Sega is celebrating the 35th anniversary of the iconic puzzle game

Sonic the Hedgehog won't be the only Sega franchise to celebrate its 35th anniversary in 2026, as evidenced by the company's latest Instagram post noting Puyo Puyo. The Sonic the Hedgehog the series has achieved notable success, along with some more controversial entries, over its nearly 35-year lifespan. As the time nears June 23rd, fans are debating what they want from the Blue Blur's latest milestone, arguing for games, comics or perhaps a cinematic release. Only time will tell what happens with it Sonic the Hedgehog series celebration, but for now, Sega seems to want people not to forget one of their other franchises, Puyo Puyo.

Puyo Puyo was originally released for the Famicon Disk System back in October 1991, building on the foundations laid by titles such as Tetrisand puts a childish spin on the format. It wasn't long before Sega prospered from the success of Sonic the Hedgehogs release, spawned an arcade version of the title, along with a port for the Sega Genesis the following year. Fast forward to 1998 and Sega managed to acquire the rights from developers Compile and left Puyo Puyo a Sega franchise and commissioned Sonic Team to develop the titles. Today, Puyo Puyo has seen many successes, i.a Puyo Puyo Tetrisand an announcement trailer for Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S a few months ago. Despite this legacy, it seems that Sega has had to give everyone a reminder that it's not just Sonic the Hedgehog celebrates its 35th anniversary this year.

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Puyo Puyo's 35th anniversary begins

With so many major gaming franchises anniversaries in 2026, it seems Sega wants fans to remember the 35th anniversary of one of their most overshadowed franchises, Puyo Puyo. The post mentions the puzzle-matching game's huge milestone, along with a “Dairensa project”, referencing the iconic phrase/mechanic from the games. This project has already begun with Sega sharing a key anniversary image, a logo, and six new themed artworks, all building up to a teaser site for Puyo Puyo's 35th anniversary. Fans seemed more than happy with this information, with the consensus seeming to be surprised that Sega even remembered the anniversary. Further details are unclear, though fans should remain optimistic for future updates coming soon, as teased by the aforementioned post.

Following a habit of companies downplaying their franchisees' anniversaries, such as when Nintendo said it had no big plans for Zelda35th anniversary, it's refreshing to see Sega take this approach Puyo Puyo. Based on the fact that Sonic the Hedgehog the series just had an extremely nice video detailing the history of the franchise, Puyo Puyo fans might expect something similar to this, or of a slightly lower caliber. There is also a live stream on the Japanese Puyo Puyo YouTube channel, which will go live on February 1, 2026. It is believed that this will cover important information, along with giving fans new teasers, celebrations and maybe even a new game announcement.

Sega has clearly planned out each of its franchises' celebrations this year and delivers Sonic the Hedgehog a nice short video, and now Puyo Puyo a similar treatment. The roadmap for upcoming titles, such as Jet Set Radio is coming back through a reboot, showing Sega's care for its forgotten franchises. This attention to fan-favorite series that many other companies might have left behind gives hope to that Puyo PuyoThe 35th anniversary celebration will not disappoint, and has clearly not been forgotten. With the current speed and quality that Sonic Team has been producing games for the blue hedgehog, it seems that the future of this puzzle game series looks optimistic, with clear care.