Sonic Adventure 2: Battle || ThinkThank #8
I can't argue with the sales numbers though; compared with its largest contemporary rival, the Playstation 2, the Gamecube was hardly even in the race. The PS2 sold around 160 million consoles, while the GameCube sold just shy of 22 million worldwide, over 10 million less than its predecessor, the N64. By sales measures, the GameCube was a failure, and with so many of the best third-party games of the era available on competing platforms or only the PS2, many people think its a no brainer: the GameCube was bad.
My defense of the GameCube is a topic in of itself that I won't pursue much more today, but I think this is an overly simplistic view of the qualifications for success. And although I am not very supportive of exclusivity overall, the GameCube had a handful of exclusives which were truly extraordinary, and still others which were simply at their best on that system.
My defense of the GameCube is a topic in of itself that I won't pursue much more today, but I think this is an overly simplistic view of the qualifications for success. And although I am not very supportive of exclusivity overall, the GameCube had a handful of exclusives which were truly extraordinary, and still others which were simply at their best on that system.
Many games of the era shone bright on the GameCube, and in many ways the system's smaller library allows it to act as a more succinct expression of the era's gaming priorities. At the risk of veering off into another subject which I would really like to discuss at length another time, the GameCube represented a game philosophy which I have been calling "Generosity Gaming" or "Generous Design"; games which were designed with the explicit purpose of being one-stop havens for as much unmitigated FUN as was possible to jam onto a 1.5GB disc. Regardless of one's individual like or dislike of it, and although it did not pioneer the concept, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle is brimming with this design sensibility and is absolutely worth the revisit if only for historical tourism.
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| Honestly, all the credit in the world to Sega My Cards. Ahead of their time, really. |
Generosity Gaming
Alright, I acknowledge that I should still describe this idea slightly more before I wax poetic about how Sonic Adventure 2 is one of the prime examples of the thing I just made up. There were many games released between 2000-2008 which seemed to share this accidental thread of Generous Design.
Elements of this philosophy are seen in the trends of the internet at the time. Neopets, Homestar Runner, EZone, Lego, and Cartoon Network's websites were all designed not simply to provide landing pages for product purchases, but instead to provide a "place" for visitors to spend their afternoon, investigating the hidden corners for secrets. These websites held short cartoons, games of varying genre, digital comics, concept art, and community forums. All of them explored their intellectual property from as many angles as possible, perhaps a bit naively delighted by the power of "The Internet", though all of them an evident font of creative enthusiasm and energy.
From observation, it would seem that the early 2000s creative space was marked by the unbridled embrace of the internet, not as a crutch, but as an amplifier which allowed these spaces to become far more than the sum of their parts. But underneath the literal tools used (in this case, the internet) lies that philosophical motivator, Generosity Gaming.
Game creators were thinking firstly from their sense of fun. After that came the psychological engineering of the design of games; but not for how to create skinner-box loot grinds or FOMO-induced micro-payments, but simply how to keep visitors on the site as long as possible.
See, I'm not so naive as to ignore that there *was* still a monetary motivation here, arguably a "monetization" scheme at work. The way this earlier internet age functioned was through traffic and traffic alone. Investors would throw enormous amounts of money at websites which promised traffic, occasionally forgetting to include the advertising which would make such advertising inherently valuable.
Well... at least to the casual observer. In many cases, from the perspective of the investor, the entire website was the advertisement and they weren't wrong. Regardless, the end result was that, for a brief decade, restless creatives were in the position to create with abandon, so long as they created everything in a single ecosystem, in a single online domain.
But how do such things translate to home consoles generally and the GameCube specifically? I posit that the website-focused design of games and intellectual properties was not simply driving similar trends in home consoles. Instead, the "pack as much as you possibly can into this experience" attitude convergently evolved between the new-blood internet game makers, and the veteran developers of home console games as they emerged from years of 32kb ROMS; beholding, misty-eyed, what appeared to be virtually limitless storage.
But how do such things translate to home consoles generally and the GameCube specifically? I posit that the website-focused design of games and intellectual properties was not simply driving similar trends in home consoles. Instead, the "pack as much as you possibly can into this experience" attitude convergently evolved between the new-blood internet game makers, and the veteran developers of home console games as they emerged from years of 32kb ROMS; beholding, misty-eyed, what appeared to be virtually limitless storage.
Not only could their new title hold every previous release in some prior series, developers could include such things as bonuses in addition to a new, feature-complete game. Camera controls, real-time rendering, intact musical tracks, sampled sound effects, and even internet features had enabled developers to consider new modes, styles, and player counts, sending them reeling with the possibilities. In their fervor, these developers, now unshackled from such limited memory, began to experiment with adding as many modes and features as they could imagine.
Games of this era were, in similarity to their website counterparts, designed as places to be, so to speak. When a couple of neighbor kids gathered around the console to play Sly Cooper, Spiderman, Rogue Leader, Soul Calibur, and even GTA, those games didn't encourage speeding through the main experience. Instead, players were expected to replay levels in pursuit of higher scores, unlock new modes, characters, bonus levels, create personal challenges, but most importantly, players were invited to simply hang out in the digital space created for them. Through well-structured challenges and gameplay loops, designers were also able to do this without the scale of game that requires 8-year development cycles.
All of this massive pre-amble aside, we approach my point. There was an era of gaming whose best features were fueled by the united front of technological innovation, creative restlessness, and a certain industry naivete around monetization. I call this "Generosity Gaming" because it is marked by the clear effort on the part of the developers to present the player with multi-modal entertainment for maximizing fun. Which leads me back to my favorite example of this in action, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle.
All of this massive pre-amble aside, we approach my point. There was an era of gaming whose best features were fueled by the united front of technological innovation, creative restlessness, and a certain industry naivete around monetization. I call this "Generosity Gaming" because it is marked by the clear effort on the part of the developers to present the player with multi-modal entertainment for maximizing fun. Which leads me back to my favorite example of this in action, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle.
Sega Leaves the Console Market and Nintendon't
After the catastrophic and deserved failure of the Sega Saturn, followed by the undeserved and arguably more catastrophic failure of the Dreamcast, Sega made the difficult design to simply pack it in. At least, so far as their hardware was concerned. In just a few short years, the bitter rivalry which Sega had single-handedly brought into existence was forgotten. The arrival of an enhanced port of Sonic Adventure 2 on the GameCube, this one with the added "Battle", marked the official end of the rivalry.
Without a doubt, "Battle" is the preferred version, as it had the benefit of just a few extra months in the oven before its debut. For many who owned a Gamecube, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle became one of the most sought after titles available. Firstly, it was 3D sonic! That alone was marvelous for many a kid who had yet to see Sonic in this new environment, but word quickly got around the rental circuit that your money really couldn't be better spent. $3 for a weekend of seemingly limitless levels, modes, and unlockables? Our measurement of value at the time was in how many unique experiences you could cram into a binge weekend with your friends. As a very quick sidenote, I think this may have been one of the original pain points as gaming reached the mainstream, and the idea of "grinding" took on a distinctive, negative quality. The idea of enjoying "the grind" when the clock is ticking until the game goes back to Blockbuster was pretty unbearable, so it was easy to interpret anything that took that form as a kind of waste. But I digress.
Sonic didn't do that. From its now-famous opening level, City Escape, to its slightly less famous but equally absurd in its fun ending level, Sonic seemed like a delightfully enthusiastic child, taking you by the hand through their scattered but imaginative series of neat ideas. When played in its intended method, with 2-3 buds, trading the controllers around so each one gets a chance with their preferred gameplay type or character, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle almost feels like another friend in the room; the one who brought the toys.
You get action-adventure platforming, platform-racing, racing classic, rail shooting, treasure hunting, huge boss battles, the Chao garden, secret levels, alternate versions of levels, and a surprise final level gauntlet which acts as the conclusion to the two simultaneous plots. In addition to all of the above being part of the main story experience, each of these modes has their multiplayer variants, which introduce new characters and novel objectives for which to compete. I'd like to add, with sufficient time and budget, any one of the above modes could have served as their own complete games, yet for some reason Sonic Team saw fit to put over 6 different styles of game into a single package.
Is the story ridiculous? Are each of the modes a touch underbaked and therefore dependent on one another to keep each style's bespoke irritations at bay? Are Sonic and his pals simply not as cool as the text desperately encourages us to believe?
Without a doubt, "Battle" is the preferred version, as it had the benefit of just a few extra months in the oven before its debut. For many who owned a Gamecube, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle became one of the most sought after titles available. Firstly, it was 3D sonic! That alone was marvelous for many a kid who had yet to see Sonic in this new environment, but word quickly got around the rental circuit that your money really couldn't be better spent. $3 for a weekend of seemingly limitless levels, modes, and unlockables? Our measurement of value at the time was in how many unique experiences you could cram into a binge weekend with your friends. As a very quick sidenote, I think this may have been one of the original pain points as gaming reached the mainstream, and the idea of "grinding" took on a distinctive, negative quality. The idea of enjoying "the grind" when the clock is ticking until the game goes back to Blockbuster was pretty unbearable, so it was easy to interpret anything that took that form as a kind of waste. But I digress.
Sonic didn't do that. From its now-famous opening level, City Escape, to its slightly less famous but equally absurd in its fun ending level, Sonic seemed like a delightfully enthusiastic child, taking you by the hand through their scattered but imaginative series of neat ideas. When played in its intended method, with 2-3 buds, trading the controllers around so each one gets a chance with their preferred gameplay type or character, Sonic Adventure 2: Battle almost feels like another friend in the room; the one who brought the toys.
You get action-adventure platforming, platform-racing, racing classic, rail shooting, treasure hunting, huge boss battles, the Chao garden, secret levels, alternate versions of levels, and a surprise final level gauntlet which acts as the conclusion to the two simultaneous plots. In addition to all of the above being part of the main story experience, each of these modes has their multiplayer variants, which introduce new characters and novel objectives for which to compete. I'd like to add, with sufficient time and budget, any one of the above modes could have served as their own complete games, yet for some reason Sonic Team saw fit to put over 6 different styles of game into a single package.
Is the story ridiculous? Are each of the modes a touch underbaked and therefore dependent on one another to keep each style's bespoke irritations at bay? Are Sonic and his pals simply not as cool as the text desperately encourages us to believe?
Yes.
But if any of those statements being true breaks the deal for you, I'm sorry, but you're missing the point. You're getting a Costco slice of pizza and complaining. You've walked into the Applebee's of gaming, ordered their Super Slammin Sonic Sampler Platter and noticed that the mozzarella sticks are likely frozen. You are more than welcome to not enjoy even one bite of those appetizers-- but leave those criticisms for your Yelp review of the Applebee's, not the platter itself.
Yes, I did just say that Sonic the Hedgehog is the mozzarella sticks of video games, and I think just about zero people will disagree with me on that front; a label to satisfy both the critics and the fans for opposite reasons. And look, I'm both people. I get it. Sonic Adventure 2 has a shitty camera, egregiously so. The dialogue and plot are stupid to the point of nonsense at times. Although pacing the game's energy through different gameplay styles is an excellent idea, the actual order in which the levels are laid out feels clunky, leaving every stage with its own jarring start and end.
But when you relax your shoulders, leave your beret at the door, and simply allow a game to take you by the hand and show you all of it's favorite stuff, you'll be surprised at what parts of the game do hold up.
Yes, I did just say that Sonic the Hedgehog is the mozzarella sticks of video games, and I think just about zero people will disagree with me on that front; a label to satisfy both the critics and the fans for opposite reasons. And look, I'm both people. I get it. Sonic Adventure 2 has a shitty camera, egregiously so. The dialogue and plot are stupid to the point of nonsense at times. Although pacing the game's energy through different gameplay styles is an excellent idea, the actual order in which the levels are laid out feels clunky, leaving every stage with its own jarring start and end.
But when you relax your shoulders, leave your beret at the door, and simply allow a game to take you by the hand and show you all of it's favorite stuff, you'll be surprised at what parts of the game do hold up.
Kid Stuff
Imagine yourself arriving your adult friend's house, or your brother or sister, but the person who comes up to the door greeting you is your friend's 8 year old kid or your niece or nephew. You happen to be one of that kid's favorite adults in the world, and they drag you to their playroom to show you all of their neat stuff.You try to stand at the edge of the room, simply observing and commenting on the various things they show you, but their impatience shows quickly. No, you have to come down here, where they start putting action figures in your hands and catching you up on the batshit logic of the pretend they have going. You lower back is immediately aching, you wish there was a character you could play as who sits in chairs as part of the fiction, and there's an obnoxious adult part of your mind that says this isn't for you. But the kid simply doesn't care. Then, when you succumb, and you simply allow yourself to be swept up in their game, something happens.
An hour later, your friend comes in, making it halfway through an apology about their child having taken up your time, when they take in the seen before them; a grown ass person with a wizard's hat on, clutching two action figures who are dramatically telling The Big Bad that their days are numbered, and you're never gonna hurt MY FRIENDS, and they begin powering up their SuperMegaBlasterCannon... and you realise that.... you've just been having fun.
The aches are still there. You *really* can't sit that way anymore. At least not without some proper stretches first. And to a certain degree, you wish your friend's kid was older so you could have made an even better story, but damned if you didn't enjoy yourself.
Thats Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. That's the experience in a nutshell. Its being a kid, telling ever more absurd stories with your buds about the cool shit you're doing. Its gathering around the mozzarella, nachos, fries, and popcorn chicken plate and snacking away.
So What am I Thankful for?
This has been a far less Thinky, far less Reviewy version of ThinkThank. After sitting down for this, its clear to me that I really should write about four different, focused articles on Generosity Gaming, In Defense of SA2:B's Treasure Levels, The Value of Variation, The Industry's Slow Adoption of Camera Controls.
In the interest of candor, I began writing this piece back in February 2025. Friends that is the better part of 10 months ago. Back then, I began writing it as a way to take my mind off of what was then going to be ThinkThank #8, Lost Kingdoms. As I write now, that draft sits in my "Pages" folder, unpublished. I have too many things to say, so many of them unfocused, I just couldn't become happy with any of the approaches I took. So I started writing about something I simply felt happy about, a game which brings to mind my personal interest in the thing I've been calling Generosity Gaming. But even then, my thoughts were scattered and my work was making me so permanently agitated that I couldn't enjoy writing.
I'm thankful to Sonic Adventure 2 for reminding me how much I love games with alternate gameplay modes. I'm thankful for how much work went into those games; for how much value I've personally gotten from them since the game's launch in 2001. Today, in a climate which shaves every last morsel of bonus content from games, harvested early so it may be repackaged as DLC down the line, its refreshing to experience a game as it was intended, unwieldy as it may be.
In the interest of candor, I began writing this piece back in February 2025. Friends that is the better part of 10 months ago. Back then, I began writing it as a way to take my mind off of what was then going to be ThinkThank #8, Lost Kingdoms. As I write now, that draft sits in my "Pages" folder, unpublished. I have too many things to say, so many of them unfocused, I just couldn't become happy with any of the approaches I took. So I started writing about something I simply felt happy about, a game which brings to mind my personal interest in the thing I've been calling Generosity Gaming. But even then, my thoughts were scattered and my work was making me so permanently agitated that I couldn't enjoy writing.
I'm thankful to Sonic Adventure 2 for reminding me how much I love games with alternate gameplay modes. I'm thankful for how much work went into those games; for how much value I've personally gotten from them since the game's launch in 2001. Today, in a climate which shaves every last morsel of bonus content from games, harvested early so it may be repackaged as DLC down the line, its refreshing to experience a game as it was intended, unwieldy as it may be.
On a metatextual level however, I'm thankful for this particular game being the one I've been struggling to write for some time. I've had a tougher year than I want to get into describing, but suffice to say writing in my spare time became an unhappy extension of my already draining work time. But when it came time to actually finish this ThinkThank, as distracted and unfocused as it is, I realised that a meandering and indulgent discussion of a happy place is pretty much perfectly on-brand for Sonic.
I'm thankful that I've got some drive for writing again. My apologies for a fairly thin article, but you know... I'll get ya next time.
- mas
I'm thankful that I've got some drive for writing again. My apologies for a fairly thin article, but you know... I'll get ya next time.
- mas
^ Real photo of me preparing new blog posts.
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