Sonic Frontiers trademark spotted from Sega ahead of possible 2022 launch

Sega hasn’t officially announced the name of 2022’s modern Sonic game yet

Sonic Frontiers might be the name of the next major Sonic game that’s been teased for 2022; the one that Sonic Team’s Takashi Iizuka called an “advancement” of modern Sonic games. As shared this morning on Twitter by @Renka_schedule, Sega has a trademark out for Sonic Frontiers — it was filed in Japan on October 22, and made public today.

セガが「ソニック フロンティア」「SONIC FRONTIERS」を商標出願。

来年発売の新作のタイトルかもしれません。 pic.twitter.com/DsVQmDC8DH

— れんか (@Renka_schedule) November 8, 2021

What’s interesting is that we know a new game is coming in 2022 for PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch, as teased in May’s Sonic Central stream. This was the one-more-thing closer for the Blue Blur’s anniversary live stream, and aside from a CG scene of Sonic sprinting in a forest, there was a strange alien-looking rune. It was vague!

This week’s trademark discovery potentially gives more weight to leaks that described the 2022 Sonic game as an open-world title that’s hoping to recreate Nintendo’s success with Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It was previously believed that this new game would be called Sonic Rangers, although the “Frontiers” name has been rumored as of October.

How much you’re willing to read into the game’s name is up to you, but this is Sonic the Hedgehog, after all — hopes, dreams, and speculation are part of the drill.

There’s always the chance that Sonic Frontiers could be something else, but realistically, “Frontiers” feels hand-in-hand with an open-world game concept (assuming that is, in fact, the direction Sonic Team has taken). While I’m one-hundred percent open to such a game — that actually sounds pretty neat — my confidence isn’t exactly high here.

Fun and fast traversal in a large-scale game world could really resonate with fans, yet there are so many other design and technological considerations that go into crafting a stellar open-world romp. If nothing else, I hope there isn’t too much baggage.

I can’t help but feel like Ralph Wiggum freaking out in a focus group. What do I want from modern Sonic? Everything and nothing all at once.