Sonic Frontierswas the blue hedgehog’s first real dip into the open-world genre. Traditionally a 2D or 3D platform-based series,Sonic Frontiersbreaks the trend with its open-zone style play areas. The open zones meanSoniccan truly unleash his speed andexploration becomes even more of a focusthan ever before.
With storytelling being a major focus compared to recentSonictitles,Sonic Frontiersputs a spotlight on the characters for the first time sinceSonic Adventureback in 1999. This was a badly needed change of template forSonic,as the games were constantly changing the formula away from things that worked well. Now thatSonic Frontiersseems to be steering things in the right direction forSonic, speculation begins about a Frontiers sequel and what it should feature.
10Playable Characters
While some fans will argue thatSonicgames were at their best when he ran solo, there is a core cast of characters that sometimes do not even get supporting cameos anymore.Sonic Frontiersis a solo affair, with no Tails following after Sonic and no Knuckles challenging players along the way.
ASonic Frontierssequel could do well totake inspiration fromSonic Adventure. The first of Sonic’s 3D journeys for all its issues had one thing locked down: the story. To achieve this,Sonic Adventureallowed players to play as a selection of Sonic’s friends. Each friend had their own story that slotted in the main campaign to tell one complete tale that made his companions feel valid.
9Colorful World
Sonicgames are normally plastered with a full selection of neon rainbow colors.Sonic Frontierspresented a bleak, dull collection of maps. This was of course to represent a sort of post-apocalyptic world at the end of an ancient society.
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Bring Sonic back to Mobius or Earth, and put some color back under his feet. Running through a map ofGreen Hill Zonethe size of Kronos Island would be a dream for fans. Even making one continuous map, instead of the five separate ones, would be a better experience and provide the feeling of an actual planet.
82D Stages
SinceSonic Generationsfound successwith classicSonicstages, the franchise loves to give players the chance to run through some of Sonic’s past. While this is a lovely trip down memory lane, they could be improved in one simple way.
Make the 2D stages 16bit. Yes, instead of having them made in the engine for the 3D sections, make it look and feel likeSonic Maniaor any of the classic Sega 2D titles. This was done well inSuper Mario Odysseyon the Nintendo Switch, and would be great forSonicas well.
7Special Stages
Collecting the Chaos Emeralds inSonic Frontiersinvolves collecting vault keys. These vault keys can be obtained by completing challenges in the portals that access the 2D stages. Whilst this worked well for this game, a chance for a sequel would be most welcome.
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In the past, star posts or giant rings were used to access the special zone. Once in the stage, Sonic must complete challenges before the time runs out to collect an emerald. Getting a blue sphere in modernSonicwould be a nice touch, or even a mix of the old 16bit stages for each zone.
6Team Chaotix
Knuckles The Echidnaonce had a spin-off game for the Sega 32X. The game was not very well received, but introduced players to Team Chaotix. Originally, the team consisted of Knuckles, Vector, Espio, Charmy, and Mighty butSonic Heroesremoved Knuckles and Mighty to suit its three-hero teams.
Sonic The Comic by Fleetway in the 90s gave fans a superb telling of Chaotix and their backstory. It even added Knack the Weasel/Fang the Sniper to the crew for a short time. Bringing back the teams and giving them their part to play in the story would flesh out Sonic’s world again.
5Graphics
Sonic Frontiershas some absolutely beautiful moments. The character models especially are nice to look at and the night and day cycle brings some character to the bleak world. The one thing that blatantly stands out inSonic Frontiers,however, is the pop-in.
Running across the islands can be quite a jarring experience for some players as rails, enemies and platforms can pop in even a nose width away. Either blending these elements in with a fade in and out or fixing the problem altogether should be a priority for any sequel toSonic Frontiers.
4Robotnik
While present throughoutSonic Frontiers, the threat of Eggman never really felt like a problem in the game. Bringing the game back to Mobius or Earth should placeDoctor Robotnik firmly as the main villain.
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Too often, the 3DSonictitles after the Adventure games have gone out of the way to make the villain anyone but Robotnik. Getting to take down his variations of the egg mobile periodically is an element that makes the games feel likeSonictitles.
3Home Sweet Home
Having an open world filled once again with Sonic’s friends should mean that they will need a place to stay. Having a safe zone or hub-like area that can be returned to between missions forSonicand company could be fantastic.
Taking a leaf out of theSoniccomics and cartoons, Sonic and his friends could have a customizable and upgradeable base. Sonic could find friends in levels to then see them appear in the home area. Finding new options like building designs or items to decorate the town square could give a whole new purpose to Sonic’s quest.
2Chao Garden
One of the most popular underused elements from the entireSonic franchise is the Chao Gardens. First introduced inSonic Adventure, these areas away from the main hub were where players could raise their Chao.
Having a Chao Garden in a Home Hub area would be a most welcome addition. Finding animals in Robotnik’s creations and using them to change the Chaos appearances along with some mini-games could be a lot of fun. Maybe even throw in a mobile app where players could check in on their Chao on the go to replicate the VMU from the Dreamcast.
1Metal Sonic
One of Sonic’s most fearsome adversaries is Metal Sonic.First appearing inSonic CD, Metal antagonized Sonic and his friends over the years ,and even kidnapped Amy in his first appearance.
Giving Metal some love and care that was provided toSonicand his friends inSonic Frontiers2 could truly let him shine.
Taking inspiration from Fleetway and their Sonic The Comic storyline, featuring an army of Metal Sonic named The Brotherhood of Metallix would make for an exciting campaign.
Sonic Frontiersis out now for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
