Sonic Advance 3

"Ouch..."

Well, I finally did it... I finally got around to making a review on GFaqs, and it's a pity it has to be a bad one, seeing as how I really enjoy the Sonic series (and yes, I even had a little fun with Shadow the Hedgehog), but this review is for Sonic Advance 3, so let's get on with it!

Concept:

Another gimmicky Sonic game, since they (Sonic Team) decided that we don't want to play what made Sonic great in the first place. This time around, you can control your teammate, and even make Sonic follow Tails around for a change, which, I guess, is the freshest idea this game can offer.

Graphics:

The graphics in this game are nothing spectacular, seeing as how you can basically play Sonic Advance 1 and 2 and not notice any difference. The backgrounds are pretty nice, and the levels do their job. So, while you won't be amazed with the graphics or look of the game, you won't be disappointed with them, either.

Sound:

Easily the best part of the game, the music is just as good in this game as in any other Sonic game. So, if you liked the music from, say Sonic Adventures 1 and 2, you'll probably like this game's score as well.

Playability: Oh brother... okay, let's start small. First off, I can't fathom why Sonic Team took out the trick button in this game. Don't get me wrong, you can still do tricks, but the timing is awkward and there's a definite lag from the time you press the button to the time Sonic screams "YEAH!" and does the trick. Oh, and there's only one trick, the left/right trick, no matter what direction you press.

Entertainment: This game get's frustrating really quickly, as you wage war against the controls. The most frustrating is when you jump, Sonic seems to launch off way too fast, and when you compare the regular pace of the game to the large amount of (relentless) platforming you have to do to complete the game, this becomes a big problem.

So, Sonic Advance 3, huh? Let's start from the beginning... you'll find on the menu Main Game, which is pretty much the only thing you can do anyway... so you'll click on Main Game and you'll expect to be thrust into the first stage of the game.

Right. Nope, you'll THINK you're in the first stage of the game, but you'll notice there are no live counters or time counter or ring counter. You'll also notice that there is this big ring floating around with a number 1 in it. Curious, you'll jump inside and find yourself in Act 1. Simple and very fresh, right? Well, it's not always that easy... you see, in later levels, the fact that you have to find the next level will get old really fast, and sometimes, the levels are just hard to find. Oh, and this also applies to boss fights and Chaos Emeralds, too. To get a Chaos Emerald, there are 10 Chao hidden throughout the stage, 3 in each act, and 1 in the World map for lack of better word. Once you find all 10, you can go for an Emerald, which I guess is the best Sonic Team could come up with. Whatever happened to Star Posts and 50 rings?

All in all, Sonic Advance 3 is not a trash title, and it actually does some things okay. The teammate button works nicley, and every character gets 2 actions per teammate combination, which is amazing. This aspect alone can cause multiple replays, as you can experiment with different combinatinos to see what powers you now command.

The biggest problem this game suffers from is unresponsive controls, as the trick button or jump button has definite lag. And there's the problem of the jump physics, which will definitley cause "unfair" deaths, in other words, no fault of the player. Another major problem is the Kirby-like style of finding the acts in a Stage Map, which are (no lie) harder than the stages themeselves. When finding the next level is harder than passing the next level itself, well, that is a pretty big letdown.

If you can find this game used, go ahead and buy it, as you'll deinitley like experimenting with say... a Cream and Amy campaign, but overall, this game is not a true Sonic experience. Sonic has better titles to offer.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/21/07