Failed Gaming Mascots: Close, but no franchise...

Games, especially back in the relative dark ages of gaming, banked a lot of their success on marketable game characters.  Hell, if the game didn't have a cool-looking character on the box art, ya might as well pack up shop.  However, sometimes games that were decent, if not good, and had a decent character gracing the cover, it STILL didn't get catch on.  What are some games you can recall as being pretty damn good, and with a pretty good main character that didn't get followed up in any significant way? 
I'll get things started off with a personal favorite; that insectoid renegade himself, Buck Bumble. 

Buck Bumble was a decent little shooter, something like a helicopter assault game, but using a wholly insect theme.  Despite the decent gameplay, pretty cool protagonist, and CATCHY AS ALL HELL THEME SONG, Buck never got off the ground.  RIP, Buck Bumble.  Your deeds will be remembered by... few, but they were great.

Glover... Only 1 game on the N64, and although it made it to the PS1 and PC, there were nevr any other games 
 

Rocket - from Rocket: Robot on Wheels 

Wasn't Voodoo Vince supposed to be a franchise?
 

God, that Buck Bumble theme is DOPE!  
 
But I remember the game sucking a lot.

Another one that comes to mind is Lost Vikings  
There were two games, I never played the second but the first was awesome.

HA! Wild Woody?! Man, that box art alone would have had me sold. It must have failed simply because it was a Sega CD game.
 
Man, Glover was freaking terrible. I hated that game. Sure looked charming, though. I remember most of these mascots, actually. If I recall, Buck Bumble was a pretty decent game.
 
I thought Cool Spot's game was freaking dope, man. Not really an original game character since he was the 7-Up dude, but it would have been an ideal time for him to make a big comeback during the whole Make 7 Up Yours campaign. I guess more people just prefer Sprite. How unfortunate. 
 

Oh man. Bubsy and Toe Jam and Earl bring back some memories.

" Blinx "

Alex Kidd I guess ended up failing. 
 
Gex, and The Oddworld games as well...

Zool. I loved zool. The game wasn't great, but I still loved it.

Astal. He’s made some cameos in Sonic comics but never got another game.  I bet it would look gorgeous in HD.

" @HatKing said:

" Blinx "

I think Blinx's problem was how god damn ugly he was.  That,and people bought the Xbox for games like Halo.
Still, I really enjoyed his two games, they had some very original gameplay mechanics and great platforming.  The new Ratchet & Clank game is a just poor clone of what blinx was, didn't even begin to approach the same level of complexity, or originality.
 
Anyone remember Croc?

"

What about Dynamite Headdy? 

" @MattyFTM: I had that box art as a huge poster (which I believe came with the game) as a kid. I was so proud of it I brought it to school one day and never saw it again. :( "

Gex and all of Microsofts crazy attempts at mascots are what stand out for me. I don't think Sony ever really made a push for a mascot since they relied so much on third party stuff. I guess they have Drake now.

" @HatKing said:

" Blinx "

I think Blinx's problem was how god damn ugly he was.  That,and people bought the Xbox for games like Halo.
Still, I really enjoyed his two games, they had some very original gameplay mechanics and great platforming.  The new Ratchet & Clank game is a just poor clone of what blinx was, didn't even begin to approach the same level of complexity, or originality.
 
Anyone remember Croc?

"

" @HatKing said:

" Blinx "

I think Blinx's problem was how god damn ugly he was.  That,and people bought the Xbox for games like Halo.
Still, I really enjoyed his two games, they had some very original gameplay mechanics and great platforming.  The new Ratchet & Clank game is a just poor clone of what blinx was, didn't even begin to approach the same level of complexity, or originality.
 
Anyone remember Croc?

"

" Zool. I loved zool. The game wasn't great, but I still loved it.

"

" Gex and all of Microsofts crazy attempts at mascots are what stand out for me. I don't think Sony ever really made a push for a mascot since they relied so much on third person stuff. I guess they have Drake now. "

Hahahaha this is a great thread. Though I still have love for Toe Jam & Earl as well as Croc.

" @evanbrau said:

" Gex and all of Microsofts crazy attempts at mascots are what stand out for me. I don't think Sony ever really made a push for a mascot since they relied so much on third person stuff. I guess they have Drake now. "

They had Crash Bandicoot which was really successful for them. "

I've got another "classic".  Chameleon Twist! 

This game was fun as hell, and extremely unique.  Although its cast of Chameleon heroes and heroines were a bit bland, and the game made less sense than most platformers of the day.  It was followed by a sequel a couple years later that actually made some aesthetic changes to the characters, and I was hoping that the game would become a stalwart franchise.  Sadly, Chameleon Twist died with the N64.

"Rocket - from Rocket: Robot on Wheels 

Sucker Punch's first game, before Sly Cooper and Infamous was a little N64 platformer about a red robot in a themepark. Had fairly good physics for the time, although at a lot of times that ended up being a double edged sword since it would bring a bit of frustration when jumping around from platform to platform. That said there was a lot of charm to the game and it easily could have had its own franchise, although for whatever reason Sucker Punch decided not to follow up on it.
 
Cooper - from Grabbed by the Ghoulies
 

  I actually liked this game quite a lot, although I can admit its flaws and can see why it flopped. Rare left the door open for a sequel at the end of this but unlike their other game franchises it just wasn't to be. Funny how the "From the Creators of Donkey Kong Country and Banjo-Kazooie" text was added to the box to try and push the sale. Also didn't help that out of all the great characters in the game, the main characters were some of the most bland and unlikable mascots I've happened to come across. "

What about Sir Daniel Fortesque? 

" I don't think Sony ever really made a push for a mascot since they relied so much on third person stuff. I guess they have Drake now. "

DUDE, that Buck Bumble theme song is siiiiiickkk.

I was a huge fan of the first two Earthworm Jim games. They even had a cartoon for a short bit of time. Then the whole thing just kinda vanished. They made a crappy (apparently, I never played it myself) 3D game and that was it. Looking back, the game does kinda scream "90s" and I'm not sure how popular it would be today, but those first two games were wicked.

OH FUCK, THE NOSTALGIA.
 
/caps

" @Log:  Naughty Dog seems to be Sony's go-to for attempted mascots. "