Shadow the Hedgehog is an Action & Adventure game released in 2005 for the GameCube.

All Systems

Game Browser

Overall 8.2    Graphics 8    Sound 7.8    Addictive 7.3    Story 7    Depth 8    Difficulty 7


Shadow the Hedgehog Review - ow the edge   Lexatom
Welcome to another very special Lexatom review. Today we will be reviewing Shadow the Hedgehog. Sonic Team wanted to appeal to a wider market, and since guns were appearing in a lot of popular games, they decided to put guns and edgy stuff in this game. However, Sonic is too "good" to use this stuff. So they came up with the brilliant idea to use Shadow instead. It was perfect! Shadow the Hedgehog released on November 15, 2005 for the Gamecube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. Many people were triggered by the fact that there was cursing and all this other edgy stuff in this game. To those people, I say this: You are dumb. (Just kidding please don't sue love you). Enough with the random chit-chat. Let's dive into the review, why don't we?Graphics - 9The graphics in this game are awesome! In each and every level and location, you can clearly make out what the developers were trying to go for. The character models look great in-game, but in some of the cutscenes they look kind of gross looking. I can deal with it for the most part. I think my favorite part about the graphics is how they made the bullets look. I dunno, I'm weird. They don't look like real bullets to me, which is perfect for the Sonic universe.Sound - 10I think my love for Hard Rock/Metal music stemmed from this game. You see, this was the second Sonic game I ever played in my life. When I heard some of the music, I was instantly in love with it. I started listening to similar songs that I found on my dad's iPod, heh. The main theme of the game is "I Am (All of Me)" which is absolutely fantastic. I love almost the entirety of this soundtrack. Each song fits in well with the current location you are in, and to me, goes far beyond that. It fits much more than it SHOULD, and I absolutely love it. The sound effects in this game are also wonderful, specifically the sound of shooting. I'm not trying to sound edgy, I'm being serious. I also like the voice acting in this game, especially Shadow's. I think Jason Griffith does a WONDERFUL job voicing both Sonic and Shadow.Addictiveness - 9I find this game to be pretty addicting. The only times I ever see myself not playing it is either because I got angry from dying a lot (lol) or there are other games waiting for me to play them. The former one happens more often, sadly. Due to the many paths this game allows you to take, it has a very high replay value. If you finish all main paths, then you unlock the final path, otherwise known as Last Story. I love it, and it just gives me reason to keep on playing.Story - 9This game's story is amazing, and is one of the reasons Shadow is my favorite character in the franchise. The only issue I have with the story is that some stuff happens differently than what happens in other paths, so it gets a little confusing on which of them actually happened. However, it's most likely that all of those events occurred, so it's not that big of a deal to me. The Last Story is particularly interesting, as it explains the truth in many questions that a lot of people had asking. For example, is the Shadow we are playing as really an android? Throughout the game, it tells you that the Shadow you are playing as is actually an android created by Eggman. During the final boss fight, Eggman tells Shadow that he was lying. Eggman saved Shadow at the end of Sonic Adventure 2 before he died in space, revealing that we are playing as the true Shadow. Amazing. Bravo, Sonic Team.Depth - 10As I explained a bit earlier, this game allows you to take many different story paths depending on what missions you do in each level. If all you do are the Dark missions, that story route is known as True Dark route. If you only do the first Dark mission and then complete the neutral missions in the levels to follow, it is known as the Dark route. If you only do Neutral missions, it's known as the Neutral route. Vice versa for Hero missions. In addition to having to play at least every level, you must also defeat each boss at the end of the story routes. I think there are 2 for each route. So for instance, you're on the last level of the True Dark route. If you complete the Hero mission in that level, you fight Black Doom. If you complete the Dark mission in that level, you fight Sonic and Diablon. You must defeat all of these bosses before you are allowed into the Last Story.Difficulty - 8Some of the missions in this game are as easy as can be. However, there are always those missions that make you moan because you REALLY don't want to do that mission. Some missions are HARD. I remember one mission involved FINDING THE COMPUTER ROOM. Uh, I mean, ignore that. One of the missions involved healing around 20 (I think) soldiers in the ARK with the healing pod thingies near the bodies. Problem is, they are scattered all over the ARK and the place is HUGE. The map doesn't help me at all, it just confuses me more. So then you end up wandering all over the level map for like 5 minutes, but it feels like forever. Eventually, you find the last thing you need to do and scream out in excitement. Overall - 9.2Shadow the Hedgehog defenitely is, if not the most controversial game in the Sonic series. Some people don't like it, others do. It's one of those games that's in the middle. I for one, love it. Putting Shadow as the main character of his own game was a brilliant idea, and they executed it brilliantly. Thank you for reading this review. Comments/Questions are always appreciated.
  Graphics 9   Sound 10   Addictive 9   Story 9   Depth 10   Difficulty 8
      Review Rating: 4.5/5     Submitted: 01-04-17     Review Replies: 4


Do you. . . . remember me?   Sword Legion
Shadow, Shadow, Shadow. You really brought out some things from Sonic Team we never expected. SA2, and you're gone. Maybe that was even supposed to be the last Sonic game ever made. And heck, some people reject anything after it because it's not up to quality. . . but is that true? Ah, they can say what they want. Just cause Sega lost their own system, doesn't mean they have to suck. In fact, being a third party marketing games across multiple systems can be a great thing for fans actually. We even have Sonic on the PC now. (That's something Mario will never get.) I remember hearing about this game years after it came out. I also remember when I was 9 years old and I saw it being sold in stores. "Really?" I thought in my very much, attuned, young, video gaming mind. "That's bad. Shadow is bad. Sonic isn't a good game anymore." To me, at that point in time, Sonic, or what little I saw of it outside of my own Sega Genesis, was a really. . . . cool- but rebellious looking game with rock music I hated and a dark hedgehog named Shadow. A hedgehog who represented everything taken away from me in the Sega Genesis era. I was young, I didn't care about story, or any of that. Sonic 1 was the first game I ever played and it held a place dear in my heart. I didn't want Sonic to include all that bad stuff. Rock music sounded horrible, and Knuckles, Knuckles, really? Is that RAP in your levels? Well, needless to say, as you get older in life, times change. I became a teenager like everyone else. In fact, I didn't become a big Sonic fan until I was 15. When I got to play Sonic Adventure 2 at my grandparents. That was when I met Shadow- for real. (And still hated him.) I had to admit though. There wasn't anything wrong with the rock music. I mean, really, and I came to like it. Even Throw it all Away is one of my favorite tunes now. I Am on the other hand. . . let's just say it could have been executed better. But then there are times I like. Maybe it's one of those. "I have to be in the right mood?" songs. :P But anyways. Shadow the Hedgehog is a game that follows up both Sonic Adventure 2, and Sonic Heroes. Now, before I get really in depth into this review, there's going to be a lot of spoilers. And while I do like the thought of a review that doesn't cover anything too spoilerish so that people can decide if the game is worth playing or not- and still enjoy all the twists and turns it has to offer. It makes the review incomplete to me. And I love to analyse stuff. But, just in case you don't like spoilers, I'm gonna mark em up. Also, in this review, I'll cover the controversy that this game caused and the atmosphere in general. Why? Cuase it's a BIG thing to Sonic fans. This game isn't anything like Sonic 1 or Lost World folks. This game is dark. But not too dark. Just how dark. . . well, I'll save that for later. As of now, I just wanna get through the review. Let's start with the story. ----- Story. 8.7/10 First thing's first, this game has a lot of different endings. In fact, I was shocked to find out that I had missed out on a few controversial things in this game plotwise. I somehow got all ten of the major endings and missed one cutscene in which the ARK fires it's superlaser into the earth destroying an entire city. (WoW) This game has definitely got a lot of different scenes in it. Some are premade CGI and look really rich. Others are rendered modules found directly in the game. But those are still decent. . . except for in the last story. In this game, there are 10 different normal endings, though there are over 300 different possible combinations you can end the game with. You see, at the beginning of the game, you start in Westopolis, the game's first level. Throughout the level, you're prompted by Sonic to smash up 50 aliens and complete the hero objective. Black Doom likewise wants you help. Commanding you to wipe out all of the human forces patrolling Westopolis. Anyways, this is how the game and it's "Choose your story" thing works. You can help out the good guys, or help out the villain(s). Stay totally neutral in this game is also an option. Aligning you with neither side and just trying to get to the end of the level. Sometimes a hero, villain, or neutral mission objective won't appear, which would happen if you get really far, right or left on the story path, and the neutral option always disappears on the last level. Always, the neutral mission just has you get to the end of the level. Like a traditional Sonic game. Hero and Dark missions have objectives however. Like eliminating every enemy unit on the field, stopping a vehicle or transport from reaching the end, or locating top secret disks. All contributing to the overall path that you're going on in the story tree. . . but not changing much of the end of the story. And that's where the story telling can really fall apart for some people. The fact that actions early on in the game mean nothing, and don't change the ending cutscenes at all when you complete a playthrough, might be a huge put off for you. This game is a lot like Star Fox 64 in it's level progression system, only tons more advanced. However, because there are so, so many different levels. (22) It seems that asking of the team to make each ending a little different over small choices made at the begging of the game, might be too much to ask of them. . . The cutscenes aren't bad in the game. A lot of them make sense. But because you could come to a level from multiple different directions. Sometimes it feels broken. Take Sky Troops for example. It doesn't matter if you betray Black Doom in the previous level before. In the opening cutscene to this level, Black Doom always acts as if he is proud of Shadow. But if Shadow went directly against him in previous level, why should he be treating like an apprentice or something of that sort really? Most cutscenes that open up a level are neutral enough to avoid stuff like this. But that can also make them uninteresting. I mean, all you are really rewarded with for completing a hero, or villain objective. . . is maybe an end level cutscene, some words from Shadow or your previous partner. And then the next seen is totally apathetic to what you've done. Personally, in a game as large as this, trying to be as open as it is, in the freedom that you can choose. I suppose it's going to be expected. All scenes pretty much have to be. . . SOMEwhat apathetic to you actions in the last level, or else they wouldn't make sense, and yet the game already messes up there at least once. In spite of this, the game actually does flow decently. I mean, if you hang on the dark side of the path. Black Doom seems mostly pleased with you, and treats you more like a son. If you go on the Hero side, you'll be buddy buddy, or a little less with Sonic, Tails and even the Chaotix. (Who are great by the way.) Also, of all the 326 different possible endings that you can get. Each ending has a name. I'm not kidding. This at least tells me the developers thought about all the levels that you might play through to get that ending, and then gave it an appropriate name. That's nice at least. I mean, hey, if you and your freind both get the the pure dark ending. Even though the ending scenes you got were completely identical, because of the different level sequences you had to get there, you'll both get different and appropriate names. Plus the game keeps track of every playthrough that you make. You can view all the scenes that made up you're playthrough, in order, any time, from the library menu. So yeah. That's cool, right? For some people this will be an issue, for me, heh, I've helped make games. To ask for a different ending every time is hard. Ten distinctly different endings is enough, and really more than enough in my opinion. It's remarkable someone actually came up with an individual name for each possible playthrough sequence however. And that's something that should be commended. As for the actual content of the story. If you mess around and swap allegiances constantly. . . let's just say it's weird. It's best to not play as a pure hero for three levels in a row, and then go all out evil. Plus, it really doesn't makes sense in some playthrough sequences period. The only endings I really have to say that can come off as awkard are the Eggman ones. Sortof, for me, it they had one more ending where Shadow fights Eggman, I might have gotten sick of it. But I didn't, and they kept it fresh enough- in my opinion. The story elements themselves as they compromise different parts of the plot can be fun, interesting, and downright odd. Not many fall into the negative category, and actually add quite a bit of depth- if you're open minded enough. Other's seem to come from no where. Like Shadow just now remembering that he might have been an android, because he runs into several robotic copies of himself in Iron Jungle. Really. If I didn't notice how life like the androids look in Sonic Heroes, and Shadow hadn't seen them too, it would be pretty easy to say- "Me? Android? Nice try doctor, but I don't taste plastic or metal when I like my arm!" Then on the other hand, the androids may just look more jagged polygonwise because this is an earlier game. (2005) Shadow is a fairly detailed module, so when they made android clones, they couldn't make them look as smooth. Other times, it's just plain awesome. The Pure Hero, and Nuetral, Dark path, last step Hero endings are my favorites. (Spoiler alert) Shadow and Omega teaming up? Making their own Empire where "androids will rule?" Cool!" Shadow simply dismissing Black Doom temptations and remaining a hero? A little underdeveloped, but his resolution at the end was purely awesome and made me feel good.(End of Spoilers) How about bringing the United Federation down upon it's knees and watching a president suffer as he has failed to protect his people? A little disheartening. Heck, this is one of the few games that made me feel guilty as I played it. But it didn't the moment Shadow told Sonic why he was doing this. "These humans, they don't value life, and they're going to pay, pay with their lives for what they've done!" Sad thing is, he's right. I WISH the president we have today was as little corrupt as this guy from Sonic's world is, or at least appears. Unlike one president I could mention, he actually cares about his people and will stop at nothing to put away these "terrorists" otherwise known as the Black Aliens. (Actual quote from the game.) Yeah, this game, I couldn't help but notice the crescent moon and star on Black Doom plus the game's constant beaming of the word. (If you look closely on the games textures, you can also see a small crescent on the small star. Congratulations Sega, you pulled an Ocarina of Time! Does that mean Ganondorf was in on this too?!?) The characters and the way they act is fine- for the most part. I couldn't help but feel they made Sonic act a lot younger on purpose. The Gun Commander is absurd. But the president has like. . . some of the best voice acting in the entire series for a character! Eggman is corny, great, and downright awesome in some scenes. Espio caught a lot of my attention in this game for his new character and voice acting. Shadow somehow feels out of character at times. With his often dropping jaw and less than calm demeanor. I guess that even he can be shocked by the truth, or what he thinks it is. But these little quirks can happen often enough you begin to wonder. Thankfully, it's kept to a minimum and isn't too big of a deal. This is also the first Sonic game to use the 4kids voice actors. And they all work well. I really like Tails here. When you attack a gun robot and he yells angerly. "Don't hurt them!!" It sounds just like when he get's upset in Sonic X. My favorite. The game's story is good. Most of the time. I might reconsider later, but I really think they followed up SA2 right and did it even more justice than that game did. The dark endings are dark, but the light endings are light. Neutral is always going to be my favorite, and probably the most interesting. Most of the time they make sense, and that's why I'm giving them an nine. Not to mention Shadow's awesome resolution at the very end of the game. Also, if you get all 10 distinct endings, you unlock a last Story mode! It's just one level with a bunch of cutscenes which take place beforehand, and after. Also including a final boss fight against Black Doom as Super Shadow. (Which was somewhat underdone, those chaos spear throwing animations are NOT the best!) Here, it's like the game got rushed, and while the plot is cool and all, the animations feel a little bit cheap, particularly before Shadow takes off over Black Doom. It's like it was rushed a little bit and needed a little more polish- save the final cutscene which takes place after you defeat Devil Doom. ----- Graphics 7/10 Judging the graphics really isn't my thing, but I'll try, as a few of you are proably interested. The graphics are clean. Not as clean as Heroes, but less polygoned as well. There are a number of things I like about this game over heroes, but that's not the point. The game is good in terms of textures and things. Broken down buildings at least look decent. Modules look okay, and some textures are done pretty well. Other's just decent. It's not where Super Mario Sunshine is, but, Mario is a pretty smooth game to begin with. It's definitely above some of the Gamecubes earlier titles. The only bad thing I can really say, is sometimes it's depressing just how dark things can become. Even Eggmanland. (yes, he built it in this game.) Feels kindof sick. But Westopolis, or it's textures really, can feel dark. Sonic was very bright as a series when it started out. It had beautiful colors and, well, it was a kids game. Sonic Adventure marketed toward teens, and we've been there since. Still, I find SA2 and it's theme graphically more impressive- most of the time. And I mean that as in style. These textures are definitely above what the Dreamcast Sonic games had to offer, but it's really nothing special. If I could credit two zones in this game, it would be lava shelter, and Mad Matrix. Both Eggman levels ironically. Eggman keeps most of the cartoony flair in the game. The United Federation's stuff looks like it came from 007 maybe? Only much better of course. Still talking about style here. Don't worry, it's not N64 standards now. Somehow Sonic Team keeps a distinct style that. . . I just really love. Even in the United Federation's buildings, ect. From soldiers, to Eggman's machines. You might think Sonic would look out of place in this sort of world, and to be honest, he slightly does, but you can definitely detect Sonic Team's style in everything. Well almost everything, not really the guns. . . ----- Addictiveness. 10/10 The gameplay in the game is mostly the same. It's fun, but the same. A lot of earlier Sonic games were like that though. It's the levels and variety, plus story that make out a great experience. There's a 2-player mode too. Co-op in the actual levels, and VS, but with Shadow androids only. It's a fun little thing I found with my bro. And actually pretty neat if you're a more hardcore Sonic fan. I didn't really try it until after I beat the game. And I have a feeling I'll be revisiting it. Guns are also available in this game. Originally, I wasn't a big fan of it, but I do have to ask why Sonic characters don't use them if they're around. I mean, come on. They could make you a lot more powerful guys. At the same time, I'd be terrified if random Sonic characters started using them. It would totally ruin their character. In fact, do sonic characters even belong in a game like this? In fact, what's with the vehicles? Does Shadow really need those? No. But they're there I guess, and some of them were fun. I only really liked one kind of car, and that's the sport's car. Because it can go so fast. Vehicles have health in the game, and might be considered for armor, that that's it. I almost always preferred to be on foot. But the flying, black dragons were pretty cool. Plus the jumping mech. The saucer wasn't bad, but I was kindof indifferent to it. Not really my taste, but not horribly either. Guns and vehicles in the game are 90% optional- which is how I like it. I hate how Super Mario Galaxy completely destroyed the meaning behind powerups by making them forced on you merely to complete a goal. So few of them were actually there just as a reward like the fire flower. But Shadow has tons of optionals at his disposal. I guess here I should mention that Shadow is a lot of fun with the guns and all, and shooting isn't totally new to the franchise. E-102 Gamma had a gun, albeit a homing gun. Dr. Eggman was playable for the first time ever in SA2. He had similar mechanics, but both of them pale to the fun that it is to play as Shadow. Weilding firearms and collecting ammo. You don't have to reload your gun in this game, and there's no way to fire in the first person. You can hold the R button however, and strafe left and right. Not in a circle however. Only in a straight line. You can kill enemies and pick up their weapons. The saucer in particular, you actually get to hijack by knocking off it's pilot first. One thing I would like to complain about, is the allegiance system, and how it takes place in levels. In the game, it doesn't really matter whose side you're on. They'll always shoot at you no matter what you've done, who's side you've been on previously and it makes me wonder why your partners even call them allies. I almost consider this sloppy. But since you can swap your allegiance at any point in time during the level, I guess they had to do it, or else you could switch sides at any given point and enemies wouldn't react to you. (And I mean switching sides as in, attacking your allies over, and over again, not going on the menu and swapping your objective. Still though, It's sounds ridiculous when a partner tells you that the only way to progress, is kill a certain enemy in the area, then get's after you for doing so! In fact, you what game comes to mind as I started playing this? Star Wars the force Unleashed II! In fact, these games, the main character shares a bit to many plot elements for my taste, but The Force Unleased II, at least doesn't make you allies fire on you! This may sound like a pain, but it's really not. Enemies aren't to much of a nuisance once you get used to it- and no one is your friend. Don't get me wrong. You'll get hit lots at first. The controls aren't bad but enemies are much more aggressive. Shadow is definitely not overpowered, and it's gonna take a little bit of skill to keep going. Losing rings and lives isn't uncommon, but deaths aren't cheap. Most of my deaths came from falling into a pit, reminding us that Sonic started out as a platformer, and not an action RPG. Bosses are sometimes easy, but very much fun. But they're not always a piece of cake. The Egg breaker in particular is always difficult save the one fight in Iron Jungle- if you know where the turret is. The United Federation Bosses probably being the best. Diablon, Blue Falcon, (huh, familiar. . .) and Heavy Dog. All pretty neat and fun to take on. Diablon being the hardest boss period on the darkest ending, not including Devil Doom from the last story. Yes, in this game there are turrets. They are the most misplaced of all the FPS elements in this game, are overpowered, and I don't like using them because of such reasons. I mean, yeah, I appreciate the thought of making Shadow's world in depth and all. . . but. . . cars you can at least drive fast. And Sonic's been in cars. Turrets, though rare I found barely acceptable in a "Sonic" game, though then again, it really is a spin of title. Say, has anyone ever though about this? Why do people say that Shadow's game was bad for introducing guns, or vehicles, and yet they'll praise Tails adventure, which is a sidscrolling action RPG, where Tails get's all sorts of weapons. (Although a gun isn't one of them) And pilot's a metamorphic vehicle? What about Mario piloting a submarine in Super Mario land? Ugh, it's kindof confusing to to think about. I just don't know if I like it or not for a Sonic game, or at least in a game that compliments, takes from and is canon to the main series. Of the three characters that got one, Tails, Knuckles, and Shadow all have their own spin off Titles. Tails getting two. Both are on the game gear. Knuckles gets Knuckles Chaotix on the Sega 32, and Shadow gets. . . . a Gamecube game. But hey, if a character is big enough to get their own game, does that mean we can ask for a Silver themed game Sega? That would be really cool? Or how about Metal Sonic? call it Altered Creations or something? Omega as a side character. . . ? *sigh* It's so hard. I really miss the days Sonic was deep, and maybe with Sonic runners they're going back to that. But when I look at Shadow the Hedgehog. . . it's just. . . . I KNOW this isn't like Sonic 1, or Heroes, or any of the lighter stuff. I can see why people hate this game, but I loved it. One thing to note though. If you are impatient, you may never come to enjoy this game. And yes, I know that Sonic is all about being fast, but some, and by that I mean, a few- - A few levels may test your patience with how long it takes to complete the hero or dark missions. Especially the ones that are flashbacks with Maria on the A.R.K. Hunting down Artificial Chaos, or taking out every last G.U.N. soldier may be tedious to you. To me, it was just fine. I don't care if it takes maybe 8 minutes to complete an objective, to me, it was fun. And that's what it's all about. Fair warning. I was perfectly content with some levels dragging on over 15 minutes. Most will only take you about 7 though. (You can clear them much, much faster however if you go straight for the goal and be neutral however.) Think about that, if it's too hard. Just take a break and come back later. I would recommend avoiding, or going neutral in these levels if you find them a pain. On the other hand, there are a few, "Stop this vehicle" levels which you might find difficult for different reasons. But I personally loved every minute of these action packed challenges. Trying to keep up these gigantic, health bearing monster, and shooting till you're heart's satisfied. I mean it, in one word, was fun. Even if I had to restart them from the begging because I got to far behind. In the game, if you complete Westopolis on the Hero side, in the next level, you get to try and stop one of these such vehicles. For me, it was so much fun, that I was originally planning to go neutral the second time around, but I accidentally finished the thing off. :P It's not that hard, and this was the second time I had finished the level. Even the Maria and A.R.K. levels should be okay if you pay attention to the maps displayed throughout the levels, and keep track of where you've been. It's okay to have a few "hardcore" levels in every once in a while, right? 10/10 ----- Sound 6/10 And now we're moving onto the soundtrack. Okay, all my thoughts on Shadow the Hedgehog, as well as his soundtrack are. . . . well. . . "Oh, this game has GOT to have good music!" And then. . . "Wow, this kindof sucks." Really? Wow. But then it gets better. I don't know what it is, but something about playing the game, and having a good time makes the music better. It's nothing spectacular but it is pretty groovey at times. Sometimes I feel like the songs were good, had a good motion going. (Like Lava Shelter) but then miss it. It's like they stop and don't try to be epic. What this starts to say to me, is the music was uninspired. I know! I'm sorry, and I would love the soundtrack to be better, but it's not. It's all the same, and feels like it was produced just for the fact of being produced. You know, like a factory makes a brick to build a generic tower out of- nothing special. And I'm sorry to say, it but most songs are just there. Why do I think that is? Because. They didn't try to be different enough. Or maybe Jun Senoue wasn't given enough room. "Your going to use the rock guitar the whole time Mr. Senoue!" That's what I hear Sonic Team saying, or Yuki Naka. And I think it killed him. Some stuff like Digital Circuit is fresh, but still misses it. It's just not quite there. This doesn't represent all of the music, but rather the majority. The quality certainly isn't bad, but it is rather. . . . okay. . . . ish. I mean, is there anything I can say that makes this stuff special? Not really. . . Thankfully, it's not all like that. In this game there are actually a few tunes that stick out. A list? Events- I Refuse, and Shut Your Mouth make great short tunes to listen too. Lava Shelter, Lethal Highway, and Gun Fortress make great level themes. The remixed tracks from Sonic Adventure 2 are Great. Blue Falcon really takes the spotlight. The best song in the game is Never Turn Back by far. While most of the music is just there, you will definitely find a few tunes that stick out and are nice. Sonic Heroes has a better soundtrack perhaps. But Shadow has a large number of songs- and vocal themes going for it. All of which are pretty good- Almost Dead being debateable. The voice acting in this game I really didn't mind. My biggest gripe is Sonic's- he sounds- and acts- like a kid. And I'm being serious. It's like they did it on purpose just to make Shadow look cooler, or maybe they wanted to make Sonic act more annoying toward Shadow on purpose, so that he would have more of a reason to turn evil at the end of some sequences. Depending on your mission of course. Charmy can annoy some people. However, when I bought a Sonic game, I knew that they were going to appeal to children as much as teens. So, I expected it. However, Charmy did get annoying enough for me to switch partners and just go it solo on Prison Island. (If you go solo neutral, Shadow talks to himself, giving the player advice rather than the assist character.) Amy and the others though? They sound fine. Yes, Amy is not annoying in this game. At least in my opinion. Tails, as I pointed out earlier sounds fine by me. Black Doom sounds deep and epic. (as he should) and Eggman is the same scientist we know and love. He sound's pretty great in this game. Gotta hand it to ole Pullock on this one. :) As for general effects, there's nothing extremely noticeable here. Guns sound okay, whether firing bullets, or laser blasts. The electric explosions of Westopolis sound unique, but what really gets me as far as effects go, is the sound of Heavy Dog, or Blue Falcon hovering. It sounds realistic and immersive, like it should. Other sound effects like found inside the A.R.K. or Digital world sound great- The digital world sounding neat for a unique experience. If there's one character I might criticize a bit, but not too heavily, it would be Omega. I'm sorry, but he sounds a bit too robotic. Not as good as he does in Heroes. It won't take long for you to get used to that though. It is funny listening to him explain how to beat Eggman in the Egg Dealer because of this. For the somewhat mediocre soundtrack, lack of memorable tunes outside the vocal themes, I'm going to give Shadow a 6 and 1/2 I want to give it a 7, but I don't feel it's that much better than average when it comes to music sadly. Aside from the awesome vocal themes of Waking Up- [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQG1wf8k_8A[/url] And Never Turn Back. Which I won't link in case you want to wait till the end of the game to hear it. ----- Difficulty. 6.4/10 Okay, I already covered this a lot in the gameplay section. But this is going to be higher than your traditional Sonic game. You may get hit a lot at the beginning of the game, and enemies are a lot more dangerous. Many of them can shoot, and some quite rapidly. A lot moreso than they could in other Sonic games. Of course, leveling the field a little bit are firearms. Which are fun, to wield and pretty useful. To use a firearm, just press the B button. (Gamecube version.) And if there's an enemy in range the gun will automatically target the closest one. Kindof like the homing attack- only a lot more effective really. No, I mean, a lot, LOT more effective. The weakest of firearms in the game will deal as much damage as the homing attack. . . which is kindof. . . . lame if you like traditional methods of attack. . . . But not to worry. It's not like the homing attack is useless. It still is a lot of fun to use, and kills enemies relatively quickly. It's probably safer than a gun in some situations actually. The best way to use a gun is fire a few quick bursts and then move on. Staying in one place is a good way to get shot. Building up your hero meter in this game is done by doing good things. Like killing baddies, putting out fire, and healing wounded G.U.N. soldiers. Building up your dark meter comes from doing evil things. Like taking out G.U.N. units, property, and just smashing stuff up in just for the sake of smashing it. Building up you hero meter allows you to Speed through the level kindof like a Godmode version of boost from Sonic Unleashed. And you can skip a lot of the level if you use it in the right spots. Your dark meter will allow you to Chaos Blast. Creating a large, destructive explosion around you- and draining part of your meter. Both of these are often more useful for the invincibility that they give you and the infinite ammo- especially with a more powerful gun. These drop the game's difficulty considerably in some ways, but are definitely not over powered. Through pretty much the whole thing, the game will give you a fair fight and be difficult in a way that is enjoyable- with a few harder missions and an Expert mode if you get all the A ranks for all those challenge lovers. As for me, I'm not sure when I'll try for that. Guess I'll play it when I feel like it. :P This puts the difficulty at a level 6.4 for me. Harder than some games, but definitely not unfair. An enjoyable experience. ----- Depth 9/10 If all the endings count, then I'd say very high. If you love Shadow, and what he is in SA2, then this game and all the different endings will definitely keep you going. I loved the concept this game did a pretty good job supplying me with new stuff. The turncoat endings I wasn't as excited about, but they turned out to be better than I expected. Darkest path, good on last level for example is pretty neat. This game offers a lot to look at regarding Sonic's world. The Digital Realm. An actual MAP of the world can be viewed in multiple cutscenes in the background. Story details and wanting to get every single distinct ending is a good drive for this game. Plus the variety in levels keeps it generally fresh. Textures and stuff are reused, sure, but each level is still constructed fairly differently, excluding Sky Troops and Glyphic Canyon, which are literally the same place- It's just one time it's on the surface, the other time it's actually floating in the sky. The multiplayer is lots of fun. Just like SA2B's multiplayer. All you need is another friend, (or sibling) who's competitive and loves Sonic! (or at least enjoys this game.) On top of the many story options, unlockable weapons, music, the multiplayer adds a lot more. No game plays quite like Sonic. I know some people who will criticize games which are one player, but try to implement multiplayer modes. Saying it's tacked on, lacking depth, et cetera. And I agree, that it's not always a good idea. But, what can I say? I love Sonic and the idea of Rival Battles between the characters. Or, in this case, Shadow Androids. It's fun, not, terribly deep, nor lacking. It's just right, and I'm glad they put it in. I've had lots of fun with the one sibling I have who's been willing to play it with me, and some of the battles we've had have been intense! I love it, love it, love it. It's a pity that other character who were originally planned never got in. (We found multiplayer quips in some of the Japanese beta for Sonic.) Something as small as this can add quite a few more hours into play. And it's fun. It may not be the main focus, but I thought it made a GREAT side addition. Oh, and did I forget about the unlockable weapons? That's right, in this game, for every one of the ten endings that you get- you unlock a weapon- or level it up if you've already gotten that weapon before. These are fun, and more powerful than the other weapons in the game, though if you've picked up a lot of ammo from collecting multiple of the same guns in the game, you might end up just passing these items up when given the chance. That's what I found myself doing a lot in some later weapons. Though the unlockables are definitely not useless. ----- Overall. ~It all comes down to this! Shadow the Hedgehog is definitely a different game, and not without it's controversy. I've heard people complain about the controls, which I had no problem with, homing attack and all, and I've heard people complain about the story. But to me? It's just fine. Some story elements provide small problems, but only in how Shadow's character is portrayed from time to time. Thinking about this game in context to Sonic Heroes though can help a lot. And I believe I've already addressed the android thing. This game is definitely not for all Sonic fans, and this game can certainly feel quite dark. (For a Sonic game.) But it really doesn't go too far. If Sonic, to you, is running through brightly colored hills, and most certainly can't have a dark side or a side game where vengeance and angst are a major theme, this game is NOT for you! If you loved Shadow in SA2, and want more of him, then definitely get this game. The firearms and vehicles may be a put off at first but you'll eventually get used to it. Though you may not necessarily see them play a large role in future Sonic games. (That's for sure.) Not all of them are bad though. This game is dark, dark enough at times to where I thought about how other fans complain. "This isn't true to what Sonic's all about!" And alas, it is kindof sad to see just how dark Westopolis is. But you know what? I like it. It's just one game and I think it did Shadow the justice he deserved. We have an explanation for his creation now and it's a pity this game was slammed so much. I can see why some fans hate it, and that's fine. I do not like the one scene in particular with Sonic all beat up on the opening video. (But that's happened plenty of times in Sonic X) And this game wasn't perfect, but for a diehard Sonic fan, who loves story, depth, and Shadow as a character it was. And I loved it. Get this game if you like that stuff. Otherwise, it may not be worth a buy. I'll tell you this though. The games more polished than heroes, and get's way to much hate. It took me a long time to try this game because of everything everyone else was saying about it. But I finally did after a few good friends put in a good word. I'm glad I didn't listen to the world. Just know what kind of fans the game is for. Otherwise, you might not like it as much. At best it could be just an average game to you. But to me, it was so much more. I hope this review was insightful on an otherwise controversial title. Good luck to you, and remember, when you've gotta go straight forward, just Never Turn Back! Final Score. 9.1
  Graphics 7   Sound 6   Addictive 10   Story 9   Depth 9   Difficulty 6
      Review Rating: 3/5     Submitted: 05-06-15     Review Replies: 7


Shadow! I... am your father!   Snu
   Poor Shadow. The hedgehog gets his own game, and then it gets slammed into the ground with comments like 'Omgz, why does my Sonic games have guns?', and 'Swearing? NO WAY'. I'm here to say that these things shouldn't, and don't determine whether a game is good or bad. There are other things for that.   For those unaware, in Shadow the Hedgehog, you play as (gasps) Shadow the hedgehog! He's still suffering from the amnesia introduced in Sonic Heroes, but in return for the Chaos Emeralds, a mysterious dark figure offers him a chance to restore his memory. It's a pretty good deal, so now, we're off to to take part in a new war between aliens and humans! Which side will you choose?     Let's observe, shall we?Graphics 9/10   For a gamecube game, this has amazing graphics. The environments are, for the most part, all different and lovely to look at (Sky Troops and Glyphic Ruins in particular look suspiciously similar). The character models all look colourful, clean, and clear (Except for minor clipping issues with Vector's mouth). The animations are all smooth as well.    The guns, while fun looking, are typically so huge, that they clearly clip though the ground, which just makes things look a little ridiculous.    Another thing I have to give credit for is the pre-rendered cutscenes. They look absolutely GORGEOUS, even if there are only four or five of them.    My only complaints are the gun clipping, and the final cutscene, where there is so much red, that it's REALLY hard to see what's going on without hurting your eyes.Sound 9/10     Shadow's soundtrack... is not for everyone. It focuses very much on techno and rock. However, a very large amount of the stage songs are very repetitive, if not catchy in parts. There are some songs that, while still repetitive, manage to sound good enough that you don't even notice it (Cosmic Fall is a popular one, though I personally enjoy The Ark and Circus Park). The vocal songs are fantastic, though. All Hail Shadow is a super popular one, but Never Turn Back is also worthy of recognition.    The voice actors sound perfectly fine. No one (other than Cream, who I just have problems with) sounds grating at all, even if they aren't the most brilliant performances you've ever seen.    The sound effects are nothing special, and don't particularly stand out, though the death cries are an overly dramatic touch that amuse me.Addictiveness 3/10     Here is where Shadow starts to fall down. HARD. One of the biggest things about Shadow, is that if you want to actually fully finish the game, you have to get ten different endings. Five? I could deal with. Ten? That's a lot harder to stick with. As such, the game is hard to finish because it gets SO repetitive. Once you beat the game, you don't get much either. At least, not enough to get you to play the game after it's done. You get the strongest weapon in the game, which is great and all, but... nothing can make up for playing through every stage until you get sick of them.Depth 4/10     This game has little to no real depth. You attack with B, jump with A, press X to slide, get into vehicles, or switch items, press R to strafe, and press Y to either toss your weapon or activate either Chaos Blast or Chaos Control.    This is where a little bit of depth comes in. Depending on your actions every stage, one of two gauges will increase. If you destroy boxes or attack soldiers, your red gauge will go up. If you put out fires, attack black aliens, and heal GUN forces, your blue gauge will go up.    If your red gauge fills up, you use Chaos Blast, which will destroy everything in the immediate area, sans bosses. If your blue gauge fills up, you use Chaos Control which, when in a stage, rushes you closer to the end of the stage and when you're in a boss, will slow down time, making it easier for you to pummel the boss.    There's also a bit of depth to the endings. Depending on what mission you do, it will determine which stage you do next. However, you can start off doing dark missions, then turn around and still get the pure hero ending. It's nothing complex, but it's still a nice little feature.    All of the depth basically comes from the whole evil/good thing.Story 3/10     It is a time of war. The Black Aliens (Yes that is what they're called) are attacking Earth, and all that stands between them is G.U.N, Sonic's gang, and Eggman's army. There are two sides to this, and it's up to Shadow to decide: Will he fight off the invaders, side with the aliens, or ignore them all together and go after Eggman? His memories, and Earth itself are at stake now.    Now, the main problem I have with the story is how jumbled it is. This is mostly caused by the multiple endings. The cutscenes differ every time (unless you take the same path twice). However, since the cutscenes still come attached to a certain stage every time, there is little to no connectivity between stages. They all just feel random and insignificant, as does the story. It's really hard to pick out the real story and how the cutscenes fit together, which just bogs down the cliche plot.Difficulty 6/10     This game is sort of weird with difficulty. The difficulty often depends entirely on what mission you do. If you do a mission where you have to destroy a vehicle, prepare for a lot of frustration, as if you miss even one opportunity, you'll fail the mission and be forced to start over.     Other than a couple bosses, though, the game is otherwise very easy if you just breeze through (though if you decide to go searching for keys I wish you luck, because a lot of them are very well hidden)   Shadow has some fake difficulty, sadly. The homing attack is buggy. You can home in on an enemy to try and get across, and you can just go right through the enemy and fall into a bottomless pit. Or, you can aim for one enemy, and instead home in on a different enemy that you didn't want to hit at all.

Things not covered above - They missed out on some brilliant songs. Who I am (Magna-Fi) and Broken (Sins of a Divine Mother) are great rock songs. - They very much copied some stage segments. Sky Troops and Glyphic Canyon in particular look suspiciously similar. + Every time you complete and ending, you get a new weapon. These unlockable weapons work really well and are probably the most goofy looking weapons in the game.  - They also reused bosses. There's six different bosses in the game, all of which appear at least twice, some can be fought multiple times in one play through.     All in all, I really wanted to love this game. For the first few endings, I actually did, but the game has so many shortcomings, and for every ending you get, you notice more and more problems. So, sadly I can't find myself giving Shadow any more than a 6.8    Thank you for reading.
  Graphics 9   Sound 9   Addictive 3   Story 3   Depth 4   Difficulty 6
      Review Rating: 3/5     Submitted: 04-10-14     Updated: 04-10-14     Review Replies: 4


Sonic's world goes through a huge dark change, Is It any good?   RedHotToddy

  Graphics 7   Sound 6   Addictive 7   Story 7   Depth 9   Difficulty 8
      Review Rating: 3/5     Submitted: 10-09-13     Updated: 10-10-13     Review Replies: 1

There are no submitted videos for this Game