"Mad scientist streamer" makes Sonic the Hedgehog proud by running Sonic 3 using the electricity generated by chili and hotdogs

Sonic the Hedgehog holding chilidogs
(Image credit: Sega)

A streamer has answered the question we've all been wondering - what food is best for generating electricity to run Sonic the Hedgehog 3?

Uwoslab - a streamer and self-proclaimed "mad scientist" who has gained a following for creating contraptions no one has ever thought of before - has managed to find a way to power Hasbro's Sonic the Hedgehog 3 handheld console using eight cups of chili and science. Sonic must be very proud. 

I'd love to tell you exactly how this works scientifically but unfortunately, I have no idea. The full experiment was broadcast over on Uwoslab's Twitch channel but you can see some of the highlights in the tweet below. As you can see, the streamer uses everything from plastic cups to copper rods, and a big bowl of chili and hot dogs to get the little console up and running - which eventually does work. 

In the replies to their tweet, Uwoslab briefly explains the science behind it: "A basic voltaic cell is a copper and zinc electrode in a salt/vinegar mixture, and chili is both salty and acidic, meaning we can use it instead." When you put it like that it is pretty simple, I just can't imagine a time when you'd have a bowl of chili, no electricity, and a Sonic the Hedgehog 3 handheld console that's just run out of battery.

This is just one of the wild experiments Uwoslab has conducted on stream. The mad scientist has also built a contraption to make hot chocolate as fast as possible, created a wall-mounted bacon dispenser, and found a way to make a chat-controlled ukulele bot. We may never find a use for any of these inventions but I'm glad someone is out there finding a way to make them happen. 

Take a look at our best Sonic games list as we sadly don't have a list dedicated to food-powered consoles. 

Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.