Would kind of defeat the purpose of getting a physical copy a bit, wouldn’t it?
Remember when Sonic Origins was originally announced and how SEGA confused the heck out of everyone with the strange, tiered bundles of the game that could be pre-ordered? There were all sorts of different combinations available and it wasn’t very clear which one would be the best option to purchase everything available at launch. Well, it looks like SEGA is going to double down on head-scratchers for the release of Sonic Origins Plus.
Plus is set to launch on June 23 with 12 additional games and Amy as a playable character (for all the deets click here). For those with a digital copy of Sonic Origins, you can upgrade to Plus with a $9.99 DLC purchase. However, many fans were clamoring for the original Sonic Origins to be a physical release, and as it so happens Plus is slated to come to stores as a cartridge, fulfilling their wishes.
I almost had a heart attack when I thought my GameStop was selling #Sonic Origins Plus early pic.twitter.com/5HKRP8P6wu
— Snazzy (@SnazzySonic) June 5, 2023
Well, if this rumor is to be believed, then fan wishes are… kind of being fulfilled. Twitter users @MSPNova03 and @SnazzySonic are alleging that the physical version of Plus will come with the base game that released last year and a download code for the new content. Yikes. While physical collectors will still likely be happy to at least have some of the compilation in cartridge form, it seems really bizarre that SEGA isn’t just releasing everything in one package.
Playing devil’s advocate, it’s possible SEGA did this to reduce memory costs for the cartridges. Nintendo Switch has become a bit notorious for something pundits refer colloquially to as the “Switch tax,” an additional cost incurred from printing games onto cartridges with greater storage capacity. The Digital Deluxe Edition of Sonic Origins clocks in at 7.8 GB of space, so if the Plus content somehow pushes that file size a lot higher, it might be why SEGA went this route.
That said, with just 12 Game Gear games being added in, the bulk of any data bump would land squarely on any further gameplay tweaks and the additions of Amy and Knuckles (to the original Sonic the Hedgehog). Is that likely? This writer can’t say, but it’s possible. One thing is for sure: if this rumor pans out to be true, it will definitely be disappointing to many fans. We’ll all just have to wait and see if SEGA addresses this in the couple of weeks until Sonic Origins Plus comes to retail.
Source: NintendoSoup
