Aesthetics:  
The game looks better on the GameCube than the Dreamcast, and there is no framerate drop at all in the game. The animations however, especially the mouth movement, leaves a little more to be desired. Most of the time, the mouths don’t move with the words that are spoken, yet you see the mouth trying to accent the syllables. Also, the “surprise” or “shocking” expressions simply turn into a little red rectangle, and stays like that, even after the words end. But that’s only during the cutscenes. During actual gameplay, the animations are smooth and crisp.

However, you won’t be noticing the animations, as the camera angle is horrible. First, the camera is not controlled by the camera stick, which could have made this game easier to play. Second, Sonic Team put in the option of rotating the camera but then returning it to a preset angle. This can be very discouraging when are trying to backtrack the level to pick up something you may have missed. It would also have been very helpful to put a zoom feature on the camera. Half the time, I’m trying to see what’s right in front of the character, but I’m spending so much time maneuvering the character to see over his or her shoulder.

Sound:  
The sound is the strongest aspect of the game. The clear blings of the rings, and (mostly) appropriate music that outline the levels are superb. Sometimes, the music is corny and very cutesy, especially Amy’s music and Sonic’s first level music. The later music, however, fits the levels and emphasizes the objective that each character must accomplish. For example, Sonic’s and Shadow’s music is intense which merely highlights the speed and fast-paced nature of the level. The sound effects are also very clear and appropriate. The voice acting is the one weakness. Though they try to spread speech throughout the game, the voice acting is just plain bad as either too little or too much emotion is conveyed. Sometimes the phrasing in the clauses and simple sentences is broken and choppy as the speech tries to fit the character’s mouthing.

Control:
The control is sloppy. When pressing the jump button, you are returned a slight delay before actually jumping into the air. Also, the spin dash is very delayed now because of the added “somersault” which simply has Sonic or Shadow do a somersault. This move is pretty much worthless as every time you approach something that must be overcome using the somersault, a Chao helper tells you to use it. The controls on the Knuckles/Rouge levels are acceptable but sometimes when you’re falling, you cannot glide unless mashing the button 2 or 3 times. The Tails/Robotnik controls are the worst by far. Simply turning requires dedication and patience when using the analog stick.

Multiplayer:
The multiplayer aspect has been greatly improved over the Dreamcast version, but it’s still a little weak. You can cart race and battle as well as other competitions between you and your friends. Cart racing is entertaining though not exactly the same as Mario Kart. The only major difference between it and the Dreamcast version is more playable characters. All in all though, it’s worth trying out with your friends at least once.

OVERALL:
I’m sorry to say that this is one of the worst Sonic games. It’s still fun, but because of sloppy controls, horrible camera angles, confusing story, and repetitive gameplay on some levels, it disappoints those looking to find the same Sonic gameplay as the first Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast. I hope that the next Sonic is truly created with the GameCube in mind.

 

The Lowdown on  Sonic Adventure 2 Battle Aesthetics: Above Average Control: Below Average Gameplay: Average Multiplayer: Above Average Sound: Above Average Innovation: 4/6 Lasting Appeal: 3/6 Rating Explanation Overall: Average! "An Average Game"