With a hugely popular smartphone game and an animated kids show getting renewed for a second series, Sonic the Hedgehog remains crucial to the Sega brand. Even if getting the actual games right remains a challenge.

Rooke explains: “Sega has publically apologised to the fans as the quality of console games in the Sonic franchise hasn’t been acceptable over recent years. It’s been tough translating that iconic side scrolling 2D experience from the 90s into 3D but Sonic is still huge for us so the new games will be more inspired by how it played in its heyday.”

Listening to fans remains key to Sega’s strategy. For years hardcore gamers have called for Sega to release a third title in the Dreamcast’s Shenmue series, which is set around a teenage martial arts expert in rural China.

But their pleas were repeatedly ignored until earlier this year when its original developer Yu Suzuki unexpectedly announced a $2m kickstarter campaign in order to get Shenmue 3 finally made after Sega handed him over the license. The hugely popular campaign ultimately raised over $6m and became the sixth most funded campaign in the crowdfunding website’s history.”

“Yes, we want to innovate and back smartphones and virtual reality but our key purpose is to go back to what the brand used to stand for and I think the buzz around Shenmue 3 shows that people love our legacy,” adds Rooke, who says Sega is currently “exploring ways” to re-release the original two Shenmue titles.

“Sega was an innovator, the Dreamcast was offering online gaming as early as 1998. But perhaps back then we were pushing boundaries a little too soon. Nowadays we know what we’re good at and the strategy is to be more gradual. Over the next few years, we want to use engaging content and marketing to remind the public why they fell in love with Sega in the first place.”