Shadow the Hedgehog Review
From LoveToKnow VideoGames
Platform: Playstation 2
Publisher: SEGA
Rating: Everyone (E)
About Shadow the Hedgehog
Shadow the Hedgehog is a dark, unusual creature that was created in a secret lab. For some reason, he cannot remember anything about his life, where he came from, or what his purpose is. An ominous figure approaches him and says he needs to collect seven Chaos Emeralds for him because the day of reckoning is at hand. Confused, and having a desire to learn about himself, he agrees to do this task. While all this is happening, a dark alien army is creating havoc and destruction in the world. Journey with Shadow, Sonic and other characters in this quest of of secrets and surprises.
Difficulty Levels/Modes of Play
The game starts with a normal level of difficulty. When you complete the game, other more challenging levels appear. Normal level is not that easy. Trust me, I’ve died quite a few times before beating the first level!
There are a couple modes of play in Shadow the Hedgehog: Story Mode and Select Mode.
The Story Mode is the heart of the game. Your ultimate goal is to get the seven gems and discover Shadow’s past. While you are moving through areas, you will run into some other characters (good and bad) that will request you to help them complete some tasks. You don’t have complete these side missions. Unfortunately, some of the characters are a little annoying.
Take Charmy for example. This character appears right when you are getting fired on by a bunch of nasty robots. That high-pitched voice of his is very distracting. It couldn’t be a more inappropriate time for him to show up! I must have lost several lives just trying to get through just one area!
The Select Mode allows you to repeat any level you’ve played to try and beat your score and rating. When I first tried this game and completed a level, I got a very low rating of E, which is the worst you can get. Having this option is a good way to help you improve your overall performance when you complete the game.
Along with offering play with just one person, you can try the game with a friend. The two-player option is split-screen where each of you tries to earn the most points and rings in a certain amount of time. You can also win by default if your opponent loses all his/her rings before the time runs out.
Fun Factor
Shadow the Hedgehog is a fun game filled with action. If you have played any of the other Sonic the Hedgehog games, there are a lot of similarities. Shadow runs through revolutions and jumps to extremely high locations. He collects gold rings, which keep him alive as long as they aren’t reduced to zero. Enemies can knock these rings from Shadow by bumping or shooting at him.
Some interesting things about the game are that Shadow can use weapons and ride in all sorts of vehicles. Weapons range from a simple poisonous stick to laser guns and rocket launchers. Vehicles you encounter are small, heavy-duty army trucks to floating disks that take you over poisonous or toxic areas.
Like the other Sonic Hedgehog games, Shadow is very fast. He is sometimes difficult to control in areas with a lot of obstacles. Part of the game is to complete levels in the quickest time. I guess that’s why when I first started playing, I had such a low rating. Sometimes when Shadow is moving that fast you can easily miss items like gold rings and bonus items.
Graphics/Audio
When the game begins, you see a cool video where Shadow is running around using weapons and fast action moves. It's very slick. Shadow and the other characters are very detailed, and the environment is fantastic.
Background music is heavy metal rock in style, but sometimes a little repetitive. The voices in the game range from cool, to down right annoying (Charmy!). Sound affects in the game are similar to earlier Sonic games, with the exception of the weapons.
Summary
Shadow the Hedgehog is an action-packed adventure game filled with cool environments, fast moves and interesting characters. Discover Shadow’s past by finding the seven Chaos Orbs. Go on side-quests to help Sonic, Professor Robotnik and others. Play alone or with a friend in a time-based, split screen adventure. Replay levels to improve your rating and score. Use weapons and drive strange vehicles. Stop the mysterious Dark Aliens who threaten the planet. If you liked the Sonic games, give this one a play.
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