Nearly 31 years after the original game launched on the Genesis, SEGA and Sonic Team have repeatedly made sure to make the classic Sonic games available on nearly every platform that has come since. From compilations like Sonic Jam and Sega Genesis Classics to standalone ports on consoles and smartphones, new and longtime fans have never been too far from a device that can play the original trilogy in all of its 2D side-scrolling glory. So it only felt like a matter of time before the newest console generation got its own versions of the blue blur’s first titles, but it was ultimately the success of the 2020 movie adaptation that inspired Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka to kick off development on Sonic Origins, an enhanced remaster of Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic CD and Sonic 3 & Knuckles that’s coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Switch, PS4 and Xbox One on June 23, the series’ 31st anniversary to the day.
In addition to offering the first four Sonic games as they were originally released via a classic mode, Sonic Origins also features an anniversary mode that includes widescreen support and removes the ability to lose lives. Additionally, with the exception of Knuckles in Sonic CD, players can choose between playing as Sonic, Tails or Knuckles in all four games, raising questions to how the classic level design will benefit or work against Tails’ ability to fly or Knuckles’ wall climbing mechanics. Sonic Origins also looks to tie the stories of the four games together with a new story mode that adds animated cutscenes to bridge the gap between each entry, while veteran players can check out the boss rush, mirror and mission modes that introduce unique objectives and twists to the classic Sonic experience. Dedicated Sonic Origins players will unlock coins to use at the in-game museum, which features music and artwork from other Sonic games and adaptations.
With the options to play these retro games as they were originally released or to spice things up with new characters and additional modes, it would seem like Sonic Origins is doing pretty much everything a remaster needs to do to appeal to most of its fanbase. And yet, some tone-deaf decisions from SEGA over the past few weeks have made the compilation much harder to support. On May 20, SEGA will be delisting the standalone ports of the four games included in Sonic Origins on nearly every platform, taking away the more affordable and perfectly-functional versions of these games for no clear reason. Additionally, while a digital deluxe edition of a game that only costs an extra $5 normally wouldn’t raise too many eyebrows, SEGA has instead overcomplicated the available DLC for the game before it even comes out. The extra content has been split across three standalone packs that range from hard missions and extra coins to arguably less enticing additions such as “Letterbox background” and “Camera controls over the main menu islands,” causing unnecessary confusion when it could all have been combined into one simple digital deluxe upgrade purchase for those who buy the standard version of the game.
Ultimately, these questionable decisions just put higher stakes on the overall quality of Sonic Origins upon its release next month. If the compilation is received positively or at least viewed to be acceptable by most players, then most won’t mind the inability to buy each title separately, and can make their own judgment call on whether the extra content is worth the value. But if the game launches with technical issues or other problems, than the outcry that these decisions originally spurred will likely come back in full force, potentially prompting SEGA to reverse its delisting of the ports much like Rockstar had to do after Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition released in a relatively poor state last year. For now, fans of the classic Sonic titles will simply have to hope that Sonic Origins’ smart additions and improved presentation will help bring these games back at their peak, and will overshadow all of this pre-launch drama that SEGA could have easily avoided.
