Sonic 30th anniversary merch speeding to retail

Move over Mario, it’s time for the Blue Blur to take center stage with his own anniversary. Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog is ready to celebrate.

30 years of speed

When Sonic the Hedgehog debuted on the Sega Genesis back in 1991, it was a massive moment. Not only did the game launch a series that would be come an icon in the gaming multiverse, but it also gave Sega’s 16bit console the mascot it needed.

Now 30 years after the fact, Sega is mainly represented by Sonic on the whole. And if you thought that the little blue guy’s birthday would be slipping by without a mention, well you best think again.

“Over the past 30 years spanning multiple generations, Sonic fans have created memories with their speedy Blue Blur,” said Ivo Gerscovich, Chief Brand Officer, Sonic the Hedgehog & SVP Sega of America. “In order to commemorate the most iconic elements of the Sonic universe, we have partnered with some of the top licensees in the industry to produce collectible Sonic the Hedgehog merchandise that our enthusiastic and loyal fans can cherish for years to come.” 

Ivo Gerscovich

Today Sega has announced a full slate of tie-in merchandise that includes toys, wearables, and even a giant Sonic encyclopedia from Dark Horse.

In all, the announced collection includes:

• SONIC ENCYCLO-SPEED-IA — Dark Horse Comics LLC is celebrating SEGA with a full-color, hardcover historical retrospective encyclopedia that explores nearly every video game and provides deep insights into the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise.
• POP! VINYL FIGURES — Funko LLC and SEGA have partnered up to bring fans a new collection of Pop! Vinyl Figures, with iconic characters including Classic Sonic, Tails, Silver, and more! 
• CONTINUED TOYS AND COLLECTIBLES— Jakks Pacific, Inc. is continuing to deliver speed, heroism and irreverent Sonic fun to fans of all ages with a collection of action figures and plush toys. 
• JEWELRY COLLECTION — King Ice has created an official jewelry collection, brought together with 3D design and hand-set stones and quality craftsmanship, bringing Sonic to life in jewelry form with a Hip-Hop influence. 
• APPAREL AND ACCESSORIES — Graph Gaming is launching an all new collection in the Spring of 2021, featuring exclusive apparel and accessories dedicated to everyone’s favorite blue blur.
• CLASSIC SONIC COMIC BOOK MINISERIES — For Sonic’s 30^th IDW Publishing will be releasing their first Classic Sonic adventure in a spectacular special! In addition, they will launch a new mini-series and continue publishing the wildly successful ongoing series in both the English and Spanish language.
• COLLECTIBLE ENAMEL PINS — FiGPiN Inc. has joined forces with SEGA to bring fans a unique collectibles experience with their Sonic the Hedgehog line of FiGPiNs, featuring all your favorite characters beginning this Winter.
• SONIC ENERGY DRINKS — G FUEL: The Official Energy Drink of ESPORTS has recently partnered with Sonic The Hedgehog to bring the character’s iconic Peach Rings to life by way of an energizing, high-performance, sugar-free peach-infused Energy Drink. G FUEL and SONIC’S “PEACH RINGS” flavor is set to re-launch in an exclusive 30^th anniversary collector’s box in 2021.

So is there a game coming too?

Wrapping things up, Sega says that the above will start arriving at retail this Holiday Season. So if you’re pumped to grab some cool Sonic stuff, you’ll be able to do so soon.

But what about a new Sonic game? Any word on that from for 2021? Well… sort of.

Sega wrapped up the press release about all of this with:

In addition to all the great licensing partners and products, SEGA will also be revealing additional plans for Sonic’s 30^th Anniversary across a number of additional categories in the coming months.

Sega

“Additional Plans”? Granted, that’s pretty vague, but if you read between the lines it’s easy to think that there might be a new Sonic title on the way. Of course, there also might not.

But if there is, let’s hope that it’s in the same vein as the excellent Sonic Generations and Mania. Fingers crossed for that.