Takashi Iizuka on Sonic Adventure 2 Original Sound Track:
Sonic Adventure was born on Dreamcast in 1998 and the Sonic world, which was 2D so far, has achieved the evolution toward complete 3D. It was the beginning of a new Sonic world, so to speak, and all those were a challenge from scratch during the production. In contrast, I think I can say that the production of the sequel Sonic Adventure 2, which commemorates the 10th anniversary of Sonic’s birth, is a challenge toward refinement.
For the target of that refinement, we went across many points and the concept that integrates all those was “Hero & Dark.” The double stories of good and bad, 2P battles, and last but not least, the evolution of the artificial life form Chao which has added new types….
And then in the sound aspect, the new challenge has also been attempted in accordance with that concept. It is not to create the game sound from that worldview but to compose the themes of each character as the basis. In the series so far, the music that sounds suitable for the atmospheres was created from the images of stages as a matter of course, so I think the assignment that I posted was difficult in the production aspect as well as in terms of workload. But Senoue, who is the sound director, understood the meaning and necessity, and I think that he has also been able to skillfully express the “Hero & Dark” concept in the sound aspect as a result.
It is needless to say that the game contents and actions are important for a character’s game, but at the same time, I consider sound to be also an important factor which expresses the characters’ personalities and influences the impressions. I am confident that Sonic Adventure 2 is a title which gives a clear look to them who celebrated the 10 years and becomes a guide to the future.