Chao (/ˈtʃaʊ/; Japanese: チャオ) are fictional life forms in the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series published by Sega. They are small, childlike creatures that go through a complex life cycle and exist in several visual forms depending on how they are raised. Developer Sonic Team incorporated Chao into the games to force players to explore levels and artistically support the good–evil dichotomy of Sonic Adventure 2.

Chao have appeared in many games in the series, beginning with Sonic Adventure in 1998. They usually take the form of digital pets, but have also played parts in the story and figured into other gameplay elements. Most notably, the character Cream the Rabbit has a Chao named Cheese, whom she uses to attack enemies. They have also appeared in games outside the series, the Sonic the Hedgehog comics, and the Sonic X anime, as well as being featured in promotions and merchandise. Critics have given mixed opinions on Chao and their integration into Sonic gameplay, generally praising their worth as a diversion but criticizing Chao minigames' low interactivity.

Sonic or Sonic may refer to:

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Science and technology

Sonic Corp., more commonly known as Sonic Drive-In or simply just Sonic, is an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As of August 31, 2011, 3,561 restaurants were in 43 U.S. states, serving about 3 million customers per day. In 2011, it was ranked 10th in QSR Magazine's rankings of the top 50 quick-service and fast-casual restaurant brands in the nation. Known for its use of carhops on roller skates, the company annually hosts a competition to determine the top skating carhop in its system. It also hosts, with Dr Pepper, an internal competition between drive-in employees. The company's slogan is "America's Drive-In."

Company profile

Although Sonic has operated since the early 1950s, Sonic Corp. incorporated in Delaware in 1990. It has its corporate headquarters in Oklahoma City; the headquarters building features a dine-in Sonic restaurant in an adjacent building. Its stock trades on NASDAQ with the symbol SONC. Company restaurants are owned and operated by Sonic Restaurants, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary. Total 2011 revenues were around $546 million with net income of $19 million.

Sonic the Hedgehog (ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ, Sonikku za Hejjihoggu) is a video game franchise created and owned by Sega. The franchise centers on a series of speed-based platform games, but several are spin-offs in different genres. The protagonist of the series is an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog named Sonic, whose peaceful life is often interrupted by the series's main antagonist, Doctor Eggman. Typically, Sonic—usually along with some of his friends, such as Tails, Amy, and Knuckles—must stop Eggman and foil any plans of world domination. The first game in the series, published in 1991, was conceived by Sega's Sonic Team division after Sega requested a mascot character; the title was a success and spawned sequels, and transformed Sega into a leading video game company during the 16-bit era in the early to mid-1990s.

Sonic Team has since developed many titles in the franchise. Prominent members of its initial staff included Naka, character designer Naoto Ohshima, and level designer Hirokazu Yasuhara. Other developers of Sonic games have included Japanese Dimps, American Sega Technical Institute, Backbone Entertainment, Big Red Button Entertainment, and Sanzaru Games, Canadian BioWare, and British Sumo Digital and Traveller's Tales. While the first games in the series were side-scrolling platform games, the series has expanded into other genres such as action-adventure, fighting, racing, role-playing, and sports. Including packaged game software and downloads, the franchise has sold 335 million units as of April 2015, with the mobile game Sonic Dash being downloaded over 100 million times by June 2015, making it one of the best-selling video game franchises of all time.