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It has been almost 20 years since the Sonic franchise entered a shaky period of its life, in which the legendary video game series started to lose a lot of the prestige it gained during the Genesis / MD and Dreamcast days. Starting with Shadow the Hedgehog in 2005, Sonic Team got caught into a streak of releasing games of questionable quality. Some of you probably know that after the critical and commercial success of Sonic Colors and Sonic the Hedgehog 4 in 2010, Sega did this epic move that consisted of paying retailers to remove all of the Sonic 3D platformers released between 2006 and 2009. However most of you are aware that 2010 wasn't the end of the roller coaster of quality that is the Sonic franchise, as controversial Sonic platformers still continued to release either coming from Sonic Team themselves or other developers like Big Red Button.
A quick summary of every 'controversial' 3D Sonic platformer:
Shadow the Hedgehog
A spinoff of Sonic Adventure released at the tail end of the 6th generation. In the story department, Shadow the Hedgehog is an amazing cultural product of 00s edgelord culture, but unlike Devil May Cry and other classics, Shadow's game is not very polished to say the least.
Sonic the Hegdehog (2006)
Sonic '06 is a great candidate for "The Room of video games" due to its legendary "so bad it's good" reputation that applies both to its gameplay, as well as to its 'literary' elements.
Sonic and the Secret Rings:
An Arabian Nights themed Sonic game and the first installment of the Storybook sub-series, which consisted of Wii exclusives with lower budget than HD games like '06 and Unleashed. Although many don't know about the existence of this game, Sonic and the Secret Rings has gained quite a bit of likers over the last years.
Sonic Unleashed
The first HD game post '06. Sonic becomes a Werehog in this game and goes through various beat' em up sections while being in that form. As you can imagine, the Werehog aspect of this game wasn't very well received, but the standard platforming sections have received plenty of praise retroactively.
Sonic and the Black Knight
The second and final installment of the Storybook sub-series, now with an arthurian motif. Sonic has a sword in this game. Also, can I say that this game's art direction is reaally bad? That color palette is nasty.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4
A Pac-Man 2 situation, where a small humble project gets a name which comes with expectations that will never be met. In this case, Sonic Team decided to make a spinoff platformer designed for phones, but for some reason the game got marketed as the sequel to the Genesis / MD classics. Episode I was well received back in the day and restored faith in the franchise, but people were more critical for the second episode.
With the third episode getting cancelled, Sonic Mania retconning Sonic 4 from the timeline and the first two episodes not getting ported to current platforms, I think it's fair to say that Sega doesn't want you to remember this game.
Sonic Lost World (?)
A Nintendo exclusive game that didn't get the rave reviews of Colors or Generations, but was well-received within the fanbase. I omitted this game from the poll because I believe this game isn't that controversial nowadays, with many considering it to be pretty solid.
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric
A WiiU exclusive developed by Big Red Button, a studio formed by ex-Naughty Dog veterans. I don't think this game needs an introduction – it's Sonic '06 over again, but prettier and with less memes.
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal / Fire and Ice (?)
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal released for the 3DS on the same day as Rise of Lyric. Both games were critically panned, but Shattered Crystal was championed by some as being okish and not as messy as Rise of Lyric. It seemed that Sega was satisfied with Shattered Crystal's reception that they gave Sanzaru, the developer of said game, the green light to make Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice on the 3DS. Fire and Ice was way better received that Shattered Crystal and it's also notable for being the only game in the 3DS to use Unreal Engine 4.
I omitted these games from the poll as I don't think they are very controversial.
Sonic Forces
The stars were aligned in 2017 for a Sonic renaissance after Sonic Mania became an instant classic, and Sonic Forces was looking good with its 4 years in the oven and its character creator. What happened after Forces released? well, let's just say that an overwhelming amount of people thought that Mania was the better Sonic game of that year.
Sonic Forces is a very interesting case of Poe's law. The character Infinite and Sonic being a POW look like a shitpost from afar, but many players thought that Sonic Team was being unironic on this one.
Which of these games deserved a better reception? For those legends who completed all of the above: what is your personal favorite?
A quick summary of every 'controversial' 3D Sonic platformer:
Shadow the Hedgehog
A spinoff of Sonic Adventure released at the tail end of the 6th generation. In the story department, Shadow the Hedgehog is an amazing cultural product of 00s edgelord culture, but unlike Devil May Cry and other classics, Shadow's game is not very polished to say the least.
Sonic the Hegdehog (2006)
Sonic '06 is a great candidate for "The Room of video games" due to its legendary "so bad it's good" reputation that applies both to its gameplay, as well as to its 'literary' elements.
Sonic and the Secret Rings:
An Arabian Nights themed Sonic game and the first installment of the Storybook sub-series, which consisted of Wii exclusives with lower budget than HD games like '06 and Unleashed. Although many don't know about the existence of this game, Sonic and the Secret Rings has gained quite a bit of likers over the last years.
Sonic Unleashed
The first HD game post '06. Sonic becomes a Werehog in this game and goes through various beat' em up sections while being in that form. As you can imagine, the Werehog aspect of this game wasn't very well received, but the standard platforming sections have received plenty of praise retroactively.
Sonic and the Black Knight
The second and final installment of the Storybook sub-series, now with an arthurian motif. Sonic has a sword in this game. Also, can I say that this game's art direction is reaally bad? That color palette is nasty.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4
A Pac-Man 2 situation, where a small humble project gets a name which comes with expectations that will never be met. In this case, Sonic Team decided to make a spinoff platformer designed for phones, but for some reason the game got marketed as the sequel to the Genesis / MD classics. Episode I was well received back in the day and restored faith in the franchise, but people were more critical for the second episode.
With the third episode getting cancelled, Sonic Mania retconning Sonic 4 from the timeline and the first two episodes not getting ported to current platforms, I think it's fair to say that Sega doesn't want you to remember this game.
Sonic Lost World (?)
A Nintendo exclusive game that didn't get the rave reviews of Colors or Generations, but was well-received within the fanbase. I omitted this game from the poll because I believe this game isn't that controversial nowadays, with many considering it to be pretty solid.
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric
A WiiU exclusive developed by Big Red Button, a studio formed by ex-Naughty Dog veterans. I don't think this game needs an introduction – it's Sonic '06 over again, but prettier and with less memes.
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal / Fire and Ice (?)
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal released for the 3DS on the same day as Rise of Lyric. Both games were critically panned, but Shattered Crystal was championed by some as being okish and not as messy as Rise of Lyric. It seemed that Sega was satisfied with Shattered Crystal's reception that they gave Sanzaru, the developer of said game, the green light to make Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice on the 3DS. Fire and Ice was way better received that Shattered Crystal and it's also notable for being the only game in the 3DS to use Unreal Engine 4.
I omitted these games from the poll as I don't think they are very controversial.
Sonic Forces
The stars were aligned in 2017 for a Sonic renaissance after Sonic Mania became an instant classic, and Sonic Forces was looking good with its 4 years in the oven and its character creator. What happened after Forces released? well, let's just say that an overwhelming amount of people thought that Mania was the better Sonic game of that year.
Sonic Forces is a very interesting case of Poe's law. The character Infinite and Sonic being a POW look like a shitpost from afar, but many players thought that Sonic Team was being unironic on this one.
Which of these games deserved a better reception? For those legends who completed all of the above: what is your personal favorite?
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