Before Sonic arrived on the scene, Sega's mascot was a monkey boy in a jumpsuit who liked playing Rock, Paper, Scissors. Alex Kidd may have been dumped as soon as the Blue Blur appeared on the Mega Drive and turned Sega into the coolest brand on the planet, but for truly dedicated fans he holds a special place in gaming history - as the latest video from iRetrogamer.com proves.

While it might be a stretch to insist that Alex Kidd's games were of the same standard as Mario's, it's unwise to dismiss them out of hand. Sure, Lost Stars and High-Tech World were forgettable (the latter being a totally unrelated game which was reskinned for western audiences), but Miracle World, Shinobi World and Enchanted Castle are still enjoyable today, and boast some interesting ideas which set them apart from Nintendo's famous line of platformers.

Sega has rather turned its back on Alex since Sonic took over mascot duties. He's had cameos in Sega Superstars Tennis and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, but perhaps his most telling appearance is in the Japan-only Dreamcast release SegaGaGa, where he is relegated to working in one of Sega's retail outlets.

He may have failed to challenge Mario, but he certainly deserves better. Do you have any fond memories of The Kidd? Or do you feel he was a poor second to Mario?