Espio the Chameleon first popped up in 1995 as a member of Knuckle’s Chaotix, and despite
Knuckle’s Chaotix not soaring in popularity like some of the other Sonic games, Espio
has always been a fan favourite.
Next to Vector the Alligator, he’s appeared in many a Sonic game over the years, and even
has a riveting story arc in the Sega licensed Archie comics.
So, why is the character so popular?
How did he come to be?
And how did the once hot-headed chameleon become so darn chill and collected?
Well, we’ve got the answers for you with our list of the top 10 Espio the Chameleon
Surprising Facts!
10 His Creation Espio’s first appearance was in the 1995
Knuckle’s Chaotix for the Sega 32X system.
He was created by Takumi Miyake, who did a whole lot for Chaotix – he was the chief
graphic designer, attraction designer, character designer, enemy designer, boss designer, and
partook in crafting original character concepts, like Espio’s.
He’s worked on other Sega games too, only two of which were Sonic games – Sonic CD
and Sonic 3D Blast.
But back to his creation.
After Chaotix, Espio was the first character to return to a Sonic game aside from Knuckles,
appearing in Sonic the Fighters, and then in Sonic Heroes, alongside Vector and Charmy
to form Team Chaotix.
Not too shabby, considering his other teammate, Mighty the Armadillo – who we’ve actually
done a facts list on as well that’s worth checking out – would completely disappear
minus very brief cameos until the latest release of Sonic Mania Plus.
9 Ninja Training While often praised for his work as a detective,
and his work as a member of the Chaotix Detective Agency, Espio is known for being a ninja.
Literally.
He’s a master of ninjutsu, according to his Sonic Generation’s description, and
is a skilled ninja who thrives on danger who uses stealth and speed to fool his enemies.
It probably also helps that he’s an animal with the capability of camouflaging like no
other – an ability that is highlighted in the Challenge Act Espio: Master of Camouflage
in Sonic Generations.
But more on that later.
In order to expertly camouflage, Espio needs to fully concentrate.
If his focus falters, he becomes visible, which leaves him open for an attack.
Otherwise, he’s a master at blending into his environment, and in the game itself, cannot
be targeted by the player.
8 His Weapons Aside from his ninja training and camouflage
skills, Espio is pretty darn fast and can pull off moves like the Spin Attack, despite
not being a hedgehog-like Sonic and some of the other characters who also use it.
But, what’s kind of neat, is that he is one of the only characters who uses traditional
kinds of weapons – shuriken stars and as a kunai, which he’s an expert at throwing.
His shuriken stars act as a great long-range weapon that he can throw in rapid succession,
and he’s been known to attach a rope to his kunai to use it as a grappling hook to
swing between targets.
7 Personality According to the Japanese manual of Knuckle’s
Chaotix, Espio was a detective who went to investigate the mysterious island that emerged
from the sea in the game – the Newtrogic High Zone.
His detective traits have managed to stick to his character, despite some revisions he
and the other members of Chaotix would experience – more on that later though.
Espio is often described as a straight-laced detective, serious, practical, wise and intelligent.
According to his bio in Sonic Generations, his wariness and soulful character make him
a vital member of the Chaotix Detective Agency.
6 Meller’s Chameleon Espio is a chameleon – if that wasn’t
already the most obvious thing about him.
But not the kind of chameleon you see prancing around in Telus commercials.
Instead, he’s a breed of chameleon called Meller’s chameleon, also known as the giant
one-horned chameleon, which is the largest species of chameleon from the African mainland.
These chameleons got their name from an individual named Dr Charles James Meller, who was mentioned
by John Gray, a biologist and taxon authority, in his 1865 description of the creature, and
whom he ‘dedicated’ the species to.
Meller’s Chameleons are stout little guys with stubby tails.
5 Espio: Master of Camouflage As we mentioned earlier, there’s a challenge
act that appears in Sonic Generations called Espio: Master of Camouflage.
It’s the fifth and final challenge act of Speed Highway Act 2, and it’s unlocked by
clearing every stage in the Dreamcast era.
Playing as Modern Sonic, you run through the course as usual, but at various points, you’re
halted by Espio, who will turn invisible using his camouflage technique we talked about earlier,
all while he tosses his shurikens at you.
The only way to reveal him is to turn a searchlight on, which blinds him and causes him to lose
focus.
Side note, this is also the very first challenge act that Espio ever appeared in.
4 Knuckles Chaotix Speaking of appearances, let’s jump back
in time to his very first, in Knuckles Chaotix.
While Chaotix is a beloved game, it initially came out on the Sega 32X – a system that
wasn’t overly popular, resulting in the game to do poorly compared to other Sonic
titles that had appeared on the MegaDrive around that time.
It follows the story of Knuckles as the main character, and allowed players to use the
new-at-the-time Combi system, which let you play as two characters at once.
Espio had come to the Newtrogic High Zone to investigate it, along with Mighty, Vector
and Charmy, who all migrated to it for their own reasons as well.
They all ended up being captured, and Knuckles frees them one at a time, starting with Espio,
which prompts the player being able to use two characters at once.
In addition to that, some also believe that Espio was meant to play a much larger role
– a starring one – in the game.
This is due to the title cards on the beta builds of the game that read Starring Espio
the Chameleon.
3 Potty Mouth Shadow the Hedgehog was a game that tried
a little too hard.
Released in 2005, the game has gotten itself a cringe-worthy reputation for its seemingly
desperate efforts to make the game feel darker and hardcore.
Shadow walks around with guns, FFS – something that no other Sonic game has ever done.
It’s out of character and really, really dumb.
Along with Shadow, Sonic, Knuckles and the GUN Commander, Espio is one of the characters
in the game who says a curse word.
And by curse word, I mean “damn”.
Yes, it’s perhaps the most tame ‘curse word’ that could have been used, but all
things considered, with the game working so hard to be edgy and grim all while maintaining
a certain age rating, it kind of makes sense.
Still, a tad unnecessary.
But at least not as unnecessary as this.
Cringe.
2 Reinvention According to Takashi Iizuka, Espio, along
with the other members of Team Chaotix minus Knuckles were ‘recreated’ for Sonic Heroes,
with Sega choosing to ignore traits that had been initially established in the Knuckle’s
Chaotix game.
The reasoning behind this was to remove any contradictions previous character development
would have with their intentions in Sonic Heroes.
The changes made to Espio specifically were his age, his design, and his personality – he
was given a more serious attitude overall.
1 His Name If you’ve watched any of our other facts
videos about other Sonic characters, you’ll know that most of Sonic’s pals have names
that were chosen for a specific reason, or based off of a trait that that character encompasses.
Espio is no different – the chameleon character’s name is believed to be derived from one of
two places.
The first is espionage, and considering he’s ‘ninja disciplined’ and a member of the
Chaotix Detective Agency, that makes perfect sense.
The second is the Spanish word Espio, which means I spy.
There we have it, friends!
Did you know all of these facts about Espio?
Is he your favorite member of Knuckle’s Chaotix?
And if not, who is?
Let us know all of your thoughts in those comments below!
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