This video is the next one in my Retrospective in Reverse Series. It covers Sonic Adventure 2, one of my favorite games of all time. I hope you enjoy the video! #sonicadventure2 #sega #sonic
Holy cow. I love watching reviews and retrospectives for this game, but yours just matches that excitement and fondness I've always had for this game. This is the game that pulled me into the series, one I have actual hundreds of hours in, and l've never once grown tired of it. You even share my perspective on most of the mech and treasure hunting stages! Everyone glosses over them, but that doesn't mean they aren't great! Thanks for an awesome video! Now, don't mind me as I grab my controller for another round of this awesome masterpiece...!
this game fucks, to put it simply i've spent hours playing this game over the last 20 some odd years and somehow always go back to it after a few years to play through and raise some chao and it's still fun!
I actually played sa1 before sa2. Sa1 in august 2020 to 9-25-2020. Sa2 was 12-23-2021 to 4-17-2022 i believe. Also, my first playthrough of mad space took like 20 to 24 minutes. Cant rly remember tho
@@NintenDeenno, I we never had 1. I have sa1 and sa2 on xbox 360. In fact, I play most sonic games on xbox 360/xbox one. The outliers are sonic frontiers and team sonic racing on ps4/ps5. We also don't have a GameCube. But for some reason, it won't allow me to play sa1 on xbox one, it has smth to do with the blu-ray disc thing not working or smth. It's been a while tho. And sa1 is on the dream cast collection for xbox 360, that also had crazy taxi, sega bass fishing and space channel 5. It's also on ps3???
@@NintenDeenyes, the original dates(August 2020 and 12-23-2021) was when my dad got me sa1 and sa2 for xbox. That was when I was taking online school because of covid 💀. Well, thats part of it. The other one was that it was a drastic change in my life, that I got my first F and D(for 10th grade/11th grade). It was that serious.
Excuse me, sorry for going off topic but this is weird to me: -To me, playing Heroes was atrocious due to the controls/physics, and rail grinding was a big part of that suffering. -However, I enjoyed Sonic Adventure 2 Battle and Shadow the Hedgehog, the second one had the easiest grind railing, and while playing the first one I "fell" off the rails a couple of times, but I never put too much thought or care about it and never had a problem going quickly through the rails. So... what is it that makes grind railing so supposedly amazing on Sonic Adventure 2 (like, explain in detail please)? Did they change something about it on Battle (did they make it easier maybe)? What did Heroes change?
I think others would be able to go into better detail than I, (J's Reviews covered them pretty well). But off the top of my head Heroes was improved from SA2 because you could speed up by mashing a button. I'm assuming you finding SA2 better than Heroes is related to SA2 having better control in general and also the rail grinding levels in SA2 not being as complex as in heroes. And Shadow is easier because from that game onward the rails would have a larger hitbox and would be easier to maneuver on and off them. Sonic 06 was basically automated rail sections, and by the time we got to Unleashed and onwards rails just became fast paced QTEs
@@NintenDeen Hmm, I will check J's (but probably I should just find a time to play SA2B with more attention haha) By the way, I'm finishing your video, again an amazing one! And gotta love that you just put the whole cutscene in there, I got really invested and when you started talking again it was like "oh yeah, I was watching a retrospective, I forgot, damn, wanted to know how it was going to continue" hahahahaha I personally don't like the mecha nor treasure hunting levels much (I loved Mad Space tho), but you made me appreciate their inclusion with your analysis of Sonic Team's philosophy of making the game more accessible. Still, I personally prefer what they did with '06 and Frontiers. And well, if they EVER remake this game, I would still appreciate some changes like adding a machine gun to Eggman's mecha or something like that for the sake of variety, and maybe make Knuckles and Rouge's attacks a bit broken and with more range, I don't know, I feel like their gameplay need a little oomph.
1:45:15 Epic ending, missed Unleashed though! And what (3D or partially) Sonic game is ultimately your favorite? (Oh and of course there's something called Emerald Coast that didn't feature here as well...But that's for later.)
Dang you move quick! 😅. Fitting that you're officially my first channel member :) . And yeah I literally just noticed I missed Unleashed, I'm so mad but I can't be bothered to go fix it up at this point. I had my SA1 video ready to go this morning and figured out I accidentally muted the background audio during the Gamma section so I'm re-rendering it. It should be up tonight or tomorrow. Did you get a chance to see the Shadow and Heroes videos too?
Oh and my favorite with nostalgia bias is SA2. But without the nostalgia it's a pretty close tie between Frontiers and Unleashed, but I need to replay Frontiers with all the updates and DLC since I haven't played it since launch. Near the end of my SA1 vid I do a ranking/tier list
I can add it to my list of "videos id love to cover if I had free time" lol. I've yet to actually play murder of Sonic though, wouldn't a video on it just be like 5 to 10 mins long?
Fun fact: originally the Shadow being mistaken to be Sonic thing wasn't going to be too confusing to players because in his concept designs Shadow was going to look more like Sonic and also have a different name, that name and design are being shown as one of the digital deluxe pre-order bonuses for the upcoming SXSG game (Terios the hedgehog) but when Sega created the design that everyone has seen him in ever since he debuted, they figured that it looked like a better design and went with that one, possibly also knowing that they would have to re-write too many parts of SA2's story plot for it to make sense to the players and they didn't have enough time to do that.
Was it ever actually confirmed that the concept design was the reason they thought the in game characters would confuse Shadow with Sonic? Like it seems like a theory fans made up just to explain to themselves why they think Sonic Team wrote that into the story. Like I accept there was a Blue Design more similar to Sonic but I don't accept that they were just like "oh it's too late we already decided people confused the 2 hedgehogs so we might as well continue along with the story even though everyone knows they don't look alike." Seems more likely that they just didn't care if it was obvious to us (the players) that they didn't look the same
I think it was more if a case of Amy bein the person whos qualities that were needed to remind shadow of wut Maria actually wanted cus they're similar in his eyes. He saved humanity for the sake of the promise thrusted on to him since as depicted in his talks wit Maria he had nothin to exist for. He was there simply to watch over Maria & help find a cure & nothin else. In the end he finally remembers & fulfills this promise for Maria not for himself. This is part of Y his game works so well cus it "fixes" this 1 aspect that never got dealt wit. Shadow existin for himself & doin wut he wants. Almost everyone includin Maria ran around dictatin wut he's "supposed" to be like sonic & friends*tm, eggman, Gerald etc. In 06 he reaffirms his prior arc showcasin he fights for himself & his ideal alone. In SA2 he saved humanity for someone else's wish, in shadow he turns into a diff person moves on & finds his own goal, in 06 he's found that goal & now fights to protect but it's not humanity he protects but the planet itself. Protectin Humanity was Maria's wish but 1. Shadow has amnesia after SA2 so he doesn't know her anymore, 2. He fights for himself & noone else, 3. He doesn't like humanity but he does like the planet & wants to preserve wut it is. Shadow isn't a hero in SA2 since he alr disliked humanity & his possible brainwashin from Gerald made it easier to fall into his anger cus he thinks Maria wants the same. If Maria wanted him to go to McDonalds(or he thought as much at least) he'd do it in less than a heartbeat cus he was so lost he would rather be a lapdog at someone's beck & call than have nothin for himself to do. Maria ended up bein the person he chose to do that for cus he liked her the most at the time but it doesn't matter now cus he doesn't have the same impression of her imprinted on him anymore. As for the ultimate lifeform/faker thing. I think it's obv he's somehow based off sonics' design in-universe. In the final boss he states that the ultimate lifeform might actually be sonic & in the end he can't handle the use of his superform & "dies" while sonic comes back fine(even silver was fine in 06). So since he puts so much importance on not bein a "faker" while unintentionally framin sonic & puttin importance to things like how powerful he is or that sonic used a fake emerald to chaos control it thematically makes sense that shadow was indeed a "faker" & not the "ultimate lifeform" for this game specifically. Once he solidifies his own unique identity in the later games that changes tho. Even in the jp manual for the game it states that shadow in SA2 might not be the same 1 from 50yrs ago but rather a copy gerald made cus they couldn't find that 1. There's also the biolizard is a shadow prototype stuff & the "faker" thing keeps gettin layers piled on to it constantly. The story has a lot of problems & it's far from a fav(even in shadows' case) but it does at least try to do a lot & some ideas R fascinatin. It's enjoyable overall & helps the game hold up. I wish they did more to highlight Knuckles & Rouge's relationship after this cus it's almost non-existent now. Gameplay wise it's janky asf & pretty uneven a lot of the time but it's fun overall. I think my fav speed level is Shadows' last 1(forgor the name). I know ppl have problems wit the grav pillars but that was the most fun part & I think ppl jus fight the mechanic too much. I also enjoyed the car chases once I got use to em. Fuck the chao garden & this rankin system they legit make this game so much worse & I never want to C em in a sonic game again(thankfully we don't).
I actually hope you do a Chao Video, there some of my favourite Sonic content to be introduced and raising them never got old for me. I LOVED playing as Eggman it was such a cool surprise, I also like your rational and simple take on the Sonic and Shadow mix up. So many people bitch about this from a players perspective but something that isn't really acknowledged is that in the early 2d Games Sonic and Robotnik clashed away from society, so no one knew who Sonic was until Sonic Adventure so it would be easy for the average citizen to get him mixed up with Shadow. I never got the complaints about searching for the Master Emerald Shards, I just felt it was a fun gimmick for Knuckles/Rouge. I really like your take on how Gerald manipulated Shadows memories, it isn't over complicated and it makes sense he use a "light treatment" or it might've risked Shadow having a mental breakdown from clashing memories. I adore Rouge, she just slipped in perfectly for mw with the other Sonic Characters and didn't feel shoehorned in, someone else who did a retrospective on SA2 recently pointed out that Rouge looked tired from her fight with Knuckles and was most likely too exhausted to fly. SA2 is my second favourite Sonic Game.
I wouldn't be able to do a Chao video justice because I'd probably just be reading off of Wikipedia lol. I genuinely remember enjoying it so much when I was a kid though, it was so different at the time and especially with the VMUs
I did see the Shadow and Heroes videos, and now the Adventure 1 video as well. I think in all it's a pretty good unbiased (aside from SA2 a bit perhaps but that's completely understood!) tier list. The things I don't enjoy as much in SA2 are the non speed stages, but they aren't bad, just something I'd consider a more acquired taste (and Unleashed really didn't do much different with the Werehog! yet still got far more bashed by the Critics than SA2 on the Dreamcast did. It's interesting SA2 soured a full 15 points with Citics when it came to the Gamecube...only outscoring Heroes of a few years later by a single point). And of course there's a new elephant in the room just hours ago when talking about Shadow (only like 12 hours away from being public if I'm correct with schedules...what timing), Heroes, SA2, even 06 and the early to mid 2000s at large - Sonic X Shadow Generations summer trailer! Pretty sure we already saw Westopolis and Radical Highway (and/or Final Case/Final Rush...I'm not sure) back in January but now we just got the bombshell that new Heroes and 06 (!) stages (I won't spoil which in case you have not watched the trailer) are coming back as well...I really hope they get this remaster at least somewhat right as Sonic Generations while I understand it lacks the depth of Unleashed or SA2 necessary for the S tier is still a great game and these new Shadow Generations stages seem to have a ton of potetial if they can keep up in the design quality. Even just that they're still looking back on these games feels amazing!
Knuckles gameplay in SA2 is my favorite sonic gameplay style of all time. This would absolutely trounce S3&K as my favorite sonic game if I spend more time A-ranking it and frankly, I should. (Funny how both have knuckles. Well he’s in my top three alongside Shadow and Big).
Thanks for this. Yeah, I watch a lot of Sonic retrospectives as well, I’m just obsessed in it! I might make one too some day... Which 3d Sonic game would you say is the most gimmicky and least Sonic like? And which ones have the best and worst movesets, ie closest or furthest to playing like the classic games?
So I actually think no 3D Sonic game feels like the classics. You can maybe make an argument that the boost formula feels a bit like Sonic 2 but when then I feel like it's a completely different game style just due to the complexity of designing a physics based speed platformer in 3D vs 2D. The closest from a stage design perspective would maybe be in the Heroes segments of stages where you either try and take the top route or fall to the bottom route, but even then that's a reach. Anyway I'd say Sonic Boom is the least Sonic like because it literally doesn't have a real Sonic Speed section. All the remaining gimmicks (mech shooters, Werehogs, treasure hunting, etc.) are also not Sonic like but the games have enough pure Sonic in them that I can forgive it.
@NintenDeen Yeah that makes sense. Do you think Sonic should keep staying at the roots established from the classic games, or should they try making spinoffs that don't play like Sonic as long as they are fun? And which was the fastest feeling 3d Sonic game that you have played, or the most linear?
Unleashed had my favorite boost stages. And I don't really have an answer for what they should do with Sonic. I didn't think Frontiers was the answer but I loved it. Obviously for personal bias I want something akin to adventure 2 or 06. Basically the adventure formula, but it's been almost 20 years lol
@NintenDeen I think Frontiers is an evolution of the Adventure formula, kinda. But I think it is OK to have alternative styles of play as long as they are fun. So do you think they could keep on evolving the boost style formula? I would also prefer if they did the Adventure style if they included some sort of mach speed sections. I think it would be best if they combined fast speed with platforming, and I think the Adventure style can do that, but in open world. Plus playable characters. Do you think they could add playable characters to a boost game?
Lol every few years my older bro would randomly show up and tell us he traded in our console for another one. No warning, no chance to save a game, etc. up until maybe the Xbox 360 where I was finally buying my own stuff
its funny it was sonic colors that made me drop the series. i simply refuse to play a game called somic colors to this day. i got back into it with fromtiers. have not played a single game since rush/secret rings/ unleashed
Outside of the spindash I don't think the control is all that different across the 2 games. So if the argument is based on the spindash then I can see an argument for SA1 having better controls (since the spindash is crucial for a lot of people). Also keep in mind I did this all in reverse so at the time of this video I hadn't played SA1 yet to fully determine which one I felt controlled better.
@@NintenDeen SA2 spindash was a 1 second delay compared to the instant spindash of SA1 the control of Sonic in SA1 is overall better because of how smoothly he moves when tilting the Analog Stick whereas the control of Sonic in SA2 was rather stiff I mean you can literally see it in the animations
Oh man , I fucking hate this game with a passion, it does everything wrong with what a platformer should be , the speed levels are empty linear lines , mech levels are shit ,and the treasure hunt levels are everything wrong with a platformer , I'm making a whole video about how much i hate this game , so if you want my full opinion, wait till that comes out
I mean the treasure hunting stages aren’t “platforming” stages. They’re puzzle solving stages. The speed stages are “linear” but they’re not empty. There are still plenty of alternate routes, Sonic controls well in them and the ranking system really adds a lot of depth to these levels.
@@MysticClaws100 the treasure hunting levels feel like a Collectathon , but fail at everything a Collectathon stands for , and the speed stages , sure , some of them have alternate paths , but they're barely noticed and don't do much, again, wait for my video , its gonna take a while to come out, but it will be damn worth it
@@thepaperunicorn09 There are alternate paths in every speed stage. Sometimes they’re pretty minor, like taking the stairs in City Escape instead of doing the platforming. Sometimes they’re upper pathways accessible via trick ramps, horizontal bars, light dash, rails or springs. Sometimes it will just be a direct alternate path. But there are many routes. And even if there isn’t a clear alternate path, Sonic’s abilities and the momentum based physics allow for shortcuts to be taken all over the place with the spin dash, bounce bracelet, upward/downward slopes etc. I get why mechs and treasure hunting is hated by a lot of people, regardless of if I agree or not but I just don’t think the criticism the speed stages get is really at all valid.
