Were the McDonald’s Sonic Game Consoles the Best Happy Meal Toy?

Arguably, the best Happy Meal toy in history, the McDonald’s Sega Sonic Game Consoles were available from a variety of branches across the world. Originally released in 2003, with a second set arriving in 2004. One outlier here is the Super Monkey Ball toy that was also included in the 2003 set, but that was a banger, too.

They were developed by Fisher-Price, and while they seem quite retro now, the fact that we got LCD handheld consoles with a Happy Meal is incredible. It was a super unique addition to the McDonald’s repertoire at the time.

I also discussed the McDonald’s Fairies & Dragons Happy Meal toy series, which included CD-ROMs, featuring desktop games.

First Set – 2003

To celebrate the release of Sonic Adventure DX: Director’s Cut, the first set of 5 Sonic-themed handheld consoles came to McDonald’s, as well as the aforementioned Super Monkey Ball game.

The consoles included:

Knuckles SoccerShadow GrinderSonic ActionSonic SpeedwayTails’ Skypatrol

If I’m remembering correctly, I think I had Sonic Speedway, Tail’s Skypatrol, Shadow Grinder, and Knuckles Soccer. There’s a chance I also had Shadow Grinder Sonic Action, but I can’t quite recall it.

Tails’ Skypatrol

Collect 30 rings to increase the level and speed of the minigame. If you miss 10 rings, the game ends.

Sonic Speedway

You drive a car as Sonic, racing down a course. The goal is to avoid lanes that have clusters of opponents, and if you successfully do so, you get a point. Reaching 30 points increases the level and speed, with a total of 4 levels. The game ends if Sonic crashes 5 times.

Knuckles Soccer

Knuckles takes on the role of a goalkeeper. After catching 10 balls, you move on to the next level, which increases the speed. Missing 5 balls ends the game.

Sonic Action Game

Taking place in the Green Hill Zone, you need to jump over any obstacles in your path as Sonic moves automatically. After getting 20 points, the level and speed increase, with four levels. If you fail to jump over 5 obstacles, the game ends.

Shadow Grinder

Shadow grinds on rails and needs to jump over the gaps, moving automatically. Once you jump over 15 gaps, the level and speed increase, maxing out at 4 levels. Falling through 10 gaps ends the game.

Second Set – 2004

The second set of Sonic LCD game consoles was released in 2004, but arrived in other regions during 2005. The games and console art differed depending on the region.

Including:

Amy and Rouge VolleyballAmy and Rouge TennisBig’s FishingBilly’s Giant EggCream Flower CatchKnuckle Treasure HuntKnuckles BaseballShadow HockeyShadow BasketballSonic the Hedgehog Extreme BoardingSonic SkateboardTails Sky AdventureTails Soccer

Amy and Rouge Volleyball / Amy and Rouge Tennis

Amy and Rouge Tennis and Amy and Rouge Volleyball.

Shadow Hockey / Shadow Basketball

Shadow Hockey and Shadow Basketball.

Cream Flower Catch (2 console variants)

Cream Flower Catch, blue and yellow variants.

Knuckles Treasure Hunt / Knuckles Baseball

Knuckles Treasure Hunt and Knuckles Baseball.

Tails’ Sky Adventure / Tails Soccer

Tails’ Sky Adventure and Tails Soccer.

Sonic the Hedgehog Extreme Boarding / Sonic Skateboard

Sonic the Hedgehog Extreme Boarding and Sonic Skateboard

Big’s Fishing and Billy’s Giant Egg

Big’s Fishing and Billy’s Giant Egg.

The one I remember the most is Amy and Rouge Tennis. I don’t think the UK got the Amy and Rouge Volleyball console, so we got Tennis instead. I’m not sure if I had any of the others, but the Tails Soccer game looks somewhat familiar.

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