SAGE 2024 - Demo Sonic Adventures Revisited (SAGE '24 Demo)

Sonic Adventure is easily one of my favorite Sonic games, 3D or otherwise, so any chance to revisit it is such a delight. This demo has a few noticeable bugs, but also feels like a genuine attempt to take you back to those classic locales that are so beloved, and for that I'm grateful to this project. Admittedly I'm not too familiar with the limits and features of the Infinity+ engine, so I apologize if I mention anything that's included by default or impossible to pull off in the framework.

I love the utilization of Team Sonic and how each character has a very different moveset and abilities while still being able to traverse similar structed levels from one another. While I did feel that the characters may have a bit too many moves at their disposal, I can't deny the appeal of giving them enough options to pretty much accomplish anything. I was a big fan of Sonic's holding homing attack where you can bounce off the enemy and keep his momentum, this was such a fun move to play around with in levels! Sonic's homing attack did seem to have a persistent issue where he would sometimes get stuck in place and momentarily rise in the air, before falling back down and often missing the target he was supposed to lock onto. This caused me a couple deaths and was a slight pacebreaker. Finally, this isn't a must but I would like for Tails' flight to work similar to how it did in Adventure where you just had to hold the flight button instead of tapping it, but I can see the usefulness in having precision through multiple button presses. I do very much appreciate that you added a flight cancel for Tails so I don't have to awkwardly wait for him to come down like in other official games.

I think you reworked the existing Adventure levels quite well for these characters and their upgraded kits. I especially like the choice to include Hot Shelter! Such an obscure pick when it comes to Adventure levels just because the main trio never venture to it. I did feel that the levels seemed a tad too dark compared to the originals. The grass in Emerald Coast seems like it should be a lot more saturated, and the sun should be bright and shinning down on the level. As is it seems kinda cloudy and gives off a different vibe from the original. On that topic, I do really miss having mid-level music changes to better suit each aspect of the environment. I'm not sure if this is impossible in the engine, but I would highly encourage implementing something like it to give each segment it's own identity as part of the level. I would also highly recommend adding a radar for Knuckles, or at the very least including more hints for where to find switches. Chalk it up to me having skill issues, (which it probably is) but I couldn't beat Casinopolis or Ice Cap due to not being able to locate the correct switches.

Now for bugs I came across. In addition to the Sonic homing attack bug, I do think the beginning loading segment of Emerald Coast needs to be fixed or altered. The sound given off when Sonic is stuck on the rail is really hard on the ears and hurts to listen to until the level finally loads. I also noticed some oddities like air bubbles seemingly not working for Knuckles in Ice Cap, the "Restart" button doing the same thing as "Return to Menu," and the characters all getting stuck in the scripted cannons until you pause the game, seemingly fixing them. I would also recommend adding window sizing options for those who may not want to play in forced full screen.

I realize I had a lot to say here and I truly hope my words don't come off as mean or demanding. I only wrote a lot because Adventure 1 means a lot to me. But I can see that it clearly means a lot to you too for you to start such an ambitious project, and I'm really excited to see where it goes from here. I have nothing but respect for you and this demo, and I just want to see it reach it's full potential. I'm grateful I got to play it and I thank you for making it and releasing it for me and others to play. Best of wishes!