Reviewed on: PC
Also Available on: Nintendo Gamecube
Developed by: Sega
Published by: Sega
Release Date: 19 March 2011 (PC Version)

Sonic the Hedgehog is perhaps one of the most divisive franchises amongst its own fans. Many would argue it transitioned to 3D with a couple of good titles, only for Sonic Team to abandon the ethos of what made the Adventure series so good, and to tumble over releases, only to live off the success of the iconic Blue Blur himself. With that being said, is Sonic Adventure DX all that it really cracks up to be? As always, we’ve played this on PC with no mods to give us a real insight into our favourite hedgehog’s past.

Sonic Adventure DX opens with a dramatic and moody scene, with the police of a Station Square standing off against an unknown threat known as Chaos 0. Sonic appears and you are thrown into the first 3D boss fight of the series. This small and easy boss fight was the perfect way to introduce Sonic to three dimensions and get the players of the time used to a different setting, with a semi-automatic camera and free movement of Sonic. Now, it may seem simplistic, but it’s easy to forget just how revolutionary this was for the technology at the time.

Narrative

Sonic Adventure was Sega’s foray into throwing Sonic into a more complex narrative with a story line that transcended the implied chase of Doctor Robotnik through 2D stages and defeating him. For the first time, the stakes were high and the pay-off had to be higher. Doctor Robotnik has discovered an ancient evil lurking within the Master Emerald known as Chaos. His plan is to feed Chaos with the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds, making him change form and grow stronger. His plan is to destroy the city known as Station Square, for him to build his empire of Eggmanland on its ruins.

The narrative explores the ancient history of the Echidna race, the Chaos and Master Emeralds and provides some context on Knuckles and his duty to the aforementioned emeralds. Sonic’s cocky personality begins to appear through one-liners and nicknaming Robotnik “Eggman” for the first time.

A lot of the Voice Acting does leave a lot to be desired. It’s hard to explain in a written review just how bad it really is, with some lines feeling like sound-bites that have simply been thrown in out of nowhere, but for its age, it can be somewhat forgiven at times. I’m just here to enjoy some 3D Sonic after all.

Something that probably isn’t spoken about enough is how the narrative is played out from the perspective of six different characters, and it’s great to see how the whole adventure unfolds in this way, with certain background elements paying off when you get to see exactly what the likes of Knuckles, Amy and co were up to while Sonic and Tails were darting off in their desperate race to obtain some of the emeralds.

Gameplay 

The 3D gameplay is split into multiple parts, which can make this game feel more of a tech-demo for the, at the time, brand new Dreamcast system. You start playing as Sonic, and slowly unlock a story for Knuckles, Tails, Amy, E-102 and Big the Cat, each with their own unique style of gameplay. With Sonic, you blast through stages at rewarding speed, grabbing rings and using his new homing attack. Tails allows you to take an easier approach, racing Sonic through stages using his signature two-tails to fly. It’s an exciting change of pace and almost makes you feel like you’re cheating somewhat as you attempt to exploit huge jumps through stages to get to the end as quick as you can.

It’s not all sunshine and roses, however. Big the Cat’s stages are entirely set up as fishing mini games. Throughout the narrative, Big loses his pet frog, Froggy, and his goal is to search each level for him and fish him out of the water. Fortunately, it’s only about an hour long, but it will feel longer. Use a guide. Don’t be ashamed. Move on quickly. This is the blight on an otherwise decent title.

Knuckles has you explore stages searching for fragments of the Master Emerald that has been shattered, thanks to Robotnik releasing the being known as Chaos. It’s safe to say these aren’t the most pulse-racing experiences. They utilise a radar-system to track down three pieces in each stage, with some puzzle elements implemented, such as tilting the Egg-Carrier stage to open doors and reveal the missing pieces. For many, these stages aren’t enjoyable and slow the game down to a snails-pace, but I’ve always somewhat enjoyed them in spite of this.

Amy’s stages involve quite an intimidating and somewhat nightmare-fuelled chase. One of Eggman’s robots is chasing down Amy in order to obtain the Chaos Emerald from her friend “birdie”. You must run for your life as you traverse each stage. Amy has a giant hammer which can be incredible fun to use as you basically perform a hop, skip and jump throughout levels, which can sometimes feel very rewarding and fluid motions. This is a formula I’d have loved to explored in later Sonic games, yet we unfortunately have yet to see anything like this re-appear to date.

Lastly, there’s E-102. A robot of Eggman’s who slowly proves to be one of his better inventions, yet with a mind of his own. Stages require you to line-up shots with his last and shoot as many enemies and icons as you can to earn more time to complete stages. There are obstacles that you must traverse around and find ways to jump up and complete courses, but these are sometimes left feeling a bit awkward with the way E-102 controls. These aren’t the most engaging stages in the game, and unfortunately it’s something that Sega decides to implement even more in Sonic Adventure 2.

Each and every story path has boss stages which vary in difficulty, with Sonic having the hardest of the lot as you progress, usually against Eggman’s mechas or Chaos. The Boss stages usually require you to perform at least three hits on an enemy, while dodging their barrage of attacks and ensuring you always keep at least one ring on hand at all times to avoid losing a life. Once you complete every story, the final Super Sonic stage is unlocked as Sonic faces off against Perfect Chaos.

Sonic Adventure also introduced the Chao Garden. A small area outside of other stages, where Sonic and friends can care for and raise Chao. Throughout each stage in the main game, as you defeat enemies, they release animals. These animals are drawn to Sonic and friends and become a part of your inventory. As you reach the Chao Garden, you release these animals and you can give them to your Chao, where they seemingly absorb their essence and inherit animal parts. These animal parts increase your Chao’s stats, such as Run, Fly, Swim etc., and as they grow, you can enter them into races where you can earn Emblems and achievements.

In-between character stages, you can explore four different adventure zones. Throughout these zones there are hidden mysteries and objectives, such as finding emblems to reach a coveted 100% completion, unlocking additional Chao gardens or finding items that help progress the main narrative. These are the clear inspirations for the open-zones in Sonic Frontiers, that only took twenty-three years to come back into fruition.

Visuals and Audio

Visually Sonic Adventure DX stands somewhere between impressive and awful at times. It’s important to remember that this game originally released in 1999 and, for its time, was pretty spectacular. Cutscenes in particular is where the visuals falter. Character models are unusually static sometimes, and when a collision is involved, whether part of a “battle” or otherwise, just feel awkward and hard to look at. This was a time where character models were almost never allowed to just stand still in a cut-scene, and Sonic always awkwardly stands while looking like he’s revving up a bike with his two hands.

The game’s soundtrack does not let you down. Sonic Team somehow, despite all of their faults, always manage to create a soundtrack that goes above and beyond. Thematically they manage to curate something that sits just right in every scenario – whether it’s the sunny seaside of Emerald Coast, or the mysterious Mystic Ruins, this iconic soundtrack will echo in your mind.

Controls

Sonic Adventure DX has some jank, and once again, that’s probably expected for a title of its time. For the most part, Sonic himself controls very well, with certain levels making him a little bit too “light footed”, where in cylindrical sections, he can feel like he goes all over the place, and as the player you begin to lose control a bit too easily. At times I’d like a bit more “glue” on Sonic’s feet to make him a bit more stable in sections, but otherwise he, and most other characters, control very well.

There were times the controls felt frustrating and unreliable, and that was usually with sections for Big the Cat and E-102. They are the slower and somewhat bulkier characters, and that doesn’t work well in some areas of the game. Movement can feel incredibly clunky, with controls that sometimes have a bit of jank with the fastest character in the game, this feeling is only multiplied when using someone heavy and slow. Overall, the experience is moderately good with the controls.

Does it respect your time?

For the most part, yes, Sonic Adventure DX respects your time. You can save and exit almost anywhere. Some cutscenes might overstay their welcome a little bit, and some stages can get a bit lengthy when you reach the end of them, but this is not the kind of title that requires too much of the player.

Approaching Big the Cat’s fishing levels had me concerned for the rating of this game. Google them, or look on Steam, and you’ll believe that these are near on impossible without lowing your frame rate or using mods. This isn’t the case. It’s awkward, somewhat frustrating, but you can beat these levels, no sweat.

Summary

Sonic Adventure DX is a must-play title for those curious about Sonic’s 3D history. It’s arguably not the best 3D experience out there, but for less than £10 on Steam it’s an absolute steal. Why this isn’t available on PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch, I do not know. It’s a sure fire way to rekindle people’s love for 3D Sonic while exploring the series history and its long-lived lore.

It’s not a perfect title and is very much showing its age, but it has a lot of quirks and charm that any Sonic-lover or platformer fan is bound to enjoy. Sonic Adventure DX is crying out for a remake. Please Sega, just make it happen.

About Everyone’s Arcade’s Review System