12. "Sonic the Hedgehog"

Release date: June 23, 1991

Platform: Sega Genesis, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii, Wii U

Buy it here.

Sonic, that blue anthropomorphic hedgehog who runs at supersonic speeds and curls into a spiky ball to hit people, remains one of gaming's most recognizable characters. His side-scrolling games mostly involve racing through levels, avoiding obstacles, and collecting golden power-up rings. Though Sega's mascot once rivaled Mario in popularity, his games in recent years have not been received well — although he has joined Mario on a few occasions, most notably in Nintendo's "Super Smash Bros." franchise.