Post by Yoshi on Jan 17, 2009 14:58:04 GMT -5
Name: Sonic Adventure 2: Battle
Release date: February 12, 2002
ESRB Rating: E
System: Nintendo Gamecube
Genre: Platformer, Action Adventure
Multiplayer: Yes
Developer: Sonic Team USA
Publisher: Sega
Introduction
Once upon a time, there were two companies named Sega and Nintendo. They were very bitter rivals to dominate the gaming market and even developed slogans to draw the audience away from their opponent. Nintendo was always in the lead for sales until one fateful day when Sega released their ultimate weapon, the Dreamcast, and dominated the market. This led to countless fans joining Sega’s side in the console war and outselling the Nintendo 64 on a ratio of 3-1. Until one day, Sega did what almost nobody anticipated and stopped with the competition. They not only gave up on and began to develop games for Nintendo, but for Nintendo’s competitors as well (they mainly have their focus on Nintendo however). This game marked the first Sonic (Sega’s ever popular mascot) game to be released on a Nintendo console and made history for this very reason. Just how did Sega’s initial chance to prove themselves to Nintendo turn out? Let’s see!
Storyline
There are two storylines featured in this game: One is called Hero (starring Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles) and the other called Dark (featuring Shadow, Eggman, and Rouge). In the Hero story, the military force code named G.U.N captures Sonic and carries him onto an airplane. Sonic is unsure of why he has been captured and jumps off the plane and into the city. He soon discovers that a black hedgehog that looks like him has stolen a Chaos Emerald, thus realizing this animal is responsible for the trouble earlier. Off in a desert, Knuckles is searching for shards of the Master Emerald and Tails is coming to rescue Sonic from G.U.N. once again.
In the Dark story, Doctor Eggman seeks the secret weapon that his grandfather professor Gerald Robotnik created 50 years ago. Eggman infiltrates a top of the line security system and encounters Shadow. He initially is angry and mistakes Shadow for Sonic, but soon realizes that Shadow is this weapon. Shadow demonstrates his power by thrashing a powerful guard robot with ease. Off in a desert, Rouge rivals Knuckles for the Master Emerald shards. Eggman, Rouge, and Shadow soon begin working together in their mission to conquer the world! The story continues after completing a level and the story is extremely well done and polished.
10/10
Gameplay
Unlike the original Sonic Adventure where each character had their own adventure, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle puts together Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles on the Hero team while the Dark contains Shadow, Eggman, and Rouge. Both of the competing sides have Gameplay that is very similar for example; Sonic is controlled exactly like Shadow, and Sonic and they both run through levels in an attempt to get to the goal quickly (the faster you go, the bigger your score). Tails and Eggman ride mechanical robots that have the ability to shoot down all in their path. They both attempt to rack up a high score (by locking onto many enemies at once) and still try to get to the goal like Sonic and Shadow at the same time. Knuckles and Rouge glide through levels to search for varying kinds of treasure such as keys or Master Emerald shards. Each character also has a few boss battles where they must perform combat with a rival on the opposite side or with an enemy that fits with the environment. The Gameplay is filled with cheap glitches and bugs for every character. This is a large nuisance and especially irritates you when trying to get through a level quickly.
6/10
Graphics
The graphics in this game are stunning for their time period. To help reserve the original beauty, Sega has slightly patched up cut scenes and other visual things for a slightly better looking but still overall the same appearance. The background and the stages are often quite detailed and gorgeous! The core problem in the game lies in the frustration camera angle! The camera always finds some way of positioning itself in the most awkward place possible where your character is not visible and this often leads to a death or other misfortunes. If it weren’t for this, the graphics rating would be perfect.
7/10
Controls
The controls for the game are neither complex nor simple. Every character moves around by simply tilting the analog stick in the desired direction to walk or run depending on how much you tilt. Also everyone is fully capable of jumping by pressing the A button. Tails or Eggman can hold down A to stay in the air by hovering for a little longer and Rouge/Knuckles can glide around for long periods of time until touching the ground or canceling. Sonic and Shadow can press the A button a second time to jump forward or perform a homing attack if an enemy or object is in the vicinity. You can also pick up certain objects by pressing the B button but this is often inaccurate and requires you to spend several seconds to attempt picking it up, which should be simple. The L and R buttons move around the camera, but since this feature is so uncooperative there is ultimately no purpose to doing so. The controls are pretty good but when they have their mess-ups, they are often costly in the situation.
6/10
Multiplayer
When you have a friend over or are visiting a friend, you can enjoy the multiplayer mode. This mode enables you to do an Action Race, a Treasure Hunt, a Shooting Competition, Kart Racing, Chao Karate, or Chao Race! Each type competition is loaded with stages for you to enjoy with your friend. You get to select a character (including two of which are not playable in the main game per event), which can perform a special move in battle with the exception of a few characters. While Amy may be slow in a race she can pull of moves that damage her opponent or stop her rival’s time with less rings! Even with all the advantages and disadvantages around, everything turns out fair and a great multiplayer experience.
10/10
Bonuses
This game has much to offer in the way of bonuses. There is an area called the Chao Garden where you can enjoy raising your own cute little creatures called Chao. With these Chao you can hatch their eggs, feed them fruit, enhance their stats, perform races, do Karate, and much more! There’s so much thought into every little detail that went into developing this mode and it makes a great extra. Not only do you raise a Chao, but also you can make your Chao Hero or Dark just like the characters! You can visit the Black Market to buy items, visit Kindergarten to teach your Chao some cute moves, get a check-up from the Doctor, or give your Chao a name at the fortuneteller. If you want to take your Chao around the world in real life simply transfer it into your Gameboy Advance-even without a gamepak! There’s so much to do in this mode that you’ll be entertained by it alone after completing your main quests.
10/10
Sound
One of the finer qualities of the game is the effort that was put into the game’s audio. Many songs have actually vocals with guitar or a rapper and even those that don’t still boast a great sound. You’ll often find yourself humming the very catchy tune of “Escape From the City” by Crush 40 among many others. The characters actually converse during the many cut scenes and this adds even more value to the audio. These voices are well done and match correctly with their character, especially Shadow. The sounds themselves are pretty detailed and as always you’ve got that same old lovable ring noise!
10/10
Replay Value
The replay value in the game is tremendously high. Why? The levels have something about them that just grasp you and make you want to play them over and over again. You an also try special missions on almost every level (excluding boss battles) in an attempt to collect all 180 emblems or get A-Rank on every mission. The reward that lies for players who collect all emblems is very promising and is reason to keep on going. The Chao Garden is another reason to keep playing the game because of those adorable Chao creatures. Due to the camera angle and control issues though, you may be a little put off by the game, unfortunately.
9/10
Difficulty
The difficulty for the game is way too easy for the most part. You’ll often be beating levels without much challenge other than the unforgivable camera. A few levels seem out of place such as one of Knuckle’s levels in the mines that takes an awfully long time to find those Chaos Emeralds. The missions take the simple game to a slightly harder level but none put up a good fight except for the “Find the lost Chao” mission. If you’re looking for a challenge in this game you’ll be sorely disappointed unless you are quite new to gaming.
4/10
Overall
This doesn’t make sense…the ratings just don’t add up! Despite some pretty bad features of the game, you’ll find yourself in love with the storyline, levels, and just about everything else. The game is pretty cheap to pick up nowadays for $9.99. If you can get past the problems, you can find a Sonic game that is simply astounding and will keep you entertained for well over 100 hours (which is jaw dropping when you consider it is of the platformer genre..
9.5/10
