by Jody - August 2, 2003

Ever since I was three years old, I have been a fan of Sonic games. From the original Sonic the Hedgehog all the way to Sonic Adventure � Sonic games are remarkable. When Sonic Adventure was first released, it marked Sonic�s first foray into the 3-D world. Now, with Sonic Adventure DX: Director�s Cut, we have the same game with a few extras available for the Nintendo GameCube!

Blue is back!

Sonic starts things off by helping the S.W.A.T. team dispatch a baddie in the middle of the street. This little introductory incident makes it clear that Sonic's old nemesis, Dr. Robotnik, is up to no good and will be taking out his frustrations on the kind folk of the city. Once the premise it out of the way it's time for the usual running, jumping, ring collecting and baddie-bumping. At times it's very much like the Sonic of old, with lots of high-speed spinning and scenery whizzing by. The rest is typical jumping around to avoid the bad guys and collecting rings for more points.

Right from the get-go, this game will remind you of the old Sonic games. The music, the cutesy lines during cut scenes and the overall style of the presentation are unmistakable. In that sense, you get the good along with the bad. The levels are pleasing to the eye, from sunlight effects to leaving footprints in the sand. The story scenes, however, are packed with silly, pointless dialogue and are pretty longwinded for what is supposed to be light-hearted entertainment.

As the game progresses you'll add to the list of playable characters. Each time Sonic finds one of his friends they're unlocked for your use. There are six total; Tails, Knuckles and Big the Cat among them. Each also has their own side adventures, new to the DX version, which you can put off for quite a while - until you want to unlock absolutely everything in the game. Collecting emblems in these missions and the rest of the game allows you to unlock the other new feature for this version of Sonic Adventure: All of Sonic's old Game Gear games. Depending upon how fondly you remember those, the extra work might be worth it.

This game also has a flow that it goes through in each level. First there is the Adventure Field, in this place players have no time limits or any restrictions. While in this field, players must talk to NPC to find out what to do next. When they finally figure out what to do they are transported to an action stage. The action stages are the true part of this Sonic game, in these various stages players will run, collect rings, and rescue animals, just like in the previous Sonic games. The problem with this setup is the Adventure Fields really take away the whole Sonic feel to the game, it is almost like a chore to find out where to go, so they can play Sonic as it is meant to be played: fast. On the other hand, I have to complement the Sonic Team for trying out a new approach to their franchise, if the Adventure fields didn�t feel so forced it would have made this game a thousand times better.

This game also includes the highly popular Chao mini game. A Chao is a virtual pet, and I believe that this was included because virtual pets were all the rage in the late 90�s. To raise a Chao you first have to find an egg, then hatch it and then feed it. The Chao also responds according to the player�s actions all throughout the game. There are also a variety of mini games that are based around this Chao that you have to take care of. These are handled by hooking up your Game Boy Advance to your GameCube via a link cable. The only bad thing about this is that the Game Boy has to be hooked up to your GameCube to play these games, unlike the original games, where players would take their VMU around with them. It is still nice to see that these minigames are still included with Sonic Adventure.

It looks a lot like the Dreamcast version, but there is some difference.

Carrying an "E for Everyone" rating and crammed full of vibrant colors and cute characters, both good and bad guys, means kids can enjoy Sonic Adventure DX along with you or even by themselves. Like any jumping collection game it involves a fair amount of trial and error and hand-eye coordination that might be beyond some young kids. But if they're patient they'll probably do fine. As a frame of reference, my friend's five year-old, Miles, was having a blast once he realized he had to just go ahead and try something and see if it worked. Let's just say he wasn't happy when I wrestled the controller away and leave it at that. The game itself doesn�t look a lot better than it did on Dreamcast, but hey, it�s a change! Sonic is constructed with a high polygon count, and is textured really well. Each of the different environments looks really nice and the use of textures is really abundant. There are only a few downfalls there, the camera still has a few problems and the biggest disappointment is the frame rate. You cannot have a Sonic game and it slow down, that is just not a possibility. Unfortunately the frame rate dips certain times during the course of the game. The drop doesn�t stall the game in any factor but it is noticeable. Overall the graphics have lasted the test of time.

Same old same old

Surround sound helps bring Sonic Adventure into the new century, and it's worth noting that the music used in Sonic games, including this one, is a significant high point. It's distinctive and doesn't get annoying as quickly or as often as many game soundtracks do. It does what background music should: It helps create an identity for the experience but stays in the background. Another good thing is that this game supports Dolby Surround Sound Pro Logic II, and it sounds nice, if you have the proper setup to take advantage of it. The music that is in the game does get a bit cheesy at times, but it is what people might expect if they have ever played a Sonic game in the past. The voice acting is a bit on the cheesy side but it is not as irritating as other voice-overs I have heard in the past. The sound effects are also nicely done and sound really crisp.

3-D Sonic

The real drawbacks to Sonic Adventure DX are things that could have and should have been fixed for a new version on a new console. Sonic and his buddies get hung up on scenery far too often and have trouble hitting what should be solid objects. Characters shouldn't fall through the floor for no reason. I haven�t experienced it personally yet, but a lot of my friends have. Even though this version seems to have fixed that, I just don�t know their definition of being fixed. Add to that a camera that goes behind buildings and other parts of a level far too often, and an occasional slowdown when Sonic should be at his fastest, and you've got an unacceptable list of fundamental flaws in a game that's been on the shelf for four years. Overall though, this is a pretty fun game.

Fix those camera angles!

As I mentioned earlier, I�ve loved Sonic pretty much all of my life. From Sonic the Hedgehog to Sonic and Knuckles, Sonic Triple Trouble, Sonic 3-D Blast, Sonic Adventure, Sonic Advance, and so on, Sonic games have always been awesome. With Sonic Adventure � being 3-D is a VERY COOL thing, but there is always one annoying part about games such as this � the camera angle. Many times have I been in an action stage and died because of the camera. Stuff like this tends to really piss you off; something I don�t think Sonic games are made to do. This game does implement and fix bugs a lot better though. I remember on the original for Dreamcast, at random times I would fall through the stage and die � I don�t think I�ve done that once on this version yet. Bringing back the Chao was another cool feature � I just love to raise and race those things.

If you own a Dreamcast, don

If you love Sonic from back in the day and didn't play this game when it first came out, you'll no doubt enjoy Sonic Adventure on the GameCube. Presentation isn't everything but in this case it's very telling. Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut looks exactly like what it is: a thoroughly standard platform game from four years ago basically. It just doesn't hold up well compared to other games of its kind and if you already played it on the Dreamcast, you definitely aren't missing anything.