The Sonic World Adventure

I have always loved Sonic the Hedgehog, ever since the bright colours, energetic music, and fast-paced gameplay blew away my tiny mind on the Mega Drive. My subsequent obsession with the character and franchise is one of the prime indicators of my significant neurodivergence. When I worked in fast food, I’d find ways to get some of the music played on a shift. When I worked as a teacher, I shoehorned Sonic into lessons. Now I’m a jaded adult, I run away from my problems at Sonic speed. (That’s almost a joke. I tend to stick around in them for far too long.)

Anyway, in 2008 a game was released called Sonic Unleashed. In Japan, it was called the Sonic World Adventure. It made the baffling decision to transform Sonic into a Werehog at night, yet despite this, it had some of the best levels in the franchise, based upon real-world locations. Here’s a pic of the Japanese boxart:

An absolute audio/visual treat, this game captured me as a something of a return to form. Do yourself a favour and listen to the glorious soundtrack:

So why is this in any way relevant? Well, at the terrifying age of 37 and having been single over 6 years, I was getting quite ready for a swift suicide shortly after the upcoming 40th birthday. I’ve always wanted to travel, take in beautiful locations, hesitantly try new things in a slightly awkward manner. The thing is though, that typically people holiday together. Families, couples, friends. My life has not worked out that way and if I was to wait for my perpetual singledom to end, then that planned un-aliving would be the only feasible option to defeat the ever-growing darkness. Positive vibes, babes.

I however am in the semi-frequent habit of raging against the dying of the light and also am quite aware of the various quirks of my personae. Hence, framing travel as a mission to visit the levels of Sonic Unleashed, the Sonic World Adventure, means I HAVE to do it. Considering the range of locations, and the various costs involved, I would at least be living past 45, and should be having a bloody good time doing so. And I could do it alone.

So where are these places? Here’s a bit of a breakdown, using the levels from the game to illustrate: