As much as gamers love Sonic the Hedgehog, we just can’t help but be a little disappointed in his performance these past several years. Let’s face it - Sega’s #1 mascot has seen better days, specifically the 16-bit days. Why is it that Sega insists on keeping Sonic in three dimensions when he’s so much cooler in two? Well, Sega appears to be meeting us halfway with their latest reinvention of the series, Sonic Unleashed.
Unleashed is split into day and night levels, and the day is when you’ll be playing Sonic the way he was meant to be played. 3D platforming takes a backseat to speeding through obstacle course-laden environments, complete with loops, spring pads, and everything else that makes a good Sonic game. Avoiding obstacles and other threats is no longer the chore it once was in past 3D Sonic games, thanks to the new “quick step” feature (if you’re playing on a Xbox 360 or PS3). All it takes is a simple press of a shoulder button and Sonic shifts position on the runway without losing speed. Your speed also carries you around sharp corners and other environmental variables, courtesy of another new feature dubbed “speed drifting”. Finally, to ensure that you’re getting your fix of blast processing, the collecting of rings not only sustains your health, but they also – you guessed it – help you keep with pace by filling a speed boost bar. Though you’ll still be playing in 3D, the style of play is very much 2D, and there are times when you’ll even be playing in a 2D side perspective.
That sounds all well and good but what of the nighttime segments? Well, that’s where Unleashed takes a bit of an unexpected turn, to say the least. You see, returning villain Dr. Eggman has once again used the Chaos Emeralds for his evil schemes, releasing a monster from the Earth’s center. In doing so, the world has been broken up into pieces…and for some reason, Sonic has been cursed with becoming a “werehog” at night. Hey, we can’t say this is anymore strange than when Shadow was wielding firearms. For these werehog segments, the game becomes a beat ‘em up, as you smack around enemies with your stretchy werehog arms. That’s right, we said stretchy. Your rubber limbs are good for more than just striking foes; you’ll also be using them to complete more of those pesky platforming bits. Missing a jump is not necessarily the end for you because you can stretch out your arms and grab on to ledges to save yourself. Does this thing sort of thing belong in a Sonic game? That’s certainly up for debate, but we’ll see how things pan out in the end.
Visually, Unleashed looks like your standard 3D Sonic game. It isn’t likely that you’ll be whizzing around any bleak or gritty areas. The graphics are colorful, cheery, and almost plastic-looking. We know that Unleashed is weird and all, but it simply wouldn’t be a Sonic game without upbeat tunes to accompany you through tropical-themed levels, arid desert towns, and every other type of environment you expect to see in a mascot platformer.
It’s definitely a mysterious game, but we won’t know how well everything will fall together until this holiday season. All we can do is pray to the gaming gods that Unleashed will at least turn out to be decent and that our old blue friend won’t fade away into the void of mediocrity.
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