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Sonic Unleashed; LAST UPDATE: 11/24/2008
Topic Started: Mar 23 2008, 07:49 PM (6,557 Views)
SoniCalvin
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dl316bh
Sep 11 2008, 10:34 PM
Hmm. I'm not too sure what I think of what I just saw. So far, there seems to be less endless pits scattered across the land. Yet, on the other hand, this is looking way too linear. It reminds me of the Sonic Adventure 2 Action Stages a little too much; it's also really missing the branching paths and such that made Sonic special. Not particularly liking what I saw there.

True. But this is just one video. Don't forget, the game does have branching paths.

dl316bh
 
The werehog sections also don't look like much fun. It looks like a marked detachment from the emphasis on speed in regular Sonic's parts. This is supposed to be an action/platformer, so breaking up the flow with something like such a drastic change seems a bad idea. It looks like it becomes something of a brawler when you go werehog.


Yeah, it does look like something ripped out of God of War, but the Werehog sections also have platforming elements. They're not all beat-em-up levels, though it seems like it.
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frungus
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UPDATE!

Has anyone seen this? It's probably a hoax of somebody's bored mind, but check it!

A user on Sonic Stadium says he has info on Unleashed. Fang returns, plus a new character, plus the leaked ending. Do I smell hoax?

Quote:
 
Alright, I guess I'll spoil the ending. Actually, it reminds me of something out of the early Crash Bandicoot games. It's entertaining. But first, it might help if I elaborate more of the new characters...

Tick - While he seems to help Sonic out of nowhere (he's basically this game's Omochao, except way more useful and he occasionally helps fight enemies if you go out of your way to find him), you find out he's connected with the Dark Gaia. In truth, he is the judgment of the Dark Gaia, which was separated from his mind when Eggman started using him for evil (yes, appearances are that deceiving).

Dark Gaia - While Eggman knows him only as a legendary beast that sleeps under the planet, he's actually related to Chaos - He was once a God and defender of the Echidnas rather than the Chao. Back then, he was known as the Light Gaia, their Holy Protector. However, when the Echidnas started exhibiting warlike behavior, he didn't want to fight his "brother" Chaos, and instead chose to forsake his chosen people by putting himself to sleep. Tick slowly reveals all of the story.

Fang - He's just hired with the promise from Eggman that Sonic is collecting the Chaos Emeralds, and he's willing to pay a lot of money for them. He basically goes around trying to track Sonic the whole game. After he's transformed, there's a boss battle and Sonic collects the final Emerald, reverting him to normal and knocking him unconscious. Ironically, after the Eggman fight in Center of the Earth, it's he who gathers all of Sonic's friends to the place and has a lucky shot destroying Eggman's beam device, realizing at last that the Emeralds are more than simple money-making ploys... But in the process, the device goes out of control and transforms Sonic into a Werehog "permanently" (until he absorbs the positive energies of the Emeralds).


Alright. After the final boss fight with the Dark Gaia (and yes, it is Dark Gaia, not the Chaos Golem, he was thinking of another boss that shows up after you place the last Emerald in the final shrine and I see that the story characters do indeed say the Dark Gaia), the Emeralds become neutralized... Or do they? Tails notices that it was Eggman that tampered with the Chaos Emeralds, and the Emeralds reject that power. He goes on to state a basic scientific principle about how energy is never totally destroyed, and you see the energy that created the Werehog start to flow into Eggman!

Everyone looks in fear as Eggman grows absolutely HUGE. He has this epic speech about how he's finally going to get rid of Sonic with his newfound powers and how he'll now build a GIANT Eggman Land to suit his giant throne, finishing with "I am the Eggman!", but then, suddenly, he stops growing and you hear a popping sound. He quickly regresses into a manageable size and transforms into a harmless, playful walrus (yes, it's a bad joke). Then Sonic winks at the camera and breaks the forth wall, saying something like "Heh, I knew we wouldn't have to go through a fourth boss!"

Then you see Dark Gaia, on the ground and writhing in pain. Knuckles approaches it, pulling out the Master Emerald and putting his hand over its forehead to sense its thoughts. Then you see some Shadow the Hedgehog-like flashbacks and Knuckles gets angry and realizes that this is the God that the Echidnas came to loathe, but then Tick shows up and stops him from his harsh judgment, telling the whole story that could be pieced together by now. Tick, it weak, too, and it doesn't look good.

Dark Gaia then sees a vision of Chaos, who did not forget about him after all. He "cleanses him for his sins" (as Knuckles puts it), and even Tick is surprised. Dark Gaia's light then returns to him and he's the Light Gaia again, and both Chaos and Tikal come down to take him to a better place. Tick doesn't want to go, though, and holds onto Sonic's hand as he fades off from their existence. Tikal doesn't say a word, but is last seen smiling down at Sonic as they ascend and fade away.

Everyone remains silent. Then they turn at Eggman (the walrus). Sonic does the goofiest thing to his altered enemy and whistles, breaking the ice and saying "C'mon, Eggy, let's go home!" The walrus moves over to Sonic, climbs on top, and licks him. Everyone laughs.


Yep. That's the ending. Eggman becomes Were-Eggman (sort of). Personally, I think this ending sets it up for Sonic Chronicles, in which Eggman's activity dwindles. This is probably the reason why.


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SoniCalvin
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This is all probably one big, fat, ugly lie. You're not the only one that smells a hoax here.

The name Dark Gaia has been confirmed to be the giant monster, and the little guy's name is Tip/Chip. Or it could be Tick too. Or something to that effect. Other than that, everything else smells false. Mainly because the rumour of Fang's return has been DENIED!

With Fang's return in this game false, I doubt a lot of this is true.
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frungus
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Still, I like the ending. It would've made this game by far awesome.
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SoniCalvin
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I don't know. The ending doesn't seem right to me. It kind of smells like bad fanfiction.
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frungus
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Your opinion. Walrus eggman would be the best character ever.
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SoniCalvin
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Sure, if they wanted to go for something humourous like AoStH. I don't think the games should be that funny. Sure, it's okay to have comedy in it, but having something like Eggman turning into a walrus would be too ridiculous.
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http://www.tssznews.com/2008/09/13/a-look-...edgehog-engine/

TSSZ News
 
Details are scarce, but images have surfaced from a CEDEC presentation given by Sega and SonicTeam on their upcoming "Hedgehog Engine" and how this technology is applied to Sonic Unleashed, the first game to use the Hedgehog Engine.

The CESA Developers Conference ( CEDEC for short) is, as I understand it, the Japanese equivalent to the North American Game Developers Conference (GDC for short). The event centers around developers who get up on stage and talk game technology - and this year, that lineup included a presentation given by Sega and SonicTeam.

Though the images are mostly in Japanese, a number of them seem easy to decipher - particularly, Sega seems to be proud of their new lighting technology, which does not just calculate baked-in shadows but includes colored lightmaps for light filtering through transparent objects and reflecting off the world. To you and me, this means much more natural, colorful lighting. This is further demonstrated by an image showing how their lighting engine applies to Sonic; light reflected off of nearby flowers tints Sonic a subtle pink.

Other elements of the presentation discuss the tools of the Hedgehog Engine, suggesting Sega is opening the technology to third-party licensing, much like Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3. These tools include Artificial Intelligence Libraries called Wisdom, an animation/model editor called Mirage, a cinematics editor called Inspire, and more. Most interesting to Sonic fans is are two images of Inspire featuring a close-up look at a stylized human character and Chip.

Since details are so short at the time being, we have provided the images from this presentation below just in case the original source takes them down.
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A short preview article from PlayStation: The Official Magazine.

PlayStation: The Official Magazine
 
Sonic Unleashed
PS3
Available: November
Genre: Action
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Sonic Team

They say the freaks come out at night--so why should Sonic be any different? In his latest high-speed outing, Sonic slows things up when the sun goes down in a series of nighttime levels that focus on combat instead of quickness. Set in the same areas that Sonic blazes through during the day, these darkened cityscapes are prowled by a transformed hedgehog with super-strength and extra-long arms. So instead of barreling through Doctor Eggman's henchmen at 300 mph, you'll smash them to bits with your, uh, werehog claws. Gary
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IGN have posted lists of big games coming this fall. Sonic Unleashed is on their lists of 360, PS3, and Wii games to look forward to.

IGN 360 and PS3
 
Sonic Unleashed
Developer: Sonic Team
Publisher: SEGA
Release Date: November 18th
Genre: Action

What to Expect: It's been a long time since we had reason to get excited about a Sonic game, but SEGA has actually given us the kind of Sonic we've been craving for years: fast, nearly out of control and with only an end goal littered with loops, dodges, twisting rails and massive jumps in between. They've also given us reason to be just a little concerned, however, as all that speed is being countered with more traditional platforming and, er, combat with stretchy arms as Sonic gets in touch with his lycanthropic side during the full moon.

Still, concerns aside, one thing has been blatantly obvious since the original trailer for the game was released: speedy Sonic is (at least in part) back, and we couldn't be more pumped about sending him screaming through parts of Baltic Europe, Greece and wherever else his adventure takes him. Throw in some checkerboard patterns and a few monitors to bust and we may just faint from the nostalgia overload. That or a blood vessel may pop from all our pent-up nerd rage. Either way, we're definitely marking this as something to look forward to... for good or ill.


IGN Wii
 
Sonic Unleashed
Publisher: SEGA
Developer: Dimps
Release Date: November 18, 2008
Genre: Action

People are dying to be able to love Sonic again. The last few years have been rough on the Hedgehog, as his recent appearances have fallen to the extremes -- he's been in some excellent games like Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Sonic Rush on the DS, but he's also slogged through bargain-bin-bound garbage like the Sonic the Hedgehog "reboot" on Xbox 360 and PS3. Now, in Sonic Unleashed, the mascot looks to be quite literally torn between those realities. (See boxart for reference.)

On the one side, we've got classic Sonic. Built for speed and meant for side-scrolling, that's the Hedgehog we know and love -- and Sonic Unleashed is equipped with old-school-inspired levels just like that. (See screenshot for reference.) On the other side, though, is this weird new Werewolfhog thing that Sonic transforms into in the game, triggering faux beat-'em-up levels that see Sonic attacking his enemies with wildly stretching Dhalsim arms. Is it possible to only buy half the game? Because that sort of weirdness is exactly what we don't want to see Sonic doing.

So Sonic Unleashed seems to be the very picture of a fan favorite character torn between who he should be and who he's been murderously transformed into -- let's just hope the final product comes out on the right side of the equation.


EDIT: Nintendo Power has written a full 3-page article on the Wii version of Sonic Unleashed, going into full detail on how the controls work, and also going into more detail on the cinematic intro to the game.

Nintendo Power
 
When Sega announced Sonic Unleashed, we knew it was going to be something special. After all, it blends the 3-D action that the hedgehog's been known for as of late with classic-style 2-D gameplay that hasn't been seen in a console Sonic game for more than a decade.

But one of gaming's recent worst-kept secrets was that there was more to Sonic Unleashed than initially met the eye. As producer Yoshihisa Hashimoto said in our interview in Vol. 231, "One thing I can tell you is that there is a clear difference between day and night stages." But now the cat's out of the bag--or, to be more precise, the wolf is. During Sonic Unleashed's nighttime stages, Sonic transforms into a ferocious Werehog form, and the game evolves from a lightning-quick platformer to a full-blown beat-'em-up.

The reason for Sonic's unusual metamorphosis is explained during the game's incredible CG intro. This visual tour de force features Sonic facing Dr. Robotnik (aka Eggman) in a climactic outer-space battle sequence in which Sonic uses the power of the Chaos Emeralds to transform into Super Sonic and kick Robotnik's ample butt, leaving the not-so-good doctor begging for forgiveness. It's a ruse, of course--Robotnik traps Sonic and sucks the energy right out of the Chaos Emeralds, then uses the power to fire a superweapon into the planet below. The resultant impact releases an evil entity that was trapped within the planet, while the forces at work also wreak havoc on Sonic himself. The normally cheery hedgehog transforms into a menacing Werehog: bigger and more muscular, with fangs, claws, hornlike ears, and a fine coat of blue-and-white fur. Perhaps because having a stronger and more dangerous Sonic onboard his ship isn't the best idea, Robotnik boots Sonic out the airlock, and so begins Sonic's quest to restore both the planet and himself.

A Day in the Life
As the term Werehog suggests, Sonic's transformation takes place only at night. Sega hasn't revealed exactly why that's the case, but it means that during the game's daytime stages Sonic is his usual speedy self. By moving Sonic with the nunchuk's Control Stick and jumping with the A Button on the remote, you'll guide the hero through blistering-fast levels. A good portion of the stages we've seen take place from a behind-the-back perspective (similar to Sonic and the Secret Rings or the upcoming Sonic and the Black Knight), which gives you a chance to try out some of Sonic's new moves, such as the quick step (dodge left or right by holding B and tapping the Control Stick in the desired direction) and a new drift mechanic that lets you earn bonuses by holding B or Z to whip around tight turns. But within any given daytime stage, the action will shift seamlessly to a side-view 2-D-style perspective and let you kick it old-school as you boost on conveyor belts, slide along rails, bounce off of springboards, and collect seemingly endless streams of rings.

No matter whether you're viewing the action in 2-D or 3-D, you'll get to take out enemies using Sonic's trademark homing dash attack by shaking the Wii remote. Shaking the remote also lets you initiate a speed boost that's powered by a gauge at the bottom of the screen. Collecting rings, beating baddies, and successfully earning drift bonuses lets you refill and expand the boost gauge, thus allowing you to chain together an explosive cavalcade of action, platforming, and speed.

The daytime stages we've seen thus far reveal a diverse selection of gorgeous locales, such as the Rooftop Run of the lush European-flavored city of Spogonia and a sandy, oasis-filled desert known as Shamar. The red-and-gold Dragon Road of the Chinese-themed Chun-Nan area is another eye-opener; it boasts stone bridges, ornate pagodas, vast mountains in the background, and even a section where Sonic demonstrates his skill by running on water. Better yet--although Sonic Unleashed is coming to multiple systems, the Wii version offers unique level designs you won't see anywhere else.

Wild Nights
Nighttime, however, is when things really get interesting: Sonic's Werehog form emerges, and the Blue Blur becomes the Blue Brute. Sonic gains a health bar, his breakneck speed slows to a more-deliberate pace (Werehog Sonic isn't exactly slow, but he lumbers kind of like a gorilla), and straightforward levels give way to stages with a greater emphasis on nonlinearity and puzzle solving.

But the main focus of the night stages is on just one thing--beating the stuffing out of your enemies. Simple swings of the remote (for Sonic's right hand) or nunchuk (for his left) dish out damage to foes, pressing Z lets you block, and by chaining together combos and mixing in advanced moves (simultaneously swinging the remote and nunchuk up, down, or toward each other) you can really lay the hurt on the evil entity's minions. You can also literally send your foes flying by using the B Button to grab and toss them, either into the distance or into each other. Collecting red orbs as you explore the nighttime stages lets you unlock new moves (such as the Were-Hammer, Were-Wallop, Were-Rush, Earthshaker, and Beatdown), and when you want to really get nasty, you can press the C Button to activate Unleashed mode: a temporary powered-up state in which you gain new attacks and take less damage from your enemies.

Sonic's buff, burly arms are good for more than clobbering killer bees, dark bats, and other enemies, though--they actually stretch like rubber, allowing you to grab ledges and pull yourself up. You can even grab and dangle off of some enemies in midair, then wave the remote to swing back and forth like a pendulum before launching yourself to a nearby platform. As a Werehog, you get to use the Wii controls in numerous other creative ways, such as climbing poles by lifting the remote and nunchuk alternately, and raising a heavy gate by yanking up with both controllers. Sometimes you'll have to use brains as well as brawn--for example, lifting a crate onto a switchplate or using Sonic's aforementioned acrobatic skills to find energy keys to unlock a door and proceed through the area.

In addition to the speed-oriented daytime stages and combat-heavy nighttime stages, Sonic Unleashed will feature exploration-based hub areas (although Sega promises that you won't have to spend much time in them if you'd rather get straight to the action)--just one more part of the equation that is so far adding up to one of Sonic's most promising, robust, and innovative console offerings in a while. Prepare to unleash the beast when the game arrives on Wii this November.
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Over at TSSZ News, I have found magazine scans of the 360 edition of Sonic Unleashed, showing off some new shots of the China level. This information, and the screenshots come from the UK magazine, 360 Gamer.

360 Gamer
 
Sonic Unleashed
Finding the fun, all over again

You know a series has hit rock bottom when even the company peddling it feels the need to apologise for the state it's in. And judging by SEGA's recent admission that the 'hog's past few outings haven't been all that great, then 'rock bottom' is certainly where its once proud mascot finds himself nowadays.

With his 16-bit heyday now a rapidly fading memory and a string of disappointing attempts to take The Spiky Blue One into the third dimension, it's fair to say that Sonic's seen better times. Indeed, were it not for the occasional cameo in Smash Bros. Brawl, or the inevitable re-releases of his Mega Drive games on Virtual Console and Live, we'd probably be sat here wondering just why SEGA's attempting to keep the little guy going. But that's exactly what SEGA's trying to do with Sonic Unleashed - and on this occasion, it may just have struck upon a formula that could restore some of its mascot's former glory. The fact we've been saying the same thing for years - only to be disappointed on nigh-on every occasion - means we now approach each new Sonic game with a strong sense of caution. But even with this in mind, Sonic Unleashed makes a lot more sense than all the misguided attempts that have gone before it.

This newfound sense of optimism comes not from what Sonic Team has included in Unleashed, but rather what it's removed: a whole dimension, to be precise. In much the same way that Capcom has opted to keep Street Fighter IV's gameplay strictly 2D, so Sonic Team has realised that certain things simply work better without the third dimension - Sonic included. Although the all-new game engine - appropriately dubbed 'Hedgehog' - enables the action to be presented from either a 2D or a 3D perspective, the gameplay will be predominantly two-dimensional. And furthermore, it should be quick as well. With your basic path set, players can look forward to Sonic doing what Sonic does best - blazing across the landscape, tearing through loops, grinding along rails and using blistering pace and well-timed jumps to access new areas.

But while the side-on camera views especially would give Unleashed the appearance of a vintage Sonic game, there have been a few modern twists added to spice things up. Essentially, these are designed to keep the momentum up: the familiar homing jump attack is back, and is joined by the speed drift, which - as the name implies - allows you to drift around corners at speed. Players will also be presented with the occasional quick time event, with successful completion of these allowing you to access other areas in the game. But the most significant of these additions is the Sonic Boost mode. This is charged up by collecting rings, and once unleashed, gives Sonic an extra burst of speed, akin to Burnout's boost system.

Even the graphics will help make this a blisteringly fast gaming experience. Although Unleashed may look pretty handy in the screenshots that have been released, it's the rate at which the game moves that's been the most pleasing aspect of the visuals so far. Everything from the speed blur to the slight buffeting of the camera helps create a very convincing sensation of speed. And because this is a 2D game running on a 3D engine, Sonic Team has been able to pick out the most dramatic camera angles for the various set pieces. While we won't be able to tell for sure just how well this works until we've had the chance to sit down and play it, simply watching Sonic bouncing off springs, launching off ramps and tearing down hills is a strong indicator that Unleashed is heading in the right direction.

But yet, we're not entirely at ease with Sonic Team's latest vision for its titular character. Our main concern isn't with Sonic himself, but his 'werehog' alter ego. The basic idea behind this is that as day turns to night, so our supersonic spiny chum mutates from his usual sleek self into a hulking big beast, with stretchy arms and brute strength aplenty. Needless to say, this does take the edge off his speed, placing more emphasis on fighting and exploring. On the plus side, Sonic the Werehog will have around 30 moves, and no shortage of enemies to use them on. But incorporating different styles of play into its games has traditionally been a problem area for Sonic Team - just look at the various Sonic Adventure games and the 2006 360 and PS3 title for proof of that. Nevertheless, we are retaining a cautious sense of optimism about Sonic Unleashed until we'releft bereft once again.


EDIT:
TSSZ News
 
Sonic Unleashed Featured on Latest ONM Cover
New Sonic Unleashed Wii preview featured in latest Official Nintendo Magazine issue, new details inside...

Released yesterday, the 35th issue of the Official Nintendo Magazine features Sonic's Werehog form on the cover and a brand new preview of the Nintendo Wii version of Sonic Unleashed. The latest issue has more detail on how the Nintendo Wii version will play, including new information on a few of the game's many locations.

Sonic Unleashed will indeed take place on a Earth-like planet, the Official Nintendo Magazine reveals that this planet has yet to actually be confirmed as Earth. As we already know, each location will be based on a real-life country, but it appears they will not be officially named after each of its respected inspirations. It has now been confirmed that the Greece (Mykonos) level will be called Cokotos and the Italy level will be named Spagnolia.

Though the new preview does not give very much new information on the games story, Tails and company will make a few appearances during cutscenes. It's also mentioned that one or two surprise characters will also appear in the story, if anyone has their own hopeful character appearances, make sure you comment below.

Adventure fields will of course make a return, though we can only hope for a improvement over Sonic 06. It seems the adventure fields will be slightly different then how they were designed and used in Sonic Adventure. So far these sections will simply consist of still screens with text dialogue and can also be skipped if needed. This is of course from a preview-build of the game, so this version of the adventure fields could likely be a placeholder for when the actual sections are finished being designed. Either that or these sections could be very different between the Wii/PS2 and Xbox 360/PS3 versions of Sonic Unleashed. The sections mentioned by ONM could be accessed through a menu screen where you could select different parts of the city and speak to people there.

The good news for anyone who was worried about frame rate issues from the Xbox 360 version, the Wii version is said to run at full speed with an extremely smooth frame rate. The only major differences between gameplay of the Wii and Xbox 360 version (besides graphics) is how the 3D sections are wider in the Wii Sonic Unleashed. This is to make use of Sonic's drift move, where holding a button will allow Sonic to turn a corner and make him skid around it sharply. This will build up his boost meter and work similarly to the Burnout video game series drifting and burnout meter.

The preview does not reveal very much regarding the Werehog nighttime stages, but does mention that it seems less enemies appear on screen during gameplay then that of the Xbox 360 version shown at the Games Convention in Leipzig.

"If you're a Sonic fan and you've been wary of getting too excited, we can officially assure you that it's now safe to do so. This is Well on its way to being a fantastic Sonic game."

Official Nintendo Magazine #35 was released yesterday in Europe, check below for a scan of the cover and make sure you pickup a copy at the nearest store right away.


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Australian gaming site, PALGN, have recently tried out the 360 version of Sonic Unleashed. And they have this to say.

PALGN
 
With the arrival of the next generation consoles, many long lasting franchises have been brought back from the dead in order to capture the market with their once prominent charm. Sonic the Hedgehog stumbled a little in this regard however, releasing a few titles that were rather lacking. With Sonic Unleashed however, Sonic seems to be going back to his old roots, and potentially bringing back some of the things we all know and love about the blue hedgehog. We were recently given the opportunity to play the latest build on the Xbox 360, and came out with hope.

Sonic Unleashed tends to be a bit of a mixture between new and old. Combining the breakneck speed of the original 2D platformers with the slower pacing of the next generation iterations, it brings to the table something for all the old and new fans alike. The game alternates between day and night levels, day being more side scrolling platforming with occasional flips to third person, and night being of slower pace much like the Sonic Adventure titles. We unfortunately did not get any time with the night levels, but we did play the game's second day level, based in Greece.

Controls were simple. The A button was used for jumping over obstacles, B was used for attacks and crouching, and X was used for turbo boosts and dashing into targets while in mid-air and such. Sonic moves extremely fast, especially when the turbo boost is activated (which is only useable when enough coins have been collected), and can sometimes make it difficult to control. The saving grace of this, however, is the use of the left and right bumpers, which will dash you quickly to the left and right respectively. Movement with the analogue stick was a little slippery and felt way too sensitive at points, though we were assured that this was to be balanced come release time.

The level design was great, with quick reflexes required for jumps through speed rings in the air and dashes across vast leaps. A few issues did pop up though, namely a few bugs. At points it was extremely difficult to jump on rails, with very accurate movement of the analogue required, the bumpers also being difficult. There were a few odd camera issues too but we were assured that these bugs will be removed once the game hits shelves.

Visually, Sonic Unleashed has a very minimalist look to it, but it suits the style of the game. Colours are as vibrant and cheerful as expected from a Sonic game, but it helps bring the game to life, especially in the level we played where many colours were prominent and set the mood. There were quite a few framerate dips however, and it's very noticeable due to the game's insanely fast pace, so hopefully Sega will be able to rectify those framerate issues come release time.

Aurally, Sonic Unleashed sounds solid, with classic sounds like the checkpoint and such making a return, and effects perfectly in time with the breakneck speed of our hedgehog friend. Music was not really noticeable especially when moving so fast, but it's the typically cheerful music that we've all become accustomed to with Sonic games. Sonic is still as annoying as ever with his voice, with constant yelps of his own name as you play and every time you load a new area, though most Sonic fans would be about used to that now. It's a solid effort on sound which will keep most audio lovers content.

Sonic Unleashed has the potential to be great. It's visually appealing, and has good breaks in pacing with the inclusion of the day and night levels. However, it does risk falling into the category of being far too simplistic and repetitive for its own good. Though fun, the day levels may get a bit boring if the levels are not varied enough, and if the night levels turn out to be anything like the previous effort on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, it could end up repeating the same mistakes the previous games did.

That being said though, what we've played and seen looks promising, and fingers crossed that Sega have learned from their mistakes and Sonic Unleashed becomes a game worth going for.

Overall:
As long as Sega tweak up the game and make the night levels play well, Sonic Unleashed has the potential to be a great title.


EDIT: Here's some footage taken from a French game convention called "Festival de jeu video". A full run through the Cokotos level. Unfortunately, whoever recorded this playthrough was filming the wrong person entirely to play the game.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6wbaj_so...shed_videogames

Oh my God, does this person not know how to play a Sonic game?! Hell, does he not know how to play a video game in general?!
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This scan of a page of a Japanese magazine seems to focus on Super Sonic a bit.

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We know Super Sonic will be in the opening video of the game, but this makes me wonder if he'll get more screentime. We can only hope for Super Sonic being fully playable in the daytime levels.
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Hopefully, but I'm not going to hold my breath. Sonic Team hasn't allowed for Super Sonic to be playable in regular levels since S3&K. It's infuriating.

Super Sonic will likely be relegated to some "last story" nonsense. Sadface.
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Damiens Omens: My review blog
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SoniCalvin
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Sadface indeed. While I find Super Sonic's appearances in a game's "Last Story" to be epic for story purposes, I really miss when I would pwninate the opposition in regular levels back in Sonic 2, and 3&K. Oh man, do I want Super Sonic back in regular levels.
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Update: I am mighty pissed
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