Sonic Rivals 2

"Head to Hedgehog!"

- Tagline

Sonic Rivals 2 (ソニック ライバルズ2) is the sequel to Sonic Rivals. The game was developed by Backbone Entertainment and supervised by Sega Studio USA, exclusively for the PSP handheld videogame console. Sonic Rivals 2 was released on 13 November 2007 in North America, 6 December 2007 in Australia and 7 December 2007 in Europe. Like its prequel, this game was not released in Japan.

Plot
The Chao have disappeared and Sonic the Hedgehog and Miles "Tails" Prower immediately get on the case to find them. It turns out that Eggman Nega (once again masquerading as Doctor Eggman) has stolen the Chao and concealed them inside a haunted mansion. His plan is to feed them to an inter-dimensional beast called the "Ifrit" who needs to eat them to become invincible. After that, he plans to release the Ifrit into the world in order to destroy it. However, to open the portal to the Ifrit's world, the seven Chaos Emeralds are required. Eggman Nega secretly hires Rouge the Bat to collect the Chaos Emeralds. The Master Emerald has also gone missing (again) and Knuckles the Echidna teams up with Rouge to find it.

Meanwhile, Silver the Hedgehog has returned from a now ruined future caused by the Ifrit. In order to make a happier future, he searches for and steals the Chao that are left in order to hide them. Espio first thought that Silver was hiding Chao for a cause of evil, but Espio finds out that Silver was trying to save the world. Then, they work together to save the world. The real Dr. Eggman sends Metal Sonic to find Shadow, and tells him of Nega's plans. Nega has learned of the Ifrit by accessing Professor Gerald Robotnik's journals, and Shadow and Metal Sonic set out to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds before he does. Eggman uses Metal Sonic as a communication device to aid Shadow along the way.

All of the teams meet up at the Mystic Haunt Zone where the portal to the Ifrit's world is. Despite Rouge only collecting six of the Emeralds, the portal opens anyway and Nega dispatches his newly copy of Metal Sonic, Metal Sonic 3.0 to awaken the Ifrit. Despite possessing the minds of Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Rouge (depending on who the player plays as), the Ifrit is defeated by the other teams. Shadow and Metal Sonic destroy the Ifrit and close the portal but they and Eggman Nega are trapped in the Ifrit's dimension. However, Metal Sonic tears his chassis open, revealing the 7th Chaos Emerald. Shadow uses the Emerald to teleport back with Metal Sonic. Nega is left trapped under some rubble.

Sonic and Tails save all the Chao and bring them to a Chao Garden and relax there while Knuckles finds the Master Emerald in the Emerald Detector that he and Rouge stole from Eggman Nega. Rouge steals the Master Emerald and runs, and Silver returns to what he hopes is a happy future. Espio has to answer to Vector the Crocodile who has spent their client's advanced payment on late rental fees.

Characters
Sonic Rivals 2 has the same original five characters from the prequel game and adds three new ones. All characters use Homing Attack and Spin Dash to move through the levels. Each character can also use a "Signature Move" by collecting Rings, Boosting or defeating enemies to fill the "Signature Meter" (formerly the Star power-up item in the first game).

Other Characters

 * Dr. Eggman: The main antagonist of the series, who actually plays a protagonistic role in this game like this game's prequel. Eggman Nega disguises himself as Eggman in attempt to fool the eight playable characters; however, the real Eggman is giving instructions to Shadow and Metal Sonic and gives them missions they must complete; only half of the playable characters can spot Eggman Nega (Shadow, Metal Sonic, Silver and Espio).
 * Eggman Nega: The main antagonist of the game. The player must battle him at the end of each zone, however he is disguised as Dr. Eggman. His true form is only revealed to Shadow and Silver&apos;s teams. During the storyline he hires Rouge to find the Chaos Emeralds for him and creates Metal Sonic 3.0, an upgraded version of Metal Sonic.
 * The Ifrit: A giant fire like beast unleashed by Eggman Nega. He attacks the player who must fight it and another character who is under his control.
 * Metal Sonic 3.0: An upgraded version of Metal Sonic. He is created by Eggman Nega and helps him to release the Ifrit at the end of the game. The player must fight him during Metal Sonic&apos;s story. The player can also unlock him as a costume by copying every playable rival's signature move.
 * Mimic Ghost: A ghost that shape-shifts into the appearance of others. In the level Mystic Haunt Zone, it attacks Sonic and Tails and takes on their appearances.

Enemies

 * Egg Pawn
 * Egg Flapper
 * Bombat
 * Crawl
 * Hyudoro

Bosses

 * Egg Liner - Blue Coast Zone
 * Egg Crawler - Sunset Forest Zone
 * Egg Dealer - Neon Palace Zone
 * Egg Bull - Frontier Canyon Zone
 * Egg Phantom - Mystic Haunt Zone
 * Ifrit - Chaotic Inferno Zone

Mini-Bosses

 * Mimic Ghost - Mystic Haunt Zone
 * Metal Sonic 3.0 - Chaotic Inferno Zone

Single Player
Sonic Rivals 2 has four main Single Player modes. Story Mode is the main single player mode. Players will go through each of the game's battle modes (listed below) and levels to advance the plot. Each zone has three acts and a boss, with the exception of the final zone. The characters are divided into four teams (Sonic and Tails, Shadow and Metal Sonic, Silver and Espio, Knuckles and Rouge) and each character has their own story.

The game introduces a new mode called Free Play In this single player mode, players can choose any one of the eight characters and play through the zones in traditional 2D Sonic fashion. They can also try Time Attacking, or finding the ten hidden Chao in the levels. There are no opponents for this mode. This is a first for many of the characters featured.

In addition, players can also try the Cup Circuit and Single Event modes. Races and battle can be customized in every aspect, and players can try to earn cards by completing challenges. There are 150 different cards to collect, and each is tied to a certain achievement. For example, getting an S Rank in Knockout Mode unlocks a card of Mephiles the Dark.

The cards themselves contain art from various older Sonic games and can unlock things such as alternate suits for the characters. Unlike the first game, only one card is needed to unlock a suit; and each character has four suits instead of the original three. The cards also unlock the Cup Circuits and Chao Detectors for the Zones.

Battle
Sonic Rivals 2 boasts a new "Battle Mode" with six different types of competition in addition to the main race mode. These modes are also played during the story apart from King of the Hill in act 2 of every zone. The lengths of the battles can be set though the selection menus.
 * Knock Out: Each player starts with three rings. Players must knock all of the rings out of their opponent and then attack them to win. First player to the set number of knockouts wins.
 * Rings Battle: Players have a set time to collect as many rings as possible. The player with the most rings at the end of the time limit wins.
 * Capture the Chao: A Sonic themed version of "Capture the Flag". Players must steal a set number of Chao from their opponent's base and bring them back to their own base with their own Chao still there to win.
 * Laps Race: The first player complete a set number of laps around the track wins.
 * King of the Hill: An Omochao is stationed at the top of the level with a light beam. Players earn points by simply standing under it. The first player to the set number of points wins.
 * Tag: A Sonic themed cross between Hot Potato and Tag. Each player has a time limit that drops when they hold the bomb. Players pass the bomb by attacking the other player. The first player to have their time limit expire loses.

Stages

 * Blue Coast Zone - An aquatic zone containing white ruins. This is where all the teams begin. The boss is the Egg Liner, a vehicle that hits the characters with a spiked ball.
 * Sunset Forest Zone - A forest zone with vines and cliffs, squared lands. set at sunset. Similar to Forest Falls in Sonic Rivals. The boss is the Egg Crawler, a big robotic worm.
 * Neon Palace Zone - A casino zone similar to that of Sky Park in Sonic Rivals. Contains number crates the characters can use to get a Bingo and win rings. The boss is the Egg Dealer, a bingo machine.
 * Frontier Canyon Zone - A desert wasteland based on the stereotypical "Wild West". The boss is the Egg Bull, a giant robot bull.
 * Mystic Haunt Zone - A haunted house. Here some battles involved fighting a ghost version of characters. It also appears to be home of other ghosts. The boss is the Egg Phantom, the Eggmobile disguised as a ghost.
 * Chaotic Inferno Zone - A ruined city covered in flames and lava. Similar to Crisis City in Sonic the Hedgehog and Westopolis in Shadow the Hedgehog. The boss is the Ifrit.

Each stage has three acts and a boss, instead of the original game's two. Acts one and three are races, and act two is always a battle. In the story mode, the races may be substituted with single character missions such as "Time Attack", "Collect X Rings", and other challenges. Certain stages can be skipped in the story, depending on the character chosen. An example is Act 2 of the Chaotic Inferno Zone, which is skipped by every character except for Shadow and Metal Sonic.

Song
The main theme song for the game is Race To Win by Ted Poley.



Music
It was revealed on Jun Senoue's (SEGA music producer) official website that he had worked together with Ted Poley on the game's theme song "Race To Win". This is not the first time Ted Poley and Jun Senoue have worked together; the previous times being in the video games Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes. The rest of the game's music is composed by Chris Rezanson.

Cards
There are 150 additional or replaceable cards to collect by completing various challenges, some of which will unlock costumes for each character.

Trivia

 * This marks Metal Sonic's first game appearance as a protagonist as opposed to an antagonist.
 * Metal Sonic can Spin Dash in this game as opposed to crouching and charging his rocket booster like in the prequel (his Spinning animation is the slowest though)
 * This is another game that Knuckles and Rouge are seen working together.
 * There is an incorrect card name in the card list, Shahra the genie is misspelled "Shanhra."
 * Knuckles and Silver are the only main characters who never smile though technically, Metal Sonic can't smile because he doesn't have lips (or a mouth for that matter).
 * This is the first game where no one smiles on the box art.
 * Knuckles' gloves are different, as well in the first Sonic Rivals.
 * This shows Espio's second appearance without the Chaotix with him, the first being Sonic the Fighters.
 * This is the second Sonic game not to be released in Japan, the first being Sonic Rivals.
 * Rouge is the only playable female character in the game.
 * Espio and Vector are the only non-exclusive characters not to have been involved with the prequel's story in any way. Amy is also the only character from the prequel's story to not be involved with this game in any way.
 * This is the first time Espio and Vector have appeared on a game for a handheld console; however, it is only Espio who is playable. Vector would eventually become playable on a handheld for the first time with the Nintendo DS version of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games.
 * This is the first time Shadow and Rouge are rivals to each other.
 * Eggman's nose is not pink in this game.
 * Metal Sonic 3.0 and the associated unlockable outfit is actually Metal Sonic's Leather outfit from the first Sonic Rivals, with paint added to the head.
 * This is the only game where Metal Sonic is powered by a Chaos Emerald.
 * Both Espio and Vector are in this game but not Charmy.
 * This is the only game that has Silver working with Team Chaotix.
 * Sonic's Signature Move, Sonic Boom, is named after the opening theme of the US version of Sonic CD.
 * Rouge's "Steath Suit" is very similar to her G.U.N. suit she wore in Sonic X (namely episodes 12 and 13).
 * Three bosses are named after another robot, as Egg Liner has the same name as Egg Liner; Egg Dealer to Egg Dealer; and the Ifrit to both the Ifrit Golem and Iblis.
 * In the card gallery, Sonic's, Shadow's, and Silver's cards are 3D artwork from Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).
 * Like the first Rivals Amy Rose is the only hedgehog to not be playable in the game.

Suits
Various Character Outfits that can be unlocked in the game by meeting select challenges. Each character has four unlockable skins, making a total of 32 outfits that can be unlocked for all eight characters.

Reception
The game received mixed reviews. Game Rankings currently scores it 63.05%.


 * IGN - 6.5/10
 * GameSpot - 5/10
 * GameSpy - 3.5/5
 * GameZone - 6/10
 * GameDaily - 6/10
 * Eurogamer - 7/10
 * 1UP.com - C-