I have always considered myself a fan of Sonic. Even as a kid, I used to go over to my friend's house to play Sonic 1 and 2 on his Sega Genesis. Then I had a Dreamcast for the sole purpose of playing Sonic Adventure 1 & 2. I played what I could where I could. Sonic had something of a bumpy history, but with the release of Mania, I was back into Sonic.
I got Sonic X Shadow Generations thinking it would be fun to play one of the more favorite Sonic Games, Generations. When I played generations, I could see why so many enjoyed it as one of the better Sonic games in recent memories. I had a lot of fun with it and I got all S ranks. I enjoyed the game quite a lot.
I didn't expect to enjoy Shadow Generations as much as I did. It was easily the best game in the Hedgehog franchise to date. It was just phenomenal. Right out of the gate, the first level is a lot of fun. Then the 2D version of the first level blew me away. It hooked me so fast. The levels felt fast, fun, and with a good level of challenge. Shadow feels responsive and his moves are tight. Something about the levels in Shadow Generations are just perfect. They reward you for replaying them by speeding you up and hurling you forward. It gives you a genuine sense of speed. The open zone area for Shadow is great as well. It's in 3D vs Sonic's game, which was 2D only. It feels like Sonic Frontiers, but with a greater focus and it's more interesting and fun to explore as a result. No quirky open area bosses like in Frontiers, just platforming and puzzle solving to figure out how to get to a chest.
Both games were pretty great on the technical side. Sonic's game looks good, but it's roots show. Shadow's game is new and fresh, runs smooth at 60fps in the performance mode and still has stunning visuals. I don't know why there is a quality mode, but it looks incredible and play flawlessly in performance mode.
Sonic's game was fun, but truly, Shadow's game shines brightly in this collection. If you like Sonic, this game is worth your money and time. I had an absolute blast playing it.