Sonic Unleashed is the second-best Sonic game in the entire franchise (second only to Sonic 06, I'm not joking I'm serious.) In the opening demo of the game, Sonic's transformation into the Werehog may be a bit disturbing for younger kids, but nothing to cause nightmares. Still, I’d say 10 years old at the minimum. I recommend having people play this after 12, because although the game is rated for those 10 and up, some themes about change and the world’s reaction to crises are a bit much for a preteen. The violence in this game is moderately intense (particularly, a monster does bleed green blood in the game), but nothing a 10-12 year old couldn’t handle. There are great messages of Friendship, and Sonic is a role mode to follow because he decided to help a small animal named Chip who will become Sonic’s friend. Some of the history references are pretty cool, like the Chinese area referencing that the Chinese invented fireworks. For example, Eggman attacks a group of Africans to conquer their nation. While we’re talking about that, there are some implications of imperialism, racism, and history references in the game.
They explain these cultures well to kids without overly stereotyping or being racist. This game has a lot of educational value, because the different countries in the game teach you about cultures, like South Africa, China, Greece, and Siberian Russia. Now, since this is CommonSenseMedia, I’ll say what I think about the morality. I personally don’t mind the Werehog, so yeah. If you enjoyed the classic God of War Games, or Hyrule Warriors, you will love this. He can kill enemies, platform, and solve puzzles. At night, Sonic becomes a wolf-like being called the Werehog. This mechanic makes the game feel really satisfying to play, and Sonic Unleashed executes well. If you hold square (or X), Sonic will blast off past the speed of sound. From sunrise to sunset, Sonic is the same fast hedgehog we know, but he now has a new trick up his sleeve.
Well, why do I think it’s unfair? I’ll start at the daytime. The low scores were handed out because people had bubbled-up anger against SEGA in the latter half of the 2000s. On Metacritic, other games like Undertale (which I don’t hate, just comparing) have a score 30 points above Sonic Unleashed. IGN spat a 4/10 into the game, when it really deserves at least an 8-9/10. Sonic Unleashed is a Sonic game that has been overlooked. (skip this paragraph if you want the info about values & stuff)