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Windmill Isle

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Windmill Isle
Apotos' level, Sonic Unleashed
Number of Acts: 6 (including DLC)
Level themes: tropical island, urban

Windmill Isle and its hub town Apotos form the first level of Sonic Unleashed. Based on the Greek island of Mykonos, the level is notable for its striking whitewashed houses and windmills. As such, the area is called White Island (ホウイト アイランド houito airando) in the Japanese version of the game, Sonic World Adventure. Sonic will travel through a coastal town and lush seaside fields. Windmill Isle is a fairly straightforward level, with few noteworthy gimmicks.

The nighttime Act Stages introduce the player to combat, lifting doors, using the werehog's arms for platforming, and balancing on beams.

Aloof pelicans can be seen dotted around Windmill Isle, possibly inspired by Petros the Pelican who was the official mascot of Mykonos before being run over by a car in December 1985.

Story

Apotos' flag

Sonic arrives in pre-dawn Apotos from orbit, having been jettisoned out of Dr. Robotnik's space platform in the opening sequence. While his impact was made slightly less painful by a mysterious green light, the werehog still has to pull his head out of a crater. Scanning around, Sonic finds the discharged Chaos Emeralds... as well as a strange-looking amnesic animal lying on the ground. The two reason that the creature must have lost his memories thanks to the knock on the head when Sonic fell on him; Sonic promises to help look around and see if they can find anyone who can shed light on his identity.

At this point, the sun comes up, and Sonic transforms back into his more familiar, cobalt-blue form. After sprinting through the tutorial level, Windmill Island Day Act 1, the pair arrive in the Apotos hub town, and are immediatly distracted from their counter-amnesia quest by The Ice Cream Man's magnum opus product, the Chocolate Chipped Creme Sunday Supreme. While eating their cones, Sonic gives his new companion the name "Chip", reasoning "I gotta call you something, don't I?".

Investigating the town (and Day Act 2) yields no clues about Chip's identity. When the sun goes down, Sonic transforms back into the Werehog - and, curiously, finds some of the townsfolk afflicted by an uncharacteristic malaise. This oddity, however, is quickly pushed to the side when other people tell of a two-tailed fox who passed through recently.

After Sonic and Chip save Tails from the Dark Gaia minions and explain the story so far to him, the fox suggests they go see Professor Pickle at Spagonia university, as he might be able to shed some light on what exactly Eggman has done to Sonic and the planet. The three take off in the Tornado-1, which begins the first Tornado Defence stage.

Town - Apotos

Some of the characters in Apotos.
With a lovely ocean backdrop, this port town marks the start of Sonic's adventure.

— World map description

Characters

1. Milos- (ミロス) The kind and courteous owner of Surfside Seagull Sundries. It's been three decades since he opened the Gull, but not much has changed; Milos still lives the same peaceful life. He loves to gaze out at the water as the sea breeze blows by.

2. Lambros- (ランブロス) The finest sailor in Apotos. The sea is his life, every boat his mistress. He spends most of the year out at sea. Despite his appearance (he's strong as an ox and gruff as a grizzly), Lambros is quite a loving father.

3. Alexis- (アレクシス) Lambros's son, a wild, unruly boy. Alexis hardly ever sees his father, and can't help but miss him at times.

4. Eric- (エリック) Anastasia's husband, an 80-year old man who's in absolutely no rush to hit 81. Eric believes himself to be very in tune with his wife, and helps interpret her murky mumblings, but something always seems to get lost in translation...

5. Gregorios- (グレゴリウス) A mild-mannered elder of Apotos whose honesty and integrity have earned him the villagers' trust. He does tend to be something of a worrywart, though. Lately, concern for the planet and the villagers has kept him up at night, leaving him a bit bleary-eyed.

6. Lucas- (ルーカス) A sailor with a distinctive chuckle who also happens to be Lambros's accomplice at sea. Something about that chuckle reeks of secrets, but maybe it's better that way: some secrets, the world just isn't ready for.

7. Sandra- (サンドラ) An elderly lady whose greatest joy in life is to travel from country to country and rub noses with the people who live there. She's always willing to share stories from her international adventures. Rumor has it Sandra's day job is running a large corporation. Not bad for an old gal!

8. Anastasia- (アナスタシア) Eric's wife, talkative but toothless after misplacing her dentures. Her husband usually steps in to interpret her attempts at speech. Anastasia has her husband thoroughly convinced she is a gentle and modest lady... but the jury's still out on that one.

9. The Ice Cream Man- (アイス屋) A cheerful cone slinger who claims to sell the world's tastiest ice cream. His latest creation in the quest for perfection: Apotos seaweed sherbet. Every quest has its bumps along the way, it seems.

10. Hot Dog Vendor- (ホットドッグ屋) The manager of the "Don Fachio" hot dog mega-franchise's Apotos location. He's got more gusto than anyone else in the biz, and whips up a mean dog tinged with a refreshing hint of fresh mint.

Acts - Windmill Isle (360/PS3)

Main Game

Day Act 1

The first level of the game, Windmill Island Day Act 1 is a short level filled with tutorial tips, where Chip talks the player through the controls on the HUD. The level is notoriously tricky to S-rank, despite being the first and one of the shortest. It is the only level in the game to include red Egg Fighters.

Day Act 2

This is the "main" daytime Windmill Isle stage, where the Hot Dog Trials take place. Here Sonic and Chip are supposedly exploring the town to see if they can find any clues to the flying creature's identity.

Day Act 3

A short stage composed exclusively of grindrails. To get an S-Rank, keep Boosting and make sure you hit as many rainbow loops as possible.

Night Act 1

The main night act, Sonic rushes to find Tails, saving him from a plaza full of Dark Gaia minions led by a Titan.

Night Act 2

A combat-oriented act taking place in a circular plaza, with 12 lift-able doors. Find the 3 keys and place them on the appropriate plinths. You have to fight a Titan for the Goal Ring to appear.

Apotos and Shamar Adventure Pack DLC

The fifth Sonic Unleashed downloadable content is the Apotos and Shamar Adventure Pack, serving as the first content pack to update two continents with new stages. Windmill Isle gains one new daytime stage, and harder or extended versions of two daytime and two nighttime stages. It was released on Xbox Live for 250 MS Points on 21 May, 2009 and on the PlayStation Network for $3.00 on 04 June, 2009.

Day Act 1-2 and 2-2

Day Acts 1-2 and 2-2 are harder versions of Act 1 and Act 2 respectively. Act 1-2 requires players to play the level backwards at first as well as exploring a few new areas out of the level's normal bounds before running through a modified version of the level proper.

Day Act 4

Day Act 4 requires players to skillfully use the quickstep maneuver to dodge spike bars and flamethrowers among other hazards.

Night Act 1-2 and 1-3

Night Acts 1-2 and 1-3 are mini-stages taking place at the end of the normal night level. Act 1-2 has players going through a small platforming segment to reach a gemstone puzzle while Act 1-3 makes players fight swarms of enemies in the last room with the enemies dealing more damage as well as having more HP and being harder to defeat with a Critical Hit maneuver.

Hot Dog Trials

These missions can be accessed by speaking with the hot dog vendor in Apotos after completing the corresponding Day or Night Act. Completing a level 1 mission unlocks the level 2 mission and earns 1 Breezy Dog, completing a level 2 mission unlocks the level 3 mission and earns 2 Breezy Dogs, completing a level 3 mission earns 3 Breezy Dogs and completing all of them will unlock the Gyro with Relish Achievement.

Day Time Trial

  • Level 1 - Finish the stage in 4 Minutes and 30 Seconds
  • Level 2 - Finish the stage in 3 Minutes and 30 Seconds
  • Level 3 - Finish the stage in 2 Minutes and 30 Seconds

Day Battle Trial

  • Level 1 - Destroy 15 enemies or more and finish the stage
  • Level 2 - Destroy 20 enemies or more and finish the stage
  • Level 3 - Destroy 25 enemies or more and finish the stage

Day Ring Trial

  • Level 1 - Finish the stage with 100 Rings or more
  • Level 2 - Finish the stage with 200 Rings or more
  • Level 3 - Finish the stage with 300 Rings or more

Night Time Trial

  • Level 1 - Finish the stage in 20 Minutes
  • Level 2 - Finish the stage in 15 Minutes
  • Level 3 - Finish the stage in 10 Minutes

Night Survival

  • Level 1 - Finish the stage without being able to heal
  • Level 2 - Finish the stage without being able to heal. Werehog starts with 1/2 Health
  • Level 3 - Finish the stage without being able to heal. Werehog starts with 1/4 Health

Acts - Windmill Isle (PS2/Wii)

Day Acts

Head for the goal ring 1

Sonic the Hedgehog
Act title: Head for the goal ring 1
Level number: 1-1
S-rank requirement:
Under 1 minute, 10 seconds
A-rank requirement:
Under 1 minute, 20 seconds
B-rank requirement:
Under 2 minutes

This act takes place around the outskirts of Apotos, much like Windmill Isle Act 1 in the 360 and PS3 versions of the game.

Head for the goal ring 2

Sonic the Hedgehog
Act title: Head for the goal ring 2
Level number: 1-2
S-rank requirement:
Under 3 minutes, 50 seconds
A-rank requirement:
Under 4 minutes, 20 seconds
B-rank requirement:
Under 5 minutes, 20 seconds

This act takes place on the main streets of Apotos, much like Windmill Isle Act 2 in the 360 and PS3 versions of the game. The biggest noticeable difference in design between the two is the inclusion of the Interceptor chase across the bridge at the end in this stage, which doesn't appear at all in the other versions.

Tutorial Missions

Like the 360 and PS3 and 360 version of the game, Windmill Isle serves as the tutorial stage. However, the tutorial stages are now split into seperate missions instead of one act.

  • Use jumps to reach the Goal Ring!
  • Use Sonic Drift on turns!
  • Chain Homing Attacks together!
  • Blast off with Sonic Boost!
  • Slip under obstacles by sliding!
  • Dodge on a dime with a Quick Step!

Extra Missions

  • Gather rings at top speed! - Collect 100 rings in 1 minute. This mission takes place around the middle of Head for the goal ring 2.
  • Reach the goal unscathed! - Reach the goal without taking damage. This missions begins just before the Interceptor chase.
  • Gather rings at top speed! - Collect 100 rings in 1 minute. This mission takes place at the beginning Head for the goal ring 2.
  • Time Attack! Race for the goal! - Time Attack mission for Head for the goal ring 2. Starts at the beginning of the stage and ends right before the Interceptor chase.

Night Acts

Act I: Moonlit Town

Sonic the Werehog
Act title: Moonlit Town
Level number: 1-1
S-rank requirement:
Time: Under 6 minutes

Rings: 104 or more
Gaia Force: 816 or more

This act takes place around the streets of Apotos at night time. Around the middle of the stage, a barrier will appear. The three keys to unlock the barrier can be found on the street right after it appears, on the blue deck above the tables around the cafe area, and behind the door right next to the barrier.

Act II: Moonsoaked Alleys

Sonic the Werehog
Act title: Moonsoaked Alleys
Level number: 1-2
S-rank requirement:
Time: Under 7 minutes

Rings: 168 or more
Gaia Force: 1056 or more

This act starts off on a small stretch overlooking the ocean area. Near the middle of the stage are some buildings that Sonic must climb using the pegs, bars, and ledges attached to them. At the end of the stage is a wooden elevator shaft leading to the cliffs, where the goal ring lies near the bottom.

Act III: Hill Beneath Starry Skies

Sonic the Werehog
Act title: Hill Beneath Starry Skies
Level number: 1-3
S-rank requirement:
Time: Under 7 minutes

Rings: 120 or more
Gaia Force: 1872 or more

This act takes place in the gardens of Apotos - an area of Apotos doesn't appear in the 360 and PS3 versions. It is much more open and vegetated than the previous two acts. Explore the stone porches and find the three keys to open the barrier.

Tutorial Missions

  • Dash and jump!
  • Use those arms to get acrobatic!
  • Rack up an attack combo!
  • Grab something, then throw!
  • Let fly the Were-Hammer!

Training Missions

Whenever Sonic the Werehog learns a new technique, a special training mission for that technique will appear in the Windmill Isle stage select that teaches the player how to use the new technique.

  • Let 'em have it with the Beatdown!
  • Preemptive strike! Were-Claw!
  • Take flight with the Were-Wallop!
  • Unleash the ultimate Earthshaker!

Extra Missions

  • Be unstoppable in Unleashed Mode!
  • String along an even bigger combo!

Gallery


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