Sadly, as enticing as the game is in concept, much of its execution has felt the effects of aging.Īs stated, the game is slower than Sonic’s outings, but Tails perhaps moves a bit too slowly, to the point that it makes the platforming a bit annoying (yes, you can usually fly from one platform to the next, but the game will often throw a wrench in that plan, like a strong gust of wind, to leave Tails reliant on traditional platforming). The concept may not be as refined as it is in Metroid or as it would be in Castlevania (being released in 1995, Tails’ Adventure predates Symphony of the Night by two years), but it’s fun and creative. It adds a bit of depth to the experience and while simultaneously differentiating it from Sonic’s games, and still being simple enough to feel at home in a handheld game in the mid-90s. It’s actually a pretty fun progression system. As you may have guessed, the Chaos Emeralds also add to Tails’ stamina bar. Similarly, Tails retains his ability to fly by using his tails like a propellor, but can only do so as long as he has stamina. At the start of the game, Tails has a maximum of ten hit points, with each Chaos Emerald claimed adding ten more to that maximum. But here the rings aren’t gathered and lost in bulk, but are more like hit points. Rings still serve as health as they do in the Sonic games. Tails can only hold four of these items at a time, however, and in between stages, players have to return to Tails’ lab to choose which four items they want to bring with them.Īdditionally, Tails can find the Chaos Emeralds, which essentially level up our two-tailed hero, RPG style. Once you gain new items and weapons, you’ll often have to revisit a previous level to see if there are any new paths you can find with the tools you’ve gained.

You’ll find ‘Super Gloves’ to lift heavy object, additional bomb types, a hammer for melee attacks, and a remote-controlled robot dog who can crawl in small spaces. But you’ll quickly start finding more weapons and items hidden throughout the game’s stages. To be more precise, Tails’ Adventure follows the Metroidvania route, with Tails progressively improving his abilities, and finding new items so he can access previously unaccessible areas.Īt the start of the game, Tails’ only means of attack is throwing an endless supply of bombs at enemies (the game takes place before Tails met Sonic, and thus hasn’t yet learned the speed or spinning attacks from the blue blur).

While Sonic’s platformers were focused on action and speed, Tails’ Adventure is much slower and built around exploration. Tails’ Adventure is a side scrolling platformer, but greatly deviates from the norms of Sonic games at the time. While Skypatrol was an auto-scrolling flight game whose ideas never seemed to mesh together, Tails’ Adventure has a much clearer focus on what it wants to be. And though the passage of time has worn Tails’ Adventure down a bit, its ambitions are still quite admirable. The other, Tails’ Adventure, however, displays some fun ideas. One of those titles, Tails’ Skypatrol, was a bit of a disaster. A duo of titles starring Tails were released on the Game Gear. One of the more fun ideas to come out of the Game Gear was giving Sonic’s two-tailed fox sidekick Tails some games of his own. The Sega Game Gear may not be the most remembered handheld of its day -being in the shadow of the wild success of Nintendo’s Game Boy – but it did have its moments. *Review based on Tails’ Adventure’s release as part of Sonic Gems Collection on Nintendo GameCube*

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