The newest entry in the Sonic franchise is just okay...?
Been quite a while since I’ve reviewed a game and I did not expect it to be a Sonic game. Sonic Superstars, the newest entry in the Classic Sonic 2D Platformer from SEGA. I was really excited when SEGA reached out to us about this and this will also mark the first Classic Sonic 2D Platformer title that I’ll ever get to finish but the question is, did I enjoy playing it as a newcomer?
This is JJ-kun of EXOSIA Project bringing you my review of Sonic Superstars.
[Introduction of the game]
Sonic Superstars, developed by Arzest, is a platformer game released for modern consoles and PC on October 17, 2023. The first time it got announced last June, I got pretty excited about the game as it looked very vibrant and aesthetically pleasing, and honestly, it did not disappoint in that aspect.
[Story]
Sonic Superstars starts the game with a cutscene where Eggman is giving a bounty reward to Fang for capturing 3 critters which is followed by Eggman offering another job to Fang until his system detects Sonic and Tails on the move.
That’s literally how it starts. No context, no backstory, no nothing. With that, I was quite confused but I just moved forward and hoped that perhaps we might get something along the way. Unfortunately, I was wrong. There’s really no given plot line as to why Eggman is bothering Sonic and the rest, only that Sonic and Tails were seen flying on Tails’ plane. At this point, I just considered the game somewhat akin to an arcade game where you just play— just thinking about the almost non-existent story will make your head hurt.
Throughout the game though, you get to save a masked individual who is being held prisoner by Fang who is the newest character in the game that you would get to play later.
[Graphical Delivery]
As mentioned earlier, the main reason I got attracted to this game that made me anticipate it would be the graphics. It was quite a jump from the previous 2.5D Sonic games and with its artistic style, it definitely made itself unique among the rest. Personally, I prefer 2D pixel art than 3D but Sonic Superstars did a great job in implementing it; it’s vibrant, colorful, and full of life!
I would also like to commend the game for its beautiful background. The background of the game isn’t just a background, it’s part of what you can interact with. For one, there may be visual cues in the background that will help you with your gameplay!
[Music]
Don’t even get me started with this. One of the things I look most forward to would be the music in the game because this sets the tone of the game. Unfortunately, only the Final Boss and Speed Jungle Act 2 music stood out to me. Everything else is meh. It’s not even mid, it’s just meh. It doesn’t have a spark or an impact. One that will make you groove. Not that I’m missing Green Hill Zone, but the music for Green Hill Zone just hits the right spot and lets you know, “Ah, this is a Sonic game.” There’s nothing like that in this game.
Granted, each zone and ACT have its own music and arrangement respectively, but that’s much about it. I would have put the boss music there as well but over time, it just annoyed me. I will explain momentarily.
[Gameplay]
The gameplay is as simple as it gets as it’s a Classic Sonic game. You enter a zone act, you finish it as fast as possible. You have 4 playable characters right from the get-go; Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, and then there’s one more unlockable character once you finish the main campaign! Furthermore, while they all have the same basic kits, they have unique moves that would make them stand out from one another: Sonic has his drop dash from Origins, Tails has his flying ability, Knuckles has his glide and climbing ability, and Amy has a double jump and a pseudo-drop hammer where she brings about her huge hammer after jumping!
There’s also the Chaos Emeralds which are not something you just collect now for the sake of progression, but actually do something; a power-up for each Chaos Emerald! I also have to mention how much uniqueness there is in each zone, having its own gimmick and making it stand out from the rest.
One more thing that I have to point out, though I’m kind of on the edge on this one, is that there’s no Life System in this game. While I mostly prefer games that will send you off in a Game Over screen after losing all your lives, I appreciate the fact that this game does not because if there is, I’m sure I wouldn’t finish and wouldn’t have the time to write this review. Sadly, that’s where all the fun ends.
I’ll be honest when I say only the first two Zones, Bridge Island Zone and Speed Jungle Zone, are the only ones that made me feel “Wow. These zones give a breath of fresh air to Classic Sonic games.” The other stage that I liked though would have to be Egg Fortress Zone ACT 2. I don’t want to spoil you but you’ll know what I mean when you get there. The rest, eh. My biggest takeaway here is how much the game progressively becomes draggier the more you advance within the game. The Zones are fine, it just overstay its welcome so much to the point that an ACT may take 6 - 10 minutes, and that does not even include the mini-boss and bosses of each ACT which is a totally separate discussion.
Earlier, I said that the boss themes would’ve been put on my list of music that stood out to me in this game, right? It would’ve been if that part of the game was not my main source of frustration and annoyance. The game already drags itself and then you add an exhausting boss fight. Sure, the boss fights are easy to deal with and even have a very small move set, but what makes it laborious is that they take a long time to attack and even longer for their weak spot to open up. A boss battle may take up to 8 minutes if you can’t determine the weak spot or miss it upon opening, maybe even more. In addition to this, the skip cutscene feature does not really directly bring you to the battle, it makes you wait a bit before you can move. Furthermore, it’s most especially infuriating when the boss has 2 phases because if you get KO’d, you have to start all over again from the very beginning and it takes a while to bring a boss down or to the 2nd phase. The game was already just okay, but I can’t stress it enough when I say the game is so draggy.
[Content Value]
The game has multiple content. A brand new story mode unlocked after finishing the main campaign, with a brand new character, a multiplayer feature for the campaign, a versus-like mode, and a Time Attack mode. For its price, $59.99 for the regular version or $69.99 for the deluxe edition, is it worth the price tag?
For the fans of Classic Sonic, I wouldn’t be able to tell, but as a newcomer, I think it’s a little bit too steep for a very short game that overstays its welcome. I’d rather wait for a sale before copping this game myself if I’ll be asked.
[Conclusion]
I entered the game thinking I would finally have a chill, relaxing game that would finally allow me to enter the realm of Classic Sonic but boy was I wrong. Sonic Superstars isn’t grand nor is it anything special. Did I enjoy playing the game? Perhaps in the first few ACTS but the question is, “Would I recommend it to other people?” I’m not so sure about that.
