I've always said that Unleashed on the Wii solves the 'Boost to Win' mentality. It turns it into an expenable item rather than a constantly accessible meter. It always forces you to boost for a certain time period, making boosting a risk. You need to know how to time your boosts without locking yourself into a boost that'll throw you off the stage. It should be risk/reward, like here. I wish they'd go back to this idea
You can cancel your boost by tapping back on the stick, but that still consumes the entire unit. You either use that unit to it's fullest, or sacrifice part of the gauge to maintain tighter control of Sonic.
I'm glad unleashed has been getting a lot more attention and love, and I especially love that the wii version has been gaining much attention too as it's the one I grew up with. To this day, I consider unleashed to be my favorite mainline entry and I like both versions equally for the different experiences they offer. I choose to group them in as 1 total package and it seems that a lot more people are doing that, which is greatly appreciated.
Just watching footage of people speeding through the stages really _shows_ just how good they are. That kind of fluid speed wouldn't be possible with Sonic Color or Generation's 2d sections.
Wholeheartedly agree. I played thru Unwiished for the first time in high school and came out of the experience thinking that no Sonic stages in the entire franchise had felt as good to speedrun as this game’s day stages did.
im shocked you didnt talk about the S rank condition being displayed in front of you as both motivation and a callback to old school arcade style games. It's like what the genesis games did with the score counter. it adds a lot while being incredibly subtle
Y E S. I tried to speedrun this entire game and had fun the whole time. It's so good, every level has little tricks and shortcuts, and the levels complement the controls so well. I'm glad someone else sees this. I completed the game 100% on PS2 and Wii because I simply liked it that much (PS2 felt better though).
Damn, as someone who loves the boost and the fun of speeding past levels, I've been sleeping on this game! But besides that, it felt so good that someone actually talks about jumping upwards through enemies, that was great in gens.
This is my favorite Sonic game for the Boost levels in general and seeing this video was such a neat thing I never played the wii version so that's neat to see very pretty for the time!
Wow, this channel popped up on my feed - it’s super professional, edited well and incredibly intricate in your assessment of speed running. I always found Unleashed (Wii) similar to a racing game due to the constant alternate paths and set pieces. It also looks amazing for the Wii. Great vid anyway! Subscribed 😊
I saw this video on my recommendations and I just had to watch it. I remember my father buying me this game for me for Christmas in 2008. My sense of thrill playing the day stages as a kid was so exhilarating and I mastered the day stages to a tee. You’ve described everything I felt about the Wii’s Day Stages in this video very well. On another note, you have a fantastic voice for narrating. It’s very easy to listen to and I really like that. It makes your videos easy to follow, understand and overall more appealing. Subbed.
This video just popped in my RU-vid out of nowhere, they do know this is my fav Sonic game hahaha, I love that day stage's speed are constant almost everytime, and that the normal platforming was passed to the Werehog instead of getting rid of it, with Day stages you just go fast constantly and that's what I love about this game
I feel like Sonic Unwiished is really getting a lot of love lately Definitely one of the best videos to really describe what makes it great. Although I still think I'll stick to Project Unleashed myself xD
This was my first contact with Sonic Unleashed. Well... kinda, actually my first contact with Sonic Unleashed was with the PS2 version in 2010, here in Brazil consoles like PS3, Xbox 360 and even the Wii were stupidly expensive at the time so the PS2 became a gateway to those who wanted a console but couldn't afford so much, that's why I'm very grateful to Sega for releasing Sonic Unleashed on the PS2, years later I was able to see the Wii version and play the PS3 version, but still I keep the PS2 version fondly. I love this version, even though it's not as complex or complete as the HD version, I love the design of the day stages and I honestly think the night stages are better in this version than the HD version especially because they don't last as long as the HD version. (and not have so much framerate drop) I know it's almost impossible, but I hope the Wii/PS2 version is re-released someday, even if it's in the Playstation Plus classics catalogue, I honestly think it deserves as much recognition as the HD version.
This brought back some memories for me, I think this was one of the first Sonic games I ever played, but I've never really gone back to it. Seeing all those little details again about the boosting, skidding and smacking into walls was something I remember loving back then, too! Was cool hearing a fresh perspective about this game.
I only played the Sonic Unleashed Wii Version growing up and this video really made me appreciate the experience in ways I never thought of before. This is definitely an interesting take before but I'm not mad at it
2:50 stuff like this is why SA1 and SA2 are so good. Small little shortcuts and extra platforming tricks are great. Boost design is a little too... on rails most of the time. But yeah, unleashed is great when it comes to this. I would have preferred 2-4 more day stages in exchange for all the night stages.
While I do like the HD stages more but what I love way more about UnWiished is that the shortcuts feel way more satisfying In Unleashed HD a shirt cut is often just jump earlier or homing attack those enemies on the side While in UnWiished they are alot more creative and appear more often
I used to obsess over trying to master the stages in sonic lost world 3ds, trying to find little tricks or exploits to improve my clear time. This video makes me want to pick up unwiished and see if it scratches that dame itch so badly
Something which I love about Unwiished is how you have to jolt the Wii remote to homing attack - it feels so much more interactive in a stage then simply just pressing a button like in Colours
My favorite minor detailnin SD Unlesshed is how Sonic will spin if he boosts over a Dash Pad and the blue streak effect is just PERFECT especially when going through a loop or a twisting path
I've felt for the longest time that the boost games after unleashed (wii) never quite felt the same. I couldn't put my finger on why though. Thank you for exposing to the world the greatness that is these day stages.
The levels in Unleashed (Wii) really are extremely satisfying to master enough to get an S rank. Definitely is currently my peak Sonic experience I’ve had as of now.
Excellent video. As a fellow lover of aiming for the best time's possible, I echo a lot of what's said here. And there's so many other great things about the gamplay here to love. Combo chains, how boosting always launches you in the direction of the camera allowing for very precisely aimed boosts after drifts and such, the best drifting in any Sonic game, etc. Part of the reason this game is so great for speed is because that is the sole focus of the design. Other Sonic games do a lot of what this one does, but they also compromise the level design's speed focus to account for score, collectibles, etc. This game has one thing in mind. Getting to the end as quickly as possible. I would recommend Sonic Advance 3, as it also has a sole focus on speed, and it's awesome for it. btw, Dimps did not work on this game. The only member of Dimps that worked on this was the lead level designer of the Rush games, who designed the day stages. Everything else was Sonic Team. Oh yeah, and if you're one for emulation, you can play this game on Dolphin at 60 FPS. It's glorious.
I personally prefer the drifting animation in Generations more. It seems like something that the devs could potentially add a little more depth to. But otherwise I agree.
Hey pariah didn't expect you to be here, I hope you cover the sonic wii games soon. I really wanna have a discussion with you over the different types of sonic gameplay types (speedruning, score attack) and kind of defend the points score system. Is there a way I can contact you? Also i just first played sonic advanced 3 and hated it. I hate the maze like structure of the levels and really unpolished level design. Although there definitely are improvements from the previous titles the game has some MAJOR ISSUES even regarding its best mechanic the team function. The fact that u need sonic as ur lead playable characters in certain act 3's to get the other characters is just really stupid. Passive traps are really really unpredictable to predict even more than sonic advanced 2. And I think the game is more focuses on collecting Chao and character actions than speedruning I my opinion. I would love to hear ur take on it tho
@@elibonham4388 Once my hand heals I will do the Wii games after the handhelds. You can hit me up on Twitter if you want to chat. Advance 3 does have some problems. But I like a lot of things about it. The level design is very experimental, but in a way I actually kinda love. You'll see in my video eventually.
I think comparatively the werehog isn't bad either in that regard, his stretchy limbs allow you to get away with skipping a fairbit of climbing. Which is really fun
The Wii version is worse than the HD version in every way other than the medal collecting. The daytime stages are quite fun but don't compare to the masterpiece of stage design which is the HD version. The night stages are horrible as it is exactly what mny people complained about in the HD version; it was too button mashy. In the HD version you have billions of combos while in the Wii version you just press 3 buttons alternatively
@@advaithanish8010 Said "billions of combos" are scripted and don't allow for higher levels of skill expression and creativity. It's not like the Wii version has it better in that regard. Aside from that, the PS2/Wii versions have MUCH better boss fights overall, and the Night Stages in the PS2/Wii version are shorter, so the fact that they're not nearly as good as the Day Stages doesn't have as much impact on the game overall, because they don't last as long. And most importantly, the Boost system in SD Unleashed is much more balanced and designed in a way that rewards the player for managing boost energy effectively and skillfully chaining actions together, something that hasn't been replicated until Frontiers came out more than a decade later. Also this so-called "masterpiece of stage design" has stages like Savannah Citadel Day Act 2 and Jungle Joyride Day Act 1. And Eggmanland needs no introduction. The Day Stage level design is great overall, but calling it a "masterpiece" might be overselling it a tad.
I enjoy the day stages here too. However, I still think that Generations's Boost stages still maintain a good amount of what makes the Wii Unleashed day stages so fun and some more. It's not one to one the same, but it still has a lot of what I enjoy, plus a few other things like the smoother control, faster pace, and skills.
I loved watching this video, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I loved it probably because your strong opinion aligned perfectly with my own love for this game. The day stages feel good. So, so good.
People give Dimps alot of flack for Sonic 4 and the Lost World 3ds version. But they forget that they made some well regarded games from both the advance and rush series', so them making a fun boost styled game isn't something I really find shocking.
I played the PS2 version which is the same standard version to the Wii and love the mini things like Sonic's reactions to bashing head-on into a wall. I confess I was so surprised by the loud thwack when it first happened that I spent a lot of time afterwards bashing Sonic into a wall in the Gaia Gates just to see it again😅.
This is an amazing video about my personal favourite Wii game. Love the editing and the pacing of the video too, and the writing is fantastic !! Keep it up, mate !! :D
Man, you're criminally underrated. Wish you the best on your RU-vid journey, because you deserve more subs! EDIT: HOLY CRAP YOU'RE FAMOUS NOW!!!CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!
Good video. While I don't get the same type of satisfaction or enjoyment from SD Unleashed, you presented your points very well. If anything, you got me a bit in the mood to give the game another play lol
You know, I have to agree with exo that it feels like if you took the best elements from both versions you’d get one of the best sonic games ever. I haven’t played either version, but I think the Wii version had a better foundation for what the boost formula should be, regardless of the execution. Like, imagine having day stages that had the Wii’s boosting, the Wii’s style of alternate paths and the HD’s obstacle and enemy design! I think it’d be pretty awesome.
it's funny how this was the first way i played unleashed. i always wondered why people hated the game at first and than i played the other versions and understood the Wii version is the better game
There was a minor version of the wall bump in 06 (and P06), but it was only one animation and it was just the generic 'hurt' animation that played whenever you took damage when grounded.
This was the version of the game I grew up with, so maybe I’m biased, but I do feel like the boost was done perfectly here. As you stated, the fact that you have to commit to a boost, charge an entire gauge before boosting, and time it, adds a layer of depth that no other boost game has. I think the only game that rivals the creativity of the boost here was Advance 2, where the boost state was more accessible when you gathered more rings
100% agree with everything said here lol i always liked the arcadey feel of unwiished compared to hd (tho i still love hd just as much, theyre like my children lol) ....now i wanna replay these stages but i dont wanna sit through the cutscenes...
This brings me back so much! I would play the day stages over and over again trying to get that perfect run and annoying my Dad in the process with Sonic's constant "URAAGH!" when he boosted.... I just remembered, sometimes to settle arguments my friend and I would speed run different stages and whoever got the better time would get their way.
Unwiished is my favorite Sonic game so far, probably because of nostalgia. I still play this game today and I love it's concept. The gameplay is really satisfying, Sonic feels really nice to control, the levels are intuitive most of the time, the sense of speed is very good, and the Werehog stages aren't boring, like I felt in the HD version. Here, they're more focused on platforming and puzzle solving than pure combat, which, in my opinion, gets a bit underwhelming in Unleashed.
I mean, even I have to admit that Sonic Unwiished has some amazing parts that undermine Unleashed, and vice versa. Sonic Unleashed and Unwiished gives me Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles vibes, where the games were supposed to be one, but for complicated reasons they had to be divided. I do hope that someone will bring the two halves back together one day.
The Wii version of Unleashed was the first 3D Sonic game that I played all the way to the end, and it made me want to perfect the levels to achieve the S-Ranks. It's because of it that I finally decided to play all the 3D Sonic games. Since then, I completed both Adventures, plus Heroes, Shadow, Secret Rings, Black Knight and Colors. Currently finishing Generations, and prepping for Lost World. Skipped Unleashed HD and Sonic 2006 until I get better hardware.
Amazing video! While the ps3 version of unleashed is one of the first sonic games I've owned, the wii version is the one that I played the most! I can't count the number of times I replayed the game xD
Although I prefer the HD daytime stages, the SD stages are very well constructed in both daytime and nighttime stages. I still prefer the Wii version over the 360/ps3 version as a whole.
@@lpfan4491I’ll say that if there’s something that the wii version did better that’s absolutely undeniable, it’s that it has much better QoL features and interface. Having the S rank time handy is incredibly helpful and the game does a much better job in general at telling you how to improve your rank. You also have a status screen for what ranks you’re missing. Oh yeah, and the game actually rewards you with something when you 100% the game unlike HD.
I love Sonic Unleashed! I still remember when this game came out in 2008 and I bought it for the PS2. The Wii and PS2 versions are almost identical. They were made with the intent of looking and feeling more simpler than the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions. Almost all the gimmicks in the Wii version are in the PS2 version. So I know what you mean when you described all these great things about the Wii version because I experienced them on the PS2 version. Now I own the new Xbox console and playing this game in the background compatibility library of Xbox with their enhanced graphics for this game is amazing. But it's true though, some of the gimmicks in the Wii and PS2 versions are not on the Xbox or PS3 versions. Such as the starting boost before the countdown ends for the PS2/Wii version. I haven't paid much attention to the Xbox and PS3 version if the game does or doesn't have the wall scraping or the wall hit animations, but either way Sonic Unleashed in general is an amazing game. It was such a huge improvement 2 years later after the release of Sonic 06, not to mention the banger music that comes with Unleashed. Btw did you know there was a mobile game version of Sonic Unleashed? Search it up and you'll find it.
8:14 It also happens in 06, but it's only a single tier. I love Sonic Unleashed for the Wii. It's the first version I owned and while in many regards it's the inferior version, I feel that it's the superior one when it comes to exploring for goodies compared to the HD version. Not only do you get actually good content, which is concept art, music, and even keys to unlock other levels, but you also get the Gaia gates to explore, which uses the medals awarded to you for getting good ranks in the main stages, which unlock puzzle stages involving the Hedgehog and Werehog forms in conjunction with each other, using a single ray of sunlight to transform from the Werehog to Hedgehog but on a timer, and your reward is even more goodies, more lives on your counter, and even more levels. I also really like the different boost style this game had. It's unique to this game alone, as no other game before or after has the same type of boost bar Unleashed Wii did, and like you said it creates a balancing act of when and how to use your boost efficiently. The Werehog is also pretty cool.
Great video I'm gonna to check unwiished out. And I'm interested in the time attack expeirience of this game. I usually love time attacking sonic games with the exclusion of maybe sonic 06 and sa2. With those games it's all about highscores first than speedrunning later so when ever I speedrun those levels I try to speedrun as fast as I can while maintaining the a rank. Edit: I played sonic unwished all the way to the end and I had a blast. These modern day stages are just as good as you say they are. They are so much fun to speedrun, they are so much fun to master because when u first play the game you notice that your scraping up along walls lots, crashing into walls and boosting when you don't have a boost, resulting in tripping. But once I got good at them all of those annoyances disappeared. I love the difference between when I first started and where I am now. And even when u start out its not unbearable at all its actually still a lot of fun, where games like sonic 06 and sonic and the secret rings feel God awful. The first impression is awful. Now I'm comparison to the 360. Well there's a few things I like more in this game and a few things I like more in that game. I like how that game has hub worlds and more stages in general the cutscenes are better looking and I love the eggman land finale stage way more than what they did in unwished. But unwished has better sun and moon medal obtaining methods, way better pacing in the game than the 360, the final boss is different for the better. There both great for different reasons. People should play both instead of playing one and and brushing the other one off. I love them both equally
The main stages I had to play the most to get all three metals was Eggman land day, and Arid sands night 1 I received an a rank, and it gave me three metals out of pity
I completely disagree with your take on Unleashed HD, but WOW, your writing and presentation is some great stuff! I've seen worse from channels 100x your sub count. Fantastic job.
You might want to try Tokyo Xanadu, since between the Persona/Trails of Cold Steel-esque life sim and investigation segments, the Labyrinths that form the core of the games combat sections are designed to incentivize speed running them while also getting as many treasure chests and kill as many enemies as possible and maintaining a high combo count, even though it's technically not required.
UnWeashed is the only boost game I played, I’m a huge Sonic kid but I remember pre-ordering Colors and being so disappointed with the game,,, but for some reason I loved UnWeashed - maybe I was just a weird kid but I fr missed out on all the games between Colors and Forces,, excited for Frontiers tho W Video jus felt like rambling
I think my only downside about the Wii/PS2 version is that boost isn't permanent, rather boosting for 1-2 seconds per bar. It's not too bad and doesn't influence my game experience but it would just be a bit more fluent if you just could hold down the boost button until the boost meter is empty like in PS3/X360 Unleashed, Generations and Forces.
the main problem i have with trying to do anything in that version of unleashed is the input latency, i dont have the right version of the component port on the back of my tv so im forced to use 480i instead of 480p which takes more time to process the image
