Sega is re-releasing the original Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis/Mega Drive game and its sequel as $100 Iambit anniversary packages.
Set to ship in Q3 2026, the Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 35th Anniversary Legacy Cartridge Collection are special cartridges that are playable on NTSC Sega [1,167 articles]” href=”https://www.videogameschronicle.com/companies/sega/”>Sega Genesis consoles.
The original Sonic comes with a translucent blue cartridge shell, and the sequel ships on an orange cartridge. According to Iam8bit, one in eight cartridges sold will come in special “Chaos Emerald” versions.
Each copy comes packaged with a full-color instruction booklet featuring restored artwork and a new foreword, housed in a custom packaging design. The games are up for pre-order now and will ship in waves later this year.
Iam8bit previously launched similar ‘legacy’ cartridges for classic games such as Street Fighter V [275 articles]” href=”https://www.videogameschronicle.com/games/street-fighter-v/”>Street Fighter II, Mega Man X, Mega Man 2, Earthworm Jim, Xcavator, Battletoads, Disney’s Aladdin and Disney’s The Lion King.
The retro re-releases were announced during a special 35th anniversary live stream on Tuesday. Ahead of the stream, VGC spoke to Sonic Team boss Takashi Iizuka about Sega’s plans for the anniversary year and its collaboration with Pico Park.
During the stream, Sega also announced Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition for Nintendo Switch 2, which is out now, featuring improved graphics and all post-release content added to the 2022 version.
Sega also announced a pair of Sonic game collections for Nintendo Switch [6,086 articles]” href=”https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/nintendo/switch/”>Nintendo Switch.
The Classic Sonic Collection will include Sonic Origins, Sonic Mania, and Sonic Superstars [41 articles]” href=”https://www.videogameschronicle.com/games/sonic-the-hedgehog-games/sonic-superstars/”>Sonic Superstars. The Modern Sonic Collection will bundle Sonic Frontiers [81 articles]” href=”https://www.videogameschronicle.com/games/sonic-the-hedgehog-games/sonic-frontiers/”>Sonic Frontiers, Sonic Colors: Ultimate, and Sonic Forces. Both collections will be released physically in October for $49.99 USD.
Sega announced its plans to mark Sonic the Hedgehog’s 35th anniversary earlier this year, including “digital content highlighting Sonic’s evolution across the decades”, fan meet-ups, brand and retail partnerships featuring limited merchandise, museum pop-ups and art exhibits, live concert celebrations, and “a brand-new narrative podcast”.