Lego has really been getting in on gamer-related sets recently. First with the Lego Super Mario theme starting in 2020, then the Sonic the Hedgehog Green Hill Zone last year. Then, earlier this year Lego released a whole collection of Lego sets based on everyone’s favourite hedgehog-ish creature: Sonic The Hedgehog.
This could be because the Green Hill Zone set sold really well, or because the licence to make that set was really expensive and Lego wanted to take full advantage of it, or just simply because the brand wanted to get in on the renaissance Sonic is enjoying at the moment.
I was lucky enough to have Lego send me a selection of the sets a little while ago to test out and I have a lot of thoughts.
Who is the target audience for the new Sonic The Hedgehog Lego Theme?
The Ideas Green Hill Zone was a beautiful display piece for the adults who remember Sonic’s early days. It was designed to be built, put on a shelf, and enjoyed whenever you walked past, wistfully remembering a time when you could experience childlike wonder instead of just bills.
This new collection is for people who still experience childlike wonder through play. So, mostly children, but also those of us who aren’t yet dead inside. These sets are to be played with like the toys they are.
One thing to keep in mind about the Sonic The Hedgehog Lego sets (at least the ones that I built) is that all of them are just suggestions of scenes. They’re vignettes, rather than full levels. Set pieces that are best played in combination with other pieces built from your imagination.
There are aspects that are good for display, like Tails’ plane, and the many adorable mini figures. But if your only desire is to build them once and then use them for display, then you would be better served by getting the Green Hill Zone set and then buying the other mini figures from Bricklink.
Are the Sonic The Hedgehog Lego Sets fun to build?
Absolutely! Depending on what you find fun, of course. The skill levels for half the sets are 6+, with the other half going up to 8+, so they’re very simple. Adult collectors and builders are unlikely to find themselves challenged, or learn new techniques from it, but you can go into a kind of meditative trance while building these sets, and that’s nice.
They’re mostly quite small builds, with most of the sets clocking in at under 400 pieces, meaning that Sonic fans who haven’t built much Lego won’t face too many challenges while building.
The instructions are nice and clear, so the aforementioned 6-year-olds can build. Those guys who join Lego groups on Facebook purely to complain about how kids these days have it too easy (because back in their day instructions had no details and they had to read the mind of a Lego designer to construct their toys) will enjoy these sets because it will give them something new to complain about.
Tails’ Workshop and Tornado Plane
My favourite of the sets I was sent is Tails’ Workshop and Tornado Plane. It clocks in at 376 pieces and a slightly unreasonable $64.99. Tails’ workshop includes a really adorable Clucky microfig, in addition to the Sonic and Tails minifigs and buildable Buzz Bomber.
The workshop portion is more of the vibe of a workshop, than an actual building, making it easier for kids to tell their own stories around it, or build the rest of the room the way they imagine it from their brick box.
The plane is the reason why this set is my favourite, because it’s just so satisfying and solid, and it actually looks good on a shelf (I am one of the people who display instead of play, due to being dead inside). But for those who prefer to play instead of display, it’s solid enough to put up with a lot of play, and could be applied to a wide variety of play patterns even beyond Sonic-themed play.
Sonic’s Speed Sphere Challenge
This set has a really great idea at its core: Put Sonic in a little sphere, and then yeet him into oblivion through a course of your own design. There is so much potential here of the kinds of courses you could build, and ways you could yeet that furry little blue guy.
And yet, this set comes with surprisingly few items to take advantage of the yeeting mechanism. The Speed Sphere also comes with the Green Hill Loop Zone Challenge set, and that looks like it takes proper advantage of both the Speed Sphere and launcher.
There is also a little beach scene you can set up for Sonic here, for some reason.
As it stands, there just aren’t enough ramps included with the Speed Sphere Challenge to make it all that interesting. This is the set you buy when you really want the launcher, but the Green Hill Loop Zone Challenge isn’t in the budget. 292 pieces, $52.99.
Sonic Vs Dr Eggman’s Death Egg Robot
Automatically, this 615 piece, $94.99 set gets points for the flair of the name. It tells you everything you need to know.
You build a big mech of Dr Eggman’s Death Egg Robot, then you put Sonic in the Speed Sphere, and then you yeet Sonic into the robot repeatedly to declare victory. It’s a simple, yet effective, play loop.
There’s a small ramp to launch Sonic over some spikes and towards Eggman, and there’s a tiny research station so kids can pretend that Sonic is doing science before he does some cathartic destruction.
It’s elegantly simple, but fun to build and even more fun to play with once built. It’s also the best price per piece value of the whole collection, at 15.4c per piece.
Are the new Sonic The Hedgehog Lego sets worth buying?
For Sonic fans who actually want to play with their toys, absolutely if they can be found on sale (and they often can be found at decent discounts at the moment). There is a lot of play value in these sets, separately or combined. Though, I think the Speed Sphere Challenge is a bit sparse, and is the weak point of the collection.
The RRP is a bit unreasonably high, compared to other Lego sets. I know it’s because the licence was expensive for Lego, and the custom minifigure moulding would also be pricey, but at the same time, an average of 18.9c per piece is just unreasonable during a cost-of-living crisis. I get that the 10c per piece days are over, but this is even well beyond the current levels of roughly 15c per piece.
If it’s in your budget, though, and you like the look of the sets, absolutely go for it. You and/or the children you’re buying for will love them, and they have great play potential and can be customised in so many ways.
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