Why.. why are you still Sonic fan?

[Waveshocker Sigma]

I like Sonic, I like Eggman, I like Blaze and the all of other characters. I like their different worlds and different takes on their series.

Also, I like jumping, rolling, boosting, dashing, speeding and thrashing robots, demons, genies, gods and sheep while catapulting through different kinds of areas in different kinds of ways. I also like transformations and flying. I also like series with cool and cute non-human characters that aren't afraid to have whatever kind of narrative they want regardless of what others think of it, whether it's lighthearted, cutesy, a bit dark or morally gray.

You wanna know what game series gives me all of that stuff?

KIRBY!

But when I'm not in the mood for Kirby, Sonic works just as good. ¦D

[Monkey Destruction Switch]

I'm sorry, but it's honestly not that hard to understand. People are fans of things that haven't had a lot of good entries in recent years. They still love the old entries and are hoping for that goodness to eventually be recaptured. Simple as that. In addition, what about people who have a different opinion on you and actually like the games you think are bad or mediocre?

And guess what? Some people who are Sonic fans are in fact also Mario fans already, but maybe they want to have more than one platforming series to keep up with and play, yknow? And then there's the fact that some people enjoy aspects from the Sonic series that aren't present in Mario. Sonic's attraction to people is (pretty obviously) not just the fact that it's a good platforming game that could be switched out for any other quality platformer.

If something this simple is actually hard for you to comprehend, you really need to get out more ;P

That being said, Sonic Forces does kind of make me feel like giving up on future modern Sonic games appealing to me, lol. But I still have a reason to follow the series' future because Mania shows that great things are possible even if they might not be coming from Sonic Team or the "main" series. And even if I didn't have that, my love for the characters, drawing them, and the series' history wouldn't go away, so I would still be a Sonic fan, really.

[Celestia]

Feels like we get a topic like this every other day now.

I dunno. even putting aside that I enjoy most of the main installments that aren't ones from like 10 years ago, it helps that Sonic isn't just The Games to me. There's alternate media stuff like the comics (which I loved and am looking forward to once again with IDW) and Boom (which I'm not really a fan of but it's...there), and going beyond that I just really like the characters, world and concepts. It's a fun series to think about when you're someone like me who kinda just goes with the flow.

[Ultimate Victory 64]

I don't know. Because there are the Sonic games that I like that are still there for me to play like the classics, the Adventure games, Unleashed, and Generations. I mean Im one of the only who still feels that Forces looks like a decent game and is probably going to buy it day one. Mania is a game that I am going to have alot of fun with for many many years.

[Korke]

Also, after a quick re-read of the OP, I'd like to point out that Mario is not exactly a good example of attraction to make just anybody quit any franchise around for it.

Odyssey is the first Mario game after a decade that the common people do care about (hell, even I want a Switch to play it right now). Before that stunning success, it wasn't doing any wonders.

[Flame Lance]

I'm really struggling to understand why you think a person's rationality should be called into question because they're a Sonic fan.

It's a long running franchise with many great games, comics, cartoons, etc. Many of us grew up with the hedgehog and hold a fondness in our hearts for the series because it's been a part of our lives for years. Yes, it's had some missteps, but it's really tiresome to see questions like this pop up all of the time as if nothing good ever has or will happen. I can't account for this phenomenon. 

Many people aren't a big fan of Forces, but you can't say it's bombed when it isn't officially out yet, there aren't any professional reviews, sales data, or anything to back up that claim other than some negative feedback. There's been positive feedback in other places too. And if let's say Forces does in fact bomb in every way, we still had Mania this year, the most acclaimed game in many years. Why abandon all hope? Why let one negative outweigh one positive? This goes for the entire series as a whole. There's certainly games in the series I don't like, but I don't let that stop me from loving the ones that I do. 

Frankly, I could not care less about Mario. I realize Mario games almost never fail to be amazing in terms of gameplay, but for me personally, I can't enjoy it because the characters and world do nothing for me. Mario himself is as exciting as a cardboard box. Part of what made Sonic so appealing by comparison back in the day was that he has genuine personality and that still holds true today. With Sonic, I DO care about its characters and world so it is much easier for me to connect with the series and immerse myself into it. Whether or not Sonic is GOTY caliber quality or not, I usually find myself having a good time with the games because I care about the characters, the varied settings, the sense of speed, etc. Sonic has an appeal I've yet to find in any other franchise. I care about it too much to just abandon it. 

[Dr. Mechano]

16 hours ago, Korke said:

Odyssey is the first Mario game after a decade that the common people do care about (hell, even I want a Switch to play it right now). Before that stunning success, it wasn't doing any wonders.

This isn't true at all.

The New Super Mario Bros. games have consistently sold really well among casual gamers and children, not just hardcore Mario fans. Personally, as a longtime Mario fan, I find these games to be a bit pedestrian and samey compared to Mario's older 2D games or his current 3D excursions, but they're still fun and I understand why they have mainstream appeal.

3D Land did well, and 3D World also did pretty well for being on the Wii U, again attracting a decent casual audience. Even many of Mario's spinoff games, like Mario Kart, sell in impressive numbers.

None of these were huge game-changers like Odyssey, and I'll definitely agree that Odyssey is a much better game, but I think it's simply incorrect to say that Odyssey's the first game in ten years that the general gaming public bought in large numbers. Every single game I've mentioned sold at millions of units, and by comparison, recent Sonic games have struggled to break one million.

I'm not trying to diss on Sonic here, but I am saying that Mario as a franchise understands how to generate mass appeal. It needs common general people - not just devoted fans - to make the kinds of sales numbers it routinely does.

[Briraka]

i'd say i'm still a fan because of other fans. even if the current output by sonic team may be lackluster, all of the fan games, fan art, just the general exchange of thoughts and ideas within these communities keeps me coming back, regardless of the lack of quality in the main official titles and shitty fandom politics.

[Gabz Girl]

Because I love furries and Sonic is full of them so...

i kid of course, but what I mean to say is that I love the characters in the Sonic universe. Their designs and personalities have so much appeal and it helps that they’re generally quite easy to draw. I also like some of the stories in the games. There’s obviously shitty ones like Sonic 06 or ShtH, but I ignore those in favour of S3&K, SA1, SA2, Unleashed and the Storybook games! 

I enjoy the gameplay in Sonic, more specifically the Classic titles, but it’s the characters that makes the franchise for me. And that’s why I still love it despite the games being sucky at times. XP

[Korke]

10 hours ago, Super Mechanio said:

3D Land did well, and 3D World also did pretty well for being on the Wii U, again attracting a decent casual audience. Even many of Mario's spinoff games, like Mario Kart, sell in impressive numbers.

None of these were huge game-changers like Odyssey, and I'll definitely agree that Odyssey is a much better game, but I think it's simply incorrect to say that Odyssey's the first game in ten years that the general gaming public bought in large numbers. Every single game I've mentioned sold at millions of units, and by comparison, recent Sonic games have struggled to break one million.

Eh, honestly... A handheld game and a game in a console that flopped hard. I don't think it's valid to call them successful to the common audience. Maybe between Nintendo fans, sure.

[Dr. Mechano]

10 minutes ago, Korke said:

Eh, honestly... A handheld game and a game in a console that flopped hard. I don't think it's valid to call them successful to the common audience. Maybe between Nintendo fans, sure.

I mean, straight from Nintendo themselves: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/software/wiiu.html

3D World sold over 5 million units. New Super Mario Bros. U also sold over 5 million units. For Wii U games, that's really good, mind you. For comparison, both of these Mario games on a failed console sold better than all versions of Generations across multiple successful consoles. According to Sega's own reports, Generations sold 1.85 million units across all platforms. Those are fine numbers and nothing to sneeze at, but again, these games were on the PS3, X-Box 360, PC, and 3DS. Super Mario 3D World and NSMBU were on the Wii U, which you already established was a flop.

Mario platformers on a flop console sold better than Sonic's best-selling recent game on multiple popular systems. So I think my point is entirely valid; Mario has mass appeal among common gamers, not just hardcore fans. Yes, Odyssey brought in a lot more people than recent Mario games have, but your initial post that the general public didn't really care about Mario prior to Odyssey doesn't really hold up.

[Korke]

23 minutes ago, Super Mechanio said:

I mean, straight from Nintendo themselves: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/software/wiiu.html

3D World sold over 5 million units. New Super Mario Bros. U also sold over 5 million units. For Wii U games, that's really good, mind you. For comparison, both of these Mario games on a failed console sold better than all versions of Generations across multiple successful consoles. According to Sega's own reports, Generations sold 1.85 million units across all platforms. Those are fine numbers and nothing to sneeze at, but again, these games were on the PS3, X-Box 360, PC, and 3DS. Super Mario 3D World and NSMBU were on the Wii U, which you already established was a flop.

Mario platformers on a flop console sold better than Sonic's best-selling recent game on multiple popular systems. So I think my point is entirely valid; Mario has mass appeal among common gamers, not just hardcore fans. Yes, Odyssey brought in a lot more people than recent Mario games have, but your initial post that the general public didn't really care about Mario prior to Odyssey doesn't really hold up.

What does Generations have to do with this? I thought it was old news to everyone that the game failed to sell.

Again, the numbers are truly good, but what I'm trying to say since the beginning is: Who did purchase a Wii U? Certainly people already related to Nintendo's franchises' territory in a way.

The common people are actually wanting to have a Switch in their hands right now because both Odyssey and BotW, so I don't consider 3D World to be any kind of carrier title. I don't remember people ever talking about that game. I had to Google for a while.

[Dr. Mechano]

13 minutes ago, Korke said:

What does Generations have to do with this? I thought it was old news to everyone that the game failed to sell.

Again, the numbers are truly good, but what I'm trying to say since the beginning is: Who did purchase a Wii U? Certainly people already related to Nintendo's franchises' territory in a way.

The common people are actually wanting to have a Switch in their hands right now because both Odyssey and BotW, so I don't consider 3D World to be any kind of carrier title. I don't remember people ever talking about that game. I had to Google for a while.

I brought it up as a point of comparison: That Mario managed to outsell it despite its console handicap is a testament to the franchise's appeal.

I think that it's plain as day that Mario was still a popular series with gamers in general prior to Odyssey. Odyssey is doing better than a lot of recent Mario games, deservedly so, but I still think it's inaccurate to say "the common people didn't care about Mario until now."

[DoubleXXCross]

Who on earth has to give evidence and explain that Mario is well-made, popular and successful? Who on earth needs to give numbers for that?

I live in a city where the local news kept calling Sonic Dash "Mario Dash" WITH THE WORD SONIC ON THE SCREEN AND SPOKEN IN THE INTERVIEW THEY PLAYED.

Mario is literally a default in gaming. Not in platformers, in video games in general. In fact it kind of shocked me when I found out there was an in-depth Mario community. Mario is so mainstream it didn't even strike me that people would need resources for it. That people would even need a community for it.

Which is literally OP's point then. Why bother wasting your money and being let down by getting invested in Sonic, when you don't even have to get invested in Mario?

[knuckles20]

26 minutes ago, DoubleXXCross said:

 

Which is literally OP's point then. Why bother wasting your money and being let down by getting invested in Sonic, when you don't even have to get invested in Mario?

For many fans, we chose Sonic over Mario because there was more to be invested in.

The world, the many characters, the plotline; I became invested because Sonic gave me more reasons to care about their games other than gameplay. But with Mario, no one has anything beyond a basic personality if they’re lucky to have a personality to begin with and the plot is basically save the princess over and over again. 

 

[NikoS]

8 hours ago, Super Mechanio said:

I brought it up as a point of comparison: That Mario managed to outsell it despite its console handicap is a testament to the franchise's appeal.

I think it's more a testament of Nintendo's influence, and by saying that i mean, the non-gamer public who wants to play something generally ends up picking a nintendo console, the name still have an impact, "The Big N" isn't it? , and by doing so they generally pick a Mario game too, because "How dare you have a nintendo console and not have Mario in it?", normally when buying the console the seller will recommend the newest Mario game to you (and i say that by experience), it's the most succesfull non-bundled bundle ever.

[Meta77]

Cause I'm 28 and he's been in my life since his start. I'm on mobile so I can't write my entire reason. But he is just fun. Not just in games.his  latest games have been eh including mania but  all seeies hit Lowe's. Sega just never learns

[Dr. Mechano]

2 hours ago, knuckles20 said:

The world, the many characters, the plotline; I became invested because Sonic gave me more reasons to care about their games other than gameplay. But with Mario, no one has anything beyond a basic personality if they’re lucky to have a personality to begin with and the plot is basically save the princess over and over again. 

As a lifelong Mario fan, I completely disagree with this.

Plenty of Mario games have engaging stories, lovable characters, and even emotionally moving moments. Just about all of the RPGs fit this category (sans Sticker Star and Color Splash), and even Odyssey was a lot more story-heavy than the platformers typically tend to be. 

Like, in my personal opinion, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door's story blows any Sonic game's writing out of the water. And perhaps that's not entirely fair to compare a text-heavy RPG to a bare-bones story meant to hold a platformer together, I understand that. But it's still an example of why plenty of people (myself included) are able to get invested in Mario's world and its characters. Honestly, Bowser alone is worth the price of admission if it's entertaining and likable characters you're looking for - but the series is filled with endearing characters, and it's no surprise that it has an active fandom that celebrates them and their ongoing adventures.

[knuckles20]

59 minutes ago, Super Mechanio said:

Like, in my personal opinion, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door's story blows any Sonic game's writing out of the water. And perhaps that's not entirely fair to compare a text-heavy RPG to a bare-bones story meant to hold a platformer together, I understand that. But it's still an example of why plenty of people (myself included) are able to get invested in Mario's world and its characters. Honestly, Bowser alone is worth the price of admission if it's entertaining and likable characters you're looking for - but the series is filled with endearing characters, and it's no surprise that it has an active fandom that celebrates them and their ongoing adventures.

Alright, so what can you tell me about Daisy that doesn't lean on Peach-clone or created to give Luigi a girlfriend?

 

[Dr. Mechano]

8 minutes ago, knuckles20 said:

Alright, so what can you tell me about Daisy that doesn't lean on Peach-clone or created to give Luigi a girlfriend?

I can tell you that Daisy wasn't created to give Luigi a girlfriend. In her first appearance, in Super Mario Land, Luigi didn't even appear. Her first appearance alongside Luigi was in NES Open Tournament Golf, where she acted as his caddy - and this is what started fueling romantic speculation about the two of them.

Off the top of my head, I can also tell you that she's a tough girl who's characterized as a bit of a tomboy. In Mario Party 3, she singlehandedly knocks the fake Millenium Star away with one swing of a baseball bat. Daisy comes across as much less regal and refined than Peach does in general. She's more outgoing and cocky, and doesn't really project the prim, proper image of a princess in the same vein as Peach. She isn't even above using her royal position to (perhaps jokingly) intimidate others. (Example: In Fortune Street, when charged too much money by Toad, she'll say "I hope this transgression of yours doesn't break the truce between the Mushroom Kingdom and Sarasaland, Toad!")

Also, unlike Peach, also, whose parents are never mentioned (outside of old manuals anyway), Daisy specifically refers to her father - and how, due to her competitive streak, she hates losing to anyone, including her old man.

Those are just a few basics. Hope that helps!

[Swing]

21 hours ago, knuckles20 said:

The world, the many characters, the plotline; I became invested because Sonic gave me more reasons to care about their games other than gameplay. But with Mario, no one has anything beyond a basic personality if they’re lucky to have a personality to begin with and the plot is basically save the princess over and over again. 

Their are a lot of people that got invested in Sonic because of that. The presentation is it what make Sonic so popular and because of that I always wondered why Sega still uses Sonic almost for nothing else than games? If story, characters, look and presentation in general are the driving forces for this franchise why do not make a cartoon character instead like Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny? 

2 minutes ago, Swing said:

Their are a lot of people that got invested in Sonic because of that. The presentation is it what make Sonic so popular and because of that I always wondered why Sega still uses Sonic almost for nothing else than games? If story, characters, look and presentation in general are the driving forces for this franchise why do not make Sonic a cartoon character like Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny? 

 

[NomBitz]

I'm not sure how to put it. i mean I question myself at times too why I still like sonic. Perhaps I find the concept of a little blue hedgehog running around collecting rings charming? I guess a part of me thinks there's still good potential for the series and I'm secretly waiting for it to be exploited. I'm not entirely sure why. Or perhaps it's because back then the games brought me good fond memories and I hope to cling on to those? I'm just not sure. Anyways I've always wondered what is it about sonic that causes such a loyal fanbase. I myself feel kinda deprived with the new game yet I still find an attachment to the series for some reason.

[JaidynReiman]

In all honesty, I don't even know how I got to be a Sonic fan. I've been a Sonic fan as long as I can remember. That's before I have any memory of actually playing any of the games (cartoons maybe? I don't even know). Its also before the internet was a big thing and I was on it (I wasn't online until the early 2000's).

These days, I still consider myself a Sonic fan, even if the boost gameplay hasn't really interested me all that much overall. For me right now its largely the characters that still interest me and I like them a lot. And occasionally I find gems I really like, even some others don't (I like Shadow the Hedgehog, Black Knight, and the first two Riders games).

 

Forces will be the first main Sonic game I've bought at launch in years, though. And even then, I'm not looking forward to it that much. Recently I'm more into other games and favor them,  but Sonic is still my favorite franchise (even if the recent games have been mixed for me).

I still haven't bought Generations. (Well, I bought a used copy that didn't work, at least.)

 

As far as gameplay is concerned... Well, I prefer Donkey Kong Country to Mario. Yeah the gameplay changes things up quite a bit. I really loved Sonic Adventure 2 and thought Sonic Adventure was pretty good overall. I'd almost go as far to say I liked Sonic Adventure 2 better than Super Mario 64. (Not that I hate Super Mario 64 or anything.)

 

This forum itself is also the forum I most frequent and comment in, even if I don't frequent it as much as I used to.

[EzSonic01]

Well, I felt the need to reply this question, but, you asked: Why am I still a Sonic fan? Because I just like it, and I don't have to explain why, it's pretty simple actually. But as you insist, I'll tell you my reason: It's because this series has been part of me since my childhood, and have followed the franchise since I was a kid playing Sonic 1 on the Genesis. I love the concept of fast-paced platforming, collecting rings, destroying robots... Even the powerup ítems such as the shields and speed shoes are simple yet awesome, at least for me. Also Sonic's world, stories and characters are very colorful and quite interesting. 

I like Mario as well, and have played several titles from that series, but I don't really care if he is the king of videogames or whatever, his games are nothing impressive to me, even if they almost always do well: The platformers are linear as hell, the plot is often very basic (I don't see how great of a villain Bowser is with just kidnapping Peach), characters don't have personalities (with Luigi, Bowser, and probably Wario too, being exceptions), even spin-off series such as the Paper Mario and Mario Party series, or the Android game Super Mario Run have been getting mixed to negative reviews, and then there are horrible games such as Hotel Mario. I don't see most Nintendo products as masterpieces either, they are just decent and that's it. Maybe my tastes are weird, and I'm not even saying I downright hate Mario anyway. I admit Mario has sold more than Sonic and is way more recognized, but that doesn't make Sonic any less successful; His games have still still sold more than several Nintendo franchises (Such as Metroid and Donkey Kong) and beats several rival series in the platforming genre, including the likes of Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, Rayman, Mega-Man, etcetera. 

Even if the recent games such as Forces have been mediocre "OK" titles, there's still a lot of potential in the series, and there have been well-received titles such as the Adventure games, Heroes, the Advance and Rush spinoffs, the All-Stars racing games, Unleashed, Colors, Generations, and Mania. Even the episodic Sonic 4 was positively received by critics. There're lots of positives about the series, it's not just memes and furries as most people like to point out.

I'm probably getting a bit defensive, but I hate it when they bash Sonic without any meaningful reason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jar Jar Analysis 1138]

High speed action arcade-like platformers. If they didn't have a sense of momentum or speedy gameplay, wouldnt bat an eye to this franchise. 

The franchise as a whole isn't as refined as others(the only title that I can think of that is closer to refinement to its formula is S&K3. The rest don't feel as complete, not even Other classics). but the games are still great. Well, not right now but it's bound to happen at some point. Time to play the waiting games...