Shadow the Hedgehog

Posted: 11/16/05

Shadow the Hedgehog, the renegade creature from the Sonic universe, now has his own game. Utilizing weapons and his unnatural speed, Shadow must decide who to fight: the aliens, Dr. Eggman, or G.U.N. soldiers - as he embarks on a quest to find the truth about his past. It's action-oriented gameplay might surprise and confuse longtime fans, but it still has plenty of the fast-paced, rollercoaster style gameplay that makes it so fun to be a Hedgehog.

Shadow the Hedgehog contains many of the traditional Sonic elements, means the game is really fast. Fans of older Sonic games will appreciate the classic feel dating back to the Sega Genesis, that allows you to race through levels as fast as you can, while maintaining just enough control to not plunge to your death.

Shadow shares many of the same moves as Sonic, like the spin roll which can be used to attack enemies or break through areas. Shadow also can collect coins, and lose them when he's hit by an enemy. When he is attacked with zero coins, he loses a life.

The gameplay strays from tradition with Shadow’s ability to wield weapons. There is a full assortment of guns, swords, and even pieces of the environment that Shadow can pick up and use to take out his targets. He also has the ability to board vehicles. However, this is not much of a bonus when Shadow already moves as fast as lighting.

While it can be fun to blast through enemies while running at Sonic speeds, many of the missions will ask you to choose one of the armies and wipe them out completely. This forces you to go through the levels slower and more methodically. Since much of what made Sonic games unique in the past was their trademark speed, going through levels more thoroughly can be a tough adjustment at first.

Still, it's your choice on what objective you want to complete, and if you want to just race through the levels you can. This option, however, makes the game very short.

As the game begins, Shadow suffers from amnesia and is unable to remember if he was created to save the world or carry out the evil plans of the Black Arms. The truth of Shadow’s past lies in Chaos Emeralds he needs to collect. Shadow can follow the missions from either the good or evil side, and the path he chooses will alter the storyline, unlock different levels and cut scenes, and ultimately lead Shadow to one of multiple endings. This Choose-Your-Own-Adventure style gives the game replay value that many platform games lack.

Depending on which objective you complete, the story will progress accordingly. This makes it annoying when characters appear and try to get you to complete objectives from storyline paths you do not want to follow, so it can be difficult to realize who you need to pay attention to. Overall the multiple storylines provide more options, and ultimately, more hours of gameplay.

The levels are either dark and urban, or bright and psychedelic. Either way, they fit in well to the Sonic universe. They are loaded with speed ramps, loops and an assortment of other boosts that rocket Shadow like a pinball. From time to time there are slight slowdowns or camera glitches, but overall the action stays consistent as tons of stuff happens onscreen.

While it's fun to jump back and forth between hero and villain missions, all of the characters will attack you regardless of which type of mission you're trying to complete. This can make it frustrating to figure out which side your on in the heat of battle because everyone's trying to kill you, even people that are on your side. As fun as it is to follow multiple storyline paths, it rarely effects the gameplay in a cohesive way.

And although numerous familiar faces make cameo appearances, Shadow remains the only playable character. Depending on what side you take, good or bad guys from that side will travel with you, and give you tips and bits of encouragement. As fun as it is to follow Shadow's story, Sonic veterans might miss the chance to play as their favorite hero.

Fans of the Sonic franchise should be pleased with Shadow’s debut. It’s fast and retains a lot of the elements that made past Sonic games great. Also the multiple directions the story mode can take you in will give you an excuse to lose a lot of hours searching for Chaos Emeralds.


Shadow the Hedgehog

Release Date:
Gamecube, PS2, Xbox

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