I wasn't saying the two are like-for-like, just that there are some parallels to be drawn. Set the lore aside: I really don't care if Classic Sonic is a younger version of Modern, or from an alternate universe, or if Sega just NEVER outright explains how the two are related. https://twitter.com/TGCritique/status/1359775851534024704

But I absolutely KNOW that he appeals to me in a different way and for different reasons than Modern does. Fans wouldn't have begged for Sega to bring him back, and it wouldn't have meant so much that they listened, if that weren't true. And that's where I drew my comparison.

The X series always skewed a little older, there was more focus on story and characterization, the stakes were higher, the gameplay was faster, and the setting was more realistic.

X could do things that would feel egregiously out of place in a classic Mega Man game, just as Mega Man's more lighthearted tone would've felt out of place for X.

Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic similarly have defining elements that appeal in different, sometimes incompatible ways. Most fans are fans of both, but most of us have our preferences, and we've always had a vocal contingent that skewed toward one to the exclusion of the other.

As a fan of both, a lot of what I like about Modern Sonic games and what fans might want them to be always tended to be controversial or divisive to classic fans... and vice-versa!

I think trying to consolidate the brand into embodying BOTH is only going to make fans who primarily like one or the other feel disregarded, and erode the appeal of one style in favor of the other.

In fact, I'm pretty sure fans of Sonic's output from around the turn of the century feel this is EXACTLY what's been happening: That what they like about the series is being disregarded in favor of an over-reliance on classic elements.

The solution, like I said, shouldn't be to hack down the branch that's healthy, because that's only going to make fans of THOSE elements feel that what THEY like is being disregarded. Sonic Mania's success wasn't at the expense of the 3D series.

I think the solution is to build both of them, let them both play to their strongest, most distinct, most beloved elements, let them grow and evolve and IMPROVE independently of each other. Imagine if Sonic Forces had stood on its own merits and exceeded expectations, like Mania.

Look, the best time for Sega to think about brand consistency was 20+ years ago, _before_ they let someone who didn't see the appeal in what Sonic had been write a story to his own tastes, instead. That was, quite understandably, the point where the fandom split.

But that game brought on a whole new group of people who might have never gotten into the series otherwise, and we've all ended up loving this series for sometimes conflicting, incompatible reasons. THAT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A BAD THING! A passionate fanbase isn't a curse.

Playing TO those strengths, letting each branch thrive and excel with quality games that are focused on what they want to BE and where their appeal lies... that would satisfy the widest possible swath of fans, and bring Sonic to new heights.

At least, that's what I figure.