WWE’s Xavier Woods talks his love for Sonic, fondest memories of the franchise
Sonic the Hedgehog has some friends in pretty high places. Jim Carrey, Jaret Reddick, Michael Jackson (that last one being from a very, very high place – too soon?) are just a handful of the celebs with whom everyone’s favorite blue speedster has rubbed quills. It seems that the list extends even into the testosterone-fueled realm of professional wrestling, as in the last few days, WWE superstar Xavier Woods – real name Austin Watson, no need to Google it – has spoken out about his admiration for the series. I guess there’s enough time between breaking chairs and chucking sweaty men off cages to play a few rounds of Sonic.
Speaking in an interview posted to the official SEGA Twitter account, he begins by recalling the first time he rented a Sonic title from Blockbuster (oh hello, rapidly advancing age anxiety, thought I’d managed to suppress you) and, upon hearing the famous boot-up chant, knew “it was about to be on.” Indeed.
Check out the video below:
Sonic the Hedgehog’s inspiration on Xavier Woods
Woods goes on to compare his experience of putting on a “character” for wrestling to that of controlling a video game protagonist. He stated, “essentially we play them to escape to another fantasy world, away from whatever is stressing us out in our lives.” He singles out Sonic the Hedgehog as being the series with which “he felt the most comfortable” in. He said the game allowed him to make friends “through the conduit of Green Hill Zone,” as he struggled in his early years to find someone who shared his interests. Been there, buddy.
He expresses a particular interest in Sonic 2, a game often considered as being among the best by fans. He also has a special empathy for Sonic’s partner Tails: “once I saw that this was a team effort, I was like, oh! Because I’d always been like that, like the little sidekick.” Woods also cites beating Sonic 2 as “easily one of the top 3 moments of my life.” Considering his long and star-studded career, that’s quite the achievement for ol’ Sonic.
Are you a fan of Xavier Woods? Do you agree with his views? Let us know!
Via, Twitter.
