There's no doubt that Sonic the Hedgehog is as popular in 2022 as he was when he made his console debut on the Sega Mega Drive (Sega Genesis to American readers) in 1991, finally giving Nintendo's plumber something to worry about.

With two blockbuster Sonic movies, and a Netflix series coming in December, the blue speedster has won himself another generation of fans.

But Sonic is famous because of those iconic '90s platform games and the new generation of fans were relying on nostalgia to get their fix of fast fun, until now.

'Sonic Frontiers' has successfully brought the heroic hedgehog into a 3D world which captures everything that made him great when he first burst onto the console scene.

After a long journey starting with 'Sonic Adventure' almost 25 years ago, Sonic Team have found a way to make Sonic work as a fun and freeing experience.

It finally feels like the developers feel comfortable letting Sonic loose in a range of big, open environments helped along by nods to the past, with springs and grind rails pushing you in the right direction.

There's even 2D platforming sections to pay a fitting tribute to Sonic's roots, and they're a welcome addition even with the effort that's gone into the 3D world.

The two different gameplay styles combine in a fun but thin story, which sees Doctor Robotnik trapped in Cyber Space, with victories over mini-bosses giving Sonic tokens to access portals which in turn let you get keys to vaults to allow you to progress to a new world.

The levels themselves look fairly realistic, with the set-pieces and platform aspects all coming together surprisingly well to give players a good amount of variety.

There are plenty of collectables to get various currency to boost Sonic's four stats, which determine his speed, attack, defence and ring capacity, with speed and rings bought using Kocos, which are dotted around the levels.

The items themselves are either found in the landscape itself, or dropped by enemies, which go from much easier foes to essentially mini-bosses, which are largely optional.

There are also actual bosses, which come with a definite boost in the soundtrack, while the characters themselves are fantastic.

'Sonic Frontiers' sees Sonic having to giet to grips with more fighting moves than players might be used to, although they're easy to get to grips with - while the changes to the movement system are also a welcome development.

Sonic Team has found an impressive balance which still feels like a Sonic game while still giving you more control with your bursts of speed or sudden stops.

It's a shame that with the brilliant character designs and fun fighting system that often there isn't much need to actually engage with enemies - although gamers will have a great time if they do so.

Although the graphics don't quite live up to what people might expect from more powerful consoles, plenty of Sonic fans are fans of Nintendo's Switch, with the game clearly geared in that direction.

This doesn't take away from the experience as a whole, but a boost for the textures would be welcome to really take advantage of the added hardware.

Still, it'd be unfair to be too hard on a game that really does hit the right notes as a genuinely great 3D 'Sonic the Hedgehog' title, and one that stacks up brilliantly against any open world platformers.

From the precise controls and overall design to gameplay and depth of content, there is so much to enjoy here, and Sonic Team has struck gold with a promising launching pad to revitalise the franchise for a contemporary audience.

Rating (reviewed on Xbox One): 4/5

By Alistair McGeorge / Philip Hamilton