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[[quoteright:250:[[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sonicpose.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:250:Sonic. The hedgehog that [[FountainOfExpies launched a thousand copyhogs]].]]

->''"Being a role model is overrated. I'd much rather be... hilariously edgy!"''
-->-- '''Sonic the Hedgehog''', ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'', "Role Models"

There was a time, largely in the mid-[[TheNineties Nineties]], when the world of video games was overrun with a certain type of character. The Mascot with Attitude is a [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] FunnyAnimal with [[TotallyRadical kickin']] powers, [[JumpPhysics improbable jumping abilities]], and usually some form of girlfriend or world to save [[ExcusePlot (or something)]]. Generally, Mascots with Attitude can be discerned by any number of the following traits:

# They're a FunnyAnimal, usually with a SpeciesSurname. ''(e.g., Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog, VideoGame/CrashBandicoot, Franchise/SpyroTheDragon)''
# They come from a PlatformGame. This isn't necessarily a requirement, but the trope is not as common outside of platform games, or video games in general.
# They're TotallyRadical. This can be as mild as using [[HypocriticalHumor totally bogus]] outdated slang, or as JustForFun/{{egregious}} as giving the character a love of "extreme" sports, fast food, sneakers, or anything else with supposed "youth appeal."
# They're quippy, [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]], and prone to making lots of [[HurricaneOfPuns really bad jokes.]] Bonus points if one of them is a TakeThat against Sonic the Hedgehog. This trait is more likely to show up in comic book and cartoon adaptations than games, whose {{Excuse Plot}}s often did without dialogue.
# They're competent and violent, [[{{Badbutt}} but not to child-unfriendly levels.]] They're also not allowed to swear, but will [[GoshDangItToHeck do their best to try anyway.]]
# They have a supporting cast that exists mostly to reinforce their status as coolest character in the universe. Look out for an older uncool antagonist, a sidekick with a case of hero-worship, a helplessly devoted and/or snarky love interest, or a rival that's almost (but not quite) as cool as the mascot.
# The advertisements for their games put a lot of emphasis on said games' "intensity," especially twitch-action and [[FollowTheLeader "speed"]].

During their heyday in the 90s, almost all Mascots with Attitude were created to [[FollowTheLeader capitalize on the success of]] Sonic the Hedgehog, who himself was made as cooler and edgier alternative to the family-friendly [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]. The reason that most of these characters failed is that they tended to come across as TheThemeParkVersion of Sonic. While Sonic has attitude, it isn't his defining trait, and other aspects, like his heroism and empathy, are part of why he is so beloved. By contrast, a failed Mascot with Attitude would have said attitude at the expense of a real personality; they were frequently unable to say anything not snarky and tended to overuse their gimmicks to the point of being {{Flat Character}}s.

Many Mascots with Attitude were also American-made (probably because [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff Americans love Sonic]]) and, on top of lacking the solid design and the distinctive variety of influences that made Sonic unique (from real-world influences like UsefulNotes/BillClinton and Music/MichaelJackson to Japanese anime and manga series like ''Anime/DragonBallZ''), they also tended to be filled with ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes''-esque gags or [[GrossoutShow gross-out humor]]. These were both rampant in America at the time, as the ''Looney Tunes'' had seen a pop-culture resurgence in the early '90s, and ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'' had premiered a few months after Sonic's debut. (Sonic himself notably had neither of these things in his games, though the American cartoon ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' included ''Ren & Stimpy''-style DerangedAnimation and ''Looney Tunes''-style {{slapstick}}).

After the 90s, outside of Sonic, this trope (and advertising mascots not targeted to children in general) was all but {{discredited|trope}}, except in parodies, with ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay'' providing the final blow (although ''Conker's Bad Fur Day'' was more a parody of cutesy [[WoodlandCreatures woodland animal]] cartoons/games in general). [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools But it's not all bad]]--for every weak ''Sonic'' ripoff out there, there were always a few Mascots with Attitude who managed to be entertaining characters in their own right. The trick is to [[{{Flanderization}} keep the attitude from eclipsing their entire character]], and to merely make it one of their many traits. Audiences do still like "cool" characters, [[GodModeSue just so long as "cool" isn't all they are.]] Diversifying your gameplay doesn't hurt either, as many of the Mascots with Attitude that survived the '90s tended to play, er, [[TotallyRadical radically]] different from Sonic.

However, with the advent of the 2010s came a nostalgia boom for the 90s, and some of the Mascots with Attitude that aged well saw renewed popularity. A good few of them received revivals or re-releases, a trend that really picked up with the massive success of ''VideoGame/CrashBandicootNSaneTrilogy''. Another effect was a wave of indie [[SpiritualSuccessor spiritual successors]] that sought to [[GenreThrowback recapture the cartoony character-driven worlds of these games]].

If the Mascot with Attitude isn't the main character, they're probably a SnarkyNonHumanSidekick. Compare DreamworksFace, a form of CoversAlwaysLie in which animated characters appear to have "attitude", but only in advertising material.

Sometimes, localized games (most often Japan-to-America) will attempt to infuse the mascot with "attitude" to make them more palatable to an international audience, even if it goes against the character's ''intended'' appeal. See AmericanKirbyIsHardcore for examples of that.

Also see NinetiesAntiHero, who thrived in comic books from the same era; TeenageMutantSamuraiWombats, a related concept for WesternAnimation: and OverusedCopycatCharacter, the concept that caused Mascots with Attitude to fall out of favor.

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!!Examples:
[[index]]
* MascotWithAttitude/PlatformGame
[[/index]]

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Advertising]]
* The Burger King Kids Club, in particular [[http://38.media.tumblr.com/5b3b1ff5a2b01c0f5b0aba5ca01f3910/tumblr_inline_nyaqf2rakr1qjxsr5_500.gif Kid Vid,]] who individually outdid all [[http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/39600000/Burger-King-Kids-Club-burger-king-39681565-751-517.jpg the other kids combined]] in terms of '90s-ness.
* Bubba, the shades-wearing CoolCat mascot of the Latin American Bubbaloo brand of bubblegum.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* Don Patch from ''Manga/BoboboboBobobo'' (even if the original manga wasn't from TheNineties proper) has many quirks and attitudes that poke fun of this trope, and even his design (and transformations) are reminiscent of '90s mascots like Sonic or ''{{VideoGame/Ristar}}''.
* Jibaku and the other pink creatures from ''Jibaku-kun'', better known for its title in Latin America ([[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff where it was a huge hit despite underwhelming reception in its native country]]) as ''Bucky: en busca del mundo cero''.
* Nyarome of ''Manga/MoretsuAtaro'', being a talking, trouble making, womanizing cat.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Lurchi Salamander, the mascot of the German shoe factory Salamander. A mischievous but well-intentioned teenage fire salamander who would go on journeys to far away places with his friends who often had to be saved by him and his [[TheAllSolvingHammer overly awesome Salamander shoes]]. His way of defeating his opponents, usually non-anthropomorphic animals, often consisted of [[FamilyUnfriendlyViolence injuring or killing them]]. [[CruelAndUnusualDeath With blood and everything]]. They decided to make him a lot more child-friendly later on. After his comics were [[ContinuityReboot rebooted]] in the year 2000, he and all of his friends were left with modernized designs which included fully clothing the amphibian characters, changing the one of them from an old man to a baby and removing Lurchi's signature hat because it was deemed [[OutdatedOutfit outdated]].
* The ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'' [[https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Krkkzz_Zappl_(Prime_Earth)?file=Krkkzz_Zappl_01.jpg Krkkzz Zappl]] is clearly based on Sonic. He's also made of living radio waves implying a level of SuperSpeed besides the FasterThanLightTravel built into the Green Lanterns Power Ring.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* The ''Franchise/DoctorWho'' ''Literature/NewSeriesAdventures'' novel, ''Winner Takes All'' has a video game called ''Death To Mantodeans'' with a Sonic expy mascot called Percy The Porcupine. Turns out he's from an alien race who brought the game to Earth to recruit human players as soldiers. ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1'' appears listed amongst Mickey's video games, making it a case of ExpyCoexistence.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Australian '90s kids are likely to remember Agro, the ill-tempered puppet with a taste for crude humor who appeared in the host segments of ''Agro's Cartoon Connection'' among other shows (although as he first appeared in the '80s, he predates the trope becoming widespread).
* ''Series/WandaVision'': In the episode [[Recap/WandaVisionEpisode6AllNewHalloweenSpooktacular "All-New Halloween Spooktacular!"]], a parody of '90s/early '00s sitcoms like ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle'', the fake ad in the middle of the episode was for [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUl_j3cRWhM Yo-Magic!,]] a Go-Gurt-esque yogurt marketed by an extremely '90s claymation shark with sunglasses, a surfboard, and a SurferDude accent. This being ''[=WandaVision=]'', it [[MoodWhiplash quickly turns more grotesque]] than the TotallyRadical advertising of that period normally got.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'' has its roots in the 1980s, so its eponymous protagonist wasn't initially designed as one of these. As it happens, though, the series' fast-paced and noisy gameplay fit the edgier trends of the mid-'90s perfectly--so to match, Bomberman picked up a sleeker, more dynamic redesign compared to the short, chubby [[AmbiguousRobots Ambiguous Robot]] of previous games, was often seen with a cocky, confident look in artwork, began to do stereotypically "cool" things like ride motorcycles and skate, and started to pick up a large supporting cast of friends and rivals, many of whom ''screamed'' TotallyRadical (just look at [[http://images.shoutwiki.com/bomberpedia/2/2e/MAX.png Max]]!). He even crossed over with fellow Mascot with Attitude VideoGame/{{Wario}} once. That said, the games released during this time frame were never as in-your-face with their attitude as some of their contemporaries.
* In 1990, Creator/{{Acclaim}} came up with Kwirk, a tomato who sports a mohawk and wears CoolShades and white sneakers. His only video game was a localization of ''Puzzle Boy'' to replace Spud the potato, but he displayed more of the typical traits in his appearances on the ''Series/VideoPower'' cartoon segment ''The Power Team''.
* ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'', though the title characters are protean {{Cartoon Creature}}s, largely keeps with the trend. This game was apparently made for players who thought ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' didn't have enough spinning things.
* In contrast to previous ''{{Franchise/Persona}}'' {{mascot}}s, Morgana the cat from ''VideoGame/Persona5'' has a [[DeadpanSnarker smart mouth]] and enjoys belittling the rest of the team, and Ryuji in particular ([[ButtMonkey no surprise there]]). Not even Ann, the subject of Morgana's affections, is immune.
* Psycho the Aardvark from ''VideoGame/PsychoPinball,'' who's never seen without a smirk.
* Skunny Squirrel from a series of '90s Shareware games, that ripped off whatever franchise seemed to be peaking at any individual moment. Watch Skunny eat Super-Nuts to reach super-speed and roll over enemies! Watch him bounce on enemies and collect coins, to [[VideoGame/SkunnySaveOurPizzas rescue]] his TrademarkFavoriteFood pizzas from a barely-copyright-uninfringing Italian! See him take on "Sadman Insane" in inexplicably rail-shooter combat! [[VideoGame/SkunnyKart See him race go-karts]] with his squad of animal friends, none of whom had ever been seen before or since, mere days before ''VideoGame/WackyWheels'' was released! Not surprising that the company who made him was called [[MeaningfulName Copysoft]].
* ''Franchise/{{Splatoon}}'''s Inklings are a very deliberate modern attempt at one of these: [[LittleBitBeastly squid-kids]] with attitude who participate in heated Turf War games, listen to rock music, liberally slather their dialogue with early '90s slang. Marketing for the first game had them rarely seen without some variation of the DreamworksFace as well... and in between all of that, they still have the capacity to look absolutely adorable. They're about 20 years late to the party, but we love 'em anyway.
* Jibanyan from ''Franchise/YokaiWatch'' is a toned-down, post-90s example from Japan. He is a FunnyAnimal cat (though in life he was just a normal kitten) who can be very [[CatsAreSnarky sassy]] (especially in [[Anime/YokaiWatch the anime]]). He's known to use slang and is a BigEater with a SweetTooth for chocolate. Jibanyan however is also very lazy and is not actually that cool (though he likes to think he is). Baddinyan, a JapaneseDelinquent version of Jibanyan, also has some traits of this but isn't a mascot.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* The duck from the Platform/TheDuck comics site comes complete with smug expression and crossed arms indicative of his 'tude.
* ''Webcomic/KidRadd'' has Radd himself from the eponymous fictional platform game, and hits most of the high notes too: he's got a 'cool' aesthetic, complete with pixelated AnimeHair, and when he isn't firing energy beams from his hands and freeing his captive girlfriend, he flies around on a rocket powered hoverboard and plays air guitar. Much of his arc involves Radd coming to understand how much of that 'coolness' is intrinsic and how much of it is just traits given to him by his game's developers.
%%* The rather imfamous WebComic/{{Sonichu}} is an incredibly poor attempt at one. Especially since he's literally a mash-up between Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog and [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Pikachu]].
[[/folder]]

%%[[folder: Western Animation]]
%%* WesternAnimation/FelixTheCat became this in the '90s series ''WesternAnimation/TheTwistedTalesOfFelixTheCat''.
%%[[/folder]]

[[folder:Subversions, Parodies and Deconstructions]]
* ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie'' is something of a [[SubvertedTrope subversion]]. Both characters are adventurous [[FunnyAnimal funny animals]], but Banjo is portrayed as a clueless and easily duped country boy. Kazooie has a sharp tongue and a tendency to snark at anyone and anything that crosses her path, in a manner typical of "straight" examples... but all the other characters (except Banjo) ''realize she's obnoxious'' and usually can't stand to be around her. Kazooie's edginess also keeps putting both in trouble.
** Banjo came [[WhatCouldHaveBeen really close]] to being a mascot with attitude, however, as [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/banjo_1_0.jpg this picture of a preliminary build depicts]]. He was originally supposed to be a typical skateboarder-themed teenager, which somewhat explains his school backpack.
* Conker the Squirrel, at least in ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay,'' is somewhere between a parody of this and the "cute and cuddly" animal mascot which he [[WhatCouldHaveBeen originally was to have been]]. His first appearance, ''Conker's Pocket Tales'', as well as his appearance in ''VideoGame/DiddyKongRacing'', have almost none of the qualities mentioned above (only the first applies).
* ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'' is an example of this combined with CaptainSpaceDefenderOfEarth. As you can see, he was never meant to be taken seriously. ''[[JiveTurkey Groovy!]]''
* "Dippy Fresh" from "Weirdmageddon Part 2: Escape From Reality" in ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls''. A TotallyRadical, catch-phrase spewing, skateboarding idealization of Dipper that was created in Mabel's fantasy [[CrapsaccharineWorld dream dimension]]. He even looks similar to Kid Vid and according to WordOfGod, he’s based on both him and Disney XD’s aesthetic. Of course, the real Dipper absolutely despises him.
-->'''Dippy Fresh:''' Wiggity-Wiggity what's up dudebros! I'm Dippy Fresh! I like skateboarding, supporting my sister, and punctuating every sentence with a high-five!
* Super Weasel Kid from ''VideoGame/TheHex'' is a deconstruction: once his creator's pride and joy, he was subsequently sold off to a corporation that [[{{Sequelitis}} ran his franchise to the ground]]. He has become so bitter about this that [[spoiler:he joins in on a murder conspiracy for a chance at payback]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Klonoa}}'', while designed to be one of these, is actually a subversion, as he's more of a cute NiceGuy, with his coolness being secondary. His games also have a cute aesthetic [[spoiler:albeit with some [[NightmareFuel dark elements]] on the side, the first game in particular having a SuddenDownerEnding]].
* Max from ''VideoGame/SamAndMax'', though not TheHero of his own games, was the unofficial mascot and recurring EasterEgg cameo character for Creator/LucasArts. Even in his own games he fits the trope, particularly in contrast to CoolOldGuy Sam, though involving violence beyond the child-friendly. So much so that he's more a HeroicComedicSociopath than your typical mascot with attitude.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** Dash Dingo, the Australian baby-eating video game character featured in a video game Lisa plays in the Season 10 episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS10E7LisaGetsAnA Lisa Gets an A]]". Specifically based on ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'' and the story of Azaria Chamberlain, a baby girl who was killed by a dingo in the 1980s.
** The infamous Poochie is a cartoon dog "with attitude". He even has his own rap song, in which he dubs himself "the kung-fu hippie from the gangster city". Nonetheless, the ''Itchy & Scratchy'' audience hates him. Because of this, "Poochie" has become fan-speak for particularly cringe-worthy examples of this trope in general, especially if they are also a SpotlightStealingSquad like the original Poochie.
* Parodied by the fictional "Adventurous the Cat" franchise seen on various SNES cartridges in ''VideoGame/GoneHome''; as a 90s period piece, it wouldn't be complete without it.
* ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'': Swifty the Shrew is what you get if you take Sonic, ramp the personality associated with this trope up all the way, add a whole bucket of {{Totally Radical}}-ness and get rid of the Blue Blur's redeeming qualities. The result? [[CorruptedCharacterCopy An incredibly arrogant and patronizing tool with absolutely no tolerance for "losers" who disagree with anything he says and who isn't above sabotaging and cheating his way to victory]]. [[spoiler:He's eventually revealed to be a creation of [[BigBad Dr. Eggman]] tasked with the objective of overshadowing Sonic and getting him banished from the village.]]
* Parodied with "Volvy the Vole" from the 2023 Creator/DevolverDigital Direct, who was once supposedly an icon on the level of Sonic before company trend-chasing and the need to keep the character "relevant" in the early-2000s led to the release of "Volvy 2.0: Cigarette Heist" where the character was rebooted into an uncanny valley-looking delinquent who collects drugs and alcohol while spouting his love for [[{{Badbutt}} eating burgers and graffiti]]. Said title was so critically panned that it led to the character being retired.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Reboot}}'' is set inside the computer city of Mainframe, whose inhabitants sometimes had to compete against the [[HumansAreCthulhu User]] whose video games would damage Mainframe and [[FateWorseThanDeath nullify any Mainframers caught in the game]] if they won. One game the User played was "Rocky The Rabid Raccoon", who could be described as a cross between Sonic the Hedgehog and WesternAnimation/BugsBunny. His game played like a ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' cartoon, and he was more of a ScrewballSquirrel than a hero. He was also a regular DeadpanSnarker and had incredible speed similar to Sonic's.
* The protagonist of ''WesternAnimation/CraigOfTheCreek'' is a big fan of a character called Slide the Ferret.
* ''WesternAnimation/SmilingFriends'' has Gwimbly, a video game character from the [=PS1=] era who looks vaguely like a combination of Crash Bandicoot and Sonic that has since fallen on hard times due to his company considering him outdated and refusing to do anything with his IP. As such, he's reduced to recording online messages on Cameo for cash as well as doing his "Iconic victory dance" complete with his catch phrase of "Ooh ooh ooh!".
[[/folder]]
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