| Sonic Shuffle | |
|---|---|
 North American box art | |
| Developer(s) | Sega[a] |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Producer(s) | Hirokazu Kojima Shuji Utsumi[1] |
| Designer(s) | Hidenori Oikawa[1] |
| Programmer(s) | Yasuhiro Kosaka[1] |
| Artist(s) | Hisashi Kubo[1] |
| Series | Sonic the Hedgehog |
| Platform(s) | Dreamcast |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Party |
| Mode(s) | Single-player,multiplayer |
Sonic Shuffle[b] is aSonic the Hedgehog-themedparty game developed and published bySega for theDreamcast in 2000. The game plays like aboard game much in the same vein asNintendo'sMario Party series, with up to four players moving their characters across a game board filled with a variety of spaces which can trigger different events. Some spaces will launchminigames that pit the players against each other in short competitive events.
Sega contractedHudson Soft, the developers ofMario Party, to assist with development. For the game's graphics, they used the same cel shading technique used in their earlier gameJet Set Radio (2000). An online multiplayer mode was planned, but it was pulled so the game could launch in time for the 2000 holiday season. Although critics praised the graphics, the game's excessive load times and poorly explained, overly complex minigames were found to be significantly detrimental to the overall experience. Critics classifiedSonic Shuffle as an inferiorclone ofMario Party.
Sonic Shuffle is aparty game for up to four players, playing like aboard game in a similar fashion to theMario Party series.[2] The game is set in adream world called "Maginaryworld", where a fairy asksSonic the Hedgehog,Tails,Knuckles the Echidna, andAmy Rose to retrieve "Precioustones" to help her save Maginaryworld from Void, the game's villain.[3][4] The players can choose to play as one of these four characters, orBig the Cat,E-102 Gamma,Super Sonic, and aChao if unlocked later. Each character has unique abilities they can use to traverse the game boards.[3]
Players take turns moving across the board in an effort to collect the most Precioustones; this is done by picking cards and moving the amount of spaces specified on it. Each player is dealt seven cards at a time, and their deck is visible on their personalVMU screen in their controller, keeping it a secret from other players.[c] When it is a player's turn to move, they can choose to play a card from their hand, or play a random card from another player's hand. There is also a card which can be used to steal cards, swap hands with another player, or move one to seven spaces as decided by a shortslot machine style game. Finally, there is a card that will summonDoctor Eggman, who will steal the player'srings or swap their position on the board with another player.[2]
There are a variety of different spaces on the board. The most common spaces increase or subtract the player's ring count.[2] Rings can be used to purchasepower-ups in the form of "forcejewels" at special shop spaces.[3] These stones can give the player numerous advantages, such as selecting more than one card in one turn or teleporting to other players' positions. Battle spaces pit the player that lands on the space in a short card game against an enemy. There is also always one space that harbors a Precioustone. When one of these is collected by a player, another one is placed on the board. The goal of each game is to collect the most Precioustones.[2]
Finally there areminigame spaces. These spaces will launch a random minigame with either all the players, or just the player that landed on the space. The solo minigames are story-like sequences where the player must answer a question to win rings or gems, or lose them if answered wrong. The minigames that involve all the players come in a wide variety. Some are free-for-all games, while others pit the players against each other in two-versus-two or one-versus-three situations.[2]
Sonic Shuffle was developed bySega,[2] with assistance from theHudson Soft team behindMario Party (1998),[5][6] and supervision fromSonic Team.[1] Most sources attributed Sega as the developer[2][3][7] although some attributed the game to Sega's internal development teamSmilebit.[8][9] Smilebit had previously developedJet Set Radio (2000) for theDreamcast which was well regarded for itscel shaded visuals.[10] Sega used the same cel shading techniques inSonic Shuffle.[2]
Sega revealed that aSonic Adventure spin-off was in development alongsideSonic Adventure 2 in October 1999.[11] The game was revealed in the June 2000 issue ofElectronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) with the tentative titleSonic Square, shortly before theE3 trade fair that year. Sega had planned to reveal information aboutSonic Adventure 2 toEGM for the issue, but decided the game was not ready to be shown, and sharedSonic Square instead.[5] Support for online multiplayer throughSegaNet was planned, it was ultimately cut so the game could ship ahead of the 2000 holiday season.[7]Sonic Shuffle was released for the Dreamcast in North America on November 14, 2000,[12] in Japan on December 21,[13] and in Europe on March 9, 2001.[14] The game was expected to appear in the 2002 compilationSonic Mega Collection,[15] but was ultimately not included.[16]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 54/100[17] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| CNET Gamecenter | 4/10[18] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 5.17/10[19][d] |
| EP Daily | 6.5/10[20] |
| Eurogamer | 4/10[21] |
| Game Informer | 7/10[22] |
| GameRevolution | B−[4] |
| GameSpot | 4.5/10[23] |
| GameSpy | 5.5/10[3] |
| IGN | 4.7/10[24] |
| Next Generation |   [25] |
The game received "mixed" reviews according to thereview aggregation websiteMetacritic.[17]
Critics were quick to identify the game as an inferiorclone ofMario Party.[2][3][9][21][23] They found the minigames to be overly complex, poorly explained, and generally not as enjoyable as those inNintendo's flagship party series.[21][23][24] BothGameSpot andEurogamer felt as though the minigames were an afterthought, only appearing sparingly whereas inMario Party they were central to the experience.[21][23]GameSpot noted that it was possible to play through an entire game without ever playing a minigame, and felt that they were "a test of who can decipher the needlessly bewildering gameplay first".[23]IGN complained about needing to land on certain tiles to play the minigames.[24]Official Dreamcast Magazine (UK) argued that the minigames interfered with the main board game.[2]PlanetDreamcast felt that they were inconsistent in quality, and wished there had been an option to turn them off.[3] The long load times when transitioning between the main game board, the minigames, and other scenes was another common complaint.[9][26][27]GameSpot wrote: "The combination of the unbearable load times, the smattering of minigames, and the poor minigame design makeSonic Shuffle a boring diversion at best."[23]Eurogamer felt thatSamba de Amigo (1999) was a better party game.[21] Greg Orlando ofNextGen concluded his review of the game by saying: "In the end, this shuffle is a decent one, and the hand that's dealt from it can hardly be considered a throwaway."[25] Dr. Zombie ofGamePro said that the game "can be tedious in one-player mode, but it's clearly intended for multiplayer fun. Although it's the only party game for Dreamcasters,Sonic Shuffle deals a great hand for all to play."[28][e]
Most reviewers praised the colorful and cartoon styling of the cel shaded graphics.[23][24][4]GameRevolution praised the environment textures and felt the graphics were of the same high quality asJet Set Radio.[4] However, the graphics were not enough to convince critics.[9][21]Eurogamer wrote that the visuals and audio were "deceptively good", hiding the bad gameplay underneath.[21]Edge appreciated the visuals, but wrote that "ultimately, the game is dull. Under the dark shadow ofSonic Adventure 2, this tepid, diluted affair will have difficulty proving itself, even to franchise stalwarts".[9][f]Official Dreamcast Magazine (UK) andits American counterpart both felt that the game was more fun with human players rather than computer-controlled opponents, and complained about the lack of online support.[2][27]GameRevolution agreed, finding it boring waiting for computer players in single-player mode.[4]Official Dreamcast Magazine (US) felt that with more development time and support from Sonic Team, the game could have been saved.[27]
