Sonic Frontiers: Revolution arrives to counter the best games in the series

SEGA is once again plotting to revolutionize its most representative franchise, but it wouldn’t be healthy to ignore that the company has been flirting with other experiments like ‘Sonic Adventure’ and ‘Sonic Unleashed’ for years. far from reaching significant levels. . What the open space formula now brings is the possibility of running at the speed of light, feeling like never before how fast and tough Sonic can be in the open space, and finishing up building many of his followers’ dreams, at levels unheard of. exploration and a huge arsenal of abilities.

Revolution comes to franchise

To begin with, it’s important to make it clear that this is an unprecedented production in franchise history. Basically, it limits sequences that imply a strict classical formula to linear phases and adds it to a format that offers the level of freedom and content its followers have dreamed of since the turn of the century. In other words, yes, ‘Sonic Frontiers’ marks the dawn of a new era that begins when Sonic, Amy and Tails travel to the mysterious Starfall Islands after detecting signs of the Chaos Emeralds. However, the group is pulled into a dimensional portal, and the brave hedgehog awakens apart from his friends in a strange digital world created by an ancient civilization with highly advanced technology.

Isolated and trapped in an unknown world, Sonic must discover the secrets of this digital land facing never-before-seen dangers and rescue his friends trapped between the real and digital dimensions before it’s too late. The development of the plot does not disappoint, and a more adult tone is allowed, which gradually unfolds as the player explores the five available islands. There are also numerous puzzles and secondary objectives whose mission is to discover additional details about the plot and characters that enrich the story as a whole, as well as expand the diverse experience. We refrain from going into details, but the premiere of the artificial intelligence named Sage is without a doubt the most interesting original character the SEGA factory has created in the last decade, and it has great potential, not only for the present bright future of Serie. Overall, the balance of the story is really positive. The direction of the script is much more introspective than we’re used to, with characters sharing their motivations in the midst of a hopeless situation. There are even mentions of events from classic and pre-modern games like ‘Sonic 3 & Knuckles’ and ‘Sonic Unleashed’.

Sonic is modernizing and doing a great job

In reality, the renewal of the brand is based on three pillars combined with remarkable success. The first, of course, is the open world. Exploring huge environments full of activities and secrets, with something new to discover around every corner, is a very fun and enjoyable activity. However, the formula no longer completely abandons the traditional linear propositions accessed through portals called Cyberspace.

These suggest 2D/3D areas that the hedgehog already knows from other adventures such as Green Hill, Chemical Plant, and Sky Sanctuary, and it is necessary to overcome at least one target to unlock the keys, which is necessary to obtain Chaos. Emeralds. It’s worth noting that unlocking these stages requires a few gears earned by fighting enemies and bosses. In any case, the sections of this second column present challenges similar to the classical ones, but the location and assessment changes are particularly symbolic because they give the previous formula the level of importance it has today: the importance of a complementary activity. , it’s not a complete game.

A battle system to keep

The third nuclear element of ‘Sonic Frontiers’ is featured in a brand new combat system dominated by fluid melee mechanics, betting on a skill tree and success-worthy combos. It is without a doubt the most complex combat approach in the entire series, with different button combinations for each movement type. While not a purely offensive element, another feature worth highlighting requires us to mention an ability that allows Sonic to move around objects and enemies, revealing secrets, activating mechanisms or simply dealing damage. There are many opponents, including some of their huge bosses, that can be knocked down with this feature. However, it is also possible to refresh the rings at any time, which allows our hero to move on the stage at maximum speed.

While progressing through different locations, players must also accumulate a large number of red and blue seeds, which represent attack and defense respectively. They are used to increase hedgehog stats when exchanged for certain characters that can be found scattered around the islands. We will also encounter small creatures called Kocos that can be summoned to increase the hedgehog’s speed and maximum ability to collect rings. Which brings us to the ‘Sonic Frontiers’ gameplay loop.

Torn between two dimensions: real size and digital size

To finish the adventure, we’ll have to traverse the stages of cyberspace to obtain the keys, unlock the seven Chaos Emeralds, and defeat fearsome bosses passing through each of the five islands, explore regions and save our friends from a digital fate. There is one more requirement to physically save them: We have to collect some fragments called “reminders” that provide secondary lines of dialogue that allow the story to progress and provide even more context to the new world. It is also possible to complete various secondary quests as well as environmental puzzles that allow us to clear all areas of the map and find many secrets spread across the five Starfall Islands.

If it seems a little confusing to you, don’t worry. There are many items to collect, thankfully it doesn’t take long to understand the purpose of each and this isn’t necessarily a disadvantage as they work very organically with the game’s mysterious story. To complete the circle, you can collect some purple coins, which are used to get rewards in mini-games and classic rings that guarantee the survival of our one meter long hero and increase his speed exponentially when he reaches the maximum. possible number of gold rings. .

Overall, the game is a dream menu of three courses and desserts for those who enjoy the action and unbridled speed of the series. It’s easy for beginners to adapt to the game’s proportions, and you can even customize the experience in a number of ways, including how fast the hedgehog moves. Everything is focused so that it will be a fruitful journey for all audiences, where the major locations have accumulated a large number of items to collect and collect. Therefore, exploration-oriented players and those aiming to complete the game 100% will have to spend a few more hours to completely finish the game. This makes ‘Sonic Frontiers’ the title with the highest level of replayability in the franchise’s extensive history.

as big as you can imagine

‘Frontiers’ is a visually pleasing game, but a commitment to an open world of such proportions is unprecedented for Sonic Team. The most striking thing is the configuration of the environments and art direction, providing as diverse as they are interesting structures, enemies and resources. Islands have a wide variety of architectures without creating performance issues and managing to maintain a stable frame rate. In turn, the scene bets Sonic will show strong doses of melancholy, reinforcing the fact that he is isolated away from loved ones in danger.

The title does a remarkable job of localization in Spanish, and the soundtrack features slow piano notes that reinforce these feelings. Sonic games are historically famous for their music, and ‘Frontiers’ will definitely compete among the highlights of 2022. While speed gets crazier with electronic music in the cyberspace stages, there is also traditional rock where the series excels, for example in the fight against important bosses.

Results

Many of the features that have been reproduced over the thirty years of Sonic’s existence are represented in ‘Sonic Frontiers’. Many of its elements are extremely familiar, but the execution here is something completely different and undoubtedly brings a refresh and revolution in general that many thought the franchise would never have achieved. They were wrong. The Sonic Team’s work arrives to set a new stage in the orbit of the beloved blue hedgehog.

The experience ‘Sonic Frontiers’ delivers is legally the most complete, fun and innovative in franchise history. It’s legitimate to even argue that it’s the best game in decades, far above cult titles like ‘Sonic Adventure’. Why? Packed with content and spiced up with a well-crafted combat system, the open formula is bold and brings unprecedented levels of freedom, paving the way for a bright future for the series. As the format shows great potential, it will be interesting to see how SEGA implements and adjusts the game set in future releases.