The Best Sonic Games Available On The Xbox Series S and X

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home February 11, 2025 5 Views 10 Min Read
The Best Sonic Games Available On The Xbox Series S and X
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Of the three console ecosystems, the best place to play Sonic has to be Xbox. Thanks to backward compatibility, there are many Sonic games you cannot play on any other modern system, although some can be played on PC.

A collage showing gameplay screenshots of three different obscure Sonic games.

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Unless games like Sonic Adventure 1 and 2 get a full-blown remaster or native PS3 emulation gets integrated with the PS5, the Xbox Series X|S will be the only current console to play these classics. You also have plenty of great new Sonic games to play, meaning you can experience the Genesis, Dreamcast, Xbox 360, and modern Sonic games all on one system.

7

Sonic Unleashed

The Best 3D Sonic Gameplay At Release

Sonic Unleashed is a tale of two coins because everyone loves the daytime stages for good reason. They’re so fun blasting through areas at lightspeed, and, like Sonic Generations, they are equally fun to speedrun. However, the nighttime stages can be a drag at times, and you’re essentially pushing through them to get to the good stuff.

Frankly, the daytime parts are so incredible that they more than make up for it. When you’ve beaten the game, you can replay any level and just experience the daytime goodness. With no PC port available, playing on Xbox Series X|S is the best way to play because FPS Boost is enabled, making the game run at an amazing 60fps.

6

Sonic Adventure

Sonic’s First Full 3D Outing

A few of the most notable Dreamcast games have aged a bit, and while Sonic Adventure is one of them, it’s still an overall fun time. It definitely takes you back to the late 90s and early 2000s with Sega’s signature music at the time that’ll live rent-free in your head and the poor voice acting that, despite its quality, remains entertaining as all hell.

If you just play Sonic’s story, you’ll have a blast because the levels still hold up for the most part, and created the 3D Sonic blueprint. Sega needed to deliver for Sonic’s first 3D outing, and they did because levels like Ice Cap, Speed Highway, and Final Egg are just as fun today as they were in 1998. The other characters’ stories are when problems arise, but the sequel fixes those issues.

5

Sonic Adventure 2

A Phenomenal Sequel

Sonic Adventure 2 is, in many ways, stripped down from the original, but it’s in the best ways possible. For one, Sega removed the adventure field, which caused more bad than good in Adventure 1 due to how lost you could get, especially in Mystic Ruins. Instead of six stories, you only have two, which makes the pacing much better and more compact.

Knuckles, Sonic, and Shadow standing in Green Hill.

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The huge problem of repeating boss fights is also gone, minus one you encounter in both the Hero and Dark stories. The levels are higher quality and a bit tougher, although the treasure hunting is noticeably worse. With the introduction of Shadow and a banger soundtrack, Sonic Adventure 2 is one of the best 3D Sonic games and one of the best titles on the Dreamcast.

4

Sonic Origins

Classic Sonic At Its Best

The old Genesis Sonic games were actually already on the Xbox Series X|S store through backward compatibility, but they got delisted due to the upcoming arrival of Sonic Origins. A remaster of all four classic mainline Sonic games, Sonic Origins adds many new features. You get an Anniversary mode to play, which removes the original lives system, making it great for newcomers; plus, you get the drop dash move first introduced in Sonic Mania.

The new animated cutscenes are awesome and make you wish titles like Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania received the same cutscene treatment. You also get a full-blown mission mode, which is rare to see in remasters like this but always a welcome addition. The games themselves remain incredible, and you can even buy more titles via DLC if you want the complete retro Sonic package.

3

Sonic Mania

A Stellar Retro Revival

Created by developers of Sonic fan games, Sonic Mania is made by fans for fans. There are tons of Easter eggs and references here, but that means nothing if the game’s not good on its own.

Split image of Dark Gaia, Dr. Eggman, and Merlina from Sonic franchise

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Sonic Mania delivers 100 percent with a vast amount of playable characters, stellar brand-new levels, and great boss fights that are the best out of the classic titles. It’s incredibly divisive whether Sonic Mania or Sonic 2 is the best classic entry in the series, but both are all-time great 2D platformers.

2

Sonic Frontiers

Open-World Sonic Done Right

An open-world Sonic game was a risky new direction for the series, but Sonic Frontiers pulled it off exceptionally well. First off, the movement feels great. Boosting around with Sonic is fast, fun, and tight, and the movement has to be the most important part of a Sonic game. Then, you have the open world itself, which is very smartly designed.

Instead of most open-world titles where you’re encouraged to collect everything, Sonic Frontiers works similarly to the classic God of War games, where the amount of collectibles is far above what you need for 100 percent completion. This makes the pacing so much better and ultimately leads to a more enjoyable experience. Along with great boss fights and solid levels, Sonic Frontiers is a standout 3D Sonic game.

1

Sonic X Shadow Generations

The Best 3D Sonic Game Just Got Even Better

Xbox Series X|S users already had a stellar version of the best 3D Sonic game, Sonic Generations. A new version has to give a substantial upgrade, and Sonic X Shadow Generations delivers. Obviously, you have the new Shadow Generations campaign, adding six new stages that are probably the best 3D Sonic levels since the original Generations came out in 2011. They’re a total blast, and Shadow’s movement and abilities play great.

The cherry on top, though, is that the base Sonic Generations proves to be a noticeable upgrade over the backward-compatible Xbox 360 version. The newer remaster is noticeably sharper and smoother if you swap between the two. With everything included in the complete package here, Sonic X Shadow Generations is the best Sonic game to play on Xbox Series X|S.

Crash and Coco Bandicoot lying on the sand in Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy

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