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‘Sonic Frontiers’ Teases First Look At Open World Combat

Everyone’s favourite blue hedgehog is back to run the track, but this time, the world’s going to be a lot bigger. A small preview of the gameplay for Sonic Frontiers, the upcoming 3D game in the lineup, has offered a look at an open-world setting, which marks a departure from the style of the previous entries.

Revealed on Twitter, the 40-second footage shows Sonic running across vast, grassy plains against a backdrop of futuristic-looking ruins. Amidst the ring-collecting and rail-speeding action, certain mechanics seem to be unfamiliar additions — the takedown of a robot, for instance, involves the speedster creating a trail of light to boost it into the air, and following up with a chain of slow-motion attacks.

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Sonic Frontiers is being developed by Sega’s Sonic Team Japan, with producer Sachiko Kawamura and director Morio Kishimoto taking the lead. It was officially announced in December last year and described as “a huge leap for the franchise, delivering an evolved gameplay experience that can be enjoyed by longtime Sonic fans and action-adventure enthusiasts alike.” The title will also feature an original storyline from Sonic Boom writer Ian Flynn.

The open-world transition is likely to draw comparisons to the likes of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Elden Ring, which has already become a tired joke at this point. The game looks fun, but we’ll only get a more complete look at it when Summer Games Fest rolls around next week.

Sonic Frontiers is currently being developed for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X, and is available for pre-order now. On the cinematic front, there’s also more to expect, with the Sonic 3 film and a Knuckles TV spin-off currently lined up for the future.