The Surprising Reason Fans Are Asking For A Sonic Frontiers Delay

After a long wait since the announcement at The Game Awards in 2021, fans finally got their first glimpse of gameplay from "Sonic Frontiers." The gameplay premiere and the combat premiere were both shared via IGN and fans have responded with mixed reactions. While the game has taken a cue out from "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" and put Sonic in a grassy Green Hill Zone, full of strange structures and small puzzles, something about the gameplay looks off. The resulting trailers have fans displeased with the direction of the game.

"This game looks like it could be interesting, but as of right now it looks like a fan made game, very unfinished," one YouTube comment read. Some of the gripes levied at "Sonic Frontiers" is that the game looks empty and soulless, with a generic area for Sonic to run around. In the story of "Sonic Frontiers," the blue hedgehog is transported to a new place, which has fans concerned that this game will lack the charm and heart Sonic fans have come to expect. It's important to note that the trailers don't feature any story beats or dialogue from Sonic, which could be adding to that feeling. With fan opinion low, a movement has started to get "Sonic Frontiers" delayed out of its 2022 release window.

Evan Tingle, the host of the fan-based Sonic news channel, Tails Channel, tweeted out that fans want to enjoy an increase in game quality as Sega enjoys an increase in revenue based on "Sonic the Hedgehog," with a chart from a recent Sega financial earnings call. The argument here is that the game should be delayed, in the same way the first "Sonic" movie was delayed to fix Sonic's design. Another member of the #DelaySonicFrontiers movement tweeted, "The combat looks great but the animations are awfully stiff and the lack of both speed and momentum is really noticeable." A fan also tweeted that the game looks sluggish and not fluid, which isn't good for a series about going fast. Because the gameplay hasn't lived up to fan expectations, many believe Team Sonic should go back to the drawing board and retool various aspects.

Some others agreed with Tingle, like one YouTube comment stating that the animations look awkward, with most in agreement that the footage of "Sonic Frontiers" does not look like the revolution in "Sonic" games many were hoping for. Even the "Breath of the Wild" aspects of the game don't seem to be enough to convince gamers to give it a shot. While the game could easily be delayed, like so many other games, fans aren't asking for more polish or bug fixes, they are asking for fundamental gameplay changes, which could require additional years of work, something Sega might not be willing to do.