Lego has announced a new set featuring the iconic mascot of Sega, Sonic the Hedgehog. The set originated as a fan design submission on the Lego Ideas platform, an initiative that takes ideas from fans and allows the Lego community to vote on them en route to turning them into real sets. This design comes to us via a 24-year-old Sonic and Lego fan named Viv Grannell.

Inspired by 2017's Sonic Mania, the Lego set design features the hedgehog himself, as well as trademark environmental elements from the iconic Green Hill Zone, including a loop, rings, water, a tree, a spring, and Flickies. In addition, builders can set up Dr. Eggman and his Egg Robot mech, plus two boss characters from Sonic Mania, the Hard-Boiled Heavies. According to the original design pitch, the set would include approximately 700 pieces with eight new prints and a sticker sheet. However, every part of the pitch is subject to change prior to the final product being unveiled.

A design image submitted by Grannell on the Lego Ideas page as part of the pitch

Grannell submitted the design in 2019 and quickly garnered attention and support on the Lego Ideas site. In January 2020, Grannell added the Hard-Boiled Heavies and an improved Egg Robot mech to the set. Shortly after, in March 2020, the set reached the 10,000-supporter milestone, the minimum threshold for Lego to officially consider it to be made into a physical set. Today, the Lego Group publicly announced its decision to greenlight the project for production.

"I've been invested in the world of Sonic for almost my entire life, and it's such a perfect fit for the Lego system that I spent about a year rallying support for it to happen," Grannell said in a press release. "Having 10,000 people back my design was overwhelming enough, even with friends and family behind me, but having it be selected for further development was the most exciting secret I have ever had to keep!"

A design image submitted by Grannell on the Lego Ideas page as part of the pitch

This won't be the Blue Blur's first foray into the world of Lego. Sega, Warner Bros., and Lego collaborated to release a Sonic the Hedgehog pack for 2015's Lego Dimensions. This new pack appears to be folded into the 30th anniversary celebration of Sega's mascot, which also includes a new animated series on Netflix. At E3 2019, head of Sonic Team Takashi Iizuka told us 2021 would be a "big year" for the Sonic brand, so we're looking forward to additional announcements as we get closer to Sonic the Hedgehog's 30th anniversary in June.

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