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Are the characters the reason why the franchise is still alive?


Rowl

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I had a discussion with a friend lately and we talked about died out franchises like Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, Jak and Daxter, Gex etc. All of them slowly disappeared after a while because their games where either not as good as they used to be or to not really appeal anymore for todays demographics. Other series like Crash Bandicoot and Spyro also shared the same faith for a while. Now they are back, but back  than both series also just vanished for a few years.

But Sonic... not really. This franchise is still kicking somehow. Even with all the horrible games this franchise has, Sonic, as a series, is still highly beloved among fans. Banjo-Kazooie only needed one mediocre game in it's series to kill it of for good, and that game wasn't as bad compare to the Sonic games. Even some of the most beloved video game series like Kingdom Hearts, Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania and I dare even say Super Mario would be long gone, if they would produced as many games as Sonic.

What does the Sonic series have, that the fans still coming back to it, spend all of their hard earned cash and forgive all of the horrible and mediocre games the series throws at them? I think the answer is the character.

If you think about it. The character of Sonic and also his friends are the glue that holds the series together. The character was always the biggest focus on the market of Sonic. He was firstly created to out-hip Mario in terms of design, appeal and coolness. He was a radical, young, super cool 90s character that would appeal towards 90s kids and than later a super edgy hip hero dud for the 2000's crowd. 

Sonic has to be one of the most best thought out fictional characters not only in gaming, but in general. His design and character alone appeals towards a lot of different types of people. Other series do not have this luxury. The Super Mario series also have some really memorable characters in term of design, but they are not really that depended on them like the Sonic series is. They are Mario games out there that do not even feature Luigi and his is technically the second most important character of this franchise. The Crash Bandicoot series also only really needs Crash and Cortex and maybe Coco and Aku Aku, but the rest of the cast isn't really needed to make a game of this series a success. The DKC series also got rid off of 3/4 of it's cast.

I really think that the character are the main reason, why we still love Sonic and his friends so much. We can this in many forums. Fans talk so much about the characters. If they show up in a feature game, will they be playable, talk about their edgy designs and how their part in the new story will turn out to be. 

My point is: Do you think that the characters are the reason, why Sonic is still around and why this franchise hasn't died of yet? 

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I'll go with most probable and most boring answer: it might be partially it, but clearly nor the only reason.

I would like to think that Shadow, Blaze and Knuckles kept this franchise alive (they the reason I'm here),  but more realistically it was Sonic's size in 90s.

Comparing to franchises you mentioned, Sonic is older, was more successful and is face of Sega. Plus, 90s was era of platfomers, Sonic, Megaman and Nintedo kids are immortal. But early 3D was era of many things, Final Fantasy, Tomb Raider, Metal Gear, etc. Banjo might been good game, but he no longer shaped the gaming scene like Sonic did.

Heck, Sonic started trend of animal mascots. Most your examples (in bigger or smaller way) went in his footsteps.

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Sonic is still around because the series as a whole still generates quite impressive revenue figures for Sega. Keep in mind that Sonic is a franchise which has been present in other media aside video-games, such as TV shows, comics, and merchandising, and it's very likely many people found out about Sonic that way. Even the games alone do pretty decently in commercial terms despite their subpar, mediocre quality and the negativity surrounding them before and after the release.

Sonic is also the face and mascot of Sega, and their biggest and most successful franchise. This is a fact, and Sonic is very likely the reason Sega is still around after their numerous failures and bad decisions in the past; only recently they have started paying attention to their other IPs. The impact Sonic had in the 90's was way larger than the other series you mentioned. At his peak, Sonic got so popular that it was being compared to Mario and even freaking Mickey Mouse.

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4 hours ago, Rowl said:

Sonic has to be one of the most best thought out fictional characters not only in gaming, but in general.

...he's really not...

I mean, sure, he's got a solid design and his general personality obviously has some appeal, but beyond that? He's a platformer mascot character, they're not exactly designed to be deep or anything. Plus his characterization has been all over the place, seems like hardly anyone can agree who Sonic is actually supposed to be beyond the broadest of strokes. Some of his longevity might even be because he isn't well thought out; he's vague and inconsistent enough that people can fairly easily twist the basic concept in whatever direction most appeals to them.

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17 minutes ago, Diogenes said:

...he's really not...

I mean, sure, he's got a solid design and his general personality obviously has some appeal, but beyond that? He's a platformer mascot character, they're not exactly designed to be deep or anything. Plus his characterization has been all over the place, seems like hardly anyone can agree who Sonic is actually supposed to be beyond the broadest of strokes. Some of his longevity might even be because he isn't well thought out; he's vague and inconsistent enough that people can fairly easily twist the basic concept in whatever direction most appeals to them.

But if he is not, why do people always come back to him? There has to be a secret, that people always come back to Sonic. Even with all the flaws this series has. 

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Partly yes but at the same time, not completely.

Despite what happened, Sonic is still one of the few mainstream gaming characters that is recognisable outside of the gaming audience. Even parents have an idea who he is along with Mario, Crash (more so in Europe) and a few others because of their popularity when they were launched. As mentioned the other game series are more niche who are more known from a gaming audience but may not be known outside of it especially Castlevania and Kingdom Hearts, some of the other platforming series were flash in the pan. It is why Sonic can keep going and will take a lot to be forgotten, maybe if given enough time or if Sega closes. It's not completely the characters because outside of Sonic, Dr. Eggman/Robotnik, maybe Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Shadow if you are lucky people won't know them or vaguely know them at best. It is more to do with the fans keeping the secondary characters alive who may have come from the comics or the older games.

Like other things too, Sonic tries to adapt with the later generation by mobile releases and can be decently successful unlike many gaming series that had mobile series. A good Sonic game can generate talk outside of the fanbase like Generations and Mania did. The comic books have done well to keep going and a change of publisher got some attention. Dare I say it, even memes can keep a series alive and Sonic has had a few memes for better or worse.

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11 minutes ago, Rowl said:

But if he is not, why do people always come back to him? There has to be a secret, that people always come back to Sonic. Even with all the flaws this series has. 

I dunno, people get attached to things all the time. I think it's just that few things fall as hard as Sonic has without dying off because of it; usually either people are generally happy with the things they're attached to, or the thing ends and they move on.

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As stated above, outside of his design, Sonic's not one of the most thought out of characters in gaming. It's true that tends to be the case with most mascot characters. It's definitely the case with Mario; even more so than Sonic. Yet, his games are easily far more celebrated and played. One of the big reasons aside from solid gameplay, I would have to guess, as someone on the outside looking in, is probably because Mario makes up for his personal lack of character by having an entire world that functions as the most interesting "character" ever. 

You know, I haven't touched a Mario game since I was first still getting into them when I was a kid. I always talk about that fateful summer in New York City at my nana's where I had access to a Gamecube and four games specifically. Super Mario Sunshine, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Monkey Ball, and Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. Now I hated Sunshine because I wasn't a fan of the way the game played and the most interesting thing about games at the time, for me, was the interactive storytelling element that I was still being enchanted by. Out of those four games, Adventure 2 saw the most play time, without a doubt, from my brother and I. Not only did it have the most character but it had a neat gimmick that I had never seen before that allowed you to play from the perspective of the villains and help them achieve their goals too.

Something about seeing them interact and play off each other on top of that made it something I obsessed over. My little brother was shook by Shadow's death and didn't want to play as him anymore in the 2-Player, calling him the "Dead Guy". We soon got into Sonic Heroes, my uncle pointed out the Chaotix as being the most awesome team, I examined them and thought they were extremely weird looking and as such the most interesting team. I eventually forced myself to learn how to draw because I wanted to be able to tell stories with these characters and put them into scenarios I desired to see them in. Because of how simple some of the characterization was, it was far easier for a child like me to dream up and imagine things to put them in. I still have some of the early drawings I did of Sonic and comparing them to what I can do now is like night and day. 

However, despite falling for Sonic, one thing that DID stick with me about Sunshine that I found myself regretting a bit when I got older and ran out of time to play many games (especially older ones) was the fact that Mario's world was super fucking interesting. I wanted to go around and explore in order to see all the weird shit it had. There hasn't been a Mario game that's interested me since up until I saw the trailer for Super Mario Odyssey. It made me happy when the Odyssey trailer dropped because it was at that moment that I realized I wasn't crazy for not being interested in the Mario stuff that came out before it. The type of game Odyssey is was just reminiscent of what Sunshine was, according to a lot of people, and that's the kind of game I was subconsciously looking for (only this time it could be something I might actually find fun and not frustrating as hell). When I get a Switch, Odyssey is going to be the first Mario game I've played since I was 10. 

There's a lot of benefit to making a series whimsical and enchanting and creative without necessarily having the deepest of characters to go along with it. It's a team effort, you know? Sonic barely had a character back in the 2-D era but he stood out by having one that people were interested in following and the world he was in as well as the gameplay that accompanied him took care of the rest. The design, the characters, the concepts, and the gameplay elements of this series are all still incredibly unique and all their own to this day. There really isn't much out there like it aside from the few parallels you could make to DBZ I suppose. 

It doesn't surprise me that there's a ton of people who want to see it succeed and many more who are willing to let him back into their lives should he get his act together and settle on a proper direction and hold himself to a consistent standard of quality. Of course, it's not literally "Sonic" who gets to decide this. In the real world, his fate is in the hands of a corporate entity and that's become really hard to look past nowadays. 

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Could be a reason, but definitely not the sole reason.

I do think that calling Sonic the most well thought out character of anything is a huge stretch, though. Part of the reason Sonic is such a radically inconsistent franchise is because he's constantly being handed out to just anyone who has an idea for him, just look at how many times we've seen this franchise change not even counting the shows, spinoffs or comics.

I think a lot of things definitely play into why Sonic is so popular and why he hasn't bit the dust yet, characters definitely being one of them. I do think there's also more of an argument that Sonic constantly chasing trends in gaming plays into why he's still popular. Like, Sonic Dash. Kids like Temple Run, right? Let's give them that but with Sonic characters and iconography. Kids like werewolves and darkness right? Let's give them that but with Sonic. Kids like those MegaMan and Mario retro revivals? Let's do that, but with Sonic.

Often to the series' detriment.

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I agree with the 90s thing. Its almost not arguable, really. Fans here and everywhere that complain about the 90s nostalgia pandering? Well, SEGA does that because its their only surefire hand. Sonic was so absurdly popular in the 90s he briefly overtook even Mario in the US and Europe, which is a pretty staggering accomplishment. Its hard to actually kill off an IP with that size and brand recognition, even though you can damage it as much as Sonic has been damaged.

Diehard Sonic fans have done their part in keeping the series floor from bottoming out but they're not the only factor and probably not the primary factor. Which is partly why we may see decreased budgets for these games going forward (until Sonic can score a big mainstream hit again).

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I think a major reason is the intention of the publishers. Banjo and Conker died because Microsoft didn't want to use them outside of cameos, Naughty Dog moved on from Jak and Daxter, after some failures, Activision didn't want to use Crash and Spyro. Virtually all the failed mascots can be explained in this way.

SEGA keeps publishing Sonic games because they want to. I think a lot of it comes down to this in all honesty. The hardcore fanbase helps, but it doesn't mean anything if the publisher doesn't want to make the move. And publishers not wanting to make more products of something doesn't mean it won't sell.

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No, I'd argue it has more to do with the spectacle. I personally don't give much of a shit about the characters beyond their abilities and how they affect the gameplay. 

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I would say the characters are among the main reasons that many people care about the series, yes. I known many people over time that mostly liked the Sonic series just for it's art style, characters and concepts... and they don't even play the games or watch the TV shows. I myself primarily enjoy it for the characters and don't feel the games are required for me to be a fan of the series, regardless that the games are a nice bonus.

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On top of some points already mentioned, I think the audio also contributes a significant amount to the continuing relative popularity of the series. The franchise’s musical legacy is one of the few elements of the series that most fans would probably agree to be an iconic and lasting strength of the games, despite us bickering over everything else. ^_^ 

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You know what? I have slightly better (and easier to argue) question:

Are Sonic characters in any way more appealing than the ones from Mario, Megaman, Banjo or any other mascot-based game franchise?

I'm not going to pretend that Sonic can be compared with  Mass Effect or Undertale, but maybe he's the top dog in his specific niche.

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13 minutes ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

You know what? I have slightly better (and easier to argue) question:

Are Sonic characters in any way more appealing than the ones from Mario, Megaman, Banjo or any other mascot-based game franchise?

I'm not going to pretend that Sonic can be compared with  Mass Effect or Undertale, but maybe he's the top dog in his specific niche.

More appealing than MOST of them. I’d say the Megaman (entire franchise) and several of Sony’s IP have equally entertaining/intriguing characters. Sonic’s more in the tier of Undertale or KOF. Mario would be about equal if it weren’t for the various non-game characters of Sonic’s having a following as well. 

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In the end it kinda depends on your own taste. I for example like the designs of Mario, Banjo, Crash and DK more than Sonic, but prefer Sonic's design over that of Mega Man or the Rabbids. But I can say that Sonic overall has a design that targets to a wider demographic. Children, teenager, families, boys, girls, cartoon fans and anime fans.

Mario for example appeals to children, families, boys and girls. And Banjo even less with only boys and cartoon fans.

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I think so, and it's because the franchise once had such a diverse media presence where those characters were expanded on. Tons of games, multiple cartoons, several comics.

I don't think if you took away things like SatAM, Sonic X, and the Archie Comics and left only the games that they would be as recognizable today.

That's part of the reason I'm so worried about this upcoming movie. It should help resolidify these characters in people's consciousness. I'm worried it does the opposite.

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On 10/26/2018 at 5:30 PM, Spooky Mulder said:

I think so, and it's because the franchise once had such a diverse media presence where those characters were expanded on. Tons of games, multiple cartoons, several comics.

I don't think if you took away things like SatAM, Sonic X, and the Archie Comics and left only the games that they would be as recognizable today.

That's part of the reason I'm so worried about this upcoming movie. It should help resolidify these characters in people's consciousness. I'm worried it does the opposite.

Well we still have the Mania shorts and IDW (I didn’t count the social media due to it actually having more of a negative effect) in addition to that movie. 

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