10 Video Games That Peaked Too Early

5. Sonic Adventure 2

1998's Sonic Adventure was the first major 3D Sonic game and, despite releasing on the doomed Dreamcast, was regarded by many critics as a major return to form for Sonic (though, as evident by anyone who's played it recently, it's aged horribly).

Sega then released a sequel in 2001, which opened with a level still fondly remembered by fans almost 20 years later, and one that, until the recent release of Sonic Mania, represented arguably the most kinetic and on-brand Sonic level since the Mega Drive.

City Escape saw the player racing around the streets of San Francisco while attempting to avoid a military pursuit, leading to Sonic racing away from a gigantic truck.

It's ludicrously fast, adrenaline-infused, beautifully laid-out and exactly the way that any Sonic game should begin.

Unfortunately, the rest of the game is beleaguered by an infuriating camera and controls, the woefully tedious Knuckles levels, an excess of glitches and a generally dated feel.

That first level, at least, remains pure gold even when played today.