3D Sonic games. What's to say? Most of them have sucked. Sonic Heroes, Shadow The Hedgehog, Sonic on 360. Sonic & The Secret Rings was alright but was missing that special charm. Now here's Sonic Unleashed released on all formats for the first time in years.

The storyline is Sonic has infiltrated Eggman's base only to get thwarted and turned into a Were-hog. Eggman then proceeds to split Planet Earth into pieces so that he may make Eggmanland and drops Sonic in Apotos (somewhere in Holland, I think). When Sonic comes to, he finds a tiny creature who has lost his memory whom Sonic names "Chip". When they meet Tails and Prof. Pickle (?), they discover Eggman's plot and try to get the Chaos Emeralds power back.

As will probably be no surprise to Wii owners, the Wii version has been downgraded a little. But not much. Just some Were-hog moves and some levels. When it comes down to gameplay, it doesn't matter. The day stages in where you're regular Sonic have speeding from beginning to end. You are timed and again, you get ranks from the humiliating C to the awesome S. The higher rank you have, the more Sun or Moon medals you achieve which you can use to access secret rooms in the Gaia Gates. Trying to beat your times and get the S rank is really addictive (I often found myself strafing away from the story and going back to previous levels to get them). This can also be annoying as you strive to find the best shortcuts and jumpng for them only to find you were a little off target and miss and you end up starting the level again.

The were-hog levels however, differ. He's WAY slower in were-hog form but has different abilities such as stretchy arms that he can use to grab ledges and poles and whatnot. While you still get ranks, it's not just based on time. You also have to collect rings and souls. The souls can also help to build up were-hog abilities and levels. The were-hog levels aren't exactly boring, but do get a bit tedious after a while. If you're a die-hard puzzle-solving item-finding fan then it'll be up your alley for sure.

Items in the game are really just collecting music, cutscenes, documents and artwork. Though the artwork is pretty cool and the music is decent, the rest are pointless.

So should you play this game? It depends. If you love high-speed levels (such as myself) and are able to put up with the were-hog levels plus Chip, then by all means, give it a go. If not, stay away. If you love high-speed levels, but you don't think you could put up with the rest, either avoid it or rent it.

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