Sunday, 11 July 2021 23:44

Sonic Colors: Ultimate on Switch Has Big Downside Compared to Other Versions

Written by Trevor Edwards
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Nintendo releases a trailer for Sonic Colors: Ultimate, which has key pieces of information missing compared to other platforms.

Plenty of video game fans around the world are excited for the upcoming release of Sonic Colors: Ultimate. An HD remaster of the previously Nintendo Wii-exclusive title, Sonic Colors: Ultimate features revamped and improved visuals, although one version of the game may look a little less polished than others.

Originally releasing in 2010, Sonic Colors follows the titular Sonic the Hedgehog as he quests through an interplanetary theme park in order to prevent Dr. Eggman from enslaving an alien race. Sega and Sonic Team revealed Sonic Colors: Ultimate with a flashy trailer during the Sonic Central livestream event celebrating the blue blur's 30th anniversary.

RELATED: Sonic Colors: Rise of the Wisps Animation Debuting This Summer

Shortly after the previously mentioned Sonic Central event, Sega posted a trailer to YouTube spotlighting the variety of improvements in Sonic Colors: Ultimate. Nintendo has now uploaded its own version of the trailer, but with one major difference compared to the original. Towards the beginning of the video, a window pops up listing the game's various HD visual improvements. For the Sega version, this includes 60 FPS and 4K resolution, along with "re-vamped lighting and improved graphics." In the Nintendo version of the trailer, the references to 60 FPS and 4K resolution seem to have been removed entirely.

This likely indicates that Sonic Colors: Ultimate will run at 3oFPS on Switch. The news may be disappointing for some, especially those who expected graphical and framerate improvements on the new Switch OLED model. The new version of Nintendo's console does have quite a few quality-of-life improvements – the handheld OLED screen, more substantial kickstand, LAN port, improved internal storage, et cetera – but it's still incapable of 4K resolution, even when docked. This came as a let-down for many, especially considering Sonic Colors has been a Nintendo exclusive title for the past decade.

The omission of 60FPS and 4K visuals for Sonic Colors: Ultimate is reflective of an overarching issue for the Nintendo console, which continues to face difficulty in getting cross-platform games to perform as well as its Sony and Microsoft counterparts. For example, it's been revealed that the upcoming Switch version of Overwatch 2 may have some significant shortcomings. A member of Overwatch 2's development team revealed getting the game's visuals to run on the hybrid console is "more challenging," and some of the game's higher-end visuals "might not be visible." While Switch's visuals are optimized when docked, owners of the console ultimately trade power for mobility.

Sonic Colors: Ultimate launches in just a few months, so fans won't have to wait too long before stepping into the remastered shoes of the Sega mascot. In the meantime, fans can watch Sonic as a Vtuber.

Sonic Colors: Ultimate launches September 7 on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

MORE: The 10 Best Sonic Games To Speedrun If You've Gotta Go Fast

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