In this world of HDTV and Blu-Ray, RayWhitney is the filthy old man who annoys you when you're havin...
In this world of HDTV and Blu-Ray, RayWhitney is the filthy old man who annoys you when you're having a good time and forces you to remember the days of 3GB hard drives, floppy discs and games on tape that took 8 months to load. Never forget your roots.
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Back in 2002, Sonic Advance was not only the first Sonic game to ever appear on a Nintendo console, it was also a welcome return to the blue hedgehog's 2D platforming roots. Sonic had been meandering around in 3D adventure games for too long, so it was nice to see him going back to what had made him famous. Available exclusively for the Gameboy Advance (GBA), it was promised as a brand new slice of platforming action, the evolution of earlier classics such as Sonic The Hedgehog 2 and Sonic & Knuckles. But its production was outsourced from the hands of the legendary Sonic Team and into those of Dimps - the people behind the Dragon Ball Z games - so, to be honest, its success was never guaranteed.
If there's one thing that can be guaranteed, then it's Sonic Advance's loyalty to the earlier Mega Drive games. The gameplay style and plot stays the same, although the roster of playable characters is expanded. The point of the game is to stop the evil dictator Dr. Eggman from roboticising all of the world's animals and taking control of the all-powerful Chaos Emeralds. He can do some damage with those!
Levels are broken down into 'zones', with each zone containing two 'acts' each. At the beginning of each level, you will be placed at the far left of the world, and it will be your job to navigate your character all the way through to the far right, via a combination of running and jumping. Obstacles will stand in your way in the form of enemy robots, spikes, pitfalls and logic puzzles. Helping you out are a variety of spring-based contraptions to fling you around, collectable power-ups (speed boosts, protective shields, invincibility etc) and rings. Collecting rings provides you with some defence against the dangerous environments you'll be running through - get hit once and your coins will scatter. Get hit again without picking up any replacement rings and you'll bite the bullet. Oops. The player
has a ten minute time limit for each act. Making it through to the end of the zone will reward you with a boss battle, which generally involves having to attack one of Robotnik's war machines.
There are six zones in all. Maybe there might be some more hidden away somewhere, but this is a review, not a guide. The levels are typical Sonic fare, but if it's not broke! They each have a theme, and they are...
Neo Green Hill Zone - Sun, sand, green hills and giant loop-de-loops for your characters to run through.
Secret Base Zone - With some cool searchlight special effects, this is a dank and moody level, full of uninviting architecture and deadly devices.
Casino Paradise Zone - A reimagining of Sonic 2's Casino Night zone, this one packs in all the thrills 'n' spills of an evening in Vegas. Anticipate lots of neon lights and gambling.
Ice Mountain Zone - Boring name, boring zone. There's lots of snow, ice and related traps. Expect to be slowed down a lot.
Angel Island Zone - Knuckles' home, this is a strange, slightly old-fashioned world full of mystery and history. Quite interesting.
Egg Rocket Zone - Despite sounding like a delicious sandwich, this spaceship is dangerous. It's also absolutely huge and very tricky. This is the only Sonic level where I've actually run out of time!
And there might be others. Find out!
There are four playable characters available in Sonic Advance. They're not all unlocked at the very start (with only Sonic playable), but progressing through the game with Sonic will swiftly make them available. Each character has to play through all the zones themselves, but the game will remember which levels you have beaten so there's no need to go through the whole game in one sitting. The four characters are: -
Sonic The Hedgehog - Sonic's the most all-round character, capable of high speed runs and high jumps. By pressing down and a jump button, Sonic can charge up a spin attack, leading to greater speeds. Tails and Knuckles can do this too, but I thought I would put it under Sonic's section just to bulk it up a bit! Sonic can destroy opponents with a jump or a spin.
Miles "Tails" Prower - Sonic's best friend, Tails is a cute fox with two tails. By double-jumping, Tails can fly for a brief period of time, which can help him cover longer distances or save himself from a perilous fall. He can destroy enemies by jumping on them, spinning into them, or catching them with his tails while flying.
Knuckles The Echidna - Knuckles is a red echidna with an attitude problem. He is probably the most accomplished character of them all, providing the most skills. Double-jumping allows him to glide through the air, while jumping into a wall leads to him sticking his over-sized knuckles into it and climbing up and down. Sadly, his jumps are slightly weaker. He can slay his foes with a jump, a spin, or by catching them while gliding.
Amy Rose - The only girl, Amy is a pink hedgehog and has a different approach to gameplay to the others. Incabable of dispatching enemies by jumping on them, Amy totes a massive Pico hammer which can be used to crush them with a press of the attack button. This makes her a lot harder to use than the others, and demands a massive change in tactics for the player. Probably the weakest of the lot, I'm afraid.
If you're a particularly competent player, you'll be able to find the Special Springs dotted around the acts. This will hurl you up into the stratosphere, flinging you into a wacky bonus stage. The prize for success here is one of the six Chaos Emeralds (one available per zone). What happens when you collect all six? Complete the last stage with Sonic to find out...
The first thing that struck me about Sonic Advance is the quality of the graphics. It's not too hot. Granted, it's an old game now and there was never much capacity for top quality graphics on the GBA, but the illustration work looks vastly inferior to the Mega Drive games. The animation has been improved a lot and the characters have more personality, but it's only really Tails who actually looks good. Sonic and Knuckles both look a bit on the gangly side, and their new looks just don't sit right. The environments are detailed and pretty, even though the enemies and traps lack the imagination of the earlier chapters in the series. In fact, most of the major attractions are just dull repeats of what has come before (such as the Robot Knuckles, who you duel in a fight eerily similar to the Sonic Vs. Knuckles fight in Sonic & Knuckles). The soundtrack is acceptable for the GBA, combining remixes of old Sonic tracks and new, upbeat tunes. You'll keep the volume up for a little while.
There is not much longevity here, despite the various characters. The first few zones will fly by in a fit of sprinting and leaping, and you should only encounter some real trouble once you get to the 5th and 6th zones. In an attempt to add to the longevity, a Time Attack mode is included, but this is ultimately pointless. Allowing you to set speed records in each of the acts you have managed to complete, there is only value here if you're a high score freak. A 2P mode lets you share the fun with friends and go head-to-head with them, and this is a cool bonus.
Finally, the last bonus mode is the 'Tiny Chao Garden' - the virtual pet simulator gimmick spilling over from Sonic Adventure DX for the Gamecube. Sonic's friends, the Chao (cute little blobby freaks), can be raised and trained here, and transfered back and forth from the larger Gamecube version (which is kind of redundant nowadays). Coins you collect in the main game can be used to buy goods for your pet in the Garden, including toys and such. Limited heavily by the GBA's memory, this plays like a slightly more advanced Tamagotchi, and the mini-games you can play with the Chao (including Ro-Sham-Bo) are dull and time-wasting. To be honest, the Tiny Chao Garden was obsolete when it came out.
Sonic's been pretty popular on handheld consoles over the last few years, so there is a lot of competition out there for Sonic Advance. While its immediate sequels Advance 2 and 3 are only slightly better than the original, they are worth picking up over this. A better alternative would be Sonic Rush for the Nintendo DS, but avoid Sonic Rush Adventure. Finally, if you have a Xbox, PS2 or Gamecube, you might be better off with the Sonic Mega Collection, which bundles together all the older, but still more exciting, Sonic platformers. Sonic 2 still has more charm than this offering, and Sonic & Knuckles offers far more challenge.
What Sonic Advance does have going for it is its price. If all you want is a slice of brief, unremarkable, but slightly amusing old school Sonic action, I'm sure you can find this for pocket money prices. It has also been rereleased in a series of double packs, which are even better value for money. The double packs include Sonic Advance and either Sonic Pinball Party (average pinball sim), Sonic Battle (an Advance Wars-style Sonic strategy game) or ChuChu Rocket (classic mouse 'em up puzzle game). If you find them for a decent price, pick whichever one suits your style the best and go for it! Sonic Advance is not the best Sonic game, not even the best handheld one, but it could be a lot worse.
(A version of this review has been posted to dooyoo.co.uk under the same user name)
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