If you would've told me 5 years ago that the highest rated 3D Sonic game would be essentially Shadow the Hedgehog 2 bundled with a Gens port, I'd probably would've thought you were deranged
Second highest, the Dreamcast version of SA2 still has better reviews. Ironically, the Generations port dragged down the review score of the Shadow the Hedgehog sequel
I think the doom powers are more significant than people give them credit for. What this game does to innovate upon the boost formula is vastly increase the amount of options and potential inputs the player uses. Reaction checks aren't just about jumping, crouching or attacking, they now include stunning, stopping time, directing enemy throws, grappling and subsequently choosing how to end the grapple. All the added complexity makes the level design incomparable to that of previous games, it's more narrow than Generations but adds variety and options to make it way more interesting than Forces. It's the most universally successful experiment they've done in the boost era.
7:19 highly HIGHLY disagree. These challenges actually had unique level design in them and used portions of stages that weren’t in Act 1 and 2. They are by all means their own mini levels, and the hard variants unlocked at the end of the game are great too
Sonic and Infinite not being bosses was disappointing, but I understand why is was done. Also the fact that Shadow happened to have the yellow Emerald back in 2011 is very fortunate, otherwise we couldn't have gotten the fake Emerald subplot.
Infinite not being a boss fight makes a lot of sense tho from a story plot point. No sonic boss fight is disappointing tho, it definitely should have been there, win in gameplay but lose in cutscene when caught off guard.
@@meachy1 Disregarding fan opinion, I don't think Infinite makes more or less sense than Mephiles. He definitely makes more sense than Chaos Island though. At least the Sonic battle cutscene was really cool.
@@4589dude This series does a really good job at emphasizing character vs characterization. If Tails' only appearance was Forces, than you'd probably think the same of him. I don't think it should be ignored that Infinite may be a good character who has only seen awful characterization.
Shadow Generations SCREAMS Bowser's Fury, but don't take that as a negative! I 100%ed Bowser's Fury the weekend it released, honestly it was one of the most interesting and fun Mario games I've played in recent time, it was an incredible experience. Sonic being my favourite videogame franchise of all time, anything being similar to one of my favourite Mario expansions is gonna go down well with me.
Shadow's homing attack is actually Chaos Snap returning from 06, which could also bypass lasers. It was a fairly obscure mechanic in that game, so I can't blame anyone not knowing about it (especially given the status of game in question). Shadow Generations taking full advantage of it was something I never expected.
8:33 I seriously disagree as I feel like all of the doom powers are essential to speedrunning levels like Chaos Island Act 1. Doom Morph, Chaos Spears, Doom Wings, and the one where you beat up the guy and launch are essential for that run
5:56 Okay, so the reason a Shadow 05 level isnt present and Chaos Island is used is due to asset reusage. With 2 year to plan and produce this game (since it was only planned after seeing the reveal of Shadow in Sonic Movie 2), it would have been easier to get a level from a recent Sonic game with modern textures and assets than making new ones. The time limit is probably the reason there isnt a Sonic fight as well 😅
That and probably due to the time eater pulling stages from ALL times, past, present and future which is probably why sunset heights and chaos island is here
@@SlinkerIsCoolThis!! I wanna also add a theory someone mentioned where Chaos Island is here because of how important the emeralds are to Shadow. It’s less about the Island and more what it represents to his character!
I still think a Shadow the Hedgehog (the game) level would have been better but it explores an interesting point for Generations : the possibility in Generations to play a stage "from the future" of Sonic (technically not for us, only for the characters in their point in time but you get the idea). That allows to make Time Eater mix "the future" with the present as well, not just the past and I think that's refreshing.
@@compassrose1466 Plus there is the Chaos Emeralds' connection to the Starfall Islands in general as they were the home of the Ancient alien species whose planet the Chaos Emeralds originated from
I hope you talked to each NPC multiple times since after every cutscene, each NPC has a set of three new dialogues. Its pretty neat (Shadow canonically sucks/doesn't care about school work lol)
Never played one of these modern sonic games. Stopped playing sonic at SA2. You would not believe the smile on my face after I went on Shadow Generations and heard the music from SA2. Super happy with this game.
@@Snake_eyes0 Not gonna lie. I enjoyed Shadow Generations far more than the Sonic Generations side of the game. Makes sense why these new games never caught my attention. But the Shadow Generations side of it is honestly very fun to play.
@@AlejandroRojas-ur4vg I'm hyped to play Shadow generations the game looks amazing and the doom powers are mad cool also they remind alot about the symbiote tbh
I feel like the reason that Chaos Island is in Shadow Generations, is that SEGA probably wanted to play around with the concept of traveling into the future instead of the past.
My theory is that they might release a Shadow 05 level as DLC, and it will have a small story element that explains how Black Doom survived. IDK why they didn’t explain how he survived.
They explained it in Dark Beginnings, since the Black Arms were a hive mind, Black Doom survived thanks to a larva that was in the Ark which appears in Dark Beginnings.
@@compassrose1466must just be in the PlayStation version or something because of the bonus deleted scenes because I saw NOWHERE in the game that lets you see dark beginnings in it
No Shadow stages is absolutely criminal. They 100% should have forced the players to play through Westopolis again just to mess with them, and not having Cosmic Fall, Sky Troops, or even Digital Circuit was a wasted opportunity.
5:18 Actually the Space Colony Ark stage was representation from Shadow the Hedgehog, as there were several Ark stages throughout that game, despite the Shadow Gens version using the Final Rush music
I do think I prefer how the boosting feels in base Generations modern stages (and sort of by extension, daytime unleashed), something about how fast the boost actually sends you and having it be a double edged sword that requires good map knowledge and execution with to not fling yourself off a stage feels more satisfying to me because those two factors lead to a much bigger payoff when you do get it right. That being said, the tightness of control is fitting for the ultimate life form, and its the best modern iteration of the forces/frontiers styled physics by a mile.
Don't put forces/frontiers in the same camp buddy, that's just weird. Nevertheless shadow generations doesn't even control like forces. Generations physics are more close to Forces than Frontiers and Shadow Gens.
I find it really hard to go back to Sonic Generations now tbqh. Sonic is just so stiff and heavy compared to Shadow and there’s not a lot of room to get creative with the movement. It was worth trading a bit of the raw speed in exchange for giving you much more control
12:31 oh wow! I remember that the supporting me remix in the Shadow campaign on Sonic forces was absolutely incredible so if they found a way to make a supporting me remix be even better on this game, that is really impressive
I really love the way Shadow's abilities are used in actual gameplay. It's the best use of them he's ever had! The teleporting homing attack that allows you to cross through barriers. Chaos Spear for stunning enemies and hitting switches. Chaos Control allowing you to stop time, which in itself has a multitude of uses. From turning objects into extra platforms, preventing oncoming damage, and even giving you extra time for those S Ranks...etc. And that's just his base abilities. The Doom powers add even more means of traversal. Though if I'm being honest, I find his base abilities to be the best...
5:25 quick note, the ark stages do actually take from the shadow 05 ark stages as well as SA2, but not including westopolis or the black comet as a true reference is criminal
There is one thing about the story that I didn't get regarding the Fake Emerald. Shadow needs an Emerald in order to use Chaos Control, this is why he gives Sonic the Fake Emerald and keeps the real one. However, the Fake Emerald has "the same wavelength and properties" as the real Emerald and was even capable of allowing Sonic to use Chaos Control. What reason does Shadow actually have to trick Sonic with the Fake Emerald?
Shadow tricks Sonic by giving him the fake Emerald so that he can use the real, more powerful Chaos Emerald as Shadow needs the more powerful Chaos Emerald to fight Black Doom.
@@Bombastic_daioh I love unleashed and it is a very close second, but Shadow Gens just feels like it has so many ways to optimize and so many creative alternate paths. It actually feels fully 3D and mixes the best parts of Boost and Adventure imo, let's see if it holds up after my hype dies down
@@PDS350 Lmao not being "fully 3D" and having "more creative alternative paths" doesn't make it better. Unleashed has the more expansive and creative levels, the best boost gameplay but most importantly is more challenging and feels more complete content wise. Not hating on Sonic X Shadow Gens, it's a incredible game but it objectively doesn't hold a candle to Unleashed nor it deserves to be called "Peak 3D Sonic"
@@Bombastic_daioh I hope they manage to make it harder and faster in the future too, and the worst parts is definitely the extremely easy S-ranks, but it is a much better foundation than frontiers IMO for the next game
3:22 Dark Begginings show a black arms larva on the ARK in Shadows memories. Apparently it survived and since the Black Arms are a hivemind, Black doom took over it
I think the reason why there is a Sonic Frontiers level in the game is because Shadow is made of Chaos energy, and in frontiers the emeralds originate from there.
4:58 wait why is sunset valley here? if shadow generations takes place at the same time of sonic generations then they should have not known about the zone cuz sonic generations takes place before sonic forces
You better respond to this bro. At 4:30 it's not shadow being better than sonic. It's sonic being better than him. Sonic beat shadow in like 1 hit in a couple seconds honestly. If they were the same skill it would of been much longer. Shadow said he was holding back because he would beat sonic on his own but it's like this, if he has to use the doom powers along with his chaos powers then it proves he is weaker, sonic uses traditional abilities and skills while shadow using chaos powers and doom powers and if shadow has to win to use them that's proof he is actually worse because sonic beat him in a couple seconds with nothing other than his own power.
@devinsauls9137 if this was shadow 2005 sure but why does sonic constantly beat him if he is stronger? Also he can power up into ssj2 and hypers sonic vs shadow only having ssj and maybe hyper, he has hyper but hasn't shown to use it.
As one of the original Sonic 06 fans that was there from the beginning and endured the years of mockery until people started thinking it was actually fun, I loved the rep in this. Mephiles finally got a fun boss fight, Kingdom Valley was just so pretty, and the overall callbacks and continuation from that entire thread of Shadow's character arc was nice. Shad Gen as a whole is a very good game, and it's clear that it's actually the selling point instead of the Sonic Generations remaster. Heck, Shadow is front and center on the box art and the game has way more polish to it, I'm convinced that Sonic Team let this one cook longer than they usually do because they KNOW that we'd never let them hear the end of it if they messed up the first major Shadow story in decades. 👀
The space colony ark is technically a shadow 05 stage although it debuted in sonic adventure 2. But yeah all the radical highway illusions should’ve just been the black comment instead because it doesn’t really make sense for black doom to be hyper fixated on radical highway of all places. I would much rather doom infest each stage like show a bunch of black arms organic matter infect every thing in the stage like the flood from halo.
TBH it kinda felt like ''Its over already?'' after beating the final boss, it was really fun but oh man they missed SOOOO MANY oportunities: -Emerl boss fight -Levels based on Shadow the Hedgehog, Digital Circuit, Black Comet, anything at all Sky Fleet, Gun fortress -Asteroid coaster from Sonic Colors since he was in the DS version just...hanging around -Maybe some GBA Advance levels becuase they can and throw in a excuse, hell he even goes to Chaos Island and he never was in Forces -A redeeming fight against Infinite -More interactions with Maria and Gerald -Announcement of idk level packs for the future and a survey for levels people want the most -A black doom base form boss fight, a diablon boss fight, a Sonic boss fight that wasnt a cutscene, more interaction or help from Rouge and Omega like Sonic has interactions, help or races against his friends in challenges -A boss fight against Shadow himself but from a timeline where he did obey Black Doom
11:40 when that happened for me, my entire level became inverted, and ONLY the levels, not the hub world, and not the ring count, boost gauge etc. etc. and it stuck for every level! And I also got softlocked in the ARK’s second act towards the end, so that was devilishly annoying!
This game is a 9.9 for me. Needs a skin based on Shadow from Shadow 05 where he holds a pistol. Instead of Chaos Spear he fires the pistol, with no real gameplay changes because we're mostly fighting robots or superpowered beings. At the final boss instead of summoning bigger chaos spears he instead pulls out the semi and pumps it like a shotgun, before shooting Black Doom in the face, killing him instantly. Everybody would give a standing ovation for peak fiction.
Dude people missed out talking to the NPC such as Omega, Big, Gerald, Maria, and Rogue. Most of their dialogue changes in the game itself, I think it happens after beating both acts of the stages and bosses. What I'm saying is that Shadow Generations explains why both Sunset Hieghts and Chaos Island are in the hub white world. Gerald is the one that explains it, Garald tells Shaodw that he's experiencing places in the future, which would help explain why Sunset Hieghts and Chaos Island are here in the first place. Cause Forces and Frontiers didn't come out till way after Sonic Generations. And we all know that Shadow was never in Sonic Frontiers either, so there could be a possibility that Chaos Island might return in a future game where Shadow does go to Chaos island, which could be the sequel to Frontiers.
they could've added a Chao garden since the Sonic Adventure 2's Chao garden was basically kept it afloat, and considering people just play the Sonic and Shadow levels of SA2B, that would've been also amazing. But then again, it's SEGA we're talking about.
this is super minor but i feel like the shadow 05 thing is kind of a non issue, like if i say “why doesn’t this game have stages from shadow the hedgehog” someone’s not going to think of the character it’s really obvious just from the context of the sentence either way if we’re going to abbreviate it that way why not call it shad05 lmao
The title of this video and the thumbnail are extremely misleading as you definitely don't act like this is peak Sonic or that it's a 10/10 lmao. You're weirdly pretty negative here and a lot of your critiques are ridiculous at best. Like why Chaos Island is here, it's not about what specific stage Shadow has been to in the past or future. Time has broken down so a number of different areas are just thrown into the White Space, Chaos Island during the events of Frontiers being one of them. If you bothered to talk to Gerald after visiting there and Sunset Heights he would've clarified that. In fact every level in Shadow Gens Sonic had been to as well so it was really the Time Eater throwing levels of Sonic's past and future into the White Space. The only genuine criticism you give is there being no Shadow 05 level at all which is pretty weird. But otherwise the stage selection is awesome. Tf do you mean "unfortunately" it's awesome that you have to complete challenges to get boss keys. All of them were super fun and nice little missions to do, nothing about it is to "pad out the game's run time." That's like saying having collectibles in the open world or doing a boss is to pad the game out lol. If it's intended and new content, it's not padding. All of the Doom Powers are fantastic and provide fun different ways to traverse the levels and find secrets. You essentially go "oh yeah they're gimmicks, okay they're not great then" like wtf. So what if some of them are situational? That doesn't make them underutilized or bad, you use all of them a ton throughout the game. The bosses are awesome too, they're just the right amount of spectacle and difficult. They definitely weren't too easy and if you really thought they were play em on hard mode. Gerald's model does not look goofy at all, these are the best humans in Sonic have looked since Unleashed. His face looks like Eggman's which is the whole point, he's his grandfather. Otherwise he looks as he should, nothing "goofy."
I think it makes sense they remember both green hill and chemical plant. I dont care what people say I know he doesn't settle down but for almost all purposes he will make at least a pit stop in green hills in most games and other forms of media/references. As for chemical plant they don't revisit it as often but they do hit it semi regularly and even if its just a one in done Tails isnt wrong how could they forget such a unique place in the sonic world. Its so different from what they tend to visit. They also linked the characters together and that classic is past sonic (though obviously after eggman abducted him I imagine the timeline splits. Maybe they touched on that in Forces but I refused to play it due to the reviews it got.) My only issue with it is when they bring up these references or writing changes it can often feel stiff or forced. A little more time on the writing would of helped and doesn't feel like they played it as sometimes moments feel disconnected from the game like a clip from a separate game/show. Idc about rouge I think getting away from sexualizing games that as much as we love them is also meant for kids to get into im for the minor changes though yeah they really should of paid attention to the model and watched it in game cause it is definitely busted. I also agree about Amy I prefer her when she is the aggressor or the glue to the group preventing them from making choices they will regret but they definitely shouldn't pretend she didn't have that progression.
Well, in universe, Shadow is one of the few characters who's life doesn't revolve around Sonic. He's not going to always go where Sonic and his friends are. Out of universe, SEGA clearly wasn't willing to put too many characters into Frontiers, as it being such a massive departure from games prior, keeping the cast small was definitely a good idea to keep things focused.
Should say that the classic sonic skin was available for free by signing up for the news letter before launch. they just made it available for cheap after the fact.
I can't believe the one game I decided I wouldn't get ended up being one of the best Sonics in recent memory... The main reason I decided not to get it is because I was not paying £45 for half of a game I've already played a lot of. Perhaps if I had the option to buy just the Shadow game then I would've considered it. Also, Ys 10 was due to come out on the same day and I've really been looking forward to that particular game. Hopefully it'll get a good discount in the next Steam Sale.
I bought the Deluxe Edition, My God this game is good so far! If you haven't played it yet do what you have to do to play this game. Buy it, download it, steal it from the game store just do what you have to do in order to play this game.
One thing I was a little disappointed about was that they showed us pretty much everything in the trailers except the final zone, I was looking into some sonic content creators beforehand so I pretty much knew everything, even they were speculating there would be more content than there was lol "^^ I feel like I would have been more excited about stuff like Sunset Heights or Mephiles if I didn't already know about it. To be fair though, the campaign is short enough as is, so I think they probably didn't want to make it seem like there was nothing. Also, as a new fan (who's only played Mania, Adventure 1/2 and Forces) I've never played OG gens before! Bit strange going between the new controls with the double jump and separate attack button to the old ones, but still good!
If you would've told me 5 years ago that the highest rated 3D Sonic game would be essentially Shadow the Hedgehog 2 bundled with a Gens port, I'd probably would've thought you were deranged
Second highest, the Dreamcast version of SA2 still has better reviews.
Ironically, the Generations port dragged down the review score of the Shadow the Hedgehog sequel
What seems deranged is sometimes a great option.
This game is mid stop supporting it
@@joshuajohnson8386
Sonic fans just can never be happy huh?
@@joshuajohnson8386 The game is apparently good, deal with it. There is worse than good news after all.
I think the doom powers are more significant than people give them credit for. What this game does to innovate upon the boost formula is vastly increase the amount of options and potential inputs the player uses. Reaction checks aren't just about jumping, crouching or attacking, they now include stunning, stopping time, directing enemy throws, grappling and subsequently choosing how to end the grapple.
All the added complexity makes the level design incomparable to that of previous games, it's more narrow than Generations but adds variety and options to make it way more interesting than Forces. It's the most universally successful experiment they've done in the boost era.
No there are just gimmick you just press a different button at the the end of the day it’s just neat
@@joshuajohnson8386nah, noob has a point.
Also, learn to spell lmao. "They're", not "There are"
@@joshuajohnson8386
You came from the Pariah review didn't you?
@@Raincloud5137 yeah you right was being stupid I actually love this a lot sorry
@@Raincloud5137 Lol, I thought the exact same thing.
7:19 highly HIGHLY disagree. These challenges actually had unique level design in them and used portions of stages that weren’t in Act 1 and 2. They are by all means their own mini levels, and the hard variants unlocked at the end of the game are great too
Still think that the challenges in Sonic Generations are great tho.
The challenges also help you practice with the controls and new abilities
Sonic and Infinite not being bosses was disappointing, but I understand why is was done.
Also the fact that Shadow happened to have the yellow Emerald back in 2011 is very fortunate, otherwise we couldn't have gotten the fake Emerald subplot.
Infinite not being a boss fight makes a lot of sense tho from a story plot point. No sonic boss fight is disappointing tho, it definitely should have been there, win in gameplay but lose in cutscene when caught off guard.
@@meachy1 Disregarding fan opinion, I don't think Infinite makes more or less sense than Mephiles. He definitely makes more sense than Chaos Island though.
At least the Sonic battle cutscene was really cool.
@@meachy1 They probably didn't have the time to add a Sonic boss fight, with the 2 year production time
Infinite needs to be forgotten. What an awful character lol
@@4589dude This series does a really good job at emphasizing character vs characterization. If Tails' only appearance was Forces, than you'd probably think the same of him. I don't think it should be ignored that Infinite may be a good character who has only seen awful characterization.
Shadow Generations SCREAMS Bowser's Fury, but don't take that as a negative! I 100%ed Bowser's Fury the weekend it released, honestly it was one of the most interesting and fun Mario games I've played in recent time, it was an incredible experience. Sonic being my favourite videogame franchise of all time, anything being similar to one of my favourite Mario expansions is gonna go down well with me.
Im glad we can finally say sonic is well and truly back at least for now
For the first time in like 13 years but people still glaze the series…
Its shadow not sonic.
@@The_SUN1234 True, but Shadow is a Sonic The Hedgehog character. Also, the last few Sonic games have been a success, especially Sonic Frontiers.
First time I'm that excited for a Sonic game since Sonic Adventure 2 or Shadow the Hedgehog (the game) actually. I think that says a lot.
@@sahaprocks7751 tbh i count both as back, i think 2/3 good games means a series is truly back for me personally
Shadow's homing attack is actually Chaos Snap returning from 06, which could also bypass lasers. It was a fairly obscure mechanic in that game, so I can't blame anyone not knowing about it (especially given the status of game in question). Shadow Generations taking full advantage of it was something I never expected.
8:33 I seriously disagree as I feel like all of the doom powers are essential to speedrunning levels like Chaos Island Act 1. Doom Morph, Chaos Spears, Doom Wings, and the one where you beat up the guy and launch are essential for that run
5:56 Okay, so the reason a Shadow 05 level isnt present and Chaos Island is used is due to asset reusage. With 2 year to plan and produce this game (since it was only planned after seeing the reveal of Shadow in Sonic Movie 2), it would have been easier to get a level from a recent Sonic game with modern textures and assets than making new ones.
The time limit is probably the reason there isnt a Sonic fight as well 😅
That and probably due to the time eater pulling stages from ALL times, past, present and future which is probably why sunset heights and chaos island is here
@@SlinkerIsCoolThis!! I wanna also add a theory someone mentioned where Chaos Island is here because of how important the emeralds are to Shadow. It’s less about the Island and more what it represents to his character!
I still think a Shadow the Hedgehog (the game) level would have been better but it explores an interesting point for Generations : the possibility in Generations to play a stage "from the future" of Sonic (technically not for us, only for the characters in their point in time but you get the idea). That allows to make Time Eater mix "the future" with the present as well, not just the past and I think that's refreshing.
That's not an excuse tbh. Delay the game if need be.
@@compassrose1466 Plus there is the Chaos Emeralds' connection to the Starfall Islands in general as they were the home of the Ancient alien species whose planet the Chaos Emeralds originated from
I hope you talked to each NPC multiple times since after every cutscene, each NPC has a set of three new dialogues. Its pretty neat (Shadow canonically sucks/doesn't care about school work lol)
Ultimate Lifeform but definitely not the Ultimate Scholar 😔
Never played one of these modern sonic games. Stopped playing sonic at SA2. You would not believe the smile on my face after I went on Shadow Generations and heard the music from SA2. Super happy with this game.
I can't wait to play this game tomorrow
@@Snake_eyes0 Not gonna lie. I enjoyed Shadow Generations far more than the Sonic Generations side of the game. Makes sense why these new games never caught my attention. But the Shadow Generations side of it is honestly very fun to play.
@@AlejandroRojas-ur4vg I'm hyped to play Shadow generations the game looks amazing and the doom powers are mad cool also they remind alot about the symbiote tbh
im sure you wouldve loved the biolizard music then. the live and learn motif from SA2 is more clear than ever in the new version
The game definitely should've had a level from Shadow 05, Lava Shelter or Final Haunt, something. Other than that game is awesome
@@300fusionfall sky troops would have been cool
I feel like the reason that Chaos Island is in Shadow Generations, is that SEGA probably wanted to play around with the concept of traveling into the future instead of the past.
My theory is that they might release a Shadow 05 level as DLC, and it will have a small story element that explains how Black Doom survived. IDK why they didn’t explain how he survived.
They explained it in Dark Beginnings, since the Black Arms were a hive mind, Black Doom survived thanks to a larva that was in the Ark which appears in Dark Beginnings.
@@raydentherabbit8263yep! Also the prologue is IN the game! It’s there.
@@compassrose1466must just be in the PlayStation version or something because of the bonus deleted scenes because I saw NOWHERE in the game that lets you see dark beginnings in it
2:03 You can get it for free if you signed up for the Sega Newsletter 😅
Yeah im surprised he didn’t hear about that
I signed up but still haven’t got the email
@@Terminal_Apotos me too
@@Terminal_Apotos I believe it will be released 1 day after the official release, aka the 26th of October
@@AAlex-wg8mlnope I already have it
No Shadow stages is absolutely criminal. They 100% should have forced the players to play through Westopolis again just to mess with them, and not having Cosmic Fall, Sky Troops, or even Digital Circuit was a wasted opportunity.
11:00 Shadow generations spoilers, but there is a hard mode in the boss fights so it can be more challenging
thanks homie!!!
This game low-key took almost everything I knew about the boost formula and flipped it on its head, but in a good way
this game marks a milestone being the first 3D sonic game to not have me running into a wall every 5 fucking seconds
5:08 "Why is Classic Sonic in Rooftop Run?? He wasn't even IN Unleashed"
true
He was though... In the future
@@Rusty_Spy didnt they retcon it so that classic sonic is from a different dimension
@@sosman64but they retconned that retcon
@@Ruined332 this franchise is gonna make me lose my mind
You agree too, huh? I just can’t stop playing this bad boy 🎮
Gerald looks fine. Looks the exact same as his model in SA2.
7:43 love the fact that the physical version of the game came with an actual physical version of the journal
I love that the physical version has a journal of the shadow's creator
5:25 As the lone defender of Shadow the Hedgehog (2005), I approve the name Shadow '05.
1:47 bro it's literally free if you subscribe to their newsletter, what are you on about?
They didn't send me the code until 4 days after normal release, maybe he didn't get it either
5:18 Actually the Space Colony Ark stage was representation from Shadow the Hedgehog, as there were several Ark stages throughout that game, despite the Shadow Gens version using the Final Rush music
Well, if you didn't want to, buy the jam skin, and you can sign up for the newsletter for the skin for free
I do think I prefer how the boosting feels in base Generations modern stages (and sort of by extension, daytime unleashed), something about how fast the boost actually sends you and having it be a double edged sword that requires good map knowledge and execution with to not fling yourself off a stage feels more satisfying to me because those two factors lead to a much bigger payoff when you do get it right. That being said, the tightness of control is fitting for the ultimate life form, and its the best modern iteration of the forces/frontiers styled physics by a mile.
Don't put forces/frontiers in the same camp buddy, that's just weird. Nevertheless shadow generations doesn't even control like forces.
Generations physics are more close to Forces than Frontiers and Shadow Gens.
I find it really hard to go back to Sonic Generations now tbqh. Sonic is just so stiff and heavy compared to Shadow and there’s not a lot of room to get creative with the movement. It was worth trading a bit of the raw speed in exchange for giving you much more control
@@Prime_Legend
If we are comparing the boost levels of frontiers with the ones in forces, frontiers is somehow worse.
12:31 oh wow! I remember that the supporting me remix in the Shadow campaign on Sonic forces was absolutely incredible so if they found a way to make a supporting me remix be even better on this game, that is really impressive
I really love the way Shadow's abilities are used in actual gameplay. It's the best use of them he's ever had! The teleporting homing attack that allows you to cross through barriers. Chaos Spear for stunning enemies and hitting switches. Chaos Control allowing you to stop time, which in itself has a multitude of uses. From turning objects into extra platforms, preventing oncoming damage, and even giving you extra time for those S Ranks...etc. And that's just his base abilities. The Doom powers add even more means of traversal. Though if I'm being honest, I find his base abilities to be the best...
Now i want this but with unique and cool levels.
5:25 quick note, the ark stages do actually take from the shadow 05 ark stages as well as SA2, but not including westopolis or the black comet as a true reference is criminal
There is one thing about the story that I didn't get regarding the Fake Emerald. Shadow needs an Emerald in order to use Chaos Control, this is why he gives Sonic the Fake Emerald and keeps the real one. However, the Fake Emerald has "the same wavelength and properties" as the real Emerald and was even capable of allowing Sonic to use Chaos Control.
What reason does Shadow actually have to trick Sonic with the Fake Emerald?
Something Something, its less powerful and shouldnt allow chaos control and sonic did it somehow
@@BradRLee I guess it might be harder to use chaos control with it
Shadow tricks Sonic by giving him the fake Emerald so that he can use the real, more powerful Chaos Emerald as Shadow needs the more powerful Chaos Emerald to fight Black Doom.
I guess you can't go Super with a fake emerald
Best 3D level design in Sonic history
*Sonic Unleashed: I'm i a joke to you"
@@Bombastic_daioh I love unleashed and it is a very close second, but Shadow Gens just feels like it has so many ways to optimize and so many creative alternate paths. It actually feels fully 3D and mixes the best parts of Boost and Adventure imo, let's see if it holds up after my hype dies down
@@PDS350 Lmao not being "fully 3D" and having "more creative alternative paths" doesn't make it better. Unleashed has the more expansive and creative levels, the best boost gameplay but most importantly is more challenging and feels more complete content wise. Not hating on Sonic X Shadow Gens, it's a incredible game but it objectively doesn't hold a candle to Unleashed nor it deserves to be called "Peak 3D Sonic"
@@Bombastic_daioh I hope they manage to make it harder and faster in the future too, and the worst parts is definitely the extremely easy S-ranks, but it is a much better foundation than frontiers IMO for the next game
@@Bombastic_daiohUnleashed glazers are something else 😂
3:22 Dark Begginings show a black arms larva on the ARK in Shadows memories. Apparently it survived and since the Black Arms are a hivemind, Black doom took over it
You'd think GUN wouldn't have just left it there after they killed everyone on the Ark to "destroy" all evidence
I think the reason why there is a Sonic Frontiers level in the game is because Shadow is made of Chaos energy, and in frontiers the emeralds originate from there.
4:58 wait why is sunset valley here? if shadow generations takes place at the same time of sonic generations then they should have not known about the zone cuz sonic generations takes place before sonic forces
5:18 thats what i have been saying recently!!!!!!
You better respond to this bro. At 4:30 it's not shadow being better than sonic. It's sonic being better than him. Sonic beat shadow in like 1 hit in a couple seconds honestly. If they were the same skill it would of been much longer. Shadow said he was holding back because he would beat sonic on his own but it's like this, if he has to use the doom powers along with his chaos powers then it proves he is weaker, sonic uses traditional abilities and skills while shadow using chaos powers and doom powers and if shadow has to win to use them that's proof he is actually worse because sonic beat him in a couple seconds with nothing other than his own power.
No. Shadow Solos
@devinsauls9137 if this was shadow 2005 sure but why does sonic constantly beat him if he is stronger? Also he can power up into ssj2 and hypers sonic vs shadow only having ssj and maybe hyper, he has hyper but hasn't shown to use it.
Nah nah nah nah nah Shadow solos case closed
@@Snake_eyes0 ok blud even though sonic whoops him in this very game we are talking about
shadow solos bucko 🤪
Huh, I had NO. CLUE. About the Jam Pack skin so thanks for the heads up!
I mean, Shadow being stronger than Sonic is kinda a moot point given the ending.
1:44 You have to sign up to their newsletter or something to get it
5:27 I have been calling it Shadow 05 for the longest time!
As one of the original Sonic 06 fans that was there from the beginning and endured the years of mockery until people started thinking it was actually fun, I loved the rep in this. Mephiles finally got a fun boss fight, Kingdom Valley was just so pretty, and the overall callbacks and continuation from that entire thread of Shadow's character arc was nice.
Shad Gen as a whole is a very good game, and it's clear that it's actually the selling point instead of the Sonic Generations remaster. Heck, Shadow is front and center on the box art and the game has way more polish to it, I'm convinced that Sonic Team let this one cook longer than they usually do because they KNOW that we'd never let them hear the end of it if they messed up the first major Shadow story in decades. 👀
We’ve hit PEAK Sonic!
In truth, Space Colony Arc is a mix of the Arc from ShtH, and the Final Chase from SA2, but many people would miss that.
Sonic Frontiers launches
Me: This is NOT the Sonic I love
Shadow Generations launches
Me: THIS IS THE SONIC I LOVE!!
Based
The space colony ark is technically a shadow 05 stage although it debuted in sonic adventure 2. But yeah all the radical highway illusions should’ve just been the black comment instead because it doesn’t really make sense for black doom to be hyper fixated on radical highway of all places. I would much rather doom infest each stage like show a bunch of black arms organic matter infect every thing in the stage like the flood from halo.
TBH it kinda felt like ''Its over already?'' after beating the final boss, it was really fun but oh man they missed SOOOO MANY oportunities:
-Emerl boss fight
-Levels based on Shadow the Hedgehog, Digital Circuit, Black Comet, anything at all Sky Fleet, Gun fortress
-Asteroid coaster from Sonic Colors since he was in the DS version just...hanging around
-Maybe some GBA Advance levels becuase they can and throw in a excuse, hell he even goes to Chaos Island and he never was in Forces
-A redeeming fight against Infinite
-More interactions with Maria and Gerald
-Announcement of idk level packs for the future and a survey for levels people want the most
-A black doom base form boss fight, a diablon boss fight, a Sonic boss fight that wasnt a cutscene, more interaction or help from Rouge and Omega like Sonic has interactions, help or races against his friends in challenges
-A boss fight against Shadow himself but from a timeline where he did obey Black Doom
Only took 7 years for sonic to be peak again! 😭💀
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
😭
you're 2 years late man, it has been since 2022
@@KFCGullwas it fun ?yes ,did it have many many many flaws ?absolutely,so frontiers was not peak
@@KFCGull ❌
the sonic jam skin was free if you signed up for the newsletter of sonicxshadow generations
I’ll never get tired of breaking Shadow’s spin in generations.
11:03 Highly recommend trying the hard modes of the boss fights. They're much more satisfying.
OMG I LOVE THE DESIGN AND ORIGINAL NAME: TERIOS!
11:40 when that happened for me, my entire level became inverted, and ONLY the levels, not the hub world, and not the ring count, boost gauge etc. etc. and it stuck for every level! And I also got softlocked in the ARK’s second act towards the end, so that was devilishly annoying!
I kinda wish they brought sky rail or a few more stages from Shadow 05
Played Adventure 1 and 2 when they came out but never Generations so really liking this game
I liked the old controls better, other than that tho peak game 11/10
We are so back Sonic bros
The original Sonic generations is as old as me. It’s crazy to think that.
Yes finally another person that calls it Shadow 05 (I’m not crazy)
This game is a 9.9 for me. Needs a skin based on Shadow from Shadow 05 where he holds a pistol. Instead of Chaos Spear he fires the pistol, with no real gameplay changes because we're mostly fighting robots or superpowered beings.
At the final boss instead of summoning bigger chaos spears he instead pulls out the semi and pumps it like a shotgun, before shooting Black Doom in the face, killing him instantly. Everybody would give a standing ovation for peak fiction.
Dude people missed out talking to the NPC such as Omega, Big, Gerald, Maria, and Rogue. Most of their dialogue changes in the game itself, I think it happens after beating both acts of the stages and bosses.
What I'm saying is that Shadow Generations explains why both Sunset Hieghts and Chaos Island are in the hub white world. Gerald is the one that explains it, Garald tells Shaodw that he's experiencing places in the future, which would help explain why Sunset Hieghts and Chaos Island are here in the first place. Cause Forces and Frontiers didn't come out till way after Sonic Generations. And we all know that Shadow was never in Sonic Frontiers either, so there could be a possibility that Chaos Island might return in a future game where Shadow does go to Chaos island, which could be the sequel to Frontiers.
they could've added a Chao garden since the Sonic Adventure 2's Chao garden was basically kept it afloat, and considering people just play the Sonic and Shadow levels of SA2B, that would've been also amazing. But then again, it's SEGA we're talking about.
11:59 I always had the impression that the president was based on the actor Eric Mabius.
I'm pretty sure the prologue included bits of lethal highway and metropolis.
Is shadows doom powers permanent or just in this game
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this is super minor but i feel like the shadow 05 thing is kind of a non issue, like if i say “why doesn’t this game have stages from shadow the hedgehog” someone’s not going to think of the character it’s really obvious just from the context of the sentence
either way if we’re going to abbreviate it that way why not call it shad05 lmao
The title of this video and the thumbnail are extremely misleading as you definitely don't act like this is peak Sonic or that it's a 10/10 lmao. You're weirdly pretty negative here and a lot of your critiques are ridiculous at best. Like why Chaos Island is here, it's not about what specific stage Shadow has been to in the past or future. Time has broken down so a number of different areas are just thrown into the White Space, Chaos Island during the events of Frontiers being one of them. If you bothered to talk to Gerald after visiting there and Sunset Heights he would've clarified that. In fact every level in Shadow Gens Sonic had been to as well so it was really the Time Eater throwing levels of Sonic's past and future into the White Space. The only genuine criticism you give is there being no Shadow 05 level at all which is pretty weird. But otherwise the stage selection is awesome.
Tf do you mean "unfortunately" it's awesome that you have to complete challenges to get boss keys. All of them were super fun and nice little missions to do, nothing about it is to "pad out the game's run time." That's like saying having collectibles in the open world or doing a boss is to pad the game out lol. If it's intended and new content, it's not padding. All of the Doom Powers are fantastic and provide fun different ways to traverse the levels and find secrets. You essentially go "oh yeah they're gimmicks, okay they're not great then" like wtf. So what if some of them are situational? That doesn't make them underutilized or bad, you use all of them a ton throughout the game. The bosses are awesome too, they're just the right amount of spectacle and difficult. They definitely weren't too easy and if you really thought they were play em on hard mode. Gerald's model does not look goofy at all, these are the best humans in Sonic have looked since Unleashed. His face looks like Eggman's which is the whole point, he's his grandfather. Otherwise he looks as he should, nothing "goofy."
I think it makes sense they remember both green hill and chemical plant. I dont care what people say I know he doesn't settle down but for almost all purposes he will make at least a pit stop in green hills in most games and other forms of media/references. As for chemical plant they don't revisit it as often but they do hit it semi regularly and even if its just a one in done Tails isnt wrong how could they forget such a unique place in the sonic world. Its so different from what they tend to visit. They also linked the characters together and that classic is past sonic (though obviously after eggman abducted him I imagine the timeline splits. Maybe they touched on that in Forces but I refused to play it due to the reviews it got.) My only issue with it is when they bring up these references or writing changes it can often feel stiff or forced. A little more time on the writing would of helped and doesn't feel like they played it as sometimes moments feel disconnected from the game like a clip from a separate game/show. Idc about rouge I think getting away from sexualizing games that as much as we love them is also meant for kids to get into im for the minor changes though yeah they really should of paid attention to the model and watched it in game cause it is definitely busted. I also agree about Amy I prefer her when she is the aggressor or the glue to the group preventing them from making choices they will regret but they definitely shouldn't pretend she didn't have that progression.
6:42 the hub world area really reminds me of the one in bowser’s fury
1:14 Finally as the Dreamcast Verison of SA1 is way better than the GameCube and PC port
Shadow Gens is like Mario Wonder. I WANT MORE GRRRAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
frontiers stage lowkey there cuz asset reuse luckily its not a bad stage.
The challenge stages are some of the best content
watch sega use radical highway and the ark as the next "green hill" for the next 13 years 🤣
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I really loved that chaos island was in this, but seriously, this just makes me wonder why shadow wasn’t in sonic frontiers.
Well, in universe, Shadow is one of the few characters who's life doesn't revolve around Sonic. He's not going to always go where Sonic and his friends are.
Out of universe, SEGA clearly wasn't willing to put too many characters into Frontiers, as it being such a massive departure from games prior, keeping the cast small was definitely a good idea to keep things focused.
Should say that the classic sonic skin was available for free by signing up for the news letter before launch. they just made it available for cheap after the fact.
this game is phenomenal ... holy ..
Black Doom: I just REALLY like Radical Highway :P
I'm excited for the future of sonic, glad Sega is consistently making good decisions now
I was gifted the standard version of this game as a birthday present on steam. I hope I still get the Sonic Adventure 2 skin
Sega just low key teasing by adding a adventure skin
This is insane😮
So excited to play it
1:50 you could have gotten it for free by signing up for the email newsletter
If you sign up for the news letter before November 1st, you can the Sonic Jam skin for free
If you talk to Gerald, he will say the levels are taken from the past AND FUTURE. meaning Chaos Island is from the future...
this has gotta be intentional, he said $1.49 at 1:49
I can't believe the one game I decided I wouldn't get ended up being one of the best Sonics in recent memory...
The main reason I decided not to get it is because I was not paying £45 for half of a game I've already played a lot of. Perhaps if I had the option to buy just the Shadow game then I would've considered it. Also, Ys 10 was due to come out on the same day and I've really been looking forward to that particular game. Hopefully it'll get a good discount in the next Steam Sale.
I bought the Deluxe Edition, My God this game is good so far! If you haven't played it yet do what you have to do to play this game. Buy it, download it, steal it from the game store just do what you have to do in order to play this game.
I mean, the truth is that it's a very good game, but I hope that this time they take advantage of the DLCs and add new and better things.
One thing I was a little disappointed about was that they showed us pretty much everything in the trailers except the final zone, I was looking into some sonic content creators beforehand so I pretty much knew everything, even they were speculating there would be more content than there was lol "^^ I feel like I would have been more excited about stuff like Sunset Heights or Mephiles if I didn't already know about it. To be fair though, the campaign is short enough as is, so I think they probably didn't want to make it seem like there was nothing.
Also, as a new fan (who's only played Mania, Adventure 1/2 and Forces) I've never played OG gens before! Bit strange going between the new controls with the double jump and separate attack button to the old ones, but still good!
The sonic jam skin is free you just need to sign up for segas news letter and they give you a code to redeem it
Just beat the game, it’s freaking fantastic.
now sega needs to make knuckles generations
Wait, did the Time Eater bring back Black Doom, or was Black Doom always alive (but in hibernation) post-Shadow the Hedgehog?