10 DISASTROUS Attempts At Forcing Game Franchises To Continue

There is no question Sonic the Hedgehog 2006 is the nadir of Sega's most iconic series.

But let's be nice. Even the best franchises can stumble. If the Sonic team whipped up a solid sequel, they could've made a comeback.

Sadly, history has proven Sonic '06 wasn't a one-time blunder. After the underwhelming reaction to Sonic and the Secret Rings, The Black Knight, Unleashed, and many other follow-ups, it was obvious Sega had lost their mojo. When they released the abominable Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric, many casual fans accepted the Sonic they knew and loved would never be a top contender again.

And yet, there's always this unwarranted feeling from Sonic purists that 'the next game' will be a return to form. The episodic Sonic the Hedgehog 4 trilogy was meant to bring the furry speedster back to his roots, yet that turned out so poorly, the third instalment was cancelled. Sonic Frontiers was a promising but broken and glitchy mess depending on platform, and 2023's Sonic Superstars just... wasn't very good.

Look, everyone knows the inexplicably blue hedgehog was a juggernaut in the gaming industry at one time. But based on how consistently bad this IP has been over the last 15 years, it's unmistakably clear that Sonic's moment in the sun has come and gone.