# Sonicexe > Sonic.exe is a 2011 creepypasta by JC-the-Hyena about a cursed video game cartridge that subjects players to increasingly disturbing paranormal encounters, spawning a massive fandom of games, animations, and fan art. Sonic.exe is a creepypasta story about a cursed version of the original *Sonic the Hedgehog* game, written by JC-the-Hyena and posted to the Creepypasta Wiki on August 9, 2011[3]. The story follows a teenager named Tom who receives a mysterious CD-R labeled "SONIC.EXE" and encounters increasingly disturbing paranormal events while playing it. Despite being removed from the Creepypasta Wiki in 2014 for poor writing quality, Sonic.exe spawned a massive fan community including games, animations, fan art, and music mods that kept the concept alive well beyond its original text[2]. ## Origin JC-the-Hyena created the Sonic.exe story after being inspired by a doctored screenshot of the Sega Genesis *Sonic the Hedgehog* title screen[3]. On August 9, 2011, the story was submitted to the Creepypasta Wiki, where it described a haunted Sonic game filled with disturbing imagery and jump scares[3]. The story followed a standard creepypasta formula: an unsuspecting person encounters a cursed piece of media, ignores obvious warning signs, and suffers the consequences. The creepypasta genre itself had roots on 4chan, where the term first appeared around 2007 as a horror-specific variant of "copypasta"[1]. By the time Sonic.exe was written, creepypasta sites like the Creepypasta Wiki and Reddit's r/nosleep were already established communities for user-generated horror fiction[1]. Sonic.exe fit into a popular subgenre of "haunted game" pastas that exploited childhood nostalgia by corrupting familiar media into something threatening. - **Platform:** Creepypasta Wiki - **Creator:** JC-the-Hyena (author) - **Date:** 2011 ## Overview Sonic.exe centers on a demonic version of Sonic the Hedgehog with black eyes, red pupils, and a wide, bloody grin. The original creepypasta tells the story through a first-person narrator named Tom, who receives a burned CD-R disc from his friend Kyle along with a frantic note begging him to destroy it[4]. Instead of heeding the warning, Tom plays the disc and encounters a corrupted version of the classic Sega Genesis game where Sonic stalks and kills his friends Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Robotnik[3]. The character design draws from an edited screenshot of the original *Sonic the Hedgehog* title screen, which gave Sonic a menacing, possessed appearance[3]. The demon entity controlling the game, later named Exetior by the fan community, uses phrases like "Found you" and "So many souls to play with, so little time"[4]. ## How It Spread The story gained significant traction when GameJolt user MY5TCrimson released a playable game adaptation titled "Sonic.exe" on August 13, 2012[3]. The game brought the text-based horror to life, letting players experience the corrupted levels firsthand. On November 13 of the same year, YouTuber MrCreepyPasta uploaded a dramatic reading of the full story in two parts[3]. The real explosion came on May 5, 2013, when PewDiePie uploaded a Let's Play walkthrough of the game, pulling in over 6.7 million views and 38,000 comments within two years[3]. PewDiePie's coverage introduced Sonic.exe to a mainstream gaming audience far beyond the creepypasta community. Then came the backlash. On January 14, 2014, JC-the-Hyena announced that the Creepypasta Wiki administrators had voted to remove the Sonic.exe entry from the site, deeming it badly written and packed with too many clichés[3]. The removal didn't kill the meme. If anything, it freed the concept from its original text. On January 9, 2014, MY5TCrimson released a sequel game called "Sally.exe," and on April 8, animator Balenaproductions uploaded a popular animation where the original Sonic fights back against his demonic counterpart[3]. By October 2014, over 6,800 fan art submissions tagged "sonic.exe" existed on DeviantArt[3]. The platform still hosts an active community producing renders, fan fiction, and character redesigns[2]. ## How to Use Sonic.exe works less as a single-format meme template and more as a character and creative universe. Common uses include: 1. **Fan art and character design** — Artists draw their own interpretations of the demonic Sonic, often emphasizing the black-and-red eye design and bloody grin. DeviantArt is the primary hub for this[2]. 2. **Fan games** — Developers create their own horror games using Sonic.exe characters and lore. The GameJolt platform hosts many of these, including expanded storylines with additional characters like Amy, Cream, and Sally[4]. 3. **Music mods** — Sonic.exe appeared as an antagonist in popular Friday Night Funkin' mods, introducing the character to a new generation of players[4]. 4. **Reaction content** — YouTubers and streamers commonly play Sonic.exe fan games for horror Let's Play content, following the path PewDiePie established. 5. **Creepypasta references** — People reference Sonic.exe as shorthand for obviously cursed or corrupted media, often joking about characters who ignore blatant warning signs. ## Cultural Impact Sonic.exe became one of the most recognizable creepypastas in internet horror history, ranking alongside Slender Man, Jeff the Killer, Ben Drowned, and Smile Dog as a defining work of the genre[1]. Wikipedia's entry on creepypasta lists Sonic.exe among the notable examples that shaped online horror fiction[1]. The story arrived during what Time magazine identified as the peak period for creepypasta as a genre, when mainstream outlets began covering internet-born horror stories[1]. While Sonic.exe never triggered the kind of real-world incidents associated with Slender Man, it played a key role in establishing the "haunted video game" subgenre of creepypasta, where childhood media gets reframed as something sinister. The Creepypasta Wiki's decision to remove the story in 2014 became its own talking point. The deletion highlighted tensions within creepypasta communities between popular appeal and writing quality, since Sonic.exe was beloved by fans despite being widely criticized for its prose[3]. The story's reception on Urban Dictionary captures this tension perfectly, with definitions calling it "a really shitty story" while simultaneously acknowledging its enduring popularity[4]. ## Fun Facts - The demon possessing the game is technically named Exetior, not Sonic.exe. The name "Sonic.exe" just refers to the executable file format of the cursed game[4]. - Tom's friend Kyle literally writes him a note saying "Don't even play the game, it's what he wants, just destroy it." Tom plays it anyway[4]. - The Creepypasta Wiki removal in 2014 didn't diminish the meme's popularity. Fan games and art actually accelerated after the story was taken down[3]. - Creepypastas like Sonic.exe have been archived by the American Folklife Center as part of their digital culture web archive, documenting the development of internet folklore[1]. - The Fleetway Super Sonic character in the FNF mod takes a jab at Sonic.exe, saying "imagine being an executable file. Couldn't be me"[4]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Sonic.exe? Sonic.exe is a creepypasta story about a cursed, demonic version of *Sonic the Hedgehog* that haunts a modified PC game. Written by JC-the-Hyena, it was posted to the Creepypasta Wiki in August 2011[3]. ### Where did Sonic.exe come from? The story originated on the Creepypasta Wiki on August 9, 2011, inspired by an edited screenshot of the original Sega Genesis Sonic title screen that gave the character a sinister appearance[3]. ### What does Sonic.exe mean? The name refers to the executable file format (.exe) of the cursed game disc in the story. The demonic entity itself is named Exetior, but fans commonly call the whole concept "Sonic.exe"[4]. ### How do you use Sonic.exe? People engage with Sonic.exe primarily through fan art, fan games, music mods, and Let's Play videos. It functions as a creative universe rather than a single meme template[2]. ### Is Sonic.exe still popular? The character maintains an active fan art community on DeviantArt and received renewed attention through Friday Night Funkin' mods, though the original creepypasta text is no longer on the Creepypasta Wiki[2]. ### Who created the Sonic.exe creepypasta? JC-the-Hyena wrote and submitted the original story to the Creepypasta Wiki on August 9, 2011[3]. ### Why was Sonic.exe removed from the Creepypasta Wiki? On January 14, 2014, JC-the-Hyena announced that site administrators removed it because they considered it badly written and full of clichés[3]. ### Who made the Sonic.exe game? GameJolt user MY5TCrimson released the first playable Sonic.exe game on August 13, 2012, followed by the sequel Sally.exe in January 2014[3]. ### What is Exetior? Exetior is the fan-given name for the demon entity that possesses the game in the Sonic.exe universe. The name was acknowledged in the Friday Night Funkin' Sonic.exe mod[4]. ### Did PewDiePie play Sonic.exe? Yes, PewDiePie uploaded a Let's Play of the Sonic.exe game on May 5, 2013. The video received over 6.7 million views and 38,000 comments[3]. ### What other creepypastas is Sonic.exe grouped with? Sonic.exe is commonly listed alongside Slender Man, Jeff the Killer, Ben Drowned, Ted the Caver, and Smile Dog as one of the most well-known creepypasta stories[1]. ### Is Sonic.exe in Friday Night Funkin'? Yes, a popular FNF mod features Sonic.exe as an opponent, along with other Sonic horror variants including Fleetway Super Sonic[4]. ## References 1. [Search 'sonic.exe' on DeviantArt - Discover The Largest Online Art Gallery and Community]() 2. [Sonic.exe - Know Your Meme]() 3. [Creepypasta]() 4. [Sonic.exe - Urban Dictionary]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/sonicexe Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library