Many out there believe that each game that has been coming out from 2010 till now has been bringing Sonic back to his roots. To those people I say you're not stupid, but mistaken; and It takes a guy like me who just got into the series to know that.

Sonic debuted with an edgy attitude who attracts the girls 24/7 and joins forces with furry pals to stop the evil tyrants of his world. Sonic would apparently (in sonic's future) be married to Sally Acorn and have kids, with his friends having a companion of their own. With that said, there's no problem with relationships in a sonic game, it's not like it was a sudden change in the franchise like these sudden titles being targeted to a younger demographic. This has been going on since the classics, just hasn't built up until now.

I'm always reading/hearing things like "I miss when sonic games were like the classics, where it was all kid-friendly and had its charm." Sorry, but go back and look at the games again, and compare the textures to the latest titles in the franchise. Sonic 4 (Only episode 1), Sonic Colors, and Sonic Lost World are far more charmed compared to the classics, beyond that actually. Some say the music had that "CHARM" to it as well. While I find it hard to agree or disagree, admittedly a lot of classic games and their 8-bit soundtracks sounded identical to me whether it was the hardcore manly shooters like Contra or the dumbed down platformers like Mario bros. Now compare the story to the recent titles; Eggman engolfing a forest in flames, tails dying in one of the game gear games, sonic always having his friends to help him out, and vast epic cutscenes that show sonic trying fate as he speeds away from the bombs and insanely menacing weaponry that Eggman uses against him. You're telling me that sonic has casted his friends away for random little aliens he met in space? That he was never aloud to be near anything relationship related? And that he can't have enemies who are menacing or heroes who are edgy and determined because that too is also taking it too far? ARE WE FORGETTING THE PREVIOUS TITLES? ARE WE FORGETTING SONIC'S ORIGIN? or should I say, HIS ROOTS? Because it seems like these new games are growing their own ROOTS now don't you think?

Sonic never started off as a kids game, It was franchise built for ALL AUDIENCES. Even SEGA knows that, but they pity themselves over critics who don't know what they're talking about. "Sonic doesn't need friends" okay, Call of Duty doesn't need guns then.... wait? according to you it doesn't matter what's taken out whether it's was there since its origin or not. I wouldn't care if it was unsuccessful, but Sonic 2/3&Knuckles including SA1/2 says hi. Okay, maybe his friends weren't too reliable in 2006, but why does that scream doomday all of a sudden? This is where you get back up and try again. Fans are critics are going to complain about these things because that's how we are, when it sucks, we naturally say we want it out of the game rather than having it fixed. If it works and a vast majority still complain, then fine, get rid of whatever bothered them.

Speaking of Sonic 2006, that game was taking him back to his ROOTS. I looked through many files of the game, mainly the voice clips. Sonic and friends were originally going to be more interractive mid stage. Then we had that edgy sonic with edgy characters we all knew and love. Sonic and Elise though I'm not a fan of the humanxhedgehog deal, was still an attempt to bring back that romantic/bonding factor of the franchise, including Shadow and Rouge as they grew stronger with each other.

Lastly, I want to mention that ever since Sonic Adventure came out, we had 2D games reminiscent of the classics on handhelds and SA's style on consoles; Which means sonic had separate roots. Think of it as separate dimensions, as if both roots never met. When 2006 said it was going back to sonic's roots, they mean its 3D ROOTS. We might have seen handhelds getting a revamped classic title until the fanbase errupted, and here we are. The Sonic Advance series did a good job bringing sonic back to his 2D roots, just adding a bit a more in-depth story. Regardless though, both were still targeting all audiences.

Sonic's new false interpretation of his roots haunt his franchise now, and you all know it. 2006 failed yes, but that was a rushed title which WAS SEGA's fault, but stop using that as an excuse. SA1 and SA2 did it right, sure they haven't aged well and had their flaws, but a lot of game franchises branch off that way as a means of seeing what works and doesn't work. It's a matter of building upon it. 2006 does not count because it wasn't finished or planned to be the way it was, so until we see a finished sequel to sonic's true 3D roots that fails to impress like '06 did, then we're in for a real debate.

So yes, bring him back to his true roots SEGA. You're turning him into a Mario clone and you know it. Sonic Lost World is the prime example with the timer, the chronological order of worlds, the damn world map structure, hidden worlds and just so much more. SEGA stop and think about what you're doing. You're about to loose a ton and I mean A TON of fans if you don't make a 180.