Sonic X Shadow Generations announced, releases Autumn 2024

Only the Xbox version? Considering how every console from the PS4 onwards is incompatible with PS3 games, and again, the backlash from the Origins steam delistings, I feel that the Steam version still has a chance.

 

It's too bad they couldn't have updated the original Generations part of Sonic x Shadow to have all of the extra Sonic Unleashed effects like the mods fix. (Or have they done anything like this? I can't tell.)

 

The only change I've noticed is that they broke Classic Sonic's rig and now his top spine is kind of awkwardly held upwards.

It's a very barebones "remaster". It's more of a straight-forward port to new platforms with standard enhancements to framerate and resolution, but other than that it looks like basically nothing has changed. They've given us the option to enable a couple of skin changes, I guess? And the badly emulated version of S1 will likely have been removed in favour of nothing (it was already absent from the PC version). I'm not sure if they've also gone the Colours Ultimate route of removing lives too, which were arguably more vestigial in Generations that in any other Sonic game out there.

Considering that this port is being handled in-house, it's definitely a shame that they didn't go to any lengths to enhance the visuals. Shadow Generations has far superior visual fidelity, so seeing them being pegged as one game doesn't really sit right me. They're clearly two very different titles. But from the other perspective, it's a simple port of arguably the best received 3D Sonic game and a new, pint-sized 3D Sonic game all under one roof. It's hard to be too upset when Shadow Generations is the main draw.

 

They broke the rig of the character you'll be playing as for half of the levels? huh... I wonder if they'll fix that. They did fix and improve some things in the Shadow side over time, between earlier and later footage.

 

I keep seeing a few people complain about this here and there throughout the leadup to this game. And honestly it's so weird because the people who bring it up claim to not care but always feel the need to bring it up. iirc it was a pseudo ad/demo for the Sonic 1 release on the Xbox 360 marketplace. That's dead now, so no point there. And there's so many ways to play Sonic 1 at this point, better ways, you couldn't even access the level select or debug mode in Gens' S1, let alone save states or rewinding, so you are literally not missing anything at all. Do y'all just like the Mega Drive model?
The only way you could make me care about that S1 demo is if they went all in and provided demos of the original games represented in Gens but that understandably isn't possible since the Switch sure as hell isn't running anything past Heroes.

1/3rd

 

I don't know about debug mode, but I do know that you can access the level select in Generations.

 

Well damn 7 year old me would've liked to have known that about 13 years ago.

 

Psuedo ad/demo? What? It's the full game. A dandy little bonus.

I only bring it up sarcastically anyway because it's such a 'whatever' feature nowadays. Nobody was itching for a new way to play S1 in 2011 and I don't think anyone going to be cut up about it being removed now. It's worth mentioning that when comparing OG Generations to SXSG because it's something that has likely changed. But I don't think anyone actually cares about it. If Origins S1 isn't good enough for some people, then the questionable S1 emulation in Generations is gonna be even worse.

 

They removed it because they're going to surprise us and put Sonic Battle in there instead so new fans can find out who Emerl is.

 

The switch is weak and all that, but it’s basically PS3/360 but a bit better, and all games that are represented doesn’t go past that generation of consoles

they will take a lot of space tho which will be the bigger issues

 

See putting Battle in Shadow Generations would actually be an interesting freebie since it's not really worth any amount of money but also it'd suck that it would basically have to be a badly translated version of it, so then you'd be playing a boring game and the worst version of the actually pretty cool story.

It sucks we don't have more easy to emulate portable games featuring Shadow. They showed a tremendous amount of restraint by excluding him in so much.

 

Hey, that's not the only change! They broke the grass in Green Hill too so it looks yellowish for some reason. (I remember that was the only reason we were able to tell that the footage in the initial reveal trailer was new)

I'm not expecting much from the new content they're apparently adding to the Generations side. I'm expecting the "new alternate routes for Chao" to be like the Origins missions where they just add crates and stuff to the original level design rather than constructing new geometry. I'm a little surprised they're not adding in the Unleashed-esque angular shadows given that those are already in the code.

 

While space is definitely a big factor there too you cannot whole heartedly tell me that the Switch could emulate the 360 without shitting bricks.

 

honestly they should do what Nintendo did in Smash Bros Brawl where they give you a short timed trial of each game. Unleashed and '06 will probably add another 10GB to the game.

 

Somehow I don't seem them being willing to port over Unleashed to four different new platforms with a majority of it's content stripped out.

 

You didn't specify emulation, and I don't think it would need to be emulation in the first place.

Besides, no console can emulate the Xbox 360 without shitting bricks. Certainly not the PS4 and Xbox One, that have weaker CPUs than their predecessors. They'd shit entire houses.

"But-but Xbox One Backwards Compatibility!" That's actually recompilation. That's why you can't just pop your Xbox 360 disc in your Xbox One, and need to download a compatible version of the game.

*runs before he's clubbed over the head by Clownacy because recompilation is technically speaking a form of emulation*

 

Xbox 360 emulation is barely a thing even on PCs right now. Xenia's compatibility rate is what like, 20%?

 

The music is cool n' all, but I'm more excited about the "Act 1" tag attached to it.

 

I suppose you caught me there, though I figured it was kind of implied I was referring to emulation. If it was done via recompilation or straight up porting 1 level from 06 and Unleashed then I could see it being feasible on Switch. But obviously that's too much effort for a gimmick... And why would Sega willfully port an unmodified version of 06 anyways.