It has been one hot-ass summer and every day the temperatures hit triple digits, I sit back and soak in sweat as I imagine I’m any place but here. Antarctica, New Zealand, the northern tip of Greenland; they’re all much more desirable places to be when it’s hot this many days in a row. I would go to all three of those places and more if I were made or money — or was that clueless New York girl who gets thousands of dollars every month from her parents — but I’m not so the best I can do is the occasional weekend trip to the beach.
There’s nothing like the feeling of blistering hot sand beneath your feet as you make a b-line for the water to cool your ass off before remembering you forgot to put on your SPF 80. I enjoy a nice trip to the beach so much that it became my topic for this week’s Destructoid Discusses. The only problem is I had a difficult time coming up with an answer.
There are obvious beaches I could have gone with. Wind Waker, my favorite game, is nothing but islands so its full of beaches. But none of them stick out, and after some back and forth with online searches, a lightbulb clicked. Obviously, the best beach is Emerald Coast from Sonic Adventure.
This was the first Sonic game I saw through to the end and one I have no desire to replay because I know my rose-tinted view of the slick-looking launch title for my beloved Dreamcast would be ruined if I booted it up today. But watching this level, it has all of the things I love about the coast: sun, sand, water, fancy hotels, a boardwalk, cabanas, lighthouses, and a kick-ass Orca, which as a Washingtonian was a massive part of my upbringing. Free Willy anyone?
So yeah, this was a tough question, but I’m absolutely resolute in my assertion Emerald Coast is the best beach level in gaming and I’m sure all the examples below from my fellow Destructoid writers will stink on ice!
Source: Destructoid Emerald Coast is the only video game beach worthy of a summer vacation