The Xbox 20th Anniversary showcase is packed to the brim with exciting stuff, from the early Halo Infinite multiplayer release to the announcement of 70+ classic games coming to the Xbox backwards compatibility library. If you’re a Sonic the Hedgehog fan, you’ll be happy to hear that three titles from the series were announced to be receiving a 60 FPS boost update, those titles being Sonic Generations, Sonic Unleashed and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (and NOTHING for 2006’s Sonic The Hedgehog, which is incredibly heartbreaking and unbelievable).
Announced at the #Xbox20 Anniversary Showcase just now, Sonic Generations, Sonic Unleashed and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed will all get an FPS Boost on Xbox Series X and S consoles, improving its framerate beyond its original release. #SonicNews pic.twitter.com/suvMuV8Xx3
— Sonic Stadium ✪ The Sonic the Hedgehog Community (@sonicstadium) November 15, 2021
The response to this announcement from Sonic fans was an interesting evolution to witness, and it was mainly focused on Sonic Unleashed, a game that’s had a history of mixed reviews from critics and fans alike.
It began with some goofing on the original, which had issues in the past with its frame rate and unresponsive controls.
*Unleashed*
*FPS boosted*
The PowerPoint is no more! pic.twitter.com/NucgY6k4lB
— TheNCSmaster (@TheNCSmaster) November 15, 2021
And some goofing on the response to the original, because of course nobody seems to know how anybody actually feels about this game.
Never forget when WatchMojo put Sonic Unleashed on their list of Best Sonic Games ever, and also on their list of Worst Sonic Games ever pic.twitter.com/5C09YP1JGR
— SplashDash (@_SplashDash) November 14, 2021
These were followed by an air of confusion considering the game seemed to already get an FPS boost when it first arrived in the Xbox library (this was actually a performance update in November 2020 to reduce lag).
>Unleashed
Huh? I thought this was already the case? That’s where the videos of it running buttery smooth came from, so wtf is this referring to?
— Sol-Tan (@GreedyMirusama) November 15, 2021
And finally, once the update was released… hype.
On Nov. 18th 2008, Sega released Sonic Unleashed
Today, 13 years and 2 console generations later, it finally runs at a stable 60 FPS
What a time to be alive pic.twitter.com/L7n5nxqFcO
— TheNCSmaster (@TheNCSmaster) November 15, 2021
Even the in-game cutscenes are in 60fps ???????????????????? #SONICUNLEASHED #XboxShare pic.twitter.com/Hf2gVoUFYY
— Coop ???? (@coopercastille) November 15, 2021
I’ve been holding out on playing the 360/PS3 version of Sonic Unleashed for over a decade because of the framerate problems. I can’t wait to track down an Xbox and experience this game for the first time! https://t.co/rQVwdHVa7v
— SupeSonicBoom (@SupeSonicBoom) November 15, 2021
Sonic Unleashed struggled under the weight of its own power, and it was unanimously agreed that it had previously been released on a console that couldn’t really run the game to its best potential, so it’s somewhat endearing to be able to see it run smoothly on the Xbox Series X/S with the new update. Sure, the Werehog isn’t everybody’s cup of tea, but it’s a relief to see the stunning visuals of Unleashed get the appreciation they’ve always deserved when being played like an informational slideshow on the 360.
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