Team Sonic have set out to create the most ambitious and daring Sonic project to date, a 3D open-world title called Sonic Frontiers. The platformer is set to reinvent the wheel one more time and give Sonic fans their most freeing experience yet.

Some saw Sonic Forces as a step back from the massive triumph that was Sonic Mania — a return to classic 2D Sonic platforming. It’s been several years since then, and Sonic Team have announced the next chapter in the franchise: Sonic Frontiers.

It looks to capture some of the essence and lifeblood of other much-loved open-world games like Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Whether it will be able to accomplish this remains to be seen, but Sonic fans will be intrigued nevertheless.

Here’s what we know about Sonic Frontiers so far.

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Is there a Sonic Frontiers release date yet?

Sonic Frontiers became public knowledge thanks to the surprise reveal trailer at the 2021 The Game Awards. There is no exact time and date set just yet, but it’s currently planned for Holiday 2022.

As always in this current climate, delays are commonplace. So we wouldn’t be surprised if Sonic Team need to push the game back to 2023 to polish it off.

Sonic Frontiers platforms

There is no hint of an exclusivity agreement for Sonic Frontiers, so unless something official says otherwise, Sonic Frontiers is likely to come out on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.

The game will probably be optimized for current-gen consoles, and PS4 and Xbox One owners likely won’t get the same features and quality.

Sonic Frontiers open-world gameplay

The aspect that nearly everyone has picked up on from the game’s first trailer is the open-world aspect. No Sonic game to date has crossed into this genre, and Sonic Frontiers will mark a massive milestone for the cherished franchise.

It remains to be seen how deep into the open-world spectrum it will cross (e.g side missions, quests, collectibles, etc.), but it looks to be a definite departure from the 2D and limited 3D iterations seen down the years.

Based on an early gameplay snippet from IGN, it does appear to feature many open-world staples. From the Assassin’s Creed-style ‘towers’ that clear the map and point to new areas of interest, to a number of seemingly procedural enemy encounters, it looks to be an open-world game through and through.

Sonic Frontiers trailers

The very first look at Sonic Frontiers came through the debut trailer from The Game Awards 2021. It was a cinematic trailer seemingly advertising its open-world elements. Sonic overlooking the sprawling landscape is a telling sign that players will have the biggest Sonic game to date to explore.

Here is the Sonic Frontiers trailer in full.

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Next up came a brief look at gameplay on June 1 as part of IGN’s exclusive coverage.

Here we see moment-to-moment combat, traversal, and even get a look at the enormous scope of Frontiers’ open world.

Sonic Frontiers leaks

As buzz around the game builds a series of leaks appear to have spilled out online.

The anonymous source ‘Blind Leek’ has taken to Twitter with a huge series of leaks, though none of it is yet official so it’s worth taking it with a grain of salt.

https://t.co/ozacXu6vBO
[Archived Leak]

"Ok lets get this out of the way I just want to get into the big details for what is going on with Sonic Frontier's.

Frontiers has six playable characters

>Sonic
>Tails
>Knuckles
>Amy
>Shadow
>Customizable Character "Extra Feature"

— Blind Leek (@Blind_Leek) May 9, 2022

Perhaps the biggest tidbit, is the revelation of ‘six playable characters,’ including Knuckles, Shadow, and more fan favorites, according to the leaker.

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