$9.99Sonic Adventure 2 Heroes and villains, one emerald race
Race through two rival campaigns at full speed, then settle the score with a friend on the same screen.
Is Sonic Adventure 2 worth it?
Sonic Adventure 2 is worth it if…
- you want a fast 3D platformer where speed comes from learning the levels
- you like playing the villains as much as the heroes
- you enjoy raising little pets and competing with them in mini-games
- you want to race a friend on the couch in split screen
- you have a soft spot for early 2000s classics with big soundtracks
Screenshots
Two sides of one story
The fight for the Chaos Emeralds plays out twice. Pick the Hero story and you are Sonic, Tails and Knuckles trying to stop the villains. Pick the Dark story and you are Shadow, Dr. Eggman and Rouge, using a space colony to threaten the world into submission. The two campaigns run in parallel, so you see the same events from both ends, and finishing both unlocks a final chapter with the true ending. Shadow is the star here: this is the game that introduced him, and his own motives turn out to matter for the fate of humanity. The tone is earnest, early 2000s cool, with rock and rap on the soundtrack and villains who get real backstories. Finish both sides and the whole thing clicks together.
Three ways to play a stage
Thirty stages split into three styles. Sonic and Shadow get the speed levels: rails, loops and shortcuts at full sprint, where knowing the level is what makes you fast. Knuckles and Rouge hunt for treasure, following clues through big open stages to dig up emeralds. Tails and Eggman pilot mechs through shooting sections. Each character has their own abilities, and every stage hides secrets you will not find on a first run. Clear a stage fast with a high score and you earn a rank, from a lowly D up to A, which is reason enough to replay. There are over 150 missions across the whole game, so a single sitting can be one quick speed run or an hour of chasing a better grade.
Can you play it with friends?
Can you play it with a friend on the same screen?
Yes. Step away from the main story and the game offers two-player modes, including kart racing and other competitive modes, all played locally on a split screen. It is a good change of pace between story stages: one of you picks a hero, the other a villain, and you settle it on the track.
What is the Chao Garden?
A side mode where you raise your own Chao, small pets you can improve by boosting their statistics. Once they are trained up, they compete in their own mini-games, including races and karate. It is slow, surprisingly deep, and many people sink far more hours into the garden than into the story stages.
Is it hard to get good ranks?
Yes, at first. Ranks depend on your time and score, and on a first playthrough a B is already a good result. The trick is that the game rewards knowing the stages: once you learn where the shortcuts and hidden routes are, better ranks come naturally. That replay loop is a big part of why the game holds up.
Is the game showing its age?
A bit, honestly. The controls and camera take some getting used to, and the game is rough around the edges in places. The level design, the music and the two-story structure are what keep people coming back, so the jank is a trade-off rather than a dealbreaker. Go in expecting a classic, not a modern release.
