Is it a bit of a hot take to say this is my favorite Sonic game? Probably. Is it kind of a bad take? Probably. But that's how I feel.
I'm not even entirely sure how many times I've played this game, there's something about it that scratches an itch in my brain I didn't know was there.
And OH MY GOD THE STORY, I'm so glad that they finally realize that what makes Sonic stories so good is how shockingly serious they are. Embrace the edginess, screamo metal boss themes, fuck yeah.