The Sonic Adventure duology is an often celebrated, yet somewhat bizarre part of the Blue Blur’s history. While a lot of people tend to say that Sonic had a “rough transition to 3D”, this is only somewhat true. It technically happened one console generation after Super Mario, but with Sonic Adventure, Sega’s flagship series was successfully integrated into the new 3D culture. Sonic Adventure and its sequel are fondly remembered for introducing the characters’ modern designs and personalities, as well as some new characters that stuck around like Shadow the Hedgehog. They are also loved for semi-serious plotlines, Chao Garden modes, and fun soundtracks.
As the nostalgia for the games became stronger, Sonic fans unsurprisingly started requesting a sequel, to the point where it is arguably the most requested game from fans. Despite Sonic Adventure 3 seeming like an excellent idea that will sell like hotcakes, it is best for Sega and Sonic Team to ignore the temptations to make the game for now. The Sonic Adventure games were products of their time in terms of mechanics, presentation, and storytelling, so Sonic Team cannot simply recycle the core aspects of the games and import them into another era.
Sonic Team Is Not Ready for Sonic Adventure 3
The Sonic Adventure games might be some of the most critically successful and popular games in the Sonic series, but that does not mean the games do not their age, especially nowadays. In practice, they were a transitionary phase for the franchise, reflected through their release dates in the late 90s and early 2000s.
When it comes to the characters, Sonic got older, grew taller, and his eyes became green. Tails perfected his skills as a mechanic. Knuckles went from Sonic’s stubborn rival to his fully fledged comrade. Amy’s personality and design were radically retooled. Dr. Robotnik started going by his Japanese name, Eggman, internationally.The series did not just change its cast’s characterization, though.
Various musical genres could be part of the soundtrack now that the series was on more advanced systems. The stories started being taken seriously instead of being typical platformer excuse plots. The idea of having multiple playable characters, even when playing alone, with their own theme song and playstyle, was introduced in Sonic Adventure. Lastly, these games were made for the last Sega console, and Sonic Adventure 2 is the first Sonic game to not only go multiplatform, but the first one to be on a Nintendo console. These two games set the bar for some of modern Sonic’s defining characteristics, all while embracing their contemporaries. A character like Shadow could not have been created today without being ruthlessly mocked, and Sonic’s soap shoes date Sonic Adventure 2 to the early 2000s by default.
Sonic has been going through an identity crisis for over a decade. After Sonic Generations came out, the games fell back into their old habit of pointlessly introducing new and polarizing gimmicks and reducing the cast to only one of their defining traits as obnoxiously as possible. The games also cannot seem to decide if they want to return to Sonic’s roots and have a minimalist cast, or continue the series tradition of continuously making the cast larger. The rest of Sonic-related media seems to be doing fine, and it is up to Sonic Frontiers to decide whether the games are heading in the right creative direction or not. Hopping right into Sonic Adventure 3 when the format for the perfect modern Sonic game has yet to be fully developed is a recipe for disaster and will only sour the series’ reputation once again.
If there is one series that both effectively and poorly uses nostalgia to its advantage, it’s Sonic. While Sonic Adventure 3 would theoretically be an excellent tribute to one of the series’ hallmarks, there has been a lack of understanding within Sonic Team as to what makes Sonic work. If the 2020s prove to be a better decade for the Blue Blur, then this requested game might stand a chance, as there would be a strong, modern foundation to build from. Otherwise, Sonic Adventure 3 would just be an inevitable disappointment.
Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 are available now on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.
