Shadow the Hedgehog is one of the most contentious entries in a series already chock full of debate, but is it as bad as everyone says it is? Or are there glimmers of light lurking in these dour shadows? Letās find out together. (50k sub special. Thank you all so much.)
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CHAPTER LIST:
00:00 ā INTRO
02:19 ā CHAPTER 1: SHADOW OF A HEDGEHOG
16:34 ā CHAPTER 2: FIRE WHEN READY
46:39 ā CHAPTER 3: AN ANGEL OF DEATH
1:07:52 ā CHAPTER 4: LEARN TO LIVE
1:19:39 ā CHAPTER 5: LIVE TO DIE
1:46:41 ā CHAPTER 6: A MISSIVE FROM 50 YEARS AGO
2:04:22 ā CHAPTER 7: PRETENSE IN THE MIRROR
2:11:07 ā CHAPTER 8: THAT D*MN LAST STORY
2:30:00 ā CHAPTER 9: NEVER TURN BACK
2:38:00- OUTRO
#NezumiVA #ShadowtheHedgehog #Sonic
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Pinned comment question: What game do you like that is often viewed as the outsider (or generally unfavorably) within its own franchise?
One thing I always thought (that might not be entirely accurate) is that this Shadow considers himself a different person from SA2 Shadow. Though he was recovering "Shadow's" memories throughout the story, he doesn't consider them as a part of himself in the True Ending. He doesn't have the "feelings" associated with his memories. Though he discovered the truth of Shadow in the past, his final conclusion is that he doesn't have to be bound by "his" past. I consider SA2 Shadow as a completely different character for that reason, and he died at the end of the game. I feel that this is part of the reason people feel dissonance with Shadow's writing after this game, they still think that Shadow IS the same character as he was in SA2 and has the same attachment to Maria and Gerald, but I feel that he completely left his past behind with that "Goodbye forever… Shadow the Hedgehog."
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~ā”
w video lesgooo
i am commenting for the algorithm
Yeah, Sky Troop's placement always bothered me because there's no way to play the stage without ignoring or betraying Black Doom at least once. Even more so if you want it to make the most sense by doing the Dark mission in Glyphic Canyon
for the algorithm because you are really cool
2:25:13 You do bring up good points, but Shadow wanting to honor Maria and Gerald's wishes don't play into his action.
Overall my point pretty much ties into what you've shown from the proper translation of STH:
During the end of STH, Shadow proclaims that he's doing away with his past completely and is doing what he wants. Him destroying the Black Comet may have been what Gerald and Maria wanted him to do, but it wasn't done for them. That was done so he could separate himself from his past completely and never have it come back to haunt him ever again. While Shadow says "I made a promise and I'm here to keep it." in the English dub (which is probably the worst dub in Sonic history) that's not what he said in the original Japanese version of the game. Instead, he said that he was going to simply fulfill Gerald's wish and part with the past: It was a means to an end. It's also even more explicit when he proceeds to chase after Black Doom, where he explicitly says he's no longer bound to anyone at all in the slightest.
Throughout Shadow's entire life, he's been told by others what his purpose is. Maria tells him it's to look over Earth, Gerald tells him it's to get revenge before the old recording of him telling Shadow his purpose is to destroy the Black Comet is dug up, Black Doom tells him it's to hand the Chaos Emeralds over to the Black Arms because of the deal made with Gerald and that Shadow should serve Black Doom because he helped create Shadow, Eggman tells him he's a Shadow Android in some story paths and that he should serve him because of that, and in others he says Shadow should serve him because Eggman is Gerald's grandson, and Sonic & co tell him he's a hero who should fight on their side. Shadow eventually decides "Screw you all. [Including Maria and Gerald pre-insanity]" Which has been to fight powerful opponents and prove his superiority, hence his rivalry with Sonic.
Another thing that ties into what Shadow is saying in the last story is the fact that it was never actually said he got his memories back.
At most he had a few flashbacks during the events of his game (flashbacks that never returned afterwards), and he has some knowledge of his past. But without his memories he doesn't have a proper sense of having actually experienced his past. He doesn't have the emotions associated with memories of his past, and the impact his past would have had on him is gone as a result.
And it even makes sense from a narrative perspective. One of the big things that people complained about when it came to Shadow returning in Sonic Heroes was the fact that his sacrifice towards the end of SA2 was kind of rendered pointless. With Shadow never reclaiming his memories and subsequent emotions associated with them before burying everything from his past, that sacrifice isn't as pointless as some people would think because the Shadow who cared about Maria is still dead.
I was half expecting the tongue in cheek voice acting starting at 17:05 to lead into a make fun of Danganronpa 3 joke. Can't say I could see it making things worse if the enemy forces of Donkey Kong were thrown into the mix as well, despite suffering a major defeat on their last outing.
Very epic
I'm commenting to improve this video's algorithmic engagement!
As a non-sonic fan(the movies were nice, and I donāt dislike the games, just never got into it), and is mostly watching this because of whoās making it, this is ironically the one sonic game I watched a lets play of and idk why I did.
"A shadow can show the way to the light"
Huh… That is… A really good line.
Hello there, here is your fellow boi commenting on another video of NeCINEMAVA after watching the whole video yeahhh babyyyyy.
While i cannot talk about Shadow the Hedgehog on a personal level since my experience with it can be summarized with "i played a few minutes, went pew pew with guns and watched videos on youtube about it" but the topics of the video and the content itself is something i can do and man, when i noticed that bit of the "Dir" motive at the end of that banger of a cover of the song i knew what was cooking here.
While i don't have personal experiences with the game, i do remember things i watched that while not good i could maybe see some value. Maybe for how dumb they are but with some good messages i can get behind or things that i can see the ambition but how that also hurted them in the process and became tone-deaf to it.
The things that we have on our past don't define us but it also serves as stepping stones for our current and future selves. The embodiment of evolution and growth withing ourselves.
That last Dir hitting back in the conclusions side feels magical, in the truest sense, a fitting song for a game about looking back and moving forward, the past is gone but it is in there to shape our better selves (sorry that i got corny here, it will happen again).
Also, BANGER songs, will gladly save some of them to my playlist and listen in the future. And thanks to YOU for the content you create and hope you continue to deliver your insights on stuff š
3 HOURS?! On shadow the hedgehog?!
always happy to see people actually engage with this game instead of just laughing it off! Excellent video!
AAAAAAAAGHH!!! THIS WAS REALLY GOOD!!! ive been so hyped for this and as with all your vidieos, it did not dissapoint!!!! pumped for your next release š
2:37:15 What did she say here?
It is currently 5:20 AM so I can't write a whole comment right now, but I have strong, positive feeling towards this video that I plan to write when I wake up
I think some of the endings are more different than you give credit for.
Ending 1 has shadow driven to the point of insanity where he wants to just destroy everything, not loyal to black doom, who wants to conquer the planet and harvest the inhabitants.
I doubt ending 2 leads to the destruction of the earth but shadow would dispose of anyone who would get in his way. After grabbing the master and chaos emeralds, he would likely venture across the universe for an endless quest for power.
(A friend and I even made an AU where he goes into other universes and timelines and takes over called Multiversal Conquerer Shadow)
Ending 3 is the one where he's loyal to black doom in enslaving the planet to the dark empire.
I love this game's story in particular because of all the what if potential there is from some of the darker routes that we just don't get normally.
I cannot for the love of me look at sonic cutscenes without immediately having the snapcube real time fandub voices play in my gead
Shadow the hedgehog is so coolā¦ Awesome video btw :).
Trying to find that 3D reanimated clip of the Snapcube dub by Windows1933, but I'm coming up with nothing?
always enjoy your takes on the things you enjoy, and even the things you don't.
that was really good
2:37:00 shit Iām crying at work. Damn umineko music amplifying emotional moments!!!
Cool Panty Pillow. Is there an accompanying Stocking one?
48:23 is my favourite joke in this whole video, the idea of Black Doom being a huge Smosh fan just really tickled me for some reason
i truly feel that this game would have been way better seen if you didn't have to get to every final stage twice to see all endings and unlock the final one, yes it makes you do different routes in different stages and makes sure you play most if not all of them even if you take wrong turns, it's still extremely annoying that you'd have to play a lot of stages 2 or more times and the first stage 10 fucking times just to get the true ending, especially since some endings are REALLY bad and seem like ass pulls to just make sense when doing the evil choice in the good ending or vice versa
I've always loved this game. I never thought it was amazing or anything, but I always loved it. I used to think it was just a guilty pleasure, but your retrospective really put words to my feelings in a way I was never able to back when I first played it. Thanks for making this video. It was a pleasure to listen to during a boring Monday at work. š
1:09:36
An interesting perspective on the matter, as Shadow the Hedgehog is one of my guilty pleasure games and I'll always admire it for concluding Shadow's story and picking up loose threads from Adventure 2 and Heroes. Shadow himself being part-alien explains a lot about his appearance and I like that.
Great video, as always. But I must ask "Where is that damn 4th Chaos Emerald?"
āFor Marioās 50th Birthday, weāre executing him live on stage!ā
Surprised you didnāt bring up 3D All Stars and Mario 35 with that joke lmao
For the Circus Park thing, the line Tails gives about it being "made out of" the rings- I wonder if maybe what they meant to convey was that he used all those stolen rings to fill his carnival games/balloons/whatever, given that Tails's objective is to collect them. So it's not literally MADE of them, it's just… what he did with them, I guess.
This was the only game I got for Christmas one year so I played through it to get every ending, fond memories in spite of its obvious flaws. Love to see this extent of work put into discussing it. Keep it up, have loved all your videos.
This is a great video, kinda caught me off guard hearing birth of a new witch tho lol
this vid just earned a like, subscribe and a comment.
i loved it. good job
Quite honestly, as resonant as Shadow's narrative might very well have been, it's a little disquieting to consider all the potential that may have been squandered, pertaining to it's thematic potency. However, despite all that was lost, I feel as if it stands as an exemplar of such beautiful ideas, and as such, ought to be celebrated for its ambition, intentions, and expression alone.
Kindly indulge me for but a moment, as I elaborate across multiple paragraphs.
Shadow's very existence is a central embodiment of the voices of the marginalized and forgotten, as the 'Echoes' of his memories serve to shape the very world he enacts his will upon, refusing to be silenced any longer. The reconstruction of Gun at the true ending's climax coalesces alongside this point in particular, as they finally face the very scars they left on the world, as postulated by Shadow, resolving to rectify their atrocities as best they can. They resolve to create a new world, one informed by the past, yet never constrained by it. History exists to contextualize what is, but never to outright shape it. There exists hope for a brighter tomorrow.
This thematic thread of evolution and breaking the metaphysical cage of one's past exemplifies Shadow's connection to Sonic, the encapsulation of hopes, dreams, and freedom within this world. Sonic too is defiant in his very existence, perhaps teaching Shadow that he needn't be a monster of another's making, subject entirely to their will. Rather, he is intrinsically free, and deserving of a fulfilling life, simply due to the fact that he is indeed alive. Sonic's optimism, connections, and freedom to live might very well have been points of intense envy for Shadow, however it is my opinion that they, alongside everything else he experiences, allowed him to truly face Black Doom, and embrace his intrinsic humanity. In perceiving such a potent expression of that which he could be, Shadow broke free of his cage, discarded the paradoxically comfortable agony of isolation, exploitation, and dehumanization, and faced the lingering essence of his trauma and memories, of his own free will.
Fundamentally, human existence is nothing if not defined by an infinite dimensionality and potential, encapsulating all the terror and beauty comprising our 'Selves' simultaneously. In his path toward self-improvement, his pursuit of truth, his confrontation of his trauma, and his ultimate self-actualization, Shadow not only casts off the brutally meritocratic and rigidly authoritarian nature of his world, he accepts that very potential, employing it to save humanity. Though the darkness he endures persists, so too does his memories of the light, of those he loves, and his connections with the family he begrudgingly stumbled into, and all that is to come for him. "I am all I am" indeed.
Quite honestly, as resonant as Shadow's narrative might very well have been, it's a little disquieting to consider all the potential that may have been squandered, pertaining to it's thematic potency. However, in its expression, it becomes as we all are; Defined by the potential to be so much more, whilst being simultaneously innately beautiful, and unequivocally worthy of existence.
I do hope this isn't too terribly painful and vapid to read. Additionally, I just spoiled borderline every major thematic concept within my own work, so… yay? Absolutely wonderful video, as always.
it doesnt stop being a sonic fan
Aw nezumi ur cute
Shadow! Itās me! The devil!
I really like that you focused on Doom's manipulation and Shadow's lack of agency in this video. There are really goofy moments in the game, and difficult or badly designed parts of the gameplay, but I think those are the best parts of the story
I love when people look at gameās with a more positive outlook, rather than just fully lambasting it because āhaha funny hedgehog game with firearmsā. I was completely engrossed in the video the entire way through. Stellar work
I want this style of retrospective for Higurashi Gou/Sotsu/Meguri when thatās done. Probably bit much to ask for with all the AA and other stuff on the block
this game was the first piece of media i ever enjoyed ironically
the segment about the sonic channel comic, literally moved me to tears, never thought I would cry at a shadow the hedgehog retrospective, sub.
SaltyDKdan jumpscare
I'm not sure how or why, but Shadow The Hedgehog was my first Sonic game, followed some time later by Sonic Unleashed and basically nothing else from the series for over a decade after. I had basically no context for Sonic at the time, since I didn't have internet at home and a PS2 for my first console near the end of its era, so I could only learn about it from bits and pieces my friends would talk about at school, or when it would appear on the occasional video game-related show on cable TV. Something about Shadow The Hedgehog really grabbed me when I saw adverts for it, and it was one of a handful of popular PS2 games that caught my interest, alongside the annual Spider-Man and a few other sporadic titles. Looking back, Shadow really was the centerpiece of my taste in video games going forward: A mishmash of concepts and stories, trying to fulfill all the choices presented but only making my final decision harder as a result, a cartoonishly cringe edge to every line and action, I'm only now seeing how it all blossomed into what I like today, not just in games, but in myself. A desire to see and learn about as much as possible, a willingness to try things others have told me were bad… hell, I'm starting to think I can trace coming out as genderfluid a few years ago back to Shadow The Hedgehog now that I'm typing this out. It was a game I liked as a kid, but never gave the credit it deserved as I grew up, and let my memories of it fog up until I couldn't quite remember if I really liked it or not. I guess I just needed someone else to help put those feelings into words, and I'm grateful to you for that. I'm still hard-pressed to jump into any other Sonic games, new or old, but watching the series from the sidelines while on my own road works just fine for me, which I guess parallels Shadow's relationship with Sonic to a certain extent.