Shadow the Hedgehog (シャドウ・ザ・ヘッジホッグ Shadō za Hejjihoggu) is a video game released in November 2005 for PlayStation 2, GameCube and Xbox. It is a game centered around Shadow the Hedgehog. The player can unlock ten different endings depending on their choices, which then unlock the true and last ending. In the game, the player will discover more about Shadow’s past.
The game’s tone is a departure from the previous games; it was attempting to reach a more mature audience. The game contains mild swearing and guns.
Plot[]
Opening[]
We see Shadow, alone, standing. The only thing he can recall of his past is the death of Maria. Suddenly, a group of alien species called the Black Arms come and invade Westopolis. Their leader, Black Doom, offers Shadow knowledge of his past as long as he brings Black Doom the seven chaos emeralds. The story from this point will depend on the player’s choices. The player will end up in five different final levels, where they will choose between a Hero and Dark mission.
True Dark[]
- Dark: Shadow will fight Sonic and the Diablon. After defeating Sonic, the blue hedgehog asks what Shadow plans to do with the Chaos Emeralds. Shadow says he will destroy the planet.
- Hero: Shadow will face Black Doom and after defeating him, says that with the Chaos Emealds he will conquer the universe.
Dark[]
- Dark: Shadow will fight Sonic and the Diablon. After defeating Sonic, Shadow says he will become Black Doom’s minion and help the Black Arms destroy the Earth.
- Hero: Shadow and Knuckles will fight Eggman on his Egg Dealer. After defeating Eggman, Shadow says he knows what’s best for himself and kills Eggman.
Neutral[]
- Hero: Eggman, who reveals that Shadow is an android, will appear on the Egg Dealer and fight Shadow and Omega. Shadow defeats Eggman, and starts an empire where Shadow Androids rule. He then kills Eggman,
- Dark: Ditto, but Shadow will not start an empire and will have the goal of being superior to the original Shadow.
Hero[]
- Dark: Shadow fights Eggman on his Egg Dealer. After defeating Eggman, Shadow says he will protect the ARK for the rest of his life and tells Eggman to leave and never come back.
- Hero: Shadow and Vector fight Black Doom, and win. However, Shadow believes he has caused too much destruction and is an experiment gone horribly wrong, and that he should never have been born.
True Hero[]
- Dark: Shadow will fight Sonic and the Diablon. After defeating them, Shadow says he will become the most powerful hedgehog to exist with the Chaos Emeralds.
- Hero: Shadow and Sonic fight Black Doom. After the hedgehogs win, Shadow says he will destroy the Black Arms with Sonic’s help, keeping his promise to Maria.
Last Story[]
Shadow is revealed to be the dual creation of the alien overlord Black Doom and Professor Gerald. Gerald could not finish the project on his own, so he contacted the Black Comet and used Black Doom's blood, and presumably his DNA to create Shadow. Shadow eventually gathers all the Chaos Emeralds and confronts Doom as Super Shadow. He then destroys the Black Comet with the Eclipse Cannon. In the end, he puts the past behind him. Also in the last battle of the game, Eggman confesses to Shadow that he saved him in Sonic Adventure 2 before he fell to Earth, meaning he is the real Shadow and not a Shadow Android as was previously believed.
Gameplay[]
Shadow the Hedgehog plays similarly to the 3D Sonic games before it. It has many new gimmicks. The player can select from a variety of guns, which they can shoot at enemies. There are three factions; Guardian Units of Nations, Black Arm, and the Eggman Empire.
Each stage has three missions; Hero, Neutral and Dark.
Characters[]
Playable characters[]
- Shadow the Hedgehog
- Dark Shadow
- Hero Shadow
- Super Shadow
- Shadow Android (Battle Mode)
Co-op characters[]
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Miles "Tails" Prower
- Knuckles the Echidna
- Amy Rose
- Rouge the Bat
- E-123 Omega
- Team Chaotix
- Maria Robotnik
Non-playable characters[]
Enemies[]
Bosses[]
Stages[]
| Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 | Stage 5 | Stage 6 | Last Story |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central City | The ARK | GUN Fortress | ||||
| Digital Circuit | Cryptic Castle | The Doom | Air Fleet | Black Comet | ||
| Westopolis | Glyphic Canyon | Prison Island | Sky Troops | Iron Jungle | Lava Shelter | The Last Way |
| Lethal Highway | Circus Park | Mad Matrix | Space Gadget | Cosmic Fall | ||
| Death Ruins | Lost Impact | Final Haunt |
Music[]
Most of Shadow the Hedgehog music consists of heavy metal, nu metal, industrial rock, etc. It was composed by Jun Senoue.
The album, Lost and Found: Shadow the Hedgehog Vocal Trax was later released donating the seven vocal tracks. Almost every path of hero or evil had its own credits themes, with the exception of Dark and True Dark, which share “Almost Dead” as their track. The main theme of the game was “I Am… All of Me”, by Crush 40.
Julien-K (the band who performed “This Machine” from Sonic Heroes) returned to perform “Waking Up”. “All Hail Shadow” was later remixed as Shadow’s theme in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). “Broken” was originally going to be the semi-hero theme, but Sega could not contact the singer of Sins of a Divine Mother, so two members from the band made a new band called A2 and performed “The Chosen One” the replace “Broken”. ”Never Turn Back” by Crush 40 is the credits theme.
“Who I Am” was going to be the main theme but it was cut. Eggman’s theme from Sonic Adventure 2, “E.G.G.M.A.N” was remixed for this game.
