I've stated before that even the most beloved mascot can fail like anything made by Atari after the 2600. Today's mascot is no exception. I absolutely love this guy, and I'm sure most of you guys feel the same way. Today's Mascot That Failed is none other than...


Vectorman

Vectorman was a platformer released for Genesis in 1995. It spawned a sequel - Vectorman 2 - and although a PS2 version was announced in 2003, it disappeared like a girl who just saw me naked. It was developed by Blue Sky Software (developers of Shadowrun and Jurassic Park for Genesis), and is easily one of my all time favorite Genesis games. The game is about a robot (or as the game calls it, an orbot), who returns to Earth to find it in complete chaos, and under the rule of an insane robot called Warhead. Vectorman was able to transform into different mechanical objects through various powerups, and had special forms for three different boss battle across the game's 16 levels. It had a similar graphical style to Donkey Kong Country, as it was a 2D game with 3D characters.

The PS2 version, an FPS, was canceled because of endless criticism from fans. They claimed that Vectorman looked too much like Master Chief. They said that it would be a rip-off of Metroid Prime, seeing as how it was an FPS in a series of formerly 2D platform shooters. Because of this criticism, Sega threw the game into the vaporware pile, which probably explains why they rarely see a profitable year.

Why did Vectorman fail? Maybe it's because the PS2 version was cancelled, leaving Vectorman without any new projects. Maybe it's because Sega only needs one mascot. If I had to guess, I'd say it's because there is no God. If Vectorman were to make a comeback, chances are I'd be interested, even though I'm not sure he could handle the jump to 3D.

Your thoughts?

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