Sonic Unleashed[c] is a 2008 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega as part of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. The plot follows Sonic as he attempts to restore the world after his nemesis Doctor Eggman shatters it with a powerful laser to unleash Dark Gaia, an ancient evil which periodically transforms Sonic into a werewolf form (dubbed a "Werehog"). Gameplay features two distinct styles: daytime stages incorporate Sonic's traditional platforming and trademark speed; while night-time stages see Sonic transform into the Werehog and engage in slower combat against waves of enemies using the Werehog's brute strength.
The game's development began in 2006, after the creation of its game engine, the Hedgehog Engine. It was initially conceived as a sequel to Sonic Adventure 2 (2001), but developer Sonic Team began to introduce enough new innovations that separated it from previous games, and it was renamed Sonic World Adventure in domestic markets. The Werehog gameplay was conceived to help introduce newer gamers unfamiliar with the Sonic franchise to the series and is what influenced the use of Unleashed as a subtitle for western markets. The game's existence was first brought to light when Sega trademarked the Unleashed name in March 2008, and shortly after, images and a gameplay video were leaked. Three versions of the game were developed: one by Sonic Team for high definition consoles such as the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, one by Sonic Team and Dimps for standard definition consoles such as the Wii and PlayStation 2, and one by Gameloft for mobile phones. The game was released worldwide in 2008.
Public anticipation for Sonic Unleashed was high, as video game journalists saw it as a possible return to Sonic's platforming roots. While it was commercially successful, selling 2.45 million units, initial critical reception was mixed. Reviewers praised certain elements, such as the sense of speed in daylight stages and the graphics and audio that make up the environments, but criticized others, such as the Werehog game mechanic, as well as several gameplay and design concepts; many felt Unleashed was not the game to reinvigorate the series. Sonic Unleashed was delisted from retailers in 2010, following Sega's decision to remove all Sonic games with below-average Metacritic scores from sale.[2] Despite this, the PlayStation 3 version was relisted in April 2014 and added to PlayStation Now in March 2017, while the Xbox 360 version was relisted and made backward compatible for Xbox One in November 2018.[3]
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^"Sonic Unleashed". GamesTM. Imagine Publishing: 28–31. July 2008. Archived from the original on July 22, 2008.
^Dring, Christopher (October 7, 2010). "Sub-standard Sonics de-listed". MCV. Archived from the original on May 11, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
^"PS Now: 13 Sega Games Join Our Streaming Lineup Today". PlayStation.Blog. March 7, 2017. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
SonicUnleashed is a 2008 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega as part of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. The plot follows Sonic...
Sega Genesis Sonic games, and "Modern", 3D levels similar to those in SonicUnleashed (2008) and Sonic Colors (2010). Development of Sonic Generations...
About 'Sonic Runners'". TouchArcade. Retrieved April 29, 2022. Riley, Patrick (October 16, 2008). "SEGA_SonicUnleashed's Blog – SonicUnleashed – A New...
similar to the original Sega Genesis Sonic games; "Modern", 3D gameplay similar to SonicUnleashed (2008) and Sonic Colors (2010); and a mode featuring...
Development of Sonic Colors began in 2008, following the completion of SonicUnleashed. Examining criticisms of past games, the developers made Sonic the only...
2016. Retrieved March 21, 2017. Sonic Team (November 18, 2008). SonicUnleashed. Sega. Huhtala, Alex (October 1999). "SONIC: It's been a long time coming...
transition. The Escapist wrote that subsequent Sonic games, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, SonicUnleashed (2008), and Sonic Forces (2017), attempted to replicate...
characters would appear in the game. Visually, the game was stylized after SonicUnleashed (2008) and uses the PhysX engine. Black Knight was revealed in July...
featured as the theme to the Sonic the Hedgehog videogame, SonicUnleashed.[citation needed] The song was written by Sonic game composer, Tomoya Ohtani...
Sonic the Hedgehog is a video game series. It is published by Sega, with entries developed by Sega, Sonic Team, Traveller's Tales, Dimps, SIMS Co., Ltd...
Sonic Frontiers is a 2022 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. As Sonic, the player explores the Starfall Islands to collect the...
Sonic Adventure is a 1998 platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Dreamcast. It was the first main Sonic the Hedgehog game...
Look up unleashed in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Unleashed may refer to: Unleashed (2001 film), a film featuring Jeff Anderson Unleashed (2005 film)...
stages from SonicUnleashed. The mod additionally features new textures and shading techniques designed to mimic those featured in SonicUnleashed, and a revamped...
Sonic Advance, known as SonicN on the N-Gage, is a 2001 platform game developed jointly by Sonic Team and Dimps and published by Sega for the Game Boy...
from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved 29 December 2009. "SonicUnleashed has Cube controller support". Nintendo.joystiq.com. 16 May 2008. Archived...
Interview: Sonic Music for a New Generation". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved December 6, 2015. Napolitano, Jayson. "A Look Back At SonicUnleashed With...
name), given name to a boys or girls Shamar, a fictional country in SonicUnleashed This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Shamar...
were based on the Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games, developed by Sega. Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was the first Sonic television series...
backing vocals for the song "Endless Possibility" for the video game SonicUnleashed. On January 20, 2009, Reddick released a video onto the web via the...
include human character design for Sega's game SonicUnleashed (2008) and its accompanying 3DCG short Sonic: Night of the Werehog, and character design for...
since Sonic the Hedgehog in 2006, and was the lead composer for that game, SonicUnleashed, Sonic Colors, Sonic Lost World, Sonic Runners, Sonic Forces...
involved voice directing for the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, such as on Sonic X, Sonic and the Black Knight, SonicUnleashed (in which he was also the voice...
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