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Well, Sonic Frontiers is almost here, folks. Sonic’s first new 3D adventure in five years launches tomorrow, 8th November, and some reviews have been speeding through the checkpoint to prepare you ahead of time. And they’re all over the shop! Sounds like a 3D Sonic game, doesn’t it?
At the time of writing, most of the reviews for Sonic Frontiers are for other platforms and very few cover the Switch release of the game. As a result, you’ll have to be patient for the NL verdict on this one — no spin-dashing for us here — as Switch review codes were late out of the door. But rest assured, we’ll have our thoughts up as soon as we can.
So, we’ll jump right into the press’ thoughts, and we’ll jump right in with the few Switch reviews of the game that are out there.
The lovely folks over at Nintenderos loved the game, scoring Sonic’s open-zone adventure a riveting 9/10, saying (via machine translation):
“Sonic Frontiers is a brave game that sets a new standard for the franchise. Although it has certain flaws, such as a world that feels somewhat repetitive at times, it is tremendously fun. Without a doubt, the best Sonic game in years and a right step into the future.”
In a slightly more cautious take, Nintendo Insider has awarded the blue hedgehog a 7/10, commending the game’s exciting direction, but acknowledging that it needs some work:
“Rough around the edges and disappointing in more than one area but an exciting new direction for SEGA’s blue mascot nonetheless, one that Sonic Team would be smart to stick with and refine and explore further.”
Now onto the PlayStation 5 reviews, and our friends over at Push Square have awarded Sonic Frontiers an 8/10, saying “It immediately places itself among the best Sonic games ever made” despite the flaws:
“While it is wrought with minor issues, the overall package of Sonic Frontiers mostly hits the mark, with its satisfying gameplay, a storyline that will please long-time fans, and an absolutely phenomenal soundtrack.”
Game Informer felt similarly, giving the game a 7.75/10, believing that this is the basis for Sonic going forward, though lamenting the pop-in in the open zone areas as well as feeling like the areas weren’t “optimized for exploration”:
“Though the open-zone design sometimes lacks cohesiveness, the islands do a terrific job of doling out the core gameplay loop. Exploration rewards you with memory tokens to progress the side-character stories, but outside of lore drops and revealing the map, scouring every corner of an island is rarely as fruitful as I would have liked.”
Lastly, GamesRadar was a bit more disappointed in their 2/5 review. Praising the writing but criticising the gameplay loop, the publication feels like “there are flashes of what could have been”:
“Sonic Frontiers features the kind of lightweight yet engaging storytelling that should easily enrapture fans young and old – though I’d hate to be a child forced to play through some of the abysmal platforming featured throughout. Was taking Sonic open world an ambitious endeavor? Yes. Did it pay off? Absolutely not.”
Remember, this is just a handful of thoughts that are out in the wild for Sonic Frontiers right now. Our will be on the way soon, joining the ring of opinions that are forming out there as soon as we’re done with the game. But it looks like, early on, that opinion is all over the place.
You’ll be able to make your own mind up too, as Sonic Frontiers launches on Switch tomorrow, 8th November. How do you feel about early reviews so far? Let us know!