I played some of this in Tokyo and I enjoyed it. The speed stuff is good if you approach it from a time-trial perspective rather than expecting traditional platformer. In a time-trial sense, it's actually pretty good, with QTEs that make sense and a feeling of awesomeness when you do a speedy section right without fucking up.
You can feel like you're on autopilot for sure, but it's not just a case of holding one button. To make a run that looks as good as those trailers will take more than holding a button. It's possible to look like ass while running, missing rings, mis-timing a lock-on jump, etc. I screwed up a few times while people were watching and it's embarrassing. However, when you succeed, you feel pretty cool. The aim of the speed levels is to not look like an ass, basically. I think it succeeds in that respect.
The Werehog stuff is solid. It's not mindblowing, but fuck, it's no more repetitive than, say, Dead Space. The combos are simple and there is some user-friendly Prince of Persia-style platforming to go on as well. I liked it.
Where I think Sega was clever was in its combining of the two types of gameplay. If it was one type of playstyle its own, I am certain this game would be boring. By combining two types of play that aren't exactly long-lasting on their own, my hope is that the game continues to be fresh. We'll see though.
My impressions are based on only two levels of play, one speed stage and one werehog stage. The rest of the game could be trash, but I can't say one way or another. I hold out hope that this will be a fun little game.
