Sonic Advance 2
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| Sonic Advance 2 | |
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| Developer(s) | Sonic Team, Dimps (Co-Developer) |
| Publisher(s) | Sega, THQ (Co-Publisher) |
| Designer(s) | Yuji Naka & Hiroshi Matsumoto (Producer) Akinori Nishiyama (Director) |
| Artist(s) | Yuji Uekawa (Art Director) |
| Composer(s) | Tatsuyuki Maeda Yutaka Minobe Teruhiko Nakagawa |
| Engine | modified Sonic Advance game engine |
| Platform(s) | Game Boy Advance |
| Release date(s) | JPN December 19, 2002 USA March 9, 2003 PAL March 28, 2003 |
| Genre(s) | Platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone |
| Media | 128-Megabit cartridge |
Sonic Advance 2 (ソニックアドバンス 2 Sonikku Adobansu 2) is a side-scrolling platform game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, developed by Dimps and published by THQ for the Game Boy Advance. The game was released in Japan on December 19, 2002, in North America on March 9, 2003, in Europe on March 18, 2003. It is based on a modified version of Sonic Advance's game engine.
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[edit] Gameplay
In comparison to its predecessor, Sonic Advance 2 is significantly faster-paced, and boasts larger level designs, an increased challenge and superior control over the playable characters. Rails are also easier to jump on compared to the first game. There are seven zones, each containing two acts and a boss battle, and there is a final zone at the end of the game that consists purely of boss fights. Obtaining all of the Chaos Emeralds unlocks the Extra Zone.
All characters can now perform various stunts when flying through the air and not curled in a ball (i.e. after being launched from a spring or similar). These are activated by holding a direction on the D-pad and pressing the R button. Some of these stunts can be used to destroy enemies.
Another new feature is shattering the sound barrier. If a character runs as fast as possible for a period of time without stopping or slowing down, they will shatter the sound barrier and leave a trail of afterimages behind them. While in shattering the sound barrier, it is possible to run over water, and the attack used with the B button becomes more powerful. The delay before reaching shattering can be decreased somewhat by collecting rings. Certain objects in the level (red booster wheels, for instance) will instantly force the character into the state. This also shows that Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Cream, and Amy can run faster than the speed of sound, although this is mixed up and scrambled in later games.
At the beginning of the game, Sonic is the only playable character. By progressing through the game and beating bosses, Tails, Cream and Knuckles will become playable (but only if the levels are completed whilst playing as Sonic.) Amy is unlocked when all four characters have collected the seven Chaos Emeralds.
In each act, there are seven Special Rings. Collecting all seven of these and completing the Act, without dying, will take the player to a Special Stage, where a player can win a Chaos Emerald. The stage accessed and emerald obtained both depend on which zone the player was in when they accessed the stage. Unlike Sonic Advance, emeralds are not shared between characters.
All bosses in this game, except for the final boss, take place while running along a horizontally wrapping area, akin to the Mushroom Hill Zone boss in Sonic and Knuckles.
[edit] Characters and their Attributes
- Sonic the Hedgehog is playable from the start, He can jump higher from a rail that ends in mid-air by pressing the A button in the end of it, press A when jumping to slash the air, like in Sonic Advance, or home on an enemy, and can somersault by pressing B.
- Miles "Tails" Prower is playable after Music Plant is completed as Sonic. He can fly by pressing the A button again after jumping. He can also spin his tails on the ground pressing B.
- Knuckles the Echidna is playable after you beat him in Sky Canyon as Sonic. He can glide, climb, and punch.
- Cream the Rabbit and her Chao, Cheese are playable after Leaf Forest is completed. This is Cream's first appearance, with the exception of artwork in Sonic Mega Collection. She is the second fastest character in the game (next to Sonic), and she can fly by flapping her ears; however, this is half the speed of Tails' flight power, and still yet half as long (she can even stop flying in mid-flight by pressing the B button, unlike Tails). Cream can send her pet Chao, Cheese, to attack enemies if you press B, making her particular powerful against boss fights.
- Amy Rose is the last unlockable character, obtained by getting all Chaos Emeralds with all characters. She can use her Piko-Piko hammer to attack enemies, and is also able to use spin attack and spinjump unlike the first game.
- Vanilla the Rabbit, Cream's mother. She is a non-playable character who plays a small role in the game, getting captured by Eggman. After viewing this cutscene, Sonic, with the power of the Chaos Emeralds, transforms into Super Sonic and goes after Eggman to save Vanilla. This takes place in True Area 53.
- Dr. Eggman, the main antagonist of the Sonic series. He appears as a boss in every zone, except Sky Canyon. Eggman once again tricks Knuckles, who mans the boss machine in that level. If playing through the zone again, the machine will be piloted by Eggman
- Super Sonic is playable in the Extra Zone after completing the game with all 4 characters and getting all the Chaos Emeralds with Sonic.
[edit] Pre-release version
Although this game marks Cream the Rabbit's first appearance, her playable debut was originally planned for Sonic Heroes. Sonic Team shifted her debut game to Sonic Advance 2 to help the game feel fresher. The game was originally supposed to star Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, just as the original Sonic Advance had. Additionally, early videos of Sonic Advance 2 showcased the game with a completely different, more laid-back soundtrack and re-used character select graphics.
| Reception | |
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| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| GamePro | 3.5 of 5 |
| GameSpot | 82% |
| GameSpy | 79% |
| IGN | 90% |
[edit] Reception
The game received generally positive reviews, similar to its predecessor.
