2003 Sega
Not too far behind the release of the original (and very enjoyable) Sonic Advance for Game Boy Advance, Sonic Team has quenched the thirst of Sonic fans everywhere for a second time with Sonic Advance 2.
Sonic Advance 2, whilst still retaining the core principles of the Sonic franchise, has managed to freshen the gameplay experience significantly in this latest instalment. For instance, the playable characters in the game no longer simply "run and jump" or in some cases "run, jump and fly". This time around, there are some quite fundamental differences between each character. A clear example would be Cream the Rabbit (a new character) who is accompanied by her companion, called "Cheese". Of course, like the other characters, Cream is capable of curling into a ball, running at high speeds and jumping into enemies to attack them. She's also able to fly by utilizing her long ears. However, her main difference is with the addition of Cheese, a small Chao who floats nearby. By pressing the B Button, Cream will direct Cheese to attack the nearest enemy. And when in the air, you can press the B Button and down on the D-Pad to have Cheese circle Cream once; particularly useful when it comes to avoiding enemy attacks mid-air. Even Sonic's roster of moves has been added to -- he can now perform his homing attack (seen in the Dreamcast and GameCube Sonic Adventure games) and he can even perform a kind of "downward strike" from mid-air. Each character in Sonic Adventure 2 has been given their own unique attacks and in addition, there are several air-based attacks that can be used by all characters.
In addition to new characters and new character moves, Sonic Team has attempted to expand Sonic Advance 2 in other ways. The Chao Garden, for example, has been added to in a variety of ways, including new mini games. Grinding has been made a little easier (and more frequent) in Sonic Advance 2 and the levels themselves appear to have been significantly expanded in all directions. And so, some characters are designed to progress a little more slowly and explore (Knuckles, for example) whilst others are geared more toward blazing through the obstacle courses as fast as possible (Sonic).
Features
- Larger levels and a greater sense of speed than Sonic Advance
- Unique multiplayer mode, including two seperate challenges
- Five characters, each with their own special abilities
- All-new character "Cream the Rabbit"
- Link-up capabilities with Sonic Adventure 2 on GameCube
- Improved Chao Garden features
James Burns: As a longtime Sonic fan, I was very pleased to play Sonic Advance. Even though I greatly enjoyed both Sonic Adventure games, I felt that the non-Sonic additions were really a waste of time. In Sonic Adventure 2, the treasure hunting levels in particular were highly tedious for me. They were boring, unbalanced and almost painful to play. To me, this wasn't what Sonic games are all about. And I found myself wading through the treasure hunting and shooter levels in order to play the Sonic and Shadow areas. Unfortunately, those areas were too few and far between.
Sonic Advance was truly what I was looking for; a proper, new, 2D Sonic game. And Sonic Advance really hit the spot. But having said that, Sonic Advance 2 is actually a far better game and is definitely my favourite platformer in recent months.
Sonic Advance 2 gets everything right, from a Sonic fan's perspective. The level designs in particular are almost perfect here; you won't find yourself building up speed and enjoying that feeling of snaking through tunnels and over winding bridges only to be hit by an unfairly placed wall of spikes. This was one complaint that I did have about the original game -- there were too many instances were large open pits were placed or where some other unseen obstacle would suddenly pop-up. Sonic Advance 2 really addresses this issue very well. The levels are absolutely massive and are clearly designed to encourage high speed movement. Springs and other "bouncy objects" are very cleverly placed, so that in some cases, you can find yourself dashing around for about a minute or more without any interruption. Of course, there will be times where you'll need to think quickly. In some cases, you'll be coming down off a grind bar and you'll need to jump up to a higher platform -- but if you fail to do so, you won\'t instantly drop into some bottomless void underneath the level. Rather, you'll simply hit another path that might lead you through an underground cavern. I've noticed that this happens frequently in Sonic Advance 2; if you miss a jump, you often won't actually fall into a pit and die. Rather, you'll find yourself moving through some other unseen passageway. And in many cases, you will notice many alternating paths that move through the same area.
Level design is what ultimately makes or breaks a Sonic game. Effective use of grindbars, loops, springs and other objects can make the difference between a truly entertaining experience and hair-pulling frustration. Sonic Advance 2 provides the perfect balance in terms of level design. While I'm not yet at the end of the game as I write this (I received the game only yesterday), I can safely say that Sonic Advance 2 contains the most impressive level designs in any 2D Sonic game so far. And considering the clever level designs of classic Sonic games, that's quite a credit to Sonic Advance 2.
As mentioned in the game description earlier, there are five different characters to control in Sonic Advance 2. And while I found this to be relatively pointless in the original GBA game, it becomes much more interesting and entertaining in the sequel. In Sonic Advance, the characters can generally be seperated into two groups; fast moving with no other significant abilities and slow moving with flight and/or climbing ability. While that same basic principle holds true in the sequel, the addition of new unique moves for each character also expands the variety quite significantly. The game's new character, Cream, seems to be a great combination of both groups. On the one hand, she's able to fly for relatively long distances. On the other, her speed is not compromised; she can still travel almost as fast as Sonic. And when you add Cheese into the mix (with his enemy attacking abilities), Cream becomes quite a useful character throughout the game; particularly in regard to boss battles.
And that's another point; boss battles. Sonic Advance 2 approaches bosses differently to other games in the series (with the possible exception of Sonic & Knuckles). In this latest game, you won't find yourself moving to a static area and fighting Robotnik (or Eggman, if you prefer) overhead. Rather, you'll enter an area where the screen begins to scroll very quickly and Robotnik will appear in front of you, on the other side of the screen. Essentially, these battles can be best described as a "chase" scenario. The screen scrolls rapidly from left to right, with you on the left and Robotnik on the right. You'll need to push the D-Pad to the right to catch up with Robotnik, but you\'ll have to be careful; if you let go even a little, you'll slide all the way back to the left due to the continually scrolling screen. Thankfully, you aren't punished for sitting against the edge of the screen (which can happen in many "scrolling" games). In these boss battles, the focus is not only on attacking Robotnik; you also have to consider your distance from him and you have to choose the right moment to move in and strike. But because it takes a moment to approach Robotnik, due to the scrolling, you have to plan your move a little more carefully. For his part, Robotnik takes advantage of this situation by alternating the timing and distance of his attacks accordingly. This can make some boss battles surprisingly difficult and a little more strategic than with other games in the series.
Movement and controls are, as with most Sonic games, superb. Every character controls extremely smoothly and accurately. You certainly won't find yourself dying due to poor control response or anything of that nature. And when the screen scrolls, you will actually feel that change in the movement of each character.. Everything is very tight and there is no sense of clumsiness when controlling characters, which is obviously very important for a Sonic game.
Visually, Sonic Advance 2 is the best looking Sonic game yet. Character animations are even more fluid than in its predecessor and the variety of expressions (both body and facial expressions) that the characters demonstrate is quite remarkable. When Sonic grinds, for example, he has this very determined look on his face as though he's an absolute master. But when Cream grinds, she has this completely awkward facial expression; as though she's concerned that her skirt will fold up over her head at any moment. Some of the facial expressions and funny little movements are actually pretty humorous and they really enhance the character of the game.
The level designs are, as mentioned above, fantastic. On a functional level, you couldn't ask for more balanced level design. And on a purely aesthetic level, you'll find a greater sense of variety and liveliness in Sonic Advance 2's levels than in those of its predecessor. The backgrounds are bright and colourful, with plenty of animation. The foreground is also very sharp and full of movement. In particular, I really loved the Music Plant level. As you run around, you'll bounce off piano keys and even guitar strings. You will notice that each surface will create a musical sound as you touch or bounce off it. In some cases, you'll be bouncing back and forth very rapidly, which will almost create a unique little tune. It's a great effect and it really adds a sense of life to the level itself.
And then there's the sound. Once again, this is an area where I have nothing but praise. Sound effects are clear and varied; there is even some limited voice sampling (though not from actual characters, but from an announcer of sorts). And, as I mentioned with regard to the Music Planet level, sound effects can often be quite amusing and interesting. Music is much the same. The music tracks are pretty catchy (some are actually among the very best I've ever heard on GBA) and the quality is pretty high. Of course, that quality is degraded by the GBA\'s unsatisfactory speaker. It's really sad that a game with such gorgeous visuals, well-balanced gameplay and fantastic music can be limited by the poor speaker; it really does affect the atmosphere. But, nevertheless, I'm unwilling to fault Sonic Team for any lower quality music, because I do consider that the speaker is primarily to blame.
At the end of the day, Sonic Advance 2 is what a sequel should be: more refined, balanced and more expansive than the original. Sonic Advance 2 satisfies on all fronts -- and then some. If you're an "old school" Sonic fan, then you've probably already purchased this game. But if you haven't, you should. I was pleasantly surprised at how great this title turned out to be and I'm sure that any Sonic fan will adore it.
Even if you're not particularly a big Sonic fan, I think it's well worth taking a look at this game. It's so much better than the original Sonic Advance and is ultimately one of the best Sonic games Sega has ever released. This game is yet another reason to be thankful for your GBA.