Twenty three years ago SEGA introduced Sonic the Hedgehog, a character that would go on to challenge Mario for the gaming throne and champion a decade’s worth of SEGA hardware. Now, twenty three years later, Sonic’s Golden Birthday approaches, as Sonic’s birthdate and age synch up for the one and only time! In order to celebrate this momentous occasion, Sonic Stadium is teaming up with Sonic Retro and SEGAbits to bring you a week of Sonic content! Visit all three sites for articles, streams and videos as we celebrate Sonic’s birthday from today through to the 29th!

SEGAbits and Sonic Retro will also be hosting a panel at Too Many Games in Oaks, PA on Saturday the 28th at noon as part of the celebration. The panel will feature a Dreamcast round table, a My Life with SEGA episode premiere, the history of Sonic the Hedgehog 2‘s Hidden Palace Zone, and a trivia contest with rare SEGA prizes including The House of the Dead 3 & 4 posters signed by series director Takashi Oda. There will also be several Sonic prizes on hand.

Readers can join in on the celebrations as well! All you have to do is follow The Sonic Stadium, SEGAbits and Sonic Retro on Twitter and share your Sonic the Hedgehog photos and memories with the hashtag #Sonic23on23. The best tweets will be retweeted and shared to over 11,000 SEGA and Sonic fans, and we all know that in today’s world nothing is more rewarding than a retweet.

Happy Birthday, Sonic! The party has just begun!