After several years in video game retirement, Sonic the Hedgehog returns as the star of a graphically stunning 3-D adventure game that blows away every other game in the genre. Sonic is joined by five of his friends in a massive quest that spans over 50 game levels filled with remarkable visuals and a pulsating soundtrack. Taking full advantage of the unprecedented processing power of the Dreamcast, Sega's development crew, Sonic Team, has designed several gravity-defying game levels that will keep gamers hooked.
Our favorite level is Windy Valley, which requires you to survive the stormy perils of a tremendous tornado. This tyrant of nature chases you relentlessly before ultimately sucking you into the air and up through its eye. During the chase, the tornado manages to tear up just about everything on the screen. This dizzying visual spectacle moves so fast that you will literally hold on to the game controller for dear life.
Assuming you survive the tornado, there are several more challenging areas to conquer, including a level that requires you to snowboard directly in the path of a fast-approaching avalanche. During the Emerald Coast level, you will race across a precarious dock as a killer whale attacks from below, destroying the wood planks underneath your feet while you attempt to outrun the crazed creature.
We also liked the numerous mini-games scattered throughout this title. When you least expect it, Sonic Adventure tosses in some old-fashioned arcade action, such as pinball or bumper car racing. In between, you can raise virtual pets, known in the game as "Chao." These characters, which are saved using the optional Visual Memory Unit (VMU), can be combined with other Chao characters exchanged between friends or downloaded via the Internet.
Gamers looking to show off the strong processing power of the 128-bit Dreamcast will definitely want to pick up this title. Simply put, Sonic Adventure's graphics surpass those of any other game currently available on any home video game system. Let the Sonic assault begin. --Brett Atwood
Pros:
Strong replay value
Stunning graphics
Bonus virtual pet game
Six different game characters
Cons:
May be too fast-moving for some players
Awkward camera angles can inhibit gameplay in some areas
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Buy it.:
It was the best selling game on the Dreamcast for a reason. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this game. Buy it.
There are better Dreamcast titles...:
Sonic Adventure
When the Dreamcast first came out, this was one of the games you had to have. Sonic, being the cornerstone of Sega, was expected to be Sega's Super Mario 64. Although it failed to meet that expectation, they did create a fairly fun game. I still think if you own a Dreamcast that this needs to be in your collection. If you don't own a Dreamcast, there is no reason to find one just for this game. Graphics- 7/10
At the time these were really good graphics. They couldn't stand... more info
Classic:
This game is a classic, although gaming has evolved quite a bit, once in awhile my son will put down his ps3/psp/ps2 and go for his older system to play this game. I know he likes it and thinks it's fun, even if it is for olds times sake.
This game kicks MAJOR BUTT!!!!:
I bought this game a couple days ago and I'm still not done. This game is beautiful, creative, challenging, amazing, ... The details are just mind blowing and stunning. For anyone who has a Dreamcast, you have to own this game. There is two things that I have to point out. First of all, the camera viewing angle isn't the best. Now, this isn't entirely a bad thing because it adds to the challenge. Also, I've played this game on a 26" and 42" T.V. I find that my smaller T.V. has a better quality than the... more info
