Trivia / Sonic Frontiers

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• Christmas Rushed: Thankfully not as bad as past Sonic titles. However, Morio Kishimoto has admitted that this is the reason why the second half is noticeably more underbaked compared to the first half, as Sonic Team did not have enough time to properly develop it as they did with the first half. This is only further confirmed by Dummied Out files suggesting a very different and more elaborate climax.
• Content Leak:
  • Due to being Sonic Team's first title to involve intensive external playtesting, many aspects of Sonic Frontiers were leaked and revealed years before the game was even announced.
  • When Polygon reported on the game shortly after its Game Awards trailer on December 2021, they shared a brief synopsis of the game's plot from Sega, which was removed a few days later under orders from Sega due to it being outdated. As it turns out, this wasn't the reason at all. The removal was because the synopsis in question had prematurely leaked the existence of Sage months before her proper reveal and would give away the reveal that Sage is an AI creation of Eggman's, which was supposed to be a secret.
  • The Switch version broke the street release date earlier than the other versions, which resulted in the game being spoiled from the beginning to end before its intended release date.
  • Following the "Sights, Sounds, and Speed" update to the game, dataminers found both an unused music track in the same directory as the Jukebox songs, as well as new animations and tutorial text for a then-unimplemented Spin Dash. Word of God confirmed that the Spin Dash was meant to be implemented in this update but was pushed back to the next for quality assurance purposes. True to his word, the Spin Dash was eventually added in the "Sonic's Birthday Bash" update, while the music track would be used as the theme for the Action Chain challenges introduced in that same update.
• Creator Backlash: Director and Japanese scriptwriter Morio Kishimoto has admitted that he's to some degree unsatisfied with how the game's story and script turned out, citing that the team should put more effort into the narratives for future games^note Ironically Frontiers story is usually seen by fans as a massive improvement over previous games.
  Kishimoto: I am worried about moments where the story jumps around too much, isn't coherent, and the depth of the characters comes off as shallow. I believe that the scale of this game is too short to remedy these issues. I believe that more time must be devoted to the story.
  • Kishimoto has also publicly expressed his disappointment in the original climax of the game, stating that he agreed with assessments that Ouranos Island was too repetitive and not exciting enough. The Final Horizon was created to rectify that.
  Kishimoto: However, as everyone has pointed out here, I agree that the climax of the story, which takes place on Ouranos Island, the largest island, lacks excitement and becomes repetitive. We are currently working on this issue by creating an update!
• Cross-Generation Video Game: The game was released for every eighth generation console (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, & Nintendo Switch) alongside both ninth generation consoles (PlayStation 5 & Xbox Series X|S). The latter two versions feature a higher framerate than the others (which target 30 FPS). Unlike the Sonic Unleashed Reformulated Game for the Wii and PlayStation 2, all versions of Sonic Frontiers have the exact same gameplay, levels, story, etc. The only real difference between versions is the load times, framerate and graphical details.
• Dueling Games: With Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, which released the week after Frontiers, since both involve an Open World gameplay that neither franchise has experienced before. Both games also feature, among other things, the main character defeating "Titans", an artificial intelligence character butting heads with the protagonist, and the character who tasks the protagonist with finding and defeating enemies one by one turning out to be a manipulative antagonist late in the story. Coincidentally, the term "Starfall" also factors into both games as well, and both games have DLC that adds additional story content released in 2023.
• Dummied Out:
  • Found in the files of the Switch version of the game is a prototype version of Kronos Island as seen in the December 2021 TGA trailer. The most notable detail of this map is that the map geometry that would be Ouranos Island in the final game is part of this Kronos Island (one can see additional evidence of this in the final game).
  • Modders of the game have found that there are references in the game's files that imply that the Final Boss would had have a proper boss sequence, instead of an extended Bullet Hell battle followed by a Quick Time Event.
  • Sonic was meant to be able to drift at any time, instead of only through the Drift Dash Panels in Portal 3-5. However, Super Sonic retains the manual drift along with a unique animation. According to Morio Kishimoto, they removed the mechanic due to not being able to make it look "convincing."
• God Never Said That:
  • Shortly before the release of Frontiers, Morio Kishimoto, the director of Frontiers, made a tweet likening Frontiers' release to a "global playtest" in reference to how he and Sonic Team were open to feedback and critiques from players—as they previously compared Frontiers to Sonic Adventure as a new era for the franchise—as a means of figuring out what ideas would and wouldn't stick for future titles. However, some, including James Stephanie Sterling of The Jimquisition in their review of Sonic Frontiers before they addressed the misconception, interpreted his words as meaning the game was purposefully released in an unfinished state and that there are plans to release a more polished game in the future.
  • In a Twitter thread, a user made suggestions about how to improve the final boss battle with THE END, while also tagging Morio Kishimoto. When Morio had stated that the suggestions have inspired him, many fans have taken this to mean that a complete overhaul of the boss battle should be anticipated, ignoring the fact that Kishimoto had also stated that doing so would be difficult to do, therefore suggesting that it's mostly not guaranteed. Nonetheless, he also claimed that in the DLC, a few new additions to the game regarding the boss could potentially be added. Upon the release of The Final Horizon update, the final battle of the update first starts with the same SUPREME Titan fight, complete with the same death cutscene. However, THE END decides to fight using the Titan as its conduit instead of flying out into space, becoming a brand-new boss fight on Ouranos Island that fights Sonic one-on-one instead of the Ikaruga-styled minigame in the base game.
• Limited Special Collector's Ultimate Edition:
  • Beyond the standard version, there is the digital deluxe edition, which comes with an "Explorer's Treasure Box" that gives the player a headstart on Kronos Island with a number of its collectibles automatically added to their inventory after the tutorials, a digital art book and a digital mini-soundtrack.
  • Japan has a limited edition sold through the Sega store and Amazon Japan that contains a physical art book and a Koco figurine.
• Milestone Celebration: Sega originally wanted the game to come out in 2021 in honor of Sonic's 30th anniversary, but seeming to have learned from last time decided to ultimately delay it to November 8, 2022 so it can be further worked on and polished, pushing it out of the anniversary entirely. Instead the game was announced on the 30th anniversary themed Sonic Central stream.
• Orphaned Reference: Egg Memo 7 mentions only three islands instead of five. This is a remnant of Rhea and Ouranos being initially part of Kronos.
• The Original Darrin: In a broader sense, Colleen O'Shaughnessey returns once more the voice Tails after Alicyn Packard took over her role in Sonic Drone Home.
• The Other Darrin: Since Travis Willingham was replaced from his role as Knuckles since Team Sonic Racing, this is the first mainline game to feature his new voice actor Dave B. Mitchell.
• Pre-Order Bonus:
  • Pre-ordering the game, regardless of version, will net the "Adventurer's Treasure Box", which starts the player off with a number of skill points and Seeds of Power/Defense already in their inventory after the tutorials.
  • Pre-orders from Best Buy or GameStop (or GAME in the UK) came with a steelbook case for the game (with a different design for each store).
  • Taken to ridiculously large measures in Japan in a console-exclusive collaboration with hololive's Virtual YouTuber Inugami Korone, who is also an official Sonic ambassador:
    • Pre-orders from Amazon Japan unlock Korone's voice pack, a Silliness Switch that changes a number of sound effects to her vocalizations.
    • Pre-orders from GEO come with an acrylic image of Korone in her Sonic-themed outfit.
    • Pre-orders from Joshin Denki give an in-game Korone-themed shoes and gloves outfit.
    • Pre-orders from Rakuten Books add a toggle to reskin the collectible Kocos into Koronesuki, the personifications of Korone's viewers in her stream.
• Promoted Fanboy: Two longtime fans of the series were heavily involved in the game:
  • Ian Flynn, head writer of the Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics) and Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) comic series, pens the game's English script.
  • After years of covering Sonic songs and being a guest singer for the 30th anniversary symphony, NateWantsToBattle performs the Golden Ending theme "One Way Dream".
• Refitted for Sequel: A dynamic day and night system was originally planned for Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), but was scrapped due to time constraints. Frontiers would revisit and realize this idea over 15 years later.
• Release Date Change: The game was initially planned to launch in 2021 for Sonic's 30th anniversary. However, it ultimately got delayed to November 8, 2022 due to further quality assurance.
• Screwed by the Lawyers: Due to the Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 songs being owned by Masato Nakamura, no original music or remixes from those games are among the 53 added to the Jukebox in Update 1.
• Sleeper Hit: After its decent launch in late 2022, the game gradually climbed to 3.5 million sales over 2023, making it the highest-selling 3D Sonic game since Sonic Heroes.
• Teasing Creator: Writer Ian Flynn was prone to replying to fan theories and questions about Sonic Frontiers on Twitter with nothing but the hashtag "#knowingsmile". This came to a head with the mysterious pink-haired woman whom fans picked out of a shot in a TailsTube video, when Flynn gave her a "#knowingsmile" as well. In the final game, this woman never appears at all.
• Troubled Production: According to Takashi Iizuka, Sonic Team ended up scrapping their first build of the game due to them being unsatisfied with how it turned out, forcing them to start over from scratch. This is in part why the terminology ‘open zone’ is so heavily enforced, as the original build was indeed more focused on being a more traditional open world release before becoming what it is today. The game infamously had fans requesting that the game be delayed again after the initial trailers were released. However, Sega still went on with the final deadline they had set, though Sonic Team still managed to get the game out in a more polished and stable state. In fact, a February 2024 interview revealed that this was pretty much a make-or-break deal for Sonic Team, that if they failed, it might have turned them into a Creator Killer.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The final two islands, Rhea and Ouranos, share the same assets as Kronos Island, and internal game files, including a prototype version of Kronos Island, reveal that they were all part of the same overworld. Other evidence includes large sections of Kronos Island never being visited in the world proper; Rhea Island clearly having the exact same minimap as Kronos Island, as well as parts of Kronos being visible on Rhea (like the Giganto boss arena) and vice-versa; Eggman mentioning in the Egg Memos that the Starfall Islands are made of three islands instead of five; Rhea Island lacking any collectibles or Cyber Space portals; and finally Ouranos Island not having a proper introduction, with Sonic suddenly arriving on the island with no indication of how or where it is in respect to the other islands. Word of God confirmed that the latter portion of the game was rushed due to time constraints.
    • Kishimoto would later go on to state that the three islands were split because playtesters found it "too big and boring."
  • Takashi Iizuka stated that Frontiers was originally a more traditional open world-styled game. However, Sonic Team was dissatisfied with the attempt and started over from scratch, resulting in the final, "Open Zone" gameplay.
  • During the June 2022 footage from IGN, the information in the lower left corner of the screen suggested that Sonic's speed, attack, defense, and ring capacity could be upgraded up to Level 50. In the final game, the levels go all the way up to 99.
  • Sonic and Amy almost had new voice actors for this game. In January 2021, Roger Craig Smith revealed that he had been let go as Sonic's voice actor, with Cindy Robinson announcing her departure from the role a month later, causing an outpour of fan support. A short while later, however, Roger was reinstated in the role and went on to voice Sonic in this game, with Cindy coming back to voice Amy a few months later.
  • Dummied Out voice clips suggest that not only was the idea of the final island completely different from Ouranos Island, but that the last Chaos Emerald would've been obtained in a very different manner from the final game. Instead of Eggman finding it off screen and giving it to Sonic, the dialogue suggests that Sonic and Sage would've traversed through a giant alien ship called "The Ark of the Ancients" (which Sage implies was the very ship that brought them to Earth) to find and obtain the Chaos Emerald within it.
  • The Big Fishing mini-game has a Dummied Out animation for Sonic catching something unimpressive, like garbage, with him looking unimpressed.
  • Modern Speed Highway from Sonic Generations was one of the planned Cyberspace levels for the game, but it ended up being scrapped during development. There's also an unused animation of Sonic hanging under the helicopter lifted straight from Generations, but tweaked specifically to be used for this game.
  • Morio Kishimoto has revealed in a Q&A video that there were originally plans for Amy to assist Sonic in the battle against Giganto by refilling his ring supply. However, this was scrapped due to it being a pace-breaker.
  • The Spin Dash was intended to be included in the game's first update. According to a set of files and animations of the move that were found in the first update, the Spin Dash would retain the ability to hurt enemies. Morio Kishimoto would then confirm the move was planned to be a part of the first update, but was cut due to the team not being satisfied with its state during development. However, he followed up by stating that the Spin Dash will be available as part of the game's second post-launch update, which indeed was added through the game's second update, "Sonic's Birthday Bash".
  • During the February 20, 2023 episode of the BumbleKast, Ian Flynn revealed that he originally proposed bringing back Hyper Sonic from Sonic 3 & Knuckles for the final fight against THE END, specifically by having Sonic receive power from the Koco and the Ancients in Cyber Space, hence his line asking them to lend him their power just before the True Final Boss fight. However, this was shot down by the Sonic Team due to their desire to avoid the Next Tier Power-Up trope (which is the official reason why the Hyper forms have not been acknowledged in the series post-Sonic 3 & Knuckles). This idea seems to have been retooled into Super Sonic 2 and Super Sonic Cyber in The Final Horizon update, which the game makes clear is a temporary enhancement to Super Sonic's power rather than a "higher tier" to Super Sonic.
  • Another Bumblekast episode revealed that Ian Flynn had wanted to have Sonic either hum or say some of the lyrics to previous songs from older games in his idle dialogue. This got shot down as a result of licensing issues.
  • The Digital Art Book shows golden tiers of the Soldier, Tower, and other enemies that only have purple, red, and white tiers corresponding to each island in the final game. This suggests Rhea Island would have had the white tier instead of Ouranos Island, while golden tier was reserved for Ouranos.
• Why Fandom Can't Have Nice Things:
  • Because of players exploiting a glitch in the auto-save in Frontiers' Gamescom demo, resulting in people seeing up to and including an hour of content they weren't supposed to see yet (when it was only supposed to be 15 minutes), SEGA forbade filming of the public demo and directly restricted playtime.
  • In addition, Sega did not release a downloadable demo until after the full game launched, likely to deter leaks through datamining.
• Word of God: The director and Japanese writer of the game, Morio Kishimoto, stated that THE END's appearance is based on the observer's idea of death, with Sonic, Sage, and the player all seeing something different. Thus, its appearance as a moon is merely what we see it as.
• Word of Saint Paul: The game's English writer, Ian Flynn, has made some statements and would clarify some things regarding the game's story on the Bumblekast and Twitter.
  • Ian Flynn stated that when Sage was resurrected by Eggman, only a portion of her was resurrected. What exactly this entails is currently unknown.
  • Some time ago, Flynn also stated on Twitter that THE END was soundly destroyed by Sonic and Sage, and thus will not return. On the November 13th BumbleKast, however, he clarified that said above statement (which lead people to believe THE END was lying) and other such takes on Twitter and the BumbleKast, was explicitly his own personal take on the matter and that it was the likes of Iizuka and Kishimoto that determined such things. Not himself.
• Working Title: Initial leaks, copyright information, and internal game files list the game as Sonic Rangers.

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