Shadow the Hedgehog was originally created to cure a video game version of AIDS

"It is revealed over several levels that Shadow was created 50 years before the events of the game, in an outer-space research centre known as Space Colony ARK, under the nefarious "Project Shadow." There, researchers, including Dr Gerald Robotnik, the grandfather of Dr Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, worked to find a cure for all known illnesses by creating an immortal lifeform. However, the scientists met a gruesome end after government officials grew concerned by the project's success and potential consequences."

"It was revealed in the Japanese edition of the Sonic Adventure 2 strategy guide that Gerald had his own motives fro being involved in the work. His granddaughter, Maria Robotnik, was diagnosed with neuro-immune deficiency syndrome, or NIDS, which motivated him to reluctantly join the project. The fictional disease is described in the guide as fatal and which renders its victims physically weak, a symptom that worsens until eventual death."

"It didn't take much for fans at the time to notice the comparison between the fictional disease and the HIV/AIDS crisis, which was of international concern during the development of Sonic Adventure 2 in the early to late 90s. Not only does NIDS feature several similar symptoms of HIV/AIDS, but the acronym is, of course, just one letter from being the same. Others in the fandom described it as a "soap-opera disease", a non-disfiguring illness which serves a thematic purpose within a plot."

Shadow was created fifty years before the game's events at Space Colony ARK as part of Project Shadow, a research effort to develop an immortal lifeform to cure all illnesses. Dr Gerald Robotnik joined the project largely because his granddaughter Maria suffered from neuro-immune deficiency syndrome (NIDS), a fatal condition that progressively weakened victims. Government officials later intervened and the scientists were killed due to concerns about the project's implications. Fans noted strong parallels between NIDS and the HIV/AIDS crisis, including similar symptoms and a nearly identical acronym, while HIV remained a major global health issue in 2023.

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