So That Poll That Resulted in ShTH...

[Blue Blood]

I've been playing a lot of ShTH lately. God knows why, it's a truly horrible game. But it has got me thinking. Does anyone else remember that poll SEGA ran in 2004 or 2005 before the game was announced? It was quite a big thing, asking the fans directly what they wanted the next Sonic game to be after Heroes. And it was specifically focused around characters other that Sonic himself. I think it was Amy, Knuckles, Tails and, obviously, Shadow. Back at the time I voted for Knuckles to star in his own game with a story about the echidnas or the Master Emerald. Something along those lines.

I'm having a fair bit of difficulty finding any info surround the vote however. Did anyone ever document all the potential answers? It was a closed poll so we don't know how the results really went for sure beyond the fact that Shadow won. It would just be really interesting to look it because it was such cut and dry market research that resulted in one of the biggest stains on the franchises history.

And just for fun, who did you vote for? Did anyone here want a dark game starring Shadow back then? Or because a lot of you wouldn't have been part of the community online back then, who would you have voted for?

[Crash]

I 'would' have voted for Knuckles.

[sonfan1984]

I don't remember a official SEGA poll and even if I did I wouldn't vote for Shadow.

[Soniman]

My hands are clean of this, since I wasn't super big on the internet back then.

But truth be told, if I had the choice, 10/11 year old me would have probably voted for Shadow.

But today? Definitely Knuckles.

[Semi-colon e]

I never knew about this at the time, it was just suddenly like "oh wow Shadow's getting his own game" then I heard the reviews were shit (because I was more impressionable back then) and got Sonic Rush instead.

Edited October 28, 2012 by Semi-colon e

[Endy]

I doubt any other choice would have helped, considering Shadow was so needlessly popular at the time.

[Jango]

I wasn't all that internet boy either, but back then, I would've TOTALY voted for Shadow =P Today, would vote for Knux.

Since it's about the same subject, what about the poll that "resulted" in Sonic Generations? The one about favorite levels from Sonic 1 to Adventure 2.

Edited October 28, 2012 by Jango

[Debug Ring]

Since I was 5 at the time and wouldn't have really known about the online community, I would've voted for Knuckles or Tails, overall Knuckles though. Those two seem the most deserving to me because they've probably got the most untouched potential out of those characters. Sure they've both had spin offs, but to be honest they both could have a lot better spin offs. Shadow had been around for about three years and sure he might have been liked in SA2 and Heroes by a few people, I'm sure Knuckles and Tails had bigger fan groups. But hey, I'm glad Shadow got the game if they were going to do a similar thing to Knuckles or Tails. That would've been really bad for the franchise...

[Multikaris]

Was Rouge an option?

[TheOcelot]

Never heard of the poll that took place.

I would have voted for a game with both Tails and Knuckles as playable characters.

[Jango]

Was Rouge an option?

She doesn't even existed when the poll was made...

[BakingBluePotatoe]

I don't think I ever saw it, but if I did, I probably would have voted for Tails at the time... in the present day I'd be on the fence between him and Knux.

[iDEATH]

I remember mention of this poll but I don't think I took part. Wouldn't have gone for shadow anyway, probably would have gone for Knuckles unless big was an option then I'd have been all over that.

Big NEEDS his own game.

Needs it...

[Blue Blood]

She doesn't even existed when the poll was made...

Um, yes she did. Rouge, not Blaze.

Never heard of the poll that took place.

I would have voted for a game with both Tails and Knuckles as playable characters.

It was one or the other for a solo game. You couldn't have gone for both.

[Your Vest Friend]

She doesn't even existed when the poll was made...

She didn't on a poll where SHADOW won? Sir, you may want to recheck your chronology.

Anyway, I know nowt about this poll. I would have definitely voted for Tails though, probably in a plot expanding on the 'becoming his own hero' thing that got started in Adventure.

[Ruby CUL Terumi]

Shadow was incredibly popular because of Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes. I'm pretty sure he got a lot of votes compared to the others.

[Detective Shadzter]

I remember this poll. I think I voted for Shadow. I like him now, but back then I was a huge Shadow fan.

She doesn't even existed when the poll was made...

Rouge came along in SA2, years before this poll.

[Burning Finger]

I remember this poll. I'm not gonna lie, I voted for Shadow.

Because gameplay wise he was the closest to Sonic.

How was I suppose to know they would give Shadow a few guns.

[Jango]

Force of habit... because you know who made the post... moving on!

Edited October 28, 2012 by Jango

[Komodin]

And just for fun, who did you vote for? Did anyone here want a dark game starring Shadow back then?

*looks away sadly, raises hand*

I did. I was only 13 years old (as well as a huge Shadow fanboy) at the time, and I didn't know that they'd louse it up. I still wouldn't mind a Shadow prequel title, though...

[Badnik Mechanic]

I don't remember ever seeing the pol, which is why I laugh when Shadow fans say 'The fans voted for him!' as if thats evidence shadow was a great character.

Given the games out at the time though... Whilst I would have wanted a Knuckles game, however, I suspect had that won, I would have hated the final product. I suspect we would have had a giant treasure hunting game and not the game many fans would have wanted. I suspect Sega would have reasoned 'well we've just had two games where you play as Knuckles and go looking for treasure, why not have a whole game like that' Ugh, pass.

Tails is the big mystery, would it be SA 1 tails, or robot tails ala SA2?

As for any information.... I just found this odd one.It's a link to the SRB2 forums, a topic made in 2005 which has a link to the pol (which no longer seems to work). However they did say this...

It is an official Sega poll that contains questions about "what game character would you like to see in his/her own game?". At the bottom is Shadow the Hedgehog: Chaos Unleashed - I think that may have gotten the most votes. XD

Shadow the Hedgehog: Chaos Unleashed.

Might be an idea to search that... hmmmm... wonder if Shadow was originally going to be the werehog with a title like that? =p

She doesn't even existed when the poll was made...

Then how was Shadow on it?

Edit: Found the Japanese version of the pol which was conducted in 2006.

edit 2: This might have been the link to the original poll which is now defunct. http://www.sega.co.uk/survey/sonic2005/sonic_poll

[Blue Blood]

Wow, cheers Hogfather. I was searching around Sonic Cult and such, but the SRB2 forums didn't even cross my mind. I used to hand out there.

EDIT: Okay, it turns out that "Shadow the Hedgehog: Chaos Unleashed" is the name of a thousand YouTube videos, fangames, fangame ideas and other such dribble. It's a dead end

Edited October 28, 2012 by Blue Blood

[Jack / Joker]

I don't think I need to say who I'd have voted for.

Knuckles, like a normal person.

I did. I was only 13 years old (as well as a huge Shadow fanboy) at the time, and I didn't know that they'd louse it up. I still wouldn't mind a Shadow prequel title, though...

"What have you done to Sonic? I'll never forgive you for this!"

Edited October 28, 2012 by -The Joker-

[Andrew Albacia]

I only remember the Japanese character ranking polls... there may have been one pre-Shadow too though. Shadow only ever lost to Sonic on the old popularity polls. I recall my rage vividly.

...everyone had flaming trousers and skateboards back then. Causative. Avril was charting...

[Linkabel]

Does anyone remember that poll that asked what your favorite level in the franchise was? You know one of the many polls SEGA did in order to set the level list for Generations