Sonic co-creator wanted Billy Hatcher to have a much worse name

Sonic co-creator Yuji Naka reportedly wanted Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg to launch under a far more inappropriate name in Western markets.

Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg was released for the Nintendo GameCube in 2003, developed by Sonic Team and produced by Naka. The 3D platformer follows a boy in a rooster suit who rolls, grows, and hatches giant eggs to fight enemies and explore colorful levels.

While the game never became one of Sega’s biggest franchises, it has kept a cult following among GameCube fans thanks to its strange premise, bright style, and extremely catchy theme song.

Former Sega exec reveals rejected Billy Hatcher name

Speaking in a new interview with Sega-16, former Sega of America vice president Mike Fischer recalled working with Naka on Billy Hatcher and said the game’s title was a major point of disagreement.

According to Fischer, Naka originally wanted the game to be called Giant Eggs, but Sega of America pushed back because “to lay a big egg” can mean to fail in the US.

Fischer said someone on his team then suggested Billy Hatcher, since the main character was the boy rather than the egg itself. That eventually became Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg, though Fischer claimed Naka still hated it.

The former Sega exec then claimed Naka suggested an even more awkward title after realizing Billy was wearing a rooster suit.

“He goes, ‘Well, I know another name for the boy wearing a rooster suit. Another name for rooster is cock. Can we call the game Giant Cock in English?’” Fischer recalled.

Fischer joked that he “should have” agreed just to see what happened, before sharply criticizing Naka as “the most miserable person” he had ever worked with.