In the NOM magazine on sale from today in the UK, an exclusive play of the demo version of this controversial Shadow game to come later in the year reveals a lot of hidden surprises, as well as some accompanying screenshots.
It is confirmed by Iizuka-san that Shadow will be appearing on all three platforms, for starters. Screenshots are also shown of various play elements such as Shadow jumping into mounted cannons to blast off a few caps, soaring on a winged alien of some sort and more details of the enemies Shadow will face. Scans are available below, and they include some rather sexy promo art.Nintendo Official Magazine #153 (May 2005), a Shadow the Hedgehog special.
Cover
Contents Page
Page 1 double-spread
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9 double spread (Iizuka-san interview)
Poster 1
Poster 2
Now, some highlights to be drawn from all this:
[-] Page 4 has shots of the enemies, and one of the bosses, apparently – a strange cycloptic creature. Could this be an alien invasion of some sort? They sure as hell aren’t ‘mobians’.
[-] It has been revealed that the gun ISN’T crucial to the gameplay. In perhaps a very wise move, Sonic Team have made this game playable by traditional Sonic means – spin dashes can take the place of laser blasts.
[-] The guns are also pretty varied – from pistols to alser blasters and rocket launchers – playing with these should be fun, if we can get over the image of Shadow with a bazooka.
[-] The environments are largely destructable – buildings can be destroyed etc. adding a new game mechanic to be sure (page 5).
[-] As seen on page 4, Shadow can jump inside cannons and lay down some serious fire on ships and large enemies, as well as being able to use vehicles like cars and, on page 8, animals.
[-] Finally, contrary to many beliefs (including my own) Iizuka-san (head of Sonic Team USA, interviewed on page 9) has hinted at multiple platforms when asked about Gamecube-exclusive content. “…our ultimate goal is to create a seamless game experience with Shadow The Hedgehog of all consumers no matter what platform they own.”