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1 Years of Service

Being part of the Backloggd community for 1 year

Gone Gold

Received 5+ likes on a review while featured on the front page

Liked

Gained 10+ total review likes

087

Total Games Played

024

Played in 2024

000

Games Backloggd


Recently Played See More

Sonic Unleashed
Sonic Unleashed

Mar 14

Bookworm
Bookworm

Mar 13

On the Ball
On the Ball

Mar 13

Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy

Mar 13

Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy V

Mar 12

Recently Reviewed See More

You might not know it from looking at the games I've played since I've started by Backloggd account, but I actually really like beat 'em ups, and that's where Sonic Unleashed, or at least this version of it, shines. The night stages are mostly pretty fun and have a decent progression system and difficulty curve. The combat is a bit on the simple side and I wish there was more enemy variety, but the night stages are a fun time that let you explore just enough to make you feel like you're not totally railroaded.

The day stages, on the other hand, are kind of a mess. And that's funny, because I actually really like this iteration of the boost system, it's probably my favorite modern sonic mechanic (please tell me 2008 is still "modern") - but holy the levels are scant. There's literally less than ten of them, and the rest of the day stages are "missions" - snippets of the stage you've already done with (usually) a different objective like collecting rings or dodging obstacles. Near the end of the game you're given time attack missions which are "do the stage from start to finish again, with a timer and checkpoints that boost your time". It's such a miniscule amount of content to make up what is allegedly half the game! There are also some issues with collision in the late game especially on curved platforms, most notable in Shamar and Eggmanland's day stages.

You also have to do basically what amounts to a point-and-click adventure to unlock stages through a primitive menu interface. The graphics are nice but it's nothing special. At times you're literally told information or objectives you already know or is a bit removed from the game's plot ("go to Shamar", Professor Pickle says while we're already in Shamar) to where the plot feels a bit contrived. And that's okay because the plot is already pretty goofy, but it seems like at points the attention to detail is just missing.

I think this game is worth a play, I had fun, but the night content really is the standout in this entry in the Sonic series (which is weird for a Sonic game), and there are better beat 'em ups out there.

Ah, the early/mid 2000s. A simpler time. It's actually somewhat hard to rate Bookworm because it's hardly anything outstanding but it's really great at what it's supposed to be - something you pick up and have a good half-hour to an hour long session of, feel good about, and then put away. I can see this being the type of game you'd play a short session of every single day back in the 2000s. And it's fun, in bits, but there's no real "end" beyond "reach the max rank" - it's very arcadey and lacks significant depth. Like Bejeweled, basically. A good time waster, a fun one ever, but not much more than that.

I got myself a little hyped up for this game and and ended up beating it really fast. There just isn't much here. Four worlds plus an expert world of levels that are virtually indistinguishable with very few parts. It's a neat core gameplay loop, but the game doesn't really go out of its way to do anything with it. While seeing Mode 7 in action is cool, the visuals are just okay, and there's one song in particular that plays a lot which is obnoxious and has strange talking-SFX baked into it.