“ | Shadow: Infinite can create virtual reality projections. They have mass and form, but no heart and soul. Sonic: Virtual Reality? so all those familiar faces who were a part of Eggman's army... Shadow: Replicas. The problem is, they may not be real, but their powers are as formidable as the originals. According to Rouge, Infinite can create unlimited numbers of them. Sonic: So fight after fight, he can just keep cranking up counterfeits? Shadow: Exactly. As it stands, there is no way we can win this. Sonic: Of course we can win this. We always do! We just haven't figured that part out, yet. |
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~ Shadow and Sonic discussing the replicas. |
The Replicas are antagonistic creatures of Sonic Forces. They are virtual reality projections of existing characters, created by Infinite with the power of the Phantom Ruby. Serving the Eggman Empire, replicas have all the strengths and powers that their original counterparts possess, though they have no soul or free will. Each Replica can also be mass-produced much more efficiently then machines, which is why Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik replaced his standard Badniks with Replicas for Sonic Forces. The most common Replicas are that of Shadow the Hedgehog, Zavok, Metal Sonic and Chaos, as well as a massive army of Badnik Replicas. Additionally, Replicas of Rouge the Bat, E-123 Omega and Infinite are also used, but only briefly once or twice and to no extent that the Main 4 Replicas are.
Description
Powers and abilities
The Replicas have all the Powers and Abilities that their original counterpart had. The replica of Zavok, for example, is capable of fighting against Sonic in a brawl with both the personality and strength that the original Zavok has. Their abilities also have been enhanced by the Phantom Ruby, For example the Metal Sonic Replica, who was able to change his size and conjure Badnik Replicas, neither of which the original Metal Sonic can do.
Weakness
Replicas can only be summoned and powered by the Phantom Ruby, which is so powerful it requires a giant power source to power it. If the power source is destroyed, the Phantom Ruby's power will be weakened and so will be the Replicas. If the Phantom Ruby is destroyed, all Replicas will instantly die and fade away, and no additional replicas will be able to be summoned.
History
Past
When Dr. Eggman first discovered the Phantom Ruby outside his lab, he tested its power on Angel Island, creating a virtual reality illusion of the village of the Knuckles Clan. This causes a replica of Chaos to emerge from the Master Emerald to fight Knuckles the Echidna and Silver the Hedgehog. However, it disappears as soon as Knuckles and Silver defeat it.
Dr. Eggman then later gives the Phantom Ruby to Infinite to grant him ultimate power. He then tests this new power on E-123 Omega to instantly destroy him. This causes Shadow the Hedgehog to attack Infinite, however once again using the Ruby's power, Infinite sends him to a Virtual Reality world with a Replica of of Rouge the Bat and Omega manipulating him to mess with his head. Shadow is confused about what happened to Infinite, but makes his way through the area regardless towards where Omega was supposedly destroyed. Shadow reaches the point where Omega was supposedly destroyed, but only to find nothing there. Rouge calmly states that this is because it never really happened. Then replica of Omega joins the radio, stating that he has never been defeated before breaking down into constantly shouting "I am not weak", similarly to Infinite when he first fought Shadow.
Sonic Forces
Infinite later creates virtual reality projections of Shadow, Metal Sonic, Chaos and Zavok. In a populated City, Eggman baits Sonic to him by terrorising the civilians, then when Sonic arrives, Infinite and his army of Replicas effortlessly defeat Sonic within the span of a minute. The unconscious Sonic is captured by Eggman and imprisoned in the Death Egg while Infinite and the Replicas, now including several Replicas of the Death Egg Robot and a massive Replica Badnik army, Destroy the rest of the city and begin the Eggman Empires global takeover.
Six months later, Sonic was freed from inside the Death Egg thanks to a Resistance attack on the Death Egg. Sonic then encounters the replica of Zavok and defeats him. After this, the replica disintegrates with Sonic noticing the sound Zavok made when he vanished was familar to that of the sound made by the Phantom Ruby when activated. However soon after, Sonic was forced to escape due to the prison cell collapsing from the Resistance's attacks. Meanwhile elsewhere, the Chaos replica ambushes Tails, who is then saved by the arrival of Classic Sonic, who kills the Replica.
Infinite also later creates replicas of himself during his fight against Sonic in Mystic Jungle, although Sonic neutralizes them rather quickly and then attacks the real Infinite directly.
A short while after, Sonic returns to the City after the Resistance learns the Shadow replica is leading Eggman's army on a rampage through the city. When Sonic confronted the replica, the real Shadow arrives and kills his replica. Shadow then reveals to Sonic what replicas are, giving the Resistance some insight to Infinite's power. Soon after, Sonic and the Avatar encounter the Metal Sonic Replica (which had since grown in size thanks to the Phantom Ruby's power) and kill it too.
Eventually after taking back most of the planet from the Eggman Empire, the Resistance reaches the Eggman Empire Fortress, where they fight a giant battle against an army of hundreds of replicas of Shadow, Zavok, Metal Sonic and Chaos. This army of replicas was further increased by the thousands, with Replicas of Infinite joining the army, after a decoy generator was destroyed due to Eggman using the ruby to power the Death Egg Robot with the Phantom Ruby (which was now overclocked). After Both Sonic's and the Avatar destroy the Death Egg Robot and the Phantom Ruby along with it, the replicas fighting against the Resistance and the remaining worldwide Replica Badniks, all vanish.
Relationships
Allies
Enemies
- The Resistance
- Sonic the Hedgehog (Modern and Classic)
- Avatar/The Rookie
- Miles "Tails" Prower
- Knuckles the Echidna
- Amy Rose
- Shadow the Hedgehog
- Rouge the Bat
- E-123 Omega
- Silver the Hedgehog
- Vector the Crocodile
- Espio the Chameleon
- Charmy Bee
Trivia
- Despite a prominent appearance in pre-relese advertisement, Neither the Shadow or Chaos replicas get a boss fight. Both are killed off in a cutscene.
- After the decoy generator for the Phantom Ruby was destroyed, an army of Infinite Replicas were fighting the Resistance. However the replicas of Infinite were not seen during the cutscene and can only be seen during the first Infinite boss battle.
- In the early draft for the game script, Mephiles was also meant to appear as a Replica, but was later scrapped.