Review: Shadow the Hedgehog (PS2)

Just who is Shadow the Hedgehog aimed at? Who is it supposed to appeal to? It's a question Gamestyle asks itself even now, months after passing judgement on the Xbox version of the game. To examine the issue further, some reflection is required. Gamestyle fired up the PS2 code and tried to get its head around this mangled corpse of a game.

By and large, Sonic fans - except the most rabid, deluded and obsessed types - were put off the franchise around the time Sonic Adventure 2 hit the Dreamcast. The quality had slipped, the premise was boring and the execution was broken, and Sonic Heroes did little to help matters. So it's unlikely that they would be won over by such a cynical attempt as Shadow the Hedgehog. Yet the massive sprawling levels containing loop-de-loops, dizzying drops and impressive speed seem intent on appealing to this very demographic.

On the flipside, however, there appears to be an attempt to appeal to the 'GTA generation'. Shadow is able to jump into a variety of vehicles (cars, robot suits, etc.) and liberally cause destruction with any weapon or firearm he finds lying around. What doesn't quite make sense, though, is why someone with an interest in naughty crime-em-ups would want to play a game about a cartoon hedgehog. The two ideals seem completely juxtaposed and incompatible, as if they've been shoved into the same game simply to tick off a checklist of publisher requirements. Trying to appeal to everybody, Shadow comes off as little more than a failed gesture.

Of course, it doesn't help that the execution of all these features is laughably bad (of the kind that redefines the word). Every element of the game breaks another one. The controls are suited to fast movement, ideal for zooming along straight paths, yet as soon as you are required to defeat a group of enemies to continue on your way (something that is irritatingly frequent), the controls fail to function properly. The camera is woeful, and Shadow's insistence on kicking straight into high gear sees you missing pickups, passing targets and relying too much on the dreaded target lock-on system.

Through some unfathomable reasoning, Sonic Team saw fit to make most enemies require multiple hits to kill them. Shadow will usually aim for the nearest target with his homing attack, launching towards it full pelt, and back again until it's dead. All too often, though, he'll simply miss his target and speed away into the distance, usually falling off the edge of the level. It's infuriating, and causes a reluctance to use this primary attack. The trouble is, none of the weapons are really any better. There's a vague sort of lock-on system but you'll mostly be firing bullets and rockets into empty space, hoping to hit something. And heaven forbid should you get caught up in an explosion: cue a massive over-the-top screen wobbling effect and complete disorientation. You'll probably die, again, and go back to the last checkpoint. Unless that was your last life, in which case you'll go back to the start of the level (or the game will go back to the shop, depending on your patience).

Vehicles seem equally useless and make your average shopping trolley feel perfectly controllable in comparison. Even when they're actually required to overcome obstacles (such as gaining extra height), they're begrudgingly accepted because they're just so terrible to control. Only the gun turrets manage to avoid being annoying, and that's probably because they don't move.

Still, what's most disappointing about Shadow the Hedgehog is that it's built upon a foundation that's actually quite ingenious, even if it doesn't quite work. You're given choices throughout: follow the path of good or evil. Depending on whether you attack the evil invading alien force, or the good guys (Sonic, Eggman, the 'GUN' troops, etc.), you'll gain either good or evil points, and this will determine your route through the game. In classic Sega style (think OutRun), there are multiple routes, evil choices forcing you down one, good down the other. You could conceivably play through it multiple times, so long as you don't go insane first. Unfortunately, whether you're being good or bad, all enemies in the game will attack you. It's just one button press of difference between attacking something and ignoring it, and in all the confusion, you're more likely to simply defend yourself, rendering the whole premise useless.

It feels as though the development of this game started with a good idea and then became increasingly bogged down with unnecessary 'features' in an attempt to appeal to everybody. It's clear that it simply isn't finished and is as far from the concept of 'fun' as you can possibly get. The edgy, dark and brooding style is depressing and practically devoid of artistic merit, and the only reason you would actually bother to play it for longer than ten minutes is either to see the end to this ludicrous Shadow storyline, or because you're a lunatic. You'll excuse the pun, of course, but the Sonic franchise is a mere shadow of its former self.

Rating: 2 / 10

Words by Daniel James