Can we talk about Sonic Mania?

[DudeistBelieve]

Cause I just bought the damn thing and played through the first two acts with Sonic/Tails and again with Knuckles....

Brahs, Sonic is back. This is the best retro-style game I've played since entering adulthood.

 

[shrekfan246]

You better believe I put aside pretty much everything in order to play it today now that it's finally out on PC. I'm on the last stage with Sonic & Tails now, collected all the Chaos Emeralds, only have two more Blue Spheres to finish because freakin' precision jumping in those is garbage, and yeah, even with how much I love Generations, it's nice to have just a new old-fashioned Sonic game again.

 

[dscross]

I loved it and raved about it like you. I preorder it and completed it with Sonic on the day of release on PS4. But I completeled it waaaay too easily. It's no challenge - even getting the chaos emeralds is pretty easy. It's brilliant nostalgia and fun gameplay but I wish it was more difficult. Wait until you get to boss at the end of the next zone though. Amazing.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Loving it so far. No Werehog, motion controls or other superfluous gimmicks. No trying to reinvent the wheel. Just simple, back to basics Sonic gameplay. No trying to tell an epic story, just "Eggman is pulling some shit involving dem gems again, go, like, stop him". Also, nobody talks in this game so far. A massive, massive plus. Liking the little easter eggs and cameos (No Ray tho. The poor forgotten rodent). Bosses are fun too, as are the new additions to the classic levels.

My only real gripe is that in the new zones it's sometimes hard to tell which is an object you can stand on/interact with, and which is just background/decoration. They sometimes feel a little cluttered. Might just be my lack of familiarity compared to the old zones tho.

Spoiler: boss battle spoiler

Although that same familiarity actually came to bite me in the ass during the Metal Sonic fight in Stardust Speedway. You can't attack him in the original Sonic CD race. I though the Mania version is the same and didn't try to for several minutes. Turns out you can when he's just hovering along. Derp

Anyway, welcome back, old buddy, you got a good one again. Not bad for what is essentially an ascended fan-game. Perhaps that's the key to good Sonic? Getting made by people who care.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Been adoring the everloving shit out of it.

I've enjoyed the last couple 3D sonics, but Mania is something special. I haven't enjoyed Sonic this much since Sonic 3 and knnuckles. It really is that fun.

Now, I do have to dock a few part marks for not having Ice Cap Zone, not being able to select the "Secret" modifiers outside of "no Save" mode and for it not really bothering with Zone Transitions after a certain point...But other than that it's basically perfect.

It's such a shame that it got caught up in that nightmare vortex of bad PR. I REALLY hope the developers are grabbing Sega execs by the lapels and shouting "DIDN'T WE TELL YOU THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN?!" right about now...

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Now, I do have to dock a few part marks for not having Ice Cap Zone

Aye, they got Hydrocity, which is a-ok by me, but I'd take Ice Cap over Flying Battery or Metallic Madness anytime. Bit weird considering the devs should definitely know how much of a fan favorite Ice Cap is. Maybe they wanted to, but ran out of time, or they got overruled by Sega.

 

[Marik2]

Brahs, Sonic is back.

They always say that

 

[dscross]

Some of these bosses are too hard to be in a Sonic game.

They are really easy mate. It's just because it's your first playthrough. Try Sonic 2 on the game gear. Or... you don't even have any rings on the Sonic 1 and 2 final bosses. The final boss is sooo easy i was disappointed.

 

[Fappy]

I thought the difficulty was more or less on point. Some of the bosses aren't really hard so much as they are long-winded. The Metal Sonic fight is waaay too long for a mid-game boss.

I really loved it. Unlocked everything, but haven't picked it back up in a couple weeks. 100%'d with Sonic & Tails, Tails, and Knuckles. Still need to finish my solo Sonic playthrough and...

Spoiler

beat Knuckles & Knuckles mode.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Some of these bosses are too hard to be in a Sonic game.

The only one I had any trouble with what the Oil Ocean one, personally. Too much one hit kill potential and too easy to lose all your rings. The rest varyied between really easy to challenging, but that Oil Ocean one was such a remendous pain in the ass it's not even funny. XD

 

[Hawki]

Brahs, Sonic is back.

Don't jinx it man.

That said, people have been saying Sonic 'left' numerous times, so there is that.

Try Sonic 2 on the game gear.

Come on, that's cruel and unusual punishment.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again - who starts off a game with a lava level?

 

[dscross]

Meh. I just Alt F4'd angrily during the Titanic Monarch boss. Had two lives left, but didn't wanna bother with another gimmicky boss. I liked the games this is aping better. They didn't have so many lame gimmicks. The original levels and music aren't even that good.

I believe you are in a minority with this opinion.

 

[dscross]

Try Sonic 2 on the game gear.

Come on, that's cruel and unusual punishment.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again - who starts off a game with a lava level?

It's the boss with that squashed screen man. It's a bugger for timing. I've heard it's easier on the master system version because you can actually see the metal balls coming at you.

 

[Neverhoodian]

All right, I finally broke down and got this game a handful of hours ago after hearing everyone and their grandmother sing its praises. A few things to bear in mind:

-I've never been a Sonic fan. I don't hate the series or anything, I've just been ambivalent about the whole thing.

-I've hardly played any Sonic games.

-The ones I did dabble in (Sonic 2 and Sonic Adventure 2) were distinctly "meh" for me.

With that in mind, you may be surprised to learn that this is my current reaction:

I've only gotten to Flying Battery Zone so far, but I've been loving (nearly) every second of this game. The colorful visuals, the fantastic level design, the detailed animation and environments, the AMAZING soundtrack...you get the picture. Everyone else seems to be approaching this from the perspective of a longtime/former fan, but take it from an outsider; this is one bang-up game regardless of its forebears.

Actually, there is one element that made me wax nostalgic in a different way. As I was careening off springs and barreling through loop-de-loops on Studiopolis Zone Act 1 (groovin' to the stupendous beats as I went), I suddenly had an epiphany. I was feeling an odd sensation, something I haven't gotten from a video game in quite some time...pure, child-like joy, like I was eight years old again playing on the neighbor kid's SNES. In this day and age when the games industry shakes down consumers with all manner of sleazy business practices and exploitative Skinner Box microtransactions and loot boxes, it was a welcome change indeed to find myself enjoying a game that was feature complete at launch and focused on fun for its own sake rather than a means to bleed your wallet dry.[footnote]Admittedly this is from the PS4 version; I may have been singing a different tune if I had gotten the Denuvo-riddled PC port.[/footnote]

The one aspect of the game I haven't really enjoyed are the blue sphere bonus stages. I get that they're a callback to one of the games in the series (Sonic 3, I think?), but they're just too clunky and unforgiving for my tastes. Fortunately they aren't all that important and are easy to ignore.

So yeah, Sonic Mania. Killer game, even if you don't know what a Sonic is. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHqRHDZ6C5Y] Might even be GotY for me.

 

[dscross]

Might even be GotY for me.

I think based on this you should definitely go back and play Sonic 3 & Knuckles (that's sonic 3 plugged into the sonic & knuckles cartridge). Sure you'll be able to emulate it somewhere. Don't get the chaos emeralds though if you hate those blue sphere stages (although they are much easier in that game).

If you like that go back and play Sonic 2 as well. If you still want more - Sonic CD and Sonic 1.