Though some lackluster growth keeps it back, a free, surprisingly good-feeling Sonic game can’t go wrong with fans in need of a little encouragement.
Even though Roblox is one of the most widely used gaming platforms worldwide, I should be honest and admit that I don’t know anything about it. However, I don’t exactly fit within the intended demographic of children under 16. It seems to provide simple-to-use tools that enable anyone to create a game, regardless of skill level. I’ve seen people create really basic, janky, derivative games as well as ones that are almost professional in quality. Furthermore, People Make Games’ inquiries into the dubious and predatory nature of the platform have convinced me not to touch it with a barge pole.
However, I do enjoy Sonic the Hedgehog. Thus, when a new game on Roblox debuts and features the Blue Blur and companions in addition to having an official license from Sega, that’s reason enough to spark some wary interest, especially because the platform is free and open to anybody with a smartphone or web browser. Though there are currently a number of other Sonic fan games on Roblox, Sonic Speed Simulator is the creation of Gamefam, the first firm to use Roblox as a legitimate game production platform in addition to being an official release. The company and Mattel previously worked together to produce an open-world racing game based on Hot Wheels in 2020, thus they are also no strangers to collaborations.
Sonic Speed Simulator is more of an homage and an experiment that shows off the possibilities of the sort of “open zone” 3D gameplay Sonic Team is presently developing for their next project, Sonic Frontiers, so it might be a stretch to call it a game. In fact, it makes me think of “Sonic World,” which was included in the Sega Saturn collection Sonic Jam. That was also more of a proof-of-concept for Sonic in 3D before Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast, a small 3D world with a low-poly version of Sonic and Tails that also functioned as an interactive museum.
Sonic Speed Simulator is a little more than that, to its credit. It’s not just one environment, but several, including features like the homing spin attack and grinding on rails that the hedgehog has utilized in his 3D adventures. Additionally, unlike many standard 3D games, you’re not ushered down straight paths; rather, the settings are roomy enough to accommodate your lightning-fast speed from any angle.
Nevertheless, given that it opens by failing to live up to either of the two headline selling claims, it could have produced a greater first impression. Instead of starting as Sonic, you start as your Roblox avatar (I know some diehard fans may be committed to their own avatars with endless customizable cosmetics, but that’s not why I joined up for Roblox), and you move at a crawling speed that grows gradually as you gain experience. Leveling up is basically the main loop; you can gain experience points (XP) by moving (the UI refers to “steps,” but this counter increases even if you take a long jump) and by gathering crystals, which have a sound similar to that of pearls in Sonic and the Secret Rings, increasing in pitch as you gather a long trail of them. Greater experience points can be obtained by jumping through various hoops positioned throughout the environment, many of which are timed to require you to reach them at a specific level. Similarly, finding and obtaining the unlocks for Sonic, Tails, and the newly added Knuckles as playable characters yields similar controls, but keep in mind that they are merely skins.
It’s enough to say that Sonic Speed Simulator feels like a Sonic game—and a shockingly decent one at that—once you drop the avatar and reach a comfortable enough speed to do a loop-de-loop with ease. Given Sonic Team’s numerous missteps with its tentpole mascot over the last few decades, the bar is understandably low. I should know, having made the poor choice to research these missteps only lately. But it’s not simply the revelation that a 3D Sonic game exists and is functional. The game perfectly captures the pure joy of being Sonic, whether it’s racing across bright green zones at breakneck speed under blue Sega skies or bouncing between springs in desert or snow-themed worlds (though, to be honest, Green Hill and Emerald Hill are the most memorable for their nostalgic appeal).
It does, however, rapidly run out of steam after you’re quick enough to learn the lay of the land in an hour or less, as there’s not really much else to do that’s nearly as interesting. You can enter “obbys,” which are Roblox lingo for obstacle courses. However, most of them are quite basic platforming tasks that highlight the speedster’s inability to maneuver around tight places. Moreover, some of them are required to pass in order to advance to the next planet.
“The actual traversal feels good, certainly a damn sight better than Sonic’s lowest points in history, so the logic of progression or goals is moot.”
In addition, a timer that is always displayed lets you know when races are available to participate in with other players. However, these are essentially one-way events that take around 20 seconds to complete. It is essentially an excuse to shoehorn in some engagement for this “metaverse,” such as chatting with other players racing around the world or spending your rings in gacha-style vending machines on cosmetics like chaos. It is pointless to enter if you’re low-level but also far too laggard to even know if you’re ahead of your competitors. Additionally, a vendor selling caps with Sonic themes for your avatar using Robux, the platform’s premium money, may be found.
Granted, it looks like Gamefam is currently working on adding more worlds to the game and updating it frequently. It’s only that the progression is so unimpressive that you have to restart in order to advance. Essentially, you are offered the choice to Rebirth when you hit your maximum level (Level 50 initially), which resets you to level 1 and puts you back at crawling speed but keeps all of your earned cosmetics. Although leveling up is faster with each new reincarnation for a generation raised on Fortnite, where you always start with nothing, I still find it absurd that Sonic’s main allure is being undermined with every iteration. Though a cynic could view it as merely prolonging the grind, subsequent worlds only open after rebirth—the fourth world, ironically, needs you to have had three rebirths, while the third just requires one—each rebirth does, at the very least, boost your next maximum level, making you progress even quicker.
Nevertheless, the purpose of goals or growth becomes irrelevant when the actual traversal feels fantastic—certainly far better than any of Sonic’s worst moments—and the grind almost vanishes as time passes and I realize I’m just loving running for its own sake. It’s perhaps the most well-polished experience Roblox has ever seen, making it a perfect gateway drug to entice new users to the site. If this is the direction that Sonic Team’s “open zone” design is taking, then for fans of Sonic, it offers a peek of what may be possible for the hedgehog in the future—albeit one with more structure and real obstacles. Furthermore, it’s free, so what could possibly go wrong with giving it a try?