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Does Sonic Adventure 2 still hold up?

So if the XBL/PSN port does exist, how many of you would get it?

It'd be a pretty quick buy for me. It'd also be great if they added the multiplayer from Battle and made it online capable. There was some good I had with friends in that mode.
I'm a sick person, so I'd get it.

Especially if my crazy haphazard dream of playable Sonic and Shadow in JSR HD from buying SA2 came true
 
So if the XBL/PSN port does exist, how many of you would get it?

It'd be a pretty quick buy for me. It'd also be great if they added the multiplayer from Battle and made it online capable. There was some good I had with friends in that mode.

I have Sonic Adventure 1 already and enjoy both titles, therefore it'd be a quick purchase.

I'm also a sick person, so I'd buy it for someone else! >:)
 
In retrospect I'm kind of shocked that Sega never jumped on the market for a dedicated chao game.

In an alternate timeline we are all wishing for the return of sonic after Sega has made nothing but chao games for the last seven years.

So if the XBL/PSN port does exist, how many of you would get it?

It'd be a pretty quick buy for me. It'd also be great if they added the multiplayer from Battle and made it online capable. There was some good I had with friends in that mode.

I'd grab it the first time it dips under $10
 
I just sigh and shake my head a little each time. There's simply too much guitar, and the tone of it never really changes any. It's such a step back from the wild diversity SA1 employed.
^___^

I agree with you somewhat, but like I've said many times before whenever the subject's brought up, the songs are generally fun to play and tab out so I get a lot out of the SA2 soundtrack. I can't deny that SA1's soundtrack is very good and very diverse, but I just prefer SA2 because I've done a lot more with the tracks on that soundtrack. Plus it fits into the genres of music that happened to be popular at the time (well, where I live anyway), so at least it's consistent somewhat.

How can you have Colors and not 2006? they're practically the same thing...
How did I miss this wonderful gem?
KuGsj.gif


So if the XBL/PSN port does exist, how many of you would get it?
I would~
 
So if the XBL/PSN port does exist, how many of you would get it?

It'd be a pretty quick buy for me. It'd also be great if they added the multiplayer from Battle and made it online capable. There was some good I had with friends in that mode.

If getting the JSR treatment, It's an insta-purchase on steam. And it's a double-dip on the 360, if they added the online from Battle like you mentioned.

I've always said that I'll buy all the remakes released up to the end of the DC era - and, yeah, that includes Shuffle; a HD up-make of it with online play and a few enhancements could be a pretty good thing. I'd didn't get SA till it dropped to basically nothing, though; that shitty port.
 
I just have this strong feeling that Sega will do exactly what they did with SA2 as they did with the first one for the XBLA/PSN port: Give the Dreamcast version at $10, then add the "Battle" portion as DLC for an extra $5.

If that happens, I'll just play a demo of it and move on with my life.
 
*sitting down, when all of a sudden...*
I feel...a disturbance. What is this?
The thing about Sonic game soundtracks, they are ALWAYS good, no matter what.
THE BEEF SIGNAL!

I CAME AS QUICK AS I HEARD, GAF. DON'T WORRY, I GOT THIS.

On-topic: Fuck no this game doesn't hold up. The only good parts of this game involve Sonic and Shadow's gameplay. Everything else can burn in a fire.

And don't even get me started on how much I fucking loathe those insufferable Chaos.
 
Sonic Team wants to make sure everyone knows who GUN is before they release Sonic Adventure 3. They noticed people got confused in Sonic Generations when this random truck came out of nowhere that really hated Sonic.

oh and i don't think SA2 story is that bad

where i think story gets bad is shadow the hedgehog, it's so bad it's funny... it's sad, because you can tell Iizuka-san was deadset on making it serious, but it's just funny lol

example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=WQpDCLKaQUU#t=122s
 
I also consider Adventure 1, 2, and 3/Knuckles to have the best stories in the entire Sonic franchise.



Yeah, but it's not really the "fishing" that makes it bad, it's just the fishing mechanic is bad itself. At least for me anyway.

Disagree with Adventure 2. Everything else I agree.

When you have Sonic the Hedgehog sitting in a fucking limo with the President of the United States, you know you fucked up your story.

Adventure did it right. Everyone had character based plots and story arcs. Sonic is after Eggman, period. Tails, always ignored by Sonic, must survive on his own when separated. Amy is protecting a bird from a crazy robot. Knuckles wants to restore the Master Emerald. Gamma must "free" his brothers. Big is after his best friend. Thats it. There's like a half hour devoted to fighting Chaos at the end, but even that mythology fits in with the world and story of Angel Island and the Master Emerald. Everything was natural with a simple core to the story and it worked. People shit themselves because the game had humans, but there's maybe like ONE line of spoken dialogue from them, Eggman aside.

No fucking president, no Sonic is put in jail by the police, no goddamn MOON BEING BLOWN UP?! I mean what in the fuck?? SA2's plot was just so bad, made worse by people talking over other people's lines, dialogue being cut off, spastic horrific cuts and animation, the list goes on.

Even right now with Colors and Generations, the story and dialogue is pandering to preschoolers. Corny ass writing and jokes. Unleashed/SA/S3+K is the perfect blend of story so far, characters are themselves and the interaction doesn't feel like some kindergarden book of puns.
 
Incidentally:

Why do the Guardian Units of Nations drive a truck after Sonic, a hero who has saved the world countless times over, with such desperation that they care not for the hundreds of people on the streets killed by its rampage? Even if they mistook him for Shadow, what had Shadow done that was so dangerous that he needed to be killed on sight even at the expense of innocent lives?

With all the resources this international organisation and the President had at their disposal, including ships, robots, operatives and other assets, why is not a single action taken against Doctor Robotnik at any point? The Doctor has shown himself to be the greatest threat on the planet - blowing up the moon, colonising another world through time-travel, launching planetary space stations with planet-busting firepower, unleashing a creature on Station Square (indirectly) killing hundreds of thousands, etcetera. The government will send a murderous truck after Sonic, but dealing with the Robotnik problem is apparently not worth consideration.

Why did the government order the execution of Gerald Robotnik, and yet make no effort to arrest his infinitely more infamous grandson?

Sonic Adventure 2's story is so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so god damn stupid.
 
*sitting down, when all of a sudden...*
I feel...a disturbance. What is this?

THE BEEF SIGNAL!

I CAME AS QUICK AS I HEARD, GAF. DON'T WORRY, I GOT THIS.

On-topic: Fuck no this game doesn't hold up. The only good parts of this game involve Sonic and Shadow's gameplay. Everything else can burn in a fire.

And don't even get me started on how much I fucking loathe those insufferable Chaos.

Didn't this game have different music right up until it was about to be released, then some licensing thing forced them to strip out the good music and replace it as quickly as possible? I remember reading that somewhere.... it's the only explanation, because the general rule is, the worse the Sonic game the cheesier and more fun the music is.
 
Incidentally:

Why do the Guardian Units of Nations drive a truck after Sonic, a hero who has saved the world countless times over, with such desperation that they care not for the hundreds of people on the streets killed by its rampage? Even if they mistook him for Shadow, what had Shadow done that was so dangerous that he needed to be killed on sight even at the expense of innocent lives?

With all the resources this international organisation and the President had at their disposal, including ships, robots, operatives and other assets, why is not a single action taken against Doctor Robotnik at any point? The Doctor has shown himself to be the greatest threat on the planet - blowing up the moon, colonising another world through time-travel, launching planetary space stations with planet-busting firepower, unleashing a creature on Station Square (indirectly) killing hundreds of thousands, etcetera. The government will send a murderous truck after Sonic, but dealing with the Robotnik problem is apparently not worth consideration.

Why did the government order the execution of Gerald Robotnik, and yet make no effort to arrest his infinitely more infamous grandson?

Sonic Adventure 2's story is so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so god damn stupid.
Social commentary.

The government will readily and mercilessly hunt down and persecute colored... people, while nothing is done about the big fat white guy.

Don't worry Iizuka-san, I get you.
 
Hope mods are OK with making such a thread ^_^;

With the rumor that the game'll be releasing to PSN & XBL in the near future, I've been thinking about getting it on PSN if the game got the same porting treatment that JSR is getting.
...but how would you say the Sonic segments, at least, hold up? Are they still fun in their own way?
Also, what were the main differences between OG SA2 & DX?

Nope. It'a aged terribly, but the point is that besides some sections it wasn't that good even upon release.
This is the truth, see if you can handle it :P
 
Didn't this game have different music right up until it was about to be released, then some licensing thing forced them to strip out the good music and replace it as quickly as possible? I remember reading that somewhere.... it's the only explanation, because the general rule is, the worse the Sonic game the cheesier and more fun the music is.
Supposedly they weren't aware that DCT still holds the rights to the Sonic 1 and 2 music, but that wouldn't have comprised the entire soundtrack. Everything in what prerelease footage we have is identical to the final copy, to boot. There's plenty of original work in there as well as plenty of post-Sonic 2 music from the series. They clearly knew what was and wasn't off-limits in the end, so if it was just a rights issue, that doesn't explain why everything else sounds like the worst of mid-90s edutainment MIDIs. And then there's the fight music, which isn't exactly memorable but is at least proper digital audio. There's no logical, coherent explanation for how the music turned out the way it did.
 
Incidentally:

Why do the Guardian Units of Nations drive a truck after Sonic, a hero who has saved the world countless times over, with such desperation that they care not for the hundreds of people on the streets killed by its rampage? Even if they mistook him for Shadow, what had Shadow done that was so dangerous that he needed to be killed on sight even at the expense of innocent lives?

With all the resources this international organisation and the President had at their disposal, including ships, robots, operatives and other assets, why is not a single action taken against Doctor Robotnik at any point? The Doctor has shown himself to be the greatest threat on the planet - blowing up the moon, colonising another world through time-travel, launching planetary space stations with planet-busting firepower, unleashing a creature on Station Square (indirectly) killing hundreds of thousands, etcetera. The government will send a murderous truck after Sonic, but dealing with the Robotnik problem is apparently not worth consideration.

Why did the government order the execution of Gerald Robotnik, and yet make no effort to arrest his infinitely more infamous grandson?

Sonic Adventure 2's story is so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so god damn stupid.
Why didn't they go after his mother, who has been shown to be far more dangerous than at least her son?
 
OH GOD WHAT IS THIS? MAKE IT STOP!
He didn't even post the worst ones.

That one's just really effing awful because it's the worst official version of Sonic 3's final boss theme to ever exist. Also, very bad samples, bad arrangement flow, etc.

Why didn't they go after his mother, who has been shown to be far more dangerous than at least her son?
I'd love to have her in a game one day, but I think that'd be a licensing issue, no? I genuinely felt that she was a great character.
 
If you can stomach the music, you can find a very well-written game underneath. Bioware even made Big the Cat a legitimately enjoyable character.
Big's always been an enjoyable character. >:(

But yeah, the dialogue is surprisingly spot-on, aside from Omega channeling HK-47. Plot's ripped straight out of the dumber side of the Archie series, though, and most of the interesting character interaction fades away in the second half when all the generic aliens get center stage.
 
If you can stomach the music, you can find a very well-written game underneath. Bioware even made Big the Cat a legitimately enjoyable character.
Yeah, the writing in that game is surprisingly good, and every single character has their own identity which comes through both in the dialogue and in their battle/field skills.

It's too bad that the game is very mediocre when you strip away the "it's a Sonic RPG" quality. As I said in my LTTP thread for it, it definitely isn't "Super Sonic RPG".
 
The only thing that made the Sonic Adventure games "hold up" in the first place was that we were young and didn't know better. They are not good games, with the rot existing deep in the design stage.
 
I suppose the organic feeling comes more from nostalgia (or the use of the different biomes). SA2's stages were decided by the story, which made it feel much more organic, since they weren't separate places but actually strung together by an ongoing journey.

Just because the story says: "Hey, we're in a jungle. Now we're in a desert. Oh now we have to go to outer space!" doesn't make it more organic at all.

Oh, and let's not forget that SA2 has 32 stages in total (counting the unlockable Green Hill Zone one), and 9 of them have a generic space-theme. Nearly a third of the game has exactly the same theme.

SA1's hub exists for the sole reason of making all the stages more organic. There's an actual world established, and all the stages fit into that. The game doesn't simply load up a theme-park level because the story demands it. You actually go where that theme-park is located in the hub. With some levels, you enter them in different places with different characters, corresponding with which area of the level that character gets. For example, Knuckles' Speed Highway stage only consists of the streets (which is the last segment of the stage for Sonic), so instead of entering Speed Highway via the skyscraper elevator like Sonic, he enters via town hall, which is where Sonic exits.


Pfffffffffft hahahahaha

Yeah, only 1/3 of SA2 is enjoyable without being ironic; at least half of Adventure is good.

And the shooting in Adveture 1 didn't SUCK SHIT

This. The only aspects of SA1 that I can see people arguing as being bad is Amy and Big. And if all you're concerned with is beating the main story, you'll be playing as these characters for about 30-40 minutes each. That includes all the running about in the hub.


Here's a breakdown of how many stages each character has, and how long those stages tend to be:

Sonic: 10 stages. All long.
Tails: 5 stages. All moderate (half the length of Sonic's stages).
Knuckles: 5 stages. Incredibly short.
Amy: 3 stages. 2 are moderate, one is long.
Big: 4 stages. Incredibly short (assuming you're just catching Froggy, and not going for other fish).
E-102: 5 stages. 3 are incredibly short, 2 are moderate.


Sonic's stages are awesome.

Tails' stages play very similarly to Sonic's, so that's a good thing, and help stretch out the speed-orientated gameplay.

Knuckles stages have the good sense that it's successors in SA2 lack; being incredibly short, to the point of basically being a minigame. You're looking at about a minute or so for each one. They're entertaining enough. You certainly don't have enough time to get bored in any of them.

Amy's stages are the weakest in the game, as they feel like a misuse of the game engine. After playing platforming-based levels as Sonic and Tails, going to a clunky character isn't fun. But at least there's only three of them.

Big's stages are the shortest in the game. Even shorter than Knuckles. In three of his four stages, you start right next to Froggy, and catching him is piss-easy, regardless of how much you like/dislike the fishing mechanics. You can easily beat these three levels in 30 seconds each (and that's not an exaggeration; I'm replaying through the game right now). The last level, Hot Shelter takes about a minute, only because you have to make your way to the water area first.

E-102's stages, like Knuckles, benefit from being significantly shorter than the Tails/Robotnik stages in SA2. You don't have time to get bored of them. Of course, it also helps that they're better designed. They're more open, and there's more variety in environments. I enjoy these.


If you're going for all the emblems, I will definitely agree that Big's levels are fucking shit. I'm currently doing them now, and trying to catch a 2000g fish in each level is like pulling teeth. Sometimes they don't spawn at all, you have no idea how much a figh weighs until you've caught it, and you can be struggling to reel in a heavy fish for 5-10 minutes. But if you're only playing the main campaign, then there's no real reason to complain, because none of these issues are a factor.
 
Knuckles stages in SA1 were short? I remember them taking goddamn forever. I'm sure they're short when you know where all the emerald shards are (they weren't randomized in the first game, right?), but I remember spending so much time wandering around those levels, waiting for that radar to start beeping.
 
Knuckles stages in SA1 were short? I remember them taking goddamn forever. I'm sure they're short when you know where all the emerald shards are (they weren't randomized in the first game, right?), but I remember spending so much time wandering around those levels, waiting for that radar to start beeping.

No, they're randomised. But the radar can track all three emeralds at once, so you don't need to backtrack, unlike SA2. Also, the stages are incredibly small, whereas SA2's are huge; almost maze-like.
 
It's sort of at the point where I know I can enjoy a Sonic Adventure or SA2 because I played the thing for countless hours, to the point where I've remembered where things are and how they operate.

Anyone new to the scene would be baffled by some of the decisions or ways you can muck around with the levels.
 

What the heck is going on here.
Please tell me theres a video giving background info....Japanese TV must be hella interesting.
Gotta plan my trip for November well, ill do something not so touristy and spend a good day just channel surfing.

Edit: Nevermind found it, man cats are damn awesome.....Japan how i love thee.
 
Just because the story says: "Hey, we're in a jungle. Now we're in a desert. Oh now we have to go to outer space!" doesn't make it more organic at all.
Oh, and let's not forget that SA2 has 32 stages in total (counting the unlockable Green Hill Zone one), and 9 of them have a generic space-theme. Nearly a third of the game has exactly the same theme.
SA1's hub exists for the sole reason of making all the stages more organic. There's an actual world established, and all the stages fit into that. The game doesn't simply load up a theme-park level because the story demands it. You actually go where that theme-park is located in the hub. With some levels, you enter them in different places with different characters, corresponding with which area of the level that character gets. For example, Knuckles' Speed Highway stage only consists of the streets (which is the last segment of the stage for Sonic), so instead of entering Speed Highway via the skyscraper elevator like Sonic, he enters via town hall, which is where Sonic exits.
This. The only aspects of SA1 that I can see people arguing as being bad is Amy and Big. And if all you're concerned with is beating the main story, you'll be playing as these characters for about 30-40 minutes each. That includes all the running about in the hub.
Here's a breakdown of how many stages each character has, and how long those stages tend to be:
Sonic: 10 stages. All long.
Tails: 5 stages. All moderate (half the length of Sonic's stages).
Knuckles: 5 stages. Incredibly short.
Amy: 3 stages. 2 are moderate, one is long.
Big: 4 stages. Incredibly short (assuming you're just catching Froggy, and not going for other fish).
E-102: 5 stages. 3 are incredibly short, 2 are moderate.
Sonic's stages are awesome.
Tails' stages play very similarly to Sonic's, so that's a good thing, and help stretch out the speed-orientated gameplay.
Knuckles stages have the good sense that it's successors in SA2 lack; being incredibly short, to the point of basically being a minigame. You're looking at about a minute or so for each one. They're entertaining enough. You certainly don't have enough time to get bored in any of them.
Amy's stages are the weakest in the game, as they feel like a misuse of the game engine. After playing platforming-based levels as Sonic and Tails, going to a clunky character isn't fun. But at least there's only three of them.
Big's stages are the shortest in the game. Even shorter than Knuckles. In three of his four stages, you start right next to Froggy, and catching him is piss-easy, regardless of how much you like/dislike the fishing mechanics. You can easily beat these three levels in 30 seconds each (and that's not an exaggeration; I'm replaying through the game right now). The last level, Hot Shelter takes about a minute, only because you have to make your way to the water area first.
E-102's stages, like Knuckles, benefit from being significantly shorter than the Tails/Robotnik stages in SA2. You don't have time to get bored of them. Of course, it also helps that they're better designed. They're more open, and there's more variety in environments. I enjoy these.
If you're going for all the emblems, I will definitely agree that Big's levels are fucking shit. I'm currently doing them now, and trying to catch a 2000g fish in each level is like pulling teeth. Sometimes they don't spawn at all, you have no idea how much a figh weighs until you've caught it, and you can be struggling to reel in a heavy fish for 5-10 minutes. But if you're only playing the main campaign, then there's no real reason to complain, because none of these issues are a factor.
Perfect, couldn't have said it better myself.

I actually really enjoyed the Adventure Field aspect of SA. Seeing how everything connected, gaining access to new areas with different characters, seeing where everyone's plots crossed... It really helped build the world. Future games would either split the hubs into multiple pieces separated by long load times (Unleashed), make them a confusing platforming maze of a layout (Generations), or a sparse, lifeless combination of both (06).

Like the Mario 64 castle, having a hub can be really fun and mysterious. Improving on the way SA implemented it would be a welcome change. Although I understand people's lack of faith considering their last three tries.
 
For 1/3 of the game you play as Sonic and Shadow. These parts are fine.

For another 3rd of the game you play as two clumsy refrigerators labeled "Tails" and "Eggman" traversing through cramped narrow hallways with an auto focusing camera that is often pointing away from things shooting at you.

For the last third of the game, you can simulate it right now in your own home. Close your eyes and take three grains of rice. Now throw them as hard as you can. Get drunk and put on some rap music. Proceed to spend several nauseating hours looking for the grains of rice.

If you want to simulate the story as well, put on a foreign dubbed Michael Bay knock-off movie and talk over everyone's lines.
The Sonic/Shadow portions are fine, that includes the 2 player VS, but Sonic Adventure is the better game.

Brillant description. Nailed everything.
 
For the last third of the game, you can simulate it right now in your own home. Close your eyes and take three grains of rice. Now throw them as hard as you can. Get drunk and put on some rap music. Proceed to spend several nauseating hours looking for the grains of rice.

Effing brilliant.
 
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