Poor Sonic. Intriguing RPGs and Smash appearances aside, the blue blur has fallen on some hard times lately; he hasn’t had a solid core game since, arguably, Sonic Adventure 2, 7 years ago. I know, I’ve been checking up on him. I played Sonic Heroes, and I played Shadow the Hedgehog. I played the demo for Sonic 2006, and that was enough. Still, I’m one of those irrepressible fans, the kind who puts on a big smile and says “This time, it’ll be great!” again and again. Thus, when E3 rolled around last week and I had a chance to visit the Sega booth, I took the time to stop by and check in once again with Sonic and his upcoming adventure, Sonic Unleashed. As a result, I’m not willing to give up hope just yet. Impressions after the jump.
One of the main things Sonic Team has done in order to build enthusiasm for this game is to completely disassociate it from recent titles. Patrick Riley, the US Producer for Sonic Unleashed, reminded us during the demo that the game has been in development since 2006, and the engine has been in production for even longer (2005). Sega is calling it the “Hedgehog Engine,” and though it’s since been put into use for other games, it was designed to handle Sonic. It appears to do the job.
Sonic Unleashed, for the unaware, splits the gameplay into two separate experiences, both of which are an attempt to return to Sonic’s roots. For those eager to see Sonic tearing through lush environments at full speed, the game’s “daytime” levels will deliver plenty of opportunities for him to sprint, dodge, leap, and grind while gorgeous stages whip by in the background. During the “nighttime” stages, however, thanks to an mysterious event involving the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic transforms into what Sega is calling his “Werehog” form: A large beast with wolf-like fur and fangs, and the arms of Stretch Armstrong. Riley told us that gamers’ main suggestion, apart from a return to speed, was a reminder that the classic Sonic titles weren’t all about running — there were plenty of opportunities for careful, precise platforming, too. As such, Sonic the Werehog will be doing a lot of climbing, swinging, jumping, and obstacle-navigating, in between bouts of beating the hell out of lots of enemies.
Though the locations will be called something else in the final game, the stages of Sonic Unleashed are themed after distinct locations, known for their iconic appearances. We were treated to a look at the “Mykonos” stage during the daytime, designed to look like the charming Greek isle with its bright sunshine, whitewashed houses, and inexplicable floating grind-rails hundreds of feet in the air. Mykonos totally has those — I swear — and Sonic used them to traverse the level at high speed, dashing through streets and across rooftops. We also saw the “China” level, complete with the nation’s trademarked loop-the-loop roads on the back of giant dragons. The gameplay and camera switched frequently between 3D side-scrolling (as in Sonic Rush) and into-the-stage forwards running (as in Sonic Adventure, Sonic and the Secret Rings, etc), the transition usually masked by a handy pause in the action. In other words, Sonic would side-scroll his way through a reasonable portion of the level, which would end with a springboard launch high into the air. The camera would show Sonic’s aerial journey from a cinematic angle, and when he landed, it would be positioned behind him for a forwards-running sequence.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for these sequences, I really am. There’s still a bug or two in the works at this stage; we watched Sonic get launched clear through one of his running loops and off the stage. On the other hand, the added features ought to allow players to retain that sense of speed without removing too much control, such as the new “Quick Step” control scheme. During Sonic’s forward-running sequences, a tap on the left or right shoulder buttons will allow our hedgehog hero to dodge quickly to either side. This will be great for ducking around enemies, and during some sequences, they will allow Sonic to navigate narrow alleyways through on-screen prompts, similar to quick-time events. The rings, too, now have a dual purpose: Beyond preventing Sonic from dying on impact with a hazard, they can also be burned for sudden bursts of speed, allowing Sonic to really tear through the levels at a blur.
From there, we were given a look at the nighttime gameplay, featuring Sonic’s new “unleashed” form carving a swath through a group of baddies. The combat here seems to focus on the horde-of-critters kind of gameplay we’ve seen in games like Dynasty Warriors or Ratchet & Clank. Sonic will be surrounded on all sides by a swarm of glowing creatures, and dispatch them all at once with wide, sweeping movements — typically involving his enormous arms, which now have the strange ability to stretch to great lengths.
These new arms also drive the platforming gameplay of Sonic’s night stages. We watched as our demonstrator traversed Mykonos after dark, reaching up to grab and climb high platforms, and swinging from streetlamps and flagpoles like a chimpanzee. Sonic can also use his arms as a platforming boost in the right circumstances; we were shown a moment where Sonic came up short on an attempted jump, only to reach out and snag the ledge with his massive limbs. In all, the style of play we saw looked like an enormous departure from accepted Sonic standards, but if this will truly recapture the trickier platforming moments of Sonic games past — where the biggest obstacle wasn’t the camera — then it could really go somewhere.
Oh, and for all of you folks who can’t stand Sonic’s pals, you’re in luck: We didn’t hear anything about whether Tails, Knuckles, Rouge, Shadow et al will be appearing in Sonic Unleashed, but it was confirmed that you will not play as them. Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Werehog only.
Sonic Unleashed is scheduled to launch for the 360, PS3, Wii, and PS2 in November.
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