SONIC ADVENTURE 2: The Icon Reborn | GEEK CRITIQUE
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ธ.ค. 2018
- Sonic Adventure 2 is a game defined by dichotomy. It's the game that split the fanbase in two. It tells a story of a Hero Side versus a Dark Side. And it conclusively ended one era, just as it began a new one... by releasing on a NINTENDO SYSTEM!?
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Great vid! But as a music nerd, I gotta chime in on the soundtrack comparison between SA1 and SA2~
I will certainly agree that SA2 doesn't have the scope and variety as SA1's OST, but I think the reasoning further echoes a point you made earlier in the video, in regards to SA2 being a more mature experience.
SA1 was certainly experimental, bringing Sonic into true 3D for the first time. But as Sega and Sonic Team tried to reimagine the critical elements of 2D Sonic in 3D, along with it came the music. Yes, SA1 has a lot of banging rock tracks, but most of the music (save for Character Theme Songs) were well rooted in composition styled familiar to 2D Sonic games. You could swap out the instruments for Yamaha YM2612 synths and most of those songs would still be bangin', and fit just perfectly into a 2D Sonic game!
But as SA2 stepped up their game, aiming for a more modern, more grounded-in-the-real-world vibe, the OST got an upgrade as well. It wasn't enough to simply have a character theme- each character had that same theme's motif, instrumentation, general feel- carried over into each of their levels as well. It gave many of the levels a cinematic vibe and rooted the experience more as being "realistic."
While many SA fans would argue that SA2's soundtrack lacked a lot of the vibrance and variety that the first game's OST had, I would argue that there is a level of creative brilliance in successfully writing theme songs for each character, with distinct style and motifs, and carrying all of those same elements along for the ride with the character into each of their levels. It certainly adds an extra level of character and cinematic flair to a game that aims to suspend the disbelief of anthropomorphic animals living alongside humans in a "realistic" world. As a game aims to take itself more seriously, so to does it's soundtrack.
SA certainly does a wonderful job of setting atmosphere and ambience, expressing the mood of the levels and being their voice- much liek the classic 2D Sonic games. But SA2's score aims not to speak for the set-piece, but for the character's mood and personality itself, in that moment in time. It sets the tone for what the character stands for, how they feel in that moment, and what they're trying to accomplish. And I think both soundtracks accomplish what they were intended to evoke in that regard.
tl;dr - SA2's OST sacrifices variety and melodic novelty in favor of playing to a character's specific traits in music form, and that's rather brilliant for a game of its time period.
But that's not really anything that we didn't already know or speak of anyways. Just felt the need to reiterate. :)
Fan-freakin'-tastic comment, and it delves into something that, because I'm _not_ much of a music nerd, I couldn't really notice or articulate. Thank you!
@@GeekCritique My absolute pleasure! Thanks for the stellar content, and please keep critiquing!
@@Shadow7700 Oh, of course! They're both stellar in their own right, and I have favorites from both OSTs. More so, my point was just chiming in to say that SA2's shouldn't necessarily be detracted from for being so drastically different from SA1's- they just both aim to set completely different tones and atmospheres for their perspective games.
heres on fact that will make SA2s rouge even more unsettling for you
Rouge has an unlockable dominatrix outfit
When I first played sonic adventure 2 on the ps3, i thought i was going to love it. I was wrong. I did not like the treasure hunting stages, mech shooting stages and the sonic stages were not like Adventure's level design. I can appreciate how much more polish this game has compared to 1, the better graphics, story, less bugs and glitches but the gameplay for me isnt the same.
In SA2 they present more skill based platforming but at the same time its very streamlined. You are going straight most of the time. It feels boring because of how easy it is.
Im not the biggest fan of the classic games. I liked Sonic 2 and Sonic Mania, i can appreciate a lot but it wasnt my cup of tea either.
I cant really pin point what it is about adventure 2 that i dont like compared to part 1. But my tastes for sonic, i guess are different bcuz i grew up differently.
I grew up with Sonic Advance which isnt really classic sonic but a more modern 2d sonic game. In addition to sonic 2, sonic adventure1 and sonic advance, I love Sonic Generations. Yes, when i replay generations, each time becomes less exciting than the last but theres something about the way they handled boost gameplay that really worked for me.
Fun fact: Sonic Team added the ability to smash cars on your way down City Escape because while they were scouting San Francisco for inspiration, they got parking tickets--and were mad enough to program it in.
Majora's Wrath looooool it was a fun mechanic still
They could be writing down things to fix but sending cars flying is more important to them.
Harry Willmore what’s broken?
@@irocklalot Sonic Adventure 2
Harry Willmore yeah but what?
People in 2002: "Shadow only had 4 levels?! Unacceptable! He needs his own spin-off!"
People in 2005: "Why did I ask for this?"
Ow the edge
In the early 00s, Shadow was completely cool. This goal oriented, self-absorbed, arrogant, brooding but powerful figure struck a chord as cool with young audiences in that time. The sort of edgy rock music in his levels were what was considered popular and new back in those days and contrasted well with the sort of optimistic, fun, snubbing his nose at authority, sarcastic but never give up kind of attitude that typified early 90s pop culture's perception as cool.
Shadow's image didn't age well, often associated with emos, and then made by SEGA into a "misunderstood" character with amnesia.
To audiences today, Shadow would basically be mocked as a character as a weird combination of high school shooter and incel in personality
The monkey's paw curled it's middle finger at us
Sega and 4Kids tried way too hard to make it seem "mature". I also think that the Heroes Engine and Graphics shouldn't have been used. ShtH should have had it's own gameplay style and art style.
Me in August 2001: you what? Just replay them.
Me: gets an ad over a minute long at 31:53
Josh when the ad is over:
"Well that's a bit of an immersion breaker"
same
Same
Same
I was so dippy as a kid. When that scene that showed Shadow comparing saving Rouge to Maria... I thought the game was implying that Rouge was Maria reincarnated. I went on to believe that for years because I didn't replay the game for a long time. That was hard to admit publicly.
I can relate to that feeling, and trust me when I say that A: Aren't brave enough and B: Can't think of any way-too-specific examples to share rn.
Don't worry about it, basically every kid has some completely ridiculous conspiracy theory they essentially invented out of nowhere about their favorite video game.
Rouge is an agent for the president.
After Tail's car chase level, the president's secretary tells him they're getting a call from their agent
That's when Rouge reveals herself as a secret agent. In the end of the dark story, before Shadow's last stage, she reveals the Biolizard and that it's the ultimate lifeform.
Since he's not the ultimate lifeform, Rouge asks if he can even trust his own memories. This is her main reason for being in the plot: she needs to get Shadow to question himself so Amy's pleas successfully move him.
Yeah, it's still anime as heck
Actually, Rouge was a secret agent hired by the president, as explained in the Japanese version, which also explains why she was in blowing up prison island
It's basically Kill La Kill and you can't tell me otherwise
Biolizard was the prototype
Also sonic X
@@ChuckE.CheesesIllinois wait, I thought it was obvious in the English version as well tho?
This games subtitles are in comic sans. I just want everybody to remember that.
My favorite font!
Brione Not in the hd version! Removal or Upgrade?
little guy* they’re still comic sans in the hd version, just not bold like the Gamecube version
It really doesn't fit with the style of the rest of the game. It's a quirky addition that I think looks pretty nice given the subject, but I still think a more standard font, maybe a monospace, typewriter font, would have looked better.
There are far worse things about this game than that...
Honestly, my favorite part about these reviews is that you also talk about how it felt to be a fan in the prerelease period of these games. As well as showing off a great time capsule of the way the fandom was in that period through old forum discussions and the such. It's really really interesting stuff! Really helps you stand out from the rest, and makes your videos fun to watch for those who weren't around during that period.
Good call. I wasn’t sure what made TGC stand out but you nailed it.
"This video is part of a series."
This video: an hour long
What have I just gotten into...
A series
A good series.
An awsome series!
Zack Wiley AN AMAZING SERIES!
AN OUTSTANDING SERIES!!
You’re trippin, that jazz was eargasmic.
THANK YOU . Thawas the only problem i had w the entire video
Funny enough I liked rouges theme the most in sa2
All of her stage music is 2nd best music from the game period. I love bright sound
Wrong sonic and shadow had THE BEST MUSIC threw out while game knuckles and rouge had some good music and tails had one good stage song dr egg man beginning stage I love that track and the stage with zero gravity..
It's more like Bossa Nova than Jazz
I didn't realize how much I appreciated Rouge's soundtrack until I got older
Dude Security Hall is a BOP
Best tracks in the game.
I still jam Rouge and Knuckles tunes regularly.
Rouge is best girl
I’ve been listening to it a ton lately, & fee as though her music is what led me to enjoy playing Latin jazz & samba in high school so much...hell, half of the genres and styles of music I love probably originated between this, DDR & Kingdom Hearts’ soundtracks
SA2: "The first Bad Sonic Game...?"
Sonic 3D Blast: Hold my Warp Rings.
I'd even argue that Sonic Adventure 1 deserves "First Bad Sonic Game" more than 2. Definitely agree it was the last good Sonic game. This from someone who grew up with Sonic in the early 90s. The last Sonic game I bought was Heroes, and I was so disappointed in it that I lost all faith in the series.
@@Rush2201
How so? Adventure ones gameplay is more consistently good imo a
Sonic R: ...
@@Rush2201 you've given me a terminal spinal condition
sonic spinball: and me?
Eggman really doesn't need the Eclipse Cannon. If he just downloads some missiles, he can blow up whatever he wants.
I thought he pissed on the moon, not blow it up.
Wait, wrong story
23:49 I just noticed that the text behind Eggman says "I AM SMART".
That is absolutely hilarious.
Holy shit, that is hilarious. I don't think any of my friends and I ever noticed that before and we played the shit outta this game.
"I am genius. I am great. I am brilliant. I am smart. I am wise. I am an emperor"
Talk about having a big ego.
@@inendlesspain4724 sounds shocking familiar
The Biolizard boss theme, Supporting Me, actually foreshadows Live and Learn as well. The "chorus" of the song uses the chords from Live and Learn.
Oh, cool, I never noticed that!
It has the same chromatic leitmotif that's thru out the game so huh, kinda halfway figured as much, didn't know they were same chords tho
"It means Shadow's character devellopement is based on what he thinks the other needs" Well, he's made in a laboratory, of course he thinks he's not the point.
SA2 was acclaimed by critics when it released, the Dreamcast Version has an 89 on Metacritic.
Also the CQ version fucks up loads of shit because Sega can't do any ports right
Sonic Adventure 2 on Dreamcast is actually the highest rated Sonic game on Metacritic.
Yes, that's true.
It's just like many modern games that are lauded by critics but have a much more middling reception by fans. That was the reality on the ground. A lot of fans didn't understand why critics were giving Sonic Adventure 2 version so much praise, while others thought it validated their experiences.
Is anyone else satisfied that the video is exactly an hour long?
Yes I am.
i just watched the whole thing and didn't even realize it's an hour...
They where just goofballs
CountessChuchoteur except it’s not.
@@misaeltoral508 yes it is, stupid pussy.
22:25 If memory serves right, if you take too long on the final battle, Sonic remarks that Shadow is not used to being in super form and he is overdoing it. He "dies" as a result of using most, if not all of his energy.
Yeah, Shadow mastered single emerald chaos control, but he does have a history of going super like Sonic did. Just like the angsty teen he was based off of, Shadow gave his all at the word go without consideration for the end game. Was it also implied that he put more energy into the final chaos control too?
I remember getting that dialogue about shadow not being experienced with the form my first time playing this, it took me years to get good enough to actually get to that stage cause I sucked at games til I was getting into my preteen and teen years, lol
There's actually a lot of interesting dialogue in the fight, and I think it varies per attempt too. One reason I found this boss so fun, if not exactly good.
I remember one line late into the fight (if you go over 4 minutes you burn up) where Shadow calls Sonic the true ultimate life form, and I always found that touching.
@@wingedmirage4226 I think its because Sonic was a hero in that world, everyone knew his name. So Dr. Gero based shadows design around sonic.
@@CodyCampbell-CodytheHero wrong. sonic aint over 50 years old. all of that is answered in shadow's game
Cody Campbell That reminds me of another thing people like to criticize: how does anyone mistake Shadow for Sonic? I think that answer's rather simple: since Sonic is so unique and famous, if you see a hedgehog zipping around, you assume it's Sonic. The difference in appearance could be explained as 1. Sonic trying to disguise himself or 2. Not getting a good look at Shadow as he runs around.
Amy has no excuse though.
"Eggman really doesn't need the Eclipse Cannon. If he just downloads some missiles, he can blow up whatever he wants."
oh my fucking god.
Also "Sonic 2: Battle Adventure" with over 9000 views and 8,999 likes.
SA2 = best Sonic voice cast
RythmGrizz hear hear!
Malum what do you think is better then? Say something! You fake commenter!
Yeah.... No
Nah Sonic X and the subsequent games until Sonic Boom had the best cast
Slick Serpent sonic x sonic voice actor wasn’t my favorite. I still love sa2 so voice the most
As a fun thing to think about, there is more connecting Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 story-wise.
The architecture of the Ark's core is reminiscent of the Echidna ruins, and the Ark is filled with "artificial chaos" monsters. In SA, the ruins featured an image of Perfect Chaos. The theory is that Gerald Robotnik studied all these ruins. The Biolizard is based on the images of Perfect Chaos, and Shadow could be based on ancient predictions of Super Sonic.
Which means Shadow would canonly be Gerald's recolored OC.
@@Kirbychu1 In a nutshell yeah
@@Kirbychu1 Gerald : Original Character, do not steal!
Eggman : riiiiight.
@@Kirbychu1 I'm at a lost of words
@@Kirbychu1 Dang, what does that make Mephiles, then?
17:13 Watch Rouge on the right.
Yeah, this game wasn't meant to be wide screen.
I wish her model glitched out and her clothes came off😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏
@@appleooza1920 dude....no man... jus stahp
@@alangonzalezmartinez8189 im kidding lol. I get it if you don't believe me though
@@appleooza1920 I believe you man. It was funny
@@appleooza1920 furry
21:27 um isn’t that the point of his character? He’s literally an experiment that’s new to this world and his only emotional connection who taught him different things was killed off. Of course his memories and actions are tied to that stuff what else does he live for let alone relate to?
Well he could follow his own basic design of being the ultimate lifeform.
This video may be one of the best reviews I've genuinely seen, especially for a game that I grew up with. It's like he was referring to me when he mentioned the children who grew up with SA2 Battle. You sir, are awesome, and you gain a new subscriber.
The section focusing on growing up with the Adventure series hit the nail on the head. Since Adventure was my first experience with Sonic, that's how I always preferred it. It sucks because both the classic series that came before and the boost series that came after don't gel with me the same way. I'm happy classic fans finally got their due with Mania, but I'd be lying if I said that I don't yearn for the series to finally try catering to Adventure fans.
DuoReview Same here. I love the classic series tho, but yeah I really want an adventure 3 even tho it’s probably never gonna happen
Warrior15 people kinda over hype the hell out of adventure 2 and it's kinda dumb but I seriously don't whant a adventure 3 they can just make a game with that play style in mind and not make it all that buggy and plus most people who like adventure or still play it mostly do Sonic and Shadow's missions
And don't really do the others cause they are weaker in comparison
Warrior15 we did get adventure 3...... It was released around 06
@@The_WIll_OF_D99 th-cam.com/video/cXeZjZgUyFs/w-d-xo.html Watch this
B.T.A Let's plays why does everyone say this...sonic adventure 3 will be called sonic adventure 3.sonic 06 was sonic 06
You are the only person I’ve heard speak about Sonic Adventure and NOT praise the Chao Garden. Speaking as someone who adores that part of the game, I was under the impression it was the one part of the game everyone liked.
Chao Garden was very fun back in the day, especially for kids but it has aged and it may not be as enjoyable as it once was if you don't have the patience for it.
Nah, I always found it boring. Even back then, I never was able to get in and couldn't see why everyone was so into it.
Hraesvlgir my brotha, it was always my least favorite part of the games.
No
When i was a kid some of the stages seemed so "impossible" so thats why i used to like the chao garden cuz its simple and adorable.
First bad sonic game? No, the start of Sonic's hate? Definitely.
@Johnny Buddy How about no? No way in hell is SA 1 and 2 better than Sonic 2 and 3. The latter two are pretty much the epitome of Sonic quality. And i played the Adventure games far before Sonic 2 and 3.
Generations is also far better than the Adventure games.
Johnny Buddy Bro WHAT?
@Johnny Buddy You must be on something.
Johnny, bravo. Seriously, you make sense here
He's not wrong. Generations pales in comparison to Adventure 1 and 2.
Man, your closing statements about how Sonic Adventure 2 might have been your first Sonic game, or the first game you ever loved, it got me. That is ME to a tee.
The game may not be great, but it's sooo much fun. It's pretty dated in the way it controls, but I've never noticed it because I've been playing it for 15 years. I go through spells every year where I just have a strong desire to play City Escape or Metal Harbor again, so I end up playing through the whole game again. There's just something so satisfying about having to actually work to get an A-Rank/S-Rank in a Sonic game, rather than trying to keep the boost gauge full the whole time. I feel so in-tune when I play Sonic Adventure 2. The rhythm of the levels have been ingrained into my being, and I can hop back in and play through it like I have been playing it for hours every day and haven't forgot. There's just something that feels so natural when I'm speeding through the levels.
The mech levels, while less entertaining, help break up the pace of the game to make those moments of spectacle that much more enjoyable. And I don't think Knuckles' stages are bad at all. His levels are actually kind of fun and rewarding, if you know your way around them and where the usual hiding spots are. Rouge is the only one that gets straight up bad levels. None of hers even compare to Knuckles' or, frankly, any of the other levels in the game.
And the Chao Garden is so amazing. I use to think it was pretty boring, but then I figured out just how deep the system is. It's really quite impressive.
This is the best 3D character model Sonic is ever going to get. I'm convinced no design will ever top it. Something about the way he is proportioned and his inwardly curved back just add so much personality to him. I also love that Sonic 3 & Knuckles shade of blue they gave him. Just an all-around quintessential 3D model of Sonic. Also, his Soaps are dope. I think they flow really well with the design and they really helped modernize him.
And the story is by far my favorite out of the rest of the series. The unique split story that weaves in and out is just really interesting. It also contained that regular Sonic campiness, mixed in with that "serious/cool early 2000s" vibe.
I love every aspect of the game and it is the golden standard to me for how to make a fun Sonic game that has ridiculously high replayablity. It doesn't really take much more than passion. You can tell that love and passion went into this game and its characters, and it's something you just don't see from Sonic Team nowadays. I hope they find their way back to when they actually cared about the brand and what the name means to people.
I agree with a lot here. It tried many different things and it had some charm that made Sonic what it was. Even if there was a change of tone, it was still Sonic
Your right sa2 is not great
Its amazing
Generations is pretty great, have you played it?
@@robkam643400 yeah, it just didn't hold my attention unfortunately. It's some of the best that boost Sonic has to offer, but it feels really rushed and shallow outside of playing the main levels. Personally, I've found little to no reason to revisit it.
I still feel like Unleashed is the all-round best 3D boost game, but Generations gives it a run for its money, and I think the mechanics in place were pretty much at their best.
Sonic Adventure 2: Pure 2001 distilled into a video game
Does it have tribal tattoos and nu-metal? It's been awhile since I played it, it just might...
@@jokerzwild00 Shadow's music wasn't quite nu-metal but it was leaning heavily towards that genre. I don't recall any tribal tattoos, though.
Can I go back to then?
Yeah bad anime translations, focus on spectacle, having a darker story and terrorism
SoNick Technically Knux has a DLC costume with a bunch of tattoos, so kinda fits...?
the one thing that I absolutely wanted to return from this game more than anything else... is the Chao Garden!
DBurner9 Ikr what’s taking so long 😂
Same, i loved it so much.
that was my whole childhood
I still have no idea why I enjoy that mode as much as I do.
SAme
Hey The Geek Critique, this was important to me and I hope you see it:
Regarding the bit at around 21:03 -
I actually like the idea of Shadow genuinely struggling with the concept of his own agency; as far as we know, he spent most of his life confined on the ARK, with virtually no freedom of his own. While this likely wasn't Gerald's intent, Shadow - as far as we know - never really got to make any decisions of his own in the first place.
Then you throw in that all he really remembers about his past is his best friend - to whom he was intensely loyal - and (a jumbled portion of) her wishes, and his lack of agency is excaberated. The subtext I get from this game is that Maria was probably the only person to actually treat Shadow as a friend and as his own person, rather than a glorified science project, but she herself could offer him no freedom.
In that moment of SA2's endgame where he fully remembers her wishes, his reality finally makes sense, and the last thing he wants is to disrespect the memory of the most important person in his life. This was a very high-stakes and high-stress situation, and as such Shadow had no time to explore his personal thoughts on the matter; he only had time to act on his loyalty.
I think it would have been doubly tragic if Shadow actually died in this game, because even in his last moments, he was thinking of Maria's wishes rather than his own. This also makes him an even more pronounced foil to Sonic; the blue hedgehog has essentially been free for his whole life, and has the agency Shadow lacks. This might be a part of why Sonic grates on him so much; I wouldn't be at all surprised if Shadow was rather jealous of Sonic, at least subconsciously.
Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but those are my thoughts as somebody whose favorite character is Shadow - not because of his edginess, but because of the exploration of loyalty, love, agency, and peace that he represents (I consider his characterization in Sonic Battle to be a great example of Shadow done right).
This video brought back so many great memories. Me and my sister played this game for HOURS in the basement after school. We spent literally months perfecting our little chaos in the way we wanted, and arguments were settled with who could complete city escape the fastest. The music in the final boss fight still gives me chills, my heart rate begins to quicken, and can’t help but smile and just feel amped up.
Found the music track to City escape on Spotify the other day and me and her jammed out in the car to it. We still know every lyric somehow. This game was such an important part of our childhood, and we definitely fall into the category of this being our very first sonic game.
This video almost brought a tear to my eye, thanks for the nostalgia trip ❤️
I seriously just want another Chao Garden. Is that too much to ask for?
Same.
How about a chao Garden mobile app think about how much money sega could make
@@demi-fiendoftime3825 Not a bad idea, though getting it right would be very hard.
I'd definitely rather a new garden in a new game.
Sonic Adventure 3 plz.
@@cxx23 I'm just saying besides a New sonic game with one hell make it a companion thing to replace the tiny Chao Garden from Adventure 2 when conected to Advance
@@demi-fiendoftime3825 That's a really cool idea actually. Mobile would make a hell of a lot more sense now than Gameboy obviously.
Soundtrack of Sonic levels "Running around at the speed of sound"
Soundtrack of Knuckles and Rouge: Rap for Knuckles and Jazz for Rouge
Soundtrack for Eggman and Tails: BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP
Soundtrack for Shadow: "ohyyeeeah, hunnnnnybebyunderstatemnt, doesn't mttr, wrrrrk on-ne obstacle"
Soundtrack for the Shadow stages: “DARKNESS!! NO MARIA!!!”
Tails stages had the best music, and Eggman the most boring, they are nothing alike
@@iregretsomeofmypreviouscom3284 Well... they are both still "BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP"
@@iregretsomeofmypreviouscom3284 youre tripping. Eggmans were way better because you could get so many combos, all As with him for me
Escape from the City is my childhood song.
For what it’s worth, if you do a perfect run of the Finalhazard, you end as shadow - so I’ve seen it argued that Shadow canonically dies because he runs out of rings.
There is in game dialogue that implies that Shadow couldn’t maintain his super form like Sonic
Much like this game is defined by dichotomy, so too is my viewing experience. Do I watch the entire thing while sitting in this public library? Or do I act productively and responsibly and study for my finals? Truly, this question is the source of life's greatest turmoil.
"Live and Learn" is my favorite song, full stop. Not even just "one of my favorite songs," but my actual favorite. I bought Crush 40's CD from Japan before iTunes was a thing so that I could own that song.
Me too man, me too.
Youre awesome
I would go to the soundtest part of the menu and listen to the OST over and over on my GameCube all the time. My favorites are Live and Learn, Tails Theme, and City Escape.
As a huge Crush 40 fan as well, I will always say that Open Your Heart is their best and I think it gets overlooked way too often. Live and Learn is second for me because it’s epic sound is reliant more on the main guitar riff and melody of the chorus, but Open Your Heart feels more powerful throughout the entire song.
I'm surprised how quickly you glossed over the Chao Garden and Multiplayer, both of those modes I remember sinking in tons of time as a kid with my brother and sister and realizing how busted Amy was in the races lol.
Also enjoying the treasure hunting modes because I thought they were really fun, and the music was actually dope especially since the game let you play the songs separately through a soundtrack mode.
This is my favorite video game review ever, even topping some of my favorite Noah Caldwell-Gervais reviews. The parallels between the game's perception and being and awkward teen, the pure passion, the video editing, the script, the pacing, OH MY GOD the narration is perfect dude. The emotion and nostalgia too man, it's just gushing with it in the best way possible. I can only hope to make a video this good some time.
Yes, he certainly has a way of painting a picture when describing the game and how it impacted his life. In a way, it's feels like you're watching a movie with how he describes things.
SA2 is my beloved, flawed child. I’m still of the opinion that Sonic hasn’t controlled as good since, despite the game's many flaws Sonic and Shadow had the right amount of weight and momentum to them.
ikr
Tbh the controls in every 3D Sonic game are pretty bad. In the Adventure games, you can be running at full speed but you try to veer sideways and he does a 90 degree turn on the spot. That's not only annoying, it's not physically possible. There's this thing called "momentum". You know, that thing that the classic games were based around. I know people hate it but I think Sonic R came the closest to making Sonic control decently in 3D.
I do love SA2 though, despite its flaws.
there is a diffrence between controlling logicly and controlling well.sonic r would be the first
@@PiousMoltar Just because something isn't physically possible doesn't mean it controls bad. Example: GTA 3 vs GTA 5. Do you want driving to be realistic or fun? And In my opinion, there is a correct answer.
Idgaf what anyone says, these games were excellent and I wish they'd continue making the series with this style. If you enough people don't like Shadow, they can either take him out or not make him essential to play. I loved these games. 😀
For real! I agree
@angel39373 So you're edgy and have amnesia?
@angel39373 damn I'm sorry to hear that I hope everything gets better if they already haven't :)
I want sonic adventure 3, but this time make tails play differently, add Amy, Silver, & cream to make, flying missions
3 types of speed missions, & idk what to do with Amy
J Foster no, make a choice to have them to play seperately, or play as a team. Kinda like what you can do in mania.
A couple of corrections
16:02 Her being a double agent is important to the plot, as it's the reason she studies project shadow, leading to the foreshadowing of the biolizard and casting doubt on if shadow is really the ultimate lifeform. It's also how in the final story they find out that the space station is hurtling towards the planet in time for them to do something about it.
18:00 During the boss fight, the pilot of the boss tells security to lock the doors to the room.
18:50 In the very scene you showed, Eggman tells Rouge to go get the chaos emerald from tails. (But yeah, it's ridiculous that she has a car themed after herself, especially considering she's suppose to be both a jewel thief and a spy)
18:58 Up until this point, the only humanoid hedgehog we (and presumably the world) knows about is Sonic. Considering that the authorities only ever got blurry, poorly lit shots of Shadow it makes sense they would assume the humanoid hedgehog running around at super speed is Sonic. Even if they saw Shadow in person, he does look like Sonic if he dyed his hair and applied mascara, not to mention it's well know by the public that Sonic can transform his appearance ala his Super Sonic transformation, so why wouldn't he be able to change how he looks in other ways?
19:08 Not only was she caught off guard by falling, she was also tired out from the preceding fight with knuckles.
19:20 He's president of station square silly!
19:24 This is a translation error. In the original, he just reveals that he's found out she's working for the president.
19:42 Eggman is literally telling Sonic that if he puts the fake chaos emerald into the eclipse cannon, he will *kill* Amy.
20:14 I've heard some people use the term Chaos (or Khaos, I can't remember) as a unit of space-time, so Chaos Control could either be referring to controlling that unit of space-time, or could just be written off as "It's Chaos! I don't have to explain shit!"
21:06 It's heavily hinted at (if not outright stated) that Gerald Robotnik rewrote Shadow's memories after the massacre on the space colony arc so that he would be solely focused on Gerald's mission of revenge. *How* he managed to do that when he was taken into custody shortly after the event however is never explained. (My best guess is that there was a period of time in between the massacre and Gerald getting arrested where he did it) When Amy spoke words similar to Maria's last words, it let the suppressed memory of Maria's last words resurface.
22:22 Much like how Sonic was completely drained after using Chaos Control for the first time (since he had never used it before), this was Shadow's first time turning into his Super Form, so he had a lot harder of a time controlling it and probably burnt through his energy a lot faster than Sonic did. (Why Sonic couldn't have grabbed Shadow as he started falling and saved him is a legitimate plothole though, as it's been shown that Sonic characters can breath and survive in space... somehow)
23:04 Honestly, I don't really see the story as taking itself *too* seriously, but hey, to each their own.
34:32 It's been confirmed by the creators that the game was originally just going to be Sonic, Knuckles, Eggman, and Shadow, but due to backlash from the fans after the reveal trailer, they added Tails in and introduced Rouge to make the game symmetrical. It's probably why Tails and Rouge only have 4 levels each in their designed gameplay styles, with one level being a much easier to program go kart minigame.
35:25 Tails throughout the game is either breaking into heavily guarded facilities or being chase by G.U.N.'s army. If he wasn't in the mech, he would be filled with bullet holes from all the robots shooting at him (since he's not as fast as Sonic). Also, how is Tails going to break down steel/stone doors and destroy enemies that are behind bars and gates without his mech?
38:28 *Insert Danganronpa styled NO THAT'S WRONG! here* The reason that only one Emerald Piece shows up at a time is so that the hint system can work properly. If all them worked at the same time, it would confuse the player about which Emerald Piece the hint was for. Sure, I wish that I could tell when the others were near, but if the system was the same as the previous game, then there would be a completely different problem: the levels would be to easy because a beacon of light would outright show you where the emerald piece was, completely erasing the whole point of the gameplay style.
40:17 I don't see how the shooting levels are worse than gamma's stages.
Also on a side note, I legitimately enjoy the other two play styles. I feel like they each offer something that gamers enjoy. The Speed Stages are great for, well, speed running, the Shooting Stages are great for Building up enormous combos and high scores, and the Treasure Stages are great for exploration.
My good sir thoose are not corrections thoose are disagreements based on your views with the game.
@@Mario60bore Only the points of 19:20 20:14 23:04 & 40:17 are what you describe.
@@TheWraithOfMooCow actaully most of it is dissagreements and thats perfectly fine. No one here is wrong
@@Mario60bore Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to be hostile. I'm just a bit confused of how me pointing out the plot points that explain why something isn't a plothole is a dissagreement rather than a correction
@@TheWraithOfMooCow because the story is left up into interpretation really
Sonic Adventure 2... this was the notorious game I had always heard about, had seen snippets of gameplay here and there... it was a piece of the gaming zeitgeist I was haunted by. Despite my earnest attempts to get it on GameCube, my family absolutely refused to buy a game that old for my Wii, and the controller/memory card requirements paywalled me from getting it in my early teens. It became this mythical game with amazing, stellar gameplay I could never reach.
It was roughly 2 years ago I secured everything from a local gaming convention, with my own hard-earned cash from a starting adulthood. SA2, in my hands... to say I was giddy was an understatement. I opened up the game, leapt right into Hero Story... and was blown away by just how ROUGH it was. Every input sent me veering into walls and enemies, somersaults and spindashes seemed to just pick which it wanted to be, and I died. A lot. Sometimes on almost no fault of my own! I’d run PAST springs, mysteriously fly next to grindrails without riding them and plummet into oblivion, and find myself flung into Timbuktu from my homing attacks every now and then.
I came to realize as I pushed through... this game doesn’t hold your hand. It’s all on you. The developers never hold your hand, except to help you through loop-de-loops. The only thing guiding you, is you. Once I realized that, the gameplay became less of a course and more of a... movement sandbox. It was fun seeing what I could do or get away with. “Did I just cross that gap? Without the spring? Was that intentional?” It’s become a game I revisit every now and then went I want the rush of going fast in 3D, yet still having fundamental gameplay (cough Forces cough) that makes it earned.
Honestly, the only level I ever found troublesome was Rouge’s military base level. The shard hunting levels felt like an intentional break to relax, and the mech levels were a wonderful reminder of just how fast Sonic and Shadow really were, giving their levels more appeal through the comparison. Granted I don’t replay the mech levels, but that’s definitely more attributed to the repetitive design of their levels than how they play.
SA2 feels like... a missed opportunity. It’s odd to say I want to call it a diamond in the rough, with itself being the rough. This game has a lot of potential that I hope gets brought out by modders someday, or heck, even a full on remake- it deserves that much. Cleaned up visuals, touched up cutscenes, and dare I say it... redone levels, all could do a lot to make this game a master class in 3D Sonic. It has the diamond, all it needs is the polish.
P😊
22:20 Actually, there is dialogue in the final boss that Shadow was unable to handle his Super Form, in those lines, Sonic was BEGGING Shadow to stop, but Shadow says: "I guess I know who is the Ultimate Life Form now! It is you...Sonic."
Also, Unleashed will always have the best Story in my opinion,
@J Foster What is wrong with it? Besides the werehogs combat music glassing over the night stages.
@J Foster Nope, only Forces has actual boost to win game play.
@@Kaitotaku i def remember boost to win being a thing unleash atleast for the 360 version, barring the final stage.
SA2:B will always be pretty special to me, and I think it's less because of the game itself and more because of how I experienced it with a friend. My best friend and I were both I think around 14 at the time, and already huge weeaboos. However, I was way more into generic battle shounen on top of generally being the more silly, "class clown" type of the friendgroup while he was a baby edgelord that bought everything from Hot Topic... So naturally we alternated playing each story, with me doing all of the Hero levels and him doing all of the Dark levels. Frantically switching out during the Last Story level and especially the final boss (we didn't even know it was coming up, we just started doing it on the fly) was one of my best gaming memories. I know that says more about my friendship than the game, but I still can't help but remember the game incredibly fondly.
...And after that, we went and played Vs. for like three more hours straight.
How weird it is I had the same experience, probably in another part of the world. Back then I had a friend I played all games with and this is exactly how we played this one, even sharing the controller on the final battle to each play with either Sonic or Shadow. Then try to win on the city escapa multiplayer stage. Amazing, fond memories from this one truly
Gayyyyy
That's honestly cool as all hell, and sounds like a memory that will last forever.
@@americanbadger6986 Brosexual... U Mad?
43:43 Sega's entire lifespan, summarised in a single line.
I have never, ever heard anyone put into words the feelings conveyed by the game finally yanking the curtain aside on Live and Learn until now, and I couldn't agree more.
I miss the old Sonic games from the early 2000's. Not just because Sonic Adventure 2 Battle was the first Sonic game I ever played, but because Sega and Sonic team weren't so afraid to take risks. They weren't afraid to experiment and to see what worked and what didn't. Nowadays, every Sonic game has two things: the "boost" gameplay and classic Sonic. In Generations, I think it worked for what they were going for. Hell, in Unleashed, I think even the boost was successful. But now every game feels the same, and every time the developers wanna take risks, it's just more and more divisive. They always try to play it safe with the same mechanics. No game in recent memory really seems to stand out when it comes to 3D Sonic games. Unless it's a reboot of the series or something like Sonic Forces, nothing has actually gained any notable traction in my eyes. It's a pity to see a bunch of developers reduced and afraid to innovate and try new things on account of pissing off the wrong fanboys.
Well, there's Lost World lol
What about Colors?
My sister and I must be the only people in the universe who really, genuinely liked the treasure hunting stages. It got to a point for me that I figured out the most optimal route to take through them, and based on what pinged the tracker, know exactly where to go from there. That's not to say I didn't run into your critiques initially though. Rouge's vault stage had me stuck for a really long time, but we kept grinding at it.
And yeah, we ground through them a lot, because we also really loved the Chao Gardens. There was so much to do and experiment with, and we racked up over 300 hours on this game to breed the best Chao possible. I had no idea that editor existed... and quite frankly, I'd probably use that today if I ever were to do that again. (Mainly because I'm not 11 anymore and I don't have that crazy amount of time on my hands.)
I loved this game and still do, but I think that's more about the type of gamer that I was back then. I'd only played Sega consoles at my babysitter's house before I picked up SA2Battle on GameCube, and back then, it felt like the perfect logical progression from those games. I totally see the faults though, going back to it today, but really the only thing that's keeping me from really digging into it again is the time commitment, and having to get my progress back to how it was. (Thanks for nothing, Nyko memory cards.)
Same here, I enjoyed the treasure hunting stages the more I played them by memorising the stage and being able to effectively use the hints to my advantage on the larger stages.
I always thought I was the only one going into the Chao garden to play as tails. I feel your pain!
I love the hour long, heart-felt analysis. You made a point and expressed your opinion without shitting on everyone else. Keep up the good work, fellow Sonic fan.
Kind of off-topic, but I've been playing Sonic Mania again despite not loving it the first time around, and, unlike the first time, I started another playthrough as soon as I was done with this last one.
I've never been a fan of classic Sonic... I just never "got" it, despite seeing fans like you praising it to death. I've always struggled to keep any momentum and so it felt like an awkward platformer series with a design that's the antithesis of everything I knew to be good game design from platformers like Mario and the Donkey Kong Country trilogy.
But suddenly, I'm having a lot of fun with it, learning that screwing up and rolling with it is part of the game. I never understood that replaying these games is where the true magic lies, until listening to you.
I'm not sure if I'll ever love the classic Sonic games the way many do, but I've learned to appreciate them through Mania because of listening to your infectious passion and enthusiasm for the games, despite not getting it for my 27 years of gaming, and despite desperately trying to feel the magic but failing. You and KingK both, but mostly you.
Your passion is an awesome thing, capable of allowing a person to see and experience something they never could otherwise.
Thank you.
I've tried playing several times.... I still hate it lol
@@exiled5160 to be fair, I still wouldn't place it among what I consider the best of the genre. It doesn't reward exploration nearly as well as a Donkey Kong Country, and I've never been a big fan of "you have to replay it to truly enjoy it" game design. Also, why is Hydrocity in the game?
But it is fun, especially on replays once you have a good handle on basic level layouts and the physics. I recommend giving it another shot.
You know Game Grumps? They have a history with Sonic games, and Arin specifically, who's generally quite knowledgeable about game design, has A LOT to say about modern sonic games, about how "THE POINT OF THE GAME IS TO GO FAST! WHY DO YOU CONSTANTLY THROW OBSTACLE IN MY WAY THAT MAKE ME STOP?"
And when I hear him yelling about that, all I can think of is: Sonic games have ALWAYS been designed to stop you in your tracks with obstacles you can't anticipate. You've always had to learn them by heart beforehand... But 3D does give you more forward visibility
@@Arkalidor As someone who prefers 3D Sonic, I think that's a legitimate complaint. I don't mind obstacles that require players to pay attention, but they should be reasonably avoidable on a first playthrough. That doesn't mean all players have to avoid them on their first try, only that an average person's reaction time is adequate when putting forth full effort.
It's no coincidence that I prefer 3D Sonic because, as you said, the increased visibility helps the design avoid this issue, and this often isn't the case in classic Sonic.
Pretty much my sentiments and that extends to most 2D, platformer, pixelated games. My first console was an N64 so I grew up playing 3D games, thereby that's my preference with the exception to the pokemon series (then again that's a turn-based RPG). I appreciate the love for those games despite that I do not enjoy them myself. Hell to perfectly explain what kinds of games i like vs. games I don't: I Prefer Ocarina of Time to A Link to the Past, and I prefer Dragon Age over Mass Effect. Then through in pretty much anything Nintendo in there that fits in with that description (with all the pokemon) and that pretty much covers the kinds of game I play.
The GameCube was my first console. Sonic Adventure Dx was one of my first games. Sonic Adventures 2 was my favorite game. I played it so much. And the chaos really did add replayability.
Love this video. But I gotta say, rouge music is so good. I honestly think her and tails’s music feel the most like classic sonic, which often had a lot of really groovy jazz elements and colorful synths.
You seriously make some of the best analysis videos I've ever seen, Josh. I see so many people blindly loving this game because of nostalgia, and so many people blindly hating it because it's Sonic. But you analyzed both the good _and_ the bad. I love that you took the time to explain _why_ people loved it back in the day. Keep doing what you're doing!
Thanks for the heart!
Personally, I love Sonic Adventure 2. Although it's not my favourite Sonic game, it still holds up decently and I would love to see this game, SA1 and Sonic Heroes all ported to modern day consoles.
MarioSonic04 I could pass on heroes, but agreed.
They were on PS3 and 360, it was weird though
Heroes wasn't though
Well fortunately sa1 and sa2 is on GameCube. Well I played the GC version of both Sonic adventure games.
heroes is pretty bland sadly
I owe a lot to this game. Eggman's eggwalker, and his robots got me really intrested in metal work as a kid, now I'm a welder by trade. Needless to say, at least one song off of the soundtrack get's played daily, brings me back to times that made a memorable impression.
cant believe you didn't talk about Tails stage music, it's the best in the game. Prision lane is genious, hidden base too.
“I wanna fly HIGH!”
ha, ha, ha, okay! Yeah! SONIC!!! @RectalDiscourse
*BEEEEEP* S O N I C!
Bruuuuh
Radical highway
Most of eggmans osts
Most of knuckles osts
White jungle
Sky rail
City escape and final rush are way better than any tails tracks
@@debatenothing5676 Please listen to the prision lane guitar solo. Then come back and explain yourself
I liked that your review was more fair and affectionate than a lot of the other videos I've seen, particularly ProJared's garbage review; it really annoyed me how he acted like he was speaking for everyone when really it was just his own personal tastes. I never understood the hate for the non-Sonic/Shadow stages (except the boring filler car sections). I always liked playing them, especially the Knuckles stages. Maybe it's just because I loved the environments and locations-I don't know.
Anyway, this game was such a huge part of my childhood (even though it's pretty much the only Sonic game I've ever played) so I want to thank you for bringing back so many fond memories and for being so much nicer to this game than other reviewers.
I really liked his review. And really, his "ProJared" reviews are more satire and exaggerated than a true review, much like AVGN episodes. With that said, for me, he hit the nail on the head, yet I still enjoy this game!
Knuckles “o no”
@@richardr.7668 But that runs into some issues as some people will take it seriously and think it really is garbage and many of his groupies will follow his every command because he's "popular" and very knowledgeable compared to other youtubers.
MrDmoney156 not to mention he absolutely doesn’t do a “character” and Richard is just reaching. He acts and plays up reactions but that’s not a “character” any more than The Geek Critique is a character.
Electrk people don’t like the tails/egg man and treasure hunting levels because they are boring and suck. It’s just super slow and I don’t even know how they butchered the treasure hunting for this game. They were fine in 1 but 2 they just suck. The levels are so big and finding the shards are much more of a pain
I was born in 2001, but when I was around eight years old, we ended up with a Dreamcast. Sonic Adventure 1 was a ton of fun, but Sonic Adventure 2 nearly became my life for a while. Losing my Chao data at that age was as devastating as losing a real living thing. Of course, I still have fond memories of dancing to the soundtrack and imagining myself in that world.
I Don't Care What Anyone Says, The OST Is Still Amazing (For the Most Part.)
whatchu mean "most part?" the entire thing slaps, chief
@@duckknuckles7880
Sonic Boom.
@@duckknuckles7880 it all bleeds together.
@@duckknuckles7880 Shadow's theme
@@louiepikmin3184 bruh shadow's theme slaps
Shadow was killed because he gave all the energy that kept him in his super form. Sonic didn't give all of it. So Sonic could easily fly back to the space colony and Shadow died because in his normal form got lost in space
They used chaos control,sonic was inferior with his chaos control abilities,therefore sonic should have ran out of energy too.
THANK YOU , i knew there was a reason i just couldn't remember why he died
There's actually voice lines of him not being able to handle his super form, and Sonic begging him to return to the Ark.
@J Foster yeah sonic legit did it last game
Actually no, that was Shadow's first time using the Super Form and he had trouble to maintain it.
this guy is an amazing writer
Man - I could just hear the passion in your voice, through both the praise and the criticism. Made me feel like I was experiencing this game anew all over again. Great work, dude.
I've heard this soundtrack so many times, that even though you're only playing the instrumentals (for the most part) I still hear the lyrics.
I had been getting so pissed off because I disliked the thumbnail enough to mark this as "Don't show me this, not interested in the video, not interested in the channel"
Despite that, TH-cam continued to recommend it to me multiple times per day for the past 3 days. I finally decided to watch it, and it is much *much* better than I expected.
Haha, well, thank you for giving me a chance! The thumbnail was meant to kind of encapsulate the dichotomy at the heart of SA2's theme and reception, _not_ to imply that I actually believe in either one of the two very black-and-white arguments.
Yeah I thought it was going to be either a LOL S0NIC W@S N£V£R GO0D LET$ AlL JuMP 0N ThE $OnIC HATe TraiN,
or a let's bitch about sonic and not give any good criticism or suggestions.
But no he made his video clear and offered up some good points a respectful fair way.
It's not common to see that these days.
@@GeekCritique
But wouldn't it be a very black and *blue* argument?
@@hectorcollazo1963
👉 👉
Sonic Adventure 2 to me is the last real Sonic game. The last time they really cared about telling a great story and respecting the characters. I remember as a kid being absolutely crushed when Heroes came out.
Yeah i never liked Heroes when it came out, Adventure 2 was my true last Sonic game as well.
the only time they cared about an actual story was satbk or gamma's story imo
Matt Dawson
Unleashed
Colors
Generations
Mania
@@chaomaster1783 I would say all of those didn't care about telling a great story and respected the characters. They didn't push the narrative forward or add any world building.
Mania doesn't count because it's obviously supposed to be a throwback to the Genesis games.
I said nothing about the quality of the gameplay, if that's what you're hinting at.
Matt Dawson Maybe Colors, Gens, And mania but I think unleashed had a great story an atmosphere of people around the world and it was a light hearted story but it’s a story that dosent really caters to the adventure fans
I just realized, after this vid, that it was an hour long. Damn props to you man, I mean I did watching it in chunks over like 2 days but these "Reflecting on Sonic vids are really interesting. And if you can keep me entertained for 20 mins straight that's one god damn achievement cuz I have the attention span of a gerbil. Great video, great channel.
I loved the chao garden so much
The Sonic franchise would've probably favored better if Sega took a more anime styled approach with their storylines instead of chasing the whole western animation DreamWorks Disney approach.
Sonic's whole charm was that he was a wise ass protagonist, it only makes sense that eventually his stories would get more fleshed out.
4:18 BIG WORKS FOR GUN?!?!?
The problem was they did it to a fault here and made the Sonic-esque cartoon anthros look alien within their own universe. For all people complain about the Deadly Six I do think them and their world gels with the Sonic cast better than realistic human populations and militaries.
Well I don't think this comments accurate. Simply because sonic hasn't gone in any direction. After SA2 there's been no direction for this series, every game does something completely different to the point where nobody even knows what sonic is.
@@NintendoDude888 ...
...
...
...YES
Anime lol. Weeb
Y'know what's funny? I actually played the original trilogy (& Knuckles) growing up. I was 15 when SA2 came out, but it's still my favorite Sonic game. Don't get me wrong, I have fond, nostalgic memories of the rest of the series (most of it anyway), but something about the sense of speed, and the drive to chase that elusive A rank through quick reflexes and flawless timing just spoke to me on a level the other games never did. Honestly, it got to the point on some of the speed levels where I was no longer basing my actions on what was happening on screen, but by the rhythm of the music. I often could tell that I wasn't gonna get a good time on a level if a specific section of a song didn't line up with a corresponding section of said level.
I love the insight you provide of the legacy of both releases in this video. Your classmate getting the name wrong hilariously reminds me of my sister and cousins up to now. We grew up with SA2B as kids, but most of them grew out of gaming. But whenever my sis would see me play ANY recent Sonic game, she'd ask "is there a Chao Garden in this one? Like in Sonic 2 Battle?"
Really says something that my childhood sphere will just naturally say the "2" and the "Battle" of its name without questioning it. I guess I didn't either back then, haha.
I loved to see my character with the power ups ˆˆ it’s feel like the game was alive, and i love the sunglasses xD
I loved Sonic adventure 2 battle, mostly for the Chao garden. I was extremely dissapointed when I found out that since that game their has not been a single Sonic game with a Chao garden part to it where you can raise them and play minigames with them. For me that was the best part of the sonic franchise, and the second they decided not to make another game with a Chao garden was the second the franchise died. I never enjoyed another Sonic game after Sonic Adventure 2 Battle.
Sonic Adventure DX has a Chao Garden..
@@mystic_ramen If I'm remembering correctly the Chao garden in that one wasn't that great. I'd have to play it again to be sure tho. I do remember sonic adventure battle having the best Chao garden tho.
Sonic advance had one...
@@FLAMM3NW3RF yes lots of old sonic games had a Chao garden... But not a single Sonic game since the gba/game cube era of games has their been a sonic game with a Chao garden.
So true, especially since the Chao garden in Adventure 2 has more control and unique combinations on how you raised your chao
A nice detail is that if you wait 7 minutes swapping between sonic and shadow in the final fight you lose, like literally lose, I found out that when my brother said "Let's wait the seven minutes to see if it really falls on earth!"
And then suddenly it actually happened and we were really surprised.
Fuck, that's actually awesome!
Yea, the sky actually gets red as the colony enters the atmosphere and everything.
Incredible breakdown. This was my first sonic game and it got me hooked on sonic and this game on the GameCube fueled countless sleepovers for years and I still play it with my friends on either GameCube or Xbox (since they re made it for Xbox).
I love the sound track , I guess if your not into mellow lounge jazzy tunes then Rouges theme music isn't for you, but i freakin love it , I have all her themes on play back on my music devices
Your channel is so underrated, and deserves so much more attention. This is better than 99% of the content that big channels make.
Thank you!
You briefly touched on it a bit, I think the main reason that the narrative of SA2 only recently being criticized is because it was the gateway into the series for many fans. We were all much younger and due to the vast majority of fans loving it, is was easy to believe that that was the common consensus.
But not just that, it also had to do with where we were technology wise, I.e. the internet. Nowadays we have reviews for games out the day before release, and endless trailers and preview information. Back then, the most we got were magazines and the aforementioned postage stamp videos accessed through AOL trial discs we got from cap'n crunch boxes. Kids especially would have a harder time finding out how everyone else felt about it, and most aren't going to go back to look for those old archived reviews now. So for many it really does feel like the dissonance is a new thing. We had no idea at the time because there wasn't much of a way to find out.
I still get people today, sometimes even older than me, mention how they used to love the game (and yes, by calling it Sonic Adventure Battle 2).
also yes, SA2 was technically my first exposure to the series, I rented from blockbuster. Then the next week I rented mega collection because it was next to it on the shelf. A week later I asked my mom to buy it for me and that's how I got into the series.
27:25 that transition between music and back was so much more jarring than i expected it to be
One of my all time favorite video game soundtracks
Honestly I think this is probably the most complete analysis of this game I've ever seen, and it was great seeing you look over the various perspectives that this game has gained. As someone who was born in 1998 (enjoy feeling old) I think that I have a pretty different perspective on not just this game but the franchise as a whole most sonic fans around my age. My first home console was the wii and although I had a gba and ds I never got to play the advance or rush games until way later. So didn't get into the series until a little after black knight, and my first sonic game proper was a plug and play of sonic blast that my mom bought in a pharmacy (unless if you count brawl as a sonic game). So the way I played through the games was weird
I started with blast but I never got far. Then I got sonic 1 on the virtual console and while I had some fun with it I was confused why there was no spin dash or super sonic. The next time I had money I got the sonic 2 and I fell in love with not just the game but this franchise on the whole, I put hundreds of hours into sonic 2. After that I had to wait for the virtual console to get sonic and knuckles so I could properly playthrough sonic 3 (which was and is my favorite). My first 3d sonic game was SADX (which is still my favorite 3d sonic game outside of maybe generations), and then I got sonic colors which was the only time as a kid I got to own a sonic game that was recently released. So while I grew up with the sa2 generation, I was exposed to all 3 eras of sonic in less then a year (2009-2010 I was 10 to 11)
I also got exposed to the sonic fandom at that time through newgrounds animations and youtube videos Cybershell's old playthroughs were the first let's play I ever watched back in 09. As a result I looked at SA2 like it was almost mythical (I didn't get to play it until after the HD version came out on steam), it was the introduction of Shadow, it was the game with this really cool story, it was the best 3d sonic game that I couldn't play. This is why I loved the fact that you spent so much time talking about the various different perspectives on this game, because that's how I was introduced to sa2. Seeing sonic fans be passionate about it. (that and sonic x reruns).
Anyway I've been following this channel since 2014 when you started your smash retrospective, and I've been a huge fan of your content ever since. Seeing you be so passionate about this franchise always brings a smile to my face, and I can't wait for the rest of the adventure era retrospective. (PS once you finish this current marathon could you make a video addressing the various mods for these games since I really liked how you did that for Other m and the retro retrospective, since better sadx is so good and for sa2 there's even mods to fix the radar)
Thanks for the kind words, and hey... before too much longer, kids born in 2008 are gonna be making us _both_ feel old. xD
@@GeekCritique I think about that a lot, since I'm turning 20 and I'm watching so many youtubers who are only 1 or 2 years older/younger then me it's crazy to think how I'm gonna look at the generation who grew up with the 3ds and 8th gen consoles, and seeing what entries our generations are gonna argue over. I also only just released that you were the same age that I am right now when I got into this franchise.
Also and I hope you bring this up next time you cover a series this is relevant for, but I feel like my generation has a much easier time going back through the snes and genesis library then ether the NES library, or even the PS1 and N64 libraries because of how similar the DS and GBA library was to 4th gen consoles (Yes I know the DS could do 3d but I can't stand playing mario 64 with a Dpad)
Oh man I had missed your show and reviews so much, I love the amazing perfect blend of your nostalgia but also your critique and observation.
It's funny now when I think about it both Zelda and Sonic sure share that "THE BEST X GAME IS THE ONE I PLAYED WHEN I WAS 12!", I played the hell out of Sonic Adventure 1 when I was a child and remember it more fondly than 2 because, I didn't play it as much, but when a friend lend my brothers their Genesis and Sonic 2, I was so marveled by it as it had been nothing like I had played before and it just captured me, to this day Sonic 2 is still among my fav of the series, even if I'm not the biggest fan of the hedgehog.
Anyways back on track, this video was a very interesting watch, not only as because I love how you do your videos, analysis, critiques and reviews, but also because when you mentioned how this was one of the hardest videos to script and write for because you didn't want to make another video only catering for nostalgia, or just another video of "NEVERMIND, SA 2 SUCKS NOW!" but instead a much better blend of explaining your view on it but also trying to explain why this game was so formative for many in their childhood. The line that really hit me hard was "If we would try to understand each others views of where we come from in this franchise than just forcefully bashing each other with our individual opinion, this fandom would be much better." I think this was the pivotal point for me how this is not only an analysis for Sonic Adventure 2 but how this game marked both the change of an era, the start of a generation for new Sonic Fans and the Swan Song of the Dreamcast that eventually became more the rant spot for many people in later years.
Once again I have to say how much I love your content, looking forward to the next episodes now!
Incredibly concise, I'm really surprised you could fit this all into an hour. Well done dude.
The nostalgia of seeing the Dreamcast powering up, the Phantasy Star Online start up tune, and the emotional ending as you talked about the climax.
I was literally brought to tears.
I really miss the experience of growing up with the video game history that my step dad brought into my life, and is the very reason I was exposed to Ocarina of Time. The greatest game of all time, in my opinion. But also the biggest games of video game history, the original Sonic Games, Sonic and Knuckles, Mario 1 & 3, Super Mario World, and much more.
I wanted to keep this comment concise, but I just couldn't help get into it because of how emotional growing up with the greatest generation of gaming as someone born in the mid 90's, "growing" up in the wild West of gaming and internet culture that was 2001-2010.
Thank you so much for this video, and taking me back to a greater, much simpler time where video games were a magic experience that took me away from the dark scary world I wasn't even close to ready for turning into an adult.
You sir, just earned a subscriber and possibly a fan.
49:59 "Sonic and Shadow have an neverending highway"
Actually it ends at some point, I found that out myself once XD...
Sonic and Shadows smile in the title card is literally identical except its reversed
Sonic adventure 2 battle is the absolute best sonic game ever
When he did the voiceovers at 19:59 I died laughing 😂😭💀
Did you even listen to the characters? Shadow was losing strength throughout the fight with The Prototype. Sonic kept asking Shadow if he was alright. He lost all his strength when doing the chaos control after the fight, then he fell to his death. Sonic even tried to grab onto him as we see he has one of shadows bracelets. It slipped off.
To be fair to the creator of this video, he probably beat the Final Lizard a bit too quickly to hear the dialogue of Shadow losing strength. I forgot when it comes up but I think it's close around the 5 minute time limit.
As i recall it (i currently lack the means to confirm), those messages show up when you run low on rings (as it takes rings to maintain 'super'-form, they take turns assaulting the beast and gathering rings (you only play the assaulting part), if you can't hit the creature in time, you can deliberately miss the creature (only fly down) to switch). Both make remarks about needing more/running out of rings so they should switch, both about themselves and the other. Sonic is just easier to hear.
As for why shadow fell, but sonic got teleported back, the last shot screws it up a bit, but as shown 1 shot earlier: shadow actively holds back in flight to make sure he catches sonic within the chaos control.
"Really shows how good it felt to play it well"
*Careens 90 degrees into an invisible wall*
I did that on purpose. :P Keep watching...
One thing we can all agree on, Sonic music is kickass.
June 19th, 2001? My fourth birthday lmao, I remember playing this (along with other Sonic Genesis games) right around that age and falling in love. Looking forward to the video!
I'm getting goosebumps hearing those old tracks.
I don't know who you are or how you ended up in my recommended section, but thank you for giving me a trip down memory lane.
I am happy you're doing this series. While I did play Adventure 1 on the Dreamcast before this game, 2 Battle is what I would consider my first Sonic game. This game has it's flaws, and yes the game has aged horribly, but something inside me can't let myself believe it can't be done again. There's something beautiful about being able to move freely, without being restricted to forward and backwards and dashing between lanes. I wish they realized that Sonic isn't just about the speed. You said you didn't feel much for the chao garden, but man did that chao garden keep me coming back, it was like my pokemon experience. This game did so many things right, it would just make me so happy to see them play on Adventure's strengths and make a game a lot of Sonic fans could enjoy. What happened man, the only thing I love about this Hedgehog anymore is his music.
Articuno same here.
It's aged fine, atmosphere is pretty good
Mario 64 aged horribly too. Both games are loved though 😍
People saying something has "aged bad" or whatever is the most overused & rated phrase ever. It's annoying honestly. Video games don't age (like us humans), their quality doesn't change or waver through time, it's the same game today as it was back then. Meaning it's just as fun or mediocre today as it was or may have been back then.
But I agree with everything else you said though especially about the freedom of movement. That's why I really dislike the new games and direction.
actually, if you look at comparisons between the dreamcast version of sonic adventure 2 and the remake for the gamecube, "Battle", the graphics were actually better in the original
I think your perspective on the series is the most valuable one ive listened to. its crazy how every point about kids who experienced sonic for the first time as SA2 sonic.it describe my experience and my generations experience perfectly. great video.
03:10
Psychiatrist: Sonic&Knuckles CD isn't real, it can't hurt you
Sonic&Knuckles Sonic: makes peel-out
I must say that so far after watching TH-cam video game essays and reviews for eight years now, you truly are my favourite critic.
The writing in these videos and the overall experience feel so good. You have a serious talent.
I can't wait for the next video!