Tokyo Game Show 2023

Sonic Superstars Puts New Twists on Classic 2D Sonic

The last Sonic games I played were back in the 1990s, when the processing was a blast and Genesis was the bad-boy of the gaming industry. Now, with Sonic Superstars, I can relive those carefree days.

The Sonic franchise has certainly seen some dark times in the past. But, even in those dark times some Sonic gems have popped up and Team Sonic always does a great job. October 2023's Sonic Superstars is certainly gearing up to be one of those Sonic diamonds in the rough.

Developed by Arzest and Team Sonic and published by Sega, Sonic Superstars is a return to form: a lightning-fast 2D scroller but with 3D elements. However, what distinguishes this game from previous entries (that I've played) is the use of foreground and background elements. As in the first level, some of the loops would put the titular character, Sonic, in the background plane or walls that were halfpipes. While this isn't a new or novel concept—the last time I saw moving to the background was in Virtual Boy Wario Land—it's a nice gameplay element and adds a dimension to the franchise.

Yet, what interested me most were the new powers Sonic receives after obtaining one of the game's secret Chaos Emeralds. In the past, the Emeralds were generally collected to obtain the super-powered Super Sonic form. Superstars, though, changes the concept ever so slightly by giving Sonic new abilities when he collects an Emerald. While the demo was limited in the powers shown, the one I obtained imbued Sonic with a watery form which allowed him to climb waterfalls.

Finding an Emerald isn't that difficult either, as there are several large rings players can touch and be teleported to a mini-level. While I can't say all the mini-levels are easy, I played through a simple swinging game. By correctly timing their swing, players will be propelled forward until they either reach the Emerald or fall to their death and back to the main level. But, failing once isn't much of an issue as, again, there are several large rings throughout a level.

Of course, one important factor in a game like Superstars is the control. It's very tight with very little delay in button inputs. One difficult hurdle to get over, though, is the time for Sonic to achieve top speed. When he starts running it's a bit slow, but after a while, he will run at a good clip. Thankfully, this is mitigated by either holding the down button and rapidly pressing the X button (on the PlayStation controller) for a spin or jumping soon after Sonic moves forward.

While Sonic is the main playable character, there is a small selection of other playable characters. They is Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, all with a 1990s design aesthetic. While I didn't have the chance to play as the other characters, other people at the Game Show were. From what I saw, it appears the characters have similar abilities they've had in the past. Flight for Tails, climbing walls for Knuckles, and Amy with her hammer. It's a nice throwback to the older games in the franchise and something fans can look forward to.

Sonic Superstars brings back tried and true gameplay and designs with some new features for the Sonic series. It'll also be interesting to see how players interact with those new features and find new gameplay tactics. While the demo at the Tokyo Game Show 2023 was for the PlayStation, it will be available on Nintendo Switch, PC, and Xbox. So, fans new and old will be able to play the game on their preferred platform.