Sonic Frontiers

Sonic Frontiers is a game with a lot going for it, but is somewhat held back by the technical issues of a character as fast as Sonic. It does provide a path forward into a new era of Sonic games that could revive the series and unite the fans behind it. Exploring the Starfall Islands can be as relaxing or as hectic as the player desires, and there is plenty of room for more games like this in the future of the franchise. The added mechanics of an open world and a skill tree allow for players to really feel the growth in Sonic's speed and strength as the game progresses, and the customization in the options allow for a grasp on Sonic's speed and manoeuvrability that no other Sonic game has yet attempted. This reviewer feels optimistic about the Sonic franchise to come now that it has taken some steps into a new frontier.

Sonic's entry into new, for him, gaming paths is overall successful, despite any problems. With a little polish and attention to detail, the next game in the series has the foundations in place to finally look eternal rival Mario in his three-dimensional, bubbly eyes.

Even though the controls can sometimes feel frustrating in the 2.5D sections, it’s never enough to kill the momentum, and when you finally dial in to what’s expected the area is cleared and it’s back to the exploration. There’s a mystery at the heart of the Starfall Islands and it’s got Sonic’s friends trapped within, but a cocky and determined hedgehog is more than a match for whatever may be happening there. But first there are a couple hundred areas of the map to explore, tricky routes leading to memory tokens, enemies and mini-bosses to test new combat skills on, and maybe a few koco to rescue. Whatever happened on the Starfall Islands seems to have taken place centuries ago, so it can wait just a bit longer for Sonic to bounce, dash and rail-grind his way through every challenge Sonic Frontiers can throw at him.

All Sonic fans, whether veterans or newcomers or even those unfamiliar with the franchise at all, should give Frontiers a shot. It’s not perfect, yet it’s an admirable and respectable step in the right direction. I sincerely hope this gameplay and writing style are retained and refined for Sonic’s next gaming outings because an unabashed golden age could be in the works if embraced.

Sonic Frontiers may not be the best Sonic the Hedgehog ever made, but it's definitely in the upper echelon of the franchise. The new open-world formula works surprisingly well even with its issues, and Cyber Space stages and combat are well-designed, engaging and, most of all, fun. With some tweaks, the Sonic Frontiers formula could be the basis for the franchise moving forward, potentially bringing it back to its glory days.

An animated film-like video game for fans of the series. The newly added 'open zone' system turned out to reveal more flaws than advantages, but the franchise's unique, high-speed action is well expressed. While the solid character settings and story for fans stand out, graphics quality that are hard to believe it's out in 2022 need to be improved.

Sonic Frontiers is a unique addition to the franchise that is really different compared to any of the Sonic titles before it. The game looks and sounds great, but has a couple areas that felt a little rough like the combat and controls in the Cyber Space challenges.

Sonic Frontiers succeeds in finally making Sonic truly work in 3D without many of the problems that plagued past titles. While it's far from perfect and could have used more polish, it's a fairly impressive game that offers up most everything fans could want.

Quotation forthcoming.

While Sonic Frontiers has its fair share of issues, I can honestly and confidently say that it is the best Sonic game I've played and one that provides a ton of fun throughout.

Messy, overcomplicated and slow to start, but fun once it picks up speed.