Sonic Unleashed (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3)

Sonic Unleashed introduces the "boost" gameplay from Sonic Rush to the 3D titles, alongside God of War-style beat 'em up gameplay in the form of the Werehog. While the latter resulted in mixed reviews at the time of its release, Unleashed has since been reassessed as a return to form for the series after the infamous Sonic '06, with many fans clamoring for a modern-day rerelease.

In recent years, the game has become more accessible via backwards-compatibility on newer consoles and was even ported to PC by fans.

Prototype Info Prerelease Info Notes

Resources#

Unused Areas and LayoutsSections of the stages which were abandoned by changes in the level design. Unused AssetsE3 leftovers and completely-unused assets. Unused AnimationsUnused animations which still remain in the game files. Unused ObjectsInfo on unused objects and their behavior. Unused MissionsTake a bobsled ride, then report back to Marketa. Unused AudioSonic 2006 leftovers, unused dialogue, etc. Unused TextGo nuts, man! Time to combo those combos!

Gameplay#

Unused Ring Counter#

ui_gate.yncp contains an unused ring counter that appears to have shown the maximum number of rings in a stage. A similar mechanic was present in Sonic Adventure 2.

Unused Trial Types#

The game has 2 unused trials for Sonic and 3 trials for the Werehog. You can activate them if you get 100% Save-Data through the debug tools. Almost every trial is playable and can be finished, except for Apotos and Eggmanland; Apotos' Score Trial doesn't even load, and the Eggmanland trial has placeholder objects. For example, Eggmanland's "Battle Trial" requires only one defeated enemy to complete the stage. Very obviously a placeholder.

Hedgehog "Score Trial"	Werehog "Ring Trial"

Hedgehog "Trial list"	Werehog "Score Trial" loading"

Lost Stages#

Empty Stage Folders#

The Apotos & Shamar Adventure Pack contains 3 empty files possibly pointing towards lost stages.

ActD_SubMykonos_03#

• Listed as Windmill Isle Day Act 1 internally, also has an unused world map stage listing it as "Act 1 Hard Mode"

ActD_SubMykonos_06#

• Listed as Windmill Isle Day Act 2 internally, possibly an early hard mode stage for Act 2

ActN_SubMykonos_02#

• Listed as Windmill Isle Night Act 1 internally, possibly an early hard mode stage for Act 1

Missing Stages#

• The following 2 stages are missing their folder, but the presence of higher number folders and entries for these stages in the files imply that these are stages that are fully lost.

ActD_SubPetra_01 (Arid Sands Day "Act 3")#

• Listed as Arid Sands Act 3 in the files and in the unused DLC stage gate
  • The final Arid Sands Day Act 3 would've originally been Act 4
• The Stage thumbnail would end up being used in the credits with Chip holding a camera pasted in it.

ActN_SubPetra_01 (Arid Sands Night "Act 2")#

• Listed as Act 2 in the games files and in the unused DLC stage gate
  • The final Act 2 would've originally been part of Act 1
• The stage thumbnail would end up being used for the jukebox.

Savannah Citadel Act 1 and 4 split#

Through looking into the files and early prototypes, it's very likely Savannah Citadel Act 1 and 4 were originally meant to be one act.

• The coordinates of the acts line up perfectly, Act 4 begins right were Act 1 ends
• Act 4 has Eggman's base in the background, which also appears at the end of Act 1, seeing as how the base is part of the story progression it makes little sense to be at the end of Act 4.
• There is an early set file of Savannah Citadel Night act 4 that has a very early layout before the start, which lines up with Act 1 fairly well.

Unused Items#

Collectibles#

Icon	Name
	Black Medicine
	Brown Medicine
	Green Medicine
	Creamy Milk
	Fresh Eggs
	Bracelet
	Vintage Jerky
	Zonshen Medicine
	Miracle Cure
	Brand-New Recipe
	Sailor's Bag
	CD
	Cassette Tape
	Cassette Tape
	Source Of Energy
	Apotos Flower
	Carpet by Labib
	Barrel
	Beloved Book
	Sacred Plant
	White Bouquet
	Gift
	Gift
	Gift
	Ursule's Sled
	Gregorios's Specs
	Banana Peel
	Burlap Sack
	Chili Peppers
	Yasmine's Plate
	Precious Shell
	Tools of Augury

Other#

Icon	Name	Description
	Computer	A state-of-the-art PC with a hundred megableets of RAM!

Debugging Features#

The debugging features in the game are not accessed by any normal means. To find them and have them function requires files in the game being unpacked and being edited. Most of these are accessed from some of the #XX.ar.xx files that correspond to a file that is a stage, preference or character.

To do: There are a lot more of these features lying around the files of the game, they need to be found and documented. I will have a few up soon...

Collision Render#

In any of the scenes in the game that also have a #XX.ar.xx file name structure, there may be a file found inside called Stage.stg.xml, this file has an option where you can have the collision rendered in the map. The option for this is the string false. Changing it to true will enable the feature.

As an example, the archive Town_Mykonos.ar.00 is the scene for the Town Apotos. This archive has a linked file called #Town_Mykonos, which contains a Stage.stg.xml file.

When you enable it, the game will render textures on the collision model for the given map. This would have been used to test for collision errors in-game.

If you suffer from photosensitive epilepsy, it is NOT recommended to use this, as the textures used do flash when moving about or rotating the camera.

Internal Project Name#

The game's internal project name is SWA, according to the Xbox 360 version's portable executable file name. It's simply the acronym of the Japanese title, Sonic World Adventure.

Version Differences#

Regional Differences#

International	Japan

In Japan, the game is titled Sonic World Adventure, which was actually the working title of the game (back when it was developed as the third Adventure game) before the decision was made to rename it for international markets due to the stark change in gameplay. Each logo has a different set of visual effects: the international versions have the strike between the words flash every few seconds, while the Japanese version has a subtle glowing effect, though the effect is more pronounced on the cracked planet.

Platform Differences#

To do: Add screenshots and videos.

• Both versions render at 880x720; the Xbox 360 game is capped at 30 FPS, while the PS3 version has an uncapped frame rate that can sometimes hit 60 FPS. Both versions struggle to maintain a consistent frame rate in the same areas, but the PS3 version can maintain a high frame rate for the Tornado Defense levels and some areas of the daytime stages, particularly the Holoska stages.
  • Playing the Xbox 360 version on Xbox Series X|S with FPS Boost enabled allows it to run at an uncapped frame rate that consistently remains at 60 FPS (there is minor slowdown in the Egg Chaser segment of Jungle Joyride Act 1, but it's nearly unnoticeable). While most of the game is playable without issue, some issues arise from the unlocked frame rate, mainly in DLC levels:
    • Rooftop Run Act 2-2 is impossible to complete Sonic overshoots a balloon after hitting a spring approximately nine seconds into the level.
    • Rooftop Run Act 5 is impossible to complete because Sonic overshoots the final balloon after launching from a rainbow ring towards the end of the level.
• Shadows are higher resolution on Xbox 360, resulting in smoother-looking shadows compared to the lower resolution, more pixelated shadows on PS3.
• The Xbox 360 has a slight warm color tint, resulting in a yellow-tinted presentation.
• File sizes for FMVs on Xbox 360 are heavily compressed to fit on the system's DVD format, resulting in artifacting throughout movie sequences.
• Sonic's animation for changing forms with the time of day is different between versions: the Xbox 360 features an animation of Sonic transforming into the Werehog, while the PS3 version shows a Sun Medal transitioning into a Moon Medal, with a an appropriate smooth gradient for each.
  • Interestingly, higher quality versions of the transition FMVs are in the PS3 version, but they go unused.
• Some special effects are more noticeable on PS3, such as the dust kicked up by Sonic as he runs.
• Levels also have minor differences in sets and geometry: the PS3 version is missing a few of the windmills in Windmill Isle Day Act 1, while Savannah Citadel 1-2 Day uses a different variation of the spike boxes.

Revisional Differences#

To do: The update includes updated set data and a cutscene archive, compare them.

An update was released on March 12, 2009 that added support for the Chun-nan Adventure Pack DLC, and made some fixes listed below. The Japanese version already has this update by default, as the game was released later in that region.

• Specifically in the Xbox 360 version, the update fixed an issue where during the running sections in the Dark Gaia boss fight the timer counted up instead of down.
• The update fixes the Quiz Lady Bug in the original version, where Sandra will sometimes not appear in Shammar as she should, making it impossible to finish the game at 100%.
• The menu sprite was modified to add the DLC icon
• The update also revised some Hindu swastikas that appear in Holoska, replacing them with a new texture. Ironically, this symbol was discovered in the Sega Germany website.

• An Apotos texture was altered to remove mention of "Beans Jam" and "Ben Janiel's", the "White Water" logo was also redesigned.

• The Tails talk sprites were updated to be the same as from the Tornado Stage which includes Sonic.
• Every stage select icon set was updated to add the DLC stage preview, Holoska was the only one to have the preview on release showing an early version of the stage.

Miscellaneous#

Stick-Drifting#

Unleashed has two documented ways to drift: by pressing the B/○ button or holding either of the triggers. However, there's third, undocumented way to drift; it's never mentioned in-game or in the manual. By pulling back on the left stick then immediately turning either left or right, Sonic will begin drifting until you shift the stick forwards or release it. Unlike the two other ways to drift, stick-drifting lets you drift in quickstep sections.

This was discovered by players by accident, with the earliest mention being a GameFAQs thread from December 9th, 2008.

Region Names#

The file names for many of the game's regions differ from the names used in the game itself - most of them are actually named after the real-world locations they're based on.

Early Boss Names#