Sonic Mania: The Miracle Game.

 

Sonic. Mania.

What a game.

I'll have some more scoops (you'll find one at the end.) and more articles for you very soon, but today, I'm just gonna gush, I just gotta fanboy out here. My sincerest apologies.

Today (erm, yesterday.) marks four years since the release of  Sonic Mania, and I'll be frank: This is my favorite Sonic game and it's very high in my list as one of my favorite games of all time, full stop. 

It also happens to be best Sonic game ever made. I didn't think Sonic 3& Knuckles would ever, ever be topped, but somehow, some way, they did it. The Mania team did it.  

I'm still blown away by how good this game is every time I play it.

The Positives:

The visuals. Absolutely one of the best looking 2D sprite based games ever made. The amount of frames and the attention to detail is something the should be commended for. Sonic 2 is also used as the basis for Sonic's sprite and in my opinion, that was the right move. Sonic 3's is fine, but it never had the charm of the previous iteration of Sonic.

The Level Design: 

It has, full stop, the best level design of any Sonic game. It uses 3 as a base and improves upon it. The next playthrough of a level will never be same as the previous, just because of how much is packed into each level. One problem I had with S3K is that some of the stages go on for too long. Carnival Night, Sandoopolis and Lava Reef are pretty guilty of this. Not the case in Mania. No stage outstays it's welcome, and I never tire of replaying them. They're that good. 

The Special Stages:

 Mania has my favorite special stages, by far. It somehow controls better than Sonic R, and failure in them always motivates you to try again in a positive, non-fruststrating manner. The objective is not just to get the emeralds, but learn the stages themselves through repetition, like a racing game. It was a brilliant way to design a special stage. It helps that the music for it is an absolute banger.

Spanking of which.

The Music:

I have not much to say here besides the fact that TEE LOPES IS A MUSICAL GOD. Every track here is a winner. There isn't a single weak track in Mania. Not a single one. From Green Hill, to Hydro City, to the final battle with Robotnik and the Phantom King. Falk also did an amazing job helping out. He joins Tee in musical godhood. 10/10. Every track. Cannot wait for Tee to absolutely shred TMNT's soundtrack.

Mighty and Ray:

Absolutely had my balls blown off seeing them return after a quarter century of being missing. They completely make up for the lack of Amy by having unique attributes that feel conductive to the game's design. They weren't just thrown in as basic fan service. They seriously feel like they were there the entire time. Absolutely love how they control and I'm a big fan of Ray being able to just break the game.

The New Zones:

The team went above and beyond with the game's four new zones. Studiopolis, Press Garden, Mirage Saloon and Titanic Monarch all bring something new and fresh to the table. They feel like natural extensions of Sonic's universe, while still feeling like their own unique things. The amount of creativity that went into these levels just made me desperately want more of them. Press Garden continues to be my favorite. Something about a Japanese snow garden just hits different, man.

The Negatives:

Let's see...um, well, uh, I got... nothing. Sure, you could say the game is too heavily reliant on nostalgia with having two thirds of game being old levels, but honestly, considering how new and refreshed they made the stages feel, I can't justify knocking off any points for that. It's nothing but a small inconvenience to me.

My only other negative is, the fact that the game ends.

As Aaron put it, this was the game that "changed everything."

Critics loved it. Fans loved it. For the first time since the classic era, a Sonic game received widespread critical acclaim, and it's impact hasn't lessened any since then.

It's a true shame then, that it's not getting a sequel.

Listen, it's pretty obvious if you're perceptive and know where to look, but I'll say it anyway for those that aren't as into this kind of stuff. 

If you've wondering why it's been three years since Sonic Mania, and there's been nothing, is because SEGA made a planned Mania sequel go kaput for some very questionably dumb reasons. I won't be getting into those details today but it was extremely disheartening to hear that Sonic Mania wouldn't become a series. I was genuinely crushed, and I'm not going to mence words, I'm actually flabbergasted as to why they've gone the route that they have. It goes against all sensible reason, and it makes no business sense whatsoever, but this is SEGA we're talking about, so take that for what you will.  

Again, it just reinforces the fact that Sonic Mania was, and is a genuine miracle. It's a game that I cherish dearly and I will continue to do just that. I bought the game nine times, if you can believe it. I once again have to give the team that poured their hearts and souls into this game a huge thank you. 

By the Mania, for the Mania.