Shadow is playable in Sonic Forces DLC

Shadow the Hedgehog, the oh-so-edgy fan favorite, will once again be playable in a Sonic game. A free, downloadable add-on for Sonic Forces will let fans check out Episode Shadow, a set of levels where the tortured ’hog gets the spotlight.

A short clip on the Sonic the Hedgehog YouTube account, above, hints at what we can expect from the Episode Shadow DLC. Unlike Shadow’s single starring role in Shadow the Hedgehog, this level pack — which includes three stages in total — will closely follow the mold of modern Sonic’s high-speed action platforming gameplay. We’ll see Shadow do some spin dashes around loop-de-loops and use his homing attack to take out robots.

There aren’t any guns for Shadow to whip around, as far as we can tell, unlike what the antihero wielded in his own game. But we haven’t had the chance to play as Shadow in several years — not since ... geez, Sega Superstar Tennis. As far as Sonic games are considered, the last one Shadow was playable in was the free-to-play mobile title Sonic Runners.

Big-time Sonic fans, consider this another reason to check out Sonic Forces when it launches on Nov. 7. Unless Shadow is way too hardcore for you, that is.