Sonic Advance Appreciation Topic

Advance 1 was my favorite GBA game. I have played the first level literally hundreds of times. I think the physics are fine, the music is good, and the special stages were alright, too.

Advance 2, on the other hand, was not so good. My friend owned it, and I played it quite a lot. I absolutely loved the music, but the level design and bottomless pits etc. were horrible. His copy was 100% complete, though, so I got to play through the Super Sonic fight without having to go through the whole process.

Advance 3, I played in an emulator rather than on real hardware. I think it's a good combination of the two. Better physics than SADV2, but that isn't saying much. The team concept turned out alright, though maybe it could have been done better.

 

I have never played 2 or 3, but I've played 1 millions of times. It really could have been Sonic 4, it had most of the things that S3K introduced, such as at least 3 playable characters, different music per act, completely zone-exclusive badniks (yes, I'm aware Sonic 2 had this as well).

Though come to think of it, I really wish they made some levels bigger. Except Egg Rocket Zone, because that level is HUGE! Okay, since I haven't played Advance 2 or 3, I probably shouldn't say this, but isn't Egg Rocket Zone obviously the largest level in a 2D Sonic game ever? I remember that was one of the first times I realized that you could die from being in a level for 10 minutes (though if I remember correctly, that level had timers where you have to beat certain parts in under 5 minutes, so I guess the level is really about 15-20 minutes long). But Neo Green Hill Zone is so tiny that you could practically memorize the layouts.

But overall, I still really like Sonic Advance 1. And there's even a hidden code to let you play as Sonic w/Tails following, in Sonic 2/Sonic3K style. Oh, and the Special Stages were REALLY hard at first, and after MANY tries I finally got the hang of them, and then I blasted through them.

 

You'd probably love Clockwork Knight.

 

Just played through Sonic Advance 2 for the first time in 6-7 years. My thoughts? I still love the game. Unfortunately, the bottomless pits, the terrible enemy placement, and the ridiculous system for getting emeralds really hold the game from being far better than it should be. I give it a 9/10. Yes Retro, I actually love Sonic Advance 2. I'm truly in the minority with my opinion of this game. >_>

 

Finally.

Advance 3 remains one of my favourite games in the series, as once you get past the incredibly mediocre first three zones, you get some of the coolest gimmicks (Chaos Angel, Toy Paradise), most interesting art (Cyber Track) and awesome music (Twinkle Snow) seen in Sonic. In those last 4 zones, the level design also often reaches S3K calibre. Wasn't a huge fan of the other two games though; Advance 2 was too speedy and often annoying (I never really had problems with Sky Canyon, but Techno Base is a different, incredibly frustrating story), and Advance 1 was basically S4E1 with less heart and a worse running animation.

 

I easily found Sky Canyon to be the most annoying level in the game because of the extreme amount of bottomless pits. >_<

And physics that don't totally suck ass.

 

Advance 1 had the better physics, Sonic 4 Episode I has better levels.

That's my opinion, anyway, take it as you will.

 

Sonic Advance is the only game I pick up to play anymore. I don't really enjoy the other two.
Advance 1 feels like playing the classics, it's got everything down perfect, and I'd love to see a console remake, Only with the correct physics though.

 

This exactly. If Sega could have just taken this game, up the resolution to 16:9, made everything 2.5D (like Sonic Fan Remix), gave every character their Unleashed/Colors model (besides Tails which needs some fixing), and changed the menu/titlecard/etc. style to be more classic.... this game would've been miles better as a Sonic the Hedgehog 4 than what we are getting now. The visuals for the stages, the level design, the badniks, the physics, the gameplay.. it's all there. I love that game so much.

 

I like advance 1 enough to have owned it, grabbed all the emeralds and finished the game 100%, must have sold it a few months later as I was flat out bored with it.

the sequel, ugh biggest turn off ever for me, I gave it a chance and even played it for a bit on my cube gba player but I hated it, sold it.

3rd one was great at the start and then went downhill as the zones became more and more annoying, sold it :P

about 2 years ago I bought them all again along with rush for my brother when I gave him my original DS, he and my little nephew play them a lot as they like sonic.

 

Sonic Advance 1 - I enjoyed this game quite a bit, but unfortunately the zones were way to short (not counting that big-ass zone with the spaceship, that's huuuge). The special stages were insanely difficult, and it took ages to find the special stage springs that were very well hidden. An enjoyable and short game overall, but not my favorite on the GBA.

Sonic Advance 2 - Even though this game is faster than your ass, it's a fun trip. Sky Canon Act 1 was painful at first, before I knew the special moves I could use to progress further. Techno Base was awesome, and the music in the Hot Crater Zone was pretty memorable and cheerful. I did however never manage to enter the Special Stages in this game, and that was no surprise after watching tutorials on YouTube. Talk about memorizing! I think this was a fun and fast game, and not as bad as people say it is.

Sonic Advance 3 - This game was AWESOME. I enjoyed pretty much everything about this game, the unique level-select stages, chao collecting (adds replay-value), the level layout, the music (Twinkle Snow sounds epic) and the design. I prefer collecting chao's or searching for giant rings a lot more than being forced to have 50 rings or more to enter the special stages (darn spikes and projectile-shooting enemies). This game was neither too fast or too slow being a Sonic game in my opinion, and the special stages were not as insanely difficult as in the first Sonic Advance game. My favorite in the Advance-series.

 

I fucking love Advance. It's the first 2D Sonic platformer I've played (yes, that says a lot about me), and I constantly find myself returning to it. I might find the game way too easy as I've beaten the game here and back again, and another time for kicks - with all the Chaos Emeralds every time. The special stages; at first, they seem impossible, but once you've figured out how they work, they're a walk in the park. Legit challenge for the emeralds - I love this game. It's a masterpiece, just like it's brother, Sonic 3 and Knuckles.

Fun fact, by the way, I beat Sonic 3K 100% before I did Advance.

 

I loved each and every Sonic Advance game. Sonic Advance 2 brought me back onto the Sonic scene at Christmas time '03, and it was in every way as perfect and as enjoyable as the classics. I found every single Advance game a pleasure to play, and it was also mega exciting to be able to play as Amy, who I had not really seen since playing Sonic CD on my PC back in 1996. It took ages to unlock her in Advance 2, but it was worth it.

When I decided to get Advance afterwards, I was also blown away by the use of the original theme, it was just really impressive.

I've actually got some really good times on Advance 2 since I bought it. Can any of you beat these? :v:








There are things the Advance games have that Sonic 4 doesn't incorporate, like the ability to keep your score, and they're also a lot more challenging. I love these games, I really do. The music is just amazing, and the art for the characters is how Sonic should always be drawn, and how things should always look. Robotnik even looks classic with his new design! There was none of that 'play any level you want' rubbish. I remember at least 8 or so of my friends had Advance 2, as well as my younger brothers, and they just could not beat either Sky Canyon or Techno Base. Those were the days when you'd stay on a level until you manned up.

 

Am I the only one sick of seeing these appreciation topics?

I liked Sonic Advance and 2 when I was young. 3 was the first Sonic game I ever got that I didn't beat.

 

Advance 1: This was a great game, but I somehow expected more from it. They levels were missing all those secret passages and things that I liked in the earlier games
Also, they could have made the way of getting to the Special Stages a bit easier; hunting through the levels for a damned easy-to-miss spring that you can only use ONCE...

Advance 2: I had to buy this one second-hand, because I came to the party late and could find this title absolutely nowhere brand-new. The previous owner of the game managed to get all of the other characters (except Amy), but didn't get ANY of the Chaos Emeralds. I had the same problem, and had to get one of those Prima guidebooks to finish off the job <shame>. I feel bad for the last person who owned it, though, because the Tiny Chao Garden turned out to have a five-figure ring tally when I unlocked it!

Advance 3: I liked the teaming-up - it seemed like a logical progression of the Chaotix-style of play, except the second character actually added something useful to the setup instead of just being ballast. I also liked hunting out the Chao and the Special Stage keys in each Zone - until I got down to the last Chao that I just couldn't find...
Otherwise, it was a weird chapter in the series, what with the hub-levels and unusual gameplay. And let's not forget you get to + - team up with Eggman in the final stage   .

Battle: I've never really got into the battle-style of gaming, and though this was interesting enough for me to finish the whole game, having to grind through battle after battle just to try and get a rare attack-card is just a bridge too far for me. I think I only have about a fifth of the total list of attack moves.

Pinball Party: I really liked this one! It has three games in it, one based on Sonic Advance, one for Nights, and one for Samba De Amigo (which is a bit trickier than the other two). This game had enough replay value and sub-games to keep me occupied for much longer than the other titles did, but maybe I just like pinball sims that much.

By the way... did anyone else here use the GBA games to raise any Chao, and port them over to the GameCube for use in Sonic Adventure? It was an interesting idea, and gave the GBA games a bit of extra life (Rings you collect can be spent on food and toys for your very own pet Chao).

 

I did, and I loved the way you could have the chao on the go, then see them in full 3D. I had mates who would come over with memory cards to battle (Well, it happened once or twice), and it was awesome.

 

You Wanna Be Starting Somethin'?



Although, sir, I have no idea how you beat Leaf Forest 2, in 40 seconds. lol
Also, I played it on an emulator. No cheatin, I promise. :v:

Edit: I'm looking at your Boss times and I totally cannot grasp how your Sonic beats bosses faster than my Cream. wtflol

Edit 2: One more...



Now I'm hyped... we need a Sonic Advance 2 leader board.

 

How the hell did you get a faster time LF Act 1?

I'm awesome at LF Act 2, I used to spend hours on it when I got the game :v:

I'm also remarkably good at bosses, and surprised even myself, hence why I put up my times in confidence! Bravo for beating my Act 1 score though And also, I'm loving your Hot Crater time, beaten me by a good few seconds on that!

I use my GBA, but I took photos on my GameBoy Player, as my TV is pretty photogenic :v:

Yeah, we need a Sonic Advance 2 leaderboard.

 

I never played Sonic Advance for a large amount of time. I got it for my birthday one year along with Sonic Pinball Party (it was one of those 2 in 1 carts), and I spent more time playing Pinball Party. I did play Sonic Advance long enough to finish it with Sonic. If that seems like a while, it's really not - I wasn't aware the game had special stages until five minutes ago.

I hear good things about it a lot though, but for the life of me I just can't play it for very long before I lose interest. Something about it just feels off to me.

Sonic Battle though... Goddamn, I play that shit for hours.