Why I'm a Sonic Heroes Apologist: A Sonic Heroes Retrospective Review

#AceCardGaming #SonicHeroes #SonicTheHedgehog
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Join me as we discuss, reminisce, analyze...and yeah, flat out play apologist for Sega's 2003 big seller, Sonic Heroes. As the last title of the so called Adventure era, this was Ryan Drummond and David Humphrey's last outing a Sonic and Shadow the Hedgehog. And as Sega set sail in the uncharted waters of 3rd party development after the death of the Dream Cast, the voice actors were not the only thing that was set to change. 12 Playable characters, 4 stories, team based game play? Whether you play as Team Sonic, Team Dark, Team Rose or Team Chaotix? Sonic Heroes was, and, still is a very strange game. One I've struggled with my opinions on ever since its release. But, as time has gone by, and the state of the franchise has waxed and waned across the meta era. And we got games like Sonic Forces. I decided to go back and reflect on this game again. And, my opinions on it, have softened considerably. Come listen to why in this Sonic Heroes Review and deep dive retrospective!
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Sources:
Sonic Heroes - Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_H...
Sonic Heroes - Sonic Fandom: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Sonic_H...
Team Sonic - Sonic Fandom: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Team_Sonic
Team Dark - Sonic Fandom: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Team_Dark
Team Rose - Sonic Fandom: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Team_Rose
Team Chaotix - Sonic Fandom: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Team_Ch...
Sonic the Hedgehog: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Sonic_t...
Miles Tails Prower: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Miles_%...
Knuckles the Echidna: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Knuckle...
Shadow the Hedgehog: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Shadow_...
Rouge the Bat: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Rouge_t...
E-123 Omega: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/E-123_O...
Amy Rose: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Amy_Rose
Cream the Rabbit: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Cream_t...
Big the Cat: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Big_the...
Espio the Chameleon: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Espio_t...
Charmy Bee: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Charmy_Bee
Vector the Crocodile: sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Vector_...
Takashi Iizuka worked on Sonic Heroes stages alone - My Nintendo News: mynintendonews.com/2016/11/06...

[@8BitPreston]

Sonic Heroes is literally the perfect sonic game in its design, character, music, charm and voice direction. The only thing that holds it back for many people is the execution of the gameplay, and that’s understandable. But once you learn to adapt (which I know you shouldn’t have to do), it becomes SO clear that this game had some of the most potential of any sonic game.

[@somedude3820]

If sonic heroes controlled well it'd be unquestionably great. It's the slipperiness and awful grind rail switching that holds it back a lot.

[@infamouseli92]

I wouldn’t it’s the best ( that title goes to Sonic Adventure 2) but it’s definitely too 5 Sonic games of all time

[@infamouseli92]

@@somedude3820I agree with that

[@KyuubiDragon4]

I actually really love Sonic Heroes, despite its MANY issues, and I don't think it gets enough credit for the things it did right or contributed to the series as a whole. Omega and Team Dark are the perfect example of this, but also things like the simple but useful Speed - Flight/Technical - Power dynamic that have helped shape character dynamics in future titles, the revival of Team Chaotix and Metal Sonic (whom as a reminder hadn't played a part in a Sonic game outside of cameos since Knuckles Chaotix), and the introduction of the Egg Pawns that have served as an extremely versatile basic minion for Eggman ever since. Also, it was the first Sonic game to be multiplatform, meaning it was the first game to reach audiences outside the Sega and Nintendo crowd (even if the Gamecube still got the best version). For all its flaws, Heroes has had a significant impact on the series since its introduction, and deserves far more credit for that than I've seen it get.

[@Milkmanrules1032]

I love how this game equals out the characters. No longer is Sonic the only hero now there are tons of a heroes in one game.

[@Milkmanrules1032]

Is it just me or am I starting to think Sega back in the day wanted every character to be equal to each other? Characters like Tails are whiny but he is still pretty brave and courageous like he was in SA2 they just tried to make him act his age. There is actually evidence to this in the Japanese manual.

[@Milkmanrules1032]

So yea I don’t know if anyone noticed but every character in this game is equal to Sonic if you think about it which is very interesting.

[@pixilatedink.7920]

But Sonic has never really been the only hero in the first place and even then he's the main hero

[@pixilatedink.7920]

@@Milkmanrules1032 or they're just reskins of Sonic

[@Nothavinit00]

Team Dark needs a game. Hell...a game series in general.

[@AceCardGaming]

That would be awesome. And ideally, what should have followed Heroes rather than a stand alone Shadow game.

[@bahamutbomb6880]

Considering what the series has turned into? I'd gladly take a heroes remaster or even sequel. Some people think this game was overly complicated and that's what ruined it. But beyond switching, you pretty much play exactly as you did in adventure. As a stand alone game I like heroes. If the formula were to return from time to time? I would be ok with that.

[@Darkfawfulx]

This is one of those games if I could I would make a sequel to. The modern control could do wonders for it.

[@skylight1198]

Honestly yeah I agree, but please make each campaign unique instead of each one being the same with few alterations.

[@LittleLexi24]

Team Dark are my favourite characters in Sonic Heroes and 06, they truly did dance in fire

[@AceCardGaming]

Absolutely agreed! 🦇 🦔 🤖

[@AceSolomon94]

@@AceCardGaming 06 was definitely the closest a Sonic game's storyline came to building off what the SA series & Heroes started accurately (specifically for Team Dark). Loved how well in-depth you were covering that in the Team Dark vid 👌🏾👌🏾

[@OmegaSon]

Heroes was my first Sonic game, I was like 3 or 4 years old and I was pretty horrible at it lol. But the charm and characters just made me fall in love with the franchise from then on even at that young age. Sonic was the coolest thing I had ever seen, I hung on to every word he said just cause he was so awesome (“shoot, not my day” was the one I said the most lol) I always got game overs in power plant but I played it over and over never getting tired of it, pretty crazy. The game definitely has its flaws but it will always hold a special place in my heart, this game changed my world, truly

[@AceCardGaming]

Replace Sonic Heroes with the original STH and Power Plant with Labyrinth Zone for a while and that’s pretty much my story too! 😅 Thanks for sharing dude! Love hearing which games started people off with the series.

[@tailsfrontiers1224]

Awwwww omg SAME !!!! I was 4 when I got familiar with sonic with SAB2 at my friends house next door ... & Heroes was the first game that i actually got myself , this whole comment I can relate to so much !!!

[@superhedgehog6447]

Sonic Heroes is the perfect example of being a light hearted Sonic story. Unlike Sonic Colors and onwards, sonic heroes actually respected the characters and their history. Even the interactions between everybody is handled really well for the most part. Seriously, they had a perfect blue print for a light hearted Sonic story but they messed all that up in the 2010s.

[@IcyKali]

I totally feel all of this. I started playing Heroes just last week on PC with mods that fix a lot of the janky physics and improve the graphics, and while I do still feel the struggle with setpieces throwing the characters in the wrong places, and the special stages, man do I hate the special stages, the game is SO GOOD. With non-unique voice lines modded out, the team's dynamics really shine, and the stages are a ton of fun. I'm so glad the work of fans has let the game shine like it should have from the beginning. It's like Adventure 3 was here all along! About the story and characterization: I totally agree, what's there is actually good but should have been expanded. I especially feel bad for Metal Sonic. I mean, he was driven to madness here, so imagine how he'd feel being used as nothing but racing fodder in subsequent games, with his voice, chosen look, and rebelliousness all stripped away! Well, actually, I liked how he came across in Rivals 2 with Shadow-which as a kid I thought was an extension of whatever was going on with Metal and Team Dark at the end of this game-but that game apparently isn't considered canon by Sega. I found it sad when Neo Metal gets to shine in IDW more recently... but he was doing everything in Eggman's name, so all the cool potential of his rebellion and IMO the whole premise of Neo Metal was just not a thing.

[@sanglish18]

Note: since you used the physics mod, keep in mind that this mod completely screws the Special Stages and make them extremely harder or outright impossible to beat.

[@IcyKali]

@@sanglish18 Oh man, thanks for letting me know... that explains why the later ones seemed impossible!

[@daviddyster4145]

This is one of the Sonic games that should get remastered instead of Sonic Colors.

[@apathy2454]

Exactly

[@Darkfawfulx]

Just needs a PC port

[@daviddyster4145]

@@Darkfawfulx I was thinking a PS5 or Xbox Series X port.

[@Darkfawfulx]

@@daviddyster4145 Why not all 4?

[@daviddyster4145]

@@Darkfawfulx Ok

[@sharax777]

Excellent video! I love how you can see the good in Sonic games that is often overlooked, and Sonic Heroes is very much a game that is often overlooked. Very fair and balanced look at a flawed but fun game! Also, I feel this game has some of the absolute best theme songs in any Sonic game. "What I'm Made Of" and "Team Dark" are series favourites of mine! Can't wait for the next video!

[@BlueRainbow101]

The pc demo of Heroes played a huge part of me becoming a fan of the series. Love this game a lot. Great music, great stages and most importantly (at least for me) really fun character dynamics. I don't want to imagine a world without Team Dark lol. The casual fanservice (like Amy mentioning the Egg Carrier in Final Fortress) is great too.

[@cjfox7674]

Happy memories with this game still remember the day it came through the letterbox nearly a week before it was available in stores the catalogue my parents odered it from broke street date i played it all day great memories

[@AceCardGaming]

Used to love when that would happen! Knew someone who worked at a local store and would always get games a bit early from them.

[@cjfox7674]

@@AceCardGaming feeling abit nostalgic for littlewoods catalogue now

[@JosephJohns-xi1qb]

Something to note about Team Sonic's team blast is that it essentially lets you use another one while the gauge is depleting. At least if Sonic is in the lead. If quick enough, I think you could use it more than once too.

[@thatoneguy1232]

I love this game. The characters, the stages, the soundtrack(ohhhh that soundtrack😍), the mechanics(mostly), and a lot of the dialogue and banter I adore. Not all of them though. We all know the bad ones and good ones😅. The boss fights are bad. I hate them ngl. I especially hate the team battles. I stand by my sentiment that Sonic Rush has the best character battles. I never experienced any glitches with the game and I played on PS2. The only issues were rails in Rail Canyon and the Ghost hopping section in Mystic Mansion. Egg Fleet is one of my all time favorite levels. That opening is so good. And I love the lines of each team before they run into action. Bringing Metal Sonic back was cool. I think this game was actually my first introduction to him so to me he was a new character. On the subject of the game being tedious, having to play it 4 different times, I totally get that. Even I, who love this game, gets tired of it. As a kid, I played this with my brother and two friends(also happened to be siblings). We’d take turns playing each campaign and pass the controller around for the final boss. It was a great time. I would love to see a remaster of this game. More updated visuals(actual updates. Not whatever Sonic Colors Ultimate did), better control, maybe some dialogue changes or better line delivery😅. I’d be all over that!

[@vzszz]

ohhhhh this game is so weird for me bc it's not my favorite but I also don't hate it play it sometimes. I think everyone was spoiled coming off of sa2 in terms of story. I have this on gamecube and remember Heroes stressing me tf out because 1. I really wanted an answer on whether Shadow was a robot and 2. The handling was wack you'd be doing fine until you just suddenly went flying off of a platform for no reason. I like Hang Castle and Mystic Mansion (spooky/Halloween themed stages are my favorite) and "This Machine" is def one of my favorite Sonic songs. Anyway now I'm rambling. Great video as always! and cutting back to that clip of knuckles cracked me tf up 😂

[@AceCardGaming]

This Machine is fire! Absolutely love it. Glad you liked Knuckles’ potty mouth, it always cracks me up too! 😁

[@gustavoluiz1657]

I super love this game! I played it for the first time on PS2 and revisited it years later on PC (way better) There are paths in Rail Canyon that I haven't even discovered yet and the soundtrack is on another level! But I can see the flaws that you explained very accurately and the game can be a real mess sometimes. By the way, have you heard about Sonic "Frontiers"? it's not sounding that bad if I'm being honest... What do you think?

[@AceCardGaming]

I have heard the name change from rangers yeah. I need to look into the rest of the rumours a bit but a lot of people are saying similar to you, that it could be good!

[@rachelbarrett7602]

The censorship with Knuckles' grunts was perfection. Thank you. XD

[@sonicfreak1111]

Man I absolutely love Sonic Heroes, thanks for explaining it to me a little better why :) Edit: Gotta answer those questions at the end. Played the game around the time it came out on PC, and even though it could barely run it (was running at the blistering speed of like 20fps), I absolutely loved it (was one of my first "serious" video games). And over the years I've been playing it on and off on different platforms, but now I'm playing it yet again back at the PC port (with mods nowadays woo). After Sonic Heroes, I got introduced to Sonic Adventure through a demo disc at my cousin's place. And after I got Adventure DX on the PC, that became my favorite Sonic game for a long time, due to the freedom and narrative. But man with Sonic Heroes there's just this pure blissful energy around it. And having played it for a while now, it feels great to constantly switch between team members just to keep the momentum going. Most fans are wishing for an Adventure remake (so am I don't get me wrong), but having these already beautiful Heroes stage designs with modern graphics, sure would be a dream (oh and I have dreamed about just that haha).

[@ge789]

The team mechanic in this game is unique. It allows interactions between multiple characters throughout the levels, the formations allow people to deal with certain challenges in either a taught specific way or through player experimentation, and the ability to level up the abilities to make certain challenges easier if people are willing to go out of their way to find them, while rewarding them for reaching the next checkpoint. This system is something I personally haven’t seen anywhere before or since (though there may be some lesser known games that tried this), which I would love to see again someday, even if it’s likely that won’t happen.

[@maximoomega3691]

Awesome video mark by the way I was playing soccer with my boys today and I tripped and hurt my hand badly it's getting better but don't let this distract you from my compliment on the video anyways keep up the good work.

[@AceCardGaming]

That sucks! Hope you feel better soon! Glad you enjoyed the video.

[@maximoomega3691]

@@AceCardGaming thanks.

[@8BitPreston]

Here’s a game; take a shot every time Ace says “paper”

[@AceCardGaming]

I can think of 2 off the top of my head. Were their more? 😅

[@8BitPreston]

@@AceCardGaming it’s a rough guess but I’m thinking 6 or 7 😅

[@AceCardGaming]

@@8BitPreston Depending on what the shots are, you’ll either be happily tipsy, or dead! 🤣

[@8BitPreston]

@@AceCardGaming sounds like a fun game to me 😂🍻

[@apathy2454]

My second favorite sonic game after adventure 2 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@AceCardGaming]

Good choice! 😎

[@michelledust5787]

I have always had a soft spot for Sonic Heroes. Something about it just didn't feel right after the Adventure games but equally it has more charm than any of the more recent games we've gotten. Top notch review, "Shut up Tails" got me big time!!!

[@TiztasticallyWicked]

I have gone back to Sonic Heroes over the years through Dolphin and Playstation 3 after having played it when it was released globally. It's unironically my favorite Sonic game, and after 20 years, that's likely never changing.

[@NimsoStudios]

Finally, someone who made a video about Sonic Heroes that actually understands the point and beauty of actively switching characters. This game has some of the best gameplay design I've ever seen, everything from the basic switching being limited to when the player is grounded, to the selectable upgrading using the checkpoints, to the strategic use of Team Blast to save time! This game is truly excellent, and I say that having studied Mario and Sonic games as a game developer who can recreate all of these mechanics now as a result of studying these games. It's a real shame that the game has many speed based collision glitches that destroy your runs.

[@mayracordero382]

Sonic Heroes is one of The Best Games and I love The Design of The Game and this is like 3D with The Music and The Teamwork of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles!🎮😃👍🦔❤

[@TL-if8zy]

What a review. The level of detail and analysis was excellent. Well done!!! Sonic Heroes will aways hold a special place in my heart as it was a big part of my childhood. And even though it had its issues I agree with everything you said. If you put the effort in there is a lot of fun to be had here.

[@user-do2il5fr2f]

14:43 Hey, btw, Team Sonic's blast have an extra bonus to it. After you use Team blast and until your gauge meter decreased from red to zero, you can one-shot enemies as Sonic by pressing X button. Try to use it, it even have a prompt. I think.

[@AceCardGaming]

Legit didn’t know that! I’ll have to check it out.

[@TheBlur182]

Team Sonic's Team Blast actually has a secondary effect. You can trigger a second, cutscene-less Team Blast by using the B button near enemies after jumping, while the Team Blast Gauge is depleting.

[@charleneroberts4655]

Yeah I'd definitely watch a TV show about the Chaotix Detectives solving mysteries and crime. :D

[@Craterfist]

I love Heroes. It has a special place in my heart. It's my first Sonic game, and the idea of having our heroes be in tight knit teams from the start was really cool for kid me. Also that theme song is awesome.

[@marchedgie6838]

I played the demo version of this game on a bonus disk that came with my little brother's copy of Mario Kart Double Dash. Team Sonic and team Dark were the only teams we could play as, and even though I wasn't very good at it, I still loved playing it, and I still consider it my favourite Sonic game.

[@BreetonBoi]

Its so crazy cause I've been streaming Sonic Heroes recently but I had to stop cause I was getting frustrated during my Team Dark playthrough and I felt like random stuff was killing me and half the time it was working and its so crazy to hear that echoed by you in this video, I thought I was going crazy haha. I do love Sonic Heroes when it works and tbh it could've been such an amazing game had it had a better development cycle. Great video as always dude!

[@vanilla7981]

Currently watching tons of your videos and I loved this one! Heroes is a big fave of mine, in my top 5 Sonic games! Just finished replaying it again the other day. Though I have to say I think a lot of those bugs are in specific versions of the game because all these years of playing Heroes on my Gamecube + emulated on GC I've never encountered many of those bugs like the speed ramp stuff or the clips of the springs throwing Shadow in the wrong direction n' more. Over the years I've learned it seems some o fthose bugs are only present in things like the PC version. Though I could be wrong and just extremely lucky but it is something I've noiced with footage of the game and from people who played other non GC versions. ALSO, a neat little trick I learned in special stages is that you can just hold down the boost button and the character'll just keep getting faster and faster. So much so you can get the emerald in understand 10 seconds sometimes

[@charlessegale6493]

Me: * sees that the video ends with "What I'm Made Of" * Nice.

[@TheLanydx]

Back in 2003 I played the Xbox and in 06 I got a GameCube copy. For all its faults I adored the game as it along with the Adventure games had me fall in love with Sonic, his world and his cast of colorful and interesting friends and foes.

[@sanglish18]

Team Sonic's Team Blast is not just a screen clear, after the attack while the gauge is descreasing Sonic is able to do the Light Speed Attack , which is very handy to clear enemies in the next section instantly.

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah I’ve been told this by a few of you guys. I legit didn’t know this! 😅 I love that I’m still learning stuff about these games all this time later! Thanks!

[@SuperMSL]

I'm not sure if you mention it later or not, but Team Sonic does have a secondary use for their team blast. If you jump and press B near enemies while the team blast gauge is draining after you use it, Sonic will do a Light Speed Attack near enemies. It also kinda works if you use thundershoot with Sonic too.

[@AceCardGaming]

Someone else pointed this out to me too! I legit didn’t know this 😅

[@SuperMSL]

@@AceCardGaming Oh nice haha. Another thing that can help out if you weren't aware, is you can do rapid punches with Knuckles if you mash the attack button without moving. Can help in situations where you don't want to go flying around everywhere. It's sorta there with Omega but not really. Also level 3 homing attack has wind properties so you just have to jump dash into poles at that point. Or you can rocket accel (works at any level). It makes using the poles way more fun and efficient IMO.

[@ChristianLakhan]

I often enough imagine that there could be another game like Sonic Heroes.

[@Mentleif]

Sonic Heroes and Mega Collection + on the PS2 were my first two games of the series. I definitely think it serves well as an introduction to the series, especially for younger audiences. You’re introduced to a large chunk of the cast in the game, and it doesn’t depend too much on outside knowledge. I have a lot of nostalgia for it as one of my earliest games I played. I now the that the story was a step down from what came before (Shadow and Metal aside), but I remain fond of the game. I beat the final story some years after the main four stories as I didn’t even know of the final story originally and literally needed to look up information on how to get the last few emeralds.

[@venny1689]

Fun fact: Team Sonic's team blast is not "just a screen clearer", it actually does have another effect, but it's less obvious than everyone else's. After using it, and for the remainder of the bar's duration until it goes blue, Sonic can perform the light speed attack to any new group of enemies by jumping and pressing B (he'll have the same red-tinted ball effect he does during team blast), one shotting enemies again. Essentially working as a second full screen clear. Obviously it's use is very niche because the team blast activation already clears all enemies, but it's useful in a couple situation when you need to kill groups of the giant robots with helmets back to back.

[@austenlong1]

Trying to fit a triangle peg into a square gap....sounds like the Game Grumps playthrough, over an hour on the first boss the Egg Hawk

[@ivan7604]

This is the only video I've watched from somebody yhat loves this game as much as I do, explains the nuances and quirks of it and goes through detail explaining them. I feel like we the hardcore fans of this game owe it to it to try to fix it with mods and messing with the game's code and engine to present a version of the game that is truly optimal, but that's obviously easier said than done...

[@retakkai]

Finally someone who understands the magic of sonic heroes This game was my childhood because i didn't have a console I bought a disk and played it on my fathers pc It was FUN I didn't have preconceptions and didn't compare it to other sonic games Now I've played almost every main line sonic game And i still came back to this game :)

[@lizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz]

This retrospective is excellent, as are all the other videos of yours I have seen. Great stuff!

[@AceCardGaming]

Thanks, really glad you’re enjoying everything!

[@ellagage1256]

Something minor I always loved about the Type system is that each one is also associated with a different element on top of the different playstyles and formations. It might seem "lazy" at first when all of the teams use the same blue/yellow/red colors and symbols as Team Sonic until you notice they also represent Wind/Lightning/Fire as well. Hang Castle and Mystic Mansion even makes you use Speed characters to blow out fires and Power characters to light torches up. Meanwhile max level Flight characters can attract rings with their Thunder Shot teammates which adds even more decision making in who to play as to grab to most rings the fastest and most efficient way possible later on Oh and some advice as a somewhat Special Stage apologist, holding down the boost button makes the emerald slow down to represent you getting closer. It's similar to how spamming the flip buttin on rails is good for acceleration but not for reaching top speed. Plus each character has a different reaction to the crappy physics so knowing who to play as in order to get back to the bottom of the tube the quickest makes them slightly more interesting... Still wished it had a Chao Garden though

[@dkins8]

Great video loved this game back in the day

[@AceCardGaming]

They don’t make em like this anymore huh? 😅

[@devinowens2166]

I hope you do a review of the whole sonic advanced trilogy because I would love to hear your opinion

[@nathanlarue9922]

Sonic Heros was my introduction to sonic and is still my favorite sonic game I have played

[@Crayolapup]

I loved this game when I was 9. I remember going with my Dad to rent it from Blockbuster back in 2004. Played it all weekend. Then I remember being sick and calling my Mother off a Landline, asking her if I can skip school for the day. When she said, “Yes”. I threw myself back onto our blue couch and played Sonic Heroes. I was a good kid… 0.0 Who calls their mom to skip school? Lol

[@AceCardGaming]

To play Sonic? Every kid should 😉

[@AceSolomon94]

One input I'd add Ace in terms of a remake: I wished you pointed out better ideas/solutions for this game following the issues you found with it. You pointed out obvious problems with the mechanics, but more in-depth details like Team Chaotix gameplay and the opportunity to give feedback on what you felt should've been Team Chaotix's gameplay was heavily missed. For all you know, a Sonic Team game developer could be watching this video but not know what you felt, or thought, could've made the game better. I get you're being an apologist on this specific topic but given how well thought out the direction of this video, as well as your thesis in general, I would expect some solid feedback to fall onto the creative board for the developers to consider once they do push towards a remake (or hopefully, a sequel 🙏🏾). Something to think about if you ever wanted to revisit Heroes for a "How To Make It Better" follow-up video to this. I'd really love to hear what you think of this. You've won me over as a subscriber with your amazing attention to detail & critical thinking. Really leaves a wholesome feeling when hearing/watching a somber yet dedicated fan of a series really put this amount of effort into something like this. Just gives me hope again after all the failures the Sonic series has fallen through in the past decade & more. Much love, respect & appreciation for ya dedication brotha 👌🏾💯

[@NimsoStudios]

Big important note, Team Blast ALWAYS has an additional effect. Dark has time stopped for a little while, Chaotix collects rings from the enemies, Rose gives you the shield... but Sonic's is the best one, for a short while after the blast you can jump and press attack and you'll perform the same team blast again without the camera craziness!!! If you can time it properly, you can use Team Sonic's blast to clear out multiple big groups of enemies in different areas and save you soo much time!

[@AceCardGaming]

I’ve now been educated by many people on the additional effect of Team Sonic’s Team Blast. For whatever reason I just never noticed it in the many years of playing the game. 😅

[@BlueJGilbert]

I enjoyed this game on Gamecube when it released, and my kids love the vocal tracks for this game. They want to try it for themselves, but alas, my Gamecube is missing, apparently never to return. I hope I can show this game to my kids one day.

[@AceCardGaming]

If your PC can run it you could maybe try the Dolphin Emulator or the PC version of the game? Definitely worth a shot to enjoy it again!

[@BlueJGilbert]

@@AceCardGaming one of my brothers mentioned this to me. I’m getting some help with it. Thank goodness I got younger nerds helping this old nerd catch up!

[@RosheenQuynh]

I feel so alone in LOVING the hell out of Casino Park and Bingo Highway 😅 Just made me feel like I was playing Casinopolis all over again. It's definitely challenging for sure but I dunno, there's just something charming and entertaining about BEING the ball (it doesn't help that my very first introduction to the game was one of these levels, can't remember which). I even love the Bonus Stages, even as frustrating as they were. The only thing I didn't like was that giant gator (that I could not beat) and Egg Emperor (which still gives me PTSD after collecting and wasting 99 lives trying to kick his can... Love his design though)... But yeah, imagine how damn good this game would be with less slippery controls, a better camera, and better AI... Oh also, I'm probably also the only person in existence who played the HELL out of Chaotix's stages whenever I reached Egg Emperor. Since I'm terrible at Sonic games anyway, being forced to stop and collect stuff really helped me learn the layout of the stages. I also felt so sMaRt when I was younger using my voice recognition skills to figure out that Eggman was their client (because the "mustachioed moron" bit somehow went over my head back then)... Only to realize other people knew it was obvious too 😅😓 Oh, also, I played the original Xbox version.

[@MrEmpoleon2010]

You should never apologize for enjoying anything that doesn't cause actual harm to people. Sonic Heroes is an amazing game, I love it, and if anyone has a problem with that, well tough shit, I don’t care.

[@TheYamiJK]

The controls frustrated me, way too much attached to a single button but I'll be fair, you've made a good case to go and give it another go. I did love seeing Team Chaotix return though, they have some of the best revamps in the franchise.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

I still remember your old review and how conflicted you seemed on the game. I still like Sonic Heroes quite a bit, definitely one of my preferred 3D Sonic games, but saying I love it would be a stretch. I still enjoy the level design and the team gimmick, but the control is a turn off particularly in the later stages that expect more precise movement. Still a fun game, I'd just rather play Adventure 1 & 2, or Generations.

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah that review felt like I was wrestling with myself! I went back again and tried being more positive and I had a much better time! Trying to see the reasoning behind everything definitely helped. And applying a strategy approach to the game.

[@cupio-stardust]

I always felt like the only one who likes the animation in this game, it feels so much more smoother and polished!

[@AceCardGaming]

I guess a lot of it is subjective and down to personal opinion. But for me, it just seems a bit floppy and awkward looking at times. Like the characters range of motion is limited and doesn’t convey speed as well. You’re not wrong to like it though, to each their own 🙂

[@j_ravioli6154]

This was my first sonic game and I loved it. Looking back, with all of its flaws, it was still a good experience and I get some good nostalgia from it

[@WebstersYouTube]

The complexity of Sonic Heroes is a big part of what works against it for me. Up until Sonic Heroes, most games were one button affairs and encouraged you to play them however you wanted to. Sonic Heroes, on the other hand, has so many more buttons and a "right" way to play it. You mentioned that people have to play Sonic Heroes the way the game wants to be played, whereas before, a Sonic game let you decide how to play it. It's a reversal of whose terms you're playing the game on.

[@AceCardGaming]

I think that’s a fair point. There is a certain level of player expressions that’s removed by the mechanics of Heroes. But I think some of this survives in the sections within sections and when you level up and use pretty much any character for most things. There is an optimum way of doing things for sure, but I think that has always been the case. It just wasn’t imposed on you before to this extent. I guess the variety of gameplay and getting to see other characters be impressive and useful kinda outweighed the loss of expression for me. I wouldn’t want to see this be the de facto gameplay for the series going forward. I just think it’s a great formula to revive and use from time to time.

[@thatoneguy1232]

I disagree with this point. There isn’t a “right” way to play Sonic Heroes. You choose how you want to play out the levels for the most part. Just like in games prior and after, you choose which path you want to take. You choose which formation you want to level up the quickest. You decide on how you want to handle an enemy, if at all(depending on if they’re gatekeeper or not). Even many sections that may tell you to use a specific formation you don’t really need to use that formation. Then there are sections in every zone that allows you to choose at your own volition on how you’ll get across. Then, just like in other games, you can exploit the game’s mechanics to reach or bypass areas. Just like in Sonic 1 or Sonic Adventure. There’s even some team specific things you can do like if you want to get over a gap but don’t wanna use flight formation, just use Amy’s spinning move that allows her to glide across areas for a bit. There’s actually a surprising amount of freedom in Sonic Heroes and no one way to play it. It’s the beauty of Sonic games. Mastering and exploiting the unique physics and mechanics as well as memorizing level layout and optimizing all of that to perfect your experience.

[@janrosa7243]

What are you talking about? Sonic adventure 2 had so many actions mapped to one button that you could easily mess up your playstyle by somesaulting when you want to lightspeed dash or bouncing when you want to do the same etc. Heroes having more options and characters to play with encourages far more interesting ways of playing the game. You can cross pits with flight characters but you can also pull off the same objective with speed characters and a good jump. Levels are incredibly open and encourage far more ways to tackle sections.

[@jeofthevirtuoussand]

The ost kept me in the loop

[@Dragonache21]

Sonic heroes was my first sonic game and I got really good at the game. To me the story was great and the reveal of my he final boss was amazing when we played it on the Xbox. Even when I’m played it again quite recently I had to start off on team dark because my muscle memory was still fairly good and the other modes were to easy. My favorite team has always been team chaotic and although the secret boss was lackluster even then I loved the idea of it to the point that I compare the buildup and start of the fight to other secret or last bosses in games. Am I looking to hard through nostalgia glasses? Probably but to me it was the most memorable parts to that game.

[@jordonspence5633]

I've run into a few issues here and there with Sonic Heroes, but I've never run into so many of the ones I saw people share. Maybe because I played the Gamecube version but it never was that bad which is why I get so confused at the issues people run into

[@lukeevans2717]

Considering sonic heroes was the first game I ever played it’ll always be one of my favourite games even for all its faults (and my first time playing it I had the ps2 version which was quite buggy) because it was ambitious and it had so many good ideas in theory

[@samothoverlord3662]

personaly i would prefer a remaster or remake of sonic 06 because i feel that like in heroes there is a lot of wasted potential but either would be good thanks for your super content and its high quality as always

[@AceCardGaming]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it! Would love to see 06 officially remastered as well.

[@bladebowman5110]

After team sonics team blast, sonic can be launched with the same power as the team blast until the meter is depleted! Lol

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah, a few of you kind people have educated me on this! 😅 I legit didn’t know this in all the years I’ve been playing it!

[@tobitimesthree]

i always found the in-game dialogue to be extremely charming to be honest. even though the repetition can get annoying, i always found it to be a quick, easy, and still interesting way to state character relations/personality without heavy exposition. i honestly think heroes drips of charm like this. i'm always out here trying to manifest a sonic adventure 1&2 and heroes remake 3 pack 🙏

[@tobitimesthree]

also this video is incredible!! can't wait to see how your content grows man :)

[@AceCardGaming]

@@tobitimesthree Glad you enjoyed it my friend! I will 100% always get behind an SA1/2/Heroes triple pack too btw! 🙂

[@hotshot15271]

This game is certainly among my favorites, and I can appreciate all they attempted to do. Revisiting it, however, I always am just quickly reminded to what a nightmare it actually turned out to be; whether you understand the mechanics or not. Even if it was a nightmare, to me it didn't take too much away from the fun of the game, so I can forgive it. I really liked the analysis of character synergy you did, never was something I thought much of tbh. And yes, I definitely was more interested in watching this after watching the newest Sonic movie, lol. Gotta love the real power of teamwork!

[@corel7966]

mmm love this game one last hurrah for the extended sonic cast

[@WalaSTH]

Definitely a lot of stuff to enjoy from Sonic Heroes. I personally have fun with it but start to quit when I have an "unfair" death and then I drop it for some time till I remember I was playing it. It would make a nice remastered though I'm sure licensing of renderware is a pain in the as$. Great video, good to see this game getting some love. Not my favorite but one that I have a lot of appreciation for as I played it a lot on my childhood and still to this day.

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah, the unfair deaths can be a little off putting. In terms of Renderware, while it can no longer be purchased, apparently EA, who own it now, still allow people who have licensed it before to use it. That is if a remaster would even continue to use the engine and not just switch to something more modern. Glad to hear you enjoyed the video!

[@cirnosnumberfan6449]

I'm embarrassed to admit that I sucked so much at this game when I was younger, I couldn't even beat Team Rose.

[@Cashew1405]

I grew up playing heroes as a kid but never got that far into it cause I couldn't get past the jank of bingo highway sadly. Years later I came back to the game and fully finished it and It has gone from a charming fun game I played as a kid to my least favourite mainline sonic game. You can tell that the dev team was incredibly crunched by the design of most levels. The game just doesn't work, it's not finished. The final nail in the coffin for me was that out of nowhere Egg Fleet (an actual fun level) shows up then is immediately followed up by easily the worst level in the game, Final fortress. However, I'm glad that you and most of England for some reason like this game. good video!

[@Milkmanrules1032]

I never played this game before but looks really fun!

[@whirlwind6wind33]

Thoughts on metal sonic's voice and voice clip? Should metal sonic get a voice back in another sonic game?

[@AceCardGaming]

Awesome. And, definitely!

[@Milkmanrules1032]

Also I feel like Tails Knuckles do get true super forms, maybe the shields they have are supposed to represent their super forms. Tails and Knuckles Super forms weren’t colored like Sonic was in the classic games anyway. Tails just pulses white and Knuckles does the same I’m pretty sure.

[@scaroe89]

if only Arin had fucking learned the basics of this game during his playthrough on Gamegrumps. that playthrough is probably the worst in all of gamegrumps history. it infuriates me to no end every time he said this game was indefensible.

[@just_ducky]

This game is amazing. I played it as a kid and was bad at it, but I came back around a year ago and A Ranked the whole game (never finished Super Hardmode though). It has so many ups and most of the negatives can be countered with game knowledge and skill. Second best in the series, only behind Unleashed in my opinion.

[@mayracordero382]

This is a great Video and I think Sonic Heroes must be a Cool Game so I hope there will be Videos of Sonic Heroes!😊❤🤩👍🦔🌠

[@StylusShade]

It really is nice to find other people who actually like enemies who can take a hit in Sonic games.

[@SuperSonicMaster17]

I remembered really liking Heroes back in 2013. But I haven't played it since 2013. And when I hear all the mixed reception that the game gets, that gets me scared because when I finally decide to come back to the game I'll either end up loving the game or hating it.

[@Beleth420]

I'm replaying this game right now. Never really enjoyed chaotix missions though. Other than that I love it, A ranks are pretty fair as well.

[@ShadowSaberBaroxio]

Team Sonic's Team Blast isn't JUST a screen clear. It also upgrades the strength of Sonic's homing attack (and I think Tail's Thunder shoot) into Light Speed Attack, instantly homing onto any enemy in range and one-shotting it.

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah, I’ve been corrected on this a few times, thanks! 😅

[@gregtom3272]

yo know what , my problem with sonic heroes is that despit this game being a game made to be more acessible to a wider audience mainly kids which is why even with good controls this game would still be easier than adventure games along with a simple told story , this game had concepts with a lot of potentiel that having them in a game like that would made for those concepts execution being poor , mainly metal sonic's appearence that i can't help but see more questions than answers , like since metal sonic's last canon appearence was sonic R because ian flynn confirmed that he took notes from sega that this game is canon , what happen to metal sonic in that time period that he appeared right now after probably few years which is probably how much time between events of sonic R and sonic adventure since characters look much older in adventure than their classic counteparts , how did he got their , where did he got that look , how he know about chaos and he never saw him nor he was their in sonic adventure as his inclusion in sonic adventure dx was an ester egg , how do he have that data collecting ability , i don't know about any one but metal sonic's concept in heroes was so interesting that it's shame it was poorly executed by having him in a game like that , have this game had eggman as main antagonist as he would collect data from different characters to make an ultimate robot like that one at end of sonic 2 but much more terrifying or an entirely diffrent robot invention , it would have been much better for that game's simple approach to story telling as it would basically be sonic vs eggman , but they took an interesting concept with bad execution and they didn't even explain why do metal sonic want to destroy the world but rather have as a force of nature to do so with out good explaination of his motivation , but regardless , you really made such a good video regarding why you're a sonic heroes apologist with such wonderful quality thank you

[@AceCardGaming]

Thank you for your comment! You can definitely tell there was some stuff that didn’t add up or decisions that had to be made for timing with how hectic development was. But I’m glad you enjoyed the video, thank you for your kind words!

[@FitzyCify]

"Basically, don't be like Bart." I believe you misspoke. It's pronounced, "Arin."

[@sanglish18]

Also, really good video! :D

[@AceCardGaming]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it 😁

[@ConnectionstotheCross]

I thought sonics team blast gets a special effect where tails thunder shoot kills instantly ( when the bar runs out it stops) .. team rose also gets invincibility right?

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah I’ve been told this by a few of you guys. I legit didn’t know this! 😅 I love that I’m still learning stuff about these games all this time later! Thanks!

[@scaroe89]

something angers me with Arin Hanson's playthrough on gamegrumps is how it felt like he never understood the team blast. it felt like he thought it was something you got randomly and just had to know the right place to use it, instead of a gauge you could increase by doing anything. also his comments made it clear he had no idea there was differences and perks to each team's team blast. he even said out right that team dark's team blast "froze the game". Arin, who says he is a huge sonic fan, heard shadow the hedgehog, who is well know for having the power to stop time and warping with chaos control, say "chaos control!" and through that the team blast froze the game. ARIN IS NOT A FUCKING SONIC FAN! HE IS JUST AN ASSHOLE!

[@commanderspyder5432]

I think the problem with Heroes is one that the other games in this era had too; a mixed bag of fast-paced platforming fun and clunky, inconsistent tedium, but to a much lesser degree, which is why I think it's superior to the SA games. Instead of clunky mech and tedious scavenger hunts (which was never even a thing in the classics, since everyone played incredibly similar but still unique), each gameplay style feels like it belongs in a Sonic game. The big flaw though, is like the identical gameplay styles of SA2 and the unfinished mess that is 06, is a ton of mandatory repetition and major glitches etc. that fuck you over. Overall, this game just feels more polished and fun compared to what came before to me, even if it's nowhere near as fun as Generations, but maybe I'm biased since this game was my childhood unlike the SA duology lol PS: I also love how much the team formula makes narrative sense for alot of the characters considering the events of previous games.

[@MugenLord]

My issue with the game was bad camera and janky glitches. The story was disappointing because at the time I was expecting a follow up to SA2 but didnt really got that. But I like the game overall.

[@peteypiranalover]

Heroes is very good and very bad at the same time. But was the last time i truly enjoyed 3d sonic. 06 i played opening level and enjoyed it but that is it

[@hardmancanada]

Sonic Heroes is my favorite 3D sonic game. I love the team mechanics , the combat and Character interaction during gameplay. I love this game even if it's not perfect. If Sega Remakes Sonic Heroes one day They should change these Things: 1) Fly type Characters should gradually descend when the fly energy is empty (just like Tails in SA1) instead of falling abruptly 2) Fix the physics of special stages 3) Super tails and Super Knuckles Should've kept the appearance from the Genesis games 4) Map normal action to a different buttons like R1, L1 to change characters. Use R2 for team blast, and use the second analog stick for camera controls. That way it would liberate the triangle, and circle button to do different actions like opening door, light dash etc..... (I played the PS2 version) Sega should remake Sonic Heroes 2 by improving things from Sonic Heroes.

[@Flare8295]

Nostalgia overload

[@Biomancer99]

I've been playing through Sonic Heroes once every few years since it's release in 2003. I actually still have my original PS2 copy, which is why I still play it ever once in a while. I've definitely had my fair share weird glitches and such that just ruin the gameplay over the years, but I think in my last playthrough I didn't encounter anything that ruined a stage for me. I guess part of learning how to master Sonic Heroes is mastering how to avoid the glitches and using the jank to your benefit.

[@Hynotama]

Sonic Heroes was more deserving of a remaster than that Sonic Colors garbage. Then again, considering how Blind Squirrel handled Colors, perhaps it's better that they didn't taint this game. And to be honest, I would be pretty pissed if Sonic Heroes would end up as an Epic Store exclusive.

[@tylerensminger]

Personally the fact that you can fly with Vector or Big the Cat makes the game fun although maybe not good for that reason

[@slycooperrocks5826]

This was my first Sonic game

[@andrewgreeb916]

Heroes and adventure 1 + 2 really need a re-release, no need to go crazy with the graphics just fix the issues with the game trying to kill you as you progress

[@mep6302]

When you play the PC version, you can't spam the tornado jump 🌪️ against a speed character. For some reason the hurt animation is broken and it's almost impossible to get them out of the arena

[@AceCardGaming]

Yeah, for some reason it’s really random whether or not it works. Super annoying 😅

[@skylight1198]

I use to greatly dislike this game, but after the last 10 years really shows its quality as a game. I will agree that a sequel with its mechanics being improved would be neat, but please make the campaigns unique but overarching to the overall narrative.

[@skylight1198]

I think that's what turned me off the last time. Each campaign was the exact same but with small tweaks, and you can get all the Chaos Emeralds with Team Rose (although I did appreciate that).

[@AceSolomon94]

This game was way ahead of its time. I could care less about the glitches that occurred, Sonic Team were onto something when they created the gameplay mechanics for this. The gameplay mechanics were a much more polished version of SA2 despite those glitches. Speed runs were a blast on those stages & to me, it had the best balance of story, gameplay & use of characters outside of Sonic. Sonic Forces failed to live up to its name & the glory that Sonic Heroes was. It really was the unofficial SA3 if you look at it from that angle. The concept of playing three characters at the same was ingenious, especially once you saw the results from execution. Modern Sonic games are too shallow & uninspiring with the idea that everything had to be superfast & that you needed a lock on target to hit springs or perform actions (Also unoriginal when they attempted to sprinkle in some 2d gameplay - that only worked well for the Sonic Rivals series & for good reasons). It was essentially being told what to do when even the original games had more leeway with how you could travel across a zone. Heroes didn't do that, it didn't force anything other than to enjoy the stages & every bit of artwork from it, as you *cruized by* - not dash through the sight of blurs - that's really what made this game memorable to me among other points that I'm sure I forgot to add on(storyline, characters, chemistry, music etc). I hope future Sonic games return back to the ways & formula that Heroes (and the Adventure series) had. It's not fair that with better graphics, we have to sacrifice content. These new generations of kids are missing out on so much that we had back then.