Review: Sonic X Shadow Generations (Xbox)
In case you somehow missed it, 2024 is the year of ‘Shadow the Hedgehog’ – with his live-action movie debut scheduled for December, and a new game chapter now available as part of Sonic X Shadow Generations. To reiterate, youâre not only getting a remaster of 2011’s Sonic Generations, but also included is an entirely new story starring the ultimate lifeform.
This new campaign follows a similar formula to the original Generations, where youâll speed through iconic Sonic stages (this time based on Shadowâs history) and engage in some hectic boss battles. Just like Sonicâs segment of this collection, each stage is broken up into two acts – one act channels the seriesâ 3D era and the other takes inspiration from the blue blur’s side-scrolling roots.
Shadow Generations is mostly the same design – only the hub world (known as âWhite Spaceâ) where you access levels, is now a 3D environment. According to Sega, it’s inspired by the “open-zone” gameplay of Sonic Frontiers.
If we’re being honest, this area seems more comparable to Nintendoâs Super Mario 3D World + Bowserâs Fury, which also happened to be made up of an original game with an additional campaign tacked onto it (and by no means is this a bad thing). As you progress in Sonic X Shadow Generations, youâll also unlock special ‘Doom Powers’ for Shadow – enabling new moves like gliding across the water in this zone, which to us was also reminiscent of the main area in Bowser’s Fury. The hub upgrade might not necessarily sound like a big deal, but it makes Shadowâs campaign feel extra special.
In this zone â that evolves as you progress â you can also discover collectibles (like artwork and music), hone your platforming skills and unlock new powers to open up more of this area. Along the way. you’ll encounter familiar faces like Rouge the Bat, which all ties into the gameâs story. Again, it will be familiar if you’ve already played Sonic Generations â just that the space is now in 3D and a little more fleshed out.
Like Sonicâs story, to progress further youâll need to complete both acts in each stage and then beat a bunch of bonus levels to unlock keys – which open gates and allow you to challenge various bosses. Returning players should know exactly what they’re signing up for here.
As for the actual levels in Shadow’s story, theyâre all inspired by the character’s past. The story brings Maria and her grandfather Dr. Gerald into the picture, with Shadow tasked to take down his old foe: Black Doom. This takes the player on a literal generational journey throughout Shadowâs history, and youâre going to see locations and themes from past Sonic games as well as more recent releases – supported by a fitting soundtrack.
The level design in Shadow’s story feels like a step up from Sonic’s Generations campaign – which has naturally aged in 2024. Each act in Shadow Generations has a mix of speed and platforming segments, and Shadow is also loaded with powers like Chaos Control (which can be used to slow time to deal with opponents and overcome challenges), adding some extra depth to gameplay. The modern 3D-style levels feel particularly fun, and the challenge stages might even put some of your platforming skills to the test.
The boss battles â also channelling Shadow’s past â are just as entertaining. Youâll take on all sorts of enemies here, and this is all mixed in with some story cinematics – including encounters with characters like… spoiler alert… Sonic, as Shadowâs own story runs parallel to the main game. In terms of graphics and performance, Sonic X Shadow Generations ran well during our time with the Xbox Series X build, and we had no issues to make note of.
Shadow’s portion of the game already feels quite satisfying as a standalone product here, and the addition of a remastered version of Sonic Generations makes it even better. This modern version of the original game is also an improvement from a visual standpoint, and includes new features like the drop dash ability for Classic Sonic, âreworkedâ cinematics, additional bonus content and more. There is a small amount of content locked off to select versions of the game though, so that’s something to keep in mind.
Conclusion
Shadow’s latest chapter is arguably his best video game outing yet and easily the definitive experience in Sonic X Shadow Generations. The remaster of Sonic’s existing campaign tops it all off, even if it has aged a bit in 2024. Fans of the ultimate lifeform (and the blue blur) should have a blast with this one.
