Sonic might have started his life on gaming platforms mightily strong, but the last few years haven’t been the rosiest for the little blue hedgehog, and today’s news won’t be changing that fact. Sonic Runners (Free), the free-to-play endless runner that came out last June, will be closing down July 27th, and not even PETA can save Sonic. The game, which got a glorious 2 stars from our very own Shaun Musgrave, hasn’t managed to persuade enough players to throw money Sonic’s way, therefore it will meet its maker in July. The Red Star Ring (the premium currency) sales seized a few days ago, so the end is near indeed. SEGA’s announcement doesn’t really give much information regarding the reasons behind the closure, but it’s pretty safe to say that the revenue just isn’t high enough to make it worth keeping the game alive.

Keep in mind that Sonic Runners was the first mobile entry of the franchise developed by the original creators of the title character. Shaun’s review pointed to how pushy the monetization plan was once the game came out and expressed a hope that the developers would go back and rebalance. Apparently, nothing worked and the game is going to go to gaming heaven in a couple of months time. A shame really because Sonic and endless runner mechanics should have been a match made in gaming heaven.