The Plea To Help Save A Sonic Statue That’s No Longer Hidden In The Mountains… Becomes Eyebrow Raising & Eye Rolling Matt Hawkins Follow Mar 28, 2019 · 4 min read

Remember that video I shared a few weeks back, about the mystery surrounding a statue of Sonic the Hedgehog that’s hidden deep inside a Japanese mountain?

To recap: once the discovery was made, a small but passionate portion of the Sonicu fanbase went on a hunt for its exact whereabouts. After the trail cycled between hot & cold for several years, the exact coordinates were eventually known, but then safeguarded by a select few. Including the video’s author, Badnik Mechanic, real name Dave Luty, who sought to pass the info along to someone who could be entrusted to bring back higher quality archival material, which ultimately happened. But then came the discovery that the statue is slowly but surely deteriorating, an obvious consequence of being situated on a mountainside, so the exact location was revealed to all, in hopes that someone out there might be able to help.

Well, the story continues… and in a predictable fashion; as one might expect, Luty’s video garnered a considerable amount of attention, with many stating their intent to visit the statue themselves. Including a fabricator who reproduces various video games objects IRL, and therefore has the necessary tools towards a restoration effort. Hence his plan to crowdfund one. Thankfully Luty’s response was to note how problematic such an idea is (though I wish he would have gone further by also stating that it’s stupid), due to the fact that the statue is someone else’s property. It’s sad that this point had to be emphasized so hard, but the worst part is… going by the comments in the video… it has still fallen on deaf ears.

At the same time, there’s been further “interesting” developments, such how the statue is now a landmark on Google Maps. Something that takes Luty by surprise, which is odd, given how his channel is chock full of all kinds of super obscure and esoteric intel on Sonic, which requires rather deft investigative skills to uncover. But once again, he’s shocked by how this could happen? It’s actually very easy, just Google the instructions. As well as why? Cuz this is the type of stuff Sonic fans would do, duh. Oh and it’s also a Pokemon Go stop. Yay. So here’s the part in which I must break my golden rule as it pertains to Attract Mode…

Given how there are so many negative aspects to the subject of video games, some unfounded and some legitimate, I try my best to emphasize the positives, specifically how gaming can be a source of inspiration and the culture that results. Alas when it comes to Pokemon Go’s usage of Google Maps landmarks, primarily how players view them as their designated playgrounds, which can often accompanied by a sense of entitlement, towards a space that didn’t ask to be involved… yeah, it’s a fun game that I believe brings out the worst in some people. And it’s at this point, the narrative of the video begins to subtly shift, albeit unintentionally, with the aforementioned deaf ears becoming less surprising.

Back to the fabricator who really wanted to offer his expert opinion of the statue: he eventually makes it out to Japan, and due to whatever circumstance, has to take a cab to its remote location. It’s funny how Luty notes that driver was willing to stand around and wait for his customers to take their photos and video, but “insisted” that he kept the meter running. Ummm, he’s on the clock, why would anyone expect differently? The fabricator also noted that the cab driver, a local, had no idea that the statue existed and the same goes for others in the nearby town as well. To Luty’s credit, he explains how when he first fired up Pokemon Go, it too brought up nearby landmarks that didn’t he didn’t realize were there, but… will anyone heed this?

At any rate, this latest look uncovers further wear and tear on the statue, which honestly doesn’t look that much worse from what we saw just a month ago, though Luty implies that he has a wealth of evidence, which might in fact paint a more serious picture. The video ends with a call for action; the fabricator states that the statue is salvageable, but only on has 5–7 years left, which is a tad bit less than the previous estimate of 5–10. The key detail for me is how Luty repeats the need to locate its owner.. yet it’s a considerably muted when compared to earlier on. He also states that given the opportunity to have an audience with a local representative, he’d state the case that restoring the statue would help generate tourism money, which is when my eyes rolled their hardest.

I’m not saying that Luty is encouraging people to go ahead and come up with some silly scheme to “save” the Sonic statue… I simply fear enough evidence has been presented to make some silly die-hard rationalize an ill-fated attempt at doing so. Never mind how, if people channeled such passions to causes that are a tad bit worthwhile, the world might be a better place, but human beings as a whole are guilty of such selfishness, not just Sonicu fans or gamers as a whole… And I stick by my previous conclusion, and that’s to leave Sonic alone.