Sonic Frontiers on the Nintendo Switch was plagued by a host of visual issues, including excessive pop-up, poor textures, and low resolution across the board. Whilst playable, it was the weakest version and an inadequate way to experience the latest twist on the Sonic formula. Like many games for Switch, it has since received a Nintendo Switch 2 edition that looks to utilise the new system’s impressive hardware to its fullest potential. Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition should have been a clear step up from the Switch version, but it instead leaves much to be desired. Even on better tech, it has graphical flaws that interfere with enjoyment, and that is without considering that it is a full-price release and lacks an upgrade path for owners of the Switch version.
Switch 2 editions of games have usually been available for free or through reasonably-priced upgrade packs, which makes both the asking price for this game and the absence of an upgrade path contentious. Furthermore, there is hardly anything definitive about Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition, given that nearly all its included content was already available as free DLC or updates in all previous versions of the game.
Its only claim to fame is that it bundles in the digital artbook and soundtrack that was exclusive to the Digital Deluxe Edition in previous versions, but that is more a bonus than a selling point. From a consumer’s standpoint, there are more than a few reasons for caution just in its marketing and how it is being sold, but the greatest is that its visuals still stick out like a sore thumb.
The open-ended landscapes of the Starfall Islands were always going to cause some issues, as Sonic’s swift and speedy movement calls for fast asset loading, leading to pop-up that was seen even in the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions. Players can choose between a performance and quality mode, but both have significant drawbacks on Switch 2.
The 60fps performance mode has rampant elements that spring into view at the last moment, along with blurry visuals, while the 30fps quality mode frequently struggles with frame pacing. Performance mode manages to consistently come in at 60fps, however, making it the more appealing of the two. It appears to use dynamic resolution, yet it may as well be locked at a lower level of image considering how rarely it produces something of acceptable quality. On the other hand, quality mode is impressive with its improved resolution, but it can often be choppy, which negates much of its appeal.
A major cause of Sonic Fronters‘ visual shortcomings is that the level design doesn’t accommodate for the engine’s graphical limits. Grind rails, loops, and speed-boosters are sporadically placed around the land and sky, and it causes the game to have to stream countless assets low and high, resulting in a jumble of objects loading in out of nowhere with Sonic’s every step.
In-game cut-scenes aren’t spared, either, with pop-up occurring as events play out, completely shattering the immersion of a story meant to be more serious and atmospheric than Sonic’s usual outings. Reflective lighting and environmental effects, along with the performance mode’s 60fps, are the areas where the graphical improvements are most visible, but they don’t do enough to offset what it struggles with.
Making matters worse is the spread of uninspired and vapid environments that make up its world, which are a far cry from the colourful zones that make the Sonic series what it is. Nondescript ruins and endless fields of flickering grass dot its landscapes, and while its day and night cycle can produce gorgeous backdrops, that is the peak of what this game world is able to accomplish. Its only purpose is to be a hub for countless platforming challenges and a hiding place for various collectibles, and it does that sufficiently.
The issue is that Sonic Frontiers‘ gameplay, like its world, is in dire need of substance. Almost all of its challenges can each be completed in a minute or two, and two of the main collectibles – memory tokens and Chaos Emeralds – lack any meaning as they must all be collected again when Sonic moves from one island to the next. Even outside of the open world, the traditional levels like those seen in Sonic Generations lazily rip their environments and assets from older games.
There are occasional moments when the light streaks through and the vision takes form, such as when fighting one of the bosses to the rhythm of an energising battle theme or dashing from one set of platforms to the next, but when compared to other games in the series, the repetition and shallowness makes Sonic Frontiers come off as half-baked – a sentiment that is only strengthened after seeing its visuals fall apart with a single press of the boost button. A game, certainly not a re-release, shouldn’t be asking players to make their own fun and ignore the rough spots, but Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition makes those demands, and it does so while preventing owners of the Switch version from having reasonable access to its improvements.
Nintendo fans are used to subpar graphics in third-party games, but along with other recent titles like Persona 3 Reload on Switch 2, it’s become obvious that the problem isn’t the hardware, but the teams responsible for optimisation and quality assurance who are giving the go-ahead to games that are not ready for release. Sonic fans are some of the most devoted and passionate gamers out there, and so there is no doubt that some will find Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition satisfactory, but the issues present in both the original release and this version deserve to be put on the spot.
As both an upgrade to the problematic Switch version and a celebratory re-release for Sonic’s 35th anniversary, Sonic Frontiers: Definitive Edition is thoroughly disappointing. Although the game underneath is far from exceptional, its unsatisfying visuals - unaided by the new improvements - ruin the potential it actually has, making for a release that leaves a lasting bitter aftertaste.
