Sonic Superstars struggles as a multiplayer experience, but there's nostalgic fun to be had in this 2.5D throwback.
Sonic Superstars MSRP $60.00 Score Details “Sonic Superstars nails the fundamentals of 2D Sonic design, but its new features don't add much to the retro formula.” Pros Cons Sonic’s slogan may be “Gotta go fast,” but Sonic Superstars shows that there’s value in slowing down every once and a while. Last year, the blue blur fearlessly bolted into the future with Sonic Frontiers, leaving nostalgia behind with a radical “open-zone” pivot that looked to modernize the series.
Blast from the past Sonic Superstars plays exactly like one of the blue blur’s Sega Genesis adventures, only replacing pixel art with smooth cartoon visuals. The hedgehog and his playable pals zip through a series of 2D stages filled with alternate pathways, rings, and well-hidden secrets. Sonic Team gets the important parts of that formula right.
The fast-paced platforming is at its best when I’m fluidly running through obstacles at full speed, like I’m riding a roller coaster. Unfortunately, it’s easy to lose momentum. Beyond some tricky obstacles that slow the action down at times, Superstars goes heavy on minigames that can kill the pace. There’s the series’ classic spinning maze bonus stage, a ring-collecting skydiving detour, and a Chaos Emerald minigame that has me swinging toward a floating jewel to unlock a new power-up.
I’d be more inclined to stop and use them if they felt useful, but that’s the feature’s fundamental problem. Since all powers are entirely optional, levels are designed without them in mind. You seemingly don’t need to use a single one to find any secret, though it may make the task a little easier. A power that turns players into water, allowing them to climb up waterfalls, is useless in most stages.
Modes and multiplayer Sonic Superstars‘ big back-of-the-box feature is its emphasis on multiplayer, though that’s not as much of a selling point as it seems. In local co-op, up to four players can adventure together. However, the camera only tracks whichever player is furthest ahead in the course — something that’s fairly difficult to deduce in fast-paced, twisty levels.
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