Sonic Superstars is the latest release from developers Arzest & Sonic Team, and publisher SEGA. Taking a step back from the open world of Sonic Frontiers, Sonic Superstars aims to bring players back to traditional 2D side-scrollers with a few new features and enhancements along the way.

In Sonic Superstars, players can race through the traditional levels of the game playing as one of the several available character options, each with unique abilities. While working through the main storyline, coins will be accrued for use in the shop where different customizable items may be purchased for use in the online Battle Mode.

Mediocre Execution of Good Ideas

Sonic Superstars appears to be playing off the revitalizing success of Sonic Mania, another 2D side-scroller that saw a return to the blue hedgehog’s roots that was widely praised by critics. However, what Sonic Superstars fails to accomplish is everything that made that game special. While the core elements are there - returning to the more classic play style and graphics - there isn't any innovation or iteration to help showcase what makes these games appealing to casual players or veterans.

Though the new environments in Sonic Superstars were needed for the franchise as a whole, they lack any genuine uniqueness, and could have benefited from a little bit more out-of-the-box thinking. Launching alongside Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Sonic Superstars is justifiably overshadowed by the former's more varied, memorable approach to world-building.

One of the best features in Sonic Superstars is the ability to play as one of four iconic characters from the franchise: Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy. Each has their own unique ability in addition to the ones unlocked throughout the story mode, providing some variety and the ability to customize a playthrough. Unfortunately, one of the brand-new aspects being debuted in Sonic Superstars tied into this feature is chaotic at best.

A Multiplayer Nightmare

While a certain level of chaos is expected with Sonic games given their speed and unpredictability, the ability to complete traditional levels in co-op is a nightmare in practice. The co-op feature works off of a drop-in mechanic, meaning that the second player is able to pop in and out without truly disrupting the first player. Though this is a good way to approach co-op for something like Sonic Superstars, the co-op feature as a whole is just too much. With the ability to add up to three additional players, the level of chaos introduced almost makes a single level unplayable.

As opposed to some other 2D side-scrollers where both players are locked into the same screen and one cannot just cut the other off without pulling them along, Sonic Superstars will immediately deactivate the player that goes off the frame and force them to respawn near the other player. Additionally, whereas most games would focus on centering the main player, that is not the case here. Either player can be deactivated and forced to respawn - the decision comes solely based on who is further along in the level.

Those who were perhaps wishing to play Sonic Superstars alongside children will be in for an especially frustrating experience, since there is no way for one designated person to steer the level. Additionally, with the speed of the game, it is nearly impossible to not have one player lagging behind and being forced to respawn back in. So while this is an interesting new direction for Sonic games, perhaps this format is just not the one for co-op, at least not without some drastic changes.

An Overambitious Battle Mode

While the addition of an online Battle Mode is not unappreciated, it does feel rather inconsequential in Sonic Superstars. During Battle Mode, players are thrown into a random collection of mini-games that they will compete in alongside other online players, but the weird challenges feel more like Fall Guys mini-game knock-offs. Rather than being fun and enjoyable, they feel both lackluster and convoluted.

This is a real shame, especially when considering that one of the perks of playing through the main storyline is to earn coins and unlock items in the Sonic Superstars shop that can be used to customize a player's Battle Mode bot. Even the Battle Mode rank system feels overly ambitious for a feature with this level of simplicity. It feels as though Battle Mode is intended to help pad out the content of the game and motivate players to keep playing, but does a poor job of it.

Final Thoughts & Rating

Overall, Sonic Superstars features some of the fun Sonic chaos that many players will be looking for, but many of the key-selling points mentioned for this title specifically, fall short. While the levels are new designs, they still lack a level of uniqueness and creativity to elevate them into being memorable. Additionally, the co-op option for the main storyline of Sonic Superstars is likely to only cause additional frustrations.

Finally, while Battle Mode might be worth checking out to take advantage of the shop items, it’s far from being a worthwhile selling point for Sonic Superstars, and feels like a last-ditch effort to create more content for players. All in all, if playing solo, there is definitely enjoyment to be had here for fans of Sonic, but the majority of the other aspects are unfortunately sub-par, making the game feel like a low-effort run for nostalgia as a whole.

Source: Sonic The Hedgehog/YouTube

Sonic Superstars was released on October 17th, 2023 for Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC. Screen Rant was provided with a Nintendo Switch code for the purpose of this review.