Sonic Frontiersis, to be cliché, a breath of fresh air for theSonicfranchise. It is easy to get distracted from the main quest and just run around the large islands, blasting off of ramps, grinding on rails, and experiencing the freedom of movement that Sonic lives for.
RELATED:Mods To Turn Sonic Frontiers Into Sonic Adventure 3
Even with this said, there are some areas that could stand for improvement.Some minor nuisancesfind their way into the game in terms of controls: nothing game breaking, but would have been nicer to address. Some mods address these issues, and others build upon the base game, transforming the experience.
7Show Your Style
Sonic Frontiershasa significant focus on combat, with a number of moves that can be unlocked. This allows for a fun variety to be utilized against enemies. With enough of a power upgrade, it is easy to feel nearly invincible.
The game’s combat was initially closer to that of franchises likeDevil May Cry, and while that can still be seen in the gameplay,Hedgehog May Cryfrom KirbyKrew661 helps bring that experience a little closer. Enemies are tougher to beat now, and repeatedly using the same attacks will make them weaker. This incentivizes mixing up the move set and experimenting to keep the pressure on Sonic’s foes.
6Upgrades Fast
Sonic Frontiersintroduces an upgrade system, in which Sonic must speak with the Elder and Hermit members ofthe Kocosacross Sonic Frontiers’ five islands. They can provide upgrades to speed, ring capacity, attack, and defense.
RELATED:Sonic Frontiers: Where To Find Elder Koco and Hermit Koco To Upgrade Sonic
Receiving upgrades from the Elder Kocos is accompanied by an animation, and further upgrades cannot be accessed until the animation ends. Sonic can only upgrade to one level at a time as well, which can make a slog of an experience for those who want to max out their stats early. Wasifboomz’sElder Koco Fixedmod aims to address that. It allows Sonic to go through the upgrade cycle even faster. That leaves Sonic with more time to conquer other challenges in the game.
5He’s A Pinball Wizard
If there is one game that Sonic always seems to play,it is pinball. Numerous Sonic games see the blue blur getting knocked around by oversized bumpers in a giant pinball table. Chaos Island features a pinball mini-game that is maligned by some fans for its tedium, with the criteria for completion being 5,000,000 points with only three balls.
Sora_yx comes to the rescue,with this modthat enables altering the criteria for the pinball game. These include the number of lives available and the required score, which can range from 1000 to 2147483647, for anyone looking for even more of a challenge.
4Open Zone Physics in Cyberspace
One element ofSonic Frontiersis the cyberspace levels across the game’s islands. These are essentially flashback levels toprevious entries in the franchise, and must be accessed to acquire keys that that will unlock the Chaos Emeralds.
One factor that may be jarring for some is that the physics in the cyberspace levels are different from the open world islands. The goal of RocketJimmer’s mod, calledOpen Zone Physics in Cyberspace DX (With Momentum), is to make the physics of both the open zones and the cyberspace levels one and the same. It makes gameplay feel more consistent overall, and navigating the courses feels a bit tighter.
3Higher Object Pop-In
Technically, this is a visuals mod, but its impact on gameplay cannot be understated. One of the major complaints withSonic Frontiersis the level of pop-in in the game. Platforms and loops often won’t appear until Sonic is fairly close to them. It is challenging to chart one’s path or use the right route to grab a medal if one cannot see where the platforms are.
TheHigher Object Pop-Inmod from Sous-Titré addresses this by providing various options for view distance of objects. One thing to note is that this may result in a game crash when the meteorite event occurs, so saving the game frequently is recommended.
2Tracker’s Physics Mod
Gameplay in Sonic Frontiers offers a number of control sliders to tweak movement for Sonic fans’ liking. Even with that,the controls, running can feel a little stiff, and jumping on platforms can be a bit squirrelly.
Tracker’s Physics Tweaksby Tracker_TD makes some alterations to the movement mechanics to make it a smoother and speedier experience. It feels great to run up and down the dunes of Ares Island. The mod makes momentum from Sonic’s boost more noticeable as well.
1Super Sonic
A highlight ofSonic Frontiersis the epic boss battle that awaits on each island. These are massive Titans that can only be defeated by Sonic if he takes onhis Super Sonic form, which turns him golden yellow, and enables him to fly and throw stronger punches.
Anferny’sSuper Sonic Frontiersgives Sonic his Super form and abilities outside these encounters. He glides across the ground instead of running on it, his boost is much faster, and holding boost in the air allows him to fly. Soaring above the landscape is an ethereal experience, and this can lead to some boundary-breaking shenanigans.
