Here is the thread of why I really do not like Sonic Adventure 2.

I am making this thread so I do not need to answer why I hate playing the game in detail any more, and can just link this thread when someone gets pissy at me for not liking the game.

For the record, I do not hate SA2 because it isn't a Classic Sonic game. That is fucking stupid, I can enjoy a different Sonic game as long as it is actually good. SA1 isn't exactly a Classic game, and I like it. I usually don't like the Boost, but Generations is fun, Heroes....

....is way off from being a Classic game but I can enjoy it despite many nitpicks.

I don't dislike SA2 because it's different from my ideal vision of Sonic, I dislike it because it's not enjoyable at all for me besides very limited aspects.

Gameplay is the most important part of any platformer, and SA2 completely fails at being fun to play.

Let's break it down by the infamous 3 play styles, shall we?

The Speed Stages, while not the most broken or bullshit videogame levels ever, are simply boring.

It feels dumbed down, way too linear and shallow to be fun. Those stages only prioritize speed, leaving no room for anything else. Going fast is a major part....

....of a Sonic game, but when that's the only thing you can do in a Sonic game, then that's not okay. Sonic is a platformer about series about speedrunning, and for speedrunning to be satisfying there needs to be more platforming and alternate paths, instead of just....

....boring ass linear lanes where all you do is hold forward and watch an automated ass set piece that gets boring on a replay. These stages are reliant on spectacle, but that spectacle simply does not last on a replay or with modern standards of gaming.

These levels are the....

....textbook definition of style over substance. The sad thing is that SA1, the older game, was far better at making the levels feel more open and less shallow.

The Treasure Hunting Stages are awful. The only thing not bad about these are the base controls, which while not amazing get the job done.

All of the Treasure Hunting stages are just poorly designed. Firstly, the radar turns any amount of fun possible in the stages....

....into a chore. You will go across the entirety of these shit ass stages, find one McGuffin, and then realize you went past the other two McGuffins without even realizing it. This is completely stupid, and artificially paddens these levels that already feel like padding....

....because SEGA couldn't or didn't want to make a game of only Sonic styled gameplay.

Second of all, most of these stages are gimmicky bullshit. You'll need to deal with all sorts of stupid stage exclusive mechanics like a forced time limit, anti gravity, digging through....

....walls, dumbass switches, and shit ass swimming in these slogs of this level. Plus, these levels are way too big for their own good, making them easy to get lost in unless you fucking practice that shit.

The Mech stages are even worse.

First of all, the mechs control like ass. They are so clunky to control, are sluggish and move slow as shit, and jumping in them is ass. I do not care that it makes sense because they're fucking mechs, if the mechs are not fun to....

....play then I could not give a damn about realism. Plus, intentionally designing something sluggish 24/7 actively goes against the cores of Sonic game design.

Next of all, the levels are either shittily designed with enemy spam and shitty platforming, or are the most....

....boring, repetitive, and uninteresting levels this series has to offer. Killing a bunch of random GUN robots wasn't fun the first time, and it sure wasn't the 238928th time. These levels overall drag so fucking much.

Now when your game fails at being fun to play, you already fucking failed, but this isn't all I got to say about the game, especially considering SA2 fans never stop talking about how supposedly good the story of the game is.

The story of Sonic Adventure 2 is overrated as fuck. At best, it's mediocre af, and at worst I'm spamming the skip key out of boredom.

This game does a poor job at actively making me care. This story tries to present itself as some grand epic, when all it does....

....is give it more scrutiny in the process.

In my eyes, a story needs to actually achieve what it's going for. If a story wants to be funny, then I better be laughing.

SA2 wants to be seen as mature, but due to various factors it is far from that.

I'm not against Sonic games having stories, it can't just be Sonic 1/2 over and over again, but they actually need to make a story engaging for anyone that didn't grow up with the game or the general style of Sonic to be worth a damn.

The story isn't without thought, Shadow....

....in particular has some interesting stuff going on with his arc, but I'm too focused on every inconsistency to care.

Also while this part is 100% subjective, I could just not give a fuck about the game's artistic and musical style.

I find any attempt at realism in Sonic to be boring at best and laughable at worst. SA2 tried to be realistic for its time, and as a result aged worse and....

....looks far less interesting than anything something like the Classics or the Heroes.

Also while the music as expected is decent, I find that SA2's OST is way too stylized. Most songs are SA2 are based on the characters it's for instead of the levels, leading to an....

....overabundance of rock sounding songs. Not bad, but not my cup of tea. Something like SA1 had way better variety.

That's most of the game overall, besides multiplayer I could not care about, a dumbass kart minigame, and the Chao Garden which is the only fun I can get from SA2, but even then having to play the main game to get drives and animals for the C.G. makes me not wanna come back....

....after playing so much of the Chao Garden back in 2019.

Overall, SA2 is simply a game I find very little reason to play, and only do so when forced to in a challenge or marathon.