Ironic how Sega is obsessed with not making a game similar to sonic 06 because it was a disaster when the game is about letting go of the past and living in the present.
Its a shame because it has so much potential, so them returning to things similar to 06 instead of trying to distance themselves as much as posibile would really benefit them
@@pogpogpurinn well Frontiers seems to be taking a leap of faith with the franchise again, and I hope even if gets mixed reviews.etc Sonic Team doesn't backpedal and instead works off the Frontiers base, using what was good and enhancing the lackluster elements.etc
@@Alovon you say that, but if frontiers is a success, they could very well milk it the way they did with colors, and every game for the next decade will be frontiers rehash. I hope that if frontiers is successful they only take some or what works and then make a new game with new ideas again
The most ironic thing about the legacy of Sonic '06 is that it failed because it was rushed, yet rather than fix the one problem that would have saved it, SEGA has been "fixing" everything else while still rushing games out the door to hit release schedules.
@@Elite-vo5hy Ya but it's a start if nothing else. Rushed games have been killing Sonic's reputation for 16 years at this point, so it's nice to see Sega actually not do that for once
They've been doing it since the beginning. Sonic 2 was drastically altered by it's rushed schedule, and S3K was infamously split in two to workaround the problem
@@charmyzard It does sound like that when taken out of context. But the way I see it: Even if life is unfair and some people may be selfish, I will continue to be the best person I can be. That is the value I take from Shadow's ending.
@@skeetermania3202 He means that Shadow doesn't dwell on what people think of him or if they're planning to betray him, he'll be in the present and focus on doing what is right no matter what. That's what he means
Honestly, for Silver's town missions, I think having them be mundane tasks like putting apples in baskets is fantastic. This is a guy with extraordinary powers who comes from a ruined future, and now he's able to help out the kinder people from this simpler time who genuinely appreciate him. It'd give them the same kind of charm as Superman helping a little girl get her cat out of a tree.
@@Double400 they could improve the gameplay but too bad sega never did another game with a town/city hub with fun side quests and minigames .... OH WAIT i am talking about yakuza btw
I completely agree with you. I just find it so unfair and dumb how people hate Silver just for one level....that’s not a good reason to hate a character just because of *ONE LEVEL!!!*
I just wish Sega would stop pretending Sonic 06 didn’t happen. Just because the game bombed doesn’t mean they gotta completely push themselves away from it. It’s an important game that just had a bad fate
It's funny. In all areas, it appears SEGA/SONIC TEAM makes a very purposeful effort to ignore this game... except they literally made Crisis City a stage in Sonic Generations.
Out of the mainline Sonic disasters (Shadow, 06, Boom, and arguably Forces) 06 is the most salvageable in terms of gameplay and projects like P-06 prove that. There's decent stuff buried underneath the crap. Maybe at its best, it's still not as good as the Adventure games, Generations or Unleashed but I've had more fun with P-06 than the last 6-7 years of mainline Sonic Team games.
I feel though that your comment are all the Sonic games after this. Decent ideas that are buried in trash. I think what people like about Sonic 06 is that is kind of resembles the DreamCast games but does not really. That is where the charm comes from. I don't know what Sonic is coming up with but I will still back him up (even though I haven't bought any of his recent console games except for Mania and almost all the racing ones).
>it's still not as good as the Adventure games, Generations or Unleashed First and third - maybe, but not Generations. They tried with Adventure, they tried with SNG, they tried with Unleashed, but with Generations - they didn't. It's just a quick cash grab and a huge nostalgia pandering. Outside of the gameplay from Unleashed, it has nothing.
@@HellNutcase oh boohoo gens doesn't have a good story it's not like it has great gameplay, wonderful level design, good remixes and is clearly made with love and care OH WAIT IT IS
An ironic thing i noticed... the message of the game, to live in the present and stop hanging on to the past... people AND Sonic devs aren't following that message.
I don’t know what sega was thinking. Turning one of their best written characters into a joke. Shiro Maekawa was the reason why we loved shadow in the first place. He had a connection to Shadow than his own family. If that is not dedication to your series I don’t know what is . When he left Sega ,Shadow lost his entire identity and what made him likable in the first place.
@@chi-wind8593 now shadows just a shadow of his former self written to stay as this angry edgy vegeta wannabe for the sake of meme fodder and deprication his only purpose is marketting fodder only use to bait people into buying their games
@@nyhtfall8037 Really, it makes you wonder how long this phase going to last . I’m wondering how future games are going to be. Rangers will determine that and will the characters actually get some development. Colors ultimate and the animation gives me concern that they have not learned anything.
This video is a very nice take on 06. As eager as everyone is to rip apart the game, not too many of us are willing to break down a few elements that would actually work for it.
I remember following the leaks and rumors in middle school for this game and literally printing out the Wikipedia page whenever something new was added and showing everyone at school lol. Yeah...I was weird. But I will say that between those leaks and the promotional videos coming out, my imagination went wild with what the gameplay was going to be like. Would this play out like a cinematic experience? Would Sonic actually have realistic texture? I was stoked because was going to be Sonic's transition into HD and I was absolutely here for it. Hell, I remember playing the demos in store and being blown away with it. Then, after (almost six years) I finally got it, I played it and was.....disappointed. Not because I thought the game was bad, but because the technical issues got in the way of an epic experience.
The Sonic 06 Review took me on a nostalgia trip as someone who played it as a kid, Thank you so much, if only people shared your views, the most ambitious story I've ever seen in a sonic game :)
As someone who used to meme about '06, you really opened my eyes. I never thought about the developers, passion, and ideas behind it. I could never see beyond the memes, Sonic getting kissed, and the game's bugginess. I feel really bad for bashing it in the way I did. I now appreciate this game for what it is. Thank you, J.
Same I used to joke on it all the time and follow content creator’s opinions until I actually played the game and saw potential in it, heck I even really enjoyed most of the levels
I could never meme this game. Yeah it was bad, but it clearly was the designers fault this game is memeable. They wanted to make the nest game they could and SEGA kept crippling them.
This is probably one of the most (if not *the* most) comprehensive '06 breakdowns I've ever seen. You hit the mark on almost every point, and in the most digestible way - it's great seeing the community's collective thoughts on the game collate into one supreme overview. Amazing work, J. Also, thank you for that shoutout when discussing Blaze 💚
If they shifted eliese from a love interest to a princess who never had a friend into having a real friendship in sonic it probably would have worked 10x better
Alternatively, make Elise a Mobian, preferably a Hedgehog. The chemistry issue would still need to be fine-tuned, but having Elise be a Mobian Hedgehog would make the romance much easier to stomach.
@@nakagamipenguin If the kiss must stay, then at least place it on the forehead instead or the mouth. It may not be well recieved, and I don't expect it to, but at the very least, it'll drive off the bestiality claims critics and fans alike have cited as the reason for why 06 is bad.
this video was genuinely a breath of fresh air to watch as someone who actually wholeheartedly loves sonic 06 despite its flaws. you really hit the nail on the head with everything you said in this video
Can we just take a moment and appreciate the analytical depth of this review. The part about the references to Shadow's training as a setup for him joining GUN in 06 made me retract into my seat and go "holy fucking shit". From all the videos I've watched about it, this is the only one that mentions this.
There's also the show of proving to humanity that he's turned over a new leaf by literally working for his prior enemies. If he were going mostly solo like Sonic & co., people would probably be even more suspicious of him than Mephiles implies.
Yes I am impressed. To bad game journalists don’t need to make 2 hour videos and only need to say “remember when Sonic kissed a human” to get their point across
Opinions are a funny thing. I will NEVER like Sonic 06, and it will always be Sonic's rock bottom to me, and yet I am with your final monologue 100%. It's WAY past time people let this game go, ESPECIALLY SEGA. They seriously need to stop using it as an excuse to not try, or not be ambitious. And it's hilarious how scared they are of this game, because there is only ONE singular lesson to learn from it; DON'T RUSH OUT YOUR PRODUCTS. That's it! That's all you need to NOT do!
and not rushing games is a lesson they clearly haven't learn because they still continue to have games rushed(boom and forces). and to me sonic forces is sonic's rock bottom it promise so much but delivered so little at least 06 actually tried
@@connorcoco2152 No. It actually didnt. The game was made in a year because they spent 3 yrs on upgrading the hedgehog engine. They also had 3 level designers who worked on the game: 2 never worked on a sonic game and the other one only worked on lost world
1:09:10 - Shadow is a true hero. Despite all the bullshit, past, present, and future, he's still going to do the right thing, even to protect those would turn on him. And the most impactful part is, the world will never know. Even he will never know, given the story's ending - That's what makes it so amazing...
I wish I could say that I hate Sonic 06. I wish the series had learned the right lessons from this game and had continued forward doing better with the concepts it failed with, to where I can remember 06 as nothing but a mistake that I hate. But sadly, with the context of the last 10 years of Sonic, I have to say... I like it too. Because it's the last time they tried to put the full potential of the Sonic series to use, before the series more and more began to abandon that potential. And while the series has done a lot to improve on the quality of the games, there are things that have scarcely been achieved since 06; from being fully 3D and making use of the characters with diverse gameplay, to enthusiastic use of the characters and mature concepts to build exciting and emotional narratives that build onto the Sonic world... in other words - unabashedly, proudly being a **Sonic** game. The tragedy being, that game that proudly reps so much of what Sonic stands for, was a dumpster fire. But instead of Sonic Team learning the right lesson of not rushing shit out the door and learning to have some god damn quality control, the takeaway they had was 'what Sonic stands for is a mistake', hence, the last 10 years being a floundering farce of attempting to redefine the series identity. Afraid of anything conceptually resembling something in 06 while still rushing shit out the door half-baked.
I feel sonic 06 is why we will never get an adventure 3 after all there gameplay has similar concepts and variety and sonic team afraid to try it again, doesn't help with the adventure and adventure 2 hate bandwagon recently
Sonic Team needs a brand new team of fresh new developers with ambition, passion, and dedication that aren't afraid to take chances and deliver something truly grand and amazing. Maybe then we might finally get a Sonic game that is worthy of "One of the greatest Sonic games ever made".
When I watched 06's cutscenes for the first time, I didn't even realize that Sonic and Elise's relationship was supposed to be a romantic one. The kissing scene had completely came out of nowhere for me. It wasn't until I watched the gameplay and some reviews did I realize what they were going for. Honestly, I liked their relationship (minus the kissing scene) when I viewed it as a friendship. It's viewing it as a romance that caused me to really dislike Elise.
Me too. I'd prefer to think of it as a friendship rather than a romance. Plus I hate that fact that just because Sonic saves Elise they have to fall in love with eachother? What is this? An old fairy tale cliche? Sonic was just doing his job and that's it. They didn't need to be romantically into eachother.
@@queenrose2009 Yeah, the kiss just felt tacked on, like someone at SEGA said, "we need a love story, guys, but we don't have time for rewrites, so just animated it in a FMV."
I haven't played this game in a while but i remember elise having power on their tears or something? Maybe the kiss wasn't necessarily with a romantic intention but something that had to be done to complete the ritual and revive sonic Besides i don't remember them ever implying that they loved each other anymore than friends do
In an alternate timeline, This game would have been remembered as one of the best sonic games ever. Such a shame it was rushed Edit: I'm SHOCKED this is still getting replies 3 years later. Y'all are wild.
Its not just that its rushed it has many fundementally flawed mechanics and gameplay styles. Shadow and Silver would need to be completely overhauled not to mention they tried to add so many characters and gameplay styles that it stretches itself too thin.
@@elgost2774 Not really. Look at the 06 Project by Chaos X. He is just taking the existing game and making it better. He’s not overhauling anything he is just making great improvements that make someone like Silver much more fun to play. Or how he turned Tails, a character that is at his worst in 06, to one of the best playable Tails appearances just by fixing a few things. Sonic 06 is not fundamentally unsalvageable. It is just not a finished game.
@@JsReviews Not saying that it doesnt have things that cant be polished. I should have phrased it differently. They focused so much on making this the biggest Sonic game ever that they wasted alot of development time on pointless side missions, extra characters, hub worlds and other little stuff that there was bassicly no way this game would have been polished even if they delayed it by multiple months.
I think a bigger issue is also the pacing. I think people would meme the shoeguy less if he appeared after the first stage and the shopdude did not gatekeep the light speed dash that sonic can use anyways.
I know people keep saying we need a Sonic Adventure 2 remaster, but I think that game is amazing as is and if we get a Sonic 06 remaster instead, it could stray the future Sonic games on the right path again
Shadow is easily the best character in this game. I feel like he's so important in the game and gets everything done. With Mephiles being one of my all time fav sonic villains, his connection to shadow also makes shadow even more amazing in this game to me
Honestly, I don't get why people say "of course it doesn't work, it's Sonic with a sword" about that game. The fact that it's Sonic with a sword was exactly why I wanted to play it when I was like, eight or nine. I never did get to play it, but it was always one of those games that I really wanted to get my hands on. And if I had, it probably would have been one of my favorite games at the time
@@windandfireproductions5358 I'm sorry, but unless it's in Smash Bros. Mario is never coming near a sword, because Nintendo isn't trying to branch out with him. Mario has his places, but wielding a sword is never going to be one them, especially in the mainline Mario games.
@@8-bitsarda747 i just hate the waggle. The story is great though. I legit watch the cutscenes from time to time. And the soundtrack is badass as usual. A shame the gameplay sucks
This video made me almost cry…I miss that “distinctive” part of sonic so much! Sonic was/is my childhood hero and it hurts me to see what the meta era did to sonic as a character. I love this franchise because of its wonderful cast, and how many interesting stories can be told with it. I don’t think sonic will ever go back to the way I want it to be, but just like my favorite character sliver I just gotta hope that the franchise will one day come back full of glory.
Thats why I hate meta era. Even if the games are good like Gens or Colors in terms of gameplay, but I will never forgive Lizuka for what he did to Sonic. I wish yuji naka was here......
Okay I'm kinda late here, but thank you for this video. For a long time I've had the opinion that 06, while it is kind of a mess, has huge potential and some very good writing. It is nice to see not everyone is deadset on beating this dead horse. Yeah, this game kinda killed Sonic as we knew before, but not because the game itself was that bad, but because Sega took all the wrong messages out of it. I did not really grow up with the series beyond the first two games, but I really miss the time when Sonic games were, as you've put it, distinctive.
Took the words right out of my mouth. There's no point in bashing 06 anymore. That horse has been beat to the point you can't even tell it used to be a horse! As I said in another reply. This game had so much potential. Sure project 06 is a thing now. But even if it's perfected it will never truly be what this game coulda been had all hands been on deck. But interestingly ive heard a lot of people claim sega/sonic team is actually listening for once with sonic frontiers. If that's even slightly true I'm looking forward to what the game brings.
The story was also unfinished, hence the lost quotes in the debug mode. And hence the lost quote that could only be heard in sega all stars racing when shadow says “whatever you try its useless”. Sega racing 2010 reused 06 quotes for sonic and shadow. Why ppl always think that devs would have only catered to glitch fixing had they’d been given more time has always been beyond me. 🤦
@@Guardian-of-Light137 I actually purchased the 360 version on Amazon and I'm interested in finally checking it out myself and officially form my own opinion
I honestly got pretty emotional at the end. Sonic The Hedgehog 2006 was daring to be something bold. It had a vision and was ambitious. The previous entries were building up to this moment. The stakes were higher, the scope was grander, etc. It was trying to be the best game in the series, and it could've been. Now it's a laughing stock among the fandom and the general gaming audience. A punching bag to hold the franchise back. The impact can still be felt to this day as it effects Sonic's current direction. With how the franchise is now, I'm afraid we'll never get a Sonic game that's as grandiose as 06 ever again. Thank you J. Awesome video. Can't wait for what's next.
Yeah for sure.. Sonic 06 failing like it did and gaining an unshakable infamy is what's been holding the franchise back for so long. After 06 and the Dark Age is what I call the "Panic Era" where they just kept tossing darts at a board trying to find something that stuck, since another 06 was not to be repeated. It's been 15 years though... I want them to be bold enough to try this again. I think most Sonic fans do.
Well spoken. It's so sad to see something that had so much hyping it be a colossal disappointment that there hasn't been anything close since. I pray that there will be a time where Sonic Team critically analyze this game & translate the positives from this one into future titles.
Tbh, I can forgive Sega for the mistakes they made with this game cause they had ambition and really tried their best to give us the best sonic game ever. I just wish they took the right lessons from it and kept trying to be ambitious.
Not only that, but the game was rushed do to overly excited fans. They rushed to finish it and didn't have time to think the storyline all the way through, fix glitches, or really finish the game at all. The game experienced a lot of backlash the week of release and I really disagree with all of the statements from the angry fans. I got the game for Christmas 2021 and I really love it. My only problem is the relationship with Sonise (Sonic X Elise) but that's really it. The game is a bit difficult, due to it being unfinished, but it's really a lot of fun! And Silver, just Silver, do I have to say anything else? "Chefs Kiss 👌" His character is I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E! This game really needs to be saved, and people should look for the good in something, not the bad.
Blame the fans, the next prohect saw its ambition out in full and the fans bashed it until it was crying in the corner. The fans praised tge "safe and short" and seethed when Sonic team attempted to introduce something new (lost world) The sonic fanbase is responsible for sega pulling out of many good ideas in lieu of safe options
I’ve watched most of your Sonic videos and I’ll be honest. As someone who grew up as a fan of the series, I have at times mocked and completely disregarded Shadow’s character as an edgy OC sort of design. You have definitely made me begin truly liking him as a character, something I never thought I’d say. He is genuinely quite compelling and fun. Thank you for your videos
I've never understood why some folk feel the need to downplay the quality this game could've had if it were more properly realised, since it's pretty self-evident right down to the name it was intended to be a magnum opus of sorts for Sonic that took it to new AAA heights, this game was going to leave an impact on people either way. Sure It's misguided in some ways but it's pretty on the ball in others, which equally describes even the best the series has had to offer since. Now that this game is at the half-way point of the series' life-span, there's really no better time for Sega & Sonic Team to realise that all the aggressive back-peddling Sonic has done since was never a long-term solution to this series's problems. I'm not terribly optimistic but I guess we'll see, great job with this video.
Also, A+ job on making a lot good arguments for Sonic 06. I honestly didn't think I'd actually sit down and watch all 2 hours of this but I was really curious to see what exactly you had to say. When I played 06, I was already made aware that it was bad, but I had gotten it for christmas and while I didn't 100% it, I did finish it. I was excited as hell to play it and I made damn sure I did. I know I didn't hate the game but I know I wasn't super thrilled with it either, thankfully I think I avoided a lot of the worst bugs (though the knuckles and rouge stuff I know I encountered). If there's 1 thing I can agree with 100% (I actually agree with a lot of your points) it's that this is the last game where they really tried hard to tell a big story, minus Unleashed. I miss when knuckles and the ME was relevant, I miss sonic's friends not just being "YOU'VE GOT THIS SONIC!!". I miss when Eggman wasn't a buffoon and actually had a coherent plan and Shadow wasn't just Sonic's Vegeta. I'd like to think I didn't have blind hatred for 06 (I think the fact I actually watched all 2 hours can support that) But I know for a fact I would speak negatively about it far more then positively. Even if I've still got more negative feelings about it then positive, I'll definitely try being a bit more positive from this point on. ALSO, If you're curious about Sonic 06's development, check out Matt McMuscles "What happened" Video on the actual development for Sonic 06. Because honestly I can't help but feel bad for the Dev team working on it. Everything that could have possibly gone wrong, went wrong during 06's development. It being rushed out for Christmas doesn't even scratch the surface. At the end of the day, sometimes all it really takes to change someone's mind is to look at it from a different perspective.
@@Jdudec367 What I meant was with all the issues the devs faced the fact that this game has as many good things about it as it does is remarkable I'm not saying the game overall is good but it has some truly redeeming factors
I remember the sonic vs silver boss fight being so incredibly hard and annoying to 8 year old me that it brought me to tears and my dad had to step in and finish the fight for me. Not a very proud moment but a strong funny memory looking back at actually how bad that fight is
Honestly Sonic 06 is wasted potential. This game could be so much more with a few alterations to the story and bug fixes. Honestly it could be proudly considered a spiritual successor to the adventure series with those fixes.
Despite how cinematic the *gameplay* is in Forces... did they try to pull a Quantic Dream or something? Making the cutscene and gameplay one and the same? Sadly that formula only works for interactive cinema... ...though I gotta say, the Death Egg Robot in Forces was totally mind-blowing. Animating tentacle-like appendages is a trial all of it's own... Forces might have been the "blue balls" of the whole franchise but god, I loved that boss. I dont care who or how many talk down upon that fight, that animation was a FEAT.
As someone who is in a similar position your in, it's really nice to have a video to point to when I have to defend myself for liking this game. This may not be my favorite sonic game, but it was certainly my most nostalgic. Thank you J
You said it best this game is tragic. There was clearly a lot of heart put into it. I respect how it tried to tell a big detailed story and I was invested in some parts of it, especially Shadow’s part. I hope this new Sonic game in 22 feels like it can be ambitious again.
I decided to play Sonic 06 recently and it wasn't as much as a dumpster fire as people make this game out of be tbh. I mean yeah the gameplay is really buggy even for its time and the story line is infamously pretty bad. But the graphics surprisingly hold up and when the gameplay isn't a bug fest it's actually kinda fun. Did not exact this game to age well of all games lmao.
It's partially because, no matter how good it was, it was slated to be another victim of fans hyping themselves up with unrealistic expectations. When you market it as a perfect Sonic game, you've set the bar far beyond anything anyone is capable of. Kingdom Hearts 3, Cyberpunk 2077, and Duke Nukem Forever are other examples of this happening, and being aware of this effect is a huge reason why Valve kept putting off Half-Life 3.
I know right, I played this game a few years back, and I actually found the game to be pretty fun. It's not the best game I ever played, yet I had fun going through the game and seeing what I enjoyed.
@@AbandonedVoid I don't think it was marketed as the "perfect" game, but it was the "next gen sonic game". It definitely had some high expectations, but even if it didn't, it doesn't change the fact that the game is bad. Regardless of hype, it looks good in motion but it's got a ton of jank. Not completely unplayable, but not really pleasant. And the plot is way to serious for Sonic game, why is a 2 foot blue hedgehog fighting literally God? And I grew up with this game, you can get used to it but I just can't agree that it's actually good by any means
@@nelosparda4798 At least I could laugh at Shadow the Hedgehog. And I never said I cared about SA 1 or 2s story either. Pit's world has gods in it, Kirby was established as one the most powerful beings in the kirby universe, and I don't know what gods link has killed. Ganondorf is the king of evil, not a god. Demise is the demon king. And before SA 1, Sonic never killed anything remotely close to a god. It's just goofy and I can't take it seriously. Not that I play Sonic games for plot, I dunno who does
"Take the ambition of [Sonic '06] and make a finished game." Truer words have never been spoken. I did enjoy games like Unleashed, Colors, Generations, and Mania. However, with all that was said in this video, it is rather curious to see where the franchise would stand if Sonic '06 was given the polish that it needed. Best thing we can do is appreciate what we have now.
Colors for me wasn't the best of the boost game imo. Roger didn't have the best intro to the series and also the writing of the game imo was honestly worse than '06. Colors was way more 2d as well and was the turning point in boost games for them to be a 2d action platformer with 3d elements and corridors. Some of the levels are bad and at least three times they recycle a boss fight with the sub only having the gimic of torpedoes and underwater to differentiate it from the pirate boss of sweet mountain....yet we use the same wisp for it. the 3ds is the better version. I would've rather had the wii story be more serious, no forced jokes, other characters, the final boss use more wisp powers that cube, spikes, and laser. 6acts is a little much and just pads out the 2 minute long level design of the game over all. The only inventive levels mainly being from terminal velocity of which we got 2 of them. Some of the asteroid coaster levels are good as well but even now....'06 and shadow the hedgehog have better levels for controlling a 3d character in sonic's world than colors, unleashed, generations, and forces. Lost world I know exists but I hate that game with a burning passion. I call the dark age the boost era for that reason. SEGA stopped trying to inivate. They stopped pushing boundaries with games, even if the idea is flawed. I know many fans clamber to mania as a return to form but for me, as some one who started by playing 3 and knuckles on the og pc port and heroes. It doesn't bode well with how I want sonic to succeed. I love mania, but I feel like since forces failed....no matter what....3d sonic only will suffer more.
"What was, at the time, one of the best sonic cutscene moments in history." It's *still* one of the best; that cutscene is to this day one of the truest to his character we've ever gotten, ESPECIALLY that part at 10:43 (in this video); not an *ounce* of worry, just a free spirit overflowing with casual attitude.
I'm so happy to have found this retrospective on Sonic 06, a Gen Z one no less. I was born in 2000, and I remember being so confused and a little disturbed by the apparent grandeur of the Adventure games which came out when I was too young to play and didn't have a console for them. Sonic Heroes was my first and Sonic Rush is my favourite. I have fond memories of 06. Playing multiplayer with my sister, getting frustrated when one of us picked Silver and did the stage after sending Sonic/Shadow into the stratosphere, the Sonic spin kick on crates to go upwards, messing around with the weird apples and oranges as Silver in Old Soleanna... the stupid little sliver of space under the early laser wall in Multiplayer White Acropolis that can be used to skip 2/3rds of the stage, heh. Even just swapping the controller when playing the Final Boss fight was fun. It actually took me a few years to beat this game because of all the maturing I had to do. I played Sonic, did all of Silver, and got stuck on Sonic's White Acropolis stage (the snowboard jump at the end was i m p o s s i b l e) for several years. Call me pathetic but honestly I kept coming back time and time again to do it (this is also coming from a child which never beat Sonic Heroes... so... okayisweari'mnotbadatgames--) Could finally beat it in 2011/12ish. It's such an interesting game woven into the fabric of my life and has encouraged me to revisit things from my childhood, especially media I didn't understand, to comprehend it in a maturer and more intelligent light. Having this retrospective was fantastic, I agreed with I think every single one of your points. I laughed at all the little tiny details I'd forgotten in the years since I played the game. The godforsaken metal bubble sections. The horrific wall-climbing. The awkward telekinesis slap. The textboxes sandwiched by two 30 second loading screens. Honestly I think this game taught me how to have a heckin' load of patience. It truly pains me that the echoes of Sonic 06 still strike Sonic's games to this day. The fact that we can't have something like it again is a tragedy. I understand wanting to get away from it but... I think the Sonic franchise has a huge cast of characters that deserve to be utilised and have their time in the spotlight. Maybe it's a little ah, weird to have Silver and Blaze and other such characters in that big story too, but still. I mean... Cream hasn't been seen in a long time. Some characters feel straight up just gone or forgotten... Sonic definitely needs to move forward more. It needs to look towards the future and go ambitious instead of playing it safe. Sometimes it can be so difficult being a Sonic fan these days, it's easy to be made fun of, and I oftentimes think I'm not really into him anymore, but I see these videos and listen to songs and his voice and I just... fall in love with him again. I'm nervous for what 2021 will hold for Sonic, it seems like Sega and Sonic Team are planning on doing a lot of announcements for his 30th year. Hopefully they're good. Thanks again for the video! Sorry for my little comment ramble. I've subscribed and have already seen a few of your other videos J, and I'll stick around for more. ; )
Hey, I do comment rambles all the time. Also, I want the Sonic Adventure games ported to Switch, SEGA. Anything else is irrelevant to me. (Since you brought up the multiplayer, did you or your sister get pelted with meteors in Flame Core?)
The absolute best review of Sonic 06 I have ever seen. SEGA and Sonic Team learned the completely WRONG lessons from this game. This series was good when it was distinctive, impactful, ambitious, but also respectably competent. The lattermost department was nailed in some later games, but the other departments were often lacking, causing the games to feel more formulaic, bland, and derivative. Colors and Generations are fine and even quite fun platformers, in my opinion at least, and I would NEVER consider them to be bad games, but they lack a real wow-factor. The fact that you played Sonic 06 as a kid and it became your favorite game back then throws the whole "it's for kids, who cares if it's special/distinctive/ambitious" idea out the window. I was like, 7 years old or something the first time I played the Sonic Adventure games on my GameCube, and they became among my favorites along with Mario Sunshine, Wind Waker, etc. so I can further reinforce that. More recently, the Sonic games have begun to lose their competency again, with games like Forces controlling worse and featuring even more shallow, on-rails level designs compared to previous games like Unleashed, Colors, and Generations, which featured the same overall gameplay style, but were executed much better. Forces is not only lacking the ambitious plethora of content of older Sonic games, but what's there isn't even very competently made, since it fails to live up to its predecessors. There are some concepts of Forces that had potential, namely the "resistance" theme, the villain Infinite, and the customizable OC, but these were all undercooked. And it's a shame that we may never see a better version of these concepts in a Sonic game, because they're now crossed off SEGA's list just like the Adventure formula was after 06.
"I was like, 7 years old or something the first time I played the Sonic Adventure games on my GameCube, and they became among my favorites" Same, minus the age bit. The Sonic Adventure games were among the first Sonic games I played, and they're among my favorite games of all time.
Loved this review, I think you did a fantastic job going through the game and I saw things from a whole new perspective that I hadn’t considered before regarding 06 and that is very much appreciated. Great work all around and I can’t wait for you to go through the next few Sonic games!
This is probably the most important review of a Sonic game that could ever be made. I had my disagreements with you about Shadow the Hedgehog but thank you for this. Its patently obvious that SEGA watches viral Sonic reviews and listens to the likes of Clement, Game Grumps, and SoCallMeJohnny who just trash the game from the ground up. But with a review like this that actually acknowledges Sonic 06's flaws and doesn't sugar coat it but takes a nuanced look at them and why they failed and recognizes the good ideas and effort that went into Sonic 06-maybe SEGA can watch this video, maybe people can question what they've been told about this game, and maybe we can stop getting generic mediocre Sonic games that are afraid of taking risks and cling to past (i.e. Classic Sonic). Take some advice from Shadow's story and leave the past behind you.
Somecallmejohnny doesn't always trash it. He does some positive about the game and he did enjoy some portions of Sonic's gameplay. But it was mostly negative. But he's an respectful reviewer as well.
And I love Clement. But he does really trash the game. But his 3 hrs review shows. Though u can at least understand where he's coming from and explained good on why the game is this way. While he also has some positive things about the game ( like the music, Shadow kicking in Sliver's head and CGI cutscenes look great for an early 7th Gen console ), most of his review was negative. But I can at least understand why he would hate it
Mephiles: Makes sense that of all people who like Shadow the Hedgehog PS2, it would be you, Shadow the Hedgehog. Even when you give your opinion, the world will still hate you, why bother? Shadow: If the world decides to be my enemy, I'll fight like I always have!
As a 19 year old (turning 20 in about 3 weeks), 06 was my childhood favorite. It was also the first game I’ve ever beaten. I believe I was only 6 or 7 (Pretty sure I was in 1st grade when I did beat it). I know the game is quite rushed and “bad” and the story is kinda weird with Elise kissing Sonic, but I can’t hate it. I love it, which is why Im completely in love with P-06. It made a game that I love even better
Im 19 too I loved they game when I was younger but I just can't bring myself to hate it It was just so cool to see silver come from his destroyed future he reminds me of trunks from dragon ball and he became my second favorite character after shadow
1:12:20 this is probably my all-time favorite Shadow scene as well!!! I love when Shadow uses his Inhibitor Rings to unleash his full power! He's just gotta make sure he does it on land though. Because as we saw in Sonic X that's how he ended falling to Earth in Sonic Adventure 2!
I’ve watched this video about 5 times now and I can easily say it’s one of my favourites on RUclips. It’s amazing to see such an optimistic and inspiring take on this game, and to actually analyse it instead of just bashing it with the same points over and over again. Amazing.
I still see people making videos about how bad it is, and I roll my eyes each time when I see comments like "YOU THINK THIS IS BAD BUT HOW ABOUT SONIC 06". Like, we're still doing this?
@Sonic 2013 i wanted to like sonic 06, i was excited when it was announced, but after playing it i would have to agree with the VAST majority of gamers + critics, it's just an awful game
I feel like I should apologize to 06 after Colors Ultimate, Ultimate arguably has more insane glitches than 06 yet its getting away with it and it’s 15 years younger than 06.
Something I want to address about Amy's infamous line. I interpret this as Amy choosing Sonic over a world that demands the killing of an innocent. If you think about it, this is the third time Sonic is accused for something he didn't do. First time in SA2 and second time in Heroes. Her decision to defend Sonic from Silver is actually in service of her character, as she's never actually seen Sonic do anything wrong, and even if he did, she would be the first person to confront him. This is evident in SA1 where she stopped Sonic from completely destroying Gamma, as in her story, she learnt that Gamma isn't evil like all of Eggman's robots. And in SA2, she rescues Sonic from Prison Island as she knew that he was innocent. She is loyal to Sonic, in which Sonic reciprocates her loyalty by saying "Thanks Amy. I appreciate that." But she also had no reason not to trust Sonic here. Why would she trust a guy she just met over a hero she deeply admires and has actually seen save the world multiple times before? Even she said to Silver that "Sonic would never do that." I'll give you the point that hearing this line on its own and free from context, is completely off putting. But I think if people relook this scene with that said context in mind, this line doesn't sound as bad as the vast majority claim it to be. It's more of showing Amy's faith in that there's another way to save the world. Even in Unleashed, she assures everybody to not lose faith in Sonic. Also, I'm not sure if you know this already, but she also wasn't actively trying to marry Sonic in SA2, as she was cleary teasing with him and she was going to free him regardless. Despite my own two cents, I appreciate how you're not too harsh on her, as it's really unfair to slander her character over a singular line, and I still appreciate your suggestions into making this one scene more tolerable for players. I've been following your channel, your "Sonic is (was) Distinctive" retrospective specifically, ever since your Modern Sonic Stories video, and I'm really enjoying it so far! It's refreshing to me especially to hear the perspective of the Sonic series from a fan within my generation. I was born in '01, so I'm almost the same age as you. I've grown up with watching ClementJ64's and Somecallmejohnny's reviews, and you provide a refreshing defense of the Sonic series, particularly the Adventures games and '06. '06 has been slandered to death and to hear someone unironically have a soft spot for this game, does warm my heart a little, if I have to be honest. But to conclude, this is an amazing well thought-out review, and I'm very much looking forward to the rest of your Sonic retrospective going forward!
I feel like Mephiles warping the Chaos Emeralds to himself in the last story might have been intentionally bizarre as in like Mephiles is collecting them one at a time to give the heroes a false sense of hope that maybe they can stop him in time be then at the last second Mephiles just completely trolls them by just instantly warping the Emeralds to himself.
That would make the most sense. Mephiles was always the kind of person to take the long way out if it meant that others would suffer. It's why he killed Sonic really late into the story. He wanted Elise to suffer, and simply just killing her would be merciful, in his eyes. He wanted _someone_ to suffer after what Elise's father did to separate him from Iblis.
Ambition is something I haven't seen in this series since the days of Unleashed and, to some extent, Black Knight. That was the prime time of Sonic for me, because it genuinely felt like each game had that Sonic "edge" to it that just made them so freaking "cool." But since Colors came around, I feel like the series really lost that and became something else entirely. It went from being the series about that cool Supersonic Hedgehog with Attitude to being the series about that Silly Cartoon Character with Comedy. I REALLY miss the Adventure days, as well as the latter half of Sonic's "Dark Age." They're what made Sonic...Sonic.
Personally, 2005-2009 was my favorite period of Sonic. Shadow, 06, Secret Rings, Unleashed and Black Knight (especially these last 3) are, in my opinion, the ones who broke the house the most. The developers really racked their brains for their stories. Some scenes was really unforgettable, striking and impactful. Many Sonic scenes that I have remembered come from the Dark Age, especially Unleashed with the opening cutscene, the scene with Chip reminding Sonic that he is still the kind teenager with a heart of gold, the opening cutscene of Black Knight, the scene of transformation of Sonic into Excalibur Sonic, the ending cutscene of Secret Rings with Sonic beating Erazor Djinn, the opening cutscene of 06 and even the resurrection of Sonic (except the kiss even if that didn't really bother me because that was brief and hided by a light. I'm more embarrassed by kisses that last a long time with the addition of people who move and end up choking). The Dark Age was really important in the Sonic series and it was the era that gave us the most memorable moments.
I remember loving Sonic '06 when I was younger and then I went to the internet and to my surprise everyone hated it. It was kind of a shock to me. Years go by and even today I will always try to defend 06 in a discussion because I know that hidden inside all that mass of bugs, gameplay issues, and plot holes, there was great story beats and concepts, great game design ideas. A game filled with passion. It truly sucks that the game turned out the way it did, but as you said in the video, it still was distinctive. I love Sonic Unleashed, Colors, and Generations, but Colors already made drastic changes to how the story played out in Sonic games and made drastic changes to characters and their interactions. It baffles me that Sonic 06 as infamous as it is, had the best Team Dark story of all the Sonic games, and it's the only main game where Silver and Blaze are main characters and playable. Sonic fucking dying and then coming back to fight alongside Shadow and Silver against a omnipresent timespace monster was as hype as it got for the Sonic franchise.
You said it better than anyone. This game was such an epic concept and it sucks that nothing after has even come close to anything this game did. Unleashed is up there but nothing is better than the main 3 heroes going super to fight a literal god
This is, hands-down, one of the most engaging videos i have seen on youtube. I agree with almost all of your points but even if I didn't it would be a sin to ignore the clear thought and endless hours of editing that have been poured into this series. :)
Eggman: Tries and fails to kill Sonic countless times across multiple titles and decades. Silver: Throws Sonic into orbit and kills him within minutes of meeting him.
Something I like about Mephiles is that he never "lies", per se. What he does is give information in a very selective way. Yes, Sonic is the Iblis Trigger, but only because his death actually triggers Iblis' release. Yes, Shadow would be sealed away for the destruction of the world, but it'd be because he'd have helped out Mephilis, a guy who was trying to destroy the world. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy kind of deal. On an unrelated note, I find it funny that Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric basically took Shadow and Mephiles' initial meeting and copy/pasted it onto Sonic and Lyric.
Clement snuck the Mephiles arrival scene right after the cutscene with Lyric and Sonic in his RoL LP. That fucking boggled my mind, especially when i noticed how DRASTIC the difference in scene quality is. You really notice the sharp nosedive in direction and flow in modern Sonic, not just RoL.
Except that in order for Mephiles to get to Silver's future he had to have killed Sonic in the first place or iblis got released by some other way otherwise why wouldn't he just take iblis at that moment instead of going to the future to recruit silver. In either case he blatantly lies to silver about the iblis trigger.
@@MrSilnev Damn that’s actually 5 Head , Iblis was in the future and Mephelis was too and Sliver had just beaten him why wouldn’t he join up with him there. Lol
@@MarshuTheBurninatorbro really came back a year and a half later haha. I actually thought this game looked better than most back then too. P-06 is really beautiful anyways.
I honestly wish that SEGA and Sonic Team would go back to the drawing board and give this game another shot. Remake it from the ground up, keep all the good bits and fix the negative ones. And for my personal preference, bring back the Sonic X voice cast for it, just cause they’ll always be my favorite voices for these characters.
Why? Remaking a game that's infamously bad is just pouring money and resources down the drain that would be better spent on a brand new game that took what worked and leave behind what didn't. Sounds like to me people just wanna justify liking 06 and not lose face
The 15th Anniversary game is turning 15 itself next year. I implore you all, don't use this game to intimidate people about future full-3D games. Having civil conversations about it is fine, but please don't spam it to keep us grounded in 2D and bland scenarios.
Hey, 2D is fine and plenty of games made in the present are still 2D and are beautiful to play :) Anyone saying Sonic *has* to be 2D though, yeah that's a bit dumb.
@@charactersin-depth3472 Fair point. I've seen people claim it gets used to pad out stages a bit since all 3D takes a lot of work. I assumed you were talking about how many people want another Mania over any new 3D title.
This reminds me of the sequels from Star wars. "Don't be like the prequels!" they said...and look what happened. We mustn't run from what we fear, we must embrace it, and overcome. But other than that, this video was phenomenal. Seeing what positive aspects are in the game really brings out the good in Sonic 06', despite all the horrible and crushing debris of its unbearable moments, which is nice for a change, and makes you really wonder what Sonic is about.
@traviscunningham7062 It was good because it set up the potential for a great eighth and ninth movie. Next to none of that potential was realized unfortunately.
Sonic 06 is one of the best examples of a product that suffered the death of 1000 paper cuts. There's a reason why so many reviews of the game devolve into nitpicking to explain what went wrong with the game, while not mentioning any core issues... because the game has a solid core. It's everything surrounding that core that's the problem. Many of these issues wouldn't be that big of a deal on their own, but when put together, they create far bigger problems. I always wondered why people praised P-06 despite all it did was making small, seemingly insignificant changes, until I realized... these small changes *are* the ones you make to save the game. Because all these little problems are what killed the game. To quote a movie I quite enjoy, "If the foundation is solid, everything else can be fixed." Compare this to Sonic Forces, a game that is creatively bankrupt. It's not as technically flawed as 06, but if you ask me, it is a *far* worse experience because of how lifeless it is. The problems with that game cannot be fixed, and trust me, people have tried, but the only way to fix Forces is to scrap everything and start over from the beginning. To me, this represents what happens when you're so afraid of failure that you don't even try in the first place. In short, they killed Forces with one precise stab to the heart, and then they we're proud of the fact that it was technically less wounded than paper cut man. I'm sick of Sonic 06 being used as a scapegoat for the series. It lets SEGA and Sonic Team continue to never address the issues that are causing games like Lost World and Forces to keep popping up. They don't have to address their ridiculous mandates because they can just say "The reason this game is bad is because it's haunted by the ghost of Sonic 06!" Y'know, even though those games failed because they were trying as hard as possible to *not* be 06.
Very good summery. 06 and Forces are both games that died for exact opposite reasons, the difference is 06 could have been saved with a lot less effort (Forces would have needed much more than the minor fixes suggested in the video). I'm holding out hope that Forces got enough bad reception that Sega rethinks the direction they're taking Sonic... I don't think it's likely, but hope is all I have right now.
@@WolforNuva Well, we haven't gotten a new mainline Sonic game since Forces, so maybe they're...no, I can't even finish that sentence with a straight face.
27:18 THANK YOU FOR THAT RIGHT THERE!! It shocks me how many people took his words at face value and thinks sonic of all people would tell someone to run from problems.
I love how this series can be both incredibly ambitious and incredibly poorly executed all at the same time. I think this is why it captures the imagination of children truthfully.
The world: "Sonic '06 has a terrible story!" Me: "If the world chooses to become my enemy, then I will fight like I always have." Sure, the script needed another pass over or two, but dang, I have a hard time complaining about a script that gives us gems like that one.
The story was a good attempt, better than Lost World and Forces. If someone doesn't like this story because of how confusing it is either you must've watched the cutscenes out of order on RUclips or you're just that stupid to not understand it even after completing the game.
@@phantomblue2798 This review went over the "yadda yadda" effect very extensively. The story of '06 glosses over crucial details very frequently, moving from plot point to plot point with too little explanation. If you had no issues with following it, that's fine, but don't insult the intelligence of others who felt differently. Regardless of how you felt, you can't argue with the fact that there _are_ a lot of people who felt that this story was not being told clearly enough. While the quality of the story itself is absolutely something that can be discussed and debated, the question of whether the story was told well or not can't really be argued. If enough people simply can't follow the story that's being told, then that means that it's being told badly. The metric for how well a story is told is how many people can easily understand it, and that number is clearly low for '06.
@@TheBlueWizzrobe I was basing what I said on what people say on a popular scale and mostly on my Discord on their thoughts on the story. Their main problem is that the story sucks because of the confusing narrative. It's not that I'm trying to bash people's intelligence because they think something is confusing, but I was delivering the fact based on people saying that an element of 06, the story, is a failure thanks too the confusing plot, you follow? Trust me, a lot of people has that mindset for some reason. They think that there was no need for some time travel and the overall narrative is now considered bad. BTW, if you reply what part of the story do you think wasn't told enough clearly? Really the only thing I can think of was were the trio doing Chaos Control out of nowhere but that has been a known power in the fandom if you played the other games.
I personally don't like Sonic 06, but I respect it. Sure it failed in so many aspects, but they were fricking trying! They were trying with many gameplay styles, they were going somewhere interesting with the plot. They were trying to do something new and interesting. And that's something Sonic desperately fricking needs these days. Where they keep shoving Classic Sonic into everything
Because classic Sonic actually works. Don’t get me wrong I have fond memories of Adventure 1 and Adventure 2. But as I got older and replayed them, I realized that while they weren’t terrible, they had severe flaws I didn’t recognize as a kid on Dreamcast. The classic games have their own issues. Especially certain segments of Sonic 2, my least favorite of the classics overall. But fundamentally they work very well. I’ve played a lot of the 3D Sonics. And imo, they just don’t function right most of the time. So yeah. I like the route Sega seems to be taking. More 2D Sonic. Mania was the best sonic game I’ve played since 3&Knuckles. I want more of that gameplay, but build entirely new levels and give it a little more story.
Orta. I agree. And honestly, Sonic does works better in 2D rather than 3D. Generations & Adventure 1 are an exception, cause they are good at least. And no. I didn't think Adventure 2 or Unleashed were all that good.
The idea of Sonic being a AAA character on the next generation of consoles was the right choice at that time. There is much to respect (especially in light of recent games), but as you mentioned it fails in critical areas. I only hope that Sonic & Sonic Team get back to this point & bring a stellar title that has learned from these experiences. I believe Sonic has much more to show to the world.
Such wasted potential just makes me so sad. Everything could be different and 06 could be one of the best games in history. I really hopes that someday, the game will be remade, with improved visuals, better writing, and everything that it deserved since the beginning, even if it is extremely unlikely to happen
I'm sure SEGA tried their best, and sadly some people don't know the entire story and don't give the game a chance. The game was rushed do to overly excited fans. They rushed to finish it and didn't have time to think the storyline all the way through, fix glitches, or really finish the game at all. The game experienced a lot of backlash the week of release and I really disagree with all of the statements from the angry fans. I got the game for Christmas 2021 and I really love it. My only problem is the relationship with Sonise (Sonic X Elise) but that's really it. The game is a bit difficult, due to it being unfinished, but it's really a lot of fun! And Silver, just Silver, do I have to say anything else? "Chefs Kiss 👌" His character is I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E! This game really needs to be saved, and people should look for the good in something, not the bad.
@@Alejandro333777 judging by Mania, Sega could hire the team behind Project 06 on and finally do an official PC port that will grant the game the greatest redemption known to the videogame space.
My interpretation of Blaze is when she was sacrificed in 06 she was sent to another dimension and when the events of 06 were in universe time travel retconned her history was rewritten to account for her existence in said other dimension.
This game actually has two of my favorite quotes that I still try to live by. "Nothing starts until you take action", by Sonic "If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have", by Shadow.
THANK YOU. I am happy I'm not the only one who, as a kid, loved Sonic 06. Back then I thought the handful of glitches I encountered to be more entertaining than anything. It was a cool game to me, there wasn't a single thing I had disliked except for that silver fight. I distinctly remember getting stuck there but being super excited when I finally won.
A lot of the points you made are exactly why I think this game needs to be remade. Many of the commenters mentioned that it feels like SEGA/Sonic Team still has that elephant on their back regarding 06, and that it's kept them from making the game people want. Near the end you said that this game established a bunch of rules for the series that the developers must abide by in order to keep newer games from being "Like 06", which ends up stripping a lot of the style and passion from the game as a whole while also being lackluster technically. My idea is, if this game were remade, it would purge a lot of the demons that reside at Sonic Team. Remaking the game in the original vision, and changing the things that obviously needed reworking, I believe that would bring back the passion of the series going forward. Because truthfully, it doesn't feel like this game's story is finished yet. The 06 chapter of Sonic's story still feels like it's open because of those rules it established for the series afterwards. A remake, in my opinion, would be a proper send off for Sonic 2006 and would finally put this game to rest for good.
@@Big-Image We should have gotten a Sonic 06 remake for the 30th anniversary. Instead, we're getting a remaster of Sonic Colors, another Classic Sonic compilation, and a new game we don't even know anything about. SEGA, ignoring the obvious methods of making money since 2010.
Exactly the way I think about it. In many cases it's best to face whatever you're afraid of to get rid of that fear and Sonic Team is terrified of 06 for over 10 years now. I feel like for Sonic Team and Sega 06 is that big scary monster under the bed that nobody dares to mention but it still has them in their clutches and influences everything they do. The best way to get Sonic back on track really is remaking this game and turning it into the great version of itself it was always meant to be.
@@smashmaster521 Yeah, and of all games, Colors? That game sucks, but who knows? Maybe we'll get an '06 remake for the 35th anniversary, or the 20th anniversary of Sonic '06, then it would be Sonic '26!
Adventure 2 Shadow : Start at level 1, end at level 8/10 Heroes Shadow : Start at level 5, end at level 10 06 Shadow : Start at level 10, end at level 3 prestige 1
Well I think that Shadow was well executed in Sonic and the Black Knight also due to the fact that the writer who wrote for this game also wrote for SA2 and Heroes. In that game Shadow is a calm protector and not an edgelord at all.
06 is the game that i cannot defend and don't feel like defending, i know the problems that it has But i also spend so much time as a kid playing this game, i know how to avoid the glitches and i truly enjoy the 3 Hedgehogs gameplay And this game has the best Shadow related story since SA2
This video brought me to tears several times. I love Sonic 06 so much, it is definitely one of my favorite games ever. I hope it gets fully remade and upgraded so it can be the game it deserves to be.
Shadow's characterization and arc really reaches the peak in this game and it's absolutely the best part of this game He's usually seen as the poster child for ow the edge types and while I get it, it's moments where he defies Mephiles and his taunts, choosing to forge his own destiny and choosing to fight come what may, that really cements him as a total badass
Wow… Amazing video. I think it is put so well to say that “Sonic 06 is a tragedy.” It truly is. And not in the haha joking way. This game had passion, the developers knew exactly what they wanted, and exactly how the game was supposed to end. I mean, the setting of the game is this breathe taking foreign region that we’ve never seen the likes of in the series, even to this day. It is still refreshing to run through the world of Soleanna even today as I play the game. This was meant to be the best Sonic game of all time. But… because of a couple small decisions made by the higher-ups on the team, this game came out a technical disaster. The team behind development was cut in HALF just so that this new half could work on a game to release on Nintendo’s up and coming console, the Wii (Sonic and The Secret Rings). Left with half a development team and tunnel vision determination to release Sonic 06 by 2006, the team had no choice but to rush the game, and the rest is history. It too sickens me that even now, in 2021, gamers around the world can’t let this game rest. Had developers just spent even one more year on the game, we could’ve had Sonic 07, potentially the greatest Sonic The Hedgehog game of all time. R.I.P. Sonic 06. Still my favorite Sonic game.
Honestly the funniest foreshadowing of the future in this game when the final scene is just him staring up at the full moon like a werewolf… and the following main series game was Sonic Unleashed. I genuinely feel like someone in the dev team saw that and had a big brain moment.
You don't know how awesome it is to see a new, long ass Sonic game dissection from you pop up in my feed, J. You holding it down during this Sonic game drought, let's freaking GO 🔥🔥🔥
Man who knew a genuine heartfelt look at Sonic 06 made for a really good Christmas Present. I really do hope that there could be a deep look into the effort Sonic 06 did despite all the technical quirks the game had from Sega's part. And honestly from the ambition it is what made people go back to Sonic 06 and even if it is to clown on it. There is always something to discuss about the game or even appreciate in comparison to how the Sonic fanbase views like say.... the infamous Sonic Forces. The Sonic fanbase truly do want their functional games with consistent quality, if they are INTERESTING AND FUN! And sorta makes me hope that Sega would try to steer away from something like Sonic Lost World and Forces instead, which are both plain bread with Forces being the more plain of the two.
I am really glad I found your channel. I liked sonic games growing up but hearing how "bad" they are now that I'm older has been really unfortunate, and I have seen so many videos about how bad sonic 06 is. Its really nice to finally hear the positives about it because realistically, almost everything does something right, and you are the first to bring those to light. So I thank you
J’s Reviews I’d just like to say thank you for this retrospective. Sonic games that came out in the 2000s have been getting shitted on by a lot of people and seeing people like you view it in a more positive and reasonable way instead of saying “sonic had a rocky start into 3D, classics are better, 06 is a dupsterfire,” etc and this sonic 06 review is an example of what I’m talking about because most people talk down on the game and it’s permanently affecting this franchise negatively and we need another game with the vision sa1-06 had but I don’t see it happening.
You have to understand though that the people who made those rants about the game were coming from the time where they experienced the game in it's prime, not 10+ years after the fact. Sonic 06 almost killed the franchise The game was supposed to be the breakout, golden star for the next generation (7th Gen) and instead it was a massive flop that reviewed poorly and the franchise's reputation seriously was tarnished. You've probably seen The Geek Critique's retrospective on this game and what he said towards the end was very true and it took a good long while until Sonic's franchise got back in a moderately positive light. You may think that this game gets over-hated and maybe it does but it did for good reason. It generally did upset almost a good 3/4 of the fans of the game, possibly even more back during 2006-2007. If you like the game, that's fine and good but the hate and ire that the game had in those old reviews? They were coming from a genuine place because well, many people like Sonic and that game just felt like a stab in the heart to a lot of the fans at the time when it was fresh and had no other next gen games to compare it to at the time.
@@decadentgamer3108 I agree with your points I was mainly frustrated that SEGA learned the wrong lessons from this game by abandoning the adventure gameplay, shonen story, a large cast of playable characters, and ambition
@@theunknown0887 Oh for sure, I agree with that as well. I think that Sonic Team/SEGA overreacted to the criticism that 06 brought because it's obvious that having things like a moderately deeper story, cast revolving around more than Sonic & Tails, and ESPECIALLY the Adventure-styled game were definitely not the problems with the Sonic franchise and it's a shame that they didn't realize that now. And when they finally tried a somewhat darker story again with Sonic Forces, they up and fucked it up with horrid writing and uninspired gameplay.
@@decadentgamer3108 exactly the only lesson sega should've learn from 06 was not to rush games but that's a lesson they cleary haven't learn because they still continue to have games rushed( boom and forces)
The fact that this game, had it been finished, would have been a masterpiece, and the fact that it's the last time for so much that I loved these games for, honestly makes me want to cry. This game deserved better than it got. This series deserves better than what it's getting. And I genuinely don't know if it'll ever feel like the games I loved so much ever again....
There is one thing i always say when it comes to Sonic 06. “Sonic 07 would have been incredible”
I think it would still have some tedious moments even if it was glitch free but yeah it would have been good at the very least
Sonic and the secret rings exists. And it is even worse. I like 06 tho so secret rings doesn't stand a chanse
I mean in Europe sonic 06 came in March 2007 so here it is basically sonic 07
@@Jim_100 does it suck over there though
@@lv_visions9774 Well it's exactly the same sooo...
Ironic how Sega is obsessed with not making a game similar to sonic 06 because it was a disaster when the game is about letting go of the past and living in the present.
🤣🤣🤣 Funny but also very sad when you think about that irony
Its a shame because it has so much potential, so them returning to things similar to 06 instead of trying to distance themselves as much as posibile would really benefit them
@@pogpogpurinn well Frontiers seems to be taking a leap of faith with the franchise again, and I hope even if gets mixed reviews.etc Sonic Team doesn't backpedal and instead works off the Frontiers base, using what was good and enhancing the lackluster elements.etc
Well then dont bash the game lol its all your faults you stupid bastards
@@Alovon you say that, but if frontiers is a success, they could very well milk it the way they did with colors, and every game for the next decade will be frontiers rehash. I hope that if frontiers is successful they only take some or what works and then make a new game with new ideas again
The most ironic thing about the legacy of Sonic '06 is that it failed because it was rushed, yet rather than fix the one problem that would have saved it, SEGA has been "fixing" everything else while still rushing games out the door to hit release schedules.
At least Sega delayed Frontiers because Sonic Team begged them to. They are finally learning
@@zeroattentiongaming820 Funny part is with the game delayed they STILL did not have enough time.
@@Elite-vo5hy Ya but it's a start if nothing else. Rushed games have been killing Sonic's reputation for 16 years at this point, so it's nice to see Sega actually not do that for once
Sonic 06 remake in 2026? 🧐
They've been doing it since the beginning. Sonic 2 was drastically altered by it's rushed schedule, and S3K was infamously split in two to workaround the problem
"If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have!"
The words I wished to live by since 2006.
"Oh the misery.
Everybody wants to be my enemy."
@@charmyzard It does sound like that when taken out of context. But the way I see it: Even if life is unfair and some people may be selfish, I will continue to be the best person I can be.
That is the value I take from Shadow's ending.
i may use that as my senior quote, its such an amazing scene and an amazing line
@@Deathclaw-lh5tlWhat did J’s moral mean (something about being centered), and how did he come to that conclusion? I was so confused.
@@skeetermania3202 He means that Shadow doesn't dwell on what people think of him or if they're planning to betray him, he'll be in the present and focus on doing what is right no matter what. That's what he means
Honestly, for Silver's town missions, I think having them be mundane tasks like putting apples in baskets is fantastic. This is a guy with extraordinary powers who comes from a ruined future, and now he's able to help out the kinder people from this simpler time who genuinely appreciate him. It'd give them the same kind of charm as Superman helping a little girl get her cat out of a tree.
Good concept wise, just not gameplay wise
This very concept could've been part of his arc. Him developing a growing appreciation for the life he could never witness in his own time.
Wonderful character study, pity this game's physics engine sucks.
@@Double400 they could improve the gameplay but too bad sega never did another game with a town/city hub with fun side quests and minigames .... OH WAIT
i am talking about yakuza btw
Agree great concept just execution didnt work out which is how i like to call this game
Sonic the hedgehog good concepts iffy execution
NGL Shadow's line "If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have." Is sick as fuck.
I miss this kind of Shadow.
@@jwx9509 yeah , I hope the mandates on shadow are gone in the next few years . I want this Shadow back too.
Better than “You know what makes you weak, your loyalty to your pathetic friends”
That's his best line
Sounds like Eren jaeger would say that lol
Silver is still one of my favorite characters. Poor guy was dealt a bad card.
Absolutely
Just because he appeared in a bad game does not make him a bad character.
@@sanicdahedgehag9618 True that
I completely agree with you. I just find it so unfair and dumb how people hate Silver just for one level....that’s not a good reason to hate a character just because of *ONE LEVEL!!!*
True that. Wish we got more of him.
I just wish Sega would stop pretending Sonic 06 didn’t happen. Just because the game bombed doesn’t mean they gotta completely push themselves away from it. It’s an important game that just had a bad fate
The only time they remember is when they want Blaze or Silver to come back
Tbh, if I made a game like fucking Sonic 06, I wouldnt wanna acknowledge it either
@@bluefire9285 nah if i made it I would be the proudest man on earth.
@@micjimster4845 that sounds like extremely low standards
It's funny. In all areas, it appears SEGA/SONIC TEAM makes a very purposeful effort to ignore this game... except they literally made Crisis City a stage in Sonic Generations.
Out of the mainline Sonic disasters (Shadow, 06, Boom, and arguably Forces) 06 is the most salvageable in terms of gameplay and projects like P-06 prove that. There's decent stuff buried underneath the crap. Maybe at its best, it's still not as good as the Adventure games, Generations or Unleashed but I've had more fun with P-06 than the last 6-7 years of mainline Sonic Team games.
Mephiles is still the best Sonic villain and Team Dark is portrayed at its best in 06
I feel though that your comment are all the Sonic games after this. Decent ideas that are buried in trash. I think what people like about Sonic 06 is that is kind of resembles the DreamCast games but does not really. That is where the charm comes from. I don't know what Sonic is coming up with but I will still back him up (even though I haven't bought any of his recent console games except for Mania and almost all the racing ones).
>it's still not as good as the Adventure games, Generations or Unleashed
First and third - maybe, but not Generations. They tried with Adventure, they tried with SNG, they tried with Unleashed, but with Generations - they didn't. It's just a quick cash grab and a huge nostalgia pandering. Outside of the gameplay from Unleashed, it has nothing.
@@HellNutcase oh boohoo gens doesn't have a good story it's not like it has great gameplay, wonderful level design, good remixes and is clearly made with love and care OH WAIT IT IS
@Johannes Brahms I just like how Mephiles makes Shadow grow as a character even if he isn’t as dimensional as other villains like Eggman
A better line for the Amy scene would have been "Are you willing to destroy my world for yours?" It would convey what you said pretty well.
Oooh dang, I gotta give you credit for that one. That would be utterly cutting, especially if delivered well.
@@charcoal200 Thanks, it really means a lot to me.
O_O...Mind if I use that line for my Sonic 06 adaptation for my Avengers-Verse?
@@smashmaster521 Sure!
damn, that would have been very deep. I love it.
Bad or good we can all agree that the music still slaps.
Edit: Oh hey look a bunch of likes
Now this is definitely true.
Damn straight!
Has some of the best songs in the buisness
Everyone knows 06 soundtrack is the best thing about the game.
Agreed
Silver: "This world was devastated before I was born."
Well I can already see why Gen Z would like this game.
good one
He is so me, fr fr
Yep!
fr
An ironic thing i noticed... the message of the game, to live in the present and stop hanging on to the past... people AND Sonic devs aren't following that message.
Still aren't to this day
@@superhedgehog6447 A fitting message for a world of current proportions
people only seem to throw money at them when classic sonic and the exclusion of a run button is in their games.
@@planetshaper4503 Indeed
Because the present arguably is even worse than the past.
I can't believe Shadow was such a good character before, it's a sad thing to see him portrayed as this ridiculous edgelord nowadays.
I don’t know what sega was thinking. Turning one of their best written characters into a joke. Shiro Maekawa was the reason why we loved shadow in the first place. He had a connection to Shadow than his own family. If that is not dedication to your series I don’t know what is . When he left Sega ,Shadow lost his entire identity and what made him likable in the first place.
@@chi-wind8593 u could say shadow lost his father once maekawa left
@@nyhtfall8037 Yeah, that is a excellent description.
@@chi-wind8593 now shadows just a shadow of his former self written to stay as this angry edgy vegeta wannabe for the sake of meme fodder and deprication his only purpose is marketting fodder only use to bait people into buying their games
@@nyhtfall8037 Really, it makes you wonder how long this phase going to last . I’m wondering how future games are going to be. Rangers will determine that and will the characters actually get some development. Colors ultimate and the animation gives me concern that they have not learned anything.
This video is a very nice take on 06. As eager as everyone is to rip apart the game, not too many of us are willing to break down a few elements that would actually work for it.
I remember following the leaks and rumors in middle school for this game and literally printing out the Wikipedia page whenever something new was added and showing everyone at school lol. Yeah...I was weird. But I will say that between those leaks and the promotional videos coming out, my imagination went wild with what the gameplay was going to be like. Would this play out like a cinematic experience? Would Sonic actually have realistic texture? I was stoked because was going to be Sonic's transition into HD and I was absolutely here for it. Hell, I remember playing the demos in store and being blown away with it. Then, after (almost six years) I finally got it, I played it and was.....disappointed. Not because I thought the game was bad, but because the technical issues got in the way of an epic experience.
@@snowfox7739 my man, an HD Sonic won't work for games
@@NiCoNiCoNiCola what makes you say that?
@@NiCoNiCoNiCola didn't know I was talking to a middle schooler...
@@snowfox7739 yea there's a lot of those round here
The Sonic 06 Review took me on a nostalgia trip as someone who played it as a kid, Thank you so much, if only people shared your views, the most ambitious story I've ever seen in a sonic game :)
As someone who used to meme about '06, you really opened my eyes. I never thought about the developers, passion, and ideas behind it. I could never see beyond the memes, Sonic getting kissed, and the game's bugginess. I feel really bad for bashing it in the way I did. I now appreciate this game for what it is. Thank you, J.
Same here ! I will definitely play it sometimes !
Same I used to joke on it all the time and follow content creator’s opinions until I actually played the game and saw potential in it, heck I even really enjoyed most of the levels
Unfortunately and, as J said, this also affected Unleashed
I could never meme this game. Yeah it was bad, but it clearly was the designers fault this game is memeable. They wanted to make the nest game they could and SEGA kept crippling them.
Same
This is probably one of the most (if not *the* most) comprehensive '06 breakdowns I've ever seen. You hit the mark on almost every point, and in the most digestible way - it's great seeing the community's collective thoughts on the game collate into one supreme overview. Amazing work, J. Also, thank you for that shoutout when discussing Blaze 💚
If they shifted eliese from a love interest to a princess who never had a friend into having a real friendship in sonic it probably would have worked 10x better
And take out the godawful kiss. That damn kiss ruins any impact the transformation scene would've had for me.
@@nakagamipenguin I assume that would be part of making her a friend instead of a love interest.
So true. There was no need for a love story!
Alternatively, make Elise a Mobian, preferably a Hedgehog. The chemistry issue would still need to be fine-tuned, but having Elise be a Mobian Hedgehog would make the romance much easier to stomach.
@@nakagamipenguin
If the kiss must stay, then at least place it on the forehead instead or the mouth.
It may not be well recieved, and I don't expect it to, but at the very least, it'll drive off the bestiality claims critics and fans alike have cited as the reason for why 06 is bad.
this video was genuinely a breath of fresh air to watch as someone who actually wholeheartedly loves sonic 06 despite its flaws. you really hit the nail on the head with everything you said in this video
2 hours of J talking about Sonic 06? Oh yes, the movie for Boxing Day movie night has been decided. Let's go.
Yeah
Bro I could talk about this game for 3.
Omg same :)
Canadian
@@tvnorminstudio3080 I could do it for 4
Can we just take a moment and appreciate the analytical depth of this review. The part about the references to Shadow's training as a setup for him joining GUN in 06 made me retract into my seat and go "holy fucking shit". From all the videos I've watched about it, this is the only one that mentions this.
There's also the show of proving to humanity that he's turned over a new leaf by literally working for his prior enemies. If he were going mostly solo like Sonic & co., people would probably be even more suspicious of him than Mephiles implies.
Yes I am impressed. To bad game journalists don’t need to make 2 hour videos and only need to say “remember when Sonic kissed a human” to get their point across
@@australiandr.nefario9004 Calling them Journalists is an insult to journalism.
I had no idea about that! It was so interesting!
@@inkchariot6147 I mean, these are the same people who think The Last of Us Part II is Game of the Year material.
Opinions are a funny thing. I will NEVER like Sonic 06, and it will always be Sonic's rock bottom to me, and yet I am with your final monologue 100%. It's WAY past time people let this game go, ESPECIALLY SEGA. They seriously need to stop using it as an excuse to not try, or not be ambitious. And it's hilarious how scared they are of this game, because there is only ONE singular lesson to learn from it; DON'T RUSH OUT YOUR PRODUCTS. That's it! That's all you need to NOT do!
and not rushing games is a lesson they clearly haven't learn because they still continue to have games rushed(boom and forces).
and to me sonic forces is sonic's rock bottom it promise so much but delivered so little at least 06 actually tried
@@connorcoco2152 3 years and 359 days were spent in t bathroom. Big diarrhea
@@connorcoco2152 No. It actually didnt. The game was made in a year because they spent 3 yrs on upgrading the hedgehog engine. They also had 3 level designers who worked on the game: 2 never worked on a sonic game and the other one only worked on lost world
@@connorcoco2152 06 has WAY better level design than forces
@@connorcoco2152 I agree and I have never played 06 but I have seen gameplay of all the levels and it looks so much better than forces.
1:09:10 - Shadow is a true hero. Despite all the bullshit, past, present, and future, he's still going to do the right thing, even to protect those would turn on him. And the most impactful part is, the world will never know. Even he will never know, given the story's ending - That's what makes it so amazing...
I 1000% agree!
@@faithful_otaku7339 😎
I wish I could say that I hate Sonic 06. I wish the series had learned the right lessons from this game and had continued forward doing better with the concepts it failed with, to where I can remember 06 as nothing but a mistake that I hate. But sadly, with the context of the last 10 years of Sonic, I have to say... I like it too. Because it's the last time they tried to put the full potential of the Sonic series to use, before the series more and more began to abandon that potential.
And while the series has done a lot to improve on the quality of the games, there are things that have scarcely been achieved since 06; from being fully 3D and making use of the characters with diverse gameplay, to enthusiastic use of the characters and mature concepts to build exciting and emotional narratives that build onto the Sonic world... in other words - unabashedly, proudly being a **Sonic** game.
The tragedy being, that game that proudly reps so much of what Sonic stands for, was a dumpster fire. But instead of Sonic Team learning the right lesson of not rushing shit out the door and learning to have some god damn quality control, the takeaway they had was 'what Sonic stands for is a mistake', hence, the last 10 years being a floundering farce of attempting to redefine the series identity. Afraid of anything conceptually resembling something in 06 while still rushing shit out the door half-baked.
Spot on take here. Do you think you’ll ever review 06 some day?
I feel sonic 06 is why we will never get an adventure 3 after all there gameplay has similar concepts and variety and sonic team afraid to try it again, doesn't help with the adventure and adventure 2 hate bandwagon recently
@@dragonmaster3030 The hate bandwagon needs to stop!
@@bleakburd4965 I Agree IT Need to stop let's hope next year sonic games gets better ^^ because next year is sonic 30 anniversary ^^
Sonic Team needs a brand new team of fresh new developers with ambition, passion, and dedication that aren't afraid to take chances and deliver something truly grand and amazing. Maybe then we might finally get a Sonic game that is worthy of "One of the greatest Sonic games ever made".
When I watched 06's cutscenes for the first time, I didn't even realize that Sonic and Elise's relationship was supposed to be a romantic one. The kissing scene had completely came out of nowhere for me. It wasn't until I watched the gameplay and some reviews did I realize what they were going for. Honestly, I liked their relationship (minus the kissing scene) when I viewed it as a friendship. It's viewing it as a romance that caused me to really dislike Elise.
Me too. I'd prefer to think of it as a friendship rather than a romance. Plus I hate that fact that just because Sonic saves Elise they have to fall in love with eachother? What is this? An old fairy tale cliche? Sonic was just doing his job and that's it. They didn't need to be romantically into eachother.
@@queenrose2009 Yeah, the kiss just felt tacked on, like someone at SEGA said, "we need a love story, guys, but we don't have time for rewrites, so just animated it in a FMV."
@@thatitalianlameguy2235 I thought it was Blaze in Rush 1, not Rouge.,
Agreed. Which is why I choose to think of it as friendship and not romance ending in SEGA pulling a Snow White.
I haven't played this game in a while but i remember elise having power on their tears or something? Maybe the kiss wasn't necessarily with a romantic intention but something that had to be done to complete the ritual and revive sonic
Besides i don't remember them ever implying that they loved each other anymore than friends do
In an alternate timeline, This game would have been remembered as one of the best sonic games ever. Such a shame it was rushed
Edit: I'm SHOCKED this is still getting replies 3 years later. Y'all are wild.
Its not just that its rushed it has many fundementally flawed mechanics and gameplay styles. Shadow and Silver would need to be completely overhauled not to mention they tried to add so many characters and gameplay styles that it stretches itself too thin.
@@elgost2774 Not really. Look at the 06 Project by Chaos X. He is just taking the existing game and making it better. He’s not overhauling anything he is just making great improvements that make someone like Silver much more fun to play. Or how he turned Tails, a character that is at his worst in 06, to one of the best playable Tails appearances just by fixing a few things. Sonic 06 is not fundamentally unsalvageable. It is just not a finished game.
@@JsReviews Not saying that it doesnt have things that cant be polished. I should have phrased it differently. They focused so much on making this the biggest Sonic game ever that they wasted alot of development time on pointless side missions, extra characters, hub worlds and other little stuff that there was bassicly no way this game would have been polished even if they delayed it by multiple months.
I think a bigger issue is also the pacing. I think people would meme the shoeguy less if he appeared after the first stage and the shopdude did not gatekeep the light speed dash that sonic can use anyways.
@@JsReviews Eh...there are flaws with it. Especially the story not just the core gameplay.
I know people keep saying we need a Sonic Adventure 2 remaster, but I think that game is amazing as is and if we get a Sonic 06 remaster instead, it could stray the future Sonic games on the right path again
More like a remake, that way the game can be released in the way it was intended
@@ILikeSoda229 well we have P06 so that's something
Well it is getting fan remade
Shadow is easily the best character in this game. I feel like he's so important in the game and gets everything done. With Mephiles being one of my all time fav sonic villains, his connection to shadow also makes shadow even more amazing in this game to me
I can’t wait for you to talk about “Sonic and the Black Knight”. That game is super under appreciated.
Honestly, I don't get why people say "of course it doesn't work, it's Sonic with a sword" about that game. The fact that it's Sonic with a sword was exactly why I wanted to play it when I was like, eight or nine. I never did get to play it, but it was always one of those games that I really wanted to get my hands on. And if I had, it probably would have been one of my favorite games at the time
@@8-bitsarda747 sonic with a sword is bad because its sonic
But I bet if it was mario it would innovative,fun and cool
@@windandfireproductions5358 I'm sorry, but unless it's in Smash Bros. Mario is never coming near a sword, because Nintendo isn't trying to branch out with him. Mario has his places, but wielding a sword is never going to be one them, especially in the mainline Mario games.
@@8-bitsarda747 I know it's not gonna happen,nor do I want it
I'm just saying if it did
@@8-bitsarda747 i just hate the waggle.
The story is great though. I legit watch the cutscenes from time to time. And the soundtrack is badass as usual.
A shame the gameplay sucks
This video made me almost cry…I miss that “distinctive” part of sonic so much! Sonic was/is my childhood hero and it hurts me to see what the meta era did to sonic as a character. I love this franchise because of its wonderful cast, and how many interesting stories can be told with it. I don’t think sonic will ever go back to the way I want it to be, but just like my favorite character sliver I just gotta hope that the franchise will one day come back full of glory.
Thats why I hate meta era. Even if the games are good like Gens or Colors in terms of gameplay, but I will never forgive Lizuka for what he did to Sonic. I wish yuji naka was here......
So much this man. I'll forever miss the previous era of Sonic...
@@RSproductions3425 it's "Iizuka" and he worked on pretty much every game Naka did starting from 3.
@@NAFEDUDE yes I already know. Just because he worked on Sonic games Since Sonic 3 doesn't mean he will be same today.
LS Mark made a video touching on how Sonic since 2010 isn't the same Sonic from Sonic Adventure days.
Okay I'm kinda late here, but thank you for this video. For a long time I've had the opinion that 06, while it is kind of a mess, has huge potential and some very good writing. It is nice to see not everyone is deadset on beating this dead horse. Yeah, this game kinda killed Sonic as we knew before, but not because the game itself was that bad, but because Sega took all the wrong messages out of it. I did not really grow up with the series beyond the first two games, but I really miss the time when Sonic games were, as you've put it, distinctive.
Took the words right out of my mouth. There's no point in bashing 06 anymore. That horse has been beat to the point you can't even tell it used to be a horse! As I said in another reply. This game had so much potential. Sure project 06 is a thing now. But even if it's perfected it will never truly be what this game coulda been had all hands been on deck. But interestingly ive heard a lot of people claim sega/sonic team is actually listening for once with sonic frontiers. If that's even slightly true I'm looking forward to what the game brings.
The story was also unfinished, hence the lost quotes in the debug mode. And hence the lost quote that could only be heard in sega all stars racing when shadow says “whatever you try its useless”. Sega racing 2010 reused 06 quotes for sonic and shadow. Why ppl always think that devs would have only catered to glitch fixing had they’d been given more time has always been beyond me. 🤦
@@Guardian-of-Light137 I actually purchased the 360 version on Amazon and I'm interested in finally checking it out myself and officially form my own opinion
I honestly got pretty emotional at the end. Sonic The Hedgehog 2006 was daring to be something bold. It had a vision and was ambitious. The previous entries were building up to this moment. The stakes were higher, the scope was grander, etc. It was trying to be the best game in the series, and it could've been. Now it's a laughing stock among the fandom and the general gaming audience. A punching bag to hold the franchise back. The impact can still be felt to this day as it effects Sonic's current direction. With how the franchise is now, I'm afraid we'll never get a Sonic game that's as grandiose as 06 ever again. Thank you J. Awesome video. Can't wait for what's next.
Yeah for sure.. Sonic 06 failing like it did and gaining an unshakable infamy is what's been holding the franchise back for so long. After 06 and the Dark Age is what I call the "Panic Era" where they just kept tossing darts at a board trying to find something that stuck, since another 06 was not to be repeated. It's been 15 years though... I want them to be bold enough to try this again. I think most Sonic fans do.
@@tidywire423 it would be better than boost gameplay and not great voice acting
Well spoken. It's so sad to see something that had so much hyping it be a colossal disappointment that there hasn't been anything close since. I pray that there will be a time where Sonic Team critically analyze this game & translate the positives from this one into future titles.
The boldest thing after 06 has been forces and look how well that did
@@dragonmaster3030 If anything, Forces was held back by them playing it too safe with an inherently risky concept.
Tbh, I can forgive Sega for the mistakes they made with this game cause they had ambition and really tried their best to give us the best sonic game ever. I just wish they took the right lessons from it and kept trying to be ambitious.
The devs tried their best. Sega rushed the game out of the door too quickly unfortunately.
Not only that, but the game was rushed do to overly excited fans. They rushed to finish it and didn't have time to think the storyline all the way through, fix glitches, or really finish the game at all. The game experienced a lot of backlash the week of release and I really disagree with all of the statements from the angry fans. I got the game for Christmas 2021 and I really love it. My only problem is the relationship with Sonise (Sonic X Elise) but that's really it. The game is a bit difficult, due to it being unfinished, but it's really a lot of fun! And Silver, just Silver, do I have to say anything else? "Chefs Kiss 👌" His character is I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E! This game really needs to be saved, and people should look for the good in something, not the bad.
Blame the fans, the next prohect saw its ambition out in full and the fans bashed it until it was crying in the corner.
The fans praised tge "safe and short" and seethed when Sonic team attempted to introduce something new (lost world)
The sonic fanbase is responsible for sega pulling out of many good ideas in lieu of safe options
Don't forgive them, they rushed this shit out the door when it clearly wasn't ready lol
Sonic Team I can forgive, but fuck Sega for forcing them to send this out unfinished. It's no wonder why Yuji Naka left
Fun fact: Yoko Shimomora (the same musician who makes almost every single theme in KH) helped out in Crisis City's theme
Tbh, the game feels like Kingdom Hearts
Ok i believe you
@@ericf.a8623 EY
that's why its so good
@@ericf.a8623 also my name spelled backwords is dis- *gets cut off by the sonic breaking the sound barrier*
I’ve watched most of your Sonic videos and I’ll be honest. As someone who grew up as a fan of the series, I have at times mocked and completely disregarded Shadow’s character as an edgy OC sort of design. You have definitely made me begin truly liking him as a character, something I never thought I’d say. He is genuinely quite compelling and fun. Thank you for your videos
wow, somebody actually being logical when discussing this game and it’s story? unheard of!
Thought I was the only one
Yeah its refreshing to see. He at least gives some things the benefit of the doubt and not giving it the worst interpretation immediately.
I think both Johnny and Clements review was logical.
@@taecampus i agree lol, i just like how J tries to give the games the benefit of the doubt and logically explain what others consider plot holes
@@Hutch2Much well to be fair there are many plotholes in 06 right?
I've never understood why some folk feel the need to downplay the quality this game could've had if it were more properly realised, since it's pretty self-evident right down to the name it was intended to be a magnum opus of sorts for Sonic that took it to new AAA heights, this game was going to leave an impact on people either way.
Sure It's misguided in some ways but it's pretty on the ball in others, which equally describes even the best the series has had to offer since.
Now that this game is at the half-way point of the series' life-span, there's really no better time for Sega & Sonic Team to realise that all the aggressive back-peddling Sonic has done since was never a long-term solution to this series's problems. I'm not terribly optimistic but I guess we'll see, great job with this video.
Also, A+ job on making a lot good arguments for Sonic 06.
I honestly didn't think I'd actually sit down and watch all 2 hours of this but I was really curious to see what exactly you had to say. When I played 06, I was already made aware that it was bad, but I had gotten it for christmas and while I didn't 100% it, I did finish it. I was excited as hell to play it and I made damn sure I did. I know I didn't hate the game but I know I wasn't super thrilled with it either, thankfully I think I avoided a lot of the worst bugs (though the knuckles and rouge stuff I know I encountered).
If there's 1 thing I can agree with 100% (I actually agree with a lot of your points) it's that this is the last game where they really tried hard to tell a big story, minus Unleashed. I miss when knuckles and the ME was relevant, I miss sonic's friends not just being "YOU'VE GOT THIS SONIC!!". I miss when Eggman wasn't a buffoon and actually had a coherent plan and Shadow wasn't just Sonic's Vegeta.
I'd like to think I didn't have blind hatred for 06 (I think the fact I actually watched all 2 hours can support that) But I know for a fact I would speak negatively about it far more then positively. Even if I've still got more negative feelings about it then positive, I'll definitely try being a bit more positive from this point on.
ALSO, If you're curious about Sonic 06's development, check out Matt McMuscles "What happened" Video on the actual development for Sonic 06. Because honestly I can't help but feel bad for the Dev team working on it. Everything that could have possibly gone wrong, went wrong during 06's development. It being rushed out for Christmas doesn't even scratch the surface.
At the end of the day, sometimes all it really takes to change someone's mind is to look at it from a different perspective.
With all the issues the devs had it's a miracle this game is as good as it is
@@matthodgkinson2003 what do you mean by good?
@@Jdudec367 What I meant was with all the issues the devs faced the fact that this game has as many good things about it as it does is remarkable I'm not saying the game overall is good but it has some truly redeeming factors
@@matthodgkinson2003 well ok yeah a lot of bad things have good things in it. Even sonic boom.
@@Jdudec367 Yep hate to say it but even Rise of Lyric had potential to be really good
I remember the sonic vs silver boss fight being so incredibly hard and annoying to 8 year old me that it brought me to tears and my dad had to step in and finish the fight for me. Not a very proud moment but a strong funny memory looking back at actually how bad that fight is
Honestly Sonic 06 is wasted potential. This game could be so much more with a few alterations to the story and bug fixes. Honestly it could be proudly considered a spiritual successor to the adventure series with those fixes.
P-06 project created by ChoasX definitely improves Sonic 06's gameplay, graphics, and even the glitches are non existent.
@@superhedgehog6447 project 06 is basically sonic 06 if it wasn't rushed- it really makes the game shine, definitely the definitive version to play.
@@evaggelos6516 sonic and silver look amazing in that game
Silver especially
It's not wasted potencial, the potencial was always there, just didn't have time to polish everything
@@sanglish18 that's what wasted potential means. That it was always there but wasn't taken advantage of.
Shame mainline Sonic games don’t feature epic CGI scenes anymore
@@philithegamer8265 baw?
@@philithegamer8265
Are you defending how cheap Sega produces Sonic games now?
@@Sjono colours had cgi
Despite how cinematic the *gameplay* is in Forces... did they try to pull a Quantic Dream or something? Making the cutscene and gameplay one and the same? Sadly that formula only works for interactive cinema...
...though I gotta say, the Death Egg Robot in Forces was totally mind-blowing. Animating tentacle-like appendages is a trial all of it's own... Forces might have been the "blue balls" of the whole franchise but god, I loved that boss. I dont care who or how many talk down upon that fight, that animation was a FEAT.
Are cutscenes waaah
38:31 XD Yyyeeeaaahhh I couldn't help it even to this day xD
Great review!
Hey man sega had to expect it i love the jokes lmao love your channel btw
Omg it’s the legend
I love watching your videos when i was still a kid. 💘
Love your videos man!
Hey man, grew up on your vids, hope you're doing great, you really improved so much over the years 👊
As someone who is in a similar position your in, it's really nice to have a video to point to when I have to defend myself for liking this game. This may not be my favorite sonic game, but it was certainly my most nostalgic. Thank you J
You said it best this game is tragic. There was clearly a lot of heart put into it. I respect how it tried to tell a big detailed story and I was invested in some parts of it, especially Shadow’s part. I hope this new Sonic game in 22 feels like it can be ambitious again.
I wish I could be as optimistic as you, but I wouldn't hold out hope for the next Sonic game being good. You'll only be disappointed.
@@smashmaster521 being disappointed is natural when you have expectations
it is
Sonic Frontiers is good! Let’s go!!!
I decided to play Sonic 06 recently and it wasn't as much as a dumpster fire as people make this game out of be tbh. I mean yeah the gameplay is really buggy even for its time and the story line is infamously pretty bad. But the graphics surprisingly hold up and when the gameplay isn't a bug fest it's actually kinda fun. Did not exact this game to age well of all games lmao.
It's partially because, no matter how good it was, it was slated to be another victim of fans hyping themselves up with unrealistic expectations. When you market it as a perfect Sonic game, you've set the bar far beyond anything anyone is capable of. Kingdom Hearts 3, Cyberpunk 2077, and Duke Nukem Forever are other examples of this happening, and being aware of this effect is a huge reason why Valve kept putting off Half-Life 3.
The story is actually good
I know right, I played this game a few years back, and I actually found the game to be pretty fun. It's not the best game I ever played, yet I had fun going through the game and seeing what I enjoyed.
@@AbandonedVoid I don't think it was marketed as the "perfect" game, but it was the "next gen sonic game". It definitely had some high expectations, but even if it didn't, it doesn't change the fact that the game is bad. Regardless of hype, it looks good in motion but it's got a ton of jank. Not completely unplayable, but not really pleasant. And the plot is way to serious for Sonic game, why is a 2 foot blue hedgehog fighting literally God? And I grew up with this game, you can get used to it but I just can't agree that it's actually good by any means
@@nelosparda4798 At least I could laugh at Shadow the Hedgehog. And I never said I cared about SA 1 or 2s story either. Pit's world has gods in it, Kirby was established as one the most powerful beings in the kirby universe, and I don't know what gods link has killed. Ganondorf is the king of evil, not a god. Demise is the demon king. And before SA 1, Sonic never killed anything remotely close to a god. It's just goofy and I can't take it seriously. Not that I play Sonic games for plot, I dunno who does
"Take the ambition of [Sonic '06] and make a finished game." Truer words have never been spoken.
I did enjoy games like Unleashed, Colors, Generations, and Mania. However, with all that was said in this video, it is rather curious to see where the franchise would stand if Sonic '06 was given the polish that it needed. Best thing we can do is appreciate what we have now.
Colors for me wasn't the best of the boost game imo. Roger didn't have the best intro to the series and also the writing of the game imo was honestly worse than '06. Colors was way more 2d as well and was the turning point in boost games for them to be a 2d action platformer with 3d elements and corridors. Some of the levels are bad and at least three times they recycle a boss fight with the sub only having the gimic of torpedoes and underwater to differentiate it from the pirate boss of sweet mountain....yet we use the same wisp for it. the 3ds is the better version. I would've rather had the wii story be more serious, no forced jokes, other characters, the final boss use more wisp powers that cube, spikes, and laser. 6acts is a little much and just pads out the 2 minute long level design of the game over all. The only inventive levels mainly being from terminal velocity of which we got 2 of them. Some of the asteroid coaster levels are good as well but even now....'06 and shadow the hedgehog have better levels for controlling a 3d character in sonic's world than colors, unleashed, generations, and forces. Lost world I know exists but I hate that game with a burning passion. I call the dark age the boost era for that reason. SEGA stopped trying to inivate. They stopped pushing boundaries with games, even if the idea is flawed. I know many fans clamber to mania as a return to form but for me, as some one who started by playing 3 and knuckles on the og pc port and heroes. It doesn't bode well with how I want sonic to succeed. I love mania, but I feel like since forces failed....no matter what....3d sonic only will suffer more.
I would honestly be open to the idea of them making a major remaster of Sonic 06. Why not?
@@amicadarcona3165 play the DS version of Colors, it actually knows what it wants to be
@@anthonystrangio i have though.
@@amicadarcona3165 oh ok can we agree that the DS version of Colors is better
"What was, at the time, one of the best sonic cutscene moments in history."
It's *still* one of the best; that cutscene is to this day one of the truest to his character we've ever gotten, ESPECIALLY that part at 10:43 (in this video); not an *ounce* of worry, just a free spirit overflowing with casual attitude.
I'm so happy to have found this retrospective on Sonic 06, a Gen Z one no less. I was born in 2000, and I remember being so confused and a little disturbed by the apparent grandeur of the Adventure games which came out when I was too young to play and didn't have a console for them. Sonic Heroes was my first and Sonic Rush is my favourite.
I have fond memories of 06. Playing multiplayer with my sister, getting frustrated when one of us picked Silver and did the stage after sending Sonic/Shadow into the stratosphere, the Sonic spin kick on crates to go upwards, messing around with the weird apples and oranges as Silver in Old Soleanna... the stupid little sliver of space under the early laser wall in Multiplayer White Acropolis that can be used to skip 2/3rds of the stage, heh. Even just swapping the controller when playing the Final Boss fight was fun. It actually took me a few years to beat this game because of all the maturing I had to do. I played Sonic, did all of Silver, and got stuck on Sonic's White Acropolis stage (the snowboard jump at the end was i m p o s s i b l e) for several years. Call me pathetic but honestly I kept coming back time and time again to do it (this is also coming from a child which never beat Sonic Heroes... so... okayisweari'mnotbadatgames--) Could finally beat it in 2011/12ish. It's such an interesting game woven into the fabric of my life and has encouraged me to revisit things from my childhood, especially media I didn't understand, to comprehend it in a maturer and more intelligent light. Having this retrospective was fantastic, I agreed with I think every single one of your points. I laughed at all the little tiny details I'd forgotten in the years since I played the game. The godforsaken metal bubble sections. The horrific wall-climbing. The awkward telekinesis slap. The textboxes sandwiched by two 30 second loading screens. Honestly I think this game taught me how to have a heckin' load of patience.
It truly pains me that the echoes of Sonic 06 still strike Sonic's games to this day. The fact that we can't have something like it again is a tragedy. I understand wanting to get away from it but... I think the Sonic franchise has a huge cast of characters that deserve to be utilised and have their time in the spotlight. Maybe it's a little ah, weird to have Silver and Blaze and other such characters in that big story too, but still. I mean... Cream hasn't been seen in a long time. Some characters feel straight up just gone or forgotten...
Sonic definitely needs to move forward more. It needs to look towards the future and go ambitious instead of playing it safe. Sometimes it can be so difficult being a Sonic fan these days, it's easy to be made fun of, and I oftentimes think I'm not really into him anymore, but I see these videos and listen to songs and his voice and I just... fall in love with him again.
I'm nervous for what 2021 will hold for Sonic, it seems like Sega and Sonic Team are planning on doing a lot of announcements for his 30th year. Hopefully they're good.
Thanks again for the video! Sorry for my little comment ramble. I've subscribed and have already seen a few of your other videos J, and I'll stick around for more. ; )
Hey, I do comment rambles all the time. Also, I want the Sonic Adventure games ported to Switch, SEGA. Anything else is irrelevant to me.
(Since you brought up the multiplayer, did you or your sister get pelted with meteors in Flame Core?)
The absolute best review of Sonic 06 I have ever seen. SEGA and Sonic Team learned the completely WRONG lessons from this game. This series was good when it was distinctive, impactful, ambitious, but also respectably competent. The lattermost department was nailed in some later games, but the other departments were often lacking, causing the games to feel more formulaic, bland, and derivative. Colors and Generations are fine and even quite fun platformers, in my opinion at least, and I would NEVER consider them to be bad games, but they lack a real wow-factor. The fact that you played Sonic 06 as a kid and it became your favorite game back then throws the whole "it's for kids, who cares if it's special/distinctive/ambitious" idea out the window. I was like, 7 years old or something the first time I played the Sonic Adventure games on my GameCube, and they became among my favorites along with Mario Sunshine, Wind Waker, etc. so I can further reinforce that. More recently, the Sonic games have begun to lose their competency again, with games like Forces controlling worse and featuring even more shallow, on-rails level designs compared to previous games like Unleashed, Colors, and Generations, which featured the same overall gameplay style, but were executed much better. Forces is not only lacking the ambitious plethora of content of older Sonic games, but what's there isn't even very competently made, since it fails to live up to its predecessors. There are some concepts of Forces that had potential, namely the "resistance" theme, the villain Infinite, and the customizable OC, but these were all undercooked. And it's a shame that we may never see a better version of these concepts in a Sonic game, because they're now crossed off SEGA's list just like the Adventure formula was after 06.
"I was like, 7 years old or something the first time I played the Sonic Adventure games on my GameCube, and they became among my favorites"
Same, minus the age bit. The Sonic Adventure games were among the first Sonic games I played, and they're among my favorite games of all time.
Loved this review, I think you did a fantastic job going through the game and I saw things from a whole new perspective that I hadn’t considered before regarding 06 and that is very much appreciated. Great work all around and I can’t wait for you to go through the next few Sonic games!
Never knew you were a fan! Nice to see you here
@@thatguyknownaswill8180 and most subs
Hoodo? What are you doin here!
Yw+×ee÷eeeeeee÷e÷e=e!#f###fffffffffff??cc???ccc'':gh;&jju
Wow! You are the one RUclipsr I would never expect a comment on this video
1:43:13 That box randomly falling on tails is hilarious.
That made me laugh so hard
🦊+📦=💀
The perfect representation of the game. Some super existential shit being told while the game fails to function properly.
@@justinc.5591 I think that was one of the time rifts, specifically the one that throw objects at you
Literally LOL'd at that
This is probably the most important review of a Sonic game that could ever be made. I had my disagreements with you about Shadow the Hedgehog but thank you for this. Its patently obvious that SEGA watches viral Sonic reviews and listens to the likes of Clement, Game Grumps, and SoCallMeJohnny who just trash the game from the ground up. But with a review like this that actually acknowledges Sonic 06's flaws and doesn't sugar coat it but takes a nuanced look at them and why they failed and recognizes the good ideas and effort that went into Sonic 06-maybe SEGA can watch this video, maybe people can question what they've been told about this game, and maybe we can stop getting generic mediocre Sonic games that are afraid of taking risks and cling to past (i.e. Classic Sonic). Take some advice from Shadow's story and leave the past behind you.
Somecallmejohnny doesn't always trash it. He does some positive about the game and he did enjoy some portions of Sonic's gameplay. But it was mostly negative. But he's an respectful reviewer as well.
@@jaretco6423 unlike the gaming grumps
Pain Ville. Ugh. Don't remind me.
And I love Clement. But he does really trash the game. But his 3 hrs review shows. Though u can at least understand where he's coming from and explained good on why the game is this way. While he also has some positive things about the game ( like the music, Shadow kicking in Sliver's head and CGI cutscenes look great for an early 7th Gen console ), most of his review was negative. But I can at least understand why he would hate it
Mephiles: Makes sense that of all people who like Shadow the Hedgehog PS2, it would be you, Shadow the Hedgehog. Even when you give your opinion, the world will still hate you, why bother?
Shadow: If the world decides to be my enemy, I'll fight like I always have!
As a 19 year old (turning 20 in about 3 weeks), 06 was my childhood favorite. It was also the first game I’ve ever beaten. I believe I was only 6 or 7 (Pretty sure I was in 1st grade when I did beat it). I know the game is quite rushed and “bad” and the story is kinda weird with Elise kissing Sonic, but I can’t hate it. I love it, which is why Im completely in love with P-06. It made a game that I love even better
I'm 21
Im 19 too I loved they game when I was younger but I just can't bring myself to hate it
It was just so cool to see silver come from his destroyed future he reminds me of trunks from dragon ball and he became my second favorite character after shadow
I'm 16, and Sonic 06 is just about the only videogame that I have never beaten, and i've 100% many games...
I like the game for
The story
The characters
The music
The bosses
@SSJ4 wow man
1:12:20 this is probably my all-time favorite Shadow scene as well!!! I love when Shadow uses his Inhibitor Rings to unleash his full power! He's just gotta make sure he does it on land though. Because as we saw in Sonic X that's how he ended falling to Earth in Sonic Adventure 2!
yes i like shadow
Same here
Sonic X isn't canon to the games though
I’ve watched this video about 5 times now and I can easily say it’s one of my favourites on RUclips. It’s amazing to see such an optimistic and inspiring take on this game, and to actually analyse it instead of just bashing it with the same points over and over again. Amazing.
I still see people making videos about how bad it is, and I roll my eyes each time when I see comments like "YOU THINK THIS IS BAD BUT HOW ABOUT SONIC 06". Like, we're still doing this?
@@whoevencares123facts
“So let me get this straight. You like Sonic 06?”
“I do, and I’m tired of pretending I don’t.”
"So let me get this straight. You think Sonic 06 is good?"
"I do, and I'm tired of pretending it's not."
more like
“So let me get this straight. You like Sonic 06?”
“I do, and I’m tired of pretending I have taste or standards.”
You can like it, but to objectively try to say it’s good then you’re delusional.
@Sonic 2013 i wanted to like sonic 06, i was excited when it was announced, but after playing it i would have to agree with the VAST majority of gamers + critics, it's just an awful game
@Sonic 2013 You can’t even spell objectively, Sonic 06 is garbage.
I feel like I should apologize to 06 after Colors Ultimate, Ultimate arguably has more insane glitches than 06 yet its getting away with it and it’s 15 years younger than 06.
yes good
06 also didn't corrupt your save file like Colors Ultimate.
06 glitches: Ugh I'm stuck on the grind rail
Colors ultimate glitches: S E I Z U R E/C O R R U P T I O N
And it was just a switch port of a highly received sonic game - colors.
How about we apologize to neither of them.
Something I want to address about Amy's infamous line. I interpret this as Amy choosing Sonic over a world that demands the killing of an innocent. If you think about it, this is the third time Sonic is accused for something he didn't do. First time in SA2 and second time in Heroes. Her decision to defend Sonic from Silver is actually in service of her character, as she's never actually seen Sonic do anything wrong, and even if he did, she would be the first person to confront him. This is evident in SA1 where she stopped Sonic from completely destroying Gamma, as in her story, she learnt that Gamma isn't evil like all of Eggman's robots. And in SA2, she rescues Sonic from Prison Island as she knew that he was innocent. She is loyal to Sonic, in which Sonic reciprocates her loyalty by saying "Thanks Amy. I appreciate that." But she also had no reason not to trust Sonic here. Why would she trust a guy she just met over a hero she deeply admires and has actually seen save the world multiple times before? Even she said to Silver that "Sonic would never do that." I'll give you the point that hearing this line on its own and free from context, is completely off putting. But I think if people relook this scene with that said context in mind, this line doesn't sound as bad as the vast majority claim it to be. It's more of showing Amy's faith in that there's another way to save the world. Even in Unleashed, she assures everybody to not lose faith in Sonic. Also, I'm not sure if you know this already, but she also wasn't actively trying to marry Sonic in SA2, as she was cleary teasing with him and she was going to free him regardless.
Despite my own two cents, I appreciate how you're not too harsh on her, as it's really unfair to slander her character over a singular line, and I still appreciate your suggestions into making this one scene more tolerable for players. I've been following your channel, your "Sonic is (was) Distinctive" retrospective specifically, ever since your Modern Sonic Stories video, and I'm really enjoying it so far! It's refreshing to me especially to hear the perspective of the Sonic series from a fan within my generation. I was born in '01, so I'm almost the same age as you. I've grown up with watching ClementJ64's and Somecallmejohnny's reviews, and you provide a refreshing defense of the Sonic series, particularly the Adventures games and '06. '06 has been slandered to death and to hear someone unironically have a soft spot for this game, does warm my heart a little, if I have to be honest. But to conclude, this is an amazing well thought-out review, and I'm very much looking forward to the rest of your Sonic retrospective going forward!
I feel like Mephiles warping the Chaos Emeralds to himself in the last story might have been intentionally bizarre as in like Mephiles is collecting them one at a time to give the heroes a false sense of hope that maybe they can stop him in time be then at the last second Mephiles just completely trolls them by just instantly warping the Emeralds to himself.
which would be so in character for him because he IS an evil mf
And then everyone will be his boyfriend
That would make the most sense. Mephiles was always the kind of person to take the long way out if it meant that others would suffer. It's why he killed Sonic really late into the story. He wanted Elise to suffer, and simply just killing her would be merciful, in his eyes. He wanted _someone_ to suffer after what Elise's father did to separate him from Iblis.
Ambition is something I haven't seen in this series since the days of Unleashed and, to some extent, Black Knight. That was the prime time of Sonic for me, because it genuinely felt like each game had that Sonic "edge" to it that just made them so freaking "cool." But since Colors came around, I feel like the series really lost that and became something else entirely. It went from being the series about that cool Supersonic Hedgehog with Attitude to being the series about that Silly Cartoon Character with Comedy. I REALLY miss the Adventure days, as well as the latter half of Sonic's "Dark Age." They're what made Sonic...Sonic.
Personally, 2005-2009 was my favorite period of Sonic. Shadow, 06, Secret Rings, Unleashed and Black Knight (especially these last 3) are, in my opinion, the ones who broke the house the most. The developers really racked their brains for their stories. Some scenes was really unforgettable, striking and impactful. Many Sonic scenes that I have remembered come from the Dark Age, especially Unleashed with the opening cutscene, the scene with Chip reminding Sonic that he is still the kind teenager with a heart of gold, the opening cutscene of Black Knight, the scene of transformation of Sonic into Excalibur Sonic, the ending cutscene of Secret Rings with Sonic beating Erazor Djinn, the opening cutscene of 06 and even the resurrection of Sonic (except the kiss even if that didn't really bother me because that was brief and hided by a light. I'm more embarrassed by kisses that last a long time with the addition of people who move and end up choking). The Dark Age was really important in the Sonic series and it was the era that gave us the most memorable moments.
I remember loving Sonic '06 when I was younger and then I went to the internet and to my surprise everyone hated it. It was kind of a shock to me. Years go by and even today I will always try to defend 06 in a discussion because I know that hidden inside all that mass of bugs, gameplay issues, and plot holes, there was great story beats and concepts, great game design ideas. A game filled with passion. It truly sucks that the game turned out the way it did, but as you said in the video, it still was distinctive. I love Sonic Unleashed, Colors, and Generations, but Colors already made drastic changes to how the story played out in Sonic games and made drastic changes to characters and their interactions. It baffles me that Sonic 06 as infamous as it is, had the best Team Dark story of all the Sonic games, and it's the only main game where Silver and Blaze are main characters and playable. Sonic fucking dying and then coming back to fight alongside Shadow and Silver against a omnipresent timespace monster was as hype as it got for the Sonic franchise.
You said it better than anyone. This game was such an epic concept and it sucks that nothing after has even come close to anything this game did. Unleashed is up there but nothing is better than the main 3 heroes going super to fight a literal god
This is, hands-down, one of the most engaging videos i have seen on youtube. I agree with almost all of your points but even if I didn't it would be a sin to ignore the clear thought and endless hours of editing that have been poured into this series. :)
"Sonic the Hedgehog, for better or for worse, is... *was* distinctive."
This brought a tear to my eyes, because it's just such a depressing truth.
Eggman: Tries and fails to kill Sonic countless times across multiple titles and decades.
Silver: Throws Sonic into orbit and kills him within minutes of meeting him.
Nice joke.
Eggman can try as much as he wants, but in the end... IT'S NO USE!!
@@mattm7220 Eggman: *"You know what they say: THE MORE THE MERRIER!!!"*
"This will end it!" *throws him into orbit*
Haha! It's no use! Give up?
Thank you for defending Elise as a character. And for just having a good head on your shoulders in general.
Something I like about Mephiles is that he never "lies", per se. What he does is give information in a very selective way. Yes, Sonic is the Iblis Trigger, but only because his death actually triggers Iblis' release. Yes, Shadow would be sealed away for the destruction of the world, but it'd be because he'd have helped out Mephilis, a guy who was trying to destroy the world. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy kind of deal.
On an unrelated note, I find it funny that Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric basically took Shadow and Mephiles' initial meeting and copy/pasted it onto Sonic and Lyric.
Clement snuck the Mephiles arrival scene right after the cutscene with Lyric and Sonic in his RoL LP. That fucking boggled my mind, especially when i noticed how DRASTIC the difference in scene quality is. You really notice the sharp nosedive in direction and flow in modern Sonic, not just RoL.
Except that in order for Mephiles to get to Silver's future he had to have killed Sonic in the first place or iblis got released by some other way otherwise why wouldn't he just take iblis at that moment instead of going to the future to recruit silver. In either case he blatantly lies to silver about the iblis trigger.
@@MrSilnev Damn that’s actually 5 Head , Iblis was in the future and Mephelis was too and Sliver had just beaten him why wouldn’t he join up with him there. Lol
Can we appreciate how beautiful this games graphics are for 2006?
I'm guessing you weren't alive in 2006 because there were plenty of better looking games by then.
@@HOTD108_ example: Twilight Princess
Uhhh, I guess?
Why the fuck did I say thi- Oh wait. It’s because my brother thought it was cool. me when i copy my older brother
@@MarshuTheBurninatorbro really came back a year and a half later haha. I actually thought this game looked better than most back then too.
P-06 is really beautiful anyways.
I honestly wish that SEGA and Sonic Team would go back to the drawing board and give this game another shot. Remake it from the ground up, keep all the good bits and fix the negative ones. And for my personal preference, bring back the Sonic X voice cast for it, just cause they’ll always be my favorite voices for these characters.
Agreed !
I agree!
Unfortunately, that won't happened cause Sega doesn't wonna do that. Luckily, there is fan made that's working on it. Called " Sonic P-06 ".
Why? Remaking a game that's infamously bad is just pouring money and resources down the drain that would be better spent on a brand new game that took what worked and leave behind what didn't.
Sounds like to me people just wanna justify liking 06 and not lose face
URFT. Cause it can make alot of improvements over the originals and made the game an whole lot better.
The 15th Anniversary game is turning 15 itself next year. I implore you all, don't use this game to intimidate people about future full-3D games. Having civil conversations about it is fine, but please don't spam it to keep us grounded in 2D and bland scenarios.
Hey, 2D is fine and plenty of games made in the present are still 2D and are beautiful to play :)
Anyone saying Sonic *has* to be 2D though, yeah that's a bit dumb.
@@ShaimingLong I was focusing on 2D being in where it shouldn't like Lost World and Forces.
@@charactersin-depth3472 Fair point. I've seen people claim it gets used to pad out stages a bit since all 3D takes a lot of work.
I assumed you were talking about how many people want another Mania over any new 3D title.
@@ShaimingLong A new Mania can happen on the side.
@@charactersin-depth3472 I'd certainly be happy with that! More so if both games can be their own thing and not be forced into being connected again.
other people: sonic 06 plays like shit it's a real embarassment
this guy: i just like how it make a thud noise when shadow use the homing attack pog
This reminds me of the sequels from Star wars. "Don't be like the prequels!" they said...and look what happened. We mustn't run from what we fear, we must embrace it, and overcome. But other than that, this video was phenomenal. Seeing what positive aspects are in the game really brings out the good in Sonic 06', despite all the horrible and crushing debris of its unbearable moments, which is nice for a change, and makes you really wonder what Sonic is about.
I love that analogy. I always liked the prequels, and now Disney's sequel trilogy makes them all look like master pieces.
@@marcdimartino9118 the Forces Awakens was the only good movie in the Sequels.
@traviscunningham7062 It was good because it set up the potential for a great eighth and ninth movie. Next to none of that potential was realized unfortunately.
Sonic 06 is one of the best examples of a product that suffered the death of 1000 paper cuts. There's a reason why so many reviews of the game devolve into nitpicking to explain what went wrong with the game, while not mentioning any core issues... because the game has a solid core. It's everything surrounding that core that's the problem. Many of these issues wouldn't be that big of a deal on their own, but when put together, they create far bigger problems. I always wondered why people praised P-06 despite all it did was making small, seemingly insignificant changes, until I realized... these small changes *are* the ones you make to save the game. Because all these little problems are what killed the game. To quote a movie I quite enjoy, "If the foundation is solid, everything else can be fixed."
Compare this to Sonic Forces, a game that is creatively bankrupt. It's not as technically flawed as 06, but if you ask me, it is a *far* worse experience because of how lifeless it is. The problems with that game cannot be fixed, and trust me, people have tried, but the only way to fix Forces is to scrap everything and start over from the beginning. To me, this represents what happens when you're so afraid of failure that you don't even try in the first place. In short, they killed Forces with one precise stab to the heart, and then they we're proud of the fact that it was technically less wounded than paper cut man.
I'm sick of Sonic 06 being used as a scapegoat for the series. It lets SEGA and Sonic Team continue to never address the issues that are causing games like Lost World and Forces to keep popping up. They don't have to address their ridiculous mandates because they can just say "The reason this game is bad is because it's haunted by the ghost of Sonic 06!" Y'know, even though those games failed because they were trying as hard as possible to *not* be 06.
Come on SEGA! Learn from Shadow! Move on from the past!
Very good summery. 06 and Forces are both games that died for exact opposite reasons, the difference is 06 could have been saved with a lot less effort (Forces would have needed much more than the minor fixes suggested in the video). I'm holding out hope that Forces got enough bad reception that Sega rethinks the direction they're taking Sonic... I don't think it's likely, but hope is all I have right now.
@@WolforNuva Well, we haven't gotten a new mainline Sonic game since Forces, so maybe they're...no, I can't even finish that sentence with a straight face.
I dont think p06 fixed the game sonics levels were already good, but if p06 was finished the game would be just as bad
@@baylordiamond8819 no it wouldn't. it literally fixes all the gameplay.
It’s weird but I’ll admit, when I was a kid, I didn’t know Sonic 06 was bad until I went on RUclips years later.
Me too.
You were a kid. There's almost no such thing as a bad game in those years.
@@yunarukami9375 Lie, I hated Sonic and the Secret Rings as a kid and still do now
Johannes Brahms
Same
27:18 THANK YOU FOR THAT RIGHT THERE!! It shocks me how many people took his words at face value and thinks sonic of all people would tell someone to run from problems.
I love how this series can be both incredibly ambitious and incredibly poorly executed all at the same time. I think this is why it captures the imagination of children truthfully.
The world: "Sonic '06 has a terrible story!"
Me: "If the world chooses to become my enemy, then I will fight like I always have."
Sure, the script needed another pass over or two, but dang, I have a hard time complaining about a script that gives us gems like that one.
The story was a good attempt, better than Lost World and Forces. If someone doesn't like this story because of how confusing it is either you must've watched the cutscenes out of order on RUclips or you're just that stupid to not understand it even after completing the game.
@@phantomblue2798 This review went over the "yadda yadda" effect very extensively. The story of '06 glosses over crucial details very frequently, moving from plot point to plot point with too little explanation. If you had no issues with following it, that's fine, but don't insult the intelligence of others who felt differently. Regardless of how you felt, you can't argue with the fact that there _are_ a lot of people who felt that this story was not being told clearly enough. While the quality of the story itself is absolutely something that can be discussed and debated, the question of whether the story was told well or not can't really be argued. If enough people simply can't follow the story that's being told, then that means that it's being told badly. The metric for how well a story is told is how many people can easily understand it, and that number is clearly low for '06.
The only actually good story was Shadow's while Silver's is shaky with its frequent use of Time Travel and Sonic's is the worst Mario Game ever.
Dialogue and story are distinctly different, but that line hit the bullets for both.
@@TheBlueWizzrobe I was basing what I said on what people say on a popular scale and mostly on my Discord on their thoughts on the story. Their main problem is that the story sucks because of the confusing narrative. It's not that I'm trying to bash people's intelligence because they think something is confusing, but I was delivering the fact based on people saying that an element of 06, the story, is a failure thanks too the confusing plot, you follow? Trust me, a lot of people has that mindset for some reason. They think that there was no need for some time travel and the overall narrative is now considered bad. BTW, if you reply what part of the story do you think wasn't told enough clearly? Really the only thing I can think of was were the trio doing Chaos Control out of nowhere but that has been a known power in the fandom if you played the other games.
I personally don't like Sonic 06, but I respect it.
Sure it failed in so many aspects, but they were fricking trying! They were trying with many gameplay styles, they were going somewhere interesting with the plot. They were trying to do something new and interesting.
And that's something Sonic desperately fricking needs these days. Where they keep shoving Classic Sonic into everything
SammyModernSonicRespector
I Don’t like Sonic 06.
@@joshuaperry9017 And we respect your opinion
Because classic Sonic actually works.
Don’t get me wrong I have fond memories of Adventure 1 and Adventure 2. But as I got older and replayed them, I realized that while they weren’t terrible, they had severe flaws I didn’t recognize as a kid on Dreamcast.
The classic games have their own issues. Especially certain segments of Sonic 2, my least favorite of the classics overall. But fundamentally they work very well.
I’ve played a lot of the 3D Sonics. And imo, they just don’t function right most of the time.
So yeah. I like the route Sega seems to be taking. More 2D Sonic. Mania was the best sonic game I’ve played since 3&Knuckles. I want more of that gameplay, but build entirely new levels and give it a little more story.
Orta. I agree. And honestly, Sonic does works better in 2D rather than 3D. Generations & Adventure 1 are an exception, cause they are good at least. And no. I didn't think Adventure 2 or Unleashed were all that good.
The idea of Sonic being a AAA character on the next generation of consoles was the right choice at that time. There is much to respect (especially in light of recent games), but as you mentioned it fails in critical areas. I only hope that Sonic & Sonic Team get back to this point & bring a stellar title that has learned from these experiences. I believe Sonic has much more to show to the world.
honestly i feel like the 06 models were the best. the overall longer and more flowy physics just suits it all so much
What physics? They were literally broken, there was no sense of momentum whatsoever
@@charlieharrington9555 bruh read the comment again he is talking about the models
me when i smoke crack
Such wasted potential just makes me so sad. Everything could be different and 06 could be one of the best games in history. I really hopes that someday, the game will be remade, with improved visuals, better writing, and everything that it deserved since the beginning, even if it is extremely unlikely to happen
Look up Project-06. It is not finished yet, but the Sonic and Shadow stages are complete.
I'm sure SEGA tried their best, and sadly some people don't know the entire story and don't give the game a chance. The game was rushed do to overly excited fans. They rushed to finish it and didn't have time to think the storyline all the way through, fix glitches, or really finish the game at all. The game experienced a lot of backlash the week of release and I really disagree with all of the statements from the angry fans. I got the game for Christmas 2021 and I really love it. My only problem is the relationship with Sonise (Sonic X Elise) but that's really it. The game is a bit difficult, due to it being unfinished, but it's really a lot of fun! And Silver, just Silver, do I have to say anything else? "Chefs Kiss 👌" His character is I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E! This game really needs to be saved, and people should look for the good in something, not the bad.
@@R4TS_KZZK
It’s not because of the fans. Sega desperately wanted to be released the year of the anniversary so they rushed the developers.
@@darknightmike10yearsago I WANT SOMETHING OFFICIAL
@@Alejandro333777 judging by Mania, Sega could hire the team behind Project 06 on and finally do an official PC port that will grant the game the greatest redemption known to the videogame space.
My interpretation of Blaze is when she was sacrificed in 06 she was sent to another dimension and when the events of 06 were in universe time travel retconned her history was rewritten to account for her existence in said other dimension.
This game actually has two of my favorite quotes that I still try to live by.
"Nothing starts until you take action", by Sonic
"If the world chooses to become my enemy, I will fight like I always have", by Shadow.
Edgy
@@ramiel3759 how?
@@ramiel3759 Anything is edgy if it isn’t sunshine and rainbows
@@ramiel3759 Don't be so hard on yourself, you'll grow out of that phase soon enough.
THANK YOU. I am happy I'm not the only one who, as a kid, loved Sonic 06. Back then I thought the handful of glitches I encountered to be more entertaining than anything. It was a cool game to me, there wasn't a single thing I had disliked except for that silver fight. I distinctly remember getting stuck there but being super excited when I finally won.
A lot of the points you made are exactly why I think this game needs to be remade. Many of the commenters mentioned that it feels like SEGA/Sonic Team still has that elephant on their back regarding 06, and that it's kept them from making the game people want. Near the end you said that this game established a bunch of rules for the series that the developers must abide by in order to keep newer games from being "Like 06", which ends up stripping a lot of the style and passion from the game as a whole while also being lackluster technically.
My idea is, if this game were remade, it would purge a lot of the demons that reside at Sonic Team. Remaking the game in the original vision, and changing the things that obviously needed reworking, I believe that would bring back the passion of the series going forward. Because truthfully, it doesn't feel like this game's story is finished yet. The 06 chapter of Sonic's story still feels like it's open because of those rules it established for the series afterwards. A remake, in my opinion, would be a proper send off for Sonic 2006 and would finally put this game to rest for good.
I would die for a Director's Cut of that game.
@@Big-Image We should have gotten a Sonic 06 remake for the 30th anniversary. Instead, we're getting a remaster of Sonic Colors, another Classic Sonic compilation, and a new game we don't even know anything about.
SEGA, ignoring the obvious methods of making money since 2010.
Exactly the way I think about it. In many cases it's best to face whatever you're afraid of to get rid of that fear and Sonic Team is terrified of 06 for over 10 years now. I feel like for Sonic Team and Sega 06 is that big scary monster under the bed that nobody dares to mention but it still has them in their clutches and influences everything they do.
The best way to get Sonic back on track really is remaking this game and turning it into the great version of itself it was always meant to be.
I’m hoping the new game is actually the sonic 06 remake because sonic made a 6 in his trail
@@smashmaster521 Yeah, and of all games, Colors? That game sucks, but who knows? Maybe we'll get an '06 remake for the 35th anniversary, or the 20th anniversary of Sonic '06, then it would be Sonic '26!
Shadow in the 2000's is a character who's much cooler than he has any right to be.
In this game, SA2 & Heroes, at least.
I also think he was good in Sonic X.
Adventure 2 Shadow :
Start at level 1, end at level 8/10
Heroes Shadow :
Start at level 5, end at level 10
06 Shadow :
Start at level 10, end at level 3 prestige 1
@@slavishentity6705 and then they messed him up after.
Well I think that Shadow was well executed in Sonic and the Black Knight also due to the fact that the writer who wrote for this game also wrote for SA2 and Heroes. In that game Shadow is a calm protector and not an edgelord at all.
06 is the game that i cannot defend and don't feel like defending, i know the problems that it has
But i also spend so much time as a kid playing this game, i know how to avoid the glitches and i truly enjoy the 3 Hedgehogs gameplay
And this game has the best Shadow related story since SA2
This video brought me to tears several times. I love Sonic 06 so much, it is definitely one of my favorite games ever. I hope it gets fully remade and upgraded so it can be the game it deserves to be.
Shadow's characterization and arc really reaches the peak in this game and it's absolutely the best part of this game
He's usually seen as the poster child for ow the edge types and while I get it, it's moments where he defies Mephiles and his taunts, choosing to forge his own destiny and choosing to fight come what may, that really cements him as a total badass
"Now if she took sonic hostage for her own selfish gain then she would be a bad character"
Chris from Sonic X: what? Why are you looking at me?
@
Connor Plays we haven't forgotten that stunt you pulled Chris
Screw Chris
I never watched that show but what did Chris do? Was he a friend or foe?
@@bengilhooly3616 "friend" that deactivated the portal back to Sonic's world before sonic could get back to his own world
@@connorplays6263 why did he do that?
Wow… Amazing video. I think it is put so well to say that “Sonic 06 is a tragedy.” It truly is. And not in the haha joking way. This game had passion, the developers knew exactly what they wanted, and exactly how the game was supposed to end. I mean, the setting of the game is this breathe taking foreign region that we’ve never seen the likes of in the series, even to this day. It is still refreshing to run through the world of Soleanna even today as I play the game. This was meant to be the best Sonic game of all time. But… because of a couple small decisions made by the higher-ups on the team, this game came out a technical disaster. The team behind development was cut in HALF just so that this new half could work on a game to release on Nintendo’s up and coming console, the Wii (Sonic and The Secret Rings). Left with half a development team and tunnel vision determination to release Sonic 06 by 2006, the team had no choice but to rush the game, and the rest is history. It too sickens me that even now, in 2021, gamers around the world can’t let this game rest. Had developers just spent even one more year on the game, we could’ve had Sonic 07, potentially the greatest Sonic The Hedgehog game of all time. R.I.P. Sonic 06. Still my favorite Sonic game.
Honestly the funniest foreshadowing of the future in this game when the final scene is just him staring up at the full moon like a werewolf… and the following main series game was Sonic Unleashed.
I genuinely feel like someone in the dev team saw that and had a big brain moment.
You don't know how awesome it is to see a new, long ass Sonic game dissection from you pop up in my feed, J. You holding it down during this Sonic game drought, let's freaking GO 🔥🔥🔥
Sonic 06: Finally! People don't vehemently hate me anymore!
Sonic Forces: uh-oh
Man fuck forces everyone hates forces
I love sonic forces is my favorite sonic games of all time.
Ah yes out of the one sonic game you have played
*sonic heroes
@@kkirby999 Yeah, Were Sonic Heroes!!😃
Man who knew a genuine heartfelt look at Sonic 06 made for a really good Christmas Present. I really do hope that there could be a deep look into the effort Sonic 06 did despite all the technical quirks the game had from Sega's part. And honestly from the ambition it is what made people go back to Sonic 06 and even if it is to clown on it. There is always something to discuss about the game or even appreciate in comparison to how the Sonic fanbase views like say.... the infamous Sonic Forces. The Sonic fanbase truly do want their functional games with consistent quality, if they are INTERESTING AND FUN! And sorta makes me hope that Sega would try to steer away from something like Sonic Lost World and Forces instead, which are both plain bread with Forces being the more plain of the two.
Calling Lost World and Forces plain bread is an insult to plain bread. They're that bread you forgot to eat that ended up becoming moldy as a result.
@@smashmaster521 Lost World wasn't THAT bad
I am really glad I found your channel. I liked sonic games growing up but hearing how "bad" they are now that I'm older has been really unfortunate, and I have seen so many videos about how bad sonic 06 is. Its really nice to finally hear the positives about it because realistically, almost everything does something right, and you are the first to bring those to light. So I thank you
J’s Reviews I’d just like to say thank you for this retrospective. Sonic games that came out in the 2000s have been getting shitted on by a lot of people and seeing people like you view it in a more positive and reasonable way instead of saying “sonic had a rocky start into 3D, classics are better, 06 is a dupsterfire,” etc and this sonic 06 review is an example of what I’m talking about because most people talk down on the game and it’s permanently affecting this franchise negatively and we need another game with the vision sa1-06 had but I don’t see it happening.
You have to understand though that the people who made those rants about the game were coming from the time where they experienced the game in it's prime, not 10+ years after the fact. Sonic 06 almost killed the franchise The game was supposed to be the breakout, golden star for the next generation (7th Gen) and instead it was a massive flop that reviewed poorly and the franchise's reputation seriously was tarnished. You've probably seen The Geek Critique's retrospective on this game and what he said towards the end was very true and it took a good long while until Sonic's franchise got back in a moderately positive light. You may think that this game gets over-hated and maybe it does but it did for good reason. It generally did upset almost a good 3/4 of the fans of the game, possibly even more back during 2006-2007.
If you like the game, that's fine and good but the hate and ire that the game had in those old reviews? They were coming from a genuine place because well, many people like Sonic and that game just felt like a stab in the heart to a lot of the fans at the time when it was fresh and had no other next gen games to compare it to at the time.
@@decadentgamer3108 I agree with your points I was mainly frustrated that SEGA learned the wrong lessons from this game by abandoning the adventure gameplay, shonen story, a large cast of playable characters, and ambition
@@theunknown0887 Oh for sure, I agree with that as well. I think that Sonic Team/SEGA overreacted to the criticism that 06 brought because it's obvious that having things like a moderately deeper story, cast revolving around more than Sonic & Tails, and ESPECIALLY the Adventure-styled game were definitely not the problems with the Sonic franchise and it's a shame that they didn't realize that now. And when they finally tried a somewhat darker story again with Sonic Forces, they up and fucked it up with horrid writing and uninspired gameplay.
@@decadentgamer3108 exactly the only lesson sega should've learn from 06 was not to rush games but that's a lesson they cleary haven't learn because they still continue to have games rushed( boom and forces)
Oh nice a new j revie-**2 hours long**....then again I was there for the dcau retrospective so this shouldn’t be to much of a suprise
Yep. We've been trained to endure stuff like this.
It's childs play at this point 😤
Wait, 2 hours?
_checks_
I blame 2020 for screwing with my sense of time, I could have sword that was a 30-40 minute review.
1:43:15 I love the unintentional comedy in that
That was fucking gold completely unexpected
I cried laughing XD
The fact that this game, had it been finished, would have been a masterpiece, and the fact that it's the last time for so much that I loved these games for, honestly makes me want to cry. This game deserved better than it got. This series deserves better than what it's getting. And I genuinely don't know if it'll ever feel like the games I loved so much ever again....