The Fallen Cast...

[Phos]

Tails need to actully do things again.

And his new design looks pot bellied from certain angles. He's got this tiny thorax coming out of this big abdomen.

[JaidynReiman]

^ Agreed a bit. Tails hasn't been doing a whole lot lately.

However, first and foremost, before anyone mentions that Tails was never a tinkerer until later on... uh, hello, apparently you haven't been paying attention because he's ALWAYS been a mechanic. It didn't show up often in past titles due to the fact that there wasn't much of a plot, but it wasn't tacked on with the release of Sonic Adventure.

Anyway, Tails should just stick to being Sonic's best bud, but like his development goes in the Adventure games, he shouldn't be TOO reliant on Sonic. He's still Sonic's bud, though, and he should stay that way. If they really wanted to make a "friendship" theme go well in a Sonic game, Tails should've been the one to take that spot, not Chip. Obviously there's a purpose for Chip in Unleashed, but I'm referring to "friendship" themes in general.

Either way, Tails isn't in bad straights at all... he's just been pushed back a bit lately.

[Frozen Nitrogen]

However, first and foremost, before anyone mentions that Tails was never a tinkerer until later on... uh, hello, apparently you haven't been paying attention because he's ALWAYS been a mechanic. It didn't show up often in past titles due to the fact that there wasn't much of a plot, but it wasn't tacked on with the release of Sonic Adventure.

Pfft no. Saying Tails was always a mechanic is like saying Amy was always a tarot-reading mystic. Yeah, it's TRUE, but it was given so little emphasis that you could have forgotten about it completely and it wouldn't have made any difference. That's the problem with Tails' mech-fetishism; it has exploded out of nowhere, practically if not technically.

My recepie for Tails is to return him to Sonic 3 status. Adorable, tenacious, puppy-like hero-worshipper of Sonic, totally inseperable from his best buddy. Basicly a male version of Amy, except Sonic actually enjoys Tails' devotion.

He doesn't need to be a pushover incapable of accomplishing anything by himself, but if given the choice of solving a problem on his own or solving it with Sonic's help, Tails should always choose the latter even if it isn't strictly necessary (and vice versa, actually - Sonic ought to prefer adventuring with Tails). It worked back in '94 and it would damn well work better in 2010 than Tails' present "walking technobabble toolkit guy" does.

[Diogenes]

Pfft no. Saying Tails was always a mechanic is like saying Amy was always a tarot-reading mystic. Yeah, it's TRUE, but it was given so little emphasis that you could have forgotten about it completely and it wouldn't have made any difference. That's the problem with Tails' mech-fetishism; it has exploded out of nowhere, practically if not technically.

Bull. Amy's use of Tarot cards gets about one line in the manual and that's all we ever see of it. Tails not only drools over the Tornado in the manual, but flies it and repairs it (with improvements) when it gets shot down. And that's just the main games; in spinoffs, he's got a remote robot that transforms into a sub alongside an arsenal of explosive weaponry in Tails Adventures, and a rocket ship and his own Metal Sonic in Fighters. And it's not as if SA jumps right into him building 10-story tall mechs or something; he's building planes, an obvious extension of his love for them shown in the manual and his role as a pilot in-game.

It worked back in '94 and it would damn well work better in 2010 than Tails' present "walking technobabble toolkit guy" does.

The lesser of two evils is not a good.

Anyway. I'll agree with Phos in that Tails really needs to get out and do things more often. He's sliding a little too far into the role of a noncombatant. That said, I don't think his newfound independence and focus on his brains and mechanical ability is a bad thing; it's just been taken a bit too far. Have him keep building machines to help out, have him keep being the one to figure out what's going on, have him still able to work on his own. But at the same time, there should be more focus on his friendship with Sonic and more time spent fighting off Eggman's robots (or whatever the villain is at the moment) rather than just supporting from the background. It's a matter of finding a balance between the two, not of ditching one or the other.

[LimeTH]

Tails is useless nowadays. He's just there for the sake of being there, because he's a "retro" character, while doing absolutley nothing. He's also dropped several levels in badass. Remember when he used to smash robots into peices by slapping them with his tails? But in Unleashed, he's a total wuss around those Gaia monsters, he whines and runs away like a little pussy untill Werehog comes and smashes them. What was he even doing there? Did he at all show up before that?

I agree Tails should go back to being Sonic's little buddy and sidekick, while keeping the techhead side of him, instead of him basically being the monotone excuse for Sonic to ride in an airplane he's become.

[Rusty Spy]

Pfft no. Saying Tails was always a mechanic is like saying Amy was always a tarot-reading mystic. Yeah, it's TRUE, but it was given so little emphasis that you could have forgotten about it completely and it wouldn't have made any difference. That's the problem with Tails' mech-fetishism; it has exploded out of nowhere, practically if not technically.

I'll be honest, I'd rather not change the way Tails is, only difference be to balance out the "walking toolkit" and "Sonic's sidekick/best bud" sides of him more to find a better middle ground, because he's been swinging a little to far to the former recently.

I find it silly that people hold his Sonic worshipping/following days to such high regard. Sure it was cute and fit him well in 94, but it's 2010 and nearly 9 years since the Adventures, and the way this series has gone with it's character growth, if Tails isn't gonna actually grow as a character, than there's not gonna be that much appeal to him and it's going to leave him flat and boring very quickly.

Edited July 22, 2010 by Black Spy

[Dejablue]

Tails' love for mechanics has gotten more developed in each game than Nitrogen is willing to give it credit for. The story line of a game isn't like one of his fanfictions. The writers of the games rarely delve into a characters personal home life or hobby. But I figure we're just supposed to assume things.

[ilcane87]

I'd like to see Tails go back to being more than your Tutorial Character, and actually have an important role in the storyline, struggle to achieve his goals and have character development... you know, like in the Sonic Adventure series (good times...).

Also, I'd like, for once, to see him in a mood that is not cheery or worried, expand his range of allowed sensations a bit and make him into a more round character.

Has he actually ever got really angry? What if he argues with Sonic for once, what if they fight over something?

And, as for everyone, make him interact with More characters, not just Sonic/Knuckles/Amy.

But more than anything, make him playable again, enough of these "solo adventures" already.

[Frozen Nitrogen]

Tails' love for mechanics has gotten more developed in each game than Nitrogen is willing to give it credit for. The story line of a game isn't like one of his fanfictions. The writers of the games rarely delve into a characters personal home life or hobby. But I figure we're just supposed to assume things.

;_;

I don't think I would mind the mechanophilia as much if it weren't explicitly occuring at the expense of the Sonic-Tails buddy vibe. But the way the games seem to be developing, each invention takes him just a little bit further away from the adorable partnership.

If Tails must be a techno-wizard, at least let him be Sonic's orange-tinted shadow as well.

[Dejablue]

Also, I'd like, for once, to see him in a mood that is not cheery or worried, expand his range of allowed sensations a bit and make him into a more round character. Has he actually ever got really angry? What if he argues with Sonic for once, what if they fight over something?

And, as for everyone, make him interact with More characters, not just Sonic/Knuckles/Amy.

He got pissed off at Wave once in Riders. But that was just one time.

My only real complaint was how in SA2 both Tails and Eggman have walkers of near identical design. That I think was too far of a stretch. But apparently he wasn't even supposed to be playable in that game.

Edited July 23, 2010 by Dejablue

[Flyboy Fox]

Tails, Tails, Tails... My opinion is that he's been nerfed beyond belief. And this makes me sad ):

The main issue I have is with the fact that he's no longer considered a fighter. He started out fighting at Sonic's side, and he has plenty of potential to be really good at it, too. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE his techie aspect. That's so cool. But he shouldn't be sidelined as just the navigator/tutorial guy/chauffeur. That does him no credit at all.

Most of all, has everyone forgotten why his name is Tails? He has TWO TAILS. Let's see them get some use! They're pretty damn powerful weapons, but what's even the point of having such an awesome freak-of-nature mutation if you don't use 'em for anything? >:|

As far as character/personality goes... eh. Tails has become kind of bland. Like someone said above, it would be nice to show him express some different emotions. I think him having some sort of argument with Sonic and getting genuinely pissed at him would be awesome. In the end it would also strengthen their best buddy bond, which is something I've always adored ♥

So yeah, basically, all the character development for him seems to have been dropped and even reversed, and it's sad to see him show up only in NPC advisory roles or limited unfulfilling bonus stages etc. He can build stuff, fly and fight. He SHOULD be a kickass character, but as of right now he's... eh... kind of lame =P

[-Mark-]

In recent years, Tails has stopped being the cute little sidekick/ little brother role, and turned into a cliched walking encyclopaedia/ genius.

Basically, -10 cute points. D: SA1 was the last time Tails was actually adorable. And classic Tails >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> current Tails, especially in terms of design.

[Octarine]

I find it kind of funny that Unleashed, which was better than any game since SA2 in how it handled Sonic and Eggman and at least did a pretty decent job with Amy, managed to be the absolute nadir for Tails' character.

It's definitely annoying that Tails has barely been playable (or relevant to the plot) recently, but I think his biggest problem is that his friendship with Sonic isn't, and never really has been, all that apparent. The manuals usually manage to mention that Tails is Sonic's best friend, but the games themselves, even the Adventure series, have never quite managed to capture that. It's as much a problem with Sonic's character as it is with Tails', but it hurts Tails a lot more, since that's basically the whole reason he exists. This is why Unleashed was so awful for Tails, even though he technically accomplished even less in '06 and Rush: Sonic finally managed to show off what a good friend he is... to a brand-new character. I didn't even mind Chip that much, but it was a little bit soul-crushing to see Sonic giving him so much affection while his best friend was left off in a corner screwing around with his iPad.

I don't mind Tails' modern design, though, or his mechanical tendencies. Trying to get rid of that aspect of his character would just leave him even emptier than he already is.

[Way Past Cool]

I have to agree with most of the previously stated opinions in this thread. While I love the fact that Tails is the mechanical genius and an awesome pilot, his tendency to be type-cast by that has gotten out of control! He hasn't really used his tails as a weapon since Adventure 1, let alone use them to fly all that much. It's one of the most unique parts of his deign and it gets grossly ignored so that they can put him in the backgroud or use him as tutorial fodder.

It's sort of like they've decided 'oh yeah, that's Tails, he used to be an important character. He flies and builds stuff, and we thought you'd like to see he's still around. He'll build you something or show you what button to press, but he doesn't really matter in this game."

But most of all, as Octarine pointed out, it's so sad that while the offical stance is that Sonic and Tails are best friends, Sonic shows more loyalty and emotion towards people he's just met than to his supposed best friend. I don't expect a game plot that revolves around the subject.. but if they can spare the time to show how good of a friend Sonic can be to all-but-strangers, why can't they do the same with Tails? Tails is one of the franchise's most beloved and long running characters. I think he's earned that much. Don't just tell us they're best friends, SHOW us.

Sonic and Tails make an awesome tag-team, flight and speed. It's a shame that Sega doesn't utilize that more often.

[Nepenthe]

I'll play a little Devil's Advocate and say that Sonic shows such valor to the one-offs because they tend to be less fortunate than the main cast. Chip is an amnesiac whose condition Sonic believes is a direct result of his own actions for most of the game, until he learns that Chip is naturally obligated to face the personification of destruction alone. Why wouldn't he try his best to set things right and prove his loyalty and reliability, a loyalty and reliability that isn't and shouldn't be reserved only for the main cast? Chip needed Sonic more. This simply isn't the same for Tails; By virtue of having the combat abilities, mechanic skills, leadership and logistic skills, and the status as a main cast member, it's a little more difficult to put him in a position where Sonic needs to outdo himself in order to prove his kindness to those degrees.

Also to blame ironically is their long-standing friendship. To illustrate, I have one good friend in particular who knows I'm her friend, who knows that I, in fact, love her like a sister, who knows I'll gladly get my behind up to drive her to the physical therapy center she needs to go to now and a whole bunch of other things. While the latter statement is a good example of the lengths I'll go to for her, do you honestly think we're all smiles and hugs and friendly nudges and spend all of our waking time together just because of that? Not at all. It's an innate truth that we're best friends, so we don't need to prove it on a daily basis; Hell, we're not even obligated to see each other daily, and we live five minutes away from each other.

Furthermore, despite our status as friends, do you also think I'm going to forego going above and beyond for someone who is less fortunate and less familiar than my friend? No. On Tuesday when we went to see Inception together, I gave a complete stranger and his family $20 without even thinking about it because his house had burnt down. But I wouldn't have given her that same amount of money without a complete lack of protest, even though she's my best friend. She's more fortunate after all, and she should've known by deduction that she should've brought enough money for tickets and food. Why wouldn't I be a little peeved with her, even though both people asked me the same exact thing?

This is how I imagine Sonic and Tails' friendship right now along with Sonic's treatment of newcomers. Sonic and Tails' friendship has been an established truth of the series, so it should be self-evident regardless of each character's participation. Even if Sonic is the only playable character or intent on helping out the allegorical stranger with a burnt-down house to the best of his abilities, Tails' inclusion in a new game is never really disputed; He will always show up in some form of support, will he not? And Sonic will always help Tails out when the little guy needs it, won't he? When Sonic was close to dying on the ARK, he trusted Tails to take the baton, didn't he? I personally believe that they are still best friends and that we don't need nearly as much elaboration as others are saying.

However, I don't think anyone's stance on the friendship is all that relevant to how much Tails actually has been nerfed in recent memory. After his quest to gain his independence, he's become content with falling back into his Genesis-era routines, if less than that; He's just be left out a lot of the time. Sure, he has a use and Sega sticks by it, but such development in the Adventure series needn't have been forgotten. What I hope for Tails, especially in Colors and beyond, is that when he isn't aiding Sonic by directly being by his side, he's aiding him by going off on his own and being successful at it. Scout the land out, clear the way, expose those ambushes, get a bead on the weaknesses of Eggman's tech. You've proven you have the physical and mental capabilities of splitting up away from Sonic and still making the overall adventure successful. Don't get comfortable because you can do it; Keep on doing it.

That's what I want to see Tails as, a more independent entity in the series who is just as capable of doing his own thing as he is giving Sonic a lift.

[Octarine]

A wise and well-thought-out post

I agree with a lot of what you're saying, for sure. You're definitely right to say that best friends tend to... settle down a bit over time, and you're also correct that it's in Sonic's nature to show charity to people like Chip. I actually really liked a lot of Sonic's interaction with Chip, as bad as I felt for Tails when it was going on, and I really enjoyed the idea that Sonic would run around trying to return this poor little guy's memory to him. It was nice.

The problem is that Sonic's affection for Chip was the kind of stuff that he's never, ever shown for Tails. I don't need them to be all over each other to buy that they're best friends, but it's rare for them to exchange much more than a "long time no see" (groan). Remember the scene with Sonic and Chip by the water in Adabat, after Chip realized that he was Light Gaia? Yeah, Sonic and Tails have never had a scene together like that, even in the earlier games. Hell, Tails thought Sonic was dead for a bit in SA2 and that barely got any attention at all (okay, so there was a time limit. Still). Sonic and Chip, on the other hand, got a freaking friendship ballad.

[Nepenthe]

The problem is that Sonic's affection for Chip was the kind of stuff that he's never, ever shown for Tails. I don't need them to be all over each other to buy that they're best friends, but it's rare for them to exchange much more than a "long time no see" (groan). Remember the scene with Sonic and Chip by the water in Adabat, after Chip realized that he was Light Gaia? Yeah, Sonic and Tails have never had a scene together like that, even in the earlier games. Hell, Tails thought Sonic was dead for a bit in SA2 and that barely got any attention at all (okay, so there was a time limit. Still). Sonic and Chip, on the other hand, got a freaking friendship ballad.

Can you think of a time when an Adabat-like scene would've been remotely appropriate for Sonic and Tails? What happened in that scene was that Chip was reflecting on the first time in his billions of years' worth of existence that he had the pleasure of actually experiencing the world he'd been divinely charged with saving, and saying good-bye to the guy who gave him that pleasure, the guy who he'd ideally never see again. But Sonic wasn't intent on leaving him to his own devices; He was going to stick with him to the bitter end. That is an emotional moment for reasons that are not and cannot possibly be analogous to the experiences that Sonic and Tails have had in their time as friends.

Even with Sonic's survival in SA2, remember that Tails really only had an iota of a second to actually start mourning before Sonic pulled a "jk lol!" on him and swiftly reversed the tone of the moment; There's also the fact that Sonic's death was completely unintended and unforeseen, so there's the shock and rage of the event too. This is not the same with Chip as both he and Sonic were well aware of the fact that their antics would unfortunately have to come to a permanent end long before it came time for them to say good-bye to each other; Sonic was essentially marching the guy to the docking station. Their separation is reasonably tragic in a "Fox and the Hound" kind of way, and that's why it's as played up as it is in the game.

Really, if Chip wasn't tired down with the whole dormant god shtick and could reasonably become a recurring buddy like Tails is, that scene would've never had to have happened in the first place.

[Frozen Nitrogen]

Can you think of a time when an Adabat-like scene would've been remotely appropriate for Sonic and Tails?

Well... the fact that the answer is "no" is kinda the point.

The games haven't contrived to display a situation in which Sonic / Tails' close friendship could be appropriately demonstrated - and therefore, it hasn't been demonstrated.

There's umpteen little things they could do, though. Sonic greeting Tails with a little more warmth than a throwaway "Long Time No See", maybe? Or, even better, turning up on a new adventure with the fox in tow already, implying that they do actually hang out somethimes outside "work"?

[Scar]

Well... the fact that the answer is "no" is kinda the point.

The games haven't contrived to display a situation in which Sonic / Tails' close friendship could be appropriately demonstrated - and therefore, it hasn't been demonstrated.

There's umpteen little things they could do, though. Sonic greeting Tails with a little more warmth than a throwaway "Long Time No See", maybe? Or, even better, turning up on a new adventure with the fox in tow already, implying that they do actually hang out somethimes outside "work"?

Thats due to poor writing.

I don't think I heard a single "Long time no see" in Unleashed. It was fairly well written and the ideas behind the story and character development was good. It was just poorly executed at times.

Chip went through his own little character development thing, which pretty much sealed him as a one-hit-wonder.

I agree that Tails should be greeted with more warmth, but thats hard to portray with such poor scripts and wooden acting. Maybe if people write the character interactions better and coreograph (if you can call it that) the cutscenes better, this effect can be pulled off. I also agree that Tails shouldn't have to have a reunion with Sonic every game. They are implied to be close friends (the script is never good enough to cement this) so they should meet up frequently and shouldn't act like they haven't met each other for centuries. Sonic can and should be found alone sometimes, he fits the freeroaming loner archetype, but when meeting Tails it should just be a "Hey, what's up" not a "Well, my dear friend it has been a rather long time since we last met"

As for Tails himself.

He should be the book-smart one. Good mechanic and great at building stuff....but should never have access to satelite footage *cough*Unleashed*cough*.

He should also be very naive. He's only 8. He can't know everything, he's not a goddamn encyclopedia. In fact in some games like Zero Gravity, he's the goddamn moral authority...he's 8!!

He should be looking up to Sonic for moral direction, not the other way around.

[Phos]

"Hey Tails, long time no see" - Sonic's most common first line spoken to Tails

And I don't see Sonic and Tails going to see inception. I don't see them doing anything I'd expect friends to do. The only time they spent together in Unleashed was the bare minimum pragmatically required by the story, they could not have spent less time with one another. Tails pops up the moments Sonic needs to know where to go, which is also the moment that he needs to fly somewhere. Sonic then flies himself and his little Sympathetic Sue friend who ruins all the cut scenes that could have been cool to a bunch of places to have a lot of fun not spending any time with Tails. Tails then spends the rest of the game standing in place, until Pickle relocates to Shamar, where he also does nothing but stand in place. We then find out that Chip is God. Tails then flies them to Eggmanland, and then we don't see him again until during the credits, which quickly switches over to a photo montage of Sonic with Chip and starts playing a song about what great friends they were. You can't just have your characters say how they feel, that makes me angry!

Worse yet, almost all of Sonic's lines to Tails come off as objective communication, Sonic basically always just needs something from Tails, whether to learn what happened, needs to fly somewhere, or needs a new boat.

Think Unleashed is some kind of exception? In SatSR, Tails as Ali-Baba does fuck all AFAIK, and serves as the largely pointless blacksmith in SatBK. He builds boats or something in Rush Adventure, and that's about it.

Unleashed, though, just comes off as the writers liking their own character more than the ones that already exist. They like they're little annoying thing more than any of the other characters that could go places with Sonic, and they like their own villain more than Eggman (Who fails to do anything as soon as Dark Gaia is around).

[Rusty Spy]

And I don't see Sonic and Tails going to see inception. I don't see them doing anything I'd expect friends to do. The only time they spent together in Unleashed was the bare minimum pragmatically required by the story, they could not have spent less time with one another. Tails pops up the moments Sonic needs to know where to go, which is also the moment that he needs to fly somewhere. Sonic then flies himself and his little Sympathetic Sue friend who ruins all the cut scenes that could have been cool to a bunch of places to have a lot of fun not spending any time with Tails. Tails then spends the rest of the game standing in place, until Pickle relocates to Shamar, where he also does nothing but stand in place. We then find out that Chip is God. Tails then flies them to Eggmanland, and then we don't see him again until during the credits, which quickly switches over to a photo montage of Sonic with Chip and starts playing a song about what great friends they were. You can't just have your characters say how they feel, that makes me angry!

Well yeah, this story is about Chip, not Tails. Simply because they're best buds doesn't mean the fact needs to be shoved in our faces every game. Tails doesn't do a lot in that game because the plot is not focused on him.

Worse yet, almost all of Sonic's lines to Tails come off as objective communication, Sonic basically always just needs something from Tails, whether to learn what happened, needs to fly somewhere, or needs a new boat.

Again, we're not focusing on Tails here, and spending time pretending that he's just as important to the plot as the character's it's actually focused around is NOT good story telling.

In SatSR, Tails as Ali-Baba does fuck all AFAIK, and serves as the largely pointless blacksmith in SatBK.

Yeah, because he was a MINOR CHARACTER in those games.

Unleashed, though, just comes off as the writers liking their own character more than the ones that already exist. They like they're little annoying thing more than any of the other characters that could go places with Sonic, and they like their own villain more than Eggman (Who fails to do anything as soon as Dark Gaia is around).

It's not favoritism, it's character focus. Again, just because they're the main characters does not give them freebies to be shoehorned into the story as important characters.

Edited July 24, 2010 by Black Spy

[Phos]

So then when does he do anything?

[LimeTH]

Thats kinda what we're saying. There hasn't been a non-spinoff game with Tails as a primary focus since the Sonic Adventures, which were made about a decade ago, and before that was Sonic 2. Theres a difference between being a minor character who isn't the focus of the story and not doing anything or interacting with barely anyone at all, the latter of which is what Tails has lately been guilty of.

[Rusty Spy]

Every character other than Sonic and Eggman have gotten little to no action. Why? Blame all of the fans who cried wanting Sonic only in their games.

And it's at this point that the fanbase comes full circle.

Edited July 24, 2010 by Black Spy

[Nepenthe]

Well... the fact that the answer is "no" is kinda the point.

The games haven't contrived to display a situation in which Sonic / Tails' close friendship could be appropriately demonstrated - and therefore, it hasn't been demonstrated.

My point was that the situation isn't even necessary concerning the scope of Sonic and Tails' relationship. Those two will always have the ability and power to see each other, hence why Chip is particularly emotional about Sonic's assistance and their impending good-bye. Whereas Tails simply takes his ball home, Chip was moving to another country to join a cult or something, for lack of a better analogy. There's a reason their friendship was presented as more emotional, and that's because it couldn't last, thus it's an irrelevant comparison to Sonic and Tails' relationship as well as how Tails was even written in that game in the first place.

There's umpteen little things they could do, though. Sonic greeting Tails with a little more warmth than a throwaway "Long Time No See", maybe? Or, even better, turning up on a new adventure with the fox in tow already, implying that they do actually hang out somethimes outside "work"?

I guess phones and computers are outside the scope of explanation? When me and my friend go back to college, we won't see each other for three to four months, but when we do see each other, we're not falling all over each other. It's because we communicate during the interim. Would it be impossible for the two to do the same, hence why greetings from either party (because I notice Sonic's usually called out) aren't puppy-ish?

Shoot, Unleashed's ending and a few of the credit pictures implies that the two actually vacation together anyways.

And I don't see Sonic and Tails going to see inception. I don't see them doing anything I'd expect friends to do.

I guess assistance and saving one another falls out of the realm of friendship?

Worse yet, almost all of Sonic's lines to Tails come off as objective communication, Sonic basically always just needs something from Tails, whether to learn what happened, needs to fly somewhere, or needs a new boat.

Think Unleashed is some kind of exception? In SatSR, Tails as Ali-Baba does fuck all AFAIK, and serves as the largely pointless blacksmith in SatBK. He builds boats or something in Rush Adventure, and that's about it.

It's not as if these three games are even outliers in how supposedly impersonal they seem to be to people now. In the classic games, all Sonic really allows Tails to do is just follow him around and fly him places. Tails' lift ability isn't even mandatory for the basic campaigns to be completed, so it's not as if the game designers were even that concerned about how close they two were supposed to appear.

In the Adventure series, where their teamwork is a little more relevant to the storyline, guess what the most Tails is doing? Same thing he was doing in the classics, except with the introduction of voice acting, Tails can now verbally communicate complex findings and information. There's bits and pieces where Sonic and Tails are worried about each other whenever they split up and things go to hell, but beyond that, they two are no more significantly presented as brotherly than they were beforehand. This is ignoring Tails' little tangent about gaining independence and stepping out of Sonic's shadow.

Heroes, Shadow, and Sonic 06? Same thing really, (I won't entertain the Storybook incarnations, because those two characters technically aren't Tails). Unleashed is no real great example of how far off the map their friendship has fallen, but rather how insignificant Tails can be in the scope of the actual adventure when he's written in but doesn't participate. That's not impacting what little friendship they've displayed over the years, but rather calls attention to the fact that he is shoe-horned because he's a classic character. Unleashed really only gets called out on this front because Sonic made the mistake of being friendly to the new guy.

Unleashed, though, just comes off as the writers liking their own character more than the ones that already exist. They like they're little annoying thing more than any of the other characters that could go places with Sonic, and they like their own villain more than Eggman (Who fails to do anything as soon as Dark Gaia is around).

While it doesn't excuse poor writing, Heaven forbid the writers having preferences or new characters having the spotlight.

Every character other than Sonic and Eggman have gotten little to no action. Why? Blame all of the fans who cried wanting Sonic only in their games.

And it's at this point that the fanbase comes full circle.

Agree wholeheartedly.