Following
on from the massive success of Sonic Advance and its sequel
comes this new game, soon to be devouring the time of young
and old gamers around the world. This time around, Sonic
and friends are trying to prevent the dastardly Dr Eggman
from using the Chaos Emeralds to create “Eggmanland”.
This is all revealed in text at the start of a new game,
although the plot doesn’t develop as the game expands.
Dr Eggman has also teamed up with a robot named Gemel who
appears to be a Gizoid, as seen in Sonic Battle.
Sonic
Advance 3 retains both the speed and sprawling levels of
Advance 2 and the gentle platforming of the first game to
create a handheld Sonic experience on a par with the best
of the Megadrive titles. All the familiar elements are in
place: loops, speed boosters, springs and rails –
plus a few new gameplay additions for good measure. The
most notable of these is the new dual-player system. The
player can pick two characters to use and take advantage
of their “tag action”. These can include jump
boosts (Amy and Cream), a projectile attack (Sonic and Knuckles)
or even a great big hammer (Amy and Knuckles)! The stages
include entertaining new levels such as the colourful and
tricky Toy Kingdom, and are cleverly designed so that they
can be beaten without using tag action, but yield many more
secrets when two friends combine their talents. The speed
is still astounding at times and the unique charisma of
the Sonic titles is present. The bosses have been overhauled
from the previous game and take place in an arena rather
than a chase scenario.
The
acts are accessed through “Act Rings”, which
are placed in a hub level. These hub levels are accessed
from the “Sonic factory”, where it’s possible
to view Chao and change characters. The hub levels are actually
rather pedestrian and take the pace away from the game,
but they do add much-needed variety with a couple of entertaining
minigames.
This
Sonic game is far more difficult than its predecessors,
and will keep you playing for a good long while. The levels
are vast and complex, with many routes, tougher bosses,
and more obstacles to keep you playing for a long time.
The controls are also excellent, although this time Sonic’s
shield attack is performed by pressing A then B, instead
of just A twice. In short, this game is a hard nut to crack,
but worth it.
The
Tiny Chao Garden has been scrapped, but fear not, Chao lovers!
The cute little critters are still in abundance, this time
hidden within the acts themselves. Finding all ten Chao
in a zone will grant you a key, which can be used to access
the special stage of that zone.
Graphically,
this game is similar to its predecessors, though the slowdown
has been virtually eliminated. More worthy of note is the
fabulous music, some of the most atmospheric music to be
found in any handheld game. Sonic and his friends have also
been given voices, though thankfully they don’t get
too irritating.
Sonic
Advance 3 is a more than worthy addition to an already great
series. You won’t regret purchasing it, so why not
treat yourself?
