This is an open letter to the Sonic community:
Stop. Just stop. Before you open up a flash tool and create yet another “original” character why don’t you just engage your tiny brain for a moment and think about what’s happened to Sonic and why.
Sonic remains one of the most popular video game icons in the world, and yet his games haemorrhage money, have no consistency with regards to quality and have the worst fanbase on the internet. With some of the most atrocious fan-characters ever conceived. So why add to the problem? I get that you’re just plain BURSTING with originality and creative energy, so much so that you need to create dozens of fanmade animals to add to the Sonic menagerie, but could you not just… Not do that?
Is it so hard to create an original character rather than pissing into the ocean of piss that is the Sonic fan character deviation?
Nintendo just signed an exclusivity deal with Sega for Sonic’s rights (meaning that the 90s console war can finally be considered over, with the last vestiges of Sega’s pride lapped up by the behemoth that is Nintendo) and Sega are canvassing for a new mascot, so can we finally pronounce the hedgehog dead?
My answer?
I sincerely fucking hope so.
I suppose it wouldn’t be so bad if the fan characters we’re seeing were any good, but they’re not! When was the last time you saw an official Sonic character with an emo fringe or any kind of “haircut”? When was the last time you saw one use a weapon, or have sex, or even kiss another character? Sonic and the Black Knight is the closest thing there is to a Sonic character using a sword, and that game’s pure, unadulterated dogshit, so why try to emulate its style?!
I guess what I’m trying (and failing) to get over is that the state of the Sonic franchise isn’t Sega’s fault. It’s yours. You did this to him. You insisted that he needed clothes, first party recolours like Silver and Shadow and sexualisation. You’re the ones who thought that supporting a franchise as it jumped shark after shark was a good thing, you’re the ones that have led to the utter downfall of one of the most iconic characters in gaming history.
You.
So, sonic fandom, fuck you. Fuck you for creating abominations who have SUPAH PYROKENISIS and a different girlfriend every week. Fuck you for ruining Sonic with your rule 34 war-crimes. Fuck you for forming these little tight-knit communities of Sonic/Fetish work where you “role play” your sexual fantasies under the guise of a cartoon animal. You’re the reason we can’t have nice things and you’re the people to whom Sega are now trying to appeal.
Fuck you.
Oh, and thanks to all the people who gave me their “Original” characters for this. Spoiler: Your character isn’t original, it’s based on someone else’s fucking design.
What part of that is so hard to understand?
P.S.
Stop using bases you talentless fucks.I’m not going to say that I think bases are a real way to make art. I’m not going to say that the amount of fan-characters isn’t overwhelming, because it is. I’m not going to say that I liked every Sonic game, because I didn’t.
What I am saying though, is that you don’t need to attack these people for simply doing and liking what they enjoy. Many of the people with the “unoriginal characters:” you speak of, are under the age of 12. You’re targeting the wrong audience here, and those who do form fetishes around their characters, who are you to say they can’t? It happens with every fandom. This is nothing new.
People want to make their own Sonic OC, let them. It’s their choice, and by posting this in the Sonic tag you’re kind of being a bully. Do I have a fancharacter? No, but I used to. Was he generic? Heck yeah. But at the time he was my character. He felt original to me because I was a kid.
Now, I thought that everybody had figured this out by now, but you obviously missed the memo. SEGA is not looking for a new mascot and Sonic is not dead. It’s old news.
Your opinions on the games are nothing but that—opinions.
So, OP, fuck you. Fuck you for being so immature as to do this. Way to go you’ve totally made an ass of yourself. Yes, there will be more Sonic games, and yes, there will be more fancharacters because Sonic’s not going anywhere.
There is a fandom, and people make up a fandom. What part of THAT is so hard to understand? Believe it or not, people have feelings so could you just…not do that?
Agree with Nanite on basically all points, with emphasis that most (90%?) of the people making fancharacters are children. Though if you’re going to point at the people doing rule 34… You have to be going out of your way to see that shit.
Not saying that fancharacters are great or that the fandom is a pristine ivory tower of purity, just that it’s not as big as a problem as you’re postulating.
I do have something to add though- what do you think you’re accomplishing with this? You want to bring some semblance of reason and sanity to the world, a cry for people to ‘please, look at what you’re doing’?
Well, you’re not the exactly first person to write something like this, ranting on these exact. Same. Points. You’re not even the second. Third. Fourth. You can’t change a fandom. You will never be able to change it, anymore than you can change, say, the Alvin and the Chipmunks movie fandom from being what it is. Because you can’t control people. And if people want to do something stupid, they will. And then when they grow up, they’ll look back at it and go “uugh what was I thinking”, because that’s basically a universal rite of passage at this point. That’s not even about ‘Sonic’. That’s just about people.
I don’t even know where you get the arrogance to think that this will have any more effect than just pissing a handful of people off.
Then again, maybe that is the point. In which case, bravo. You really got me. I sure do look stupid, getting annoyed over people being dicks on the internet.
Jesus. I get being frustrated by certain aspects of a fandom. I’ve been a member of this fandom most of my life and it frustrates me as well, albeit not for the same reasons you give. You have NO business telling anyone what they are and aren’t allowed to do, much less cussing them out for it. They aren’t hurting you. You’re the one attacking them. If the ‘points’ you’ve made offend you, that’s purely YOUR problem.
So rather than reiterate the rest of the well worded points the last two responses have made any further, I’m just going to add this: Don’t enjoy it? Leave. You won’t be missed.
In conclusion?
