As the resident Sneaker Geek at Half Glass Gaming (not by choice, I assure you, but because someone has to do the dirty work), I’ve reacted to a few gaming-themed sneakers at this point in my Half-Glass career. For example, I’ve done reactions for the Adidas Cyberpunk 2077 and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales tie-in kicks.
Well, it seems as if Adidas isn’t the only shoe-maker looking to get in on that sweet, sweet video game-themed sneaker cash, as now Lavair is teaming up with Sega for some truly hideous Mega Drive-themed shoes.
And when I say “truly hideous,” I’m talkin’, to quote one to-be-left-nameless Half-Glass Gaming team member, “They look like something a 6-year old would wear in 1992.” And I guess that’s a fair observation. On the other hand, this actually lends a sense of credibility to these shoes, since they are modelled after the Sega Mega Drive (AKA the Genesis, for those of us in the States), which was all the rage in the early 1990s.
I would go even further and say these shoes look like something you would find in the discount bin at an orthopedics shoe store in an outlet mall circa 1990. But who am I to pass judgement on these kicks? Oh yes, the resident sneaker geek, that’s who.
Now look, I’m sure there will be plenty of people who are interested in buying these shoes, of which there are two variants, the EXO SEGA MEGA DRIVE ANALOG and (in Lavair’s copy/words) the more understated EXO SEGA MEGA DRIVE MONO. The main difference between the two models is the ANALOG has a color accent towards the heel of the shoe that sort of blends from red to fuchsia to purple, which, to Lavair’s credit, was the color palette used in some of Sega’s promotional material at the time of the Mega Drive’s popularity. The MONO model nixes this flourish and sticks with a black tone, aside from the white crisscrossed stitching, which both shoes have. The EXO is apparently the pre-existing shoe model that these puppies are based on.
And to quote a blurb on the Lavair website, in case you were wondering if this was in fact a real product and say, not a late April’s fool gag:
The designs Lavair have come up with for their Mega Drive themed collection really capture the timeless appeal of this iconic brand. We can’t wait to hear what SEGA fans and trainer aficionados alike, think of the collaboration.
Jason Rice, Brand Licensing Director at Sega Europe
I don’t mean to poke fun at these shoes wholesale. If these are your jam (or your Space Jam), by all means have at it. These kicks are selling for 200 pounds sterling (Lavair is an English company), which cracks out at about $273.34 at the time of this writing. There is even a pair of baseball caps to go along with these gaudy sneakers, in case you really want to maximize the wedgies for any kid unlucky enough to wear these to school in 2021.
Admittedly, the hats aren’t all that bad.
Again, if these are your thing, then pay no mind to my ramblings. Hell, deep down, I’m probably just jealous that I’m not cool enough to pull this look off. Although I would be willing to bet dollars to donuts that these will more than likely end up on a collector’s shelf or in a drawer, never to be worn in the light of day (or even the dark of night).
These monstrosities go on sale July 23, 2021, at the aforementioned 200 pounds sterling, and they will only be available for a limited window. So if you just can’t live without them, then you really gotta go fast.