Shadow the Hedgehog (video game)

Shadow the Hedgehog
Developer(s)	Sega Studios USA Sonic Team
Publisher(s)	Sega
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox
Release	November 15, 2005 November 18, 2005 December 15, 2005
Genre(s)	Action-adventure/platformer
Mode(s)	Single player/two player

Shadow the Hedgehog is a video game starring an antihero of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, Shadow the Hedgehog. It was revealed at Sonic's inauguration into the Walk of Game, developed by Sega Studios USA (formerly known as Sonic Team USA), and was released in the United States on November 15, 2005.

A major tagline for the game is: "Hero or villain? You decide." Another, slightly less well-known tagline, is "Who do you fight when you don't know what you're fighting for?". Yet another is "Will he be good? Or evil? No one knows but you."

Story

Over 50 years ago, deep in a Military Research Space Station, Prof. Gerald Robotnik forged an experiment known as "Project Shadow" while trying to unlock the secrets of eternal life at the request of the Government. The experiment culminated in "The Ultimate Life-Form"; Shadow the Hedgehog, a creature with the ability to harness the mysterious power of the Chaos Emeralds in ways not thought possible. After being thought dead in Sonic Adventure 2, Shadow returned in Sonic Heroes with amnesia, and still does in this game. In the beginning of the game, Shadow is still without any clue about his past. He does not understand who he is or where he's from, but he's determined to find out, be it from Black Doom, the leader of an alien race who claims he and Shadow made a pact involving the Chaos Emeralds, G.U.N., the militaries that murdered Maria, or Dr. Eggman, the evil scientist.

Endings

• Pure Dark in Dark Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Sonic. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Sonic asks Shadow what he is going to do with the Emeralds. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, created to bring order and justice to the humans, and vows to use the power of the Emeralds to destroy Earth. Shadow then laughs lustfully.

• Pure Dark in Hero Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Black Doom. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Black Doom assures him that the Black Arms will rise again. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate life form to rule all, using the power of the Emeralds to conquer the universe. Shadow then laughs lustfully.

• Semi Dark in Dark Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Sonic. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Sonic asks Shadow why he is siding with the Black Arms. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate life form born to protect and serve Black Doom. Shadow then vows to use the power of the Emeralds to make the world into a dark empire and laughs lustfully.

• Semi Dark in Hero Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Eggman. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Eggman scolds Shadow for defying him. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, the only one who knows what is best, and that no one can tell him what to do. Shadow raises his hand. The scene goes black and Eggman screams "NOOOOOOOOO!".

• Neutral in Dark Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Eggman. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Eggman asks Shadow if this the way he repays him for creating him. Shadow declares himself as Shadow Android, the ultimate life form, a copy of Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow vows to use the power of the Emeralds to become stronger than the original Shadow. Shadow raises his hand. The scene goes black and Eggman screams "NOOOOOOO!".

• Neutral in Hero Ending: Shadow and Omega stand before the defeated Eggman. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Eggman asks Shadow if this the way he repays him for creating him. Shadow declares himself as Shadow Android, the ultimate battle life form created by Eggman. Shadow says that despite being created by the Doctor, he will now lead the Eggman Empire and androids will now rule. Omega prepares to attack Eggman. Shadow raises his hand. The scene goes black and Eggman screams "NOOOOOOOOO!".

• Semi Hero in Dark Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Eggman. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Eggman asks Shadow if he has forgotten that he was created by his grandfather. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate life form born and raised in the ARK, proclaiming himself as the protector of the ARK. Shadow tells to Eggman to leave, and to never return, also stating that he won't allow anyone to violate the sacred ARK.

• Semi Hero in Hero Ending: Shadow and Vector stand before the defeated Black Doom. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Black Doom assures him that the Black Arms will rise again. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, a research experiment gone deadly wrong. Shadow laments all the destruction he caused, and wishes that he was never created. Vector tries to comfort him, but Shadow sadly walks away.

• Pure Hero in Dark Ending: Shadow stands before the defeated Sonic. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Sonic replies by saying that he didn't think that Shadow had it in him. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, the most powerful hedgehog in the world, with the power of the Emeralds making him invincible. Shadow then laughs lustfully.

• Pure Hero in Hero Ending: Shadow and Sonic stand before the defeated Black Doom. Shadow has collected all the Chaos Emeralds. Black Doom assures him that the Black Arms will rise again. Sonic says "Let's do this" and steps forward. Shadow declares himself as Shadow the Hedgehog, and he intends to keep his promise to Maria, using the power of the Emeralds to defeat Black Doom and his army.

Characters

Main Characters

• Shadow the Hedgehog - A rival of Sonic and the protagonist of the game. He's presented as the only playable character (although many allies can be playable with the second player controller in the Gamecube and PS2 versions). Shadow must go on a quest to find out who he is and why he was created.

• Black Doom and Doom's Eye - The leader of the Black Arms. He commands Shadow to bring the 7 Chaos Emeralds to him and he will unlock the hidden story about the hedgehog's past. He is oftenly the Dark Mission Character. Doom's Eye is Black Doom's third eye, once it is removed from his forehead; it helps convince Shadow to join Black Arms' cause and can ally with Shadow during many levels as the Dark Mission Character. Doom's Eye's wisdom, guidance, and knowledge guides Shadow towards completing his task, which brings Doom's Eye closer to the emeralds and Shadow to the truth.

• Sonic the Hedgehog - Sega's famous mascot and Shadow's rival, can ally with him during the Westopolis, Lethal Highway, and Final Haunt levels, and races against him in the Space Gadget level. Also is the Mission character for the Lethal highway Black Bull boss, and the Black Doom boss after Final Haunt. Sonic is also a boss if the player plays through the Dark Mission; Sonic helps the G.U.N. boss (Diablon). Sonic is playable with controller 2 when allied with Shadow.

• G.U.N. Commander - The highest ranking officer of the Guardian Unit of Nations. He is one of the few who knows the secrets of Shadow's past and loathes Shadow for reasons unknown, at least until a certain level. He is also a boss, as he fights in a powerful but unfinished mech called Diablon alongside Sonic as the final boss after completing the Dark missions of either GUN Fortress, Black Comet, or Final Haunt. He also appears in Expert Mode; his voice is heard at the beginning of Space Gadget, where he apologizes for his actions during the game, mentions that he became a grandfather recently, and invites Shadow to his house. His voice is also heard at the beginning of The Last Way, where he is the third-to-last person to wish Shadow luck in the stage, before Professor Gerald and Maria.

• Dr. Eggman/Dr Robotnik - Sonic's arch-nemesis, but this time appears as either an ally or an enemy, depending on the player's choices. He plans to create a utopia called Eggmanland, but needs to get rid of G.U.N., the Black Arms, Sonic, and Sonic's allies to do so. He tracks Shadow and follows him through means of a floating camera-monitor.

• Professor Gerald Robotnik - A brilliant scientist as well as Shadow's creator and grandfather of Maria and Dr. Eggman, and the top researcher onboard Space Colony ARK. He appears only in cutscenes, including flashbacks and in a video discovered by the Chaotix where he explains that his real reason for creating Shadow was to destroy the Black Comet using the Eclipse Cannon in order to prevent the Black Arms from taking over the Earth. His voice is heard in expert mode too, at the beginning of Lost Impact and The Last Way.

• Maria Robotnik - Prof. Gerald Robotonik's Granddaughter; she was Shadow's best friend who gave her life to save him from G.U.N. She returns in flashbacks that take place on Space Colony ARK, and she is the hero mission character for The Doom and Lost Impact, and momentarily in the cinematic before the Doom Heavy Dog battle, since she is replaced with Doom's Eye as the Mission Character for that boss battle. Her voice is also heard in The Doom and The Last Way in Expert Mode (she is the last person to wish Shadow luck). Maria is playable with controller 2 when allied with Shadow.

Allies / Supporting Characters

Note: In the PS2 and Gamecube versions, most partner characters can be controlled with the second controller.

• Rouge the Bat - A jewel-loving thief and government spy. She can ally with Shadow in Digital Circuit, Death Ruins, and GUN Fortress, and also helps out in the Black Bull boss after Death Ruins, and the Black Doom final boss after completing the Hero mission of GUN Fortress.

• E-123 Omega - The 23rd model of Eggman's E-100 robots who, due to being deactivated, now wants revenge on Doctor Eggman. He originally teamed up with Shadow in Sonic Heroes and can ally with Shadow on the Iron Jungle and Lava Shelter levels. Omega will also help Shadow when fighting the Egg Breaker and Egg Dealer bosses (after Iron Jungle and Lava Shelter, respectively).

• Vector the Crocodile - The leader of the Chaotix (and boss of Espio and Charmy) who can ally with Shadow during the Cosmic Fall level and whichever final boss Shadow faces afterwards (Black Doom for completing the Hero mission or Egg Dealer for completing the Dark mission).

• Espio the Chameleon - A ninja and Chaotix member and can ally with Shadow during the Mad Matrix level and the stage boss, the Egg Breaker.

• Charmy Bee - A member of the Chaotix and can ally with Shadow during the Prison Island level. Like Doom's Eye and Dr. Eggman, however, he hovers just out of reach and does not fight. He is not playable using controller 2.

• Miles "Tails" Prower - Sonic's sidekick and best friend and can ally with Shadow during the Circus Park and Air Fleet levels.

• Knuckles the Echidna - The guardian of the Master Emerald and friendly rival of Sonic. He can ally with Shadow during the Glyphic Canyon, Central City, and Black Comet levels. He'll also assist Shadow when fighting the Egg Dealer final boss after completing the Black Comet.

• Amy Rose - The self proclaimed girlfriend of Sonic. She allies with Shadow during the Cryptic Castle level and the Egg Breaker boss that follows after the stage.

• Cream the Rabbit - A friendly 6-year old rabbit. She is part of a mission in Cryptic Castle where Amy needs Shadow to help rescue Cream, as well as her Chao, Cheese.

Gameplay

File:Shadowgame.jpg

A promotional screenshot.

Shadow is a platform game that plays similarly to previous Sonic 3-D titles (Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes) requiring you to get from the start of the level to the end, as has traditionally been the case for the regular Sonic titles. The 'end' of a level, however, is not necessarily the 'Goal Ring' (as it has been since Sonic Adventure 2 when it replaced the standard animal capsule) or at the end of the track. Levels can also be finished by completing a given task known as Missions, either 'Hero' and 'Dark'. The way in which levels are completed affects how the game progresses, what levels you play, and, ultimately, which of the 10 possible endings you will see. As each level features cutscenes and boss battles, there are a total of 326 different paths in which to complete the game, and each one has a name.

The game uses a Gunplay/weapon use element, which has become synonymous with the title, in fact Shadow the Hedgehog is not the first use of guns in the franchise; all of E-102 Gamma's levels in Sonic Adventure, and both Tails and Eggman, used lock-on shooting in Sonic Adventure 2. Shadow The Hedgehog was shown using a submachine gun, a sword and a rocket launcher, he can in fact wield a number of weapons (not all guns), as well as parts of the scenery. The game is mostly completable without the use of guns or other weapons, though there are some areas and some missions that require using objects, such as torches. Shadow can still use all his moves from the previous games, like the Homing Attack.

Shadow has three missions in almost every level (these being Hero, Dark, and Neutral), and he can choose one to accomplish at any point in the level. These missions allow players to 'choose Shadow's future.' However, none of the endings except the final ending are canon. The level Shadow goes to changes depending on which mission was played on the previous level. Also, Shadow now has at least two abilities, Chaos Control (light blue) and Chaos Blast (red), and gains these by killing certain targets: killing aliens and destroying debris and the evil red fruit increases the Chaos Control Gauge, and killing humans and destroying nature (trees, plants, etc.) increases the Chaos Blast Gauge.

Besides wielding weapons, Shadow can use vehicles; 4x4's, motorbikes, G.U.N. mechs, alien crafts, etc. As with the weapons, this has spawned complaints from fans, who point out that Shadow is similar to Sonic, and thus would be able to run faster than most vehicles; additionally, most of the vehicles are optional.

Although Shadow can run faster than the game's vehicles, the vehicles have many capabilities that Shadow does not have (e.g. the trailer from a pre-rendered movie from the game which sees Shadow use a motorcycle as a rolling missile, and also Shadow can use the vehicle to run over enemies or hit them). As in most Sonic games, the Chaos Emeralds play a big part in this game, as Shadow needs them to regain his memory and to use his ultimate Powers.

These powers, according to the developers, are intended to be the ultimate in destruction and speed. The two Chaos Powers are the heroic "Chaos Control" (lets Shadow manipulate time and space. In stages it lets him teleport through the stage, but in boss battles it lets him slow down time), which is used by defeating Black Arms invaders, and the evil "Chaos Blast" (creates an explosive blast of energy damaging enemies), which can be used by killing G.U.N. soldiers and robots. "Chaos Spear", a move previously used in Sonic Adventure 2' is only available with Super Shadow. Instead of having a linear storyline, you have the ability to choose your path, which is touted as the game's major selling point. You can even change sides when you please. There are a total of 10 alternate endings that can be unlocked, plus one "Final" ending which ties everything together. Although you play as Shadow, all major Sonic characters appear at points in the story.

There is a 'level map' which shows the player how they've chosen between Hero and Dark goals in previous stages (the player must choose a mission while playing the levels). Dark goes UP in the map, and Hero goes DOWN. Neutral missions go straight. Each level has all three missions, with the exceptions of the ones surrounding the level map (e.g., levels 2a and 2c, 4a and 4e, etc.).

Each 'last level' (stage six levels) has a Hero or Dark mission; there is no Neutral mission. Both missions yield different endings. Most stages have a different final boss associated with each ending.

There are a total of 22 levels, and each time, the player only plays six levels.

The ranking system is the same as Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes, with rankings from E (lowest) to A (highest).

Enemies

The enemies change depending on which side the player chooses. If Shadow chooses to commit acts of heroism, then the Black Arms will be the main enemies. If Shadow chooses to commit acts of evil, then the GUN Troops will be the enemy. If Shadow decides to be neutral, then everyone is an enemy. Whether Eggman's robots are a Hero enemy or a Dark enemy depends if Eggman is a Hero mission character or a Dark mission character. One exception is Cryptic Castle, where the Black Arms will always be your enemy, no matter which path you choose. Shadow is free to attack any free-roaming enemy/ally present (exempting Shadow's 'partner character'), regardless of which faction Shadow chooses to ally himself with. Attacking an ally provokes a scold from Shadow's partner and a score penalty at the end of the level.

Weapons

A new feature in Shadow the Hedgehog is the ability to use weapons left behind by defeated foes. Weapons can come from G.U.N. soldiers, Black Arm soldiers and Eggman's robots. They can be swapped for other weapons, but only one weapon can be carried at a time. During Shadow's quest to discover his past, he can use 6 powerful special weapons. If a player finishes the whole story, a special weapon will be unlocked, depending on which ending he/she took. The weapons can be found inside a black crate with Shadow's spines on the sides. Shadow can also use debris, or broken parts as weapons, like fallen street signs. Although there are many weapons, they do not all have names, for example, some weapons are specific, like handgun or sub-machine gun, others are simply called, alien blaster, or robot weapon . The Shadow Weapons vary from 6 different categories. Shadow can use the handgun and many more unnamed weapons on his journey to uncover the secrets to his past.

Reception

Pre-release

The gaming community has had strong opinions on the preview Shadow videos posted on popular Internet gaming sites (such as GameSpot and IGN). Many comments were made about the gun Shadow wielded. Some argue that it goes entirely against the spirit and/or gameplay mechanic of the Sonic series or that Shadow should be powerful enough that a gun would not be necessary. Others saw no problems at all. A popular argument was that Shadow the Hedgehog was, in fact, not a Sonic game but a spin-off title from the franchise, and did not have to stick rigidly to the gameplay mechanics because of this (similar to Knuckles Chaotix). The differences in gameplay style to classic Sonic games have led to a split fanbase.

Reviews

Reviews of Shadow the Hedgehogin the gaming press were mainly negative. [1] On Game Rankings, all three ports have an aggregate average ratio of 50% , with similar results at Metacritic with 45, 49, and 51 . G4's X-Play, saying that "this Shadow leaves us completely in the dark," gave the game it's lowest possible score, a 1 out of 5. Arguably the harshest criticism came from EGM, who included it on their list of the "Worst Games of 2005", claiming it was the year's biggest sellout. On the other hand, the graphics and replay value were praised. Many reviewers noted that, because the player only goes through six of the 22 levels on any given run, replay value was high.

The concept and usage of Shadow's guns was criticized. Grege Mueller from GameSpot complained that the guns were nearly useless because of a lack of auto-aim or manual aiming (despite the presence of an effective auto-aim) . Matt Casamassina also noted the guns, writing that process was overly cumbersome and complex and that killing an enemy was a game of chance.

Shadow's use of the word "damn" was also criticised (he used the word "hell" as well), which was made worse by the fact that four other characters (Sonic, Knuckles, the GUN Commander, and Espio) also used the word. While there were no obscenities in the game, some fans also reacted negatively. The game's music, however, was widely praised.

Other complaints included bad level design, unrefined controls and a faulty camera system.

The Xbox version had many more issues than the Gamecube and Playstation 2 versions, it suffered from a much messier camera system, lack of playing ally characters, bad frame rate, clipping graphics, and messy controls. It is considered the worst version of the three , and didn't receive Plataniam Hits treatment.

Despite these criticisms, the game's popularity with fans has earned it the titles Greatest Hit for the PS2 and a Player's Choice for the Gamecube.

Cast

Voice Actor	Role
Jason Griffith	Shadow the Hedgehog / Sonic the Hedgehog
Sean Schemmel	Black Doom / Doom's Eye
Mike Pollock	Dr. Eggman / Gerald Robotnik
Marc Thompson	G.U.N. Commander
Bella Hudson	Maria Robotnik
Amy Palant	Miles "Tails" Prower
Dan Green	Knuckles the Echidna
Lisa Ortiz	Amy Rose
Kathleen Delaney	Rouge the Bat
Andrew Rannells	E-123 Omega / G.U.N Soldiers
Carter Cathcart	Vector the Crocodile
David Willis	Espio the Chameleon
Amy Birnbaum	Charmy Bee
Adam Blaustein	President
Rebecca Honig	Cream the Rabbit
Jack Quevas	Cheese the Chao / Chao

English voice dubbing changes

After the voice actor for Doctor Eggman, Deem Bristow, died in January 2005, Sega was faced with the problem of having to re-cast the English voice actor for this character. According to Mike Pollock, the current voice of Dr. Eggman, the problem was solved when Sega's creative team decided to hire the 4Kids Entertainment cast from the Sonic X anime, in an attempt to provide more continuity between the video games and the anime's voice cast. The news eventually trickled down to the community, announced by the previous voice actor for Sonic the Hedgehog, Ryan Drummond. Drummond claims that these changes were made without notifying the previous voice cast beforehand. A petition was then started for the return of the old voices. Sega has not yet responded to any requests or complaints. [2]

Japanese voices

The PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions contain the original Japanese voiceovers, though the method of enabling them is different for each version. In the PS2 version, the voices can simply be changed in the options menu of the game, while in the Xbox version, the voice and text language change according to the language settings of the Xbox system menu. The GameCube version of the game does not feature the Japanese voiceovers, but does have Japanese subtitles.

Censorship issues

Due to the more violent nature of the game (compared to previous Sonic titles), the ESRB rating was, for a time, in question. The official ESRB website originally had the game rated as T, but the official site listed E10+. Sega's request for only people 13 years and older to play the game at trade shows seemed to further back the T rating.

For the final version of the game, Sega changed the color of alien blood from reddish-pink to green, edited at least one vulgarity (spoken by Sonic; "piss" was replaced with tick in reference to angering GUN), and abbreviated a scene in which a GUN soldier shoots Maria, so the players do not actually see her die, although her death is seen a freeze frame in a cutscene from a later level in the game. Also, some other profanities were removed, but to what extent is unknown.

Music

In February 2006, an album was released entitled Lost and Found: Shadow the Hedgehog Vocal Tracks. Several music tracks from the game are featured in this album, while some mixes were made to others. There is also a promotional song in Japan : a remix of m-flo's "TRIPOD BABY" track off of BEAT SPACE NINE, their latest album.

Vocal tracks

• "I Am... All of Me" by Crush 40 (Trailer, Main Theme, and Final Boss theme).
• "Almost Dead" by Powerman 5000 (Dark and Pure Dark ending theme)
• "Waking Up" by Julien-K (Neutral ending theme)
• "E.G.G.M.A.N. Doc Robeatnix Mix" by REMIX Factory ft. Paul Shortino (Dr. Eggman's Theme)
• "Chosen One" by A2 (Hero ending theme)
• "All Hail Shadow" by Magna-Fi (Pure Hero ending theme)
• "Never Turn Back" by Crush 40 (Final ending theme)

Remixes

Since it was the game in which Shadow was introduced, many of the songs featured in Sonic Adventure 2 were remixed for Shadow the Hedgehog.

• "Event 3" was a remix of "E.G.G.M.A.N." from Sonic Adventure 2, remixed by The Remix Factory (used during cutscenes involving Eggman, including one prerendered cutscene)
• An extended version of that remix used before battles with the Egg Dealer. The song's true title, "E.G.G.M.A.N. Doc Robeatnix Mix" wasn't revealed until the "Shadow the Hedgehog : Lost and Found" album was released.
• "Blue Falcon" and "Heavy Dog" as different remixes of "G.U.N. Mobile" (known as "Boss 1" in the sound test) from Sonic Adventure 2, remixed by The Remix Factory (used during boss battles after the levels The ARK and The Doom)
• "Battle Mode" is actually the Radical Highway theme, "Vengeance Is Mine", from Sonic Adventure 2 (used during 2P matches) with a few very slight differences from the original.
• "The ARK" as a remix of Final Rush's "Highway in the Sky" from Sonic Adventure 2 (used during the stage called "The ARK," which itself contains areas resembling parts of Final Rush)
• There is also an Event song not listed in the Sound Test (called "Strategy" in the Shadow the Hedgehog Original Sound Trax) that is a remix of an Event song in Sonic Adventure 2, also called "Strategy".
• During the Last Story cutscene in which Shadow uses the Chaos Emeralds to go Super, a slower, remixed music clip of "I Am (All of Me)" plays, then flawlessly switches to a remixed music clip of "Live and Learn", the main theme of Sonic Adventure 2. It is simply called "Super Shadow" on the OST.

Lost tracks

In this game, a track was removed for due to copyright and licensing reasons. The song was "Who I Am" by Magna-Fi, who also performed "All Hail Shadow". The song later on appeared on the band's new album, VerseChorusKillMe. Another called "Broken" by Sins of a Divine Mother was removed due to licensing reasons. [3] Instead A2 (which features members from the latter band) tracked the song "Chosen One" in its place.

Trivia

• G.U.N. soldiers will occasionally call out, "Mr. Yuji Naka is all right!"; Yuji Naka being the head of Sonic Team at the time the game was made.
• The unlockable Vacuum Egg gun is obviously a tribute to the Sonic Team game Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg.
• The red and white platforms in Circus Park are the exact same ones seen in Carnival Night Zone in Sonic 3 & Knuckles.
• Two of the bosses in this game are called Black Bull (a large, flying Black Arm) and Blue Falcon (a G.U.N. mech unit). Coincidentally or otherwise, these are also the names of the vehicles driven by Black Shadow and Captain Falcon in Nintendo's F-Zero series (F-Zero GX was produced by Sega).
• In the Hero ending cutscene to Stage 1 (Westopolis), Sonic says "Welcome to the next level," Sega's slogan from the Genesis era.
• When Shadow beats Sonic in the Black Comet version of Sonic and Diablon, he says "Game Over, Sonic". Sonic says the same thing to Shadow when he defeats him for the second time in Sonic Adventure 2, although the character names are obviously reversed.
• In the Sky Troops level, Shadow says "This blue sky... Staring at it from afar... Have I seen it before?". This is a reference to the Sonic Heroes level, Egg Fleet, when Shadow looks at it the same way.
• The lines, "Where's that damn FOURTH Chaos Emerald?" (spoken by Shadow), "Find the computer room!" (spoken by Vector), and "You know what they say, the more the merrier!" (spoken by Eggman) have become Internet memes.
• The theme song "I Am... All of Me" is similar to the song "As I Am" by Dream Theater.
• With the exception of Big the Cat, all of the members of the 4 teams of Sonic Heroes have spoken and/or appeared as an ally.
• This game is considered by many to be the first in the Sonic series with a Gothic theme, setup, and appearance, as Shadow is the series' darkest character.

Movie references

Some lines and cutscenes contain references to movies:

• Independence Day - by completing the dark mission in The Ark level, the game will show a cinematic cutscene where Shadow uses the Eclipse Cannon to blow up the White House and the rest of Central City.
• Star Wars - Black Doom mentions that he is Shadow's father (genetically speaking) similar to the connection between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. Also, the Space Colony ARK's Eclipse Cannon is similar to the Death Star's planet-destroying superlaser. The ARK itself is also extremely similar to the Death Egg from earlier games (Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles), which was also based off the Death Star.
• Tron - The Digital Circuit and Mad Matrix stages seem to be based off the film's electronic environments.

External links

• Sega's Shadow the Hedgehog official site
• Official U.S Site
• Shadow The Hedgehog Official Site (in Japanese)
• GameSpot about Shadow
• IGN about Shadow