This article contains heavy spoilers for Sonic Frontiers.After waiting for five years,Sonicfans have the series' latest title at their fingertips and can exploreSonic Frontiers’open zones. Due to a rough marketing campaign and thelack of a free demo from Sega, many fans weren’t sure what to expect until just before launch. As part of promotional material leading up to November 8, an animated short and a prequel comic were released. The short,Sonic Frontiers Prologue: Divergence, teased some shake-ups inSoniclore, and now that the game is out, it’s clear the status quo of the franchise is undergoing massive changes.
In interviews, Sonic Team stated it was looking to make ongoingSonicproperties such as the upcomingSonic PrimeNetflix show, the IDW comics, and its own mainline games into “one connected universe,” but some fans remained on the fence. Now thatSonic Frontiershas arrived, it’s clear Sonic Team is serious about making sure the brand is more solidified than ever. Not only doesFrontiersreference characters from other parts of the franchise, it expands on the lore of Sonic’s world in ways that haven’t been done in years.
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Sonic Frontiers Goes into the Chaos Emeralds' Past
One of the bigger thingsFrontiersestablishes is thehistory of the Ancients, a long-lost alien civilization that made Sonic’s world their home longer than any of the other cultures known about before - including Knuckles' echidna ancestors. Throughout the game, Sonic and friends investigate the ruins that the Ancients left behind, finding them to be an incredible culture that survived off of intellect and innovation. However, as amazing as they were, Dr. Eggman’s Egg Memos reveal they died out within a generation.
Visions that Sonic witnesses reveal their home world had been destroyed by a terrifyingly powerful foe. In order to survive, they fled using the power of the Chaos Emeralds. Once near Sonic’s world, the Ancients were sucked in as the Emeralds reacted to the neutralizing power ofthe Master Emerald. After 30 years, fans now know that the Chaos Emeralds are from space, and the Egg Memos state that the Ancients are what Chaos - the true antagonist ofSonic Adventure- descended from.
How Sonic Frontiers Restores and Expands the Sonic Cast
Due to howSonic Frontiersaims to be the first proper open-world adventure for the series, there are plenty of optional interactions that fans can seek out with mini-bosses and even Sonic’s friends. If fans choose to go after the optional cutscenes, they’ll learn a ton about the Ancients, Sage, and even the classic cast as Tails, Knuckles, and Amy have interesting things to say. These interactions help flesh out and bring back old traits in Sonic’s friends that fans have missed.Knuckles inSonic Frontiersis a particularly strong returnto his true character.
Sonic Frontiersalso marks the first appearance of Sage; an AI which Dr. Eggman created that gained free willin the Ancient’s Cyber Space. As a result, she and Eggman grow to form a father-daughter relationship. Sonic also gets to know Sage, and the two eventually team up forFrontiers’final act. Through this, Sonic and Eggman share what’s almost friendly dialogue, and the fact that Sage smiles seeing it highlights that there’s more to them than just being sworn enemies.
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What Sonic Frontiers Sets Up For Future Titles
During the course of the story, Amy, Tails, and Knuckles encounter Koco that need help moving on after a war that happened a long time ago. These events lead the classic trio to realize something important about themselves, and each one walks away with a path they say they want to follow aftereverything on the Starfall Islandsis settled. Amy seems like she wants to go on a globe-trotting adventure, and Knuckles decides it would be fine if he left Angel Island more often.
Tails also comes to a decision that may change the course ofSonicgames for years to come. The two-tailed fox decides that for the sake of his own personal growth, it would be best if he has his own adventures for a while. Sonic takes this with pride and tells Tails that he grew up faster than expected. The way this conversation between the two characters is portrayed feels likeSonic Frontiersis letting fans know Tails won’t be around for some time after Tails has been with Sonic for every gamesinceSonic Colors.
Sonic Frontiersalso calls back to plenty of older lore. Sonic uses Tails' past accomplishmentsinSonic AdventureandSonic Lost Worldas a way to help Tails see what he’s capable of, meanwhile Sage references the previous times Sonic and Eggman have worked together inSonic Adventure 2andHeroes. Some fans think these callbacks are heavy-handed, but for those who wanted theSonicgames to be more closely tied together, references are perfect for establishing Sonic’s world.
It may take a while for fans to adjust to the wayFrontiershas changed the series' lore. Sonic practically takes the words out of some players' mouths when he says he can’t believe the Emeralds are from another planet. For everythingFrontierscorrected, there is also a fair deal it left unexplained, perhaps due toSonic Frontiers’true endingacting almost as a sequel hook. Sega is clearly doing what it can to establish proper lore for the Sonic franchise, and hopefully it won’t disappoint fans by walking it back later.
Sonic Frontiersis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
