sonic Frontiers holding blue chaos emerald.

Tales From The Backlog Vol.2 – Sonic Frontiers

7 minutes read

Around the time Sonic the Hedgehog 3 hit theaters, Sony added Sonic Frontiers to the PlayStation Plus Extra tier. Since the movies gave me a Sonic itch that needed scratching, I figured it was as good a time as any to check in with the blue blur.

In December 2024, The Sonic the Hedgehog movie series released its third installment. My girlfriend and I planned to see it in the theater shortly after its release. However, it dawned on me that I had never seen the second movie. To fix that, we spent a Sunday together streaming the first two movies. This allowed me to catch up completely and go into the newest release with a fresh understanding of the story so far.

Honestly, my personal history with Sonic is pretty limited. I didn’t have a Sega Genesis growing up, so my initial exposure to the character was through friends and other sources. Since that exposure was brief, I eventually lost track of what the character was up to and what the games were like. I knew there were both 2D and 3D Sonic games, but I never really learned much beyond that.

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Gotta…Go…Fast! – Sonic Frontiers

Sonic getting ready to run towards a tower.

Sonic Frontiers was originally released on November 7, 2022, for PlayStation and Xbox family consoles, as well as the Nintendo Switch. I wasn’t sure if this was the best game to start my Sonic journey, but the low barrier to entry—thanks to its availability on PlayStation Plus Extra—ultimately convinced me to make Frontiers my first Sonic game in decades.

In traditional Sonic fashion, Doctor Eggman is up to no good. While Sonic and his friends begin investigating the mysterious technology being created, they are ultimately separated when a wormhole sucks them into cyberspace. Luckily, Sonic manages to escape, and the adventure begins as he sets out to reunite the cast and stop the threats.

What’s It Like To Play Sonic Frontiers?

sonic attack and enemy

The game consists of five main worlds, playing similar, but the overall design keeps it engaging and interesting. For example, when you enter a world for the first time, the player is placed in an open-world 3D environment. As you explore, you’ll grind on rails to collect coins, complete puzzles and obtain other items. They can, for example, increase Sonic’s overall speed. While exploring, you’ll encounter bosses in the open world, and fight them to secure gear pieces. These are required to access the more traditional levels, such as 1-1 and beyond. These are also found as you explore and open more of the map.

The levels within the open world can vary in gameplay. Some will have a more 3D design, giving the player a camera angle similar to that of the open world, while others take on a more old-school approach with the camera locked in a side-scrolling perspective. In these levels, you’ll have several objectives to complete, such as finding all the red rings, finishing with a certain number of rings, and completing the level within a set time.

Completing all objectives will earn you an S rank which grants the maximum number of keys for that level, which are required to obtain the Chaos Emeralds. Once all the emeralds in that world are collected, Sonic transforms into Super Sonic, and the player faces the world boss.

Let’s Ask An Expert

Sonic running and the chaos emeralds are around him.

Overall, I really enjoyed my time with Sonic Frontiers. Towards the end, however, the gameplay elements started to lose their charm. Thankfully, the game wrapped up before that feeling fully set in.

Now, the main question I have is: What does a Sonic fan like me do next? What’s the best way to continue this journey?

To answer this question, I’ll be summoning Robert Kellet, a.k.a. Lord Sonic, to be my expert and guiding star in recommending the games or media that make the most sense for someone like me to dive into next.

Some Words from RK128 aka Lord Sonic

As Lords of Gaming’s resident Sonic expert, I am honored to give my Scribe brother, and you the readers, some suggestions on what else the Blue Blur has to offer.

Game Recommendations

I would easily recommend to newcomers to the series the critically acclaimed Sonic X Shadow Generations. As I said in my review for the collection, it’s the defacto greatest hits for the series. Including multiple levels between both Sonic Generations and Shadow Generations, it offers a speedy introduction to the series.

Sonic X Shadow Generations cover art with title

Another easy recommendation is the fantastic Sonic Mania. Created by a talented team of people from the Classic Sonic community, this beautiful pixel-art adventure honors the presentation and game-feel of the classics.

Other games worth checking out for modern consoles include Sonic Colors Ultimate, Sonic Origins Plus, and Team Sonic Racing. If you have an Xbox Series X/S, then another recommendation would also be Sonic Unleashed. Releasing in 2008 and leveraging greatly from the Xbox Backward Compatabilty Program, it’s a fan favorite I can recommend.

Multimedia Recommendations – 90’s Animation

Even before the Paramount Sonic films, the series has a long history on the silver screen. The 90’s offered fans Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog (Satam), and Sonic Underground.

The three shows are very different from one another, both in tone and quality. Out of all of them, I would recommend Sonic the Hedgehog (Satam) the most. It leans harder into the nature vs machine narrative the classic games allude to, while expanding the Sonic cast. This extended cast became the backbone of the Archie Sonic series, having a cult following to this day.

Japan also was in on the fun, creating the Sonic the Hedgehog OVA. With Sonic Team having direct involvement with Toei Animation, this fourty or so minute adventure is timeless. Team Sonic faces off against Metal Sonic, sporting an artstyle ripped right out of Sonic CD. I personally love this, specifically the final half of it.

Multimedia Recommendations – Sonic X & Sonic Boom

In the 2000’s, Sonic only had one show, that being Sonic X. It was based off the Sonic Adventure games, adapting both titles and other games like Sonic Battle. The premise had Sonic and his friends set to Earth, trying to find a way home. I personally, don’t like this one very much, but that’s mainly the English Dub.

In Japanese, it’s a big improvement across the board for multiple reasons. From an improved music score too the game’s voice cast reprising their roles, it’s an authentic Sonic experience. That being said, it takes a while to get going.

Taking multiple years following Sonic X, SEGA launched the ill-fated Sonic Boom initiave, which included a new Sonic TV series. Titled Sonic Boom, it featured Sonic and his friends (Tails, Knuckles, Amy), alongside newcomer Sticks the Badger, having more comedic-focused adventures.

In many ways, it was SEGA’s answer to modern cartoons of the time. I greatly enjoyed this series a lot and recommend it for those looking for a good laugh.

Comic Recommendations – Archie & IDW

My last recommendations for Sonic has to be the franchises long-running comic run. Starting out, Archie Comics handled the Sonic comic. Using the cast from the Sonic the Hedgehog (Satam), Sonic and friends fight a more dangerious Eggman.

What makes this comic run special, is how they dive into major depth for Sonic and friends. Sonic has a family, has deeper connections with his allies, and a major reason to hate Eggman. While the quality dips-down after issue 50, the quality comes back in full force with issue 160 onward.

IDW took over the comic series, completely starting over after Archie Sonic finished their Sonic Unleashed adaptation. Taking place after 2017’s Sonic Forces, Sonic and friends work to continue protecting their world and saving the day. Multiple newcomers that are canon to core series were introduced, with them appearing in mobile games and mentioned in Sonic Frontiers.

One arc I must highlight is the Metal Virus arc, essentially adapting a zombie-virus into a Sonic game. It was done amazingly well and if you read anything IDW, please give that arc a look.

Alex Patsy

Gamer | Fitness dude | Running My second Spartan race in 2025! You'll have to pry these joysticks from my cold dead fingers. You can find me on Twitter @DigitalXMarine

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