Ugandan Knuckles emerged in VRChat in early 2018, built around a squat, distorted fan model of Knuckles the Echidna from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Players using the avatar popularised its catchphrase and mannerisms in public VRChat worlds, and clips of those encounters spread quickly through YouTube, Twitch and social media. The character became one of the defining images of that early VRChat era, and although the original wave faded, it remains a recognisable nostalgic reference for viewers who remember the first major wave of VRChat memes.