That Guy on 30 March 2007
Iono, it just doesn't seem as strong as it used to be. I think its because Nintendo used to bundle Mario with all its systems and Sega bundled Sega with all its systems. I think Lara Croft was a big mascot in the PS1 Generation, but not so much any more. I think you're right in that the sheer number of brands probably dilutes the power of any one brand. Also, a lot of brands are third party now-- Sonic is now on every system so the association with a sega system is somewhat lost. The same goes for franchises like DOA, VF, or Solid Snake. In this generation, I don't see any definitive Mascots for Xbox or PS3. Gears or War? Motorstorm? not as much association as Mario + SNES or whatever.
