Hi.

This is not so much an “important” SHC communication, as, if you’ve been following the SHC closely enough these days, you would likely learn nothing new from what I write. This is more so me speaking my thoughts on what’s going on as of late, especially the sudden passage of torch.

On my midnight of the 24th, HazelSpooder suddenly granted me formal ownership of the Sonic Hacking Contest. She then proceeded to blank out her Social media profiles’ information, and left pretty much every single Discord server she was in at the time. She was in a very evident state of distress.

While it is not the SHC’s place to give you the details of what caused the distress situation, unfortunately, as you could probably infer from Hazel’s behavior and further communications from SHC officials, and as some of you could outright tell, due to leaked material from the SHC Staff quarters, there was suicidal intent.

Fortunately, with thanks also to MadRatAtomBomb, the situation had been successfully de-escalated, and Hazel had been brought to physical safety. As of the time of writing, I have no reason to believe Hazel is in any physical danger, but she still is in a mentally unstable state. Please give her space, and don’t harass her or anyone involved in this.

Now, I would like to dedicate this section to offering my opinions on Hazel's time at the Sonic Hacking Contest, and what she's brought us.

Hazel is one who really cared for the reputation of the Contest, fighting tooth and nail for it, and ensuring its persistence and growth. She even made significant efforts to be present for the community, especially with regards to her presence in SHC videos and live streams. Furthermore, it is through her that we currently see Sonic 3 - Angel Island Revisited at the Sonic Hacking Contest, and, though I have my reservations in regards to how the decision was made and framed, there is no denial that this brought the Sonic Hacking Contest heaps of new talent, and a community of wonderful people.

However, what also can’t be denied was that she was driven by emotion, and that did not always bring good things to the Sonic Hacking Contest, occasionally spiraling into questionable methods of community moderation, and resulting, a few months ago, into an unwelcome incident that rightfully soured the Modern 2D modding communities’ view of the Sonic Hacking Contest.

Of course, I don’t harbor ill feelings for her: Hazel is still my friend, and I wish for her the best in her future endeavors, but, and I must reiterate, she needs time and space to recover from her weaknesses. Please do not harass or mock her or anyone involved in this incident. Violations of community standards, such as the Entrants' Code of Conduct, will be treated accordingly.

Not much is really going to change under my leadership: the same old folks and a couple of new faces have my back every step of the way, and you’ve seen my operations for the past nearly two years, so you can expect a constant refinement of that from me. I will make sure to bring you as good a Sonic Hacking Contest experience as I reasonably can. I’ve seen the passion and hype you’ve felt for 2024: it was something I had not seen for many, many years, and I hope to give you reason to feel that and more with time.

Before I finish, Hazel had one final request for us. You may have heard of the disappearance of Charlotte Fosgate, known also by the nicknames of charcoal and burntfishie, as places all over the community (including our own Discord server) put it front and center for thousands of Sonic hackers, modders, and enthusiasts.

At the time of writing, no official confirmation came from any reputable news source, but according to a real life acquaintance of hers (<- EDIT: this originally was a link to a post on Twitter/X stating accordingly. OP's account went private, therefore the link was removed.), her body was unfortunately found dead.

While I was personally emotionally detached from the situation, her story is one that shocked thousands of locals and Sonic fans, including Hazel, who, after stepping down, made a request for us to memorialize her.

And I will ensure this will be done.

For the duration of the Sonic Hacking Contest 2025, all major presentations, videos, and live streams on the Sonic Hacking Contest YouTube channel will include a memorial of Charlotte at the beginning, to bring more light to her story, and to preserve her memory.

This month of May has been trying for many of us following the Sonic Hacking Contest. Please take care of your loved ones, and do your work to ensure their lives, their world, is a little bit better every day.