To the delight of many unexpecting customers, Sonic Superstars has found its way onto the store shelves of New York’s J&L Game early. X (formerly Twitter) user One2Switcheroo has been sharing their own thoughts whilst critic reviews continue to roll in.
For those who have been living under the proverbial internet rock, Superstars is Sega’s latest entry into the Sonic franchise. As is most apparent by the game’s art direction, this entry aims to hit all the nostalgia buttons of long-time fans whilst delivering a cooperative experience for friends to enjoy on the couch.
The breadth of this mistake is currently unknown, although the distribution and social media teams of Sega’s latest title will undoubtedly be furious at those responsible nonetheless. Oct. 17 remains the official release date. For now, we know that both J&L and the other popular ‘Mom and Pop shop’ are the only two stores confirmed to have broken the embargo.
Switcheroo was quick to share a first look at the game’s cartridge art as well as the inside of the box. They have also spent a number of hours playing with generally positive things to say. “Feels like a 3D Sonic Mania,” the Venezuelan said, “Level design is really good so far.” However, they also noted the camera was a little clunky in multiplayer and they personally preferred Mania still.
It’s easy to compare the two. Released back in 2017 as a prelude to Sonic Forces, Mania also leaned into the classic stylings of the franchise and was ultimately scored as the best entry in fifteen years. Fans remember it even more fondly as Forces, following just months later, struggled to mediocre ratings.
We expect a first-day patch to fix up some of the minor gripes Switcheroo has identified.
