Did you ever get out of Sonic?

[KNAVETHEHEDGEHOG2]

i've known sonic since 2009 but about after a year i forgot about sonic, it was only until 2011 when i brought mario and sonic london 2012 olympic games and generations, that started to fall in love with the blue blur now well i have quite alot of sonic merhandise now, and must i say i played unleashed and 06 last year and i enjoyed playing them.

[SnipSnap]

Just can't unstick myself. I doubt I can change 

[HippyAmy]

Yeah during 2002- 2010 period because Sonic seemed to be never really on the PlayStation all that much, he did seem have a few retro collection games, but never newer games like Unleashed or Colors and the chances of Sonic going PlayStation as well as Sega and Nintendo was very close to zero, so just knew and gave up and focused on games like Ratchet and Clank, Jax and Daxter. Sonic was just childhood memories.

 

I wasn't too keen on the consoles Sonic was dominant on, and my parents didn't have all that money to buy another console just for a short few games. So PlayStation it was back then. 

 

 Shadow the Hedgehog ? At that time, had no idea who he even was. I thought that it was a joke at one stage, that the Game Store was pulling a prank. 

 

Sonic 2006 ? Why ? When thought that it was best to move on ?

 

But I got a DS for a birthday present and was able to play the DS version of Colors and Sonic Generations on the PS3, found out that they put Sonic Heroes on the PlayStation and then grabbed the collection games and Unleashed. I plan to get the Adventure Games by downloading them off my brothers X- Box 360 and any future Sonic games, old and missed by fate. 

 

I might be a bit " ????? " When it comes to characters like Shadow and Sliver, but I still love Sonic and it's good to be back. 

Edited September 20, 2013 by HippyAmy

[Technomage]

For a long while, yeah. I did. I only just got back into the series around June actually. I've actually made a lot of friends because of it.

[SnipSnap]

Remember I posted this?

Just can't unstick myself. I doubt I can change 

Well, I didn't get out enough information, obviously .

 

When I was 9 or 10 years old, I was totally hooked to Sonic. I would just think about him and the franchise 24/7. Sometimes I (the most foolish side of myself ever) would wish Sonic's world was existing in reality. Just whenever I was in a breakdown of tears or going downtime, Sonic always helped me keep my spirits up.

 

But I must've forgotten about him when I was busy with school and other games. Just didn't care anymore.

 

But last year, I saw a reference to Sonic in Wreck-it-Ralph, and that put memories back into me in a flash. Then I kept seeing more and more references to the franchise. And also kept hearing SEGA's announcements. Then in some other forum, I saw a guy with a Sonic avatar. By then, my love for Sonic was resurrected.

 

I think I could get away from Sonic when I get into college.

Edited September 28, 2013 by speedyblue334

[Pylorian]

Nope, I've been stuck in the franchise ever since I first found it.

[Hobgoblin]

I first got into the series due to seeing a friend play Sonic Adventure, and then bought Sonic Advance 1, Sonic Advance 3, Sonic Battle, Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog, and Sonic Riders.

 

My experiences with the latter three were less than satisfying, prompting me to get out of the series just in time to avoid Sonic 2006.

 

Since then, I pretty much stick to watching LPs on Youtube.

[Metal the Mario]

I've always sort of liked Sonic since my first exposure to him through Sonic R and Sonic Adventure all those years ago. But I really got into the series around '07 during my middle school years-- not because of any game in particular; I just started to appreciate the games more and thought Sonic himself to be awesome.

 

This pretty much continued nonstop until about early 2012, when my interest faded just a little. During this time I had recently moved to a new neighborhood and school, and I felt the need to suppress my interest in Sonic a bit to "fit in" more (even though I didn't really need to). At the same time, I got more into PlayStation and its many different series (Uncharted, inFAMOUS, Twisted Metal, etc.) after being with mostly Nintendo for so long. All that, coupled with the fact that there was no main-series release that year, caused Sonic to fall off the radar for me somewhat.

 

Late in the summer of this year, though, I kind of felt a revival. I listened to all my old Sonic music and watched some gameplay videos, and slowly rediscovered why I got into the series in the first place. It felt as though I had found my old self again, which was important to me because I would be heading off to college soon.

 

Sadly, though, I feel like it's beginning to wane again due to a combination of both the fanbase and Sonic Lost World itself. The game looks fun, but outside of the Archie comics, the series is feeling less and less to me like an actual "universe" with different worlds and characters, which was one of the main reasons why I loved it so much. I'm also not a fan of what the newer writers are doing, nor of where the series is heading style-wise. Because of this, I find the overwhelming hype for Sonic Lost World and the fanbase's harsh attitude toward the game's naysayers increasingly suffocating. It feels more and more difficult for me to actually discuss things on Sonic-centric sites without feeling stressed.

[Mr Loopone]

There was a time when I did get out of the Sonic games and nearly left the series all together. It was when Sonic Heroes came out in 2004 and thought "yay, new Sonic game" since at the time was buying nearly every new Sonic game [except 3D that always wanted but never could afford it until the PC release/Mega Collection and Sonic Shuffle] but when playing the game, it didn't enjoy me very much since the game was pretty buggy. This was the Gamecube version has well, okay if it was the PS2 version but the one that is considered the best? At this point it was pretty much no-3D Sonic games, AoSTH and SatAM were aired on TV at the time and got the DVD of the OVA so focus was on that, rather than the games.

 

Then came a stand promoting Shadow the Hedgehog and thought, this is the direction that the series is going now? Since it was a character that didn't appeal to me at all and was like a sign that the series was personally going downhill. Instead of going to what I thought was a declining series, the focus was instead on Sly Cooper (and other games) that I spotted cheap in a console shop that later disappeared in around 2009. This shop was where I bought some DS games, some N64 games and even a couple of Sonic games but get to that later. When playing Sly Cooper, it gave me the same enjoyment what the Sonic series gave me and later got the two sequels [sly 3 when it came out].

 

After getting the DS at launch with Super Mario 64 DS and that Metroid Prime Hunters demo, it was hunting for games and due to dodgy memory I can't remember the order of the games. I read about Sonic Rush and reading the reviews, it turned out to be good so I got Sonic Rush and enjoyed it. I thought Sonic is decent in the 2D platformer department but still iffy on the game. Later brought Sonic 2 Master System from the shop that was mentioned earlier due to that someone gave me a Master System that came with Alex Kidd and Sonic 1 when I left a horrible high school which was very nice of them, enjoyed both games and for the full measure got Sonic Gems Collection on the PS2 due to that I read that it had more games and the original Sonic CD soundtrack than the Gamecube version [it didn't]. While it was good that I got to play Sonic R and Triple Trouble again, Sonic CD and Sonic the Fighters, it was whether I could continue with the series.

 

At that point it was basic lip service with the series; making hoaxes to Sonic Vegemite, trying sprite ripping for the first time that later ripping some Sonic sprites, watching AoSTH on TV and recording them onto DVD before getting the boxset at the start of the Youchew years that resulted into some awful videos [there was even a Happy Birthday Sonic video that was made in 2008 and told a staff member to post on SSMB (here) but somehow didn't]. At this time I did miss out on Sonic Riders but OutRun 2006 lured me in and was just too good. After reading all the backlash regarding Sonic 06, felt like ignoring the non-2D games was the right decision and got Sonic Rush Adventure. Now when the Wii came out, I was also drifting away gaming that resulted in no consoles except later the PSP for holidays and even then no Sonic games apart from the Mario & Sonic series, Sega Superstars Tennis, Sonic Colours DS and Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing. Two was because it was developed by one of my favourite developers Sumo Digital and Sonic Colours DS was Sonic Rush 3. It was just really basic lip service at this point as in looking at Sonic discoveries on Retro, even the tradition that started with watching the 2 birthday episodes of AoSTH at 23 June disappeared. I think the only Sonic things were ripping Sonic's Gameworld and Sonic's Edusoft at this point. Felt like life was changing and spending more time on MSN/Skype than on the shaded blue hedgehog where the fanbase was iffy and people didn't like the games. Even when I did like him was Classic Sonic anyway to remember the good times and he will come back again as a famous Sonic R song once said.

 

Fast forward to 2012, the beginning of the end of the Youchew years and was still depressed. After a few years, decided to go back to gaming since well there weren't any interesting DS or PSP games coming out. The PS3/360 was kicking in (with the Wii kicking out), the 3DS and the Vita were starting the new handhelds and Game was in administration. Just felt right getting a new console and after some help, decided to get a PS3 [only missed out on Forza, PGR and Test Drive Unlimited compared to what I would have missed out]. Since it was a really late 2011 birthday present, went into Gamestation to get a couple of PS3 games to get things starting. On the shelf was F1 Championship Edition that was cheap and was impressed with that game actually and on the same section was Sonic Generations with the Casino Night DLC. I thought, "wow, Classic Sonic has returned, this game is going to be really good". So got home, updated the PS3 and played Sonic Generations first. Enjoyed it from start to finish and thought Sonic is pretty good after all. Then a bad event happened that made me really depressed and lost something really important. So back to square one and slowly getting back towards the blue hedgehog, even Modern Sonic appealed to me and he didn't before.

 

Got Sonic Colours while I was gathering Wii games for the Wii U future [turned out to be pretty good], Unleashed HD that even when buying it thought it was a half good, half bad, decent game so there weren't any expectations [it was okay, it wasn't the Werehog sections that were bad, it was the bloomy QTEs and the input delay that annoyed me more so haven't beaten the first boss], Sonic All-Stars Racing Transformed since you know who worked on it and really enjoyed it even though sadly I thought it was going to be the last ever Sonic game for both the PS3 and the Vita, the Sonic 4 games were on sale and got them [were okay but definitely not the best of the 2D games], got Sonic Mega Collection Plus during the get Xbox games before they go part and finally came full circle getting Sonic Generations on the 3DS [it was okay but more buggier and not as good as the PS3 version]. Now that semi catch up has ended and playing more than ever, I am looking foward to Sonic Lost World and the future of Sonic. Also for the first time since Sonic Vegemite joined a Sonic based forum since the fanbase has improved so while there are a still issues to be worked out, it is a better time to be a Sonic fan.

[Cyclone T-301]

I never got out of the series, but there was a time where I lost interest in videogames by the time SA2 was released, so I didn't pay much attention to Sonic or any series that I still followed. I played my old games casually from time to time.

It wasn't until after 2004 where I started remembering the old games and learned a lot about the series thanks to the internet. It was after playing Sadv 2 that my interest about Sonic picked again. Since then I still follow it as I do today, seeing the series evolving and playing in the end the games that interest me and ignoring those that doesn't.
 

[Newgeneration]

I hadn't really gotten into sonic until around the time Sonic Adventure 2 Battle came out for the Gamecube. (before then, I was mostly playing Nintendo games) Then as sonic  games progressed, I lost interest. Sonic and the Secret Rings was a real downer for me, since I'm used to the SA2B style of gameplay. (note, I had never played 06, so that didn't affect me) That pretty much broke me off from the franchise.

 

Now with Sonic Generations and this other new sonic game coming out, I feel like going back. I've already played Sonic Generations on the PC, and it's truly wonderful in my eyes, though the replayability factor is lacking. I'm still "on the fence" though.

[MegaMan_EXE]

I did, and a brief one at that. When 7th grade first started, my friend started wearing a Sonic hat to school. I actually glyphs him into the series during 6th grade and that summer. Sadly, we got in a few fights, one of which that ended our friendship for a while. After our fight, I, for some reason, saw Sonic as an evil figure, and just gave up the series for a whole 6 months. In that time, I did get myself into another series, one that is on par with Sonic, in my opinion: Mega Man. I'm grateful that the Sonic hiatus happened, since it opened my mind on what else I can play, and thankfully, I found a fantastic series. Soon, my friend and I made up, and with Sonic Colirs being neglected by me for so long, I gave it a shot, and fell in love with the hedgehog again.

[Blue Blood]

I'm in danger of losing interest in the series if SEGA doesn't up it's game a bit. It's really odd. I thoroughly enjoyed the dark years from after SA2s release through to the tables finally turning with Unleashed. But now? It's just not exciting any more. It's no going anywhere, it's not doing anything, it's not got me eager with excitement. All I'm waiting for, honestly, is change.

Oh and there's another big reason I'm losing interest.

 

Right, so I guess Lost World happened. And it was... a thing. We got that change I said I was after, but I'm not about to say it was change for the better. I'm perhaps even less interested now than I was back when I made that post. I can't help but look at the series and just think about the lost potential at every single turn. Even with Lost World's return to original form in so many ways, it's way off of the mark and has left me feeling rather apathetic.

 

And then there's this...

 

The upcoming 'Sonic Boom' definitely does not look like change for the better. Okay, I don't really want to pass judgement of a product we've yet to see, but we know the following:

1. 11 minute short episodes focused on comedy.
2. Dramatic character redesigns (to what extent is yet unknown).
3. It's aimed squarely at the 6-11 demographic, and we can infer that it probably won't appeal much to older fans.

As someone who's lived with the series for two decades, that's since I was born, none of this really sits too well with me. It's definitely not the kind of change I had in mind. It looks like a representation of the brand's new direction as a whole (no doubt that SEGA will want fans of the show to be fans of the games, and vice versa) which is not appealing to me in the slightest. Speaking of lost potential, this is most definitely that. Or perhaps, "misplaced" potential, since I think a Sonic TV show could be successful even if it went a route more like X but that's not to say that Boom won't be successful in it's own right.

 

The best times for me were the Classics, the Adventures and Unleashed. Colours was a clear push towards the same younger audience that Boom is going for, but all in all was plenty capable of appealing to everyone. Everything since is just too far to one side of the scale.

 

I love the Sonic series like you wouldn't believe and don't want to fall out of love with it, though I can't help but feel that's going to happen at some point in the not too distant future.

Edited November 14, 2013 by Blue Blood

[Kuzu]

You could say this is what's happening to me now, and for the exact reasons Blue Blood described; I just don't care for this lighthearted, Saturday morning cartoon atmosphere they're going for. I want to like it but it's just not a direction I've associated with the franchise for as long as I've been a fan, which is over a decade.

I'm happy for the people that do like it, and I'm sure this Sega's plan to bring in more fans, but I just kinda wish it didn't at the sacrifice of some of things I liked about the series, sadly those very aspects are looked down upon in the wake of this new direction.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jerry.]

After Sonic X went off the air, there was a long, cold, and dark period of my life where I didn't keep up with the series at all and focused on other stupid shit. Got back into the comic series around the time when Sonic: Genesis came out. 

[Dr. Mechano]

I feel like I'm pretty much the opposite of the last few posts.

 

I was essentially "out of Sonic" (in that I was disillusioned and disinterested, but still followed the series) during the franchise's dark age (which I consider to be Heroes, Shadow, and 2K6). Unleashed brought back a sense of levity that had been missing from the series for some time, and Colors really hooked me again, with Generations and Lost World following suit. Seeing Eggman return to being such a prominent character again really made me do a complete 180 on my opinion of the series, and as of now I'm completely back into the Sonic franchise again.

 

Heroes/Shadow/2K6 felt like they were just barely shoehorning Eggman into the game out of obligation, and scarcely did anything important or interesting with him. In terms of writing and characterization, he mainly served as either exposition or slapstick fodder, and lacked the entertaining personality and great dialog I so loved the character for. For Eggman fans, the dark age was an especially huge slap in the face, and I suppose it's unsurprising that we looked favorably upon Sonic's most recent batch.

Edited November 15, 2013 by Dr. Mechano

[Kuzu]

Its not even just Eggman, because I like this franchise for a lot more reasons than just one character; its everything. I mean yea sure, if you're just in the franchise for your daily dose of Eggman then you really have nothing to worry about, but I want people to understand that my gripes lie beyond the presence of just one character.

Edited November 15, 2013 by Azure Yakuzu

[SenEDDtor Missile]

I can say that I am becoming rather indifferent to the franchise as a whole. I started in Unleashed in 2010/11ish, but have since then kind of stopped caring for the most part, with only story debates keeping me in. As you can probably guess by my reaction to stories like Colors and Generations, things as of right now are kind of iffy for me.

 

I doubt I'll be leaving the franchise, but I definitely won't hold the same interest I did back when I got Unleashed.

[-Metal Sonic-]

Yes. From 2002 to 2008 I was skipping out on Sonic just because I didn't like the games at that time and my good friend was too.

 

During that period of time, we dissed the series and constantly made fun of it. I still kind of do... but it's more jokingly now.

 

Edit: Also, the fanbase made me leave too. All the negativity and complaining made me dislike it more than the fanfiction writers and shippers.

Edited November 16, 2013 by -Metal Sonic-

[Johnny Boy92]

Yep. I was such a fanboy when I was like eight, but then I lost interest at twelve, or so. Got back in when I bought a Mega Drive at the age of fifteen (almost sixteen), here to stay. I bought a Dreamcast recently, too.

[SuperBrandon]

I did in 2012 after I completed Sonic Generations which is one of my favourite games. But, I rekindled my interest for Sonic back earlier last year.

[SenEDDtor Missile]

I'm currently not out of Sonic, but I can't really say I'm really IN to Sonic atm...if you get my meaning.

[theJcfreak]

Nah, I can't see myself ever really getting 'out' of Sonic. I might not really be engrossed in the fandom as much as I used to be but I still keep up with the comics and games. Even if I'm not buying anything I'm keeping up with the news and information flow. Sonic was my first real fandom so I got some attachment to it I guess. No matter what happens in the games or comics or cartoons or apps or so on I'll still keep up with it to some extent.

 

Also I primarily post on Sonic forums so that counts for SOMETHING I guess.

[Bullet Curtain]

Oh yes I did for a bit... but it wasn't for any negative reasons. I just got into other things and Sonic kinda fell to the side. Coming back to the franchise was an odd experience, finding out about Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic '06 wasn't the best way to be reintroduced. Still, I find myself to be able to tolerate any "bad" Sonic game and I'm not the type of person to be swayed by another person's opinion.

 

I guess in the end, I just love the series too damn much.

[Cyalume]

It depends on the situation. There are aspects of the community that I enjoy, such as the ROM hacking, fanart, etc, and I also enjoy the classic series + other Sonic titles I grew up with, like the Sonic Advance and Adventure titles.  If we're strictly speaking in terms of interest in the new games, then that died a long time ago. Generations was the only exception to that.

 

I have a pretty large bias against Colors and Lost World, mainly because I hate the whole "dudebro" thing going on/the writing (and not to mention the loldeadlysix).I hate to be so straightforward about it, but  I have a strong feeling that Lost World is going to end up in the bargin bin alongside other modern Sonic titles, so I won't dare waste my money by buying a copy right now (if ever). When it hits $20 or below, I'll try to justify buying it for my younger brother and then playing what I feel like playing of it from there.

I'm more hyped for/interested in this than any modern Sonic title released in recent memory.