3. Sonic The Hedgehog
Be honest, when was the last time you got excited for a Sonic The Hedgehog game? Now hands up if you didn't even know they were still milking that brand: I bet at least half of you reading this are waving your hands in the air like you just don't care. Believe it sister, Sonic's still on the go. But not in the way you'd hope. Sonic thrived on Sega, where the plucky hedgehog raced through 2D stages, bouncing off walls and running loops like it was nobody's business. It was highly addictive and strengthened the Sega as a brand, but following the eventual end of Sega's life and subsequent rise of the PS2, the Sonic franchise had to crossover. This is where the brand began to tumble. Despite some initial success with Sonic Adventure Battle 2 (a sole Gamecube release), the series began to churn out some real stinkers (2006's Sonic The Hedgehog, Shadow The Hedgehog and Sonic Unleashed all spring to mind). The franchise tried to appeal to those fans that were with Sonic from the beginning, by making their releases much darker by nature, ironically alienating everybody in the process. Sonic is enjoying some success with his much loved counterpart Mario in their Olympic Games series, but it's safe to say Sonic isn't playing a starring role, nor are the games remotely linked to him or his story in any way.