To bring this back to topic.. :p
I'm a friend of Shay's from the STCO forum but I have to say after watching this twice, and watching his other videos on Shay Says and Game Pie, that I think he's done a good job.
He has a knack with words, putting together arguments that I just could not help but nod along in agreement. In this case, I think he's hit the nail on the head about many things plagueing the Sonic games (not so much the franchise as a whole; people seem to still like the comics, and the Boom cartoon seems to be going down OK. Better than the games, anyway!!), things that I kinda knew and felt in the back of my head but didn't really know how to put it. I saw the massive difference in tone and style when I first played SA2, after a loooong break away from the series (my last game before then was 3D Blast/Flickies Island) but apart from being in 3D and having voice acting, I just couldn't put my finger on it. At the time I think I might have said Sonic had been Nintendoised, but that of course is complete BS! :D
Shay just has a skill of putting things in such a way that is clear, and he doesn't get over-emotional over it. It's a calm, concise argument based on the material and it's analysis. It's almost scientific in its execution. This is not to say I don't like displaying emotional attachment; Clement's Sonic 06 review is great because of how much he emotes his displeasure in playing it; he might as well have screamed I HATE THIS HEDGEHOG! for three hours! But with Shay's video, I feel like I am watching something of substance, something that will be easily accessible by non-Sonic fans, if they care enough to watch it!
This post has been edited by MamboCat: 30 January 2015 - 01:03 PM