Recently there’s been a lot of buzz surrounding the rumour Sonic Heroes is getting an Unreal Engine remake, releasing sometime in 2025 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, PC and the Nintendo Switch successor.
Like many I was thrilled with the news, as I’d easily place Sonic Heroes within my top three best Sonic The Hedgehog games for a number of reasons, mainly nostalgia from playing it so much as a kid.
I’m looking forward to replaying the Seaside Hill level in Sonic X Shadow Generations, the trailer of which you can see below
While several well-known leakers are adamant the remake is happening, other reports are saying that it isn’t. I’m actually more inclined to believe the latter, since if Sonic games were to be remade you’d think it’d be one of the Sonic Adventure games, or even some of the classic 2D ones.
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That being said, I'm of the opinion that Sonic Heroes is the most-deserving of a remake and I’ll happily die on that hill defending the game.
Unlike almost every Sonic game you can think of, Sonic Heroes has never been re-released on modern platforms. Even Sonic Fighters, an arcade game, is playable on modern Xbox consoles whereas a mainline entry in the series has been left out to dry for years now.
If Sonic Heroes is ever going to get a re-release, it might as well be in the form of a remake or remaster, especially since Sonic Colours Ultimate opened the door for some of the blue blur’s best adventures appearing on more platforms.
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I think one of the main reasons SEGA doesn’t want to touch the game again is due to how it was received. While it wasn’t hated by any means, reviews were mixed to say the least. Main criticisms stemmed from the slippery controls, simplified level design, and repeated content throughout.
In a similar manner to the Sonic Adventure games, Sonic Heroes lets players choose which story they’d like to play through. There are four available: Team Sonic, Team Dark, Team Rose and Team Chaotix. Unlike the Sonic Adventure games, each story is largely the same save for a few minor gameplay changes and, of course, the characters you play as.
The first Sonic Adventure was split into character stories, with each one visiting the same areas, but in different orders, in different levels and with different playstyles. Sonic Adventure 2 simplified things a bit, cutting it down to two stories which were separated into speed, treasure hunt, and run-n-gun stages, with some boss battles sprinkled in along the way.
Sonic Heroes unfortunately sees the player blast through almost the exact same levels four times in order to unlock the true ending and final boss, and even then you need to collect seven Chaos Emeralds before you can play it.
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Despite my love for the game, even I have to admit playing through it four times is tedious, especially on repeat playthroughs. I’m more than understanding of people’s criticisms, and I’m sure SEGA is too. That being said, surely that means there’s even more reason to remake the game, no?
The story being split into four different tales that crossover and eventually arrive at the same destination is perfectly fine, it’s just the journey that needs to be ironed out a bit. Keeping gameplay largely the same, albeit more stable and easy to control, one possible solution could be to simply create more levels to be used throughout the different stories.
That doesn’t mean changing the worlds and locations the teams pass through, as I’d go out on a limb and say levels like Casino Park and Mystic Mansion are some of the best looking levels in the series. Sonic The Hedgehog generally excels when the locations you visit are just as fantastical as the characters themselves. Have each team open with Seaside Hill and finish in The Final Fortress as usual, but ensure each time you play you’re taken on a different path through the area. The remake could even adopt a cool feature from Sonic Superstars where you can see your teammates in the background playing through their own levels.
If you wanted to be extra brave you could even add in a fifth playthrough as post game content, perhaps following a team led by Metal Sonic that takes place prior to the main story of the game.
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With a conscious effort on making the game feel less repetitive and hanging on to that theme of teamwork and cooperation, a Sonic Heroes remake could not only be one of the best Sonic titles ever released, but also give a new lease on life to a highly underrated title.
Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 are great games, but I wouldn’t say they’re in any rush to be remade. Graphically and gameplay wise there’s definitely work to be done on them, but the main problem is just how beloved they are. It’d likely be a nightmare to create a remake that’s not only perfect for new fans, but also one that pleases the people that grew up with them, especially those that believe the jankiness gave them their charm.
Sonic Heroes, on the other hand, has its fans, and while they defend the game to the death like me, they still have to own up to its shortcomings. This makes it a near-perfect choice for a remake, and if one gets made and does well it could definitely inspire hope that the same could be done for the Adventure games, or any game for that matter.
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Unfortunately there’s no telling if a remake of Sonic Heroes is actually on the cards or not, but I hope to high heaven that it is, because God knows it needs and deserves it.
Featured Image Credit: SEGA