| Product: |
Sonic Adventure (DC) |
| Date: |
30/06/00 (0 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: very good graphics
Disadvantages: stupid camera angles
Sonic Adventure
Will the game's high points be enough for you to put
up with the occasional breakdown in coherency?
I can practically still hear the tapping. I can almost
see the arms folded. And I can nearly feel those
impatient eyes glaring at me, blurting out "what are
you waiting for, slow poke?"
Its hard to believe that it's been over 7 years since
Yuji Naka's signature creation first shot me that
matter-of-fact look of annoyance, and nearly as many
since I made my initial run through the tour de
twist-n-turns in an attempt to calm Sonic's edgy
attitude via some of the most unforgettable moments in
gaming history.
Perhaps the only thing more difficult to swallow is
that Sonic fans have had to wait an entire generation
of hardware before seeing an adequate answer to the
likes of Crash Bandicoot and Mario 64 from their
beloved Blue Bomber, so of course, the hardcore have
rested a great deal of their gaming hopes and dreams
on the prickly back of our speedy friend, making Sonic
Adventure one of the most anticipated titles to hit
the states since Nintendo's masterful Zelda 64 late
last year.
Even more so than the gaming public, Sega themselves
have a lot riding on the return of their saucy little
mascot, as they had hoped he would help lead the
Dreamcast charge into the holiday season with what
many have deemed the resurgence of gaming itself in a
dry and uninspired industry. So after kicking Dr.
Robotnick's looney can to the curb yet again, I am
sure you're wondering if I was overcome with a sense
of awe and nostalgia worthy of such a wordy, epic
introduction. Well…yes and no. A hefty helping of
quality time with Sonic Adventure has yielded many a
glorious gaming moment, but by the same token, it has
produced some of the mos
t inconceivably frustrating
sequences in gaming history. What I'm left with is a
game that, despite how much it tries to make me hate
it, I simply cannot help but love.
But the question remains: exactly how much love am I
willing to float our favorite Hedgehog and his pals,
and is it worth enduring the occasional torture for a
brief glimpse at perfection? Let's take a look:
First off, there's no denying that this is, without a
doubt, the most impressive display of graphical
prowess the genre has ever seen from nearly every
angle imaginable. Be it texture quality, special
effects, level design, or even just the overall appeal
of the characters, Sonic looks brilliant, and will be
the envy of his platforming brethren for quite some
time (that is until Ubi's Rayman 2 finally makes it's
way to the Dreamcast next year).
But what would all this beauty be if we didn't zip
past it with all the urgency and excitement that has
typified the series to date? Why, none of course, and
as if to flaunt this visual vitality, Sonic's return
to console gaming will completely re-define your idea
of speed. I won't bother BS'ing and pretend that I can
count the frames per second in any given lop-de-loop,
nor will I sit here and try to tell you that this game
doesn't bog down every now and again, but just know
that this game can haul balls when it wants to, and
that turns out to be a good majority of the time. This
game will leave you in awe at times, but you'd better
be careful not to leave your mouth hanging open too
wide, as some of the drops will leave you with your
controller in your stomach. This game is filled with
more twists and turns than a roller-coaster, and
thanks to the aforementioned pace, you'll have a
new-found appreciat
ion for Naka-san's original vision,
as it has never been as powerful as it is in the
levels of Sonic Adventure.
The sad truth is, as powerful as the majority of this
game manages to be, the times when it fails to deliver
this level of intensity turn out to be exponentially
painful, and not that I want to point any fingers or
anything, but it is all Sonic's fault.. This may sound
weird, but it's almost as if Sonic Adventure is a
victim of it's own identity at times. As a title
renown for it's near-superhuman sense of speed and
intensity during it's peak moments, I couldn't help
but be left feeling empty when in a "valley."
For starters, the "adventure" aspect of the game a
complete joke. Not only in the voice acting down right
awful (I swear I will kill Tails if it is the last
thing I do!), but the game is a bit too non-linear for
its own good, with hints as to the next course of
action sparsely located in fixed beacons throughout
the game world. I don't know about you, but my idea of
an adventure is hardly defined by going back to the
same spot, talking to the same glowing orb time after
time to find out where I am supposed to go or what I'm
supposed to do because the poorly acted cinemas (that
I can't skip, even if I've seen them 20 times)
fail to give me a clear idea of what my next task is.
This got old faster than Mortal Kombat, people, and
you'd best prepare some serious "what now" action,
because it is around every corner.
As annoyed as I was with this aspect of the game, it
paled in comparison to the game's biggest flaw. For
some inexplicable reason, Sonic has this habit of
slowing to a painful halt right in the middle of some
of the most blistering courses you will ever
experience. Some of y
ou may dig this about the game,
but for my money, I simply loved the game's faster
portions, and had absolutely no desire to stop for a
breather. When sections of the game made little sense
in terms of progression or pacing, I found myself very
disenchanted with the game, and a lost great deal of
interest.
This was one of the most frustrating aspects of the
game for me, and I almost feel guilty, because it's
not like these sections were necessarily bad. It's
just that certain sections of the game are so good and
so fast that these less intense section seemed all the
more uninspired by comparison.
Take for instance the Lost World level. There are
several sections that require you to flat out walk in
order to make it through alive. Personally, I found
this a little irritating when other sections of the
level had me flying through so quickly the textures on
the walls were actually moving backwards! I mean, when
the control is pre-disposed towards allowing you to
move as quickly as possible, do you really want to
crawl across the floor? Hell no. Of course not.
To further the problems caused by this lack of
consistency, the cameras for Sonic Adventure, though
they have been cleaned up considerably from the
oftentimes painful Japanese release, are still
incredibly frustrating at points. Slowing down only
manages to be such a pain because the abrupt camera
switches you normally don't notice because you're
flying by them are all now painfully apparent, and the
controls have a nasty habit of being dependant on he
viewpoint. So much so, in fact, that you've got my
personal guarantee that they will kill you more than
you're lack of gameplay skills, or Anoop will eat his
copy of Pen Pen.
I just can't tell you how many times I cursed at the
screen lik
e a sailor due to some sort of visually
impaired demise. There is nothing more annoying than
busting your ass for 20 minutes to get through a level
only to bite it right before the next checkpoint
because the camera has just swapped the absolute
definitions of left and right at your expense. The sad
part is, as much as I loved the game, it got so
frustrating that I just had to walk away. The
checkpoints seem so few and far between, and the most
ill-conceived angles always found a way to crop up a
good 10 minutes into an area, right after a seriously
demanding sequence of jumps and maneuvers. What
resulted was yet another visit to the better parts of
a good 50% of the game's levels, and regardless of
what anyone will tell you, this is not fun after about
the 30th time.
The crew at Sonic Team seems to have missed a very
important lesson in game design, and I can't help but
point it out here. I think it can best be summed up by
saying that there is a reason people only go to the
top of the Statue of Liberty once. Yeah, it may be
amazing, and it may even be considered unforgettable
by those who make the trek, but by the same token, it
is a pain in the ass to get there, and it isn't
exactly worth a second trip, much less a third, or
fourth, or fifth…
The same can be said for SA. I will never forget the
first time I blasted through Windy Valley, or the
first time I went down the side of the sky scraper in
Speed Highway. But at the same time, after dying in
the mirror room in Lost World a good 7-8 times, I was
ready to kill someone, despite how cool it was. I
guess for me, some things, such as games, are meant to
be experienced, and once that has happened, you simply
cannot expect the same level of effort and enthusiasm
to drive them to that accomplishment. Through a
c
ombination of near-criminal camera angles and
unfamiliar shifts in the overall pace of the game,
Sonic Adventure will force you to take more than your
fair share of trips down memory lane. Maybe you're
patient enough to deal, but if there was one thing I
could change about Sonic, it would be this.
So how is it exactly a game that annoyed me this much
manages to even get more than a passing glance from me
in the realm of purchasing possibilities? Basically,
because when this game is at its best, it managed to
deliver some of the most impressive sequences I have
ever witnessed in a video game. There are parts of
this game that are so damned good, you'll forget every
senseless death, every bad camera angle, and every
expletive you passionately flung at the screen during
the course of gameplay. When it's running on all
cylinders, Sonic Adventure is a testimony to the
reason I play games. Engrossing, demanding, and
utterly awe-inspiring, Yuji Naka's vision has finally
come full circle in this phenomenal title, and once
you've experienced the magic, you will never look at
gaming the same. Period. This may sound weird to you
now, but take a trip through the whole of Sonic
Adventure and you'll understand every word. I promise
you that much. Then you'll see why it's almost tragic
that it could not maintain this sense of wonder
throughout.
To it's credit, as frustrating as it could be, SA
manages to do a lot of things right, and you will be
impressed with the sheer number of things to do. The
game's multiple characters, though their games are a
bit to repetitive and unrelated (I so wish they would
have made you alternate between characters as the
story dictated..), they do give you a whole mess of
objectives, and go a long way towards making the game
>a deep title. Add to that a wide variety of mini-games
and you've got a lot to keep you busy in Sonic. Throw
in Internet options and the whole Chao experience and
SA more than has the extras department covered. Anyone
who says this title is a breeze to complete has
obviously neglected the true scope of the game, and
though it may be a bit of a pain to finish, it is by
no means quick and easy.
The thing is, will the game's high points be enough to
help you put up with the occasional breakdowns in
gaming coherency? I'd love to tell you I have the
answer to that question, but the truth is, that really
depends on you. Many people have completely loved this
game, and will no doubt send me a sea of hate-mail for
even entertaining the notion that Sonic Adventure is
not the ultimate expression of gaming genius. But by
the same token, there are sure to be those who feel
I'm on the take from Sega because of my score. The
bottom line is that SA is a great game, but it is just
too far from perfection to be considered a must-have
title for the casual gamer during the Dreamcast
launch. Hardcore platforming fans would be stupid not
to pick this title up however, as they've seen there
share of the rough spots in gaming history, and will
no doubt appreciate the flashes of brilliance Sonic
displays when he's at his best. If you think you can
deal, then pick this one up, if not, at least give it
rental. It may surprise you.
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