August 05, 2024

Sonic Frontiers: Sonic's Middling Adventure

By Sega - https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/sonic-frontiers, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=71589758

I picked up Sonic Frontiers as part of the Steam Summer Sale not too long ago because I have heard many various things about this game since its release in 2022. I have heard wide-ranging opinions ranging from positive (ex: This is finally an excellent 3D Sonic game) to negative (ex: Sonic Frontiers is just as bad as most other 3D Sonic games). I do not believe the video game community ever concluded how good or how bad Sonic Frontiers is. I have since finished Sonic Frontiers and I will offer my own opinion about this game in the pot of already wild opinions.

I have not had too much experience playing Sonic games, especially 3D Sonic games. I think the last time I have played a Sonic game for a significant amount of time was Sonic Adventure back on the Sega Dreamcast. Since then, I have mostly avoided 3D Sonic games, because most of them have been bad. Well, here I am with Sonic Frontiers, and here are my thoughts.

The thing that makes Sonic Frontiers different from other Sonic games is that Sonic Frontiers uses the open-world gameplay style, and there are no shortages of challenges you can complete and items you can collect. In fact, in each open world, there are portals to cyberspace where you can complete stand-alone levels inspired by classic Sonic games (which is probably my favorite thing to do in the game). I just wish the open-worlds did not feel so bland and lifeless. When you add all the typical gameplay elements of a Sonic game on an open world, such as rails, bumpers, and platforms, the open worlds also feel a bit unnatural. There are also some weird pop-in and draw distance issues with platforms where some platforms will only show up when you get really close to it.

The gameplay is like that of previous Sonic games; jump on the rail or bumper and input a few buttons to home yourself in on enemies or other platforming elements of interest. I think that the controls for Sonic Frontiers are fine (and they control Sonic well in the open world), though it did take me more time to warm up to all the things Sonic can do, especially in a combat setting. I like that there is a lot of enemy variety in the small enemies, and in the minor and major bosses, and it will require you to use all of Sonic's skills to defeat them. On the other hand, the camera in Sonic Frontiers needs some work. I sometimes have a hard time controlling Sonic through some platforming challenges when the camera perspective changes on you when you are mid-jump.

The graphics and visuals are decent but nothing mind-blowing with some weird stutters in some animations. I was particularly impressed with the soundtrack. There are some solid original songs in many of the levels, as well as some memorable Sonic tracks from previous games. The story is not bad either; as Sonic, you are collecting the Chaos Emeralds and saving your friends and the world. The story is no deeper than your typical Legend of Zelda game.

To sum up my thoughts on Sonic Frontiers, I think it is a good enough game for the Sonic community, and you can have some fun in this game. However, there is not one singular game that makes this game stand out from other open-world or platforming games. In some ways, with the barren open world, you can argue that Sonic Frontiers felt unfinished. Ultimately, Sonic Frontiers is a generic open-world Sonic game, and the game really shows that.

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