Sonic voice actor leaves role after 10 years, Sega confirms

Sonic holds one of his coveted golden rings — (Image credit: Sega)

Roger Craig Smith, the voice actor for Sonic the Hedgehog, has left the role after 10 years.

The actor strongly suggested he was leaving Sonic behind in a tweet Thursday morning, writing, "Welp, 10 years was an amazing run. Onward to new zones! Much love to the fans who've been so kind. It's been an honor." Attached to the tweet is an image of a Sonic-blue broken heart emoji.

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For over 10 years, Roger Craig Smith has been an integral part of the SEGA family. He brought the voice of Sonic to life, and we are forever grateful for his never-ending enthusiasm in helping the community and spreading joy.Thank you, Roger, for all you've done for Sonic.January 28, 2021

The reason for Craig's departure isn't clear as of now, but it's notable that the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, and we know Sega is planning to launch multiple new Sonic games in 2021 to mark the occasion. If Craig's departure was prompted on Sega's end, it's possible that the company is looking to freshen things up with a new Sonic and voice actor. To be clear though, we don't know whether Craig left the role voluntarily or was let go.

Aside from being the voice of Sonic for the last decade, Craig is also known for voicing Ezio in Assassin's Creed, Chris Redfield in Resident Evil, Kyle Crane in Dying Light, and for a myriad of roles in games, anime, TV, and movies.

Here's a whole bunch of new games of 2021 we can't wait to check out.

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.