Video: Sonic Superstars Side-By-Side Graphics Comparison (Switch & PS5)

Not bad at all. No way am I spending £55 for it though, I’ll get it when its inevitably sub £25 by the end of the year

Ya i am thinking a $30 game.

Question : What do you make of Sonic Superstars' visuals on Switch? Which version will you be picking up?

Me : Well, I will pick the PS5 version, for the best version on console as my PS5 games library really depended on 3rd party kids games.

I went for the Switch version. I won't lie, after seeing reviews on the PS5 version and no one talking about it on the Switch, I was left a bit worried whether or not I picked the wrong version. Seeing this comparison video makes me feel much better.

I wonder why the switch is even being compared at all here? At the time of it's release, the focus was on portable gaming, not heavy graphics like ps4 and xbox1.

Even after all these years later, it's no surprise ps5 is going to outshine Switch in every department. It will be the same for Switch 2 as well. Nintendo got out of the graphics wars years ago. It's now Microsoft and Sony going head to head.

It looks fine on Switch, but more importantly it seems to run really well. I will be picking it up for Switch.

@WaffleRaptor01 I think it's mostly so people can check the game hasn't been too badly compromised when squeezed onto the Switch. Sometimes not enough time or care has been taken, e.g. Mortal Kombat 1, to get the game running acceptably.

Looks and runs great. They did a good job.

The PS5 version looks a lot better as expected, I especially like the depth of field effect and the improved lighting.

That being said, the Switch version looks good enough and it looks like it's running well which is the most important thing.

The reflective waterfall effect is lovely on the PS5, but I’m less keen on the “out of focus” backgrounds. Probably not something you’d notice when playing, but reminds me of the 3D effect on New Super Mario 2 that I just turned off and played as 2D.

@gaga64 I actually like it, it helps me to focus on the things that matter in the stage. Too much sharp stuff happening at a fast speed makes the picture feel a bit busy to me.

Sonic games always get 50% off about a year after release.
I'll wait for that.

This isn't the comparison that is most jarring or interesting. That would be the levels that feature shadows versus the levels that have zero shadows. It's pretty funny.

@WaffleRaptor01 For me, the comparisons between games that should run on a potato are helpful. There just shouldn't be much of a difference in the case of this game. But SEGA never commits to doing the best Sonic game they could.
...if only I could figure out why....
OH right. Sonic Forces sold like 5-7 million copies. In other words, why should they try? Might as well be pokemon fans.

Props to Arzest for shipping the only Sonic game on Switch to run at 60fps (obviously not counting sprite based games because that's too easy). Remember their last outing on this console was Balan Wonderworld.

@WaffleRaptor01 Because it's interesting to see how development teams scale their games across different tiers of hardware.

Great choice to prioritise the framerate in a game like this.

well done, works smoothly

Ill be waiting for a discount as well. Im not really into the co-op experience. It feels like alot of the extra features are an afterthought.

Atleast underneath the rough edges, there's an okay single player game. Should've focused on that.

Maybe one day classic Sonic will get a proper Sonic 4. Im not counting Mania as that was more of a celebration than a sequel.

@HaileySheridon Humans can swim. I can't swim.
Hedgehogs can swim. Sonic can't swim.
I have no issue here.

@HaileySheridon Sonic never took swimming classes.

Could tell exactly from that video, but it looks like the Switch version is hitting pretty close to 60fps. That's way more important that high res textures and lighting effects for a platformer. Looks like they made decent compromises to deliver on the Switch.

I was greatly interested in this as I was with Mega Man 11, but like that game I’m just not getting pulled in after a broader overview

Switch version for me. I'm also not feelin' the blurred background effect of the PS5 version.

Switch version is hitting 60 frames just fine

@Turbo857 @gaga64 I don't like the blurred background on the PS5 version either... PC version let's you switch off Depth of Field but the option is annoyingly missing from the PS5 version.

Looks fantastic, but the price of new games is getting ridiculous. Spider man 2 on ps5 is a prime example.

@Axelay71 Look at this way. In 5 years games will be 90.

Looks quite nice on Switch. Not much difference to the PS5 version IMO.

@GoshJosh yes that's the scary thing, I remember when games were £1.99 to £10 lol 😆

Awesome! The differences in the video ease my concerns of a far superior port of the PlayStation 5 version. I am typically.one to want the games I purchase to have the best visual fidelity, but in this case, I will be picking this up on Nintendo Switch. Not just because of the visuals, but also because of everyone in my family being able to play it. Great stuff when the ports run similarly.

@Axelay71 I, too, can remember that. I can also remember spending £40-£50 on SNES games ~30 years ago, so in real terms video games are a relative "bargain" nowadays...

Yeah, I'm not missing anything by choosing to get it on Switch.

@LieutenantPete yes & no still prefer 16bit gaming personally. Most games nowadays are padded out with unnecessary crap to justify the price tag. Sick to death of openworld roguelite stuff to be honest. For me the industry feels stuck in a rut. Love games like Uncharted, Dantes inferno, original God of war. Linear is a dirty word in today's gaming.

wow that blurred background on PS5 is really annoying. I actually prefer the Switch version despite the low level of detail.

WTF does the backgrounds in the PS5 port looks so blurry? Now I know why Push Square dropped two points from their review.

@Axelay71 I guess it's no different to music and films... As you get older, you naturally become jaded and get that "heard/seen/played it all before" feeling.

Just like I find myself listening to the same albums over and over, so I find myself revisiting the same games.

That said, I'll probably pick this up when it's cheaper. I'm also looking forward to SMBW amongst other things. There are still loads of good games out there, it's just getting harder to sort the wheat from the chaff (which is where Nintendo Life comes in!)

@LieutenantPete yes unfortunately I need to come to terms with the games industry doesn't cater or particularly give a damn about a 52 year old gamer lol. But open world is getting monotonous, along with Metroidvania, roguelite. Its like PSVR2 purchased one but again disappointed with the range if games.

@HaileySheridon There is only one underwater level and if you take the upper path (ie are good at platforming and don't fall off) you avoid going into the water for almost all of it. Its definitely the best Sonic water level I've played and actually was a surprise highlight for me when I played it! it has some really great ideas and gimmicks that made it very fun and visually interesting.

For the character you mentioned that you want to play as, Amy has Sonic's ability that if she runs fast enough she can run accross the surface of the water, and she also has a double jump to make the tricky platforming easier... and of course Tails can fly. So if my memory is correct you should be able to basically avoid the water altogether except for the boss of that zone, which is quite fast as its a "jump up the platforms to get to the surface and hit Robitnik" type deal for the first half, and in the second half, the missiles he fires at you create slipstreams in the water behind them, which you can ride to move really quickly. Tails can actually swim in some Sonic games - I've not tested if he can in Superstars yet!

@Clyde_Radcliffe @betterman @Serpenterror I personally like depth of field effects for backgrounds, like selective focus in films or portrait photography, to bring the forground into focus and add realism as if it was shot with a real high quality camera with a low f/t stop lens. Its an impressive but pretty gpu intensive shader thats put on, the reason Switch doesn't have it is it would slow it down to a near halt, like the framerate in Links Awakening in certain outside areas.

However I have seen many many people moaning about the "fuzzy" backgrounds in the PS5 version and prefering the Switch version for this exact reason, which makes me laugh as I'm aware its meant to be a selling point, but I can totally understand why people would want everything to be tack sharp. For me, any time Shallow DOF is in a game it should have an accessibility option to turn it off, as not only do some people dislike it, for others it even gives them motion sickness or headaches, similar to VR, because its tryign to trick the brain into percieving genuine depth on a 2d image.

While the difference in resolution may look noticable in side by side comparissons, especially in still pictures, its worth noting that the Switch version runs at 720p, the exact pixel for pixel resolution of the screen. It couldn't look any sharper if it tried, its as sharp as the hardware allows. The only "downgrade" that really matters is the lower resolution textures, but its so sharp and smooth in movement that it isn't noticable at all to me. I think its the perfect port and I'm very relieved that it plays so well. 60fps, 720p, no frame drops, no uneven frame pacing, no dynamic resolution changes. There aren't many multiplatform 3rd party Switch games you can say that about these days. Kudos to Arzest!

It's a tough call for me because I really like the blurred backgrounds on PS5 because it creates a nice clean distinction between foreground and background. I sometimes tend to have a hard time telling between the two in some games. Otherwise, I think the Switch version runs great and because I have all the other classic Sonics on Switch I'll probably go for the Switch version. Nice job, Arzest, Sonic Team, and Sega!