Sonic Adventure: Tristan’s Impressions

First of all, this may sound a tad bias, particularly because I am. I’ve been a fan since I picked up Sonic 1 in ’91, and ever since, I’ve loved a majority of the Sonic games. So…here goes.

When you usually see video on the Internet, chances are it’s better on the television. And that is certainly true with this game. The intro is one of the best openings in a while, graphic wise. And that’s before you even start the game.

When you do start the game, you have a majority of options: Adventure, Options, Trial (which is not immediately accessible), and Internet. I looked through some of the options and they are spectacular, even for options! You can choose from different languages in voice and text, and hear all of the music, right from the get-go. I could have spent an hour looking through everything that was there…but I started with Sonic’s quest.

First off, the cinema scenes are done in real-time, something I haven’t seen before. Only thing is, you can’t skip through them. Oh well, they are fun to watch.

I have been as far as Casinopolis, and have beaten Chaos 0, Egg Mobile, and Chaos 4. Let’s start with the zones. There are certain tasks which have to be completed (like Rescue Tails, Get the Chaos Emerald, etc.), and there is some skill level needed in order to reach this goal. A lot of these zones are your typical “run fast and destroy enemies” gameplay, but, at some times, especially in the adventure stages, you need to talk to people to know what you’re doing. I have had to do that several times to see where I was going.

Let’s get something straight-the graphics are phenomenal. Everything you could ask for in a Sonic game is there, but this time, it’s fast and in 3D.

This leads to what some critics are calling a major flaw-the camera angles and pop-up. First off, yes, folks, there is some pop-up. But it is nearly unnoticeable; the only time I actually realized there was a tad of pop-up was in Emerald Coast. But that’s it.

Now to the camera angles. A lot of people are complaining that they have been the result of dying every once in a while. Guess what? You’re not going to notice any problems with the cameras, because I didn’t at all. Yes, there were some times when the camera did back up into a wall, but it didn’t affect me a single bit.

Other than those tiny, miniscule problems, everything done in this game could top Mario 64 and FFVIII easily. The music, the gameplay, the action/adventure/RPG elements…it’s all there. Next week, hopefully, I’ll have a full review, outlining the Chao, the other bosses, other quests, Twinkle Park (I’m looking forward to that), the internet features, and more. It’s something not worth missing.