Sonic Advance 2 is a 2002 side-scrolling platform video game developed by Dimps and published by Sega, THQ, and Infogrames for the Game Boy Advance. An installment in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, it is the direct sequel to Sonic Advance. The story follows Sonic as he sets out to save his friends and retrieve the seven magical Chaos Emeralds from series antagonist Doctor Eggman. Gameplay consists of the player completing various levels as one of five characters, each with their own unique attributes. After each zone is completed, the player faces Doctor Eggman in a boss battle.
Development of the game began in February 2002 and lasted eight months. It was programmed using an updated version of the original's game engine, and the team aimed to make the game larger and faster-paced than the original. Sonic Advance 2 was released to a positive reception; critics praised the updates made over the original Advance and its improved replay value in comparison to past games. Some journalists, however, were polarized by its high difficulty level. The third entry in the Sonic Advance trilogy, Sonic Advance 3, was released in 2004. Sonic Advance 2 was re-released for the Wii U's Virtual Console in February 2016.
