Is Sonic Adventure 2 still the best Sonic game?

[Reaperman]

 

I'd not miss Tails (at all) but yeah if the levels don't let you get the Sonic trademark speed and flow going....ugh. Kind of defeats the point. I'm unlikely to get a chance to play CD so Sonic 2 is gonna be my choice always then...though to be fair, a BIG Sonic fan I am not.

It was kind of a core game mechanic in that one too (for better or worse). IIRC in CD you time traveled by going fast for long enough, so on every level you were pretty much promised a spot or two to really open sonic up, but the flip side of the time jump is that when it happened it tended to break flow by happening.

 

Still, sonic cd was way faster than sonic 3/knuckles where the levels were so complex I could never get any real speed up. Mechanics like pulling down on vines or using dash to move rollers slowed them down even more.

Edited January 27, 2014 by Reaperman

[Austin]

Sonic 2 for me all the way, though I have no legit access to Sonic CD...that might change things.

 

Sonic CD is available on a wide array of platforms now. PSN, XBOX Live Arcade, PC through Steam, Android and iPhone devices. And it's only five bucks on either of those platforms, so there are plenty of routes you could potentially take these days, legally. It doesn't hurt that those modern versions are excellent, with a natural wide screen, crisp visuals, no load times, and extra goodies (like being able to play as other characters and alternate soundtracks). Definitely the definitive versions to play now.

 

(Hell, if you have an old Win '95 PC laying around, that version is about $4 on eBay).

[+GoldenWheels]

 

Sonic CD is available on a wide array of platforms now. PSN, XBOX Live Arcade, PC through Steam, Android and iPhone devices. And it's only five bucks on either of those platforms, so there are plenty of routes you could potentially take these days, legally. It doesn't hurt that those modern versions are excellent, with a natural wide screen, crisp visuals, no load times, and extra goodies (like being able to play as other characters and alternate soundtracks). Definitely the definitive versions to play now.

 

(Hell, if you have an old Win '95 PC laying around, that version is about $4 on eBay).

I kind of assumed that but still good to know, I like to play the real, true originals when it comes to this kind of discussion (saves me from then having to learn how X ported version is dif from the original, or not) but if I saw this during a Steam sale for 2 bucks, I might give it a shot (yes 5$ is too much for me).

 

Maybe a stupid question but how did they make it natural widescreen since it was a 4:3 game? Just expand the viewable area?

 

(edit: Part of your comment also speaks to why i like to play the originals....knowing the "definitive version" now is very good--who wouldn't want widescreen?--but in my mind these "which was better" discussions, at least in my mind, are not really about whatever tarted up or re-done version has been released and how they've changed it, it's about the originals as they existed then).

Edited January 27, 2014 by GoldenWheels

[Austin]

Maybe a stupid question but how did they make it natural widescreen since it was a 4:3 game? Just expand the viewable area?

 

I'm not sure how they did it exactly. It's possible the game was rebuilt from the ground up, but I'm not sure. They recently did the same thing with the first Sonic the Hedgehog as well, available on smartphones and tablets.

[akator]

I've never heard anyone ever say Sonic Adventure 2 was the best in the series or make that a defensible position and stick to it. Please provide links and references.

[OldSchoolRetroGamer]

I've never heard anyone ever say Sonic Adventure 2 was the best in the series or make that a defensible position and stick to it. Please provide links and references.

 

I like the cut of your jib my good man !

 

[Atariboy]

Sonic CD HD was built completely from the ground up.

 

I'm sure someone will correct me if I get a detail or two wrong, but a homebrew author created his own engine for HD 2D style classic games and started creating Sonic CD from scratch. It impressed Sega so much that they commissioned him to complete the product.

 

Beyond all the HD sprites and such, it runs in a true 16:9 aspect ratio (It's not stretched or cropped) and it also includes the option of using the spin dash from Sonic 2, Tails is unlockable, and both soundtracks are available as options. It also doesn't have the choppiness and the slow down that apparently the Sega CD original has (My first experience was with the Sonic Gems port of the PC conversion on the GameCube which I naturally assumed this more recent release was also based on until another AtariAger corrected me several years ago).

 

There's always something to be said for the original, but beyond losing the Genesis gamepad, Sonic CD HD on something like the Playstation 3 is the way to go for this game. Hopefully its main flaw which is its digital exclusivity will one day be rectified and make it the definitive version in every regard.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Atariboy

[RegularGuyGamer]

I just can't get behind SA2 being the best sonic game. Idk where that even came from honestly. Sonic 1 is my favorite and I have to say - at a risk of sounding like a youngster - that the best sonic game was the recently released sonic 4 for phones/psn/xba. That game was incredible and true to everything sonic is all about. Fast, tight controls, awesome bonus stages, plus replay value. The best 3d sonic game was just released. Lost World is a strong contender to Sonic Adventure which had the top spot IMO since its release in 99.

[Atariboy]

I didn't last 5 minutes with the demo for episode 1 for Sonic 4. Did it ever even get past 2 episodes or so?

 

I think the physics that turned me off did similarly for most. They should've polished the mechanics from a game like Sonic 3.

[Hatta]

Yep. My brother came to visit recently and I had Sonic 4 on my Wii. He picked it up and immediately said, "the jumping is off". He didn't last 10 minutes before finding something else.

 

Really too bad, why bring back Sonic at all if they're not going to make the jumping feel right? Even the 2d sections of Colors felt closer to the original than Sonic 4 did.

[English Invader]

I don't think there's any way that Sonic Adventure 2 can be justified as the best Sonic game; even the original Sonic Adventure is better IMO.

 

I'm probably being a bit nostalgic here, but I regard the original Sonic the Hedgehog on the Mega Drive as the best Sonic game. The thrill I got when I first played that game in March 92 has never been bettered; even Sonic 2 was an anti-climax in comparison.

 

I'm very fond of the Sonic Advance games on GBA. They were a great throwback to the traditional 2D roots, with some notable improvements on the 16-bit games. What more could you ask?

[zodiacprime]

Although I've never considered myself a diehard Sonic fan, I have had a lot of fun with the series over the years. I really enjoyed the original on the Genesis and of course the sequel which just felt very polished and had everything a sequel should. Sonic 3 was colorful and fun in its own right. I felt like I could finally stop and smell the roses from time to time. Sonic & Knuckles was a decent extension on that theme. Sonic CD took everything that came before and took it on a victory lap. It's probably my favorite (especially the recent HD updates). On the Dreamcast I thought Sonic Adventure was very fun with some great gimmicks, but my interest waned and even though I purchased Adventure 2, I hardly played it. It just didn't keep my interest. I thoroughly enjoyed Sonic Advance and Sonic Rush on DS also.

[Austin]

Sonic 4 was lame. Why they felt the need to screw with the physics is beyond me, that's half of what makes a Sonic game feel like a SONIC game.