Sonic Superstars: A New 2D Sonic Game (Fall 2023)

Maybe I should've clarified I only played on handled yeah. I have my series x for playing games on my 4K TV, so the switch is almost exclusively a handled system for me...and after 5 years of owning the system, I can confirm developers care about handled mode as much as they did about 3D mode back on the 3ds, lol.

And to get back on the topic of superstar's switch version... I don't want to go full gamer moment(tm), but holy shit, this is actually unacceptable. How are people okay with most switch releases looking this bad??

 

Superstars is definitely an outlier though. There's no good reason for Superstars to look this cruddy on the Switch, it should absolutely not be a demanding game.

 

I dunno, it feels on par with most multiplats game releases nowadays. High quality character models running through disgusting muddy environement, lol
Hell the fact it's apparently 60 fps means it's actually faring better than most switch releases, to be fair.

 

I assume Arzest was under a deadline and chose a quick way to optimize the game rather than a smart way. I'm not too bothered by it; I think the game still looks ok visually and as a Switch owner I'm used to this (I think running at 60 FPS will make the downgrade worth it), but if you have options other than Switch, I would 100% go with those.

IIRC the evidence we have suggests it's using Unity rather than UE. Not that it matters though, arguing about which game engines developers should use is like if chefs bragged about the pots and pans they use to prepare food

 

I mean, they did - the Gamecube was absolutely more powerful than the PS2, and in the end it didn't matter.

 

So listings are now up for Superstars' launch day DLC:

• LEGO Fun Pack: this one has a price tag attached on Nintendo's site, so it looks like it will be sold separately as well as being included in the Digital Deluxe edition; apparently it includes LEGO Tails, Knuckles and Amy skins, and extra LEGO-themed stages for the game's Battle Mode.
• Extra Content Pack: The rest of the Digital Deluxe content, including the Rabbit skin for Sonic, Mecha Sonic robot parts for Battle Mode, and menu wallpapers. No individual price means it certainly won't be sold separately at launch, though the generic name and lack of any mention of the Digital Deluxe version in the description makes me wonder if SEGA are hedging their bets on whether they'll allow players to purchase it separately at a later date.
• LEGO Eggman Boss Skin - Pre-order: The pre-order bonus LEGO Eggman skin, as advertised in trailers. Unlike the above, this one specifically mentions the pre-order bonus in the name, so I don't see this one going up for individual sale in future.

Interestingly, none of these seems to feature a LEGO skin for Sonic himself, despite a LEGO Sonic being prominently featured in the CG animated trailer announcing the LEGO content in Superstars. So, could a LEGO Sonic skin actually be a part of the base game? I find it hard to believe they'd do LEGO skins for all the other playable characters, and even Dr. Eggman, but not for Sonic himself.

 

https://x.com/sonic_hedgehog/status/1699090120018939917?s=46&t=S0_YkQ8TRA2Bk54XvKgWfw

 

Obligatory "man I wish the game looked like this"

 

Getting this piece of art after debating hand-drawn 2D aesthetics for like two pages feels like a very gentle rub of salt-sprinkled sandpaper on a wound.

 

Switch version gonna be looking like ot was drawn with crayons

 

It absolutely does not look as technically demanding as most multiplat games these days though, like, what. Can't imagine its very programmatically demanding either.

Oh well, no use arguing further over it I suppose. It is how it is. Maybe when the Switch 2 comes out it can handle a 2D Sonic game :P

 

Sonic looks like he's either riding or being pushed upwards by streams of water which looks kinda neat. Getting old ruins vibes with a bit of classic Seaside Hill from Gens.

 

Simple Solution: Don't buy a Switch

 

If you want handheld play at a reasonable price, the Switch is still a good option, particularly if you don't want the faff of PC versions running on Steam Decks or whatever.

It's terrifying in the sense that the graphics already look as if they're tailored for the Switch, but you'll lose the benefits of high resolution textures on a 720p screen anyway, so often these kinds of sacrifices don't always matter much. It's a good argument for a sprite-based game though!


I still see the issue being the top-end consoles and PC. You're paying a premium price, but you're not getting a premium game.

 

The fact that people that people already know the Switch is already inferior to the PS4/XB1 graphics wise and is wondering why there’s a significant difference between PS5/XBSX is crazy !

 

lol

 

Because portability is a big deal and the Switch's main selling point. Something like 30% of switch owners play exclusively handheld and another 50% play both handheld and docked. I see something like this brought so many times all over the internet like the answer is gonna be something different.

Anyways I'm just confused on why they didn't just build Superstars for the Switch in mind first and just upscale it for everything else. Most of the sales are gonna come from the Switch version so you'd think itd be a priority to get as good as can be, but whatever, I don't know what the circumstances are.

 

Either that or hold off off on a Switch release until the higher-end versions were out the door, and then shifted focus towards doing a nice customized port, like Activision did with Crash 4. If the Switch release truly is going to be the best-selling release at the end of the day, (which from I remember of the platform breakdowns released about weekly charts of recent Sonic games, does hold some precedent), I don't think Switch fans having to wait, say, six months to a year or so for a quality late port is really going to sting too much.

It's kinda funny/sad/strange to me just how weak (on a technical/performance level) a bunch of the Sonic releases for Switch have been, in light of the above. Sometimes it's only bad in comparison to the other versions (like TSR being 30 FPS, it's otherwise a solid release IIRC); but other times it's something like Colors Ultimate when it's a game seriously marred by technical issues on top of visual downgrades. Mania's probably the one exception to the rule, due to its low-spec/retraux nature allowing it to be truly one-to-one with the other versions.

It's a longshot, but I hope that posted image of the Swtich is like, a worst case scenario of what the final game might look like in handheld mode at times; and the docked mode is something a good magnitude closer to the console versions. Otherwise I might just have to (also?) get it on Steam, Denuvo be damned. The rendering/lighting of the game itself isn't helping matters, but that Switch screenshot honestly strikes me as if you took Generations 3DS and ran it at max resolution on a souped up emulator.

 

You really think Sega can afford to miss the holiday season just to get a better Switch version out of the door? The only reason I can see for a Switch delay would be because of having to compete with Mario Wonders.