Suspiciously Similar Song / Sonic the Hedgehog

• Sonic the Hedgehog:
  • The opening melody of Green Hill Zone is remarkably similar to the chorus of Billy Joel's "Big Shot".
  • Marble Zone sounds an awful lot like The Jacksons' "The Hurt" as well as Andy Williams's "Music to Watch Girls By". "The Hurt"'s arpeggio (heard at 0:26) also turns up at 0:22 of "Casino Night Zone 2Player" in Sonic 2.
  • Spring Yard Zone is pretty obviously inspired by Bobby Brown's "Every Little Step".
  • Labyrinth Zone is extremely similar to the song "Best of My Love" by The Emotions. Here is a mashup remix of the two songs.
  • Star Light Zone's music is suspiciously similar to The Bee Gees' "How Deep is Your Love" from Saturday Night Fever and Bobby Caldwell's "Love Won't Wait". In turn, it is the basis for the J-pop song Kusuriyubi no Kesshin by Dreams Come True, whom composer Masato Nakamura was a member of. Parts of the music also sound similar to Madonna's Borderline, in particular the part at 00:17.
  • The A-section of the Scrap Brain Zone theme is a hybrid of the Blade Runner end titles theme by Vangelis and "Metropolis" from Kraftwerk's The Man-Machine, while the B-section sounds like Kraftwerk's "Spacelab" from the same album.
  • The Final Zone theme sounds similar to Duran Duran's "Planet Earth".
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2:
  • Metropolis Zone's main riff is very similar to "Loving You Sunday Morning" by Scorpions and Walk Idiot Walk by The Hives.
  • The theme to Mystic Cave Zone sounds an awful lot like the opening theme to Inspector Gadget.
  • The boss theme in Sonic 2 (Game Gear version) sounds almost EXACTLY like "Cubik" by 808 State.
  • The entire tune of Chemical Plant Zone sounds like a small portion of Prince's Glam Slam.
• Sonic the Hedgehog (8-bit)
  • The "Bridge Zone" theme from the 8-bit version of the game, composed by Yuzo Koshiro, sounds similar to several other songs. The earliest is the "Maia Worzen" theme from the video game Legacy of the Wizard (Dragon Slayer IV), composed by Koshiro himself and released in July 1987. It is also similar to the opening theme for the TV show Full House (debuted September 1987) and Janet Jackson's hit single "Together Again" (released 1997).
• The character select theme from Sonic Chaos is extremely similar to the song "Lift" by 808 State.
• Sonic 3:
  • The game used to have Michael Jackson composing its score, and most of the zone themes can still be traced into being Suspiciously Similar Songs to MJ songs. Short documentary on the subject.
    • Of course, this includes one inversion: The backbeat for the Sonic 3 closing credits ended up being used in the Michael Jackson song "Stranger in Moscow".
  • The Hydro City Zone music is very reminiscent of the unreleased Michael Jackson song "Work That Body" as well as the Mike Mareen song "Heavy Water".
  • The Marble Garden theme and "Thriller" are quite similar... but, strangely enough, it was eventually confirmed to have nothing to do with Michael Jackson or his team, as Sega composer Miyoko Takaoka confirmed in 2014 that she composed the piece.
    • "Alarm Call" by Björk also bears some similarities to the Marble Garden Zone's theme.
  • In Carnival Night Zone, the beat from Michael Jackson's "Jam" is used, along with the trumpet riff and stock glass-breaking sound, and the main melody is based on Julius Fucik's "Entry of the Gladiators", which was also interpolated in Mystic Cave Zone from Sonic 2.
  • The percussion track for Knuckles's theme and the miniboss theme in the Sonic 3 half sound like they came straight from Michael Jackson's "In the Closet" or "Blood on the Dance Floor". The latter is also believed to be an inversion, though, as the original Dangerous demo lacked the distinctive four-beat drum hit heard in the final 1997 version.
    • This was taken a step further with Sonic Mania's miniboss track, aptly titled "Danger on the Dance Floor". A mashup exists of it as well.
  • The IceCap Zone theme is like a 16-bit instrumental version of "Hard Times" by The Jetzons, a band for which composer Brad Buxer was the keyboardist.
  • The No Way! screen is like a 16-bit instrumental version of "Honk Around the Clock" from Sesame Street.
  • The Act 2 boss theme resembles the first half of Stage 7's music from Raiden II.
  • The Launch Base Zone music uses the "GO!" yell from Run–D.M.C.'s "Peter Piper," as well as a bass hook similar to Nu Shooz's "I Can't Wait".
  • The bass line in the beginning portion of the song, which gets re-used throughout, is very similar to the bass line from the song "Soaring Mosaic" by John Kaizan Neptune. It also resembles the bassline for the instrumental version of "Wild Ambitions" by highly influential Japanese Synth-Pop group Yellow Magic Orchestra.
  • Another YMO similarity can be found with the chord progression of the intro to the theme for the Sonic & Knuckles version of Hidden Palace Zone , which is the same as YMO's "Behind the Mask". Interestingly, Michael Jackson, involved in composing Sonic 3's music, recorded a version of "Behind the Mask" with new lyrics, which was often covered (his version wasn't officially released until a remix on 2010's Michael).
  • Oingo Boingo's "Weird Science" sounds like a precursor to Sonic music, particularly the Flying Battery Zone.
  • Flying Battery also derives part of its melody from the James Bond theme's opening notes.
  • Sky Sanctuary, to "Sky High" by Jigsaw.
  • The True Final Boss theme of Sonic 3 & Knuckles is similar to The Strongest Foe, the Final Boss theme of Ys III: Wanderers from Ys.
  • You will never look at Sonic & Knuckless miniboss music the same way again.
  • The theme of the glowing spheres bonus stage is so close to the main riff of James Brown's Sex Machine, it would almost qualify as a cover.
  • Flying Battery Zone's theme borrows considerably from the airship theme in The Revenge of Shinobi.
• Sonic CD:
  • Practically all Japanese/European versions of Palmtree Panic sound similar to Super Mario's Super Star theme in certain segments of the tracks. The most notable one is in the 3rd section of the Bad Future version.
  • The boss music in the North American version is suspiciously similar to "Pressure Road" from Ys II.
  • The theme for the D.A. Garden menu from the Japanese and European versions of the game (also an unused level theme) opens with music and sounds that are very, very similar to the song "Pacific State", and its remix "Pacific 202" by 808 State.
  • The theme for Wacky Workbench Present in the Japanese and European versions of the game bears some similarity to the song "Flow Coma" by 808 State.
  • The theme for Wacky Workbench Good Future in the Japanese and European versions of the game is similar in parts to the song "Olympic" by 808 State.
• Sonic 3D Blast
  • The first part of the Special Stage theme in the Genesis version sounds very similar to "Picnic" from Super Fantasy Zone. Weirdly, the prototype version of Special Stage theme is a completely original composition.
  • The second part of the same theme, in turn, heavily resembles the second part of the character select music from Super Mario Bros. 2.
• Sonic R:
  • "Work it Out" has a a synth lead/bassline that is very similar to the one featured in the Nightcrawlers' "Push the Feeling On".
• Sonic Adventure:
  • Tails' theme, "Believe in Myself", is clearly based on the Bridge Zone theme from the 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog.
  • Some parts of Amy's theme, "My Sweet Passion", sound rather similar to Jamiroquai's "Cosmic Girl".
  • Casinopolis' main theme sounds very similar to "Changing Keys", the Wheel of Fortune theme song.
  • Azure Blue World, the theme to Emerald Coast from Sonic Adventure sounds incredibly similar to T-Square's Omens of Love.
  • Egg Carrier: A Song That Keeps Us on the Move sounds very close to The Dragon Gave a Loud Scream from NiGHTS into Dreams…, albeit a little slower, making this an example from the same company. Similar style and instruments, same key, and both melodies even begin with a long E note!
  • The song that plays during the Chaos 6 boss battle is quite similar to the theme from Mission: Impossible.
• Sonic Adventure 2
  • "E.G.G.M.A.N." has some very similar guitar riffs and melody lines to The Kinks' 1978 single (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman.
• Sonic Heroes
  • Team Dark's theme, "This Machine" by Julien-K, uses some of the same synths as the Metroid Prime soundtrack, such as the KORG MS2000. The warping sound at 0:58 was also used in the Chozo Ruins, and the outro static at 4:14 was used in the Title Screen.
  • The Egg Emperor boss theme sounds similar to "Perfect Crime" by Guns N' Roses.
    • It also sounds like part of "Electric Eye" by Judas Priest.
• Shadow the Hedgehog uses several stock tracks as bases for its music.
  • One example is part of the music from Death Ruins that sounds exactly like Magma's Danger Room from X-Men Legends. The same synth was used in Teen Titans in the episode "Car Trouble" during a scene when the Titans fight Overload in an electronics store, and it was also sampled in Sonic Rivals 2 in Mystic Haunt Zone Act 3, around a minute in.
  • The main menu theme Select is based on a bassline and percussion identical to Race Music #4 from Need For Speed Underground 2 on the DS. The same stock track was used in Stitch: Experiment 626 in the level Greema Jungle.
  • The cutscene track Perplexity features a part that sounds exactly like Encounter With Sigma from Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X. The original stock track is "Molybdenum" by Deep Seven.
• Sonic Rush:
  • Take a listen to "Back-2-Back", the theme for Water Palace. Now, if it hasn't sprung to mind already, take a listen to "Start the Commotion" by The Wiseguys. The similar repeated use of the guitar hook sample is just the tip of the iceberg. It's like Hideki Naganuma composed a tribute as BGM!
    • It also sounds a lot like "Louie Louie" by the Kingsmen.
  • The "da-da-daaa" in the B section of "Vela-Nova" has a chord progression strikingly similar to the jazz standard "Autumn Leaves".
  • There's also "Ethno Circus", which has a vague similarity to Tom Jones's "It's Not Unusual".
  • "Wrapped in Black", besides borrowing its Malcolm X sample from "Bring the Noise" by Public Enemy, also samples a stock string track that was used in Grandia for "Snow Town Raynu".
• Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)
  • "Crisis City" contains elements of the Battle Theme Music from Chrono Trigger as well as a possible reference to the Mission: Impossible Theme Tune. The progressing low strings also resemble Koopa's Road from Super Mario 64, and Scorching Desert from Mega Man Zero.
  • Silver's theme song, "Dreams of an Absolution" is very similar to Stardust's "Music Sounds Better With You". It also contains a melody similar to Green Hill Zone's theme, though Bentley Jones has actually stated this was a coincidence.
  • The Soleanna New City music has an almost identical bassline to "Chameleon" by Herbie Hancock.
  • The music to the first act of "Flame Core" sounds like "My Wave" by Soundgarden.
  • "Town Mission 4" from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) bares some similarities to Flash Man's stage music in Mega Man 2, which was noted by Pokecapn and company in their Let's Play of the PS3 version. Flash Man's stage music itself was similar to of Metallica's "Seek and Destroy".
  • The similar-sounding riffs in both songs also sound like a half-tempo version of a part of Guts Man's theme from the original Mega Man.
  • And for the Blue-on-Blue Trifecta: the piano melody present in all of Mephiles the Dark's themes is almost the EXACT same as Roll's theme from Megaman Battle And Chase: the key being the only difference (Mephiles is lower). This is far more noticeable with the Chiptuned Rockman remix of the theme, as the lyrics are absent. These two characters who couldn't be more different have the same melody.
• Sonic Rush Adventure:
  • Listen carefully to the first notes of "Normal Cutscene" and you will hear that they sound similar to Phil Collins' song "Strangers Like Me" from Tarzan.
• Sonic Unleashed:
  • The orchestral main theme has a chord progression bearing resemblance to "Deep Blue", Tech Kraken's stage from Mega Man Zero 4.
  • "Rooftop Run" (Spagonia) from Sonic Unleashed sounds a lot like "Fuck You" by Cee-Lo Green (though it should be noted that song came out two years after Unleashed). Here's a mashup.
  • The day music for Savannah Citadel (Mazuri) in Sonic Unleashed is essentially a remix of the credits music from the 8-bit Sonic 1, without the Green Hill rendition in the middle.
  • The daytime music for Windmill Isle (Apotos) sounds incredibly similar to Robbie Nevil's "C'Est La Vie".
  • A few notes of the game's theme song "Endless Possibilities" sound like iCarly's theme, specifically when both songs give their Title Drop.
• Sonic and the Black Knight has several songs credited to Tommy Tallarico, which are reused songs from his employee Todd Dennis' compositions:
  • "Molten Mine" is from one song and "Great Megalith" is from another song (heard here) both from Black Dawn on the Playstation and Sega Saturn.
  • "The Cauldron" is directly based on a song from Adrenix on the PC.
• Tropical Resort Act 1 from Sonic Colors sounds an awful lot like The Olympics' "I'll Do a Little Bit More".
• Sonic Mania:
  • The beginning beats of "Steel Cortex", the theme music for Titanic Monarch Zone Act 2, sound a bit similar to "Down In It" by Nine Inch Nails.
  • "Danger on the Dance Floor" was obviously based off of Michael Jackson's "Blood on the Dance Floor", as well as the percussions of Knuckles's theme from Sonic 3 (more info in the Sonic 3 section above).
  • The lyrics to the The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air's intro fit marvelously well with Stardust Speedway Act 1. There have been many mashups indicating this.
  • Part of Metallic Madness Act 1 sounds like the "I ain’t afraid of no ghosts" part of the Ghostbusters theme.
• Sonic Forces:
  • The theme for the first Infinite boss fight strangely sounds like PSY's "Gangnam Style"; listen to the mashup. It also highly resembles "I Fink You Freeky" by Die Antwoord and "Satisfaction" by Benny Benassi.
  • Park Avenue's theme is reminiscent of Mega Man 2's Wily Fortress theme. A mashup of them even exists.
  • On another note, Luminous Forest steals its main chord progression wholesale from Give 'Em Hell, Kid by My Chemical Romance. It even mimics the bass solo in the beginning of MCR's track!
  • The chorus of Fist Bump is nearly identical to that of Time To Say Goodbye from RWBY. Bear in mind that this is from the second volume of the show, back in 2014, where Forces came out in 2017.
• Part of the bell melody in Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is an exact copy of the first part of the chorus from "Lay All Your Love on Me" by ABBA.
• Sonic Frontiers:
  • The Ares Island melody resembles Dusty Desert from Sonic 06, beyond simply sharing a desert theme.
  • Wyvern's "Break Through It All" has parts similar to the chorus for "Fist Bump" from Sonic Forces, even repeating the line "until the battle’s won" at one point.
  • Similarly, Knight's "Find Your Flame" closely resembles "Infinite" from Sonic Forces. It helps that the song features Tyler Smith again and even has similar lyrics, making the resemblance likely intentional.
    • It also sounds incredibly similar to the 10th ED theme to Dragon Ball Super's Shihou No Madobe Whether intentional or unintentional, it's another case of Sonic calling back to Dragon Ball as it's roots. It's fitting too given Frontiers is a lot more heavy on the Shonen style melee combat. To drive home this comparison, various mashups of the two are present on youtube.
  • The guitar solo at the end of "One Way Dream" is clearly lifted from "Reach for the Stars" from Sonic Colors.
  • The Action Chain Challenge theme's opening bars sound oddly similar to a part of "Blinded By the Light" from Final Fantasy XIII.
• In Sonic Riders, the theme for the Sand Ruins and Dark Desert sounds a bit like D-Devils' "6th Gate" with an Egyptian flare to it.
• In Sonic Rivals 2, there's a part at around 0:30 in Chaotic Inferno Zone Act 3 that samples a high-pitched wail sound. This sample, which has been identified as coming from a Breakbeat Paradise pack, has also been utilized in "Drop Out" from DDR Extreme and "Frozen Frog" from Devil May Cry 4. Oddly, the sample is also in various Pokémon Diamond and Pearl cries, including Dialga, Heatran, and the entire Garchomp family line.
• In Sonic Triple Trouble, the music for Sunset Park Zone Act 3 is highly reminiscent of Ozzy's "Crazy Train". You'll never guess what features prominently in the act.
• The music to the Neo Green Hill Zone board in Sonic Pinball Party is a messed-up version of the tune to Neo Green Hill Zone Act 2 in Sonic Advance. This is especially bizarre considering that the game's other boards (also based off of Advance levels) take the music verbatim from their models.
• The chord progression of Sonic's fanfare in the 4Kids English dub of Sonic X resembles the start of The Master's theme in Paper Mario 64.
• Due to Masato Nakamura owning the rights to the songs from the first two Genesis Sonic titles, the Genesis-themed levels from the Sonic Level Pack of LEGO Dimensions had to be replaced with sound-a-likes (the drowning theme being the one exclusion).
• The 1-Up jingle used since Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) is based on the "Chaos Emerald acquired!" jingle in the classic Genesis games... but really resembles the Super Mario Bros. 1-Up sound.
• The third part of Cyber Station Zone from Sonic Superstars, starting at 0:50, sounds extremely similar to the chorus of "Little Red Corvette" by Prince.

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