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Linky.
Though many more have covered this much better, I will say that Sonic stopped being cool to kids over 12 when the games started being garbage. Or 2003, for those who aren't in the know. The reason they have the "little kids stigma" is that little kids are usually the only ones who can live with the poor quality everything in the series has had to offer as late. And slapping violence on games that are pure shit won't sell games anymore either, so SEGA is up a creek unless they figure that out as well.
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Jeffery is looking beyond Sonic, which he says is "an amazing recruitment vehicle" for younger gamers but "loses its cool factor when you get about 12 years old." To compensate, Sega has focused on developing games for more mature audiences. In one of its most violent games, Condemned: Criminal Origins, players solve a series of grisly murders while engaging in bloody hand-to-hand combat. A sequel is due out this holiday season.
Billy Pidgeon, a program manager for the market intelligence firm IDC, says Sega is taking the right approach by not relying on just one or two potential blockbuster games. "You have to have a diversified portfolio right now," he says. "You can only get so much mileage out of Sonic and company."
Linky.
Though many more have covered this much better, I will say that Sonic stopped being cool to kids over 12 when the games started being garbage. Or 2003, for those who aren't in the know. The reason they have the "little kids stigma" is that little kids are usually the only ones who can live with the poor quality everything in the series has had to offer as late. And slapping violence on games that are pure shit won't sell games anymore either, so SEGA is up a creek unless they figure that out as well.