Sonic 3 didn't relegate Gerald Robotnik to Sonic Adventure 2-style flashbacks so he could be "more of a present danger"

Warning: the following features spoilers for Sonic the Hedgehog 3...

Sonic 3 takes more than a few cues from Sonic Adventure 2, the 2001 Dreamcast title that helped cement the Blue Blur as a 3D platforming icon while simultaneously unleashing Shadow the Hedgehog onto the world.

While the live-action threequel follows Sonic Adventure 2's story beats and broad narrative brushstrokes, one of the key differences involves the character of Gerald Robotnik (Jim Carrey).

Namely, he is still alive and (somehow) kicking in Sonic 3, despite being a 114-year-old man. That's a marked change from Sonic Adventure 2's use of Gerald Robotnik via flashbacks and old recorded messages.

"The biggest change, really, was making it so Gerald is still alive; bringing Gerald into the present instead of only being a flashback villain who exists only in the past, because there's just a limit to how many flashbacks we want to have," Sonic 3 co-writer Pat Casey reveals to GamesRadar+.

"We wanted to make him more of a present danger, giving us a real villain, because we knew from the beginning we wanted to find an opportunity to get Sonic and Ivo more stuff together. So the idea of them teaming up was a big thing on the to do list, even though obviously any such team up was always temporary."

Fellow co-writer Josh Miller says that bringing Gerald Robotnik into the fold teases out new dynamics for Jim Carrey's other Robotnik, Ivo (also known as Eggman to his enemies).

"It became such a big thing in the Sonic movie franchise that Ivo is an orphan, so it was just hard to resist the idea of what would happen if he suddenly found out that he has a family member," Miller says. "Since the Sonic movies are all about found family."

Casey adds, "I mean, to me, the Sonic movies are about crushing loneliness. I remember people making memes about that after Sonic 2 and it is a little true, and Ivo is a part of that. So it was what happened to him if he thought he wasn’t alone anymore."

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is out now in theaters worldwide. For more, check out out guide to Sonic 3 Easter eggs you may have missed, as well as our breakdown of the Sonic 3 ending. Then dive into our interview with Robotnik actor Jim Carrey on why Sonic 3 is his first movie trilogy.