I would love to see an Ifrit boss and nega Mother Wisp bosses in Sonic x Shadow generations. Both are connected to lore that sega refuses to use. Ifrit (sonic rivals 2) can destroy an intirer dimension bathing it in fire (the game comfirms its whole universe, not just a planet). Sonic and Shadow only defeat a heavily weakened ifrit as it isn't fully revived yet (it did eat a bunch of chao and become invincible, though. Plus, he has mind control powers and is just as sentient as chaos even though it wasn't at full power). But they still beat it in base, which is still incredibly impressive. I bring him up because Gerald has notes on ifrit implying Gerald Robotnik somehow got into the dimension that chaosic inferno takes place in. Plus, ifrit seems connected to the chao somehow, and Gerald knows of him, so i hope he is at least in the journal. As for the nega mother wisp, I loved her boss fight. She is a part of the wisps lore (yes, the wisps have lore actually lore, such as the mother wisp creating the wisps and the planets that eggman captured, the ds version of colors going into detail on how negative wisps are made and how it affects their minds, actually giving each wisps their own personalities like Lazer trying to fight the robots and void straight up destroying shit and causing chaos. The mother wisp is kind and motherly but can have a temper. eggman is lucky he got caught in the black hole before she got free. Plus, the wisps actually flow with level design in colors wii and ds. Similar to how the doom powers seem to. Unlike in the lost world or forces. The ds has a better story than the wii version. It has interesting lore, the wisps are fun and the stages are fun. Not to mention, multiple characters have sonic do missions to help free wisps or extra information on what is going on. I have both versions. The wisps are neat and do have lore. I wish sega would actually utilize their lore more). Ifrit and the mother wisp are very interesting and think you should cover them. Plus, the fact that Sonic and Shadow, among other characters, defeated Ifrit in base shows how powerful they are. Also, I think marine the raccoon should return due to her unexplained power, and the complaints about her are already addressed in her character arc and development from sonic rush adventure. Also, phantom king creates the egg revery, which is infinite in space-time, and space and time (yes, there is a difference) in Sonic Mania, and that's just classic super sonic. Also, Chaos drives, artificial chaos, the ark, and G.U.N. are all interesting. I wish sega would use them more, too. Oh, and Emerl and Gemerl should be explored a bit again. Sonic rush, rush adventure, rivals 2, the advance games, sonic battle, and Sonic colors ds deserve more attention. Oh, and sega sonic the hedgehog arcade is awesome. oh, and Sage definitely should return as she is a neat character with cool lore. And the dark arms and black doom are neat lore wise.
@@jonathanhargraves2241Mission structure was already in Heroes, when you play as Chaotix. It's an evolution of Adventure 2's extra missions, like finding the lost Chao, which is an evolution of Adventure 1's extra missions of finishing the stage with a certain amount of rings. It's a natural progression, even if you don't enjoy it.
What are the glitches in Heroes, Colours, Generations, or Forces? I'm pretty sure Shadow is only one among the not glitchy Sonic games, not some crowning achievement.
@@genyakozlov1316 You are right that being amongst the least buggy games in this franchise isn't much to be happy about, despite the series being notorious for how much of a mess it can be sometimes. The games you listed lack bugs, but they have some issues too (aside from Colors). Generations and Forces have the same issue, being that Classic Sonic feels clunky. Both versions lack basic momentum, something that Sonic 4 got outed for because of how weird of a choice that is. Gens Sonic has the overpowered spin dash that makes up for having virtually no momentum, and this crutch is very noticeably missing in a game like Forces. Heroes also lacks glitches, but that game is a bit messy, too. Shadow the Hedgehog has slippery controls too, but it was tuned down a bit when compared to Heroes. Given I've played both games for roughly the same amount of time, I can say that with confidence. The game is also notorious for its collision issues, with clipping through the floor being its most talked about issue.
@jonathanhargraves2241 not to mention Shadow The Hedgehog models is copy and paste from Sonic Heroes but much slower in comparison. And weapon gimmick is rip off of Call Of Duty
They don’t walk around with m16s lol. The weapons in ratchet aren’t too dissimilar from what you’d see in a cartoon and Star Fox characters aren’t really that cartoony. I’m a shadow shill anyway I like it lol
People have actually concluded that a weapon like that is possible, there would just be no point because it would just be less effective than the non-pump version.
When I got access to the internet as a kid, I inevitably found Shadow The Hedgehog. I don't remember how exactly, but my biggest enthrall to it was Crush 40's music, specifically "I am... All of Me." This one song, and the little slideshow this video had of some screenshots followed by footage of the intro to the game, left a HUGE impression on me. I wanted to play this game, I even asked over and over to let me get it along with a Gamecube controller, but being a kid I wasn't assertive enough on it and I ended up being interested in other things, and never got to play this game. Shadow The Hedgehog, was the one game that got away. The game that, alongside Sonic Heroes, I ALWAYS wanted to play... but never had the chance. Now, fast forward to present day, I struggled to know who I really was, who I really wanted to be. And a part of that was my lackluster connections to games. So, with Sonic Frontiers out and about, I decided: I will play through most of the Sonic games. And finally, after years... I finally got to play Shadow The Hedgehog. And it was like nothing I ever experienced before. It was not one of the most nostalgic moments to me personally, but it was the most satisfied I felt playing a game in a while. The controls were no where near as bad as others say, I found the missions to be replayable and great (except for the times I forget one little thing and get lost but that's ultimately my fault cause the stages are surprisingly linear despite the maze like feel), and although I still need to beat SA2 as of writing this before I can finish Shadow The Hedgehog, I just couldn't wait. I had to at least play some of the levels and it was genuinely worth the experience as its unlike any other Sonic Game. People let their expectations get the better of them sometimes. I had no idea what to expect as while Shadow The Hedgehog was a game I always wanted to play, I was afraid I'd be disappointed and I still have that fear with Sonic Heroes. But playing it, even for just a little while, was something special to me. As a writer as well I try to look passed the story flaws and make connections others aren't willing to. Like deep down Abraham's reason for despising Shadow despite being responsible for the raid was due to many things. Firstly his fear and distain towards Shadow which he developed by witnessing Gerald and Black Doom make him contributes to why he always sees Shadow as a threat, and is proven right in his eyes when Black Doom returns. This distrust, on top of the heartbreak of Maria's death which to him was more than just an accident, leads to him blaming not Shadow for directly killing her, but Shadow's EXISTENCE for killing her. If Shadow was never born, maybe she would've at least had a chance to live. But then, Abraham finds himself face to face with his greatest fear, wanting to put him down for good! Gun to Shadow's Head, he explains his grief and hatred to Shadow.. And then Shadow walks away, with Abraham's grief finally catching up to him after all these years of fear. In one ending you could fight him and Sonic with Abraham being proven right about Shadow being a threat, or in the True Ending he finally sees Shadow as the hero he was never accepted as, finally letting go of a deep grudge. So yeah I loved the choose your path dynamic, even if the pieces are all scattered. Even The Android plot was nothing more than Eggman's attempt at manipulating Shadow to do his personal bidding, fucking with his head even more. The hundreds of alternate paths to me feel like Shadow trying to piece together a story as we are. He is lost, he doesn't know what he is and regardless of the conclusion he comes to it still doesn't feel right. And in gameplay its so cool making what is essentially a playlist of levels for your own path. You, like Shadow, can change your mind. And while it is a LOT of replay value, it compliments the spiraling mess that is Shadow's fractured mind right now. I love the game's story, but yeah the writing is bad in a lot of places and really deserved the polish Sonic X Shadow Generations, and Sonic 3 The Movie is giving it.This on top of the hybrid gameplay between Sonic's fast pace and a third person objective shooter makes Shadow something incredibly unique, especially when you play the rest of the Sonic games back to back. Now, I still haven't beat the game. I need to beat SA2 and Sonic Heroes first. But if just playing through some of its endings makes me loves this game already, then I'm more than eager to finish after I fight through the rest of my catalog. When I beat it, I'll come back and give my final thoughts. But seeing other people love this black diamond in the rough is inspiring to me, and this review made me want to share my own thoughts on the game. It's crazy how I can have such a long history with a game I only just started playing, and soon I'll finally put that to rest.
I legitimately want to get the Black Arms logo tattooed onto me at some point. I want to wear my love of this game like a badge of honor. I will name my firstborn child after this game.
The fact that assaults on games like Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog, 06, Rise of Lyric, Lost World and Forces are short AF and tend to be pointless hate yaps with genuinely next to no arguments while the videos defending them tend to be pretty long and have legitimate arguments, many times nonnegotiably factual arguments, speaks volumes on which side is overhating and being unreasonable and which side is just fighting in favor of critical thinking and real criticism. Aside from Sonic 4: Episode I (NOT Episode II) there isn't a single mainline game that deserves less than a 6/10, I'm glad people like you exist to shine light on some of them properly.
@@DarkShadow8754 Sonic used a Sword in Black Knight even though he has Super Speed. Tails uses an Arm cannon in Sonic Battle even though he’s stronger than a normal human. If you’re going to pull that excuse with Shadow than you would have to with other characters
@@hattoripool1533 Those games are spin offs, like Shadow 05... Also Tails is the one that makes most sense, since he is the machine nerd, in SA2 he literally only uses the tornado mech.
Just to address the writing issues in this game, the original Japanese version of this game is slightly better written. While the Japanese version still has characters using minor swear words, it's not as excessive as it is in the dub. Also, the whole thing with the president suggesting that they pay homage to Professor Gerald was actually a mistranslation. What he actually suggested was that they attone for their actions 50 years ago, which makes a hell of a lot more sense than paying homage to a man who tried to wipe out all of humanity.
In Gerald's defense, he was driven mad by Maria (and everyone else working on the ARK)'s death and turned the Eclipse Cannon (Which was made to destroy the Black Comet) against humanity out of revenge.
Well seeing as their sins is the only reason Gerald wanted to wipe out humanity, i think its implied they want to pay off their debt to him as well. I mean, THEY told him to start Project Shadow (yes, it wasnt on his own volution), THEY killed everyone on ARK and shut the thing down, THEY painted him as a criminal, THEY lied to him about Maria and let him believe shes still alive for whatever amount of time, and then THEY forced him to work for their benefit while in prison. The man played by their rules, worked tirelessly for the mankind, and thats all he gets. He deserves a homage.
Shadow is legitimately awesome to speedrun and has a finely crafted levels that are a blast to run n gun through once you start to understand the little nuances of the game. If you hold x to slide kick, you can kinda use it to curve around walls, quickly slide off of ledges for large drops and if Shadoe touches a wall during his sliding descent, he will ride the wall and accelerate down, getting to the ground much faster. This is also the game that got rail grinding right with the flip switching. The only issue with grinding in this game is the lack of a speed cap lol. Try mashing X on the oval rail to build up speed during the 2nd Black Bull fight in Death Ruins. Shadow will never stop accelerating as long as he doesn't get hit. The camera starts spazzing out once Shadow goes fast enough and motion blur is smeared all over the screen lmao.
I would believe it. I found Heroes and 06 to be far more enjoyable and open level design wise if you just embrace all the exploits with momentum and other stuff
Same, buckled down and grinded out the last hundred over the course of a week about a month ago. Beat a lot of my best times over the course of that grind, and found a lot of little time saving tricks.
Glad to see there are other folks who decided to celebrate the Year of Shadow by doing all 326 routes. I was floored by how thoughtful some of the story names in the library were. I love the game more than ever after finally doing this.
@@TheBohobemeister nice! I'm surprised it took me until '24 to decide to do it haha, been thinking about it for years and it ended up being a lot of fun
yO BRO IS COOKING. FINALLY SOMEONE BRAVE ENOUGH TO SAY THIS this game was the reason why i got a ps2 in the first place right after heroes on PC. haven't regretted it once. shadow's been my comfort character ever since for all the reasons stated in the video and more. as an adult whenever i hear disrespect towards this game i instead keep thinking about replaying it for every route completion. as a kid i was obsessed with finding all names for them. i used to do like at least one route a day and wrote it off in a lil notepad lmao wish there was some pc remaster so i can hold it close to heart where it belongs
This game introduced me to the concept of multiple endings to a game. Even if it caused frustration with how wacky the story could diverge with choices, it was still a fun time. My only regret is not finishing the last story. Devil Doom was pretty difficult for me back then, and if I could, I'd go back and finish the game for good.
Just do it lol. There is even a website "retroachievements" which does exactly what you would expect from it's name, achievements for games (you just need to play on an emulator that supports this, on the "download" tab it shows the list)
A lot of the "story issues" you mention are exclusive to the dub. The Japanese script is not overly edgy, and the President and Commander talk about honoring the victims on the ARK rather than Gerald. I cant fathom why people never judge Sonic, a Japanese character written by Japenese people, through that lens
And the translation changing the scene a lot isn’t even exclusive to Shadow. It literally happened in SA2 multiple times and caused a lot of misunderstandings of the plot in the west. People still think Shadow said Sonic was the real ultimate lifeform, and a lot of people don’t know Gerald tampered with his memories. Bad translations were a staple of Sonic up till about ‘06.
I also really like this game, have been playing it since around release, and have never understood the hate despite having the buggier PS2 version back then and struggling to fulfill the objectives required to diverge off the Neutral Route during my earlier playthroughs as an adolescent. 23:39 Counter Proposal: Keep all 10 What-If endings, but let the player progress to the alternate final bosses by accessing the final stages they've already finished one of the missions for in Story Mode via the Select Mode. That cuts the number of required full playthroughs in half, thus decreasing the burnout some feel for this game designed for re-playability, while keeping all the equally valid conclusions to these What-Ifs and still requiring that the player experience some alternate missions before unlocking the canonical Final Story.
10:03 what the heck even is an “objective standpoint”? If you think it looks badass then it looks badass. I feel like you hold back on showing your love for this game a lot throughout this video. Dude, shadow with a gun looks BADASS and it’s FINE to think that, let’s not take things too seriously here, because the game doesn’t take itself seriously at all either. This game is a masterpiece.
Sonic characters swearing isn’t exactly a new concept. These games are typically written in Japanese so within their original language, the characters do swear like saying damn, shit or hell. It’s more of a western taboo than it is over there unless people stop looking at Sonic through the lenses of a westernized platformer like Mario and Crash Bandicoot and looked at Sonic more like a Japanese action franchise much like IPs it’s stylistically similar to like Shonen Battle Anime and JRPGs
Shadow the hedgehog is like the opposite of a bad sonic game; instead of buggy gameplay & decent story, there’s decent gameplay & a buggy story. Except it’s actually fun unlike a bad sonic game. Having multiple endings that you can access via playing the game differently that actually provide different levels is actually a great idea cuz unlike other games with alternate endings, there’s less overall that gets repeated, but what does get repeated is repeated more simply due to how many endings it has. 10 is just a little too much to ask of from the player & it becomes either overwhelming & daunting or boring & tedious to get to where the pathway branches. Also semi cartoon & sleek cyperpunk est guns would be the best fit for shadow, specifically give shadow a sleek laser/cyber rifle with some engravings reminiscent of his design somewhat, like a dark rose & its thorns.
I recently made my own deep-dive into this game to honor the Year of Shadow, and while my video definitely skews more negative than yours, I wanted to letcha know that I really like what you did here. Fighting the good fight for a thing you're passionate about and enjoy is super admirable and I respect the Hell out of it. Despite our videos having very different perspectives, we actually touch on a lot of the same talking points and opinions. Rock on fella!
I'm not too surprised that nostalgia and personal backstory play a part in why this is your favorite game ever. Usually, if a game isn't the greatest ever, that's the only way it could be considered someone's favorite of all time. Honestly, people wrote this game off way too quickly. It has its flaws to be sure, but if you can get past those, there's a genuinely fun experience in there. I replayed the game last year and was able to 100% it and unlock Expert Mode. It could be tedious at times, _especially_ with the flashback levels, but the overall experience was fun!
22:28 Honestly having like 4 routes with each having 1 ending & those routes being grouped based on themes overall concepts & then having the fifth ending be unlocked after a repeat of the most fitting route or even through a mash up of the 2 routes that has you pick the most in character choices or something really is the most I think a game of this nature should have. Either that or 2 routes with 1 to 2 endings with only required to get some of those endings to get the true 1. Have it split somewhat early on with little to no repeats, unless the levels were to be remixed somehow.
To this day, me and my twin brother some times meet up to replay this game from time to time, passing the controller between levels. We've already unlocked Expert mode several times, so this point we don't even care about endings. It makes a fun choice about either playing the objective you want, trying to steer shadow to a future map you might want, or specifically trying set the other player up for bad level like the flashback ones. It's a legitimate blast.
Awesome to finally hear you talk about Shadow the Hedgehog lol. I've decided that I'm going to go back and replay this and possibly make my own review on it. NOT TO STEAL IDEAS OR HAVE ANY COMPETITION OFCOURSE. But because I really want to see how I feel about the game personally, as I also grew up with this title (had it for OG Xbox though, so that'll be the version I'm playing). I hope it's a fun experience overall. Thanks dude!
I played shadow in 2020 for the first time and didn't like it much but then in 2022 i replayed it and fell in love with it, now i have 100% everything and done Expert mode, one of my favorite games easily.
I thought this video was awesome! Love hearing unpopular opinions like this one, there’s so many angles to enjoy art and stories like yours are what make it such a joy in our lives.
26:48 I too discovered edginess through a platformer game but unlike you, I do not consider edginess to automatically be cringe. I remained edgy, & I remained silly. Those 2 concepts are not intrinsically exclusive to 1 another. That is what I learned through Rayman, Linkin Park, Three days grace, Skillet, breaking Benjamin, & so forth. Will Wood is something I discovered later but it exquisitely orchestrates what I mean by “edgy & silly can work together!”
Respect for the Shadow The Hedgehog love my friend, that game is awesome. I mean if other people can defend Sonic 06, why can't we defend Shadow The Hedgehog.
I remember that game with so much nostalgia, even all the issues (story and gameplay) and controversy this has. My brother (he was a kid when he played that) played, tried to get all the endings and I watched him play. It was funny XD Watch the gameplay clips makes go to those days. And now I remember how amazing (to me) was the BGM. Now I'll have to listen them XD
My second favorite entry behind Heroes. The edge doesn't matter, the 10 ending requirement isn't as bad as it's made out to be because all but the Maria levels are good, you literally get a chicken succ gun and it plays like Heroes with better control.
Finally someone defending the best spin off sonic game, shadow the hedgehog (the game) was my first exposure to shadow and the reason why i WANT him to use guns again
Its my favorite game too and I also have that insignia tattoed on my arm but we definitely have very different takes other than that haha. I love the story, I love the Circus Park music, I love Lost Impact and I LOVE DK64 😄 It's one of my other favorites, just after this one. BUT. I still had a great time watching this video 😄
Idc what anyone says this game is so Peak I saw cutscenes of this game but never got to play it since I never owned a gamecube but I played it now and I absolutely loved it
Overall a great video, but I have to address one important thing… ‘Antihero’ doesn’t mean ‘villain’ or even that he’s not a hero. An ‘antihero’ is a classification for a certain kind of hero. Somebody who’s willing to cross moral boundaries in the name of the greater good, or who has generally selfish reasons for what they do, whether it’s heroic or villainous. Sonic tends to be nice to everyone, as he represents the heroic paragon. Shadow views ‘niceness’ as meaningless frivolity. In this game, even if you try to play as heroically as possible, Shadow is still a person who uses lethal force, swears, and seems generally indifferent to the plight of the people. He doesn’t care to get involved in the alien invasion until Doom convinces him to get involved by offering up info about his past. That means for most of the game, his first priority is to learning about his past, learning who he is. Being heroic doesn’t come naturally to him, for him being heroic comes from his connection to Maria. When that connection is twisted or broken, he seems to tend more towards villainy than heroism. I’m not saying he’s a bad person, I’m saying that Sonic and Tails are the sort of heroes who would leave Eggman alive every time they foil his plots, while Shadow is the sort of hero who would put a permanent end to Eggman’s plotting. This is who he is! He’s been totally flanderized in most of his major appearances post Sonic 06, unfortunately.
I like this game but Im biased, I grew up with it, I was scared shitless at the intro because I was a 8yo fan of Sonic games seeing Sonic die, after 1 year of playing I discovered I could actually do side missions for alt paths (I didnt know english) and the game suddenly became so…idk…cool? The game already was very interesting, it was very smooth, the graphics were spectacular for the time, it felt so real in a way, the music was astounding, and I tbh didnt think much of Shadow using a gun, the rail grinding was good, the keys made me explore the level top to bottom, the side character can be controlled by a friend who uses the P2 controller, and it had a lot of content, it was only as I grew up that I could see the flaws in the game, it wasnt “hard” at times, just poorly designed, Sonic and Diablon being a clear example of bad design, The doom, the ark, also being horrible levels if you want to do the side missions, and the vehicles are too slow to be helpful, but that aside I to this day love this game, and cant agree with the general sentiment
This has always been my guilty pleasure and I find it very replayable too. I have always found it to control better than Heroes and am very used to them. You have to click with the game and not play it like a “Sonic” game. It’s really a platforming run-and-gun game. And 8/10, heck even 9/10 people will NOT click with this. If the game clicks with you, then the extra missions in each level are a treat. Otherwise, they’re a drag. Growing up I didn’t even realise that there was cursing. Although being Australian we swear every two seconds so maybe that’s why none of us cared. The plot is silly but I’m glad that I never really cared for it. I’m in for the gameplay.
Shadow the Hedgehog is my favorite "Sonic" game, so as much as I agree with you, here are some critiques of the video itself, rather than your opinion. First, the "personal story" chapter is too long. I'm not saying you can't have one, but one minute is probably for the best, since the game is the main character of the video. Same with the controversy. We don't really get into the meat and potatoes until 14 minutes in. At first I was going to talk about the game's biggest flaw and instead just doing alternate missions to get there, leaving only Westopolis to be repetitive, but you brought up an interesting compromise of just having the evil mission be evil and the hero mission be hero at the end. Interesting review, but I think you could really afford to cut down on the fluff, making it 15 minutes instead.
This game was heavily over hated when it came out, it does have its problems but i proudly have it ranked as my second favorite sonic game just under sa2 and it also has my favorite sonic ost. I never thought we would see black doom or fight black arm enemies ever again but sonic team is no longer "embarrassed" by the game so now we have shadow gens which i can't wait to play.
Great video with many good points. I too really like this game, even without the nostalgia goggles. I don't like it as much as I used to, but I still enjoy coming back to it time to time. And Shadow is indeed my favorite Sonic character as well. So seeing people criticize this game the way they do, and sometimes even the character himself does bring a certain sting to it. Don't get me wrong, people can have their own opinions on stuff like this and I respect them, even if they're the opposite of my opinions. But I don't respect those who act like they're "objectively correct" in disliking or straight up hating this game and those who like or love it are "objectively wrong". Like I haven't seen or heard too many people online say that, but you can tell they probably want to say it. Which is probably why SEGA made Shadow the way he was in the 2010s overall. A very wrong direction for the character, but they also ruined almost every character in the 2010s, so that's not surprising. But regardless, Shadow is still my favorite character with Sonic being my favorite franchise overall. I'm sure nostalgia and autism plays a role in that, but I don't believe those are the only reasons. I just love this franchise and I've stuck with it through the lows and highs ever since 2002.
i had fun with it back when i played it, i still have it, i stopped though because i got so dang lost on that one asteroid level, even after multiple attempts i could never figure out where to go
I mean, I like the game Shadow the Hedgehog too more than many and I think it's too underrated, but I still consider Shadow to be an anti-hero, even from the beginning in Sonic Adventure 2, especially in Adventure 2 even. He fits the description. I think it's just having a negative view on anti-heroes but an anti-hero could do all the good things Shadow did. What matters to define him as an anti-hero is more his motivations. Sonic clearly appears more as the typical hero, always ready to save the world. This is not Shadow. He has his own motivations that sometimes align with the ones of the heroes. He follows his own path most of the time. And I find it to be completely fine. That's what makes him who he is after all.
If you haven't heard of Reloaded rom hack for gamecube version you should give it a try! Some QoL like no character intro within levels, L+A for jumpdash without homing, kill missions not being kill ALL, being able to play expert levels in Select Mode by pressing X instead of A, etc. Or SX if you want the gameplay to be mostly the same to the original with aditional optional features (mostly geared towards speedrun, didn't try it myself YET).
If there was no level design changes in reloaded it would have been a definitive version. Hoewer, it makes levels too dependent on spindash jumps for progression, and spindash jumps are too finicky in shadow 05
@@purplebruh947 No it isn't, spinjumps are actually really easy to pull off. I never used any spinjumps before and it wasn't hard at all to learn. What makes you say it's finicky? Only a few expert levels require it and for some red rings.
@@DarkShadow8754 really? There are multiple spin jumps required in digital circuit, even in normal mode. Maybe im mistaken, but that is how i remember them. They are finicky because spindash physics themselves are weird. You dont go really far, air control is not that great amd you need to come to full stop to perform one. Well, maybe it was some weird old version i played. Sorry if im wrong
@@purplebruh947 You don't need it in normal digital circuit, only in expert. Don't underestimate how far a spinjump goes. For example in Cosmic Fall, at the emerald room, you can do a normal spinjump to land directly into the floating platform. And if you spinjump on an inclination, you jump very high. Fun fact, you can do it on almost any inclination, even GUN soldiers' bodies. I don't think version matters, I played 1.1 and 1.2 (new). In 1.2 you can use slide after spindashing or jumpdash which makes movement more fluid.
when you walked on screen my mind immediately jumped on "yep... that's exactly what I expected a shadow enjoyer to look like" dawg the sonic fandom is so coooooked. we never beating these autismo asylum allegations
I mean... the sonic 3 complaint is kinda weird, since most of SA2 he was the villain with eggman until the last story. And since sonic 3 is shadows introduction in the movie verse, it kinda makes sense following that story beat.
I played it recently too and i had a negative opinion of the game because of the people you showed at the begining of the video, I took their opinion as fact and made me miss out on a really fun game im even still wanting to play it even after finishing the game 10 times. I only tried out the game because after recently playing lost world,heroes and sonic r and enjoying all those games I started to question whether shadow was going to be the same and i was right, Im never judging a game based on others opinion ever again. Next stop is to play forces a guess
This game actually scared 9 year old me! I take it I'm older than you and the first game I ever played was crash bandicoot on PS1. I've always been a sensitive girl and that intro scared me into returning the game to the store lmao
Ok.. I agree with you on one thing the game is good you can tell they tried BUT! the problem with it and the thing that really holds the entire game back is the gameplay.. if the gameplay was just a LITTLE bit better it wouldve been a lot more popular the game had good concepts and a strong storyline but the gameplay is the main thing that brings it down.. Also shadow is my favorite character too.. he and sonic are my comfort characters I relate to both of them.. sonic because I wanna live life to the fullest and make the most of my life and shadow because well.. I went through a traumatic experience too.. and I lost my grandmother this year.. just like how shadow lost Maria.. I know what it's like now to lose someone you love.. and I know what it's like to have something traumatic happen as well.. I was molested by my father when I was 14 i know what its like to have your whole life turned upside down by something completely out of your control and thats why i love shadow so much because hes just like me.. we both have been through hard times and came back stronger then ever
I was 11 when i got this for the PS2. You can't tell me Shadow didn't look like a G holding a gun on the boxart It's a stupid idea but goddammit my 11 year old brain was obsessed.
Actually, though I've recently replayed through this game, Heroes, and 06 and I can easily say that Heroes was the most frustrating game out of all of them
Heroes stinks. I only played through it once with mods that actually make it playable and I can confidently say that I am not interested in doing the other teams.
If Heroes didn’t have those bullshit finnicky special stages I would probably like it. But the fact that I have to play a dumb minigame that doesn’t even fucking work correctly to get the final ending means I’m not playing the game. I’d rather have to beat Shadow The Hedgehog twenty times to get the ending than deal with those stages ONCE.
Have you tried the Reloaded Mod, which doesn't force you to play through every ending to unlock the last one? It's a mainline game because of the Sonic X Shadow Generations coming soon, which continues the story from Shadow the Hedgehog because Shadow, after that game, does maintain the mindset of being a hero. Also, in the defence, the other games, which have scavenger hunts, don't have multiple endings, and 100% is optional unless you want the true ending. Shadow will be done justice in the latest media. Also, Shadow's writing is simplified as Sonic's edgy rival because of The infamous Meta Era, where you hear Sonic telling the most juvenile of jokes that only a toddler would laugh at, which made me dislike Sonic Colours. Thankfully, Generations was the only game where writing didn't make me want to punch Sonic in the face.
I would recommend anyone to try the “Reloaded” mod for Shadow the Hedgehog, especially someone who didn’t like the original game. It’s essentially a Project 06 Esq mod for this game that adds a ton of polish and quality of life features to the overall gameplay, like lowering the enemy requirement for the elimination missions, holding the L button to dash forward without lock on, adding unused voice lines, and a revamped melee system. They also lowered the ending requirement to unlock the Last Story from 10 to 3. As someone who always had a soft spot for this game despite its flaws but always struggled to enjoy it, Reloaded is a really fun time
Reloaded is for posers. Just 3 endings to get the true ending? You’ve barely experienced the game at that point! I could understand trimming it down to five, just the main ending branches instead of having to get all two endings for each final level, but 3 is way too low for the whole theme of the game; and it’ll most likely leave you in the dark for a lot of the story (like what the Black Arms’ goal is, what Shadow’s relation to them is, why Black Doom needs his help specifically, etc.). Anytime I see a video on TH-cam about the Reloaded mod I actually sneer. Curled lip and upturned nose and everything.
@@Hewasnumber1nothing is stopping you from just... doing the rest of the endings. That doesn't take away from the QOL features to the gameplay. I say this as someone who's 60/326 routes into my 100% playthrough. It's DEFINITELY not something to sneer at.
@@Sydney_Angelyt But the ten endings are supposed to convey the theme of the game, which is Shadow’s split persona. His memories have constantly been tampered with, and he’s been a hero, villain, friend, enemy, and everywhere in between. His memories shape who he is, and each of the endings come from the different fragments of memories he can restore, but he’s never able to get the full picture. In the final ending he unravels all the mysteries, remembers everything, makes himself whole again, he can finally see all of himself. The final boss’ poignancy is lost when you haven’t been with Shadow on his long journey of piecing together the mystery of his past. It’s cathartic to finally play a Shadow who’s finally and fully himself, with no one’s manipulations to change who he is. And I’m 326/326 library routes completed, I’ve got all keys and A ranks, completed expert mode and most of my best times rival that of speedrunners (I’m not a speedrunner, but when I look at leaderboards I see I’m not trailing too far behind them). So if you want to use the whole “oh I’ve played the game a lot, so my opinion has merit” card then my opinion is verifiably more credible than yours.
I guess having this game be the first video game you had ever played, and also your first entry into the Sonic series, makes sense as to why you feel the way you do about the game. My first video game (that I can remember anyway) was the original Sonic the Hedgehog on the Sega Genesis, which I first played in around 2002-2003, when I was 3-4 years old. So, as you can see, my perception of what the series is, and personally what it should strive for in terms of gameplay focus, is heavily based on the games that introduced me into the series. I remember seeing Shadow the Hedgehog for the first time in a Target in the mid 2000's, and just wondering to myself, "What the hell kind of game is this?". It didn't look anything like what I was so used to by that point. I personally can't stand this game. It's too repetitive, too monotonous, and just not fun to play overall. One of the worst in the series for me. But hey, if you like it, more power to you. There's probably some group of people out there who likes this game enough to call it their favorite.
Fun fact, in Italian the word "dannazione" (damn) isn't really a curse word, so I never lived the whole fourth emerald thing since to me, Shadow was just mildly irritated and not being edgy
The biggest problems with shadow the hedgehog really boil down to the fact that this is a sonic game, since the gameplay goes against most of the things people like about sonic.
1:56 I don't get holding Spiderman 2 in such high regard. Story is important to a Spiderman entry and Insomniacs Spiderman 2 has a totally bonked plot. The Insomniac Spiderman 1+Miles has almost the same gameplay with a plot that respects the characters
People: this game has realistic guns Game: shows a pump action smg in the into😂 I love this game and the guns add to the fun but the guns are not realistic
Awfully peak. I can barely stand its sheer perfection. If someone was going to shoot a physical copy of Shadow The Hedgehog I’d dive in front of the bullet, for my life is of paltry value in comparison to its utter magnificence.
Ignore the fact that Chapter 4 says chapter 3.... If annotations still existed I'd fix it :V
I would love to see an Ifrit boss and nega Mother Wisp bosses in Sonic x Shadow generations. Both are connected to lore that sega refuses to use. Ifrit (sonic rivals 2) can destroy an intirer dimension bathing it in fire (the game comfirms its whole universe, not just a planet). Sonic and Shadow only defeat a heavily weakened ifrit as it isn't fully revived yet (it did eat a bunch of chao and become invincible, though. Plus, he has mind control powers and is just as sentient as chaos even though it wasn't at full power). But they still beat it in base, which is still incredibly impressive. I bring him up because Gerald has notes on ifrit implying Gerald Robotnik somehow got into the dimension that chaosic inferno takes place in. Plus, ifrit seems connected to the chao somehow, and Gerald knows of him, so i hope he is at least in the journal. As for the nega mother wisp, I loved her boss fight. She is a part of the wisps lore (yes, the wisps have lore actually lore, such as the mother wisp creating the wisps and the planets that eggman captured, the ds version of colors going into detail on how negative wisps are made and how it affects their minds, actually giving each wisps their own personalities like Lazer trying to fight the robots and void straight up destroying shit and causing chaos. The mother wisp is kind and motherly but can have a temper. eggman is lucky he got caught in the black hole before she got free. Plus, the wisps actually flow with level design in colors wii and ds. Similar to how the doom powers seem to. Unlike in the lost world or forces. The ds has a better story than the wii version. It has interesting lore, the wisps are fun and the stages are fun. Not to mention, multiple characters have sonic do missions to help free wisps or extra information on what is going on. I have both versions. The wisps are neat and do have lore. I wish sega would actually utilize their lore more). Ifrit and the mother wisp are very interesting and think you should cover them. Plus, the fact that Sonic and Shadow, among other characters, defeated Ifrit in base shows how powerful they are. Also, I think marine the raccoon should return due to her unexplained power, and the complaints about her are already addressed in her character arc and development from sonic rush adventure. Also, phantom king creates the egg revery, which is infinite in space-time, and space and time (yes, there is a difference) in Sonic Mania, and that's just classic super sonic. Also, Chaos drives, artificial chaos, the ark, and G.U.N. are all interesting. I wish sega would use them more, too. Oh, and Emerl and Gemerl should be explored a bit again. Sonic rush, rush adventure, rivals 2, the advance games, sonic battle, and Sonic colors ds deserve more attention. Oh, and sega sonic the hedgehog arcade is awesome. oh, and Sage definitely should return as she is a neat character with cool lore. And the dark arms and black doom are neat lore wise.
This is unironically the best programmed Sonic game. It has barely any bugs or broken physics and the features actually work as intended.
Of all the things brought up against it, the game being buggy is not one of them. Goes to show this is hardly a Sonic game, huh?
@@jonathanhargraves2241Mission structure was already in Heroes, when you play as Chaotix. It's an evolution of Adventure 2's extra missions, like finding the lost Chao, which is an evolution of Adventure 1's extra missions of finishing the stage with a certain amount of rings.
It's a natural progression, even if you don't enjoy it.
What are the glitches in Heroes, Colours, Generations, or Forces? I'm pretty sure Shadow is only one among the not glitchy Sonic games, not some crowning achievement.
@@genyakozlov1316 You are right that being amongst the least buggy games in this franchise isn't much to be happy about, despite the series being notorious for how much of a mess it can be sometimes. The games you listed lack bugs, but they have some issues too (aside from Colors). Generations and Forces have the same issue, being that Classic Sonic feels clunky. Both versions lack basic momentum, something that Sonic 4 got outed for because of how weird of a choice that is. Gens Sonic has the overpowered spin dash that makes up for having virtually no momentum, and this crutch is very noticeably missing in a game like Forces. Heroes also lacks glitches, but that game is a bit messy, too. Shadow the Hedgehog has slippery controls too, but it was tuned down a bit when compared to Heroes. Given I've played both games for roughly the same amount of time, I can say that with confidence. The game is also notorious for its collision issues, with clipping through the floor being its most talked about issue.
@jonathanhargraves2241 not to mention Shadow The Hedgehog models is copy and paste from Sonic Heroes but much slower in comparison. And weapon gimmick is rip off of Call Of Duty
"Sonic characters can't have guns, they're cartoon animals!"
Star Fox and Ratchet & Clank did this 3 years before Shadow lol
They don’t walk around with m16s lol. The weapons in ratchet aren’t too dissimilar from what you’d see in a cartoon and Star Fox characters aren’t really that cartoony. I’m a shadow shill anyway I like it lol
Don't forget Jak from 2 onwards, Shadow always made more sense to me than THAT.
3:41 Fun fact: That's not a shotgun. That's an MP5 submachine gun, and the fact he pumps it like a shotgun has become part of the *meme*
Thats not an MP5. It has a carrying handle like an m16. Its a fictional weapon
People have actually concluded that a weapon like that is possible, there would just be no point because it would just be less effective than the non-pump version.
@@lpfan4491 for a hedgehog with giant hands pump action would be better than tiny charging handle
When I got access to the internet as a kid, I inevitably found Shadow The Hedgehog. I don't remember how exactly, but my biggest enthrall to it was Crush 40's music, specifically "I am... All of Me." This one song, and the little slideshow this video had of some screenshots followed by footage of the intro to the game, left a HUGE impression on me. I wanted to play this game, I even asked over and over to let me get it along with a Gamecube controller, but being a kid I wasn't assertive enough on it and I ended up being interested in other things, and never got to play this game. Shadow The Hedgehog, was the one game that got away. The game that, alongside Sonic Heroes, I ALWAYS wanted to play... but never had the chance.
Now, fast forward to present day, I struggled to know who I really was, who I really wanted to be. And a part of that was my lackluster connections to games. So, with Sonic Frontiers out and about, I decided: I will play through most of the Sonic games. And finally, after years... I finally got to play Shadow The Hedgehog. And it was like nothing I ever experienced before. It was not one of the most nostalgic moments to me personally, but it was the most satisfied I felt playing a game in a while. The controls were no where near as bad as others say, I found the missions to be replayable and great (except for the times I forget one little thing and get lost but that's ultimately my fault cause the stages are surprisingly linear despite the maze like feel), and although I still need to beat SA2 as of writing this before I can finish Shadow The Hedgehog, I just couldn't wait. I had to at least play some of the levels and it was genuinely worth the experience as its unlike any other Sonic Game.
People let their expectations get the better of them sometimes. I had no idea what to expect as while Shadow The Hedgehog was a game I always wanted to play, I was afraid I'd be disappointed and I still have that fear with Sonic Heroes. But playing it, even for just a little while, was something special to me. As a writer as well I try to look passed the story flaws and make connections others aren't willing to. Like deep down Abraham's reason for despising Shadow despite being responsible for the raid was due to many things. Firstly his fear and distain towards Shadow which he developed by witnessing Gerald and Black Doom make him contributes to why he always sees Shadow as a threat, and is proven right in his eyes when Black Doom returns. This distrust, on top of the heartbreak of Maria's death which to him was more than just an accident, leads to him blaming not Shadow for directly killing her, but Shadow's EXISTENCE for killing her. If Shadow was never born, maybe she would've at least had a chance to live. But then, Abraham finds himself face to face with his greatest fear, wanting to put him down for good! Gun to Shadow's Head, he explains his grief and hatred to Shadow.. And then Shadow walks away, with Abraham's grief finally catching up to him after all these years of fear. In one ending you could fight him and Sonic with Abraham being proven right about Shadow being a threat, or in the True Ending he finally sees Shadow as the hero he was never accepted as, finally letting go of a deep grudge.
So yeah I loved the choose your path dynamic, even if the pieces are all scattered. Even The Android plot was nothing more than Eggman's attempt at manipulating Shadow to do his personal bidding, fucking with his head even more. The hundreds of alternate paths to me feel like Shadow trying to piece together a story as we are. He is lost, he doesn't know what he is and regardless of the conclusion he comes to it still doesn't feel right. And in gameplay its so cool making what is essentially a playlist of levels for your own path. You, like Shadow, can change your mind. And while it is a LOT of replay value, it compliments the spiraling mess that is Shadow's fractured mind right now. I love the game's story, but yeah the writing is bad in a lot of places and really deserved the polish Sonic X Shadow Generations, and Sonic 3 The Movie is giving it.This on top of the hybrid gameplay between Sonic's fast pace and a third person objective shooter makes Shadow something incredibly unique, especially when you play the rest of the Sonic games back to back.
Now, I still haven't beat the game. I need to beat SA2 and Sonic Heroes first. But if just playing through some of its endings makes me loves this game already, then I'm more than eager to finish after I fight through the rest of my catalog. When I beat it, I'll come back and give my final thoughts. But seeing other people love this black diamond in the rough is inspiring to me, and this review made me want to share my own thoughts on the game. It's crazy how I can have such a long history with a game I only just started playing, and soon I'll finally put that to rest.
SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG IS ALSO MY FAVORITE GAME OF ALL TIME NOWAY
Same here then Sonic heroes and then Sonic 06 are my top 3 games ever in that order.
It's up there for me
I legitimately want to get the Black Arms logo tattooed onto me at some point. I want to wear my love of this game like a badge of honor. I will name my firstborn child after this game.
The fact that assaults on games like Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog, 06, Rise of Lyric, Lost World and Forces are short AF and tend to be pointless hate yaps with genuinely next to no arguments while the videos defending them tend to be pretty long and have legitimate arguments, many times nonnegotiably factual arguments, speaks volumes on which side is overhating and being unreasonable and which side is just fighting in favor of critical thinking and real criticism.
Aside from Sonic 4: Episode I (NOT Episode II) there isn't a single mainline game that deserves less than a 6/10, I'm glad people like you exist to shine light on some of them properly.
The low quality cam and low quality audio reminds me so much of old youtube. WE ARE BACK BABY!!!!!
I still think the Shadow Rifle in this game should have been a permanent weapon for Shadow after this game
Why?
Because it's bad ass and shadow looks cool with it. @@erdood3235
Why tho? This weapon just shoots chaos spears, that's it. Outside this game, Shadow waving his hand to cast it looks cooler IMO.
@@DarkShadow8754 Sonic used a Sword in Black Knight even though he has Super Speed. Tails uses an Arm cannon in Sonic Battle even though he’s stronger than a normal human. If you’re going to pull that excuse with Shadow than you would have to with other characters
@@hattoripool1533 Those games are spin offs, like Shadow 05...
Also Tails is the one that makes most sense, since he is the machine nerd, in SA2 he literally only uses the tornado mech.
Just to address the writing issues in this game, the original Japanese version of this game is slightly better written. While the Japanese version still has characters using minor swear words, it's not as excessive as it is in the dub. Also, the whole thing with the president suggesting that they pay homage to Professor Gerald was actually a mistranslation. What he actually suggested was that they attone for their actions 50 years ago, which makes a hell of a lot more sense than paying homage to a man who tried to wipe out all of humanity.
The characters curse on a regular basis in the series. Cursin in Japanese is not taken as harshly as in eng
In Gerald's defense, he was driven mad by Maria (and everyone else working on the ARK)'s death and turned the Eclipse Cannon (Which was made to destroy the Black Comet) against humanity out of revenge.
Well seeing as their sins is the only reason Gerald wanted to wipe out humanity, i think its implied they want to pay off their debt to him as well. I mean, THEY told him to start Project Shadow (yes, it wasnt on his own volution), THEY killed everyone on ARK and shut the thing down, THEY painted him as a criminal, THEY lied to him about Maria and let him believe shes still alive for whatever amount of time, and then THEY forced him to work for their benefit while in prison. The man played by their rules, worked tirelessly for the mankind, and thats all he gets. He deserves a homage.
Shadow is legitimately awesome to speedrun and has a finely crafted levels that are a blast to run n gun through once you start to understand the little nuances of the game.
If you hold x to slide kick, you can kinda use it to curve around walls, quickly slide off of ledges for large drops and if Shadoe touches a wall during his sliding descent, he will ride the wall and accelerate down, getting to the ground much faster.
This is also the game that got rail grinding right with the flip switching. The only issue with grinding in this game is the lack of a speed cap lol. Try mashing X on the oval rail to build up speed during the 2nd Black Bull fight in Death Ruins. Shadow will never stop accelerating as long as he doesn't get hit. The camera starts spazzing out once Shadow goes fast enough and motion blur is smeared all over the screen lmao.
I would believe it. I found Heroes and 06 to be far more enjoyable and open level design wise if you just embrace all the exploits with momentum and other stuff
Wonderful video!
I love Shadow the Hedgehog to the point I completed all 326 pathways!
Same, buckled down and grinded out the last hundred over the course of a week about a month ago. Beat a lot of my best times over the course of that grind, and found a lot of little time saving tricks.
I've done about 20 or 30.
Glad to see there are other folks who decided to celebrate the Year of Shadow by doing all 326 routes. I was floored by how thoughtful some of the story names in the library were. I love the game more than ever after finally doing this.
@@jacklevin550 I had actually finished all 326 pathways before 2024.
@@TheBohobemeister nice! I'm surprised it took me until '24 to decide to do it haha, been thinking about it for years and it ended up being a lot of fun
yO BRO IS COOKING. FINALLY SOMEONE BRAVE ENOUGH TO SAY THIS
this game was the reason why i got a ps2 in the first place right after heroes on PC. haven't regretted it once. shadow's been my comfort character ever since for all the reasons stated in the video and more.
as an adult whenever i hear disrespect towards this game i instead keep thinking about replaying it for every route completion. as a kid i was obsessed with finding all names for them. i used to do like at least one route a day and wrote it off in a lil notepad lmao
wish there was some pc remaster so i can hold it close to heart where it belongs
This game introduced me to the concept of multiple endings to a game. Even if it caused frustration with how wacky the story could diverge with choices, it was still a fun time. My only regret is not finishing the last story. Devil Doom was pretty difficult for me back then, and if I could, I'd go back and finish the game for good.
You still can, either pick up a copy or emulate.
Just do it lol. There is even a website "retroachievements" which does exactly what you would expect from it's name, achievements for games (you just need to play on an emulator that supports this, on the "download" tab it shows the list)
Devil Doom was also hard for me to beat so I never got to complete the story on my copy
You can find a copy of the game online pretty easily. If you do emulate the game, I recommend the mod called Shadow Reloaded
A lot of the "story issues" you mention are exclusive to the dub. The Japanese script is not overly edgy, and the President and Commander talk about honoring the victims on the ARK rather than Gerald.
I cant fathom why people never judge Sonic, a Japanese character written by Japenese people, through that lens
That's... One hell of a dub change to honor Gerald LOL
And the translation changing the scene a lot isn’t even exclusive to Shadow. It literally happened in SA2 multiple times and caused a lot of misunderstandings of the plot in the west. People still think Shadow said Sonic was the real ultimate lifeform, and a lot of people don’t know Gerald tampered with his memories.
Bad translations were a staple of Sonic up till about ‘06.
As someone who’s always thought this game was cool, it’s always nice ti see a perspective like this. Great video, keep up the good work!
I love how at the start of the intro he pumps... An MP5
I also really like this game, have been playing it since around release, and have never understood the hate despite having the buggier PS2 version back then and struggling to fulfill the objectives required to diverge off the Neutral Route during my earlier playthroughs as an adolescent.
23:39 Counter Proposal: Keep all 10 What-If endings, but let the player progress to the alternate final bosses by accessing the final stages they've already finished one of the missions for in Story Mode via the Select Mode. That cuts the number of required full playthroughs in half, thus decreasing the burnout some feel for this game designed for re-playability, while keeping all the equally valid conclusions to these What-Ifs and still requiring that the player experience some alternate missions before unlocking the canonical Final Story.
10:03 what the heck even is an “objective standpoint”? If you think it looks badass then it looks badass. I feel like you hold back on showing your love for this game a lot throughout this video. Dude, shadow with a gun looks BADASS and it’s FINE to think that, let’s not take things too seriously here, because the game doesn’t take itself seriously at all either. This game is a masterpiece.
Shadow holding a gun is still the rawest visual my unworthy eyes have ever feasted upon.
Sonic characters swearing isn’t exactly a new concept. These games are typically written in Japanese so within their original language, the characters do swear like saying damn, shit or hell. It’s more of a western taboo than it is over there unless people stop looking at Sonic through the lenses of a westernized platformer like Mario and Crash Bandicoot and looked at Sonic more like a Japanese action franchise much like IPs it’s stylistically similar to like Shonen Battle Anime and JRPGs
Shadow the hedgehog is like the opposite of a bad sonic game; instead of buggy gameplay & decent story, there’s decent gameplay & a buggy story. Except it’s actually fun unlike a bad sonic game.
Having multiple endings that you can access via playing the game differently that actually provide different levels is actually a great idea cuz unlike other games with alternate endings, there’s less overall that gets repeated, but what does get repeated is repeated more simply due to how many endings it has.
10 is just a little too much to ask of from the player & it becomes either overwhelming & daunting or boring & tedious to get to where the pathway branches.
Also semi cartoon & sleek cyperpunk est guns would be the best fit for shadow, specifically give shadow a sleek laser/cyber rifle with some engravings reminiscent of his design somewhat, like a dark rose & its thorns.
I recently made my own deep-dive into this game to honor the Year of Shadow, and while my video definitely skews more negative than yours, I wanted to letcha know that I really like what you did here. Fighting the good fight for a thing you're passionate about and enjoy is super admirable and I respect the Hell out of it. Despite our videos having very different perspectives, we actually touch on a lot of the same talking points and opinions. Rock on fella!
This is the second most underrated game of all time behind Super Mario Bros. 2 For Super Players. Kino video
I'm not too surprised that nostalgia and personal backstory play a part in why this is your favorite game ever. Usually, if a game isn't the greatest ever, that's the only way it could be considered someone's favorite of all time.
Honestly, people wrote this game off way too quickly. It has its flaws to be sure, but if you can get past those, there's a genuinely fun experience in there. I replayed the game last year and was able to 100% it and unlock Expert Mode. It could be tedious at times, _especially_ with the flashback levels, but the overall experience was fun!
22:28 Honestly having like 4 routes with each having 1 ending & those routes being grouped based on themes overall concepts & then having the fifth ending be unlocked after a repeat of the most fitting route or even through a mash up of the 2 routes that has you pick the most in character choices or something really is the most I think a game of this nature should have.
Either that or 2 routes with 1 to 2 endings with only required to get some of those endings to get the true 1.
Have it split somewhat early on with little to no repeats, unless the levels were to be remixed somehow.
To this day, me and my twin brother some times meet up to replay this game from time to time, passing the controller between levels. We've already unlocked Expert mode several times, so this point we don't even care about endings. It makes a fun choice about either playing the objective you want, trying to steer shadow to a future map you might want, or specifically trying set the other player up for bad level like the flashback ones. It's a legitimate blast.
Awesome to finally hear you talk about Shadow the Hedgehog lol. I've decided that I'm going to go back and replay this and possibly make my own review on it. NOT TO STEAL IDEAS OR HAVE ANY COMPETITION OFCOURSE. But because I really want to see how I feel about the game personally, as I also grew up with this title (had it for OG Xbox though, so that'll be the version I'm playing). I hope it's a fun experience overall. Thanks dude!
I played shadow in 2020 for the first time and didn't like it much but then in 2022 i replayed it and fell in love with it, now i have 100% everything and done Expert mode, one of my favorite games easily.
SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG DEFENSE???? HELLL YEAHH I LOVE SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG 05 :DDDDDD
This is still the best Sonic game and where Shadow was at his best
I thought this video was awesome! Love hearing unpopular opinions like this one, there’s so many angles to enjoy art and stories like yours are what make it such a joy in our lives.
26:48 I too discovered edginess through a platformer game but unlike you, I do not consider edginess to automatically be cringe.
I remained edgy, & I remained silly.
Those 2 concepts are not intrinsically exclusive to 1 another. That is what I learned through Rayman, Linkin Park, Three days grace, Skillet, breaking Benjamin, & so forth.
Will Wood is something I discovered later but it exquisitely orchestrates what I mean by “edgy & silly can work together!”
I'm in love with the Japanese audio for this game; the game makes me want to get good despite my lack of gaming skill on a PS2 lol
Gotta say I love seeing these kinds of videos. It's just neat being able to see the other side of the spectrum if you get what i mean.
Respect for the Shadow The Hedgehog love my friend, that game is awesome.
I mean if other people can defend Sonic 06, why can't we defend Shadow The Hedgehog.
I remember that game with so much nostalgia, even all the issues (story and gameplay) and controversy this has. My brother (he was a kid when he played that) played, tried to get all the endings and I watched him play. It was funny XD Watch the gameplay clips makes go to those days. And now I remember how amazing (to me) was the BGM. Now I'll have to listen them XD
This is still one of my favorite Sonic games. I enjoy it greatly and glad to see people appreciate it a bit more.
I see you’re a man of culture
It’s cool to find someone where this is their favorite!
This feels like an older video but it’s not old at all. I miss this kind of style.
My second favorite entry behind Heroes. The edge doesn't matter, the 10 ending requirement isn't as bad as it's made out to be because all but the Maria levels are good, you literally get a chicken succ gun and it plays like Heroes with better control.
Finally someone defending the best spin off sonic game, shadow the hedgehog (the game) was my first exposure to shadow and the reason why i WANT him to use guns again
יופי, מישהו שאין לא בעיה עם שמוליק הקיפוד. 3:
The Shadow coded jacket >>>>> 🔥🔥🔥
Its my favorite game too and I also have that insignia tattoed on my arm but we definitely have very different takes other than that haha. I love the story, I love the Circus Park music, I love Lost Impact and I LOVE DK64 😄 It's one of my other favorites, just after this one.
BUT. I still had a great time watching this video 😄
Idc what anyone says this game is so Peak I saw cutscenes of this game but never got to play it since I never owned a gamecube but I played it now and I absolutely loved it
Someone else is defending this game. Its a bout DAMN time
Overall a great video, but I have to address one important thing…
‘Antihero’ doesn’t mean ‘villain’ or even that he’s not a hero. An ‘antihero’ is a classification for a certain kind of hero. Somebody who’s willing to cross moral boundaries in the name of the greater good, or who has generally selfish reasons for what they do, whether it’s heroic or villainous. Sonic tends to be nice to everyone, as he represents the heroic paragon. Shadow views ‘niceness’ as meaningless frivolity.
In this game, even if you try to play as heroically as possible, Shadow is still a person who uses lethal force, swears, and seems generally indifferent to the plight of the people. He doesn’t care to get involved in the alien invasion until Doom convinces him to get involved by offering up info about his past. That means for most of the game, his first priority is to learning about his past, learning who he is. Being heroic doesn’t come naturally to him, for him being heroic comes from his connection to Maria. When that connection is twisted or broken, he seems to tend more towards villainy than heroism.
I’m not saying he’s a bad person, I’m saying that Sonic and Tails are the sort of heroes who would leave Eggman alive every time they foil his plots, while Shadow is the sort of hero who would put a permanent end to Eggman’s plotting. This is who he is!
He’s been totally flanderized in most of his major appearances post Sonic 06, unfortunately.
i am not alone in the universe! one of my fave games!
I like this game but Im biased, I grew up with it, I was scared shitless at the intro because I was a 8yo fan of Sonic games seeing Sonic die, after 1 year of playing I discovered I could actually do side missions for alt paths (I didnt know english) and the game suddenly became so…idk…cool? The game already was very interesting, it was very smooth, the graphics were spectacular for the time, it felt so real in a way, the music was astounding, and I tbh didnt think much of Shadow using a gun, the rail grinding was good, the keys made me explore the level top to bottom, the side character can be controlled by a friend who uses the P2 controller, and it had a lot of content, it was only as I grew up that I could see the flaws in the game, it wasnt “hard” at times, just poorly designed, Sonic and Diablon being a clear example of bad design, The doom, the ark, also being horrible levels if you want to do the side missions, and the vehicles are too slow to be helpful, but that aside I to this day love this game, and cant agree with the general sentiment
To this day, I have never seen another pump-action MP5A3 submachine gun.
Great video, enjoyed it quite a bit!
The only part I'd disagree with is you saying Shadow isn't an Anti - Hero.
This has always been my guilty pleasure and I find it very replayable too. I have always found it to control better than Heroes and am very used to them.
You have to click with the game and not play it like a “Sonic” game. It’s really a platforming run-and-gun game. And 8/10, heck even 9/10 people will NOT click with this. If the game clicks with you, then the extra missions in each level are a treat. Otherwise, they’re a drag.
Growing up I didn’t even realise that there was cursing. Although being Australian we swear every two seconds so maybe that’s why none of us cared.
The plot is silly but I’m glad that I never really cared for it. I’m in for the gameplay.
Haven’t finished the video yet, not sure if you’ve made any of these points. If you have, glad we agree lol
A very underrated game I couldn’t agree with you more but I think generations is going good for shadow especially if it’s involved with black doom
Shadow the Hedgehog is my favorite "Sonic" game, so as much as I agree with you, here are some critiques of the video itself, rather than your opinion.
First, the "personal story" chapter is too long. I'm not saying you can't have one, but one minute is probably for the best, since the game is the main character of the video. Same with the controversy. We don't really get into the meat and potatoes until 14 minutes in.
At first I was going to talk about the game's biggest flaw and instead just doing alternate missions to get there, leaving only Westopolis to be repetitive, but you brought up an interesting compromise of just having the evil mission be evil and the hero mission be hero at the end.
Interesting review, but I think you could really afford to cut down on the fluff, making it 15 minutes instead.
11:41 The plot is they got him out in advance as the threat was being made. They don't reveal that until after the event to make us think he died
This game was heavily over hated when it came out, it does have its problems but i proudly have it ranked as my second favorite sonic game just under sa2 and it also has my favorite sonic ost. I never thought we would see black doom or fight black arm enemies ever again but sonic team is no longer "embarrassed" by the game so now we have shadow gens which i can't wait to play.
This game was my first sonic game that I really played a lot. And I've played every single one I can get my hands on since lol
Great video with many good points. I too really like this game, even without the nostalgia goggles. I don't like it as much as I used to, but I still enjoy coming back to it time to time. And Shadow is indeed my favorite Sonic character as well. So seeing people criticize this game the way they do, and sometimes even the character himself does bring a certain sting to it. Don't get me wrong, people can have their own opinions on stuff like this and I respect them, even if they're the opposite of my opinions. But I don't respect those who act like they're "objectively correct" in disliking or straight up hating this game and those who like or love it are "objectively wrong". Like I haven't seen or heard too many people online say that, but you can tell they probably want to say it. Which is probably why SEGA made Shadow the way he was in the 2010s overall. A very wrong direction for the character, but they also ruined almost every character in the 2010s, so that's not surprising. But regardless, Shadow is still my favorite character with Sonic being my favorite franchise overall. I'm sure nostalgia and autism plays a role in that, but I don't believe those are the only reasons. I just love this franchise and I've stuck with it through the lows and highs ever since 2002.
With Shadow the Hedgehog, it is one of these games that is mainly considered bad that I secretly like.
4:18 "Shrek is love, Shrek is life"
Well done, i love this game too
i had fun with it back when i played it, i still have it, i stopped though because i got so dang lost on that one asteroid level, even after multiple attempts i could never figure out where to go
I mean, I like the game Shadow the Hedgehog too more than many and I think it's too underrated, but I still consider Shadow to be an anti-hero, even from the beginning in Sonic Adventure 2, especially in Adventure 2 even. He fits the description. I think it's just having a negative view on anti-heroes but an anti-hero could do all the good things Shadow did. What matters to define him as an anti-hero is more his motivations. Sonic clearly appears more as the typical hero, always ready to save the world. This is not Shadow. He has his own motivations that sometimes align with the ones of the heroes. He follows his own path most of the time. And I find it to be completely fine. That's what makes him who he is after all.
If you haven't heard of Reloaded rom hack for gamecube version you should give it a try!
Some QoL like no character intro within levels, L+A for jumpdash without homing, kill missions not being kill ALL, being able to play expert levels in Select Mode by pressing X instead of A, etc.
Or SX if you want the gameplay to be mostly the same to the original with aditional optional features (mostly geared towards speedrun, didn't try it myself YET).
If there was no level design changes in reloaded it would have been a definitive version. Hoewer, it makes levels too dependent on spindash jumps for progression, and spindash jumps are too finicky in shadow 05
@@purplebruh947 No it isn't, spinjumps are actually really easy to pull off. I never used any spinjumps before and it wasn't hard at all to learn.
What makes you say it's finicky?
Only a few expert levels require it and for some red rings.
@@DarkShadow8754 really? There are multiple spin jumps required in digital circuit, even in normal mode. Maybe im mistaken, but that is how i remember them. They are finicky because spindash physics themselves are weird. You dont go really far, air control is not that great amd you need to come to full stop to perform one. Well, maybe it was some weird old version i played. Sorry if im wrong
@@purplebruh947 You don't need it in normal digital circuit, only in expert.
Don't underestimate how far a spinjump goes. For example in Cosmic Fall, at the emerald room, you can do a normal spinjump to land directly into the floating platform.
And if you spinjump on an inclination, you jump very high. Fun fact, you can do it on almost any inclination, even GUN soldiers' bodies.
I don't think version matters, I played 1.1 and 1.2 (new). In 1.2 you can use slide after spindashing or jumpdash which makes movement more fluid.
when you walked on screen my mind immediately jumped on "yep... that's exactly what I expected a shadow enjoyer to look like"
dawg the sonic fandom is so coooooked. we never beating these autismo asylum allegations
I mean... the sonic 3 complaint is kinda weird, since most of SA2 he was the villain with eggman until the last story. And since sonic 3 is shadows introduction in the movie verse, it kinda makes sense following that story beat.
I played it recently too and i had a negative opinion of the game because of the people you showed at the begining of the video, I took their opinion as fact and made me miss out on a really fun game im even still wanting to play it even after finishing the game 10 times. I only tried out the game because after recently playing lost world,heroes and sonic r and enjoying all those games I started to question whether shadow was going to be the same and i was right, Im never judging a game based on others opinion ever again. Next stop is to play forces a guess
Dude your drip is insane.
This game actually scared 9 year old me! I take it I'm older than you and the first game I ever played was crash bandicoot on PS1. I've always been a sensitive girl and that intro scared me into returning the game to the store lmao
Man, and I thought I was a cowardly little kid for getting scared at Luigi’s Mansion. That is next level baby behavior.
@@Hewasnumber1 the realistic gun sound at the opening and the fact that I'm not American, I'm from a far more violent country. Don't judge bro
Ok.. I agree with you on one thing the game is good you can tell they tried BUT! the problem with it and the thing that really holds the entire game back is the gameplay.. if the gameplay was just a LITTLE bit better it wouldve been a lot more popular the game had good concepts and a strong storyline but the gameplay is the main thing that brings it down..
Also shadow is my favorite character too.. he and sonic are my comfort characters I relate to both of them.. sonic because I wanna live life to the fullest and make the most of my life and shadow because well.. I went through a traumatic experience too.. and I lost my grandmother this year.. just like how shadow lost Maria.. I know what it's like now to lose someone you love.. and I know what it's like to have something traumatic happen as well.. I was molested by my father when I was 14 i know what its like to have your whole life turned upside down by something completely out of your control and thats why i love shadow so much because hes just like me.. we both have been through hard times and came back stronger then ever
I was 11 when i got this for the PS2. You can't tell me Shadow didn't look like a G holding a gun on the boxart It's a stupid idea but goddammit my 11 year old brain was obsessed.
The fact that people say Sonic Heroes is better than this game is insane
Actually, though
I've recently replayed through this game, Heroes, and 06 and I can easily say that Heroes was the most frustrating game out of all of them
Heroes stinks. I only played through it once with mods that actually make it playable and I can confidently say that I am not interested in doing the other teams.
Because Sonic Heroes IS better than this hot garbage of a game.
@@kingmo8789 Yeah yeah. And Colors is better than Gens.
If Heroes didn’t have those bullshit finnicky special stages I would probably like it. But the fact that I have to play a dumb minigame that doesn’t even fucking work correctly to get the final ending means I’m not playing the game. I’d rather have to beat Shadow The Hedgehog twenty times to get the ending than deal with those stages ONCE.
Have you tried the Reloaded Mod, which doesn't force you to play through every ending to unlock the last one? It's a mainline game because of the Sonic X Shadow Generations coming soon, which continues the story from Shadow the Hedgehog because Shadow, after that game, does maintain the mindset of being a hero. Also, in the defence, the other games, which have scavenger hunts, don't have multiple endings, and 100% is optional unless you want the true ending. Shadow will be done justice in the latest media. Also, Shadow's writing is simplified as Sonic's edgy rival because of The infamous Meta Era, where you hear Sonic telling the most juvenile of jokes that only a toddler would laugh at, which made me dislike Sonic Colours. Thankfully, Generations was the only game where writing didn't make me want to punch Sonic in the face.
Hell yea
I would recommend anyone to try the “Reloaded” mod for Shadow the Hedgehog, especially someone who didn’t like the original game. It’s essentially a Project 06 Esq mod for this game that adds a ton of polish and quality of life features to the overall gameplay, like lowering the enemy requirement for the elimination missions, holding the L button to dash forward without lock on, adding unused voice lines, and a revamped melee system. They also lowered the ending requirement to unlock the Last Story from 10 to 3.
As someone who always had a soft spot for this game despite its flaws but always struggled to enjoy it, Reloaded is a really fun time
Reloaded is for posers. Just 3 endings to get the true ending? You’ve barely experienced the game at that point! I could understand trimming it down to five, just the main ending branches instead of having to get all two endings for each final level, but 3 is way too low for the whole theme of the game; and it’ll most likely leave you in the dark for a lot of the story (like what the Black Arms’ goal is, what Shadow’s relation to them is, why Black Doom needs his help specifically, etc.).
Anytime I see a video on TH-cam about the Reloaded mod I actually sneer. Curled lip and upturned nose and everything.
@@Hewasnumber1nothing is stopping you from just... doing the rest of the endings.
That doesn't take away from the QOL features to the gameplay.
I say this as someone who's 60/326 routes into my 100% playthrough.
It's DEFINITELY not something to sneer at.
@@Sydney_Angelyt But the ten endings are supposed to convey the theme of the game, which is Shadow’s split persona. His memories have constantly been tampered with, and he’s been a hero, villain, friend, enemy, and everywhere in between. His memories shape who he is, and each of the endings come from the different fragments of memories he can restore, but he’s never able to get the full picture. In the final ending he unravels all the mysteries, remembers everything, makes himself whole again, he can finally see all of himself. The final boss’ poignancy is lost when you haven’t been with Shadow on his long journey of piecing together the mystery of his past. It’s cathartic to finally play a Shadow who’s finally and fully himself, with no one’s manipulations to change who he is.
And I’m 326/326 library routes completed, I’ve got all keys and A ranks, completed expert mode and most of my best times rival that of speedrunners (I’m not a speedrunner, but when I look at leaderboards I see I’m not trailing too far behind them). So if you want to use the whole “oh I’ve played the game a lot, so my opinion has merit” card then my opinion is verifiably more credible than yours.
@@Hewasnumber1 you completely ignored my points
@@Sydney_Angelyt I’m pointing out that the “quality of life” detracts from the story, making it a negative rather than a positive.
I still havent beat the mission where you have to find the artificial chaos. I always get to the last one and can never find it
I like this game if anything because it’s pretty funny even if it’s unintentional like house of the dead 2 voice acting
I love this game so much that i want to learn game design and programming so i can try to make a spirtual successor with some fucking dmc combat in it
I guess having this game be the first video game you had ever played, and also your first entry into the Sonic series, makes sense as to why you feel the way you do about the game.
My first video game (that I can remember anyway) was the original Sonic the Hedgehog on the Sega Genesis, which I first played in around 2002-2003, when I was 3-4 years old. So, as you can see, my perception of what the series is, and personally what it should strive for in terms of gameplay focus, is heavily based on the games that introduced me into the series. I remember seeing Shadow the Hedgehog for the first time in a Target in the mid 2000's, and just wondering to myself, "What the hell kind of game is this?". It didn't look anything like what I was so used to by that point. I personally can't stand this game. It's too repetitive, too monotonous, and just not fun to play overall. One of the worst in the series for me. But hey, if you like it, more power to you. There's probably some group of people out there who likes this game enough to call it their favorite.
Look someone who agrees with me
Woot!
Fun fact, in Italian the word "dannazione" (damn) isn't really a curse word, so I never lived the whole fourth emerald thing since to me, Shadow was just mildly irritated and not being edgy
game is so fun :)
The biggest problems with shadow the hedgehog really boil down to the fact that this is a sonic game, since the gameplay goes against most of the things people like about sonic.
You all need to play spark the electric jester 3 its a great sonic inspired game.
Thought this was a video posted in 2010 for a second
1:56 I don't get holding Spiderman 2 in such high regard. Story is important to a Spiderman entry and Insomniacs Spiderman 2 has a totally bonked plot. The Insomniac Spiderman 1+Miles has almost the same gameplay with a plot that respects the characters
The best Sonic game is Sonic Robo Blast 2.
People: this game has realistic guns
Game: shows a pump action smg in the into😂
I love this game and the guns add to the fun but the guns are not realistic
*Circus Park's theme being the worst in the game? Them's fighting words! No, but seriously, it's one of my favourite tracks in the game.
32:12 *CRINGE ALERT*
27:33 fucking lolz
I think this game is great too but it's a real pain to play.
You look like you came straight out of the 80s or 90s or something.
nah, shadow 05 is awful
I agree
Awfully peak. I can barely stand its sheer perfection. If someone was going to shoot a physical copy of Shadow The Hedgehog I’d dive in front of the bullet, for my life is of paltry value in comparison to its utter magnificence.
Can well agree that Sonic Episode 1 is bad. 😂
turns out you are not allowed to criticize 20 year old sonic games on youtube
Feeling offended Because of a game Review? , bro You are absolutely pathetic 😂
I found my people
Spiderman 2 was not an amazing game. It was a woke dumpster fire