Sega World Kadoma
From Sega Retro
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| Sega World Kadoma |
|---|
| Location: Japan |
| Opened: xxxx |
| Closed: 2006/2007 |
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Sega World Kadoma (セガワールド 門真) is a former Sega World venue. It was remodeled 2005 or 2006, and closed either 2006 or 2007 due to a new highway being built where the venue was located.
Contents
History
Snowboarding Sonic statue
Immediately following Sega World Kadoma’s closure, a former amusement business operator named Uji Kodera saved one of the venue’s trademark features from being scrapped - a statue of a snowboarding Sonic the Hedgehog - and placed it near his mountain home in Iga.[1] The statue was positioned as a landmark to help visitors locate his residence, suspended between two strong hinoki trees near the entrance to his driveway.
Following its installation, the statue appears to have been eventually forgotten after Kodera’s passing in 2017, and was consequently left exposed to the elements. Its paint faded, parts of its surface deteriorated, and its overall condition worsened due to prolonged exposure to rain, wind, sunlight, and snow. This led to the statue becoming a minor viral sensation around 2015 (before its origins were widely known), resulting in an air of mystery around its visibly out-of-place nature. Photographs taken during this time quickly spread through gaming forums, Twitter, and Reddit, sparking online speculation about how the statue ended up in the forest, and even eliciting a curious and fascinated response from Sega's Aaron Webber during the Season 3 premiere of Sonic Official.[2]
After learning of the many fans interested in the statue, it underwent a three-day restoration financed by Kodera’s bereaved family starting August 8, 2020 - repainting Sonic, cleaning the statue, and restoring much of its original color and vibrancy in honor of Kodera’s memory, as well as sharing the statue's backstory.[1] Following the restoration, the statue continued to attract visitors, and its location in Mie Prefecture became a minor pilgrimage site for Sonic the Hedgehog fans.[3] It can still be seen from the main highway and is even publicly visible on Google Earth.[4]
Branding
| Name | Branding | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Sega World Kadoma (セガワールド 門真) | Sega World | 19xx |
| Closed | 2006/2007 | |
Promotional material
JP TV advert
Gallery
Entrance to venue before remodel[5]
Interior before remodel
Exterior before remodel
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.iga-younet.co.jp/2020/08/11/28560/ (Wayback Machine: 2024-08-12 16:20)
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmwhLFMprUM
- ↑ https://savvygaming.net/events/i-went-on-a-pilgrimage-to-the-mysterious-kotera-sonic-statue/ (Wayback Machine: 2025-02-23 03:05)
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/SonicTheHedgehog/comments/tpuqsa/google_earth_link_the_sonic_mountains_statue_in/ (Wayback Machine: 2025-02-18 15:56)
- ↑ https://www.travelblog.org/Photos/2397