This goes bump in the Night.
Ok lets get the story out of the way. Dr. Robotnik (I refuse to call him Eggman) tricks Sonic, steals Chaos Emeralds power, turns Sonic in to Werehog, world splits apart for some reason and Dark Gaia is released. If this sounds over convoluted that's because it is. Now I know Sonic games aren't renowned for their stories but if any SEGA developers are reading I am going to solve this problem for you in just a few bullet points, ok,
Only let the story focus around Sonic and don't let him transform into anything.
Stop introducing bloody side characters NOBODY likes them.
Get rid of all the crap characters you've introduced over the years and if anyone complains ignore them because they are idiots.
Stop making HUB worlds, just move from one stage to the next.
Finally make Dr. Robotnik the main villain and not some other creature.
Just do that and it will at least be bearable .
Now the Sonic stages of the gameplay switches from 3D to 2D in one seamless movement and this works well. While the 3D sections focus on speed and destroying enemies the 2D ones focus more on platforming. Plus for once the camera is very good and didn't cause too many problems at all. My main gripe with the Sonic stages are that Sonic goes so quick that avoiding upcoming obstacles on the first run through is nigh impossible and thus trial and error gameplay starts to occur but the speed is so exhilarating that it can be forgiven to an extent I just wish Sonic Team slowed him down just a bit. As ever there is a feeling that the game is on rails and that your just their to press the odd button but the inclusion of the side step and drift buttons gives a lot of control back to the gamer. There is no doubt that this is the best Sonic gameplay since the Mega Drive days it is fast, exciting and gives a challenge as well. If the game was made entirely of these sections it would have gotten a much higher score.
The Werehog sections is were this game falls down it should have been tricky platforming with exciting combat instead what we get is clumsy platforming and repetitive combat. Now these stages are almost bearable but the controls are so awkward that you'll miss jumps and ledges and poles when you shouldn't have and it becomes very frustrating. Also why have Sonic Team included so many platforming clichés such as jumping/swinging from pole to pole, shimmying along ledges, balancing on beams it is so unoriginal and if you have played any Crash Bandicoot game before then you know what to expect, throw in some clumsy controls and you have a recipe for tedium. The combat isn't as bad and is very God of War in its style but the enemies are generic and can all be defeated by pounding the Y button. Also these sections go on for at least 30 minutes and account for over half of the total gameplay it feels like Sonic Team thought the game was too short and didn't have a stupid enough gameplay mechanic. Really though a Werehog? Is their anybody with more than 2 brain cells in Sonic Team?
Other points of annoyance include the HUB world were you can talk to people to accept side missions and the like but these missions usually include the Werehog and are tedious anyway. Also why would you want to talk to them they're as annoying as every other character and why is everyone so happy to talk to a hedgehog isn't it just the tiniest bit weird to them? It's the collecting of medals that really gets on my nerve though, these sun and moon medals are scattered throughout levels and you need a certain number of them to go to the next stage. This means trudging through Werehog levels looking for missed medals and it just adds to the tedium.
On the plus side the J-Pop/Rock crap from the past games is gone and replaced with music that suit's the level apart from the Werehog battle theme that is the same every Goddammned time. The graphics though are spectacular using the new Hedgehog engine it is alive with colour and makes a welcome change from the depressing colours of most 360 games.
Overall Sonic Unleashed is a game of two halves since the Sonic sections are the best I've seen in a long while but the Werehog is so bad it overrides the good points. Essentially SEGA need to keep what this game does well and make it longer and hopefully Sonic and the Black Knight will do this. I mean there are no stupid ideas there right? What do you mean he has a sword…Oh I give up.
Pros
+ Fast paced Sonic Sections that are a lot of fun.
+ Bright and Colourful graphics.
Cons
- The Werehog sections are terrible with awkward controls
- The story is stupid
- More side characters
- HUB worlds are boring to navigate
- Collecting medals feels like a cheap way to extend the games length.
Overall
6/10