Sonic Advance 2 – GBA – Review

The loveable little blue
hedgehog with the red sneakers has been keeping fans of platform games busy on
various consoles from the Sega Genesis to the Nintendo GameCube, but where Sonic
really seems to be at home is on the palm of your hand.  Yes, Game Boy Advance
gamers, the platform goodness is back with Sonic Advance 2.  But is this a new
revamped sequel or is this just the same game GBA gamers have played before
again and again?  Let’s take a look, shall we? 

 

Sonic the Hedgehog finds
himself up against his old enemy, the dastardly Dr. Eggman who is set on
building his evil empire by kidnapping animals and transforming them into
robotic versions of their old self.  The first of Dr. Eggman’s victims are
Sonic’s old pals Knuckles the Echidna and Tails the Fox, thus setting the
adventure in motion as Sonic attempts to rescue his friends and putting a stop
to his old nemesis once and for all.  This is pretty much the set up for the
Single Player mode that has you choosing the character you wish to play (you
start off with Sonic and can unlock five others) and advance through a series of
locales or Zones.

 

The game basically uses
the same platform formula it always used since its old Sega Genesis days–that
is, the basic running, jumping, directional movement and high-speed antics. 
Gamers familiar with the series will find no shocking surprises in this front,
but gamers will be grateful for how responsive the controls are even while
zipping through an area.  Like any classic 2D-platform game, you’d do plenty of
collecting (e.g. gold rings, Chaos Emeralds and power-up items such as
Invincibility or Shield.  There’s even obligatory boss fight that is fought
while in full motion.  There are even Special Stages set in a 3D environment.

 

To mix things up, you can
play as characters you managed to unlock (by defeating level bosses in the
single player mode) and each individual character has his or her own useful
abilities.  Amy Rose, for example, has her Piko Piko Hammer that really does
some damage.  New to the series is Cream the Rabbit who can fly by flapping her
ears.  You can use these characters during the Single Player mode or other modes
such as Time Attack mode.  There is also a mode called Tiny Chao Garden where
you can just spend the time raising beings known as Chao or play mini-games like
the Memory Game (where you match similar cards).  The most innovative feature
about this mode is that you can transfer Chao to Sonic Adventure 2: Battle
on the GameCube.

 

The problem is that all of
this has been done before and gamers that have played their share of Sonic games
will find that this game will not hold their attention for very long because of
it.  Unlike Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced, this game’s single player mode
is filled with stages that don’t change radically.  However, the heart of this
game is its multiplayer mode that allows up to four players (using the GBA Link
Cables) to play VS Mode (you can even just use a single game pak with this mode)
or the Multi-Game Pak Mode (to play a Time Attack game mode). 

 

The Sonic games have
always showcased some really colorful characters that stand out nicely against
some wild-looking backgrounds and Sonic Advance 2 manages to continue the
tradition.  Each Zone has a number of interesting backgrounds filled with
beautiful blue skies, various full-motion obstacles and classic Sonic ramps. 
And, of course, the colorful characters that look so good you’ll wish the GBA’s
screen were a lot bigger.  Even during full speed motion the characters aren’t
just colorful streaks; rather you can make out their tiny individual features as
they move. 

 

And speaking of
traditional, the game’s sound hasn’t really changed much as well.  You’ll find
all the bells and whistles that make up a classic platformer and there’s even
that satisfying chime when you collected enough rings to add up to an extra
life.  The music found here is standard rock riff as well, but strangely enough
it works well enough here that you won’t mind it at all.  In fact, the
soundtrack does change throughout the zones and even one area will have you
putting on some headphones just to listen to the musical notes Sonic is able to
change by bouncing on a series of musical instruments.

 

Sonic Advance 2 is a great
game, but it’s limited platform fun is still not able to keep gamers glued to
their Game Boy Advance for very long.  Still, you have to love a game that piles
on extra game modes, new playable characters and a four-player multiplayer
feature that, alone, is worth the price of admission.  If you love Sonic,
chances are you’ll find this game mildly amusing for a limited time. 
Multiplayer gamers, however, will have plenty to enjoy here.

 

#Reviewer’s
Scoring Details


Gameplay: 8.5
The controls are smooth and
responsive enough that the game will have you performing all of Sonic’s old
school tricks such as spinning along the ground or a double spin attack in no
time.  This is a really fast moving game that doesn’t really allow much room for
exploration and sometimes the speed itself makes it pretty difficult to really
watch where you’re going.

 

Graphics: 8.2
The visuals are crisp, clear and
colorful and GBA gamers will surely appreciate how many things this game piles
on the small screen at once.  Unlike the Super Mario games where you have a
chance to admire the scenery and colorful characters, Sonic the Hedgehog’s
universe is seen in a blur.  You can, though, slow down enough to check out the
vibrantly lush backgrounds with misty mountaintops or forests with billowing
white clouds.

 

Character-wise, Sonic and
his friends look great even when racing through the area at high speeds.  Each
character has his or her own little gestures and their own abilities that are
reflected visually.  Cream the Rabbit, for example, flaps her ears comically and
takes flight.  There are a few cut scenes after boss fights that introduce each
character through a few animation screens.

 

Sound: 8.0
You can’t go wrong with classic
platformer sound effects in things such as jumping and ring collecting.  Gamers
that have been playing Sonic games since it first came out will feel right at
home with the collection of old-school sound effects.  Musically, the rock riffs
featured here are nothing fancy or out of the ordinary, but the tune does change
as you advance from level to level.

 

Difficulty: Medium
The biggest challenge your little
heroes will face come in the form of boss stages and the occasional
whoops-I-missed-the-platform due to the speed in which your character moves. 
Boss stages are fought while in motion (e.g. you’re running to catch up to them
while attempting to give them a good throttling at the same time).  There are
also obstacles such as spikes and cliffs, but rarely do these things pose such a
horrible threat.

 

Concept: 8.6
There’s nothing new here that will
set this game apart from other Sonic games, thus pretty much sticking with the
traditional basics.  Sonic Advance 2 does, though, adds things to the mix such
as playable characters (five to be exact) as well as some new game modes such as
the Tiny Chao Garden that comes complete with more mini games.  The big surprise
here is that you can link your GBA system to the Nintendo GameCube to transfer
Chao characters for the GameCube’s Sonic Adventure 2: Battle game.

 

Multiplayer: 9.0
The game’s real main attraction
comes in the form of a multiplayer mode that can keep things simple between two
players or a four-player game (using the GBA Link Cable, of course, as well as
up to for other GBA systems).  You can play the game using a single-game pak or
a multi-game pak depending on the type of multiplayer game you would like to
play.  Regardless of the setting you chose this is a great multiplayer game that
will have you and a group of friends challenging each another using favorite
Sonic characters.

 

Overall: 8.0
Sonic fans take note: While this
game is a great improvement from the last one, Sonic Advance 2 does run out of
steam pretty quickly. You’ll feel as though you played this game before, but
that doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t have a good time playing it.  The
multiplayer feature, though, is where this game’s strength really shines
through.  If you’re into four-player GBA fun, this is really the game to buy.