all the work of many people, much of the credit goes to Takashi Iizuka.
The legendary developer has been tied to Sonic and Sega for almost thirty years, since its first involvement was with Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles. And his loyalty to the company as well as to the brand has been rewarded since in the last report to the company’s shareholders he was designated as new CEO of the Sonic franchise and Sega of America, a division he himself helped revive.
Iizuka previously held positions as leadership in the Sonic team as well as being a key production agent in the wider SEGA organization. Some of his most notable works are: Nights into Dreams (lead game designer), Sonic Adventure (director, game designer and level designer), Sonic Adventure 2 (director, game designer and level designer), Mario & Sonic at the Winter Olympics (director and game designer).
It will be hoped that new horizons open up for Sonic in the management position of Iizuka, but at the moment the future is very bright.