A launch title for the Sega Dreamcast, Sonic Adventure hit store shelves when the Dreamcast made its debut in the US on September 9th 1999. This was the first time the public had seen the beloved Blue Blur in his own fully 3D game. Though the fastest thing alive had ventured into isometric games on the Sega Genesis and Sega Saturn, this marked a special new accomplishment for Sonic the Hedgehog.
I remember receiving my copy of Sonic Adventure for Christmas in 1999. It was one of the Dreamcast titles my Mom had picked out for my Dad and I (along with Flag to Flag Racing). I was totally floored the first time I saw Sonic and all of his friends in the iconic opening cutscene for Sonic Adventure. It blew my elementary-school mind. My Dad and I would spend hours playing (and eventually completing) this game together. Needless to say, I have many, many fond memories of this game. Some would probably call me “nostalgia blind” for loving this game as much as I do, but I don’t mind. Everybody has something they value because of its relevance to their childhood. Some say that Sonic Adventure hasn’t aged well, but I completely disagree. The action stages are still fun, the story holds up, and the music is still on my playlist to this day.
While I am a huge Sonic fan in general, (I have many Sonic-related games, comics, toys, plush and other assorted knickknacks in my collection) a couple of my favorite pieces are those specifically branded with the “Sonic Adventure” logo.
In the first picture, I have the games themselves. Never having grown out of games (thankfully), these are the exact copies that I spent hours playing when I was a kid. One of the things I especially like about my copy of Sonic Adventure 2 is that it still has the old EB Games sticker on it. It reads “34.99”, in case you can’t tell. Imagine getting SA2 for $35 now; that’s a much better price than the $65 copy in the cabinet at our local chain retro game store. Also featured in this picture is the official strategy guide for Sonic Adventure. Not that you really need a strategy guide for a Sonic game, as they’re pretty linear, but I picked this up recently simply because it was Sonic Adventure branded and I didn’t have it. Finally, we have the Sonic Adventure vinyl soundtrack. This was released recently by Brave Wave and purchased through Fangamer.com. The vinyl comes with an art book, two colored vinyl discs and a digital download for the MP3 of the soundtrack. The Sonic Adventure 2 Soundtrack is also available and I’ll be picking that up when it’s back in stock at Fangamer.com.
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(Special picture appearance by Sonic Shuffle because I couldn’t stand to photograph Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 and not Sonic Shuffle.)
My next picture features Sonic Adventure art supplies! Back in the early-2000s, I remember taking these gel pens to my elementary school and using them in class. I’m shocked that none of them got lost, to be honest. The gel, as expected, is long dried up, but other than that, my pens are still in fairly decent shape. I wish the same could be said for this Knuckles pencil sharpener, but that’s okay. Knuckles has served his purpose and sharpened many pencils throughout my school career.
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Next stop on the grand tour features my roughest Sonic Adventure merchandise but it’s also some of the most important to me personally. Featured are my (very loved) Sonic Adventure toys. These toys went everywhere with me when I was a kid. There are a few different sets mixed into this picture. In the lower corner, we have a set of SA erasers. The set in the middle was a boxed set of four of the playable characters in Sonic Adventure. They were somewhat flexible (at least, they used to be). I definitely wouldn’t want to play with them now for fear that they would break. A second set of these was also made, but I never had the set that included Big and E102-Gamma. The larger toys at the top (Dr. Robotnik with Kiki and Tails with Chao) were two larger figures (sold separately) around the same time. I’ve managed to keep all of the Chaos Emeralds that came with these figures but somehow I’ve lost every metal ring that came with them. These particular toys were all manufactured by the company Toy Island in 2000-2001.
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The crowning gems in my Sonic Adventure collection have to be my set of my Sonic Adventure Resaurus toys. Resaurus was the first toy company that had the rights to make Sonic Adventure merchandise in 1999 when the game was initially released. Unfortunately, Resaurus didn’t last long into Sonic Adventure’s lifespan and could only make two series’ worth of action figures. Series One consisted of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles with Series Two adding Amy Rose, Big the Cat, E-102 Gamma and a Skiing Sonic. Each of the Resaurus toys are well-articulated and each one comes with a custom base to support the figure, a metal ring, and a sticker of that character. The best thing about the Resaurus toys, however, has to be their packaging. I mean, just look at that beautiful Sonic Adventure logo. I got super lucky about two months ago and found the six that I have (pictured below) all together for about $110. These toys fetch a pretty penny on eBay, so I’m incredibly fortunate to have snagged these gems when I did. I can’t wait to complete this set one day (when the price is right, of course).
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Thanks for reading, friends! I’ll be showing off more game-related collections of mine as time goes on! Please leave a comment if you’d like to connect with us here at G&B!
- Helen
Resources:
- If you’re interested in watching a great video on the Resaurus action figures, I highly recommend PatMac’s very informative video on the Sonic Adventure toy line.
- To order your own copy of the Sonic Adventure Vinyl Soundtracks, check out www.fangamer.com.
