Sonic Central wrapped yesterday with ten minutes of previews for all things Sonic. This included more footage of Sonic Origins, movie-themed unlocks coming to both Sonic Forces and Sonic Dash, a sneak peek at Netflix’s Sonic Prime (which included a surprise reveal of Shadow the Hedgehog), and the Sonic Symphony Orchestra announcing a tour coming in October.
We also got a tiny hint about Sonic Frontiers’ story. Sonic Central announced Sonic Frontiers will receive an animated prologue later this year starring none other than Knuckles the Echidna.
Our sneak preview was little more than the prologue’s opening seconds, with Knuckles waiting cross-armed at the top of a temple guarding the Chaos Emerald. We know that the Chaos Emeralds will once again play a pivotal role in Sonic Frontiers, but we’re still not sure about Knuckles’ involvement.
Elsewhere in the Sonic-oriented sneak peek, Sonic Frontiers showcased a flying squid-like enemy that leaves a ribbon in the air wherever it goes. Sonic has to run up that ribbon, avoiding energy blasts in order to eventually spin attack the main body.
What are all these robots doing on this mysterious island? That we still don’t know, but IGN’s latest preview at least confirms that Sonic won’t be entirely alone. "After flying into a wormhole with Tails and Amy," said IGN, "Sonic finds himself separated from his friends and all alone on an isolated island, with nothing but an AI voice guiding him to collect the Chaos Emeralds."
Sonic Frontiers is Sonic's first foray into an open-world game, but fans are calling on Sega to spend more time getting Sonic Frontiers just right. Some are even calling for the game to be delayed, calling Sonic's animations "stiff and unnatural," while others say that he lacks momentum to go along with his extreme speed. Others are just critical of Sonic Frontiers' visuals, calling the unofficial Sonic games better looking.
Sonic Frontiers still only has a 2022 release date, so Sega has several months left to appease the skeptics.