Sonic Adventure - Re-release Review

WARNING! NOSTALGIA GOGGLES MUST BE WORN ALL TIMES DURING THIS REVIEW. BE ADVISED HOWEVER: THE GOGGLES, THEY DO NOTHING.


My First full game review, and we go back to something old. Sonic Adventure re-released this week for PSN (and a week earlier on XBLA, good ol' M$. still buying advance timing I see.) and I figured I'd see if it still holds up to my memories of it. those being it being one of the last decent sonic games.


Graphics 10%


Wow... just wow. did SA really look this bad? I know the game is dated but I do not remember the game, especially the body models of the townsfolk, being this bad. however for the rest of the game it doesn't look "too" terrible considering the game's age. Still it is slightly annoying that given releases like Banjo-Kazooie for XBLA, that tried to update where they could, that Sega would not even bother to polish it even a little bit.


Sound 20%


No real complaints here, the sound track for SA was always good, tracks fit the area that it played in, and all sound effects play with no emulation garble in this emulated port. and of course the classic vocal song "Open your heart".


Controls and Game Play 15%


SA shows clearly the looseness sonic plays that they improved upon in SA2. during loops or "rail" sequences he can still be effected by your movements quite easily, often screwing you over. early example is the boost pad race to escape the whale in sonic's first stage, twice the game pulled me off the track entirely, killing me outright. However aside from the odd glitch the game play is as solid as it always was.

Length & Replayability 20%

The game is decent length on its own, as long as any $60 release they try to shove down our throats these days. And if you like the pet raising Chao, prepare to not see the sun for a few weeks as chao raising will consume your life. they are like tiny little bundles of Everquest in each egg. and for the completionist there are plenty of missions to accomplish and A rankings to achieve.

What I paid 15%

The base game is $9.99 and the dlc? $5. not all that bad when wrapped up in a little bow for $15. however more on this in a minute.

Base Score: 80% out of 100%

Now here comes the "modern fail" as all games have today.

The DLC it touts? is simply the content from the gamecube version which was sold pack in. so they take a game from two gens back, go up one gen they add content and repackage, come to current gen they cut that same content BACK OUT and sell it separately. very rarely has "withheld content" been more clearly obvious than this.



- Published by major publisher (-5%)
- Contains DLC (Disc Locked Content) (-20%)
- Contains Withheld content (-10%)

Adjusted score: 55% out of 100%
Final words: sometimes the past really is better.

Blade Kitten Demo - Impressions

Unfortunately the game is a shade of brown.


Graphics: 20%

The game is 2.5d, so all you 3d > all fags will have stopped reading here, for everyone else the game is a pretty damn pretty 2.5 game, it does some foreground/background manipulation Ala Wario Land virtual boy. (sans the horrible damage to your eyes in later years) the enemies are decently animated. The level offered in the demo was colorful as was Kit, with surprisingly little to no fan service of her throughout the level despite several opportunities to do so.

Sound: 5%

Sounds were honestly rather generic. and music? I can't even remember a level song playing if that says anything about how memorable it was. As for menus and such alot of it plays with a techno/japanese theme which prays on my fear that all this games was trying to be was a easy sale to everyone's inner japanophile. my fears were not that far off.

Controls and Gameplay: 10%

I'd like to give this better but I honestly can't. Kit plays a bit like she's constantly on ice when on the ground, her climbing is fairly fluid and automatic however in contrast. combat as far as the demo went was a joke, lead in when a jump attack and then rape them while they are stunned, I'll give the game a few higher marks cause I'd assume this would get better as the game goes on. For the collector in you this game has alot to please, secrets and treasure in every nook and cranny. and while not used in the demo I'd assume the currency "hex" is spent on upgrades or fluff later on. there sure is plenty of it to find. One major gripe I have with the demo is the fact Kit has regenerating health. which is very pointless in a game with infinite lives. its like giving a two ended lolipop to a toddler, you'd think its a good idea, but it just is silly in the end. I mean how much babying do gamers of this generation need?

Length and Repeatability 10%

The game boasts "12 levels and a assortment of things to find and collect for kit" if my platforming knowledge does me any justice, the game will last 8 hours at most for the straight shooter and around 20 for the stamp collector. that is not all that much for the price it asks for and I can really only see someone playing this once.

What I paid: 20%

Demos are great, at least some companies still let you legitimately try before you buy.

Base score: 65% of 100%

Ah but wait! there is some external fail for all of you out there, before you get out your wallet this game. Popping in the demo greeted me with one additional surprise.

"Episode 1"



So some aids of "modern gaming" spill even into mediocre releases. and for that it will have to suffer a penalty

Adjusted Score: 60% out of 100%
Final words: Could have been a great platformer, and there is a possibility the full game is. but it certainly doesn't sell itself well in the demo.