The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog

 PC
  • Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: Mar 31, 2023
User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 124 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 102 out of 124
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 124
  3. Negative: 9 out of 124

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. DarkSonic
    Apr 10, 2023
    9
    Before this game released, I genuinely thought it was an April Fool's joke, that wasn't going to release. Then it released and i had fun playing it. Art style is great, story nice. Sonic got better recently (Sonic Prime, Sonic Frontiers)
  2. vgmkyle
    Apr 6, 2023
    10
    More free quality content from Sega. They've really come around these past few years within: Media, Movies, Television and Games. It's great to see them offering stuff like this and showing that they care about their main brands. Now if we could just get more Sega Shenmue and Virtua Fighter.
  3. AHRbro
    Apr 7, 2023
    10
    Very short, but it's just as long as it need to be. Fun gag for April Fools. More enjoyable if you are already a Sonic fan.
  4. TASF05
    Apr 8, 2023
    9
    If you like Ace Academy you are going to have such a blast with this fantastic game!

    Sonic is in a good place now SEGA keep this up!
  5. Afonso0314
    Apr 2, 2023
    10
    For a free game this is really good! The art is incredible, the mini-games are fun to play and the dialogue between characters is very good too and even funny sometimes!
  6. thestorm236
    Apr 1, 2023
    9
    Really good game. Great art, amazing music, simple and nice story, lots of lore stuff for long time fans, and overall, just such a good vibe to play!
    Again, the soundtrack is really good!
    and the game is free! play it!
  7. ahmed_goda
    Apr 6, 2023
    10
    It’s a fantastic visual novel. I can’t say anything else but to publish this I should write a lot of words and letters sooooo, itxtiddyoriddtdtditdrixitdtitdtotfoyfgugvuccyguyfyctxtxtxitxitxxycvvh he using egg egg j I d the h it snot FB I oh get egg h it egg htt it egg horde egg gi KB hi I er Thank you
  8. tooboredto
    Apr 8, 2023
    9
    the april fools joke turns out to be the best sonic game in 21 years
    i dont know what to say
  9. BlueFlame55
    Apr 2, 2023
    10
    This game is wonderful. It's art is stunning, the story is great, the end was a little dull and repetitive, but this game is a short and sweet masterpiece.
  10. Blixer099
    Apr 6, 2023
    9
    Really good game! Found the story really fun and entertaining. But I do have a couple nitpicks about the game. First of all, it runs like a potato on mac. Second, I would sometimes get softlocked on the think minigames, which i had to reset my progress twice because i hadnt saved yet. And lastly, it doesn't autosave. If Sega fixed these then this would easily be a 10
  11. Doughnutbro123
    Apr 25, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Interesting stunning art RUruamrumuramtia
    Irmrumtuamtimatamitkitikauattiamitamtiam    … Expand
  12. Moneymcmorgan
    May 4, 2023
    10
    Honestly one of the best sonic games in decades. The story is phenomenal. The characters have great personalities and I love playing the dream pie. It plays like a classic sonic bonus stage. Game has tons of references that real sonic fans will love.
  13. yourcousin123
    Apr 1, 2023
    7
    First of all, I would like to say that as the focus of the game is the story, I would like to say that despite simple concept and with a title like "The Murder of Sonic The Hedgehog" the story manages to convey a beautiful and well-done message.

    Behind a simple game, with a very simple concept, it has a very beautiful message about friendship and how sad it is sometimes that we change    First of all, I would like to say that as the focus of the game is the story, I would like to say that despite simple concept and with a title like "The Murder of Sonic The Hedgehog" the story manages to convey a beautiful and well-done message.

    Behind a simple game, with a very simple concept, it has a very beautiful message about friendship and how sad it is sometimes that we change our customs, the people we interact with on a daily basis and that, as much as we want, we cannot force others to be on our side forever, but we can still keep contact, even though we are far apart and not talking much (Or nothing, if you saw the end) that friendship can still exist, if it is a true friendship.    … Expand
  14. TitaniumDragon
    Apr 6, 2023
    7
    The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a cutsey visual novel/runner. You play as (Insert Name Here), a sonic OC who works on a train. The train is hosting a murder mystery game for Amy Rose for her birthday. Everyone was given a role, and someone is to “murder” Sonic and then try to hide the evidence, creating a whodunit.

    This is a rather silly game that has a few plot twists to it. It’s    The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a cutsey visual novel/runner. You play as (Insert Name Here), a sonic OC who works on a train. The train is hosting a murder mystery game for Amy Rose for her birthday. Everyone was given a role, and someone is to “murder” Sonic and then try to hide the evidence, creating a whodunit.

    This is a rather silly game that has a few plot twists to it. It’s very straightforward, having no real meaningful choices, but it is cutsey nonetheless. The Sonic cast is presented well and in a humorous manner, the visual novel plot is okay, there’s silly little runner minigames to “figure things out”, and… well, that’s about it.

    If you’re a Sonic fan, chances are good you’ll find the way that the game plays around with characters to be fun, and enjoy the silly plot and character shenanigans. They are pretty true to their typical characterizations, but it all works well enough, and there’s enough little plot twists to keep the game interesting. The art is actually pretty nice as well – the characters have limited poses, but they look good, as do the environments.

    If you’re not a Sonic fan, though, I’m skeptical you’ll enjoy it as much; it is full of meta-references to Sonic stuff, with little in the way of explanations.

    Overall, decent but not amazing, but it costs nothing and is cute.    … Expand
  15. JoseSubia15
    Apr 8, 2023
    10
    Beautiful! I have no more words to describe this game, fun from start to finish, the drawing style is beautiful as is the story, 100% recommended.
  16. Sonica
    Apr 6, 2023
    10
    Peck game. The story, the music and everything is great, seriously one of the best Sonic games
  17. HoomanSA7
    Apr 1, 2023
    10
    I really liked the game ! the story , the gameplay , I wish this team could make more sonic games !
  18. OnlyOneHere
    May 10, 2023
    5
    This game is a pretty decent example of how a visual novel should be done. Video game developers making visual novels isn't really a problem, it's the fact that greedy developers have the audacity to charge outrageous prices for visual novels. Nintendo and Microsoft would have easily charged $15-20 for this game, not to mention that Microsoft would be bragging about this being "free" day 1This game is a pretty decent example of how a visual novel should be done. Video game developers making visual novels isn't really a problem, it's the fact that greedy developers have the audacity to charge outrageous prices for visual novels. Nintendo and Microsoft would have easily charged $15-20 for this game, not to mention that Microsoft would be bragging about this being "free" day 1 on Game Pass. This game is actually free, exactly as it should be.

    One thing the developers got right with this visual novel is actually including gameplay. I don't care what stupid buzzwords those artsy-fartsy developers like to throw around. In the end of the day, it's a video game and I appreciate that these developers remember that. Although the gameplay is basic, with retro-style running sections where you collect rings and avoid obstacles. It gets repetitive, but it wasn't long enough to bore me to death. The story was well written with interesting dialogue.

    There is no multiplayer but I didn't pay for this, so I don't care. It's hard to complain about a game that's completely free with no microtransactions or ads. I can't really expect much from these developers, but nothing about this game is biblical. If someone told me this was a fan-made game, I would've believed it. If the developers had included something like voice acting, then it would help differentiate this from a fan-made game. Instead the developers wasted money on this lazily composed soundtrack. Half of it sounds like it was taken straight from a Kraftwerk album, while the other half sounds like it was randomly selected from a stock music library. Well it's free and only 2 hours of your time, so I do recommend it.    … Expand
  19. Geo3891
    Apr 15, 2023
    10
    Esto tiene que ser una de las mejores bromas del 1 de Abril mejor hechas.
    Dejando a un lado las bromas, realmente es un buen juego, una buena novela visual y disfrutable, donde hace mucha énfasis en la caracterización de los personajes bien hecha y que es un lavado de cara para los personajes desperdiciados como Shadow o Espio y es una historia divertida para pasartela durante una tarde,    Esto tiene que ser una de las mejores bromas del 1 de Abril mejor hechas.
    Dejando a un lado las bromas, realmente es un buen juego, una buena novela visual y disfrutable, donde hace mucha énfasis en la caracterización de los personajes bien hecha y que es un lavado de cara para los personajes desperdiciados como Shadow o Espio y es una historia divertida para pasartela durante una tarde, ademas de contar con un arte muy bonito y disfrutable a la vista y un soundtrack, pese a ser simple, bastante bueno.
    Tienes que darle una probada si eres fan de las novelas visuales, ademas de que esta gratis en Steam, ojala pronto llegue a consolas para que mas gente pueda probarla, recomendado!!    … Expand
  20. Damashi
    Apr 6, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Absolutely fantastic, and one of the best Sonic experiences I've ever had! The story is very well written, funny, heartwarming, and the characterization for everyone, especially Shadow and Espio is on point, and its the best they've ever been. The music is great, which is to be expected of a Sonic game, and the art and presentation feels like it came right out of the IDW Sonic comics. Gameplay wise the game is a solid challenge, and for those that find it a bit too hard there are accessibility options to tailor the experience more to your liking. I hope this game's universal success shows Sega just how much we love these characters, and why we love them so much. Also I love Eggman and his four kids, long live the Egg Family! The game is also free to go along with it high quality, so it's a very easy recommend. If you're a Sonic Fan you'll love it, and if you aren't one, the game will show you why so many care about the story of Sonic so much. Hopefully we get more Sonic visual novels, and the next 3-D game goes for a more comic like cel-shaded visual style.… Expand
  21. camocaplamo
    Apr 1, 2023
    10
    just a cute and funny good time an absulote comfort game the art design is so pretty aswell truly an amazing fun free title
  22. postmasterpaat
    Aug 22, 2023
    5
    Sega's taken a shot at it, and honestly, it's kind of like... average? It's a Sonic-themed mystery adventure visual novel thingy, and, well, it's got a story that's like, you know, captivating enough. And the characters? Yeah, they interact, I guess, in a way that's not totally terrible. And the whole presentation? I mean, it's not an eyesore, so that's something. The soundtrack's thereSega's taken a shot at it, and honestly, it's kind of like... average? It's a Sonic-themed mystery adventure visual novel thingy, and, well, it's got a story that's like, you know, captivating enough. And the characters? Yeah, they interact, I guess, in a way that's not totally terrible. And the whole presentation? I mean, it's not an eyesore, so that's something. The soundtrack's there too, and it's, uh, decently okay, I suppose.

    So, here's the deal. I played through it, and like, I wasn't exactly jumping out of my seat with excitement, but there were a couple of times I, uh, smiled, I guess. It's not like it's gonna change your life or anything, but if you're in the mood to kill some time, it might do the trick. Oh, and get this – it's free. Yeah, like, they're not even charging for it. It's almost like they're begging you to play it, or maybe they just want to make up for something else. Who knows?

    And, you know, don't hold your breath for another one of these from Sega. They might do it, they might not. I mean, it's like up in the air or whatever. But, I guess, if you're into hoping and heart stuff, knock yourself out.    … Expand
  23. drlowdon
    Apr 16, 2023
    6
    To celebrate her birthday, Amy Rose invites a group of her friends (including Sonic and Tails) to take part in a murder mystery experience aboard a train designed to host such special events.

    Essentially a visual novel, with a few endless runner sections thrown in to mix things up, this game certainly has it’s charms even if neither element is particularly deep. The visual novel portion    To celebrate her birthday, Amy Rose invites a group of her friends (including Sonic and Tails) to take part in a murder mystery experience aboard a train designed to host such special events.

    Essentially a visual novel, with a few endless runner sections thrown in to mix things up, this game certainly has it’s charms even if neither element is particularly deep. The visual novel portion of the game largely just involves clicking on items and then making the odd dialogue choice during conversations, whilst the endless runner sections are marred by an odd camera angle and having to use a keyboard.

    For a free game however (one that was apparently just a April Fool’s joke at first) it’s hard to really complain too much though.    … Expand
  24. nascent
    Apr 2, 2023
    9
    I got this on April Fool's day thinking it'd just be a quick and silly game based on the day it was released. Ended up really enjoying it, the style was far point point-and-click adventure than visual novel and you're essentially just solving puzzles and unraveling the mystery. However, these point-and-click chapters are broken up by 2d (on an axis) Sonic mini-games that can get extremelyI got this on April Fool's day thinking it'd just be a quick and silly game based on the day it was released. Ended up really enjoying it, the style was far point point-and-click adventure than visual novel and you're essentially just solving puzzles and unraveling the mystery. However, these point-and-click chapters are broken up by 2d (on an axis) Sonic mini-games that can get extremely challenging, where you must collect a certain number of rings whilst avoiding a magnitude of obstacles and threats under the guise of the main character thinking and constructing an inspection. I found some of these very tough but manageable, however, the final boss fight and one other towards the end were extremely tough, much more so than any of the others and could've been dialed down a bit (although sonic games often have insanely hard final battles so it's not out of character).

    This was a solid game and could've easily sold for money, it being free is a very welcome surprise, and its April Fool's release date shouldn't put anyone off playing it in the thought that it's not a legitimate game. It is.    … Expand
  25. WackyJaber
    Apr 7, 2023
    10
    I literally cannot think of anything wrong with it. The only one I can think of is that it's a bit short, but since it's a free download, who cares. Still, great art and really funny.
  26. Onioncreature
    Apr 3, 2023
    8
    A fun April Fool's joke game. The game is pretty basic, but that's too be expected given that it's a free title mostly intended to amuse people by it's mere existence. The characterizations are pretty great, better even than many of the main Sonic games. There were some weird difficulty spikes in the mini-game sections, and some of the jokes don't land, but otherwise this is a highlyA fun April Fool's joke game. The game is pretty basic, but that's too be expected given that it's a free title mostly intended to amuse people by it's mere existence. The characterizations are pretty great, better even than many of the main Sonic games. There were some weird difficulty spikes in the mini-game sections, and some of the jokes don't land, but otherwise this is a highly successful effort.… Expand
  27. XDanielol
    Apr 3, 2023
    10
    Surprisingly one of the most random and funniest Sonic games out there; the characters, the story itself, the gameplay, even the soundtrack. I can't believe one of Sega's April Fool's Day game is one of their finest. Truly amazing.
  28. spencerplewe
    Apr 14, 2023
    9
    An ultra-delightful (and generously free) treat for the fans, going for a surprising 2 for 2 in quality Sonic releases in the last few months, this Sonic-themed mystery visual novel comes with expressive artwork and a winsome story!
  29. Chugun
    Apr 3, 2023
    10
    Just Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood
  30. Trixxstrr
    May 21, 2023
    7
    2 hrs - April fools game. Visual novel with some action. Was ok. Nothing too exciting.
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

59
#59 Best PC Game of 2023
27
#27 Most Discussed PC Game of 2023

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. GLHF on Sports Illustrated
    Jul 3, 2023
    60
    The Murder of Sonic is a quirky addition to Sonic’s library, if not anything particularly ground-breaking. It might not make up for Sega trying to sell us the main menu and cutscenes for Sonic Origins separately, but it’s a nice gesture.
    Read full review
  2. Multiplayer.it
    Apr 19, 2023
    80
    The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a simple and short, but enjoyable visual novel that is graphically polished and, above all, completely free. The platforming minigame could have avoided the final difficulty spike, but if you are a fan of the blue hedgehog you should give it a chance.
    Read full review
  3. Meristation
    Apr 18, 2023
    80
    A free and fun visual novel with a superb visual style and some solid writing that will give us a few hours of solid entertainment.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »