One detail I loved about Shadow is that _the second_ he gets freed, he doesn't go all tsundere saying he didn't need Sonic's help, or tries to one up Sonic by trying to take the train down himself, he *immediately* tells Sonic where Amy and Tails are, and gets behind him to kick the train's ass with the rest of the group.
And even when Shadow went to Sonic's party at the end, he never even gave Sonic a present, but he still went out of his way to try getting a present from Amy
@@demitrischoenwald1436 but also if u remember shadow stopped caring about his past and have nothing to do with and want to be his own person to "determine his own destiny"(line stated by 06) it is more clear in the japanese original version of the shadow game considering the dub by 4kids was so bad almost ruining the entire game story which is already flawed
Being a Shadow fan, my favorite part of his story was when he mentioned that he wasn't good with computers. Which immediately reminded me of the infamous karate chop he used to "hack" into Eggman's computer in his own game.
To be fair him being able to teleport is like the only logical way how he could lock the libary cart from the inside and get out despite not knowing about the secret path.
@@savarin_yt Wait a second, the lock was on the inside of the car.... You can excuse the saloon car because Knuckles was told to lock it when Shadow left (same with the Casino and Blaze), but Espio wasn't even there when Shadow went back through.
When it came out on April First some friends and I streamed the game for a few hours. Seeing people who loved the franchise and knew next to nothing about it in call doing voices was so fun. One friend of mine towards the end said "You know I get why people love Sonic now. I missed the bus as a kid, but the way he's written here, confident and kinda snarky but just... nice. He feels like he's your extrovert friend". And it was really cool to see this visual novel get someone to *get* these characters in a way a lot of other media hasn't. We are genuinely considering doing a whole dub of the game, and it's just a fun thing to read lines as characters we loved or are falling in love with.
19:20 Just thought I’d point out that the pink shirt in the closet is Sonic’s favourite shirt from the OVA, that Metal Sonic forcefully puts that owl guy into. The OVA has really gotten a lot of mentions as of recent, huh?
One of the best parts about this game is that it mentions the fact that Shadow likes having his coffee... As just the beans. No coffee, just plain, un-ground beans. Also the fact that Blaze was willing to have you (the character) as her spouse, as long as you were confident and did not commit any war crimes.
This game, ironic as this may sound, was a TRUE love letter to the franchise. Long abandoned characters returning and finally showing off who they are for once instead of bootlicking Sonic for 10 hours straight. All the quirks you mentioned, like Blaze and Rouge's blooming friendship, made this all feel alive. And I loved every single minute of it. Pun absolutely intended btw
Even if Sonic was barely in the game, I love how he’s portrayed. He got drugged, none of his friends even made an attempt to check on him, and when he woke up, he didn’t hold any grudges and just wanted to make sure his friends were safe also, I thought it was kinda sweet when shadow was trying to help an unconscious sonic towards the end
Always loved how everything about Espio appears to be the stoic, cool headed, serious character like Shadow, but in reality he's just as goofy and in over his head as Vector and Charmy. Like when he shows a gambling problem in the Archie comics, or here, where he's reciting bad poetry and committing HARD to his character.
I so desperately hope that they release more Sonic visual novels if it means getting to see more of the side characters shine. Not counting the comics, when was the last time Espio, Rouge and Vector got this much attention? Also, Detective Tails is best Tails.
@Raog Zero. Also, Omega is a walking talking weapon. I don't think the train would've let him on. Some other headcanons I have for other characters are Charmy and Cream probably weren't old enough, maybe the age limit is 7 and up. I assume the two just stayed with Vanilla. And since Silver and Blaze don't hang out as often anymore, I assume he just didn't get his invitation, or Amy forgot him. I've seen those three mentioned a lot and it's kinda crazy how much people are losing their mind over them not being mentioned, but it's also understandable.
As someone who is so very, very tired of "ironic" visual novels and parody dating sims, I was stunned that this turned out to actually be a genuine Sonic story that actually appreciated why we love these characters.
Frankly I could see it as a plot point. Imagine: You fight a particularly cool looking boss at the end of a stage; only it escapes after you defeat it. This same boss appears again in the next few stages or so. Then something unexpected happens: that samr robot appears in a cutscene being scolded by Eggman. Then halfway into the game or so, we learn that the first boss was faced was actually a roboticized Mobian, and the B plot becomes about saving them. All that was just written on the seat of my pants. You could really do so much with this.
Wait, no that makes no sense. Ignoring Flickr Lifecycles, Eggman wasn’t even planning world domination until Sonic was around to defeat him. This is likely a recent development, and the whole 32 years thing is for how long the train has been used. After all, the Conductor may have came with the Train, and been using it as a cargo train for long before.
@@aidanhammans9337 Whether you start with SegaSonic or Sonic 1, the first interaction between Eggman and Sonic is Sonic reacting to Eggman doing something to the place he's currently crashing at. There's no indication that Eggman only started taking over the world because Sonic got involved, or even using animals as batteries for that matter. Eggman's also ~50 years old, so it's entirely reasonable that he'd start his early career with some maliciously underhanded above-the-table work like public transportation. The biggest wedge in the issue would be the train knowing about the bounty system, which would definitely only happen after a good decade or two of building power, but even then you could easily say it's been receiving updates via the Eggnet.
@@aidanhammans9337 uh... you do know how old sonic is yeah? 32 years my dude. its a reference. also this probs happened before any big move by eggman, as he said, its infrastructure to help things go smoothly when he creates eggman land.
"Alright team! For this year's april fools, we gonna make an actually good Sonic game." "But sir, why don't we make a good game every time?" "Are you fucking crazy, Dave?"
((Spoilers I think??)) I find it funny that Espio can speed read an entire book in under an hour, can speak in over 10 different languages and can borderline read minds, but he still sucks at poetry
Imma be honest. Poetry is an art in and of itself and can be difficult to master no matter how much of an English lover you are. I'm speaking from personal experience here.
My favorite part were when Rouge, Blaze, and I were bad influences on Tails by bringing him along on a heist, and then I tried to teach him blackjack right after. Another thing I really liked about the story was how everyone (Including your character) just kind of accepts certain things. Like the Birthday Key. Says a lot about how things are in Sonic's world.
my favorite part of this game is finding little easter eggs and possible song motifs, my favorite being when sonic is cheering up the character you play as when their having a breakdown and a It Doesn't Matter motif started playing. I absolutely lost it and got so excited, I love this game!
God, I love this game a lot! The art is fantastic, the character designs and interactions are on-point, and the stoty is fun! Hope this isn't the only time Sonic Team does something like this!
In addition to all the callbacks to the Sonic franchise and its media, the game also took the time out to reference fan creators in the little details along the way! MugiMikey with the green bird wearing a red bowtie and the "Eggman Autobiography" book in the library Balena Productions through the printer making a picture of Sonic rowboating away from an orca just the little things that make the fanbase feel loved
This is hands down my favorite depiction of Amy. It feels like the first time they’ve successfully given her a personality that fits and feels like HER while not defining her by being love-crazy for Sonic.
I also love the addition to lore, showing that Eggman has been making robots for at least 32 years (I know it's only a reference to how long the franchise has existed but they put it out there) So Eggman is basically Elon Musk now, he spent decades building up a vast fortune with his company and probably only started trying to conquer the world quite recently...
19:18 While the colors do closely resemble Blaze, I personally believe that it’s Sonic’s “favorite clothes” from the Sonic OVA and The Old Owl was wearing them because Metal Sonic told him to.
19:17 I should probably point out that the shirt on the right there is actually a reference to the 90s OVA. It's the shirt that Old Man Owl winds up wearing, which turns out to have been Sonic's favorite clothes, according to Tails.
Honestly, I really liked the character combos. Seeing different characters interact when they wouldn't otherwise. Rouge and Blaze was super fun, Shadow and Amy's interactions were wholesome, and Tails and the MC was pretty 👌
The game doesn't force you to think but it gives you the option to think before randomly picking options. So for children who might not be good at critical thinking and problem solving they get to just get the answers, while progressing through the story with the characters they love. But for older people or people who actually want to consider thinking and problem solving you can go through it slowly. So i see nothing wrong with this
Dude, you forgot Sage in the final cutscene with Eggman. In it, Eggman, Sage, and Mettal Sonic are all present wearing party hats, with Mettal and Sage wearing t-shirts saying "Let's go, Dad!" That is both a funny and sweet touch to the characters!
This is a really cool game. The story honestly surprised me, the characterization is on-point. The main main character artist, DEEGEEMIN, is easily my new favorite Sonic artist. I don't care what anyone says, this game is canon.
Honestly hope that this can become a series, as these charcater are so full of persoanly and goals, that it can help give fan a better look into how they act and what they do in certain situtaions, like a Team Dark spy mission, or the Chaotix doing an actual mystery or even something small like Vanilla and Cream interacting with cilivan type charcters. Very charming game that I hope is expand upon, and maybe act some voice acting for more enjoyment.
19:20 actually, I'm pretty sure the pink shirt with yellow stripes is a reference to sonic's favorite shirt in the Sonic OVA (the one that Metal Sonic gave to the owl character).
I really love how much focus Espio got in this game. Aside from that one IDW chapter, I don’t think we ever get to see him do things independent of the Chaotix.
I absolutely LOVE how Amy is characterized. She has that bubbliness and upbeat energy and no filter the way she should be! I find in recent times there has been way to hard a push to make her an overly serious straightman character and tone her down to the point of being boring but i feel they are walking that back and I'm here for it!
Honestly some of those DreamGear sections got legitimately a bit challenging, and you kinda get into a flow state after a few tries. Wasn't expecting it them to get that tough just based on a few of the early ones, mostly the challenge is not knowing what's coming up and after seeing it once or twice they aren't a problem.
I'm not even a fan of visual novels, but this game is definitely one of the best in the series. The way they handled the characters was great, the ost was nice, just the right amount of challenge, and there was cool lore expansion too. It was really just a pleasant time and it was nice that it could easily be beaten in one sitting
I love how they subvert expectations by making it seem like a murder mystery role play sort of thing, only for you to learn that Sonic was ACTUALLY drugged (by Espio no less XD), and _the train itself_ is part of Eggman's scheme. The danger suddenly becomes real and its awesome!
if Sonic visual novels were a yearly April 1st gift, it would be really exciting to see what they do. they're not long, they're not resource intensive - just a fun 2 hour romp.
Since no one is saying this i quite like the ending where eggman is waiting for the train with metal sonic and sage if i remember correctly wearing "#1 dad" t-shirts and eggman just says "the train isnt coming isnt it" i just love that whole sequence
I was already an Espio fan, can we please get more of him someday? I mean, him and Whisper teaming up comes to mind as an option rather quickly, but like, I'd love to see Espio straight up get his own game/comic whatever. Just a chance to shine on his own - without having to loose his friends to some crazy crisis. I wish the Sega Scourge would come back and give us the part 3 of his "What if Espio Was Trained by Master Zik" (though a return to his Emerl what if would also be cool to see too). It really would be cool. Espio deserves so much more than what he usually gets, he's an awesome character hands down.
19:17 I think the pink and purple shirt is a reference to Sonic's favorite clothes from the OVA. They usually only acknowledge the OVA through Knuckles' cowboy hat, so the extra reference is really neat to see.
9:11 Aw c'mon, Vector and Espio are on a _break,_ they're on an elaborate birthday party! Espio gets to take it easy and show his goofy artsy side, while Tails gets to exercise his deductive thinking ;3
19:21 I think the pink shirt is meant to be a reference to the Sonic OVA, where Sonic's clothes are worn by that owl guy at the beach once Metal Sonic comes to see if Sonic is there
It wasn't directly mentioned (at least, not that I noticed), but the inclusion of Sage and Metal Sonic at the end with Eggman provides a bit more characterisation. We already know Eggman sees Sage as his daughter, but the fact that Metal Sonic is also wearing a "Let's Go Dad" shirt (which he looks adorable in, btw) implies Eggman has some sort of innate paternal instinct, even if he doesn't want to admit it
7:41 I would like to correct you For a brief moment at the beginning of speed highway in SA1 DC, the floor IS checkered black and white. This was changed to a simple road in DX though, so it depends.
19:16 I think the "Blaze" clothes are actually "Sonic's Favorite Clothes" from the OVA given they have nearly the same color scheme of purple collar with pink shirt and yellow stripes on the sleeves
huh, never realized that rouge was influencing blaze a bit, honestly in hindsight it's goofy given she's the most strict in character and morality most likely, so having her basically be in part of a heist is actually something funny, either as the dialogue might imply she enjoyed it by bending the rules, a bit or sonic rubbed off on her a bit than we thought and she got a bit of a rebel spirit. funny, very funny
19:15 actually the purple coat in the far right of the dresser is a reference to the Sonic OVA, its part of Sonics 'Cool Clothes' that are stolen and worn by the Old Man Owl
The player character is aparently named "Barry the Quokka" in the game data or something like that, so theoretically this guy is set up to be a recurring character in stuff down the line
I played this game on stream and lost my mind at both the NiGHTS cameo, the Ian Jr cameo, and the fact that Omachao is guilty of medical malpractice of all things! There are so many fun little details sprinkled into this game that really elevate it! On a mostly unrelated note: Would you consider doing a Sonic Speedreading type episode for the NiGHTS into Dreams Archie comic series? It's only 6 issues but I would love to hear your thoughts on it and thought might be a fun little deviation from Sonic content for you. Only if you want to though, no pressure!
I haven't seen anyone mention it. But one of the songs of this game (the one that plays in the background here 19:40) I've seen people say it's a "It Doesn't Matter" reference but i SWEAR it sounds like a slower version of "Sonic's Fight" from the Sonic X JP soundtrack
I like how the Mirage Express is also a reference to Roger’s other role as Mirage from Apex Legends. There is also a limited game mode where Mirage hosts a winter event on his train
Hello, Mr Nick Apologist, I came here to inform you that there's a Turtle alien called Terraspin in Ben 10, and you can play as him from the very begining in Ben 10 Cosmic Destruction.
"It's not fair to compare it to Sonic Mania or Origins." It trounces Sonic 4 Eps 1 & 2 handily and Sonic '06 and Wakku Wakku Patrol Car are starting to get nervous
16:47 Funny you mention him. The game's internal name is Choo Choo, Boo Boo which is a likely reference to a Thomas song of all things (Boo! Boo! Choo, Choo).
The thing I loved the most is that the set up (a murder mystery on a train) is one of he most typical murder mystery y set ups out there so to make the twist villain be the TRAIN ITSELF I found really fucking funny to me. Also gotta love the little scene at the end with Eggman, nice link to Frontiers there. Also being a Professor Layton fan, the mix of these genres made me very happy
I like the sense of irony with Sonic dressed up as a naval officer, seeing his track record with water
It ties in nicely with the "sonic is dead theme"
He can run on water tho, kind of like a boat.
@@julianx2rl he can but only if he is faster on the water and never stops moving
One detail I loved about Shadow is that _the second_ he gets freed, he doesn't go all tsundere saying he didn't need Sonic's help, or tries to one up Sonic by trying to take the train down himself, he *immediately* tells Sonic where Amy and Tails are, and gets behind him to kick the train's ass with the rest of the group.
That the 06 shadow we all love
The game director for this VN _really likes_ Shadow
Shadow probably got out of his edge phase
@@sethisevilone02 I farted
Which is exactly how Shadow should be, and it is perfect
I think the best part about this game is the fact Shadow willingly went to Amy's birthday but wasn't at Sonic's in the beginning of Sonic Generations
And even when Shadow went to Sonic's party at the end, he never even gave Sonic a present, but he still went out of his way to try getting a present from Amy
Shadow is way more scared of Amy than Sonic.
Although he probably respects her more than him, because she reminds him of Maria.
@@demitrischoenwald1436 many people forget that even happened
@@spleenikfan158without Amy there is no Shadow 🤌
@@demitrischoenwald1436 but also if u remember shadow stopped caring about his past and have nothing to do with and want to be his own person to "determine his own destiny"(line stated by 06)
it is more clear in the japanese original version of the shadow game considering the dub by 4kids was so bad almost ruining the entire game story which is already flawed
Being a Shadow fan, my favorite part of his story was when he mentioned that he wasn't good with computers. Which immediately reminded me of the infamous karate chop he used to "hack" into Eggman's computer in his own game.
The Best Part of This Joke, is that The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is the highest rated game in the Sonic Franchise on Steam.
Yes! It actually blown my mind when I've learn that.
It's free so lower expectations.
@@Swagpion But it also isn't your usual Sonic games, being a VN. So it somewhat balances out.
Not just that, it was the 61st highest rated game on Steam PERIOD.
well yeah there's not much to dislike about it
I found it hilarious that Shadow got the Locksmith role, even though he can teleport and don't really need to use doors.
To be fair him being able to teleport is like the only logical way how he could lock the libary cart from the inside and get out despite not knowing about the secret path.
@@rynobehnke8289 or he... you know... locked from the other side...
@@savarin_yt Wait a second, the lock was on the inside of the car.... You can excuse the saloon car because Knuckles was told to lock it when Shadow left (same with the Casino and Blaze), but Espio wasn't even there when Shadow went back through.
Or how he hacks into computers... Bro would 100% karate chop a lock to open it.
@@MattTOB618 oh wait. You're right, actually.
shadow has a soft side, sonic is vulnerable, and charmy is absent. finally some good characterization.
Because SEGA pretty much got fan to write it.
Charmy 💀💀
i miss charmy :(
Charmy is an Easter egg. Can you find it?
@@Blanktester685 me too. He's so cute and dummy
Fun Fact: While you can name the MC whatever you want, their actual canon name is Barry and they're a Quokka!
When it came out on April First some friends and I streamed the game for a few hours. Seeing people who loved the franchise and knew next to nothing about it in call doing voices was so fun. One friend of mine towards the end said "You know I get why people love Sonic now. I missed the bus as a kid, but the way he's written here, confident and kinda snarky but just... nice. He feels like he's your extrovert friend". And it was really cool to see this visual novel get someone to *get* these characters in a way a lot of other media hasn't. We are genuinely considering doing a whole dub of the game, and it's just a fun thing to read lines as characters we loved or are falling in love with.
So glad you and your friends got to enjoy it that way! I'm also pretty interested in that "dub" you mentioned, i'd love to see that!
"Let's not sell murder short" is my favorite Nick line
19:20 Just thought I’d point out that the pink shirt in the closet is Sonic’s favourite shirt from the OVA, that Metal Sonic forcefully puts that owl guy into. The OVA has really gotten a lot of mentions as of recent, huh?
Knuckles' cowboy hat and now that shirt. Lots of OVA representation.
One of the best parts about this game is that it mentions the fact that Shadow likes having his coffee...
As just the beans. No coffee, just plain, un-ground beans.
Also the fact that Blaze was willing to have you (the character) as her spouse, as long as you were confident and did not commit any war crimes.
This game, ironic as this may sound, was a TRUE love letter to the franchise. Long abandoned characters returning and finally showing off who they are for once instead of bootlicking Sonic for 10 hours straight. All the quirks you mentioned, like Blaze and Rouge's blooming friendship, made this all feel alive. And I loved every single minute of it.
Pun absolutely intended btw
Even if Sonic was barely in the game, I love how he’s portrayed. He got drugged, none of his friends even made an attempt to check on him, and when he woke up, he didn’t hold any grudges and just wanted to make sure his friends were safe
also, I thought it was kinda sweet when shadow was trying to help an unconscious sonic towards the end
Always loved how everything about Espio appears to be the stoic, cool headed, serious character like Shadow, but in reality he's just as goofy and in over his head as Vector and Charmy. Like when he shows a gambling problem in the Archie comics, or here, where he's reciting bad poetry and committing HARD to his character.
I so desperately hope that they release more Sonic visual novels if it means getting to see more of the side characters shine. Not counting the comics, when was the last time Espio, Rouge and Vector got this much attention?
Also, Detective Tails is best Tails.
I would like that too.
Man were was Omega the did him dirty
@@neaosmt1562 omega probably would have detected that the train was a badnik early on though
@Raog Zero. Also, Omega is a walking talking weapon. I don't think the train would've let him on. Some other headcanons I have for other characters are Charmy and Cream probably weren't old enough, maybe the age limit is 7 and up. I assume the two just stayed with Vanilla. And since Silver and Blaze don't hang out as often anymore, I assume he just didn't get his invitation, or Amy forgot him. I've seen those three mentioned a lot and it's kinda crazy how much people are losing their mind over them not being mentioned, but it's also understandable.
@@petesoys6348 they switched blaze back to being a princess,. So it makes sense that silver didn't show up. I'm not sure where the hell he is anymore.
Who knew sonic's death would be what everyone wanted
IGN reviewer: I see this as an absolute win!
Not a huge suprise lol
Who folded sonic
@@God-T
Espio, apparently.
@@yocapo32 spoilers
only the sonic series can have an april fools game better than most of the games in the last decade
It really did remind me of the Free Rider's Story mode.
*better than most games in the last 2 decades
@@Gerbert67 Sonic Colors, Generations, Unleashed, Heroes and Rush are a big portion of sonic's last 2 decades are you saying thise are bad too?
By that part i meant worse than a point and click adventure
@@ethanwayne6973he probably meant in the last decade and a half
As someone who is so very, very tired of "ironic" visual novels and parody dating sims, I was stunned that this turned out to actually be a genuine Sonic story that actually appreciated why we love these characters.
then stop playing them if your tired. this one is no different from the rest.
@@Blanktester685 ...This one is very different from ironic VNs, given that it actually likes its own characters.
This puts Hooked On You to shame ngl
@@Blanktester685 Feels like you didn't read the comment
but this one was unironic tho...
Eggman mentioning robotization made me smile
I need that to come back
Frankly I could see it as a plot point.
Imagine: You fight a particularly cool looking boss at the end of a stage; only it escapes after you defeat it.
This same boss appears again in the next few stages or so. Then something unexpected happens: that samr robot appears in a cutscene being scolded by Eggman.
Then halfway into the game or so, we learn that the first boss was faced was actually a roboticized Mobian, and the B plot becomes about saving them.
All that was just written on the seat of my pants. You could really do so much with this.
THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYING! Robotization is so damn cool, where did the concept even go!?
@@_knucklehead
Putting animals in robots.
"Bunnies to Badniks; instant army." Eggman - Sonic Lost World.
@@FarBeyondStrange They mean Mobians to Badniks, instead of Flickies to Badniks.
Sonic in the family guy death pose in an official game gives me life
Ironic
I thought it was the yamcha pose
all things aside, respect to that flicky for powering that train for 32 years. That’s some dedication
Wait, no that makes no sense. Ignoring Flickr Lifecycles, Eggman wasn’t even planning world domination until Sonic was around to defeat him. This is likely a recent development, and the whole 32 years thing is for how long the train has been used. After all, the Conductor may have came with the Train, and been using it as a cargo train for long before.
@@aidanhammans9337
Whether you start with SegaSonic or Sonic 1, the first interaction between Eggman and Sonic is Sonic reacting to Eggman doing something to the place he's currently crashing at. There's no indication that Eggman only started taking over the world because Sonic got involved, or even using animals as batteries for that matter. Eggman's also ~50 years old, so it's entirely reasonable that he'd start his early career with some maliciously underhanded above-the-table work like public transportation. The biggest wedge in the issue would be the train knowing about the bounty system, which would definitely only happen after a good decade or two of building power, but even then you could easily say it's been receiving updates via the Eggnet.
@@aidanhammans9337 uh... you do know how old sonic is yeah? 32 years my dude. its a reference. also this probs happened before any big move by eggman, as he said, its infrastructure to help things go smoothly when he creates eggman land.
@@HAXRLITSXY
Sonic is not 32 years old, it's implied all the games take place in ~1 or 2 years.
@@sonicdml4175 wooooosh. right over.
"Alright team! For this year's april fools, we gonna make an actually good Sonic game."
"But sir, why don't we make a good game every time?"
"Are you fucking crazy, Dave?"
Dave-yes
((Spoilers I think??))
I find it funny that Espio can speed read an entire book in under an hour, can speak in over 10 different languages and can borderline read minds, but he still sucks at poetry
I think he was trying to make haikus. You know. Because "ninja".
Hey, nobody's perfect.
Espio seems like a very dedicated objectivist.
Imma be honest. Poetry is an art in and of itself and can be difficult to master no matter how much of an English lover you are. I'm speaking from personal experience here.
My favorite part were when Rouge, Blaze, and I were bad influences on Tails by bringing him along on a heist, and then I tried to teach him blackjack right after.
Another thing I really liked about the story was how everyone (Including your character) just kind of accepts certain things. Like the Birthday Key. Says a lot about how things are in Sonic's world.
Of course they accept the birthday key, it's a very iconic birthday tradition!
SONIC IS DEAD, SONIC IS EFFING DEAD!
Eggman:
There is a red spy in the base
Just say fucking bro no one is stoping you
Sonic died
Amy's carless
Espio poet
Oooh my god.
This is so embarrassing...
my favorite part of this game is finding little easter eggs and possible song motifs, my favorite being when sonic is cheering up the character you play as when their having a breakdown and a It Doesn't Matter motif started playing. I absolutely lost it and got so excited, I love this game!
"Sonic is dead, and we have killed him" -Freddy Mercury or something
God, I love this game a lot! The art is fantastic, the character designs and interactions are on-point, and the stoty is fun! Hope this isn't the only time Sonic Team does something like this!
Who folded sonic
@@God-T That sounds like Sonic is going to crossover with modern Paper Mario. :P
@@God-T spoiler
Espio
Sonic The Hedgehog: Friendship Simulator
I'm not sure but I think that shirt at 19:20 listed as "Blaze - Rush" might be "Sonic's Favorite Clothes" from the OVA.
In addition to all the callbacks to the Sonic franchise and its media, the game also took the time out to reference fan creators in the little details along the way!
MugiMikey with the green bird wearing a red bowtie and the "Eggman Autobiography" book in the library
Balena Productions through the printer making a picture of Sonic rowboating away from an orca
just the little things that make the fanbase feel loved
I love how at the end
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Amy is ready to THROW DOWN because Sonic got hurt
21:05 Sage and Metal looking like actual siblings i love it
This is hands down my favorite depiction of Amy. It feels like the first time they’ve successfully given her a personality that fits and feels like HER while not defining her by being love-crazy for Sonic.
I also love the addition to lore, showing that Eggman has been making robots for at least 32 years (I know it's only a reference to how long the franchise has existed but they put it out there) So Eggman is basically Elon Musk now, he spent decades building up a vast fortune with his company and probably only started trying to conquer the world quite recently...
I'm a huge espio fan seeing him in such a huge role made me so happy
or seeing him at all
Espio being a method actor is hilarious
19:18 While the colors do closely resemble Blaze, I personally believe that it’s Sonic’s “favorite clothes” from the Sonic OVA and The Old Owl was wearing them because Metal Sonic told him to.
19:17 I should probably point out that the shirt on the right there is actually a reference to the 90s OVA. It's the shirt that Old Man Owl winds up wearing, which turns out to have been Sonic's favorite clothes, according to Tails.
Honestly, I really liked the character combos. Seeing different characters interact when they wouldn't otherwise. Rouge and Blaze was super fun, Shadow and Amy's interactions were wholesome, and Tails and the MC was pretty 👌
My ONLY problem with this game is that I cant go back and play all the minigames whenever i want lol
17:51 - tbf, the ending implied the train Flicky still had the train’s memories
The game doesn't force you to think but it gives you the option to think before randomly picking options. So for children who might not be good at critical thinking and problem solving they get to just get the answers, while progressing through the story with the characters they love. But for older people or people who actually want to consider thinking and problem solving you can go through it slowly. So i see nothing wrong with this
Dude, you forgot Sage in the final cutscene with Eggman. In it, Eggman, Sage, and Mettal Sonic are all present wearing party hats, with Mettal and Sage wearing t-shirts saying "Let's go, Dad!" That is both a funny and sweet touch to the characters!
This is a really cool game. The story honestly surprised me, the characterization is on-point. The main main character artist, DEEGEEMIN, is easily my new favorite Sonic artist. I don't care what anyone says, this game is canon.
Due to Primes existence, this is canin
Honestly hope that this can become a series, as these charcater are so full of persoanly and goals, that it can help give fan a better look into how they act and what they do in certain situtaions, like a Team Dark spy mission, or the Chaotix doing an actual mystery or even something small like Vanilla and Cream interacting with cilivan type charcters. Very charming game that I hope is expand upon, and maybe act some voice acting for more enjoyment.
Seeing sonic in the Family guy death pose never fails to get a chuckle out of me
19:20 actually, I'm pretty sure the pink shirt with yellow stripes is a reference to sonic's favorite shirt in the Sonic OVA (the one that Metal Sonic gave to the owl character).
I really love how much focus Espio got in this game. Aside from that one IDW chapter, I don’t think we ever get to see him do things independent of the Chaotix.
The tickets Shadow gets Amy for her birthday is canonically for a Taylor Swift concert
Yeah this was a very fun April fools game
I absolutely LOVE how Amy is characterized. She has that bubbliness and upbeat energy and no filter the way she should be! I find in recent times there has been way to hard a push to make her an overly serious straightman character and tone her down to the point of being boring but i feel they are walking that back and I'm here for it!
Honestly some of those DreamGear sections got legitimately a bit challenging, and you kinda get into a flow state after a few tries. Wasn't expecting it them to get that tough just based on a few of the early ones, mostly the challenge is not knowing what's coming up and after seeing it once or twice they aren't a problem.
I'm not even a fan of visual novels, but this game is definitely one of the best in the series. The way they handled the characters was great, the ost was nice, just the right amount of challenge, and there was cool lore expansion too. It was really just a pleasant time and it was nice that it could easily be beaten in one sitting
I love how they subvert expectations by making it seem like a murder mystery role play sort of thing, only for you to learn that Sonic was ACTUALLY drugged (by Espio no less XD), and _the train itself_ is part of Eggman's scheme. The danger suddenly becomes real and its awesome!
"And Sonic plays a corpse" had the same energy as "Your role, Sonic, is.... DEAD!"
if Sonic visual novels were a yearly April 1st gift, it would be really exciting to see what they do.
they're not long, they're not resource intensive - just a fun 2 hour romp.
Since no one is saying this i quite like the ending where eggman is waiting for the train with metal sonic and sage if i remember correctly wearing "#1 dad" t-shirts and eggman just says "the train isnt coming isnt it" i just love that whole sequence
32 years, that's the Eggman efficiency right there
19:19 that pink shirt is actually Sonic's favorite shirt from the Sonic OVA. That's a nice touch.
This game is just plain delightful and I unironically hope we get more stuff like it in the future. Best April Fools' Day joke ever.
I was already an Espio fan, can we please get more of him someday? I mean, him and Whisper teaming up comes to mind as an option rather quickly, but like, I'd love to see Espio straight up get his own game/comic whatever. Just a chance to shine on his own - without having to loose his friends to some crazy crisis. I wish the Sega Scourge would come back and give us the part 3 of his "What if Espio Was Trained by Master Zik" (though a return to his Emerl what if would also be cool to see too). It really would be cool. Espio deserves so much more than what he usually gets, he's an awesome character hands down.
"Amy, how old are you now?"
"Stage 12 - Act 29."
19:17 I think the pink and purple shirt is a reference to Sonic's favorite clothes from the OVA. They usually only acknowledge the OVA through Knuckles' cowboy hat, so the extra reference is really neat to see.
The best part of this game was finding out Espio is utterly dogshit at poetry
The fans always said that sonic was dead
The last thing they expected was for sega to take it literally
9:11 Aw c'mon, Vector and Espio are on a _break,_ they're on an elaborate birthday party! Espio gets to take it easy and show his goofy artsy side, while Tails gets to exercise his deductive thinking ;3
the pink number in the wardrobe is actually the pullover from Sonic’s “favourite outfit” in the OVA
19:21 I think the pink shirt is meant to be a reference to the Sonic OVA, where Sonic's clothes are worn by that owl guy at the beach once Metal Sonic comes to see if Sonic is there
19:15 that purple shirt is from the sonic OVA when the old man uses sonic's favorite clothes
2:17 oh my god... They pranked you.
It wasn't directly mentioned (at least, not that I noticed), but the inclusion of Sage and Metal Sonic at the end with Eggman provides a bit more characterisation. We already know Eggman sees Sage as his daughter, but the fact that Metal Sonic is also wearing a "Let's Go Dad" shirt (which he looks adorable in, btw) implies Eggman has some sort of innate paternal instinct, even if he doesn't want to admit it
7:41 I would like to correct you
For a brief moment at the beginning of speed highway in SA1 DC, the floor IS checkered black and white. This was changed to a simple road in DX though, so it depends.
19:16 I think the "Blaze" clothes are actually "Sonic's Favorite Clothes" from the OVA given they have nearly the same color scheme of purple collar with pink shirt and yellow stripes on the sleeves
huh, never realized that rouge was influencing blaze a bit, honestly in hindsight it's goofy given she's the most strict in character and morality most likely, so having her basically be in part of a heist is actually something funny, either as the dialogue might imply she enjoyed it by bending the rules, a bit or sonic rubbed off on her a bit than we thought and she got a bit of a rebel spirit. funny, very funny
19:15 actually the purple coat in the far right of the dresser is a reference to the Sonic OVA, its part of Sonics 'Cool Clothes' that are stolen and worn by the Old Man Owl
The player character is aparently named "Barry the Quokka" in the game data or something like that, so theoretically this guy is set up to be a recurring character in stuff down the line
My favorite little detail that is really quite obvious if you get to that point is Sage and Metal at the end.
I played this game on stream and lost my mind at both the NiGHTS cameo, the Ian Jr cameo, and the fact that Omachao is guilty of medical malpractice of all things! There are so many fun little details sprinkled into this game that really elevate it!
On a mostly unrelated note: Would you consider doing a Sonic Speedreading type episode for the NiGHTS into Dreams Archie comic series? It's only 6 issues but I would love to hear your thoughts on it and thought might be a fun little deviation from Sonic content for you. Only if you want to though, no pressure!
can someone give me a link to that video with sally acron on 2:15?
“Let’s not sell murder short” -Game Apologist 2023
I haven't seen anyone mention it. But one of the songs of this game (the one that plays in the background here 19:40) I've seen people say it's a "It Doesn't Matter" reference but i SWEAR it sounds like a slower version of "Sonic's Fight" from the Sonic X JP soundtrack
Now I want an official Sonic character named Blunk.
Vector and Espio were so married in this game.
I like how the Mirage Express is also a reference to Roger’s other role as Mirage from Apex Legends. There is also a limited game mode where Mirage hosts a winter event on his train
When was the last time Sonic got a game where you had to choose dialogue to respond with (veer the camera over to Sonic Chronicles).
I love how its technically a follow up after Frontiers due to Sage and Sonic mentioning how maxing out his ring count gives him a boost.
My favorite reference was Omochao being wanted for medical malpractice
19:23 The pink shirt is a reference to Sonics favorite clothes in the OVA
19:21 Ain’t that purple one Sonic’s favourite shirt from the OVA?
The purple shirt can also double as "Sonic's favorite shirt" from the OVA.
Hello, Mr Nick Apologist, I came here to inform you that there's a Turtle alien called Terraspin in Ben 10, and you can play as him from the very begining in Ben 10 Cosmic Destruction.
"It's not fair to compare it to Sonic Mania or Origins."
It trounces Sonic 4 Eps 1 & 2 handily and Sonic '06 and Wakku Wakku Patrol Car are starting to get nervous
19:21 the purple clothes are actually the clothes the owl guy wears at the start of the ova
16:47 Funny you mention him. The game's internal name is Choo Choo, Boo Boo which is a likely reference to a Thomas song of all things (Boo! Boo! Choo, Choo).
The thing I loved the most is that the set up (a murder mystery on a train) is one of he most typical murder mystery y set ups out there so to make the twist villain be the TRAIN ITSELF I found really fucking funny to me. Also gotta love the little scene at the end with Eggman, nice link to Frontiers there.
Also being a Professor Layton fan, the mix of these genres made me very happy
I thought the conductor was a evil bastard and wanted to kill Sonic, turns out it was the train.
Him: We're all weird, your not better than me.
Me: I.... you.... fair enough.
I felt bad for evil Thomas the train. But he caused a lot of confusion and delay! Bad train! Bad!
She's been dead for 7 years, you have to let her go. the accident wasn't your fault.
Sage makes an appearance, too. I also now noticed that her hair looks like an eggshell.