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What's even more dissapointing is that SOA originally planned on releasing the game as the first Sonic related Teen rated game, the beta version used "red slime".Quote:
Originally Posted by The Jackal
http://sonic-cult.org/dispart.php?ca...ubid=1&artid=2
Why SEGA just didn't take a few liberties and reject the new E10 rating is beyond me.
Xbox version, beat all the arcs.
It's definitely a playable game that's for sure, it's just the concept is self defeating, enemy placement is annoying, and a number of levels suffer from atrocious design and or objectives(The DOOM, Mad Matrix).
The whole point of making a choice system matter is to make to choices final, and the addition of a "Final story" completely defeated that.
Edit: Playing through Westopolis 10 times wasn't exactly my definition of fun either....was cool the first time, frustrating after the 3rd time.
The level design is one of the indicators that this project was obviously rushed and that SEGA intended on publishing it in time for Christmas at no matter what the cost. It's sad because, had more time been put into the game it would have been one hellava a Sonic spinoff.Quote:
Originally Posted by Occutell
The targeting system did suck and the platforming mechanics were sluggish at best. The hit detection wasn't all that bad though.
As it stands ,Tails is the only character who's spinoff game did well enough to deserve a sequel and remake. A Tails Adventure remake, Taxman mobile re-release or sequel in the same league like Castle of Illusion wouldn't be a bad idea.
Which just proves that budget isn't everything given Sonic Adventure 2 remained one of the best (arguably THE best) of the 3D Sonic games . . . still my Favorite (and one of my favorite 3D platformers in general), though I need to try Generations. (and definitely the best overall in terms of writing/story . . . not stellar, but one of the few decent ones overall)Quote:
Originally Posted by The Jackal
As for Shadow itself, the first thing I can say is: DO NOT play this game in one sitting, it's a hell of a lot more fun in small doses, but gets to be a redundant/repetitive grind if you try to play it through in one sitting like that. Doing one ending in a sitting is OK, but I didn't even do that all that time . . . and I didn't play it alone either. (played it intermittently with my brother . . . occasionally did the Sonic2/3/Adventure style tag-along 2-player too)
Graphics were OK, but nothing special, with some levels looking interesting and others quire bland. (and recycled character models from Heroes -which I never realy liked in the first place, particularly the "shiny" appearance)
--Note I'm only experienced in the GC version.
It's decent, and I like it a lot more than many other 3D sonic games, partially because it feels more like SA2 in general . . . it's better than Heroes in several respects, but overall that's down to preference (I'd put them on par, personally, but I'd probably lean towards having more fun in Shadow). The 3rd person shooter aspect works fine, but the vehicles are mostly pointless (the walker is OK), the level design is kind of hit and miss though, and there's some of the same control issues as Heroes (slippery and kind of easy to homing attack off edges), but I managed to get used to it. The whole E10+ "damn" thing gets old fast . . . they could have used that rating a LOT more tactfully. (I suppose that problem my have also stemmed from the shift from T to E10, with a bunch of dialog possibly cut back because of that)
The sound track is hit and miss too.
The story . . . hmm, I'd actually remembered that being pretty decent originally, but going back and (especially) looking at some reviews/analysis of it, there's a lot of problems. If you imagine it being a direct sequel to Sonic Adventure 2 (which I originally did), the opening premise kind of works, and TBH, with the bullshit Shadow-related story/dialog in Heroes, there's a better suspension of disbelief at least.
Spoilers below, for anyone actually caring about the story:
Really, looking back, it's actually a decent overall plot, but it really needed some tweaks to fill things out more sensibly . . . and they could have cut back on the drama a bit more (SA2 balanced that MUCH better . . . even looking only on the "Dark" story). Some people complained about the whole aliens and Black Doom thing in general, but TBH that didn't really seem weird either, since I'd already assumed Sonic and company weren't from Earth in the first place (indeed, that's the plot the Anime used, and the premise I assumed in the first place even before that . . . probably in part from my childhood ingraining of the DiC cartoons with Mobius :p ).
The problems come from the actual fleshing out of that story overall . . . in some areas it makes sense, and in others it's just stupid and full of holes, including the issue of it not being a direct chronological sequel to Sonic Adventure. (which, story wise, would have fit very well if done tactfully)
The vengeful, mentally unstable GUN commander worked OK in the plot, but could have been done a lot better. The Gerald Robotnik and Black Doom relationship actually made decent sense to me, and the overall backstory in that regard was decent . . . Robotnik's decent into madness still wasn't really covered properly, but it's no worse than in SA2. (I'd say it made more sense than SA2 at the very least)
There's also the issue of fixed cutscenes playing after each level (and each path/version of that level) and not always making sense for a given playthrough, with random snippets of stories that just don't make sense on their own if you don't take a specific set of paths. (that didn't really bother me originally, since the gaps got filled in with further playthroughs to the point where you'd be familiar with everything going on anyway)
I could have sworn my old copy of Shadow the Hedgehog was rated T.
I always hated how shadow would say "damn" every time you died. It felt so out of place for some reason.
I agree. I think the zingers were added to make the game edgy.Quote:
Originally Posted by AlecRob
Again, I kind of wonder if they originally planned to put more than just "damn" in there (not just the deaths, but in general), but the switch to "E10" changed that . . . toning things down while cramming that one lame line in all over. :pQuote:
Originally Posted by MrSega
This game (and character) were an example of everything wrong at sega.
Emo Sonic with a gun? Thanks, but no thanks.
Much like trying to find the merits in Star Wars prequels, its a cynical exploitive mess. Wonder how many rounds of focus-grouping this title took to make.
Completely different.Quote:
Originally Posted by TVC 15
One should never try to make a game edgy just for the sale of being edgy. If the game is, by nature, edgy, fine. But forced edgyness almost always ends up becoming stupid, frankly.Quote:
Originally Posted by MrSega
They really pulled out all the cliche's with this game eh.
I suppose shit might smell different, but its still shit.Quote:
Originally Posted by Alexrd