Sonic Team has publicly stated that it aims to make sure that most licensed media for the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise can be enjoyed as if it's all in one connected universe. The biggest push of this initiative is Sonic Frontiers' story, which helps signify adjustments to characters - both new ones such as Sage and old favorites like Eggman - as it aims to establish new norms for the brand going forward.
Many fans have enjoyed what Sonic Frontiers brings to the table, such as having Amy still believe in love, but not obsess over it, and making sure fans understand that Knuckles is once again the stoic guardian of the Master Emerald. Sonic's best friend, Miles "Tails" Prower, also goes through some significant adjustments during his adventure with Sonic on Chaos Island. While the revelations Tails goes through reassures fans of his character that he'll be braver going forward, the way it's handled could be seen as playing it safe more than anything else.
How Tails Was Portrayed in Previous Sonic Games
In Sonic Adventure, Tails had faced his nerves when it came to thinking he couldn't handle Dr. Eggman on his own and learned he was more capable than he thought. In Sonic Adventure 2, Tails used this newfound courage to help break Sonic out of prison and eventually help save the day when the Space Colony Ark was on a crash course towards Earth.
Tails would continue to take charge, but Sonic Rush would be the first of many games to see Tails acting as more of Sonic's informant than a proper sidekick. This would come to a head where Sonic Forces annoyed fans as Tails was seen cowering away from enemies, one of the last straws for many as it felt like Tails' character development in Adventure never amounted to anything.
Sonic Frontiers Addresses Tails' Issues
To the delight of fans, Sonic Frontiers not only talks about how Tails has been relegating himself to the sidelines, but goes out of its way to deliberately fix it. As the two-tailed fox was trapped in the Cyber Cage Sage put him in, Tails forced to face another version of himself who said he was just a follower. This makes him question just what he's been doing for the last several games.
When his anger at himself boils over and makes him approach Sonic about it, no real answer as to why Tails was behaving this way is given. Instead, Tails just calls his actions "wildly inconsistent." It feels less like a proper examination to his behavior and more like joke leaning on the fourth wall about how many fans feel like Tails has been poorly written. The writer for Sonic Frontiers, Ian Flynn, is known for self-referential humor, but the game acknowledging questionable writing outright feels like the wrong move. It clashes when Frontiers goes out of its way to remind fans that Tails is still a kid.
Sonic Frontiers Should Have Allowed Tails to Grow Up Properly
Tails is a roughly eight-year-old fox who has done a lot of things, but he's also experienced plenty of hardships as well. While Sonic Adventure 2 was a great game to showcase how much Tails had grown since Adventure, it was also a game where he believed Sonic had died in an explosion, complete with some last words from the blue blur. While Sonic ended up fine in the end, experiencing what it might be like to have his older brother figure die on him is bound to leave some mental trauma behind.
With this in mind, Tails' sliding scale from helping Sonic out directly to standing on the sidelines with his Miles Electric in hand makes sense as it reads as the fox doing what he can to make sure Sonic stays safe while remaining useful to the blue hedgehog. Sonic Lost World addresses this in particular, with Tails acting out over feeling replaced and useless before realizing he's taking things too far. Knowing this, how he acts in every following game makes sense; even Sonic Forces. After all, in Forces, every one of Sonic's friends were of the belief that Sonic was dead for six months until the blue blur is freed from his captivity on Eggman's Death Egg.
This makes Sonic Frontiers' meta joke about Tails' "inconsistent" writing feel less like fan validation and more like the game wants to play it safe, rather than possibly going into any trauma its characters may be going through. Against the otherwise dark narrative found in the game, it stands out like a sore thumb. It comes off as trying to sweep the writing under the rug rather than actively working to change it.
Other media designed for all ages such as Steven Universe have tackled trauma head-on with the delicacy and tact it requires, being a great example for kids to follow, which means Frontiers could have done the same. If Frontiers addressed Tails' actions properly, then the fox could have become a great role model for younger fans to look up to; especially with Sonic reassuring Tails that it's okay if he needs help as he grows up. It makes the "wildly inconsistent" quip into a huge missed opportunity as a result.
Some would argue that addressing trauma has no place in a Sonic the Hedgehog game, and that these elements could hurt the stories of the series rather than help it. Ultimately, it just comes down to how the topic of trauma is addressed. Past Sonic titles, such as Sonic and the Black Knight, have dealt with deep topics such as the loss of friends and family members with tact before. While it's understandable why Frontiers chose to lean against the fourth wall instead of tying everything together with such a sensitive topic, there would have been much more to gain from treating Tails' history with a bit more respect.
Sonic Frontiers was released November 8, 2022, and is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.