Think of Mario slugging five cups of coffee while running like crazy. Yup! Sonic’s mysterious friend is back for this game and he’s carrying around a boatload of issues with him. Shadow of the Hedgehog introduces a tougher, attitude-driven Sonic game. This slightly darker version plays around the complex  theme of the balance between good and evil.

Shadow of Hedgehog is a glossier version of the original title, though the game design could use a little boast. The cinematic cutscenes are cool and effective way of showing the game’s different story lines.

In this new release Shadow has Sonic’s ultra-speedy running skills but also has a few awesome tricks, giving this title an extra kick. Shadow has the ability to ride hot vehicles and even pick up a variety of cool weapons that can cause serious damage to baddies. The controls can get nasty at times making long jumps and other precision moves tougher to pull off.

The darker version of Sonic sounds a bit similar to the old ones. It also has some oddly fused music in iy, which sounds like rock tunes from the 80’s. The best sound bit in Shadow is the cute and cartoonish voice acting of the game characters.

The reaction delay of the controls will definitely test your patience but because the choice you make affects the next stages you play, it’s replay value is definitely high. The storylines will give you deveral possible endings and paths, which will mostly depend on actions you’ll take and the alliance you’ll make throught out the game. These brilliant scheme will make you want to play and replay Shadow of the Hedgehog till you get to the ending you want to see.

Aside from being repetitive at times, this game could also look a bit spiffier. But Shadow of the Hedgehog’s clever way of giving you control over the ending  and making you the boss of your fate might tempt most gamers to take a step into Shadow’s world.

The World of Rising Force Online is pretty bleak, which get you in the mood of war; and war is what this game is all about. Environments are different according to which race you choose. You can pick from 3 different races; Bellato, Accetia, and Cora! Skills effects are awesome, and animations are very fluid.

This game is basically about supremacy of the races. When you begin, you choose which race you want to join, and you dpend your entire game trying to bring the other races down! The game is also unique in MMORPGs because it takes more than just killing to level up. You have to master specific skills to become stronger. This provides a challenge even for experienced gamers.

Sound is very basic.There’s an overall theme to most maps, but the music tends to be repetitive. It would be better to just turn the in-game background music off and play your own mp3 soundtrack instead.

This game has so much to offer, you’ll find it hard to stop playing! The Chp Wars alone, a thrice-daily event which pits races against each other, are not to be missed. Players are awarded Contribution Points for completing game objectives, and the player in a race with the highest ontribution points is named race Archon.  Aiming for Archonship alone will keep you awake for many nights, beleive me!

With an intesnse setting, fully customizable characters, a complex economy, and a massive stage for battle between players, thisis a sure hit for both new and veteran MMORPG players alike!