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Big Island's Real Name: Naoto Ohshima
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Big Island (Big Island) 本名: Naoto Ohshima (大島直人)
Answer: "Big Island" was the credit alias of Naoto Ohshima (大島直人), who designed Sonic the Hedgehog. It is a literal translation of his surname, 大島.
Naoto Ohshima, born February 26, 1964, joined Sega in the 1980s as an artist. His surname 大島 (Ōshima) is written with the kanji for "big" (大) and "island" (島), so his English credit alias "Big Island" is a direct translation.
Ohshima is credited as the character designer of Sonic and of Doctor Eggman (Robotnik) in Sonic the Hedgehog (1991). He later directed Sonic CD (1993) and NiGHTS into Dreams (1996). He left Sega to co-found the studio Artoon, and later Arzest.
The alias is a well-known example of how 1990s developers played with their own names in credits, and he has discussed his Sonic design work in interviews.
FAQ
Why is Naoto Ohshima called Big Island? His surname 大島 means "big island."
Who designed Sonic the Hedgehog? Naoto Ohshima.