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''Sonic Adventure'' (ソニックアドベンチャー in Japanese ) is a video game created by Sonic Team and released on December 23 , 1998 in Japan by Sega for the Sega Dreamcast . The final updated edition, known as ''Sonic Adventure International'', was released on September 9 , 1999 in North America , October 14 in Japan and Europe , October 18 in Belgium , the Netherlands , and Luxembourg , and December 3 in Australia . PLOT Centuries ago, the Gods bestowed upon the planet seven Chaos Emeralds . These emeralds were a source of absolute power. However, absolute power corrupts absolutely - and it did not take long before wars broke out over who would control the Chaos Emerald's seemingly unlimited power. This angered the Gods, and so, they created one singular Master Emerald , who's powers could control and neutralize the Chaos Emeralds. And with the Master Emerald, came a single guardian - known only as "Chaos" , the God of Destruction. It is said that a single tribe of Echidnas angered Chaos by attempting to steal the Chaos Emeralds, and were all but completely destroyed within a single night, and Chaos was never seen again. In present day, the nefarious Doctor Eggman learns of the legend surrounding Chaos. Believing it to be true, he seeks out the Master Emerald and shatters it, freeing Chaos in the process. Dr. Eggman's goal is to control Chaos, and use it's destructive powers to conquer the world. When Sonic The Hedgehog learns of this, he and his friends spring in to action to stop Eggman - but none of them know the whole story behind Chaos and his entrapment within the Master Emerald. Slowly, through many visits from an Echidna spirit named Tikal , they learn that she had befriended Chaos, and that night, when the Echidna tribe attempted to take the Chaos Emeralds, she sealed both herself and Chaos within the Master Emerald to ensure Chaos would not destroy the world with his rage. Now that Chaos has been freed, Tikal begs Sonic to seal him in to the Master Emerald once again. Sonic disagrees - being trapped within the Master Emerald won't stop Chaos' rage, it will just fuel it. Using the power of the Chaos Emeralds to become Super Sonic , Sonic fights Chaos, and Chaos is defeated - his rage neutralized by the overwhelming power of virtue. With the world saved, Tikal's spirit and Chaos finally can be at rest once again. PRODUCTION This is the first full 3D game in the '' Sonic The Hedgehog '' franchise (outside of the cancelled Sega Saturn game) and was generally considered the most impressive display of graphical prowess the genre had seen at the time. It was one of the first titles to be released on the Sega Dreamcast and was also the first "true" ''Sonic'' game (produced by Sonic Team ) since '' Sonic & Knuckles '' in 1994 . It was largely considered by fans to have been a major Comeback for Sonic after a series of bad, poorly-designed games released in 1995 - 1997 ('' Sonic 3D Blast '', '' Knuckles' Chaotix '', etc.). Also unique is the ability to take a Chao creature found and hatched within the game and place it onto a VMU device for adventure, fighting, and breeding with other Chao on other VMU devices (they can be interconnected). This was the first game in North America and Europe where the main villain was referred to as Doctor Eggman . Previously in these locales he had been named Doctor Ivo Robotnik (video games back when Sonic began named villians like Russians, due to the end of the Cold War , i.e Mega Man 4 ), with Sonic and friends using the nickname "Eggman". The manuals now refer to him as "Doctor Eggman aka Doctor Robotnik" with ''Sonic Adventure 2'' where he starts going by the name "Doctor Eggman". Sonic Adventure was re-released on the '' on June 17 , 2003 in North America, June 19 in Japan, and June 27 in Europe, and later made available on PC CD-ROM . The update includes enhanced graphics (including a change in Knuckles' appearance to resemble more the Sonic Adventure 2 Knuckles), a new Mission Mode, and the playability of every ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' Game Gear game. However, Sonic Team didn't remove all the glitches, add other features, or even include the original level designs of some of the stages that were either removed or completely redesigned, which can be considered a bad point for some. CHARACTERS Unlike the previous action game in the series, Sonic 3D Blast , Sonic Adventure has six different characters to choose from, providing two more than the four (Sonic & Tails combo being the fourth) available in the earlier Sonic 3 & Knuckles . Playable Heroes Sonic The Hedgehog / Super Sonic The main hero of the game with supersonic speed. Sonic's story revolves around Dr. Eggman releasing Chaos from the Master Emerald. Sonic battles Eggman and Chaos in an effort to save Earth. Sonic has run ins with the other five main characters and must find the Chaos Emeralds before Eggman and Chaos do. Sonic's goal in levels is to either collect a Chaos Emerald or free animals from a capsule. Miles "Tails" Prower Sonic's twin-tailed sidekick, who starts to believe in himself. After Sonic rescues Tails from Emerald Coast, the two-tailed fox sets out to help Sonic collect the Chaos Emeralds and stop Chaos. Tails' final battle is against Eggman's Egg Walker. Tails' goal in levels is to race Sonic (except for his last stage, in which case it will be Eggman) to the target (Chaos Emerald, missile, capsule, etc.) Knuckles The Echidna Knuckles is the guardian of the Master Emerald . The Master Emerald shatters when Eggman frees Chaos and Tikal's spirit from within it, causing Angel Island to fall out of the sky. (the chunk of the island containing the Master Emerald Shrine somehow separates from the island on impact, and a long bridge connecting it to the main Island then appears, possibly constructed by Knuckles). Knuckles' goal is to reassemble the shards of the Master Emerald. His levels are large, explorable areas in which you must hunt about the various Action Stages for three shards per stage using a sort of "Emerald Sense" radar to detect nearby Emerald shards. Knuckles is the only character able to dig, glide, or climb walls. He will later be joined in '' Sonic Adventure 2 '' by his rival with these abilities, Rouge The Bat . Amy Rose Amy Rose , Sonic's eternal girlfriend (in her own mind), is walking through Station Square one day when a tiny blue Flicky falls from the sky and lands on her head. It is discovered that Dr. Eggman needed the Flicky named Lily because of the Chaos Emerald in its pendant. Amy and Lily must escape E-100 Zero (AKA E-100 Alpha) the Chase Master throughout the levels until Amy confronts E-100 during the final battle. Big The Cat Big the Cat is a newcomer to the Sonic series of games. Big The Cat aptly fits his name as he is a massively rotund, purple cat. Big's best friend is a frog that he has creatively named "Froggy." Froggy becomes possessed by Chaos' tail, and swallows Big's "lucky charm", a Chaos Emerald , which causes him to mutate. Froggy then runs off, and Big's story begins. Big's levels are fishing minigames, in which Big must fish for, and catch, Froggy. Big may also catch a number of other fish for additional points. E-102 Gamma E-102 Gamma is one among a series of robots designed by Dr. Robotnik for the purpose of collecting Chaos Emeralds. After an encounter with Amy, he suffers a malfunction and gains a "conscience." He then turns his aim to destroying his robotic brothers and freeing the animals trapped inside. Gamma's levels are shooting levels. There is a time limit and if it expires the player loses a life. Gamma can gain extra time by destroying multiple enemies in a single lock-on. His missions end when he destroys a certain target (Other E-Series robots usually.). His final battle is against his older "brother", E-101 Beta . big suaks! Villains and Minor Characters Dr." Eggman " Robotnik Doctor Ivo Robotnik, also known by Sonic and the gang as Doctor Eggman has formulated a new plan to conquer the planet, this time not relying on his robots alone, but employing a strange liquid creature known only as Chaos. He has also constructed a new vessel: The Egg Carrier. Chaos Little is known about Chaos, except that he is liquid, and mutates into different forms when in contact with Chaos Emeralds. It is later revealed near the end of the game, that Chaos is the guardian of the Chao. If he collects all 7 Chaos Emeralds he transforms into Perfect Chaos . Tikal The Echidna A mysterious echidna girl who appears whenever Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, E-102 Gamma and Big are sent back in time. She is trying to stop her father, Pachacamac , from stealing the Chaos Emeralds from the Master Emerald shrine. In the end, Tikal appears in the destroyed Station Square and asks Sonic to defeat Perfect Chaos . She appears in levels and the adventure fields as a red ball of light Chao Chao are featured in the flashbacks, said to be Chaos' children. They exist primarily in the Chao Gardens as a sort of intelligent virtual pet for the player to raise, an 'evolution' of the A-life system from NiGHTS Into Dreams... Chao can be taken with the player by downloading the minigame Chao Adventure to their VMU . E-101 Beta The 1st robot of Eggman's E-100 Series , E-101 Beta is a black robot with 2 guns. He is the 1st boss in E-102 Gamma's side of the story. Later he gets upgraded into E-101 Beta MkII . This form of E-101 Beta is the last boss in E-102 Gamma's side of the story. E-101 Beta is powered up by a gray flicky bird. E-103 Delta The 3rd robot of Eggman's E-100 Series , E-103 Delta is a blue robot and the younger brother of E-102 Gamma. He is the 2nd boss of E-102 Gamma's side of the story who's waiting at the end of Windy Valley. He is powered up by a green flicky bird in the Dreamcast version and a parrot in the Gamecube version. GAME PLAY The game is divided up into two stages: Action Stages, and Adventure Stages. The division of Action Stages and Adventure Stages was a serious departure from all previous Sonic games, as before all games had been a continuous stream of playable levels, which was returned in Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes . Action Stages Action Stages are, very basically put, playable levels. This is the only type of area where Sonic or any of his companions will encounter enemies (except for Boss battles in adventure fields). There are eleven action stages, accessible by different characters; Sonic has the most of them, accessing 10 out of 11 (except Hot Shelter); The character who accesses the least is Amy with only three. The best thing to compare Action Stages to would be the levels of all previous Sonic games. However, unlike previous Sonic games, Action Stages are not made up of Zones and Acts. Instead, the game is more like one continuous zone that may have a few parts to it. ''List of Action Stages:''
Adventure Fields Adventure Fields are non-linear game stages, generally designed for (light) puzzle solving, exploration, and plot advancement. They contain very few items (enemies, rings, etc.). The purpose of the Adventure Field is not unlike Overworld s found in RPG s. Every Adventure field links to the other two fields, and they also connect to all of the Action Stages and they each [ack with various powerups for different characters. There are three Adventure Fields: Station Square Station Square is a large, metropolitan city, same locatation where Sonic fought Chaos, part of the section was closed (for some character). Robotnik plans to destroy it and construct his Eggman Empire ("Robotnikland"), on its ruins. It contains a train station that connects to the Mystic Ruins, and a boat landing (hidden until the area is available) which leads to the Egg Carrier. Station Square also contains a casino, a beach, and a hotel. In the hotel, the elevator on the left leads to the Station Square Chao Garden. ''Contains:'' Emerald Coast, Casinopolis, Twinkle Park, Speed Highway. Mystic Ruins The Mystic Ruins is the largest Adventure Field in the game. It has a clearing with a train station that goes to Station Square, and below is a boat landing that goes to the Egg Carrier. Tails' Workshop is located here, and nearby that is the entrance to the Chao Garden disguised as an abandoned mine. There is also an ice cave, as well as the inevitable landing point of Angel Island (first seen in Sonic 3). A more dense jungle is hidden away, which offers an older Echidna temple, the launch platform for the Egg Carrier and also Big the Cat's house can be located close to the Sandhill entrance cave. Eggman's base, the Final Egg, is also found here. In a cave, a monkey guard sits, next to it is a railway cart that leads to the chao garden. ''Contains:'' Windy Valley, Ice Cap, Red Mountain, Sand Hill, Lost World, Final Egg. The Egg Carrier Dr. Robotnik's massive flying airship. It has two modes, and depending on which, access to certain areas may become available. Other than that, the stage is quite self-explanatory. Notably, this is the Adventure Field where most characters fight their final bosses. There is also a large Chao garden in the Egg Carrier that can be accessed by entering the password "EGGMAN". ''Contains:'' Hot Shelter, Sky Deck. REACTION The game has a very 'love-hate' feeling to it, with reception at the time of release being overwhelmingly positive, including reviews from GameSpot and GameSpy being above 90%. The current Gamerankings overall status is a respectable 87%. Many now do not like the game, and see it as not living up to the previous games on the Genesis. This likely has to do with relative perception. When Sonic Adventure first came out, its methods of transitioning Sonic's gameplay from 2D to 3D were very original and unexpected. Gameplay flaws such as excessive linearity in level design (as opposed to the many branching paths of the 2D Sonic games), the somewhat short length of the adventure, and the sometimes severe camera problems were overlooked or minimized in favor of the fun and original play mechanics and amazing sense of speed. Over time, the game's flaws became more and more difficult to overlook. A later port to the Nintendo Gamecube in the form of Sonic Adventure DX made these flaws more glaring, not only to those who had not played the original game, but those who had, and noticed the port had done nothing to address them. EASTER EGGS & TRIVIA
ENGLISH VOICE ACTORS
SONIC ADVENTURE DX: DIRECTOR'S CUT
''Sonic Adventure DX'' is a Video Game for the Nintendo GameCube and PC CD-ROM released June 18 2003. Description This game was released as an enhanced port of the original '' Sonic Adventure '' for the Sega Dreamcast (1999), with several additional features. The PC version was released at first in only Japan and Europe, but released in the US later on. Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut included a mission mode, which included 60 missions to complete throughout the adventure fields and action stages. Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut also includes a mini game collection, which is comprised of 12 Sega Game Gear games featuring Sonic and friends. It didn't do quite as well with reviews as its Sega Dreamcast predecessor. Unlockable games This game features many unlockable games previously available on the Sega Game Gear Handheld Game Console .
Changes over the original Sonic Adventure Several additions/changes were made to ''Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut'' when it was ported to the Nintendo Gamecube . They include:
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