Sonic Frontiers – Test, Platformer
Refreshing wilderness?
Similar to Link, the blue flash also ventures into a strange world: there, relics of an ancient but technically advanced civilization are waiting to be discovered. Sonic can freely explore five sprawling islands full of jumping passages and fights – with all sorts of collectibles, puzzles, challenges and gigantic bosses. Unlocking and leveling up some skills like in RPGs has recently also become part of the adventure. In addition, there are a number of portals to be unlocked, behind which classic “cyberspace” levels are hidden on predetermined paths, both in 2D and in 3D.
Sonic must not only find the Chaos Emeralds, but also free Amy & Co. from cyberspace.
The development of Sonic Frontiers did not seem to be under a good star: The first game scenes caused great skepticism among fans as to whether the Sonic team could handle such a mammoth project under the tight schedule, or whether the open worlds would remain too monotonous or bleak in the long run. At least technically, the areas actually seem a bit dreary, even in our tested PS5 version. Sonic often whines about fuzzy-textured “lawn patches” that evoke uncomfortable memories of past generations of consoles. Platforms, grinding rails and entire floating platform courses pop up out of nowhere, often just a few dozen meters in front of Sonic’s pointed nose.
The curse of old technology
The implementations for Switch, PS4 and Xbox One should also have slowed down the PC version and next-gen versions for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. Sure, these are huge open worlds with pleasantly wide horizons – but I had a bad feeling when I was greeted by the not really up-to-date graphics on the first island. Even Sonic’s friends like Amy or Knuckles seem a bit taken aback when I find them in semi-digital form on the island world. Similar to Dr. Eggman, they are not entirely willingly trapped in cyberspace, which appears to be connected to portals and ancient technology…
A touch of Panzer Dragoon: Fancy a ride with Quicktime Events? Such deposits create a lot of variety.
As it turns out, the ancient civilization was once invaded by robotic hordes. It doesn’t get particularly exciting in the story sequences set to German, but they offer a reasonable embedding of my journey across the big islands, which I can switch between later. The most entertaining are the cute circling stone natives and a mysterious girl from cyberspace with unclear motives. She keeps getting in the way of Sonic, but Sega’s self-assured mascot isn’t fazed.
Entertaining mania for collecting
Even from the side perspective, there is no fun in cyberspace.
After all, the lively hedgehog has big plans: there are tons of different collectibles scattered or hidden all over the islands. Objects such as gears, hearts or keys help to free the digitized friends or unlock various portals. When completing these tasks, it quickly becomes clear that there is no gherkin in Sonic Frontiers. Unlocking new map sections with the help of small puzzles is usually pleasantly motivating. Especially in the desert world, I really enjoy how organically the objects are distributed in the vastness of the world. I dash elegantly through loops, jump from one twisted rail to the next, let the bumpers maneuver me into the adjacent valley and “fly” a little further with the Dash to the next coolly arranged platform section. It’s a bit like Super Mario Odyssey, if not as polished to the point. And on a larger scale, of course: a hero with Sonic’s sprinting abilities will eventually need more exercise. This includes judicious use of wall running and fast climbing skills.
Small explorations via ramps on the edge are almost always rewarded. The new opponents are also creative. I eat some of them in passing, such as a bumper that stomps easily. Or I climb up a bloating balloon enemy with Sonic’s advanced aim assist. At the push of a button, the blue flash hisses again at lightning speed to a targeted target. Actually simple, but without the right timing things can still go wrong.
A wild ride
This initially tricky intermediate boss was defeated in no time at a later return – since Sonic’s attacks were already a whole lot stronger.
A ride on a kind of sandworm shark, which is defeated with small reaction tests, is even more fun. There are even massive turrets or sumo robots among the alien foes. The trip leads z. B. over green hills, through deserts or in a somewhat desolate wasteland. As the crowning glory, Sonic must retrieve the well-known Chaos Emeralds from a zone so that they do not wreak havoc amidst the powerful ancient technology. If you also graze some optional tasks, you can plan a playing time of over 20 hours.
Less sophisticated, some of the mid-bosses look like a flying metal squid. It does have a pretty reflective tail on which I chase it in the air with my boost power – but it’s precisely these reflections that block my view at the wrong dynamic time of day. Occasionally, Sonic will also get tangled up in the environment and take aim at the wrong target. In the boss fights against the giants, the lack of fine-tuning becomes even more obvious: when climbing up their legs, Sonic and the camera twitch wildly, so the already somewhat tough battles drag on.
Reference-www.4players.de