It’s only been a few days, and E3 has already been one heck of a ride for Sonic Fans. Amidst the plethora of Sonic Unleashed news thrown our way, we’ve had very little time to actually let things soak in. I think that it’s about time we take a closer look at what many probably consider to be the most sensitve part of Sonic’s new Adventure -
Weresonic.
It’s been no secret that Sonic will have an alternate form in Unleashed, as many fans can probably remember even the first leaks of information contained hints to a Werehog of sorts. Up until E3 though, we hadn’t actually gotten a good look at how this beast version of Sonic will function. However, after SEGA’s release of the new E3 Sonic Unleashed Trailer and Screenshots, we’re FINALLY starting to understand what sort of role Weresonic will play in Unleashed, and more importantly, how (or if) he will work.
Let’s take a closer look.
Why Weresonic?
If there is one element of Sonic Unleashed that has kept classic Sonic fans on constant edge over Sonic Unleashed, it would have to be Sonic’s new counterpart, Weresonic. Ever since Sonic entered the 3D realm of gaming, fans have lost more and more faith in the series due to awful gameplay, poor storylines, and the constant introduction of new characters in order to try and save the game from the first two problems.
So after SEGA announced that they would be returning to their classic form, does it come as any surprise that many didn’t take their word for it after seeing Weresonic? I must admit, I’ve been very concerned myself, despite all of the good things I’ve seen aside from Sonic’s alter-ego (this is my childhood we’re talking about here folks). After some light was shed on Weresonic’s beginnings, things do seem to be shaping up nicely, and my faith hasn’t been lost in the game yet. Actually, if anything, after watching the new trailer from E3 a lot of my concerns have been transformed into pleasant surprises – but only time will tell if SEGA pulls through.
Weresonic’s Beginnings
Concerns, anxiety, and worries set aside, let’s look at how Weresonic will actually be integrated into the World of Sonic. As you may know, Sonic Unleashed is not connected to any previous installments of the series, but is rather a rebuilding of the series. In the beginning of the game, players will be blasted with a cutscene depicting Sonic taking on Dr Eggman and his minions out in Space in what appears to be an EPIC battle.
As Sonic get’s closer to his nemesis, things start looking dreary for the blue hero, and he is forced into one of Eggman’s machines powered by the 7 chaos emeralds. The machine begins to transform Sonic into a massive beast, and from what SEGA has revealed so far, the machine also separates the world into 7 different pieces, while awakening a beast from the center of the planet. In the whole process of things, Eggman corrupts the Chaos emeralds (which Sonic must fix during the rest of the game by restoring their power at shrines around the world).
Thus, a Weresonic is born. All in one of Eggman’s contraptions at the very beginning of the game, thus sentencing the player to the beast-like form throughout the game at various moments (always at night – during day hours, Sonic remains as the classic hero). Upon restoring the power of the Chaos emeralds, Sonic will be able to once again transform into Super Sonic, and will likely have to do so for the final battle in the game.
That’s not so bad… But How will Weresonic Play?
The gameplay for Weresonic will be vastly different from anything we’ve seen from ordinary Sonic so far. While Sonic will act as the speedy blue blur we grew up to know him as, Weresonic will feature a slower pace of gameplay (although, it is evident that he CAN move quickly), and will have free roaming capabilities (versus regular Sonic who more or less moves in a 2 dimensional space, or will move on preset paths).
Weresonic features a Combat system of his own which allows him to swing his apparently elastic arms at swarms of enemies, throw baddies, and perform combo attacks. In the video shown at E3, we see Weresonic using his massive new claws to knock down gates, and tear up large groups of enemies with ease. At one moment, we see Weresonic throwing a quick jab or two, and before you know it, we see him spinning ferociously attacking in all directions like a wild whirlwind. From the looks of things, it’s comparable to Banjo Kazooie or even Zelda games… only minus the sword and green cap… and Kazooie.
At other times, we see Weresonic running on all fours like a canine, then suddenly scaling a wall almost efforlessly. It would seem as if various interactions with the environment will be a necessity with Sonic’s new form, as footage also shows Weresonic swinging from polls Indiana Jones style, and also lifting objects only to place them down elsewhere on switches to open doors.
All in all, the important thing to note here is that things look like they work. We’ll hold final judgment for after we actually get to try things out ourselves, but until then, we’re happy to see that the gameplay isn’t too complex, and also offers a new dynamic to the series which might actually work on a 3D perspective for Sonic.
Shield and Vitality
The HUD changes when you transform from Sonic into Weresonic. Rather than the Ring Gauge, we see a Shield and Vitality Gauge. At this point, both remain a mystery to us, but at any rate, it doesn’t look like Ring Energy plays the same role to Weresonic as it does for Sonic.
We did notice some strange, Purple/Magenta orbs flying around which Weresonic appeared to absorb. These could have something to do with one of these gauges, or an entirely new element of gameplay we aren’t aware of yet. They seem to come from enemies after they perish…
Day and Night
During daytime hours, Sonic will be Sonic. During the Night, he’ll take on Weresonic’s persona. Some points in stages will allow time to flow freely, meaning that transformation may take place while you are playing. At other points in stages, it will always be night or day.
So… what if we’d rather use regular Sonic in one of the areas where time flows automatically? According to an interview with Sega of America Producer Patrick Riley, players will easily be able to adjust the time of day in such areas. Gameplay mechanics like this worked really well in titles like Majora’s Mask, and so long as we’re not switching the time of day every 30 seconds, will probably satisfy our gameplay needs.
Will We Fight Bosses as Weresonic, or…
Actually, some bosses will need to be battled with Weresonic, while others will require the speed of the classic hedgehog. In the video shown at E3, we’re convinced we see Weresonic jumping over the sonic-waves of a boss while simultaneously taking on plenty of smaller enemies.
We like the idea of mixing things up. Too much of the same’ol CAN get old after a while. At the same time, we haven’t seen enough action out of Weresonic to really call this decision on SEGA’s part in their favor.
The Looks
Weresonic is bigger, more hairy, and much more rugged than the Hedgehog we all know and love. He’s got huge fangs gaping out of his mouth, massive fists complete with claws that would send deafening notes down a chalkboard, arms that put the stretchy arms of Mister Fantastic from the Fantastic Four to shame, and boots that certainly will leave marks in the new flooring.
It’s still Sonic – but it’s definitely something new… at least for a Sonic title. Like I mentioned before, some of the combat gameplay is reminescent of recent Zelda titles… but imagine more of a Donkey Kong-esque Link… who wears boots, and sports massive fangs and claws. Paint that figment of your imagination Blue, and you’ve probably got a good idea of what Weresonic looks and acts like.
@DarkChaos: Sounds great! I only have Wii!
I love SU! And some more serious thing isn’t wrong.
Well, I’m psyched. ^_^
Seriously, Were-Sonic is the reason I’m a gunna get this game!
awesome sega is the greatest game company besides nintendo
First reply
Okay so weresonic looks cool but I notice that feeling. You’d rather be running mach speeds than smashing and the fact that he’s there adds suspicions it’s almost the same as how I’m feeling
weresonic is the reason I’m getting the game
Whoops >_> *crosses out first reply*
Hmm, and about the little glowy orbs, my theory is that Eggman is going to use the corrupted power of the emerald to power his robots and when Wolfboy breaks one of those tin cans, he absorbs the corrupted emeralds power, perhaps for that shield. Due to the cicumstances maybe Werehog sort of “feeds” off the bad energy coming from the emeralds… but that just my theory.
so far I think you guys are doing a great job on finding sonic unleashed info and vids! this is so far the sonic site with most info about the new game title keep up the good work! ps sone one i know is guessing you guys jacked some stuff lets just see….
Wow Zelda-like gameplay!
I’ll be getting that one. I love Zelda!
Oh, and you remember skipit too!
@Lamb84: Well, it reminds me of Zelda-like fighting style in a sense. For one, there is a locking on mechanic (ie: Z-targeting?). If you think about it, the sword from doesn’t look a whole lot different from Weresonic’s attacks (not in style, but in play). There is even a spin attack in Unleashed.
@zgsonic: Thanks mate! Didn’t quite understand that last statement of yours.
@Hannah the Echidna: Yup. I was always awful at that game…
@David Leggett: Same here. >_<
Were-sonic is probablly going to be the only reason I’m going to buy this game
So far, he’s awsome, though I still dont understand why his arms are so…so….elasticy >.< anyways, can’t wait for the game 
To be honest, when I saw his transformation, I was scared shitless. Anyway, despite the fact that werehog gameplay looks similar to The Legend of Zelda and Devil May Cry, I’d be buying it anyway since you can pull off killer combos. Plus, I am still looking forward to how Jason Griffith is going to sound (IF he is ever given the oppurtunity to voice Were-Sonic).
@Mystery the Hedgehog: There’s actually one point in the trailer where you see him pull off a 90+ hit combo
It’s definitely going to be interesting to say the least…
Weresonic is pretty much the reason I’m getting this game, But by the looks of it, I think I’ll still enjoy the daytime stages.
I KNOW I’m getting this game now! I was kinda disappointed with the fact that there was only one type of gameplay. I really like the weresonic idea.
Well, this satisfies both of my tastes for gaming – fighting and speed. I’m convinced that this is going to work, as it looks pretty good so far.
@Mystery the Hedgehog: In all honesty, I’d hope anyone BUT Jason Griffith voices Sonic. The 4Kids cast sucks, minus Eggman and Knuckles’ voice actors. They say they’re going to be listening to the fans, so they should get rid of Jason Griffith.
I agree with a lot of people in that the addition of Were-Sonic is a truly dicey gamble… but I also agree in that it doesn’t really LOOK like too much of a bad thing. If they do it right, it could be fun and a nice little switch up. But from what little information I could gather by watching the trailer, the Were-Sonic stages almost seem to be TOO easy. It seems as though despite his relience on brute strength and combo attacks, the baddies are just too damn weak. They appear to just mull around in incredibly squishy swarms, meant only to stand around and take damage from Were-Sonic in a lazy attempt at making him appear powerful.
This has been a complaint I’ve had with the Sonic games since SA2. Boring robot design (good god, the GUN robots from SA2? UGH!), and the lack of difficulty they present. In the old-school games, enemies were actually somewhat of a threat. These days, however, it seems as though their ONLY purpose is to stand around and get hit so Sonic can LOOK cooler by performing homing attack strings on them. Whoop-de-doo. I miss actually being challenged by my gameplay. If Sonic Team’s really going to go as far as adding combat to a Sonic game, I hope to God they actually do it right. If these Were-Sonic stages are really going to be as easy to tear through as the trailer seems to suggest, I’m going to be greatly disappointed.
Hey! what about the wii version of sonic unleashed, just think what it would be like, swinging the remote then sonic attacks like zelda twilight princess when link swings the sword.
Very fair rundown of the Werehog situation.
Personally, I’m excited by the concept but we just don’t know enough except to go by our own preconcieved notions. If you have faith n the project, you look for the positive. If you’re suspicious…here’s where your doubt lies.
I’ve always been REALLY bad at action rpg’s for some reason, so hopefully the sections are forgiving to an extant. I should be fine at everything until the bosses, at least. Then I assume it’s “memorize a pattern, avoid attacks…hit weakness” like usual Sonic bosses. Only…obviously with a different fighting mechanic. Afterall, that’s what Shadow the Hedgehog did. It adapted the game’s bosses to fit a third person shooting style…yet still fit the Sonic pattern.
I’m encouraged, but the appropriate approach is more “Who knows?”. If I hated most 3D Sonic titles, I’d be sceptical. But I probably would also have given up already, like I gave up on Donkey Kong games after Donkey Kong 64. lol
Waresonic gameplay reminds me of devil may cry from what i have seen! anyone else?
the game looks nice….
the werewollf thing is awesome
sonic returned to the classic game
and the story is well prepared so…….
I WILL RATE THIS FOR 10.0
@ ChaoticFox: I’d assume it’s not finished yet. The regular Sonic stages don’t even have a lot of enemies yet, I assume level design and obstacles always comes before enemy placement. They’re probably placeholders at this point.
One reason you wouldn’t want to make the combat sections too difficult is that you’re selling to a fanbase that plays platformers. If the combat sections are too difficult, you risk leaving a platforming fan completely out of his element and unable to advance. The best solution is probably to make the actual combat simple but progressively harder due to level design and stage obstacles…which any Sonic fan should be familiar with and comfortable with playing through. I can speedrun through any Sonic stage, but I’ve never gotten into action titles or brawlers so I worry they’ll make it too difficult. lol I guess we’ll find out in time, eh?
LOL in a image at up i see the hand of sonic XD
@shadlol
Oh yeah. So THAT’S what Sonic’s hand looks like without his gloves! That was one of the biggest mysteries about Sonic. The mystery is now solved, thanks to E3 and Camp Sonic!
@Crazee: Well I’m certainly not expecting the games to carry the same type of combat-oriented difficulty as some of the other series I keep hearing people reference (Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden, for instance). And like you said, I am a STRONG supporter of platform style games. As a result of which, I prefer simple style combat (jump on enemy: enemy dies), but I do like it when the enemies make it a little more difficult for me to hit them. So I agree, and hope that you’re right. I just don’t want these enemies and this combat system to remind me of those GUN robots from SA2. They seriously just STAND THERE and wait for you to kill them.
I don’t want the game to be unnecessarily difficult, but it would be appreciated if there were actually a possibility of being hurt by the enemy every once in a while ^^;
@Chaotic Fox:
Yeah, I know. I NEVER get killed by enemies, only by falling to my death. So, I always just kind of figured that the challenge nowadays is the pits and instant death.lol The robots aren’t difficult. But I guess if they’re SA1 style difficult, that would be fine. A moderate challenge that becomes frustrating if you don’t see them or get too cocky. Or Artificial Chaos.
Just Thank God for the lack of Shadow Androids, they were the bane of Hell in ShadtH
@Crazee: That’s a big part of why I liked SA1. The enemies were unpredictable (to an extent), there was a good variety of them, and they all had different methods of attack. Also, as you mentioned before, placement is a key factor as well (often the surprise factor is where the real danger lies). The classic Sonic games were never terribly difficult, but only just so… so that you couldn’t get too cocky and run around as you pleased.
Originally, I had the same complaint about the daylight stages, until I realized it was most likely going to be just like Sonic Rush, and if Sonic isn’t using that blue speed boost ability, those enemies could actually pose a threat (and therefore ring-loss).
Man, WereSonic is looking great! My friend is drooling over the new trailer, way more than I am. I think Were Sonic will be a nice twist, but I’ll REALLY enjoy the classic Sonic gameplay. This is what Sonic needs, high speed, not necessarily the werehog, but it’ll be cool playing as him.
WOW An amazing site to behold i’d like to say
the whole combat fighting system with Beast-sonic looks amazing
Oh my god!
I just thought of something!
Judging by how short sonic is, just imagine how short tails and amy are!
Scary…
ok well im a sonic fan at heart and i know that this game isnt gonna be like other sonic titles but i know that sega can pull this one off.i mean like come on this is sonic were talking about and i have loved every masterpiece that they have created.and why dont they have crush 40 anymore?crush 40 fits sonic perfectly but if they want to go to the classic times of sonic the hedgehog then they so try something like that lady who sang sonic boom , but if you want to keep the gameplay only then i suggest that they aply some crush 40.ok im getting carried away.oh well but im still gonna buy this game and love it like all the others and who know maybe even more that the others
Were-Sonic is cool! The were-Sonic gamelpay looks really fun!
I love to swing and do stuff like that! And the other gameplay looks fun to. I love the old 2D-Games and now it’s 3D and 2D! YAY! LOVE YOU SEGA!
Ooo, you can Digg stuff now!
Either way…it looks like it’s going to be a mix of puzzle solving, precise platforming, and punching stuff.
HOORAY, PUNCHING STUFF~!
when are you going to have an interview with sega
Wolf Sonic seems cool so far. But I’ll wait till Holiday 2008 to make my final decision
so yea, basically it looks like weresonic’s gameplay would also work for knuckles. yeeaa I hope they do something about that.
@*SOS:
Yeah. That’s exactly what I was thinking. between beating things up and climbing walls, he’s feeling rather Knuckles-like. Maybe that’ll be important in a sequel with Knuckles, Tails, Sonic, and **no one else** playable.
Awwwwwww ****! I missed the hands-on session!
it is only stupid that the wii got lower quality and seven levels
@sonic junior: Lower quality visuals are because of hardware. Doesn’t mean the gameplay won’t be fun.
The 7 levels was a rumor. Not fact.
@sonic junior:
Don’t most Sonic games have 7 levels… act 1 and 2?
I am wondering if they are using the Sonic Riders engine in the Wii version. They said, the game will be using an updated version of an existing engine. Probably Sonic Heroes, or Sonic Riders…
ill bet that they are using the satsr engine, if you look at the wii scans (this probly only works if you have an imagination) you can guess what the screenshot really looks like. I fixed up my tv and what do ya know, satsr looked like 360 graphics. i swear on my soul im telling the truth!!
what about the closed doors conference that we have an inside man on wheres that news???
i like pie
Were-Sonic is the only reason why I’m getting this game ^^ So who cares if this game will suck… to me, it will rock xD
I was kind of concerned about the arms I like games with real life possibilities could his arms stretch that far?
Thinking too far ahead, what if some of the gameplay for Werehog is implemented for other characters down the road? It’d be fun to see Knuckles given the Werehog control mechanics in a later title. I’ve always wanted to see Knuckles in more of a ‘Brawler’ sort of position rather than in an ‘almost as fast as sonic’ position. They got close with power form in Heroes.
To tell the Truth, when I heard sonic was going to be a werehog in sonic unleashed, I felt REALLY sorry for him.
I steel do right now, but steel, it’s preety cool!!
Sonic Unleashed looks good, But I can’t say it’s going to be the best. ( Don’t forget what what happen to Sonic Next-Gen)
But, I hope sonic unleashed help’s the sonic franschice. ^_^
And if any one know’s, will shadow be a playable character in sonic unleashed? ( I Never known a sonic game without playing with shadow. Really.)
[...] Sonic the Werehog: Our First Impressions – Chances are, Sonic the Werehog will make (or break) Sonic Unleashed. Check out our initial impressions of the hedgehogs counterpart in the upcoming title. [...]
The first thing I did think of was devil may cry.
Read:hack and slash.
Looks awesome.
And the enemies… *zeldacough*
I don’t care what enyone else thinks, to me, Unleashed is the BEST SONIC GAME EVER! (Even better than Sonic 3 & Knuckles).
I see it, I see it now its always been inside of me!
Possibility!
Was the Super Sonic part at the end of the video the end of the game?
This is Sega’s LAST CHANCE! They screwed up with every other 3D game so far, including Sonic ‘06!
I have read constant updates on Sonic Unleashed and so far Sega have done well to get my hopes up (as they have done in previous games). If they DARE to screw this up, I will never buy another Sonic game again.
That being said, this game is looking freaking awesome. I’m really looking forward tot his.
@Sonic Rider: i think it was the opening cutscene because they said he changed into supersonic
@Sonic Rider: oh yes i forgot to mention that they don’t know if they are doing supersonic in the game because the emeralds were drained of the “positive” energy
@Sonic Rider: It WILL be the best if they put in a good chao garden.
great work admin for getting all this info Im really getting riled up and getting excited, that new trailer was awesome and after seeing the gamespot gameplay of werehog Im more sure than ever to buy this game…maan I wish I could have an xbox360 so I could get the wii and xbox versions!!! and weresonic looks cooler than I thought!!!
@Ssonic22: Thanks mate. Trying my best to keep up with everything. It would be impossible if I didn’t have the help of the community here
Really looking for additional writers soon. We could use the extra writing power here.
@Jase1505:
“This is Sega’s LAST CHANCE! They screwed up with every other 3D game so far, including Sonic ‘06!”
Pfff, yeah right. Isn’t Shadow, Sonic ‘06 and Secret Rings suppose to be their last chance? People have said this with every console game so far and if this game flops, then it’ll repeat history until the game is announced.
Oh yeah, and if you think SEGA (in your opinion) screwed up every 3D Sonic game before Unleashed then what attracts you to this game?
I thought Secret Rings looks pretty promising in the trailers and even though it was far from perfect, I ended up enjoying it and so on. Just don’t get your hopes up and think this game will ‘bring Sonic back to his glory days’ and all that bull.
This forum is for those of us with hope!
Pessimistic naysayers BEGONE! lol
Wow awsome! just one thing wouldn’t it be awsome to create a cheat code or do special mission to unlock and play as Sonics friends as
weres now that would cool
THE GAMEPLAY WAS GREAT. SONIC THE WEREHOG IS COOL. AND YOU GOTTA ADMIT HE HAS HUGE TEETH I MEAN HUGE
i don’t know what that game called devil may cry game is a bout but if you like naruto then do you think that most of the moves that weresonic haves almost or does look like the same attacks that ninetails fox naruto haves?and mostly even though super soinc is in the game for a little time shoude thay put a song called super sonic from Bad Religion it’s only fair that they do have that song.
weresonic……………. sega, plz think of something that fits SONIC!!!!!!! plz…
heh he will have the same powers as luffy from one piece because luffy is flexible stretchable
i find Weresonic looks like Crunch from Crash Bandicoot… which in other words, means i’m pretty happy with Sonic’s new form, but don’t you think that other people are being a little hard on him??? for example, theres a screen shot of Weresonic on DeviantART, and the one who posted it was going on about SEGA stealing the whole “Weresonic” thing from the whole idea of Wolf Link from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I mean really, its not like there aren’t other wolf characters out there!
@Trixie Prower: Actually, now that I think about it, I think deviantART was the origin of Sonic the Werehog, because on Halloween 2006, someone made a Sonic halloween picture and it included a sihlouette of Sonic the Werehog. So yeah, I think WE inspired Sega to make the game. Maybe same goes for Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood. Some people made have said, “Wouldn’t it be cool if Sonic had an RPG?” Well their wish had just been granted. XD
@Mystery the Hedgehog: Or it could’ve been both! There’s two extremely popular games in which the protagonist becomes a wolf (Twilight Princess and Ookami), and since SEGA have gone along with popular ideas before, they probably thought to jump on the bandwagon… plus, the fans always crank out insane stuff. There’s bound to be somebody who drew Sonic as a werewolf before Sonic Unleashed’s concept was revealed.
There’s also a chance it was inspired by a certain issue in the Fleetway comics, though I don’t know which one. I just remember seeing a ragged-looking Sonic with fangs whose speech patterns were drastically different.
@ThE_AcAdEmY_Is…: I suppose Trixie’s talking about you, correct?
dude it’s not going downhill iv’e played most off the main games from sonic the hedgehog to sonic and the secret rings
like’em about the same
Does someone know when Rock Revolution for Xbox360 will be released?
@Lucy: Whadda? Lucy, please get yourself over to the top update on the homepage! That’s where the action’s at now.
There is obviously a lot to know about this subject. Im only a learner. Some interesting points made there.