Knuckles the Echidna

Knuckles the Echidna
Official artwork of Knuckles from Sonic Forces.
Universe	Sonic the Hedgehog
Debut	Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994)
Smash Bros. appearances	Brawl SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Sonic X Shadow Generations (2024)
Console/platform of origin	Sega Genesis
Species	Echidna
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Angel Island
Designed by	Takashi Yuda
English voice actor	Travis Willingham
Japanese voice actor	Nobutoshi Canna
French voice actor	Sébastien Desjours
German voice actor	Claus-Peter Damitz
Spanish voice actor	Sergio Mesa
Italian voice actor	Maurizio Merluzzo
Article on Wikipedia	Knuckles the Echidna

Knuckles the Echidna (ナックルズ・ザ・エキドゥナ, Knuckles the Echidna) is the tritagonist of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise.

Origin

Knuckles digging for pieces of the Master Emerald on Red Mountain in Sonic Adventure.

Knuckles first appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, later becoming the franchise's tritagonist. He is aptly named for both his spiked gloves and immense physical power, only rivaled by Sonic's supersonic speed. He lives alone on Angel Island, the location of an ancient and powerful jewel known as the Master Emerald, which is said to be able to control the power of the Chaos Emeralds. Since birth, he has been tasked with guarding the Emerald from potential intruders. He is serious and headstrong, but due to his isolation, very gullible and easy to manipulate. On multiple occasions, Knuckles was tricked by Doctor Eggman into thinking that Sonic was attempting to steal the Master Emerald. Due to this, along with their conflicting personalities, he sometimes clashed with Sonic as a rival. However, upon realizing his mistake, he assisted Sonic in defeating Eggman and has since become a close ally.

In Ultimate, Knuckles has three abilities as an Assist Trophy. The first is digging into the ground like a drill and then uppercutting back up. Knuckles's ability to dig into surfaces first originated in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2; however, in both games he could only dig if he had the Level Up Item Shovel Claw. He could also dig into the ground and then uppercut in Sonic Battle. It was not until Sonic Generations that he could dig without the Shovel Claw. The uppercut resembles the Spiral Upper, an ability Knuckles first learned in Sonic Adventure 2, though he does not necessarily need to dig into the ground first before performing it in his own games.

His second ability is the Homing Attack, which also made its debut in Sonic Adventure as a move only Sonic could perform. Knuckles was first able to use it in Sonic Heroes, though he could only perform it when following Sonic. He could first use it on his own in Sonic Advance 3. His third ability is simply punching the opponent with his fists. Knuckles is often associated with punching in many Sonic games and often has the ability to punch enemies as a part of his moveset in his playable appearances in Sonic games, more specifically the previously mentioned Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 as well as in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). He is also seen punching, specifically shadowboxing, during his idle animation in Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic Blast and Sonic Mania. His punch-punch-uppercut combo closely resembles a combo he could perform in Sonic the Fighters.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

As a background character

Knuckles (left) on Green Hill Zone in Brawl.

Knuckles, like Tails and Silver the Hedgehog, appears running through the shuttle loop in the background of Green Hill Zone.

Trophy

Knuckles's trophy in Brawl

Knuckles

A powerful red echidna also known by his full name, Knuckles The Echidna. Knuckles resides on Angel Island, where he guards the Master Emerald. Both friend and rival of Sonic, Knuckles is a martial-arts expert who can break through rocks with his spiked fists. In addition, he can climb walls and use the wind to glide through the air.

A powerful red echidna also known by his full name, Knuckles the Echidna. Knuckles resides on Angel Island, where he guards the Master Emerald. Both friend and rival of Sonic, Knuckles is a martial-arts expert who can break through rocks with his spiked fists. In addition, he can climb walls and use the wind to glide through the air.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3

SONIC & KNUCKLES

Sticker

Name	Game	Effect	Fighter(s)
Knuckles The Echidna	Sonic the Hedgehog 3	DefenseElectric+023 Resistance +23	Sonic

Knuckles The Echidna (Sonic The Hedgehog 3)

In Super Smash Bros. 4

As a background character

Knuckles reappears as a background character in Green Hill Zone in the 3DS version.

As a costume

Two Mii Brawlers dressed as Knuckles.

Knuckles appeared as a downloadable Mii Brawler costume as part of the final wave on February 3, 2016.

Trophy

Knuckles's trophy appears in both versions. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, it is part of the Sonic & Friends Trophy Box.

Knuckles the Echidna's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Knuckles the Echidna's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Knuckles the Echidna

Knuckles the Echidna is the dedicated guardian of the Master Emerald, rarely leaving his post on the floating Angel Island. His serious, one-track-minded approach puts him at odds with his rival, Sonic, but the two somehow manage to be friends all the same.

Sonic The Hedgehog 3 (02/1994)

Sonic & Knuckles (10/1994)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

As an Assist Trophy

“	Knuckles attacks nearby fighters with his fist. He can also dig into the ground and then attack with an uppercut, so be careful!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Knuckles as he appears in Ultimate.

Knuckles appears in Ultimate as an Assist Trophy. He attacks opponents with Homing Attack, and also digs into the ground and then uses an uppercut to attack. He may also simply punch opponents with his fists. He is also able to be KO'd. He cannot be summoned on Brinstar Depths, Castle Siege, Corneria, Green Hill Zone, Pilotwings, Spirit Train, and Venom.

Like Shadow, all of Knuckles's non-Japanese voice clips are reused from Sonic Generations. Unlike Shadow and Sonic, this extends to Japanese due to being a new Assist Trophy.

As a background character

Knuckles also once again appears as a background element of Green Hill Zone. Because of this appearance, his Assist Trophy will not appear when playing on the stage.

As a costume

A Mii Brawler wearing the Knuckles hat and costume.

The Knuckles Mii Brawler costume from the previous game was not in the base game, but was rereleased as DLC on April 17th, 2019. The costume features a slight redesign: its gloves now have fingers, a possible reference to Sonic Boom.

In the trailer, a Mii with the costume is seen headbutting the ground, a possible nod to his digging ability or one of the moves he can perform on a grounded opponent in Sonic the Fighters. He is later seen following Tails and Sonic to a Spring on Mario Circuit, possibly referencing both Sonic Heroes and Team Sonic Racing, a then announced game releasing the month after.

Spirit

Knuckles also appears as an Ace-class primary spirit. He can be summoned using the cores of Muddy Mole and Gordo.

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Slots	Base	Max	Base	Max	Base	Max	Ability	Series
781		Knuckles		★★★	2	2778	8360	1443	4341	1229	3698	Fist Attack ↑	Sonic The Hedgehog Series

Gallery

• 

  Knuckles as a Mii Brawler costume

• 

  Knuckles as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

• 

  Knuckles posing on Green Hill Zone. Note that this is impossible in the final game.

• 

  Knuckles attacking Kirby with an uppercut on The Great Cave Offensive.

• 

  Knuckles posing with Sonic on Palutena's Temple.

• 

  Knuckles mid-air on the Umbra Clock Tower.

Names in other languages

Language	Name
Japanese	ナックルズ・ザ・エキドゥナ, Knuckles the Echidna
English	Knuckles
French	Knuckles
German	Knuckles
Spanish	Knuckles
Italian	Knuckles
Chinese (Simplified)	纳克, Knuckles
Chinese (Traditional)	納克, Knuckles
Korean	너클즈 더 에키드너, Knuckles the Echidna
Dutch	Knuckles
Russian	Наклз

Trivia

• The picture of Knuckles with Sonic on Palutena's Temple on the Ultimate website is likely referencing the Sky Sanctuary from Sonic & Knuckles, of which Knuckles is often associated with. The Sky Sanctuary is also where Sonic saved Knuckles in Sonic Generations.
  • The picture of Knuckles on Umbra Clock Tower might also be a reference to the Sonic Adventure 2 level Pumpkin Hill, a similarly somber location that also has a clock tower section, being one of Knuckles' most recognizable levels from that game.
• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is the final game where Travis Willingham voices Knuckles (albeit via archived voice clips), as he was replaced by Dave B. Mitchell starting with Team Sonic Racing.
  • Willingham also provides the voice of another third-party Assist Trophy, Guile.
• Due to the wide spread of rumors relating to Sonic characters in Super Smash Bros. Melee, the FAQ on the game's US website notified players that Sonic and Knuckles were not playable characters.