I was definitely interested in this game when it got announced - especially with how much I loved Mania, I was curious to see a new 2D Sonic game with more original stages on top of a new art style, and now that Sonic Superstars has released and I've played through it... well, what can I say, it's really fun!
I know some were definitely weary of Arzest developing this title, and frankly I can't exactly blame you considering their previous track record, but I would definitely say this is their best title. Which, granted, in any other context wouldn't be saying much, but I feel like Sonic Superstars certainly has a good amount going for it.
The controls and physics feel pretty good - definitely feeling pretty accurate to the classic games, and the level design is mostly solid. There's a really good sense of speed/flow, exploration and platforming throughout most of the stages - with of course multiple paths, secrets and whatnot to incentivize replaying the stages (on top of the playable characters). On top of that though, there's a good amount of experimentation and variety within the stages as well - such as the little "mouse" puzzles in Cyber Station, the horizontal space shooter-style gameplay in Frozen Base Act 2, the vines in Speed Jungle. While experimentation in Sonic games is, well, always a mixed bag, I kind of liked the unique "gimmicky" elements here. For the most part I actually kind of feel like the fit well into the core gameplay loop of classic Sonic, albeit with some slight gripes (the aforementioned in particular mouse puzzle is a bit trial and error heavy), but overall nothing that I felt brought the experience down for me. The only stage I didn't really enjoy that much was Golden Capital - kinda just had a lot of that 'Wacky Workbench' or 'Collision Chaos' energy where I felt like a lot of time I was just being bounced around out of my control, but otherwise I think the stages were largely solid at the very least, offering a good amount of replay value.
Plus of course, like Sonic 3&K and Mania, this carries over the feature of having different playable characters which is always really good. The main trio - Sonic, Tails and Knuckles - are all playable, as well as Amy Rose which, as an Amy Rose enjoyer, is always a nice treat, especially as she hasn't really been playable in a new 2D game since Advance 3 (not counting Origins Plus). All of which have their own abilities that make them unique, and one thing I like is that a few zones have specialized "acts" for all the different playable characters, of course designed around their abilities. These are optional, but I like that it gives incentive for the player to try out the different characters even if they stay with one throughout the rest of the game for the most part. Plus there's the character of Trip that can be unlocked by beating the game, which is a pretty neat touch.
I do have some gripes though. Probably my biggest is that the bosses in this game are kinda... mid. I know that's the case with most Sonic games in general, but I feel like this game has a similar issue with Sonic Rush in that the bosses mostly follow a formula of "waiting around for a moment of spectacle for a chance to beat the boss" and in general none of them really stood out to me, aside for the final boss and Cyber Station's boss. But in the latter's case, it's not really because it's good, moreso because it's basically just the Metal Sonic boss from Sonic Mania except way less fun or interesting. Kinda neat that you fight against the customizable bot though.
Another lesser issue is that the soundtrack also isn't too great. Again, just nothing really stood out to me here, on top of the stage music using a lot of the Sonic 4 instrumentation which, well, isn't great, especially in cases like Press Factory where it's ESPECIALLY prevalent and grating. Jun Senoue my man, you can make some banger compositions but please lay off the bootleg "retro" instruments.
Overall though, I definitely had a good time with Superstars. Level design and controls are solid, the different characters are fun to experiment with, and I also really like the art style here too - I know some people aren't fond of the "cutesy" style for classic Sonic but I can't help but enjoy it here, especially with the colorful characters and environments (Tails and Amy are absolutely adorable in this game and I want to hug them). And ultimately, it's certainly a game I could see myself returning to in the future.
I would certainly recommend it... though at a discount. Granted, I don't really feel like any game is "worth" $60 (though that's a discussion for another time), but especially in this game's case... well, even for as enjoyable as it is, I would still say Mania comes out on top overall, and that game's $20 versus this game being $60, and that's not to mention this came out the same week as Super Mario Bros Wonder which, gotta be honest, just has a lot more to offer than Sonic Superstars does (and I haven't even come close to beating it). Even in an economy where $60 is the standard for games (with $70 games now coming into the fray), this still really feels like a $40 game at the max, and while it's still a good time regardless, I'd probably recommend most people to wait for a discount or sale.
(EDIT: oh yeah and there's co-op in this game too but can't really talk about that since i don't have friends to play this with)
I know some were definitely weary of Arzest developing this title, and frankly I can't exactly blame you considering their previous track record, but I would definitely say this is their best title. Which, granted, in any other context wouldn't be saying much, but I feel like Sonic Superstars certainly has a good amount going for it.
The controls and physics feel pretty good - definitely feeling pretty accurate to the classic games, and the level design is mostly solid. There's a really good sense of speed/flow, exploration and platforming throughout most of the stages - with of course multiple paths, secrets and whatnot to incentivize replaying the stages (on top of the playable characters). On top of that though, there's a good amount of experimentation and variety within the stages as well - such as the little "mouse" puzzles in Cyber Station, the horizontal space shooter-style gameplay in Frozen Base Act 2, the vines in Speed Jungle. While experimentation in Sonic games is, well, always a mixed bag, I kind of liked the unique "gimmicky" elements here. For the most part I actually kind of feel like the fit well into the core gameplay loop of classic Sonic, albeit with some slight gripes (the aforementioned in particular mouse puzzle is a bit trial and error heavy), but overall nothing that I felt brought the experience down for me. The only stage I didn't really enjoy that much was Golden Capital - kinda just had a lot of that 'Wacky Workbench' or 'Collision Chaos' energy where I felt like a lot of time I was just being bounced around out of my control, but otherwise I think the stages were largely solid at the very least, offering a good amount of replay value.
Plus of course, like Sonic 3&K and Mania, this carries over the feature of having different playable characters which is always really good. The main trio - Sonic, Tails and Knuckles - are all playable, as well as Amy Rose which, as an Amy Rose enjoyer, is always a nice treat, especially as she hasn't really been playable in a new 2D game since Advance 3 (not counting Origins Plus). All of which have their own abilities that make them unique, and one thing I like is that a few zones have specialized "acts" for all the different playable characters, of course designed around their abilities. These are optional, but I like that it gives incentive for the player to try out the different characters even if they stay with one throughout the rest of the game for the most part. Plus there's the character of Trip that can be unlocked by beating the game, which is a pretty neat touch.
I do have some gripes though. Probably my biggest is that the bosses in this game are kinda... mid. I know that's the case with most Sonic games in general, but I feel like this game has a similar issue with Sonic Rush in that the bosses mostly follow a formula of "waiting around for a moment of spectacle for a chance to beat the boss" and in general none of them really stood out to me, aside for the final boss and Cyber Station's boss. But in the latter's case, it's not really because it's good, moreso because it's basically just the Metal Sonic boss from Sonic Mania except way less fun or interesting. Kinda neat that you fight against the customizable bot though.
Another lesser issue is that the soundtrack also isn't too great. Again, just nothing really stood out to me here, on top of the stage music using a lot of the Sonic 4 instrumentation which, well, isn't great, especially in cases like Press Factory where it's ESPECIALLY prevalent and grating. Jun Senoue my man, you can make some banger compositions but please lay off the bootleg "retro" instruments.
Overall though, I definitely had a good time with Superstars. Level design and controls are solid, the different characters are fun to experiment with, and I also really like the art style here too - I know some people aren't fond of the "cutesy" style for classic Sonic but I can't help but enjoy it here, especially with the colorful characters and environments (Tails and Amy are absolutely adorable in this game and I want to hug them). And ultimately, it's certainly a game I could see myself returning to in the future.
I would certainly recommend it... though at a discount. Granted, I don't really feel like any game is "worth" $60 (though that's a discussion for another time), but especially in this game's case... well, even for as enjoyable as it is, I would still say Mania comes out on top overall, and that game's $20 versus this game being $60, and that's not to mention this came out the same week as Super Mario Bros Wonder which, gotta be honest, just has a lot more to offer than Sonic Superstars does (and I haven't even come close to beating it). Even in an economy where $60 is the standard for games (with $70 games now coming into the fray), this still really feels like a $40 game at the max, and while it's still a good time regardless, I'd probably recommend most people to wait for a discount or sale.
(EDIT: oh yeah and there's co-op in this game too but can't really talk about that since i don't have friends to play this with)