Once upon a time, a giant sonic that crowned the largest theme park in Europe ended up lost. Sega had opened SegaWorld London in 1996, and as one of the attractions was a statue of the funny blue hedgehog from the video game.
But when the influx of visitors began to decline in the 33,000-square-meter park, Sega handed over management of SegaWorld to Funland. The year was 1999 and there was hope of improving performance.
Between one movement and another during the change of command, the Sonic statue disappeared. Ultimately, SegaWorld London closed in 2011.
Nobody was interested in the fate of the figure, until in 2019 someone discovered it in a garage, hidden among mountains of papers and boxes.
Sega promised to rescue the statue, and now it will be exhibited at Gamescom 2023. There will be the blue hedgehog with the left index pointing up, holding the planet Earth.
The announcement of the return of Sonic, which measures one and a half meters without the terrestrial sphere, was made by Sega on its social network @SegaForever.
“We are delighted to announce that SegaWorld London’s iconic Sonic statue It has been found and restored to its former glory!” The company wrote on the X account (formerly Twitter).
“Don’t miss the opportunity to see this part of gaming history at our booth at Gamescom, after more than 20 years,” added Sega.
Get ready for a blast from the past 🕹️
We’re thrilled to announce that the iconic Sonic statue from SEGAWORLD London has been found and restored to its former glory! Don’t miss the chance to see this piece of gaming history at our booth at #gamescom after more than 20 years 🎉 pic.twitter.com/sUI11TRSlo
— SEGA Forever (@SEGAForever) August 21, 2023
Gamescom is defined as the world’s largest computer and video game event, as well as the most complete business platform in Europe for the gaming industry.
This year’s edition will be held in Cologne, Germany, from this Wednesday, August 23 to Sunday, August 27.
Everything you need to know about Gamescom 2023 you can find it in this link.