The difference between the Sonic the Hedgehog of today and that of his 16-bit Sega Genesis heyday is, in “Sonic Unleashed,” literally night and day.

The snarky blue blur's latest finds him splitting face time with a werewolf alter ego. This furrier, clawed version of Sonic is spawned during a skirmish with his techno-savvy nemesis, Dr. Eggman. The conflict also awakens a primal force called Dark Gaia, as Eggman planned, and splits the world to its core. Sonic must realign its seven continents while befriending a ravenous little bugger named Chip and adjusting to his new nightlife as a “werehog.”

As normal royal-blue Sonic, players blitz through 3-D renditions of the hedgehog's classic level style. Sonic speeds down open straightaways and full-pipes, pinballs off springs and dodges spiky obstructions with split-second precision while grabbing up gold rings along the way. Robotic enemies can be vanquished with speedball attacks that sustain Sonic's momentum.

This frenzied play style still possesses the same pros and cons as it did when Sonic debuted on the Genesis more than 15 years ago. Players fueled by a obsessive-compulsive tendency to scour every inch of a level and collect every collectible will not tolerate Sonic's tendency to breeze through his surroundings at breakneck speed. But for players willing to part with a few gold rings and uncharted terrains, “Unleashed” can prove rewarding.

Where “Unleashed” breaks with the successful formula of the first “Sonic the Hedgehog” games is the sheer incomprehensibility of its pace. Upon passing a level, players will likely remember only a few points of scenery while the rest fade as blurry afterthoughts.

This level of engagement is also grounded by the mild degree of involvement during play, which doesn't often demand speedy reaction time or even many button presses. At times, the player may feel like a spectator to some Rube-Goldberg contraption of springs and pipes that propels Sonic on its own. The only refreshing addition to the “Sonic” game play formula is a quick-time event of button prompts players must follow to complete a tricky jump or maneuver.

When the sun goes down and Sonic howls at the moon, “Unleashed” slows the pace down and becomes an almost “God of War”-style beat 'em up. Between bouts with rooms full of black gaseous foes, players must navigate tightropes, ledges and beginner-level puzzles. As the gimmickry that defines “Unleashed” from other “Sonic” titles, the werehog levels fall far short of redeeming the game. They're by no means bad - the controls are solid and the challenge modest - but the bore of the combat puts a harsh brake to “Unleashed.”

David Wilcox

253-5311 ext. 245

david.wilcox@lee.net

If you play

Game: “Sonic Unleashed”

Score: C-

Parental rating: E for everyone 10 and older

Designer: Yoshihisa Hashimoto

Publisher: SEGA

Platform: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Wii

Price: $46.99

Play: Single

The final boss: “Unleashed” introduces Sonic the Werehog with dampened fanfare in the form of bland beat 'em up game play that rounds out the same hyper-speed platforming of classic “Sonic” titles.