Retro Review: Sonic Adventure 2

By Ian Dean

Since a recent review focused on Sonic’s first 3D outing, I thought I’d follow it up with it’s sequel and one of the fans’ favourite entries to the series: Sonic Adventure 2. Initially released in 2001 on the Sega Dreamcast as part of Sonic’s 10th Anniversary, SA 2 also saw a Japanese re-release later that year for the Nintendo GameCube known as Sonic Adventure 2: Battle.

Just like Sonic Adventure, the sequel has found its way onto the modern console, with releases on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and PC, and just like the original, SA2 is released with a direct port of the original game whilst the extra content of Battle is available as DLC. Though this time the game supports widescreen, not a lot of extra work seems to have gone into this port, and, again, whilst I respect the desire to maintain the original experience, it seems a missed opportunity to update the game for modern audiences.

That said, it looks pretty sweet for a game that’s just over ten years old. Of course, the game looks ten years old, with low-resolution textures and some pretty low-poly character models, but it’s hardly the worst looking game I’ve played from the early 2000’s. The animation’s have received a significant boost from the original game, too, making the characters look far less awkward.

Unfortunately, the voice acting has only slightly improved, leaving the dialogue as wooden as ever. Some moments are better than others, but overall it’s fairly disappointing. Fortunately the dialogue is once again mostly drowned out by a good soundtrack, with plenty of energy and some pretty addictive tunes that you won’t be able to get out of your head.

As for gameplay, Sega have attempted to streamline the multiple characters into two group story arcs rather than several individual ones, with each character playing different levels in the story. Sonic, Tails and Knuckles form Team Hero, whilst Doctor Eggman recruits Shadow the Hedgehog and Rouge the Bat on Team Dark. Each team is a literal clone of the other. Sonic and Shadow race through each level as fast as possible, Knuckles and Rouge search for pieces of the Master Emerald, whilst Tails and Dr Eggman fight in their mechs.

The Sonic/Shadow stages are another traditional Sonic fare, racing from start to finish as fast as possible. Though an improvement over the good work in the original, the level design is atrocious, forcing the characters along a single designated path with no room for exploration or alternative routes. As for the Knuckles/Rouge levels, the levels are pretty neat with plenty to find, but the shard detector that lets you know when you’re near a shard is a waste of space, and the camera makes the act of exploring pretty difficult. Tails/Dr Eggman’s segments are simply dull, with the mech’s controlling like E-102 Gamma in Sonic Adventure. You hold the fire button to lock onto targets, then release. Poor camera work and shoddy level design really affects these already boring stages.

Though I lack the ability to truly test multiplayer, and so won’t discuss it here, I should reference the Chao Garden, something I overlooked in my previous review. By defeating robots and finding hidden goodies in the main game you gain animals, which can be taken into the Chao Garden and given to these little creatures known as Chao’s (pronounced ‘chow’). They absorb some of the animal’s base traits, so if you give it a cheetah, it will get faster, whilst if you give it a parrot, it will be a better flier. By managing what you give each Chao you can give them specific attributes, which can then be used in the Chao racing mini-game or the Chao Karate mini-game. Frankly, there’s little here for most gamers, but it is strangely addictive to anyone who spends too long there.

I can’t help but feel that Adventure 2 is one step forwards, two steps back for the franchise. It’s nowhere near as frustrating as the original Adventure title, and there are improvements to the controls and graphics. Overall, however, it’s just not as fun as previous instalments  with a lot of what makes Sonic good having been streamlined out the game. Whilst it can be fun, I fail to see how the game is the fan favourite of the series, aside from perhaps nostalgia. In the absence of Big the Cat, however, I give it: