Sonic Frontiers

Prerelease Info

Resources#

Unused AnimationsAnimations we weren't destined to see. Unused ObjectsThe GUN Truck was going to be an enemy? Unused AudioSonic's a chatty hedgehog... or at least he was. Sonic Forces LeftoversShadow and Classic Sonic found a way to sneak in. Revisional DifferencesChanges between updates, differences between platforms, and more.

Unused Textures#

Interface#

Space Save File Icon#

Present in raw/ui/ui_common. This is an unused save file icon that shows a picture of space.

Unused Cyberspace stage icon#

There is an unused stage icon in raw/ui/rpl_texture_arcade which shows the Cyberspace skybox. This icon can still be seen in-game using mods.

Unused Editor Font texture#

Found in raw/decotext/editor is an unused texture file named "font_texture".

Unused "AncientFont" and Emerald Key Textures#

Also present in raw/ui/rpl_texture. This may have been used for the Ancient's language.
In addition, "uiRANGE_img_exch_emeraldkey" seems to show different Vault Keys. Each of the Vault Keys have different color schemes.

Tails' Homing Attack Skill Icon#

Found in the "uiRANGE_img_pause_skill2" texture is a homing attack skill icon for Tails. Tails can't perform the homing attack in Frontiers, rendering this unused.

Unused Fishing Icons#

Found in raw/ui/ui_gamemodefishing are two unused icons among the rest of the fishing shop textures. The left symbol is seen in the Big Encounter achievement icon, though is otherwise unused in the actual game itself.

Unknown Texture File#

Present in raw/ui/ui_gamemodestage is an unused texture file.

Placeover Tower Koco Textures#

Found in Update 2's raw/ui/ui_gamemodestage is a texture file that shows the placeholder text for the tower Kocos.

Dummy Textures#

Found in the texture files, there are multiple dummy textures.

Unused Subtitles#

Knuckles' Alternate Backstory#

Some scenes include unused subtitles describing an alternate version of Knuckles' backstory in the game; in this version of the story, Knuckles simply travelled to the Starfall Islands alongside Sonic, Tails, and Amy rather than being warped to the islands through cyberspace (as depicted in Sonic Frontiers: Divergence). This set of subtitles would have had Knuckles present on the Tornado in the intro cutscene and would have cut his Divergence exposition on Ares Island, alongside some of Sonic's references to his friends (prior to Ares Island) also including Knuckles.

Unused Events#

Unused Cinematics#

The Nintendo Switch version of the game contains a bevy of unused cinematics, including early versions of existing cutscenes, unused quick-time events, and even some totally unique cutscenes. Most of them have broken sound effects, or none at all. These cinematics are listed in order of the videos.

• test_bo2115 - An early version of Wyvern spitting out its red path. The path itself doesn't move at all, and Wyvern's "whiskers" clip into its body.
• test_sonic_walk - A test cutscene of Sonic walking and making various mouth poses. It also features the Chaos Emeralds, which rotate around Sonic as he walks and fly away at the end.
• test_qe1080_result - An early version of Sonic's dance upon getting a Chaos Emerald. Appears to be identical to the final, but this cutscene never plays at this location in the final game.
• test_qe2130_result - The same as above, but with no Chaos Emerald.
• qe1310 - Perhaps the most interesting unused cutscene, this depicts Tails handing Sonic a Chaos Emerald. This never happens in the final game.
• test_CutTiming_Sync_cam_SN - Sonic in a T-pose with a seemingly randomly panning camera.
• test_ev3060 - An early version of the flashback cutscene from Chaos Island. Sonic and Tails use very basic movements, with not much easing and no lip-syncing. The cyber space effect does not appear, and instead of the hand-drawn art seen in the final game, this version simply sits on an in-game shot of the island.
• test_qte_sample - A test quick-time event using Sonic's parry animation. If you fail the input, Sonic snaps to a "dead" pose where he'll lie on the ground.
• test_sage_move - A test cutscene featuring Sage turning around from various angles and camera distances. Oddly, she uses her standard red color scheme, but with a blue eye. This never happens in the final game; she's always one color scheme or the other.
• test_SN_exposure - Sonic T-posing in the void while the camera pans around him. Given the filename, this may have been used to test simulated camera exposure.
• bo2020 - A rather amusing cutscene found in Wyvern's files. It depicts a Caterpillar revving up and slamming into another caterpillar, knocking it over. The only other time a cutscene features Guardians is in Chaos Island during the Knight chase, so perhaps it was meant to happen more often. The Caterpillars use otherwise-unused animations for revving up, spinning, and being flipped over with its legs twitching.
• ga3220 - An unfinished version of the pinball table introduction.

Unused Tails Cutscene#

There is an unused cutscene with Tails giving Sonic a Chaos Emerald. Notably, this takes place in Kronos. It seems to be identical to the Sonic and Tails cutscene in the above video on the left, except with an actual background.

Unused Knight Phase Transition portion#

{source=1} An cut portion from the cutscene from the Phase 2 introduction of Knight.

Unused Realtime Events#

In the files of the game, the pre-rendered cutscenes have unused versions that play in-game. These are labeled with the exact same ID as the pre-rendered versions, but with _mov tacked on to it. Some scenes, like ev1850 (the final horizon ending) and ev6010 (the base game ending), are segmented into multiple sets of scenes, starting at mov01 and going up.

Update 3 Events from Update 2#

There is an earlier version of ev1700 found in Update 2. The main difference is that none of the flashback images appear, and the animation is stiff and incomplete. It is also located outside of Ouranos Island due to an incorrect MTX value.

There is also an early version of chl6xxx and ev1550. chl6xxx contains early versions of the cutscenes used to preview island challenges. ev1550 is the same, having the proper MTX values to set it's position.

Unused Supreme Attacks and Events#

Found within Supreme's data are several unused events. According to director Morio Kishimoto on Twitter, these were being worked on up to the final deadline, but simply weren't finished in time. All of them lack polish, are not timed correctly, and end abruptly.

The first of the two rifle QTE events is an unused extended version of the final game's QTE with the file labeled "Zev_Rfl_Shoot02", where Supreme fires several more shots. In the final, only the very first shot and the very last cut are used.

The second rifle QTE is an entirely unique sequence with the labeled "Zev_rfl_Shoot01", where Supreme moves around the arena and fires his gun at different angles before making one big leap in an attempt to air snipe Super Sonic. In this QTE Supreme's bullets are a different color in this one compared to the previous one. Seemingly reflecting the Light and Dark Shots from the hacking Mini Game in Ouranos Island and the base game "The End" Space Shooter fight.

• Zev_Rfl_Sp00 is a cutscene that depicts an unfinished version of Super Sonic's default Grand Slam, reused from Giganto's fight. Perhaps there was a chance it would have had a unique Grand Slam animation if development went on as planned. The location of this cutscene oddly takes outside Ouranos Island.

• Zev_Rfl_Sp01 is a slightly modified version of Giganto's Clap and Bite Counter. This variant is unfinished, lacks sound effects, and the bite struggle has Supreme entering a default T-Pose state, and Super Sonic does not perish when failing the bite struggle. This cutscene and the previously mentioned one take place outside the island. Which is actually the location of Giganto's battle arena in the released version of the game.

• Zev_Rfl_Sp02 is a modified version of Giganto's mouth laser attack where Super Sonic can be seen briefly preparing to deflect the animation. Also unfinished. It also includes a fail animation oddly enough that can only be seen when the player actively presses any other button that isn't the shown button in the QTE prompt. This cutscene is also located where Giganto is fought in the released version of the game.

• Zev_Rfl_Bitlaser01 and Bitlaser02 are events triggered after the player parries Supreme's spin attack while his Bit Drones are active or Supreme is staggered after receiving enough damage. These events have been shortened to cut out segments. These segments showed Supreme summoning the turrets to aim at Sonic before firing. Bitlaser01 depicts Super Sonic flying straight forward with a surprised look and looking around with his eyes for a chance to escape. This would indicate his first encounter with the attack. While BitLaser02, the default cutscene triggered by the game, depicts Super Sonic actively moving around only to realize these large turrets have auto aim and Sonic has no choice but to take the attack head-on. Perhaps this could have been another QTE where the player could have had a chance to avoid being shot by the lasers.

In addition, the Update 3 version of the Supreme fight has two separate versions of the ending scene. They have different camera angles, and the second version seems to generally be buggier.

Unused Attacks include the following names in Supreme's text file under the "BossRifleBattleParam_ActionType" text.

• AT_Counter_Blow (Giganto's swipe these have different animations from Counter01 to Counter04 that are all recycled from Giganto.)
• AT_HomingLaser_Normal (Supreme remains stationary in Phase 1 or floats if he's in Phase 2 and shoots laser projectiles out of his backpack.)
• AT_HomingLaser_Fly (Same as HomingLaser_Normal, except Supreme's on a flight-path shooting projectiles out of his backpack in a slightly faster attack speed.)
• AT_Laser (Supreme spams homing laser projectiles from his mouth. Similar to the attack scene when Supreme retaliates after destroying his drones.)
• AT_Sp01 (Giganto's Clap and Bite Counter)
• AT_Sp02 (Gitanto's Laser Counter)

There are also parameters that are labeled AT_Shot1, AT_Shot2, AT_Shot3, and AT_Shot4. These correspond to Supreme's QTE events as there are also 4 interactable QTEs. As it currently stands in the game, AT_Shot3 and AT_Shot4 correspond to the unused Zev_Rfl_Shoot1 QTE with the dark shots. Triggering this attack through the battleparam alone soft locks the game. See the video to learn more.

AT_Shot1 and Shot2 reflect the original rifle QTE seen in the game.

Under the "smallBitLaserParam" section of text in a different rfl text file, Supreme's drones could do the following actions:

• bulletType(Homing): Spawns dark missile projectiles and follow Sonic. They cannot be parried.
• bulletType(Laser): The drones shoot a laser beam. Or at least they were intended to shoot a laser beam, the visual effect of the laser is not shown despite there being collision and Super Sonic does get staggered from it.

There are also unused animations for its attacks.

Unused Guardian Attacks#

Unused Caterpillar Attacks#

Caterpillar has a couple of attacks in it's data that didn't get used, but were eventually used in the Final Horizon. (The black shell shown in the video is a mod and not actually unused content)

• AttackMassLaser is an unused attack that shoots a group of lasers in a straight line.
• AttackFollowLaser is an unused attack that was eventually restored for the Final Horizon Caterpillar.
• AttackCrossLaser is another unused attack that shoots a group of lasers shaped like an "X" (or a cross).
• AttackSimpleRotationBullet is an unused attack that was seen in the leaked footage that was seen in the SoJ internal meeting. It was restored for the Final Horizon's Caterpillar.
• AttackPlaneUpDownBullet is another unused attack that was restored in the Final Horizon.
• AttackVerticalRoundBullet is an unused attack that seems to be a bullet version of "VortexLaser".
• AttackCrossBullet is an unused attack that shoots bullets shaped like pyramids.
• AttackTriangleBatteryBullet is an unused attack that was also restored in the Final Horizon update.
• AttackShotgunBullet is an unused attack that sends a flurry of bullet orbs. This was restored for the Final Horizon Caterpillar.
• AttackAirDropBullet is an unused attack that appears to be a variant of "ShotgunBullet", where it shoots out a bunch of bullets from its weak point.
• AttackChaseShotObject is an unused and incomplete attack that doesn't really do anything. Sonic also seemingly gets hit by nothing as well.
  

In addition, there is another attack called "ChaseShot" but it does not function.

• AttackWinderBullet is yet another unused flurry of bullets, and was restored for the Final Horizon.
• AttackDiffuseLaser is a strange and unique laser attack that goes unused. It shoots lasers out of the sides of Caterpillar.

Unused Stage Layouts#

Early 4-1 Layout#

Looking at the stage thumbnail for 4-1, it seems to use an earlier .gedit/object layout from the final game. Instead of the balloons, there is a bridge of platforms that lead you to the other side.

The Stage Icon	The Stage itself

Unused Open Zone Layouts#

Early Kronos Island Layout#

To do: Get a render of the prototype Kronos Island and do some comparisons. Look into the PS4 version, which has more leftovers from Early Kronos Island.

During development, Kronos Island, Rhea Island, and Ouranos Island were all originally the same landmass. This can be seen as late as the announcement trailer in December 2021, where it showcases areas of the final game's Rhea and Ouranos Island, making this a fairly late change. This change was made because playtesters thought the island was "too big" and "boring".¹ In the final game, Ouranos Island is a completely separate area. In one of the Egg Memos, Dr. Eggman refers to the Starfall Islands as "three piddly islands" rather than five. Presumably, this was written before Kronos Island was split up, and wasn't rewritten or rerecorded to account for the change (the Japanese script simply does not specify a number).

Kronos and Rhea Island are a strange case: in-game they referred to as different islands, but they both load the same terrain (w1r03). This means you can see areas of Kronos Island while playing on Rhea Island, and vice versa. However, the story still seems to be treating it as one single area; the cutscene upon entering Rhea Island clearly show areas only accessible on Kronos Island, and the minimap is the exact same for both islands, but cropped differently:

Kronos Island	Rhea Island

This Kronos Island split can even be seen in-game: Going high enough in Kronos or Rhea Island reveals that the water outline of Ouranos Island is still present, and vice versa.

Kronos/Rhea Island	Ouranos Island

The Nintendo Switch and PS4 versions of the game include a full, complete set of terrain for Kronos Island before the island was split up. This model is internally named "w1r02", and the final is "w1r03".

Early Height Map (w1r02)	Final Height Map (w1r03)

There are two object layouts for this map: w1r01 and w1r02.

• w1r01 is assumed to be the first variant of the map, with it following the same naming scheme as Ares and Chaos Island in the files (w1r01, w2r01, w3r01). It is emptier, has all seven Chaos Emeralds collectable, and features Giganto in place of Supreme. It loads the w1r02 terrain files.
• w1r02 is much closer to the final game's Kronos Island, with most of the same objects and Giganto where he is in the final game. However, it features several Rail Generator puzzles, while there is only of such puzzle found in the final game.

Early Ares Island Layout#

If Sonic goes high enough in Ares Island, the ocean renders a watery outline of the island similar to the outline in Kronos/Rhea and Ouranos Island, implying that, along with having slight terrain differences, Ares Island was meant to be much larger.

Early Kronos Island Wind Map#

The Playstation 4 version of the game contains an earlier version of Kronos Island's wind map. Notably, this version of the wind map has an island seemingly missing from w1r02.

Wind Map	Early Height Map

Early Chaos Island Wind Map#

The Playstation 4 version of the game contains an earlier version of Chaos Island's wind map, depicting the island as having larger and more connected islands.

Wind Map	Final

Unused Challenges#

Treadmill Challenge Variant#

There is an unused variant of the treadmill Map Challenge in the Open Zone. Instead of having you run as fast as possible, this version of the challenge requires you to maintain a specific speed.

Unused Master Trials#

"The Final Horizon" update introduces a new type of challenge called Master Trials. However, unused Master Trial chambers were found in the files for "Sonic's Birthday Bash". These layouts vary from having slight changes to the trials found in the final update to being completely different. The trials also do not have an intro with the Master Kocos.

• The first Master Trial is similar to the Snake Trial in the final game, featuring five Shell enemies with drastically increased attack speeds. However, the trial has a three-minute time limit, and Sonic can use all of his skills. This is the only Master Trial that uses the unused MistakeLimit parameter, which functions similarly to the lives system in the Open Zone side quests.
• The second and third Master Trials are original layouts, featuring floating and falling platforms and each giving you thirty seconds to complete the trial. The only difference between the two are the type of enemies; the former features Cyclone enemies and a few Sniper enemies on top of slowly falling platforms, while the latter features Banger enemies. Sonic is able to use all of his skills.
• The fourth Master Trial is extremely similar to the Crane Trial in the final game. Like the final, the trial has the Ninja Guardian, but has a shorter three-minute time limit. (compared to the final game's ten-minute time limit) Sonic also begins with a level 26 Attack Stat, and Ninja regenerates HP much faster.

Unused Pause Menu#

There is an unused pause menu left in the game files from an earlier point of development. "Retry" will take you back to your last save point while Quit returns to the title screen.

Old Final Horizon Kocos#

In the files for the "Sonic's Birthday Bash" update, there are older versions of the models used for the new Kocos found in Another Story. The Master Koco models are virtually identical but has a slightly different cap. When restored, most of the textures seem to be broken.

Platform Differences#

• The PC version uses Denuvo DRM, similar to other Sonic games on PC since 2017.
• The Switch 2 version's HOME Menu icon is adjusted so the logo is in the bottom right corner and Sonic on the left side, in order to differentiate it from the Switch 1 version's icon.
• Due to releasing much later than the other versions, the Switch 2 version includes all of the update data and DLC packs by default. However, the Inugami Korone DLC does not exist for this version, which is otherwise exclusive to the Japanese releases of the PS4 and Switch versions.
  • The Switch 2 version also has it's version number as 1.0.0, as opposed to the 1.4.1 number on other consoles and 1.4.2 on PC (as of July 2026).
• The main menu on the PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Switch 2 versions have an option for the player to carry over their save data from the consoles' predecessors (PS4, Xbox One, Switch) if such is detected.
• The options menu can be accessed through the main menu in the PC version. This isn't possible in the console versions, where it can only be accessed while pausing in-game.
• All of the console versions use dynamic resolution scaling. The PC version uses a fixed resolution based on the selected resolution setting.
• The PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Switch 2 versions have options to switch between 60fps (Performance Priority mode on console) or 30fps (Graphics Priority mode on console). The eighth-generation and Switch versions are locked to 30fps.
  • On PS5 and Xbox Series X, Graphics Priority mode is dynamic 2160p30fps, while Performance Priority mode is dynamic 1440p60fps. On Switch 2, these are instead dynamic 1080p30fps and dynamic 720p60fps, respectively.
    • Graphics Priority mode is the default setting when the game is booted up for the first time on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, whereas Performance Priority is the default on Switch 2 in the same case.
• The PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions feature enhanced post-processing.
• The FMVs are in 720p on Switch, 1080p on the other versions, with additional 4K versions being included in the PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions if those are set to output at that resolution.
• The Switch version uses lower polygon meshes, lower level-of-detail settings in the distance (with more noticeable pop-in), reduced texture quality, simplified post-processing and shorter distance for foliage.
  • In portable mode, bloom is set to a lower quality, and some post-processing effects (like screen-space reflections and ambient occlusion) are disabled.
  • As motion blur is disabled in each area's scene data parameters, the "Blur effect" option doesn't do anything in this version.
• The Switch 2 version appears to be a middle ground between the PS4/Xbox One and PS5/Series X|S versions. Model and texture quality is identical to both, though some of the scene data parameters have been pared back (shadow distance is shorter, as are LOD distances for foliage).
  • When the game is set to Performance Priority mode, various post-processing effects are inconsistently applied throughout the game (most noticeable with screen-space reflections), as they can tend to be enabled if a different section of the scene data parameters is loaded in (such as screen-space reflections being enabled when going into the underground ruins in Ares Island for example).
  • Motion blur is also inconsistently applied, as it's enabled on Chaos Island and the training room, though disabled on Kronos/Rhea, Ares and Ouranos.
• When Sonic's power boost trail length was extended in the 1.4.0 update, its position was made lower than intended due to an oversight. The effect is unchanged in the Switch and Switch 2 versions, instead having it the same length/position as prior versions.
• The brief cutscene showing an overview of Kronos Island after the tutorial is completely different in the Switch version.
• The camera pan at the start of Cyber Space 1-2 is clockwise in the PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Switch 2 versions, as opposed to counterclockwise in the other versions.
• Some object distance parameters were adjusted in the Switch 2 version, resulting in some being visible from a further distance.²

Regional Differences#

Console Versions Game Icons#

International	Japanese

The game icons for the console versions are different to reflect the game's international and Japanese box arts (the two icons shown above are from the Nintendo Switch version).

Internal Name#

Sonic Frontiers is named "Sonic Rangers" internally, according to the name of the game's .acf sound archive file. Many internal files also have the word "RANGERS" in them. In addition, the title also appeared in the metadata of the game's first teaser, and in a SEGA press release on May 27th, 2021.

References#