Sonic Advance



Sonic Advance is the first game in the series on the Game Boy Advance, and one of the first few on a Nintendo console. Developed by Dimps (the same team who developed Sonic Pocket Adventure), the game is a return to Sonic's sidescrolling roots.

Gameplay
The game is a 2D sidescoller in the same vein as the Megadrive-era games in the series. The goal of the game is to get from the beginning of the stage to the end, while dodging badniks, collecting rings, and finding the seven Chaos Emeralds. This game also introduces Mecha Knuckles as a boss, and features the first appearance of rails in a 2D game, although they are pretty scarce, and can only be used by Sonic and Amy.

Playable Characters
Sonic- The titular character, Sonic runs the fastest. His attacks include his mid-air attack that expands his range for a split second, and a ground somersault, (it is possible to use the somersault to climb steep inclines).

Tails- Sonic's sidekick, Tails, retains his ability to fly. Just tap A several times after a jump, and he'll fly until he is exhausted. His attack move is his tail-swipe from Sonic Adventure, though it is fairly slow.

Knuckles- Knuckles is once again able to glide for short distances and climb some walls. He can also tread the surface of water- just tap down to go down. His attack move is a 1-2-3 uppercut punch.

Amy- Amy's moveset replaces standard spin-dashing and rolling jumps with some complex hammer moves. This eliminates the ability to attack enemies by jumping on them, as done with the other three characters. Instead of a spindash, she has a hop move as a form of quick momentum, making it hard to get up steep inclines.

Zones
Neo Green Hill Zone

Secret Base Zone

Casino Paradise Zone

Ice Mountain Zone

Angel Island Zone

Egg Rocket Zone

Cosmic Angel Zone

X Zone

Moon Zone

Chaos Emeralds
To collect Chaos Emeralds, the player must first find a Special Spring somewhere in a Zone. Jumping into it will take them to a tube-like stage, which is filled with rings, which must be collected to a pre-determined minimum. Also featured are golden gates that the player does well-timed tricks through to get bonus rings, which is a necessity for the later stages. Collecting all 7 Emeralds and beating X Zone allows the player access to Moon Zone.

Tiny Chao Garden
When you first enter the Tiny Chao Garden, only a solitary egg will be found. Tapping A on it will hatch it into a Chao. Use rings collected in levels and minigames to buy fruits and items for your Chao to help them gain stats. Also, link between Sonic Advance and the Gamecube version of either Sonic Adventure or Sonic Adventure 2 to transfer your Chao to their gardens and to participate in races.

Minigames
(Both minigames are found in the Tiny Chao Garden.)

Rock Paper Scissors: Select rock, paper, or scissors, and shoot down one of the coinciding cards to gain rings.

Card Matching: Flip over cards and match pairs for rings.