WhileSonic X Shadow Generationsisn’t exactly known for its difficulty, quite a few challenge gates put you in a difficult situation. Usually, that’s by enforcing a frustrating gimmick onto you, but others have genuinely engaging and cool challenges, just buried under all the lackluster ones.
Sonic X Shadow Generations: Best Levels Ranked
Sonic X Shadow Generations has quite a few incredible levels throughout both campaigns, and picking favorites is what this list is all about.
Shadow Generations has less of this problem than Sonic, given all the challenges there are pretty straightforward, but even still, there’s a few that’ll give you a hard time.
If you want to know which parts of these games will make you struggle, then these are the few that’ll put you to the test.
For this list, I’ll be taking into account the hard mode challenges in Shadow Generations, and I’ll be talking about the experience of S ranking these missions, as going for any rank makes every challenge incredibly easy. I’ll also consider the hard-mode bosses, for variety.
10With Your Powers Combined
Classic’s Final Test.
Alright, I’ll level with you. Sonic Generations has some of the easiest S ranks in the entire series, and Shadow Generations only has a few genuinely hard ones. I’ve picked out about eight S ranks that I think are genuinely somewhat difficult, but these first two only present a mild challenge.
That said, With Your Powers Combined has a decent S rank, which is fun and challenging enough that it might take an attempt or two.
It’s fitting enough for it to be difficult, given it’s a test of using all three elemental shieldson Classic Sonic’s final stage, but if you ask me, it should be way harder than it is.
9Egg Dragoon (Hard)
Time For a Change of Pace!
The first of many hard-mode boss fights to take up residence on this list, the Egg Dragoon is one of the only ones with a super noticeable set of changes.
It gets a new attack in the open phase, the rails are harder to grind on due to some fun spike placements, and it can take quite a few more hits.
That said, because Sonic Generations is always so generous with its S rank requirements, you just need to beat the boss without dying to secure this one.
That isn’t too hard, since there isn’t much in the way of instakills or hard platforming, but due to the need for near-perfection in some areas, it may prove a stern test for some.
8Aim and Fire with Chaos Spear! (Hard)
Grinding Out the Ranks.
Here comes the first of these challenges that I’d consider moderately challenging. This mission has you grinding across rails, dodging enemies, and throwing dozens of Chaos Spears at targets.
This level of multitasking can be tough on the brain, and you have to do it all while trying your best to go fast. You know, the Sonic staples.
Despite Delisting, Sega Original Sonic Generations Will Be Available In A Sonic Bundle
With the release of Sonic X Shadow Generations on the horizon, fans will be happy to know that the game’s original release won’t be erased.
The time limit isn’t too strict, so as long as you aren’t taking the scenic route on the rails, you should be able to get it down in a few tries. It is still incredibly fun to play this level fast, even if it’s not technically necessary to go for every single optimization possible.
7Beware of Spinning Spikes! (Hard)
Slipping Through Spiky Situations.
If you played Sonic Forces and, for some strange reason, really wished Sunset Heights in Shadow Generations had more of the janky object spam charm, this stage is for you.
It has a bunch of spinning spikes, hard-to-dodge obstacles, and some enemy placements that pressure you into taking unnecessary risks.
It’s actually well-designeddespite the Mario Maker-esque appearance, quite a decent challenge since you have to avoid every single spike and only get a few rings to do so.
You also have to choose between more time or more rings, so whether you want the rank or survivability, that is up to you.
6Perfect Chaos (Hard)
Danger, Water Rising.
Unlike most other “hard” bosses in Sonic Generations, Perfect Chaos presents a decent challenge. Namely, you have to platform across precarious pieces of pavement, with even the slightest slip-up being an instant death.
Dying usually isn’t a problem due to the copious checkpoints, but you need everything done in one go for the S rank.
Of course, this is unfortunately counterbalanced by Sonic Generations' tendency to give out S ranks for free once you’ve beaten the level, so the challenge of avoiding perishing is about all that’s there.
This is the only boss that is genuinely hard to do, so it earns its spot on this list, at least.
5Vector: Pick Up the Beat
A True Crime.
The final Sonic Generations entry on this list, which thankfully no longer deletes your save data, the notorious “Stupid Vector Mission” is pretty hard.
It has you bouncing a musical note back between you and the Crocodile, and it can get pretty hectic and challenging.
This is namely because to get the S rank, you have to get right up in Vector’s face and know the exact direction the note will get sent on each hit.
This makes it more of a game of rigid and unpleasant memorization, and the execution is often difficult too, due to the finicky homing attack. It earns its spot up here, even if it’s mostly unfair.
4Mephiles (Hard)
Getting Tilted at the Towers
Because Sonic is a fraud and gets most S ranks for free, Shadow has to pick up the slack by making all his boss fights have strict rank requirements.
That said, Mephiles is the easiest of the hard mode fights, mostly just making you do the entire fight without taking any damage to earn the coveted S-Rank.
This isn’t an easy feat, though, as every clone, big slam attack, or random shockwave can end the run instantly.
As a tip, remember to mash the attack button until he teleports 3 times, then go for the doom blast, to eke out just a little bit more damage before each attack. After that, just don’t mess up too badly for the S.
3Chaos Control Master (Hard)
All That for 25 Seconds.
You may wonder why an incredibly short level is harder than the second to last boss of the game, and it’s a fair question. Your guess is as good as mine, honestly.
This challenge has you going through a portion of Rail Canyon Act 2 with the entire stage crumbling, and you need to make incredibly good use of Chaos Control to nab the S rank.
A Sonic Riders Remaster Is Exactly What 2024 Needs
There’s been a dearth of Jet the Hawk content over the last two decades.
This requirement is tight. Even my absolute best run, in which I did everything perfectly, was only about five seconds away from losing that S.
It’s also an incredibly fun and sick challenge, and thanks to the short duration and the cool chaos emerald gimmicks, you won’t mind trying over and over to achieve perfection here.
2Biolizard (Hard)
Never Lose Your Confidence
While the actual hard mode additions of giving you very few rings and adding a few extra attacks don’t change much, they still did give the Biolizard an incredibly hard S rank in this form.
This boss fight asks you to play perfectly to get that shiny rank, and it’s quite the doozy.
First, jump on every attack because any shockwave means death, and second, preserve your Chaos Control to hit the arms and destroy them instantly.
It’s manageable, sure, but one slip-up means you’re not getting that rank, so I hope you like restarting for the perfect run.
1Metal Overlord (Hard)
Simple Curiosity.
Potentially one of the hardest S ranks since Unleashed, Metal Overlord requires you to be perfect, so I hope you like Doom Surf.
On top of the hard mode, which adds a ton of obstacles to the arena and gives him quite the beefy health bar, the S rank is so strict that you may’t even play slightly suboptimally.
My only real tips and tricks are to constantly hit back any piece you see in the water, make sure to land every hit possible using rainbow rings or Chaos Control, and avoid getting hit.
There’s not much else you may do to ensure an S other than getting good, and it is most certainly the biggest challenge this package has to offer.
