Sonic the Hedgehog has apparently grabbed his last gold ring at Archie Comics.
According to a statement released by Sega on Facebook and Twitter, SEGA “will conclude their Sonic the Hedgehog publishing partnership program with Archie Comics” after 24 years:
Archie Comics hasn’t commented, and notably didn’t rebroadcast Sega’s social media messages. So it looks like the final issue from Archie was December’s #290. Issue #291 — which would have been part four of the “Genesis of a Hero” arc — was solicited, then canceled in April, along with several other Sonic comics. And the intended Sonic Free Comic Book Day issue was replaced with a Riverdale comic that tied into the CW show.
Sonic debuted at Archie Comics back in 1992 as a miniseries, which was followed by an ongoing series that lasted 290 issues — it’s recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running comic series based on a video game. Archie also published several spinoff titles over the years, including the anime inspired Sonic X and crossovers with Mega Man. The comic built up a pretty elaborate back story that was eventually rebooted — and built up again.
