The game is definitively on the lower end of the sonic entries, but it's not terrible. The progression system lets the player choose what objective they want to do but it creates the problem of requiring 10 playthroughs to get the ending of the game. I went above and beyond and played all 326 possible routes on the game out of enjoyment towards the game.
The level design is similar to what you could encounter in sonic heroes, except you won't get any fly or power character segments as you can only play as shadow, who feels like a more "ballistic" speed type character from heroes. This plays both in favor and against this game, Shadow feels good to control on more straight roads and high speed sections but becomes a problem once you have to turn frequently or do more precise platforming, This does not become a huge problem as long as you don't mind slowing down every now and then.
The story is, while understandable, not that great or easy to put together as you only get bits of it through different playthroughs, not something many would do if they didn't enjoy the first run of the game.
A big point of this game is the guns you pick up along the path and they don't feel bad to use at all, the shooting system is simple enough to pick up and fully use quickly but still has you do some aiming to hit the right target, you get plenty of ammo so you shouldn't run out that easily and they feel quite strong all throughout the game.
The objectives in levels may deter some people from playing which is quite understandable if you play this for the few first times, but on repeated runs through a stage, they feel really "streamlined" with only very few exceptions of having to go out of your way to search for them so you can chain them quite frequently even on more open levels like Central City, Lost Impact or The Doom. This does not excuse the possibly bad experience a newcomer could have with these as some can be rather hidden if you aren't paying attention.
I can recommend giving the game a shot to try it and go for the real ending, but I do not recommend 100%ing the game as the process takes months to do and it's really underwhelming once you do.
In short: the game has some ideas going for it and the guns feel ok to use. Objectives become faster and faster on repeated playthroughs but someone can totally not enjoy the gameplay for valid reasons as it can drag on and be very confusing.
The level design is similar to what you could encounter in sonic heroes, except you won't get any fly or power character segments as you can only play as shadow, who feels like a more "ballistic" speed type character from heroes. This plays both in favor and against this game, Shadow feels good to control on more straight roads and high speed sections but becomes a problem once you have to turn frequently or do more precise platforming, This does not become a huge problem as long as you don't mind slowing down every now and then.
The story is, while understandable, not that great or easy to put together as you only get bits of it through different playthroughs, not something many would do if they didn't enjoy the first run of the game.
A big point of this game is the guns you pick up along the path and they don't feel bad to use at all, the shooting system is simple enough to pick up and fully use quickly but still has you do some aiming to hit the right target, you get plenty of ammo so you shouldn't run out that easily and they feel quite strong all throughout the game.
The objectives in levels may deter some people from playing which is quite understandable if you play this for the few first times, but on repeated runs through a stage, they feel really "streamlined" with only very few exceptions of having to go out of your way to search for them so you can chain them quite frequently even on more open levels like Central City, Lost Impact or The Doom. This does not excuse the possibly bad experience a newcomer could have with these as some can be rather hidden if you aren't paying attention.
I can recommend giving the game a shot to try it and go for the real ending, but I do not recommend 100%ing the game as the process takes months to do and it's really underwhelming once you do.
In short: the game has some ideas going for it and the guns feel ok to use. Objectives become faster and faster on repeated playthroughs but someone can totally not enjoy the gameplay for valid reasons as it can drag on and be very confusing.