Sonic Mania

Sonic Mania is like a greatest hits album that your favourite artist may release, with a few new tracks as a bonus. It has a high level of nostalgia, gloss and polish and will really challenge your skill, reflexes and patience. There's quite a bit to get stuck into, but you may find yourself being frustrated. If you love the little blue chap and relish a challenge, speed along to the e-shop and pick this up.

This convincing comeback has been designed for the die-hards - and they haven't been this well served by a Sonic game for ages. [Issue#311, p.118]

Sonic Mania is the culmination of a huge amount of work, from people peerlessly passionate about Sonic’s 2D games. Sega took a risk allowing outsiders to take the reins of their defining characteristics and it’s resulted in the best Sonic game in decades. It’s not perfect – there are occasional glitches, some people might find the crushing deaths and general difficulty of later levels a little off-putting – but as after being disappointed with many of Sega’s past attempts at following up Sonic’s early success, Mania did what I had almost given up hope on being possible. Christian Whitehead, Headcannon, and PagodaWest Games have proven they absolutely understand what made Sonic great in the Mega Drive days and have modernised this essence for a modern audience with a follow-up worthy of standing with the best in the series.

If you love classic Sonic, you'll love Sonic Mania. Just don't expect it to change the formula. [Oct 2017, p.71]

There’s this inescapable rhetoric that latches onto the mere whisper of the name “Sonic the hedgehog”, claiming the blue blur hasn’t had a great game in decades. While I disagree, Sonic Mania is a liberating experience that needs no asterisks to qualify it. Sonic sequels have so often been rushed or subjected to gimmicks that compromise what works, but Mania finally stops to acknowledge past successes, adds logical improvements, and enhances it all tenfold with personality. It even proves that Sonic can be more nuanced than the cursed phrase “gotta go fast” implies.

It’s nice to see Sonic back on track: Mania manages to capture the franchise core better than Segas last tries like Sonic Boom. There are some shortcomings here but if you can look past them, you will get a decent comeback from the speedy hedgehog.

The hype is real: Sonic Mania is the best Sonic the Hedgehog game since the Genesis days. [Issue #29, p. 17]

Sonic Mania is probably one of the best Sonic games ever made and is a very carefully and thoughtfully crafted game. It could have easily ended up a complete mess but the design of the game is such that it uses only what it needs to and by keeping things simple, it ends up being a wonderfully focused game.

Very few stones have been left unturned to create what is a contender for the best Sonic title ever made. More than just an anniversary celebration, Sonic Mania is full of fresh ideas, balancing its source material and addition of all-new elements to elevate it beyond many other platformers that rely heavily on the same old formulas. It is a great pity that Sonic 4 exists, because no game deserves that name more than Sonic Mania; this is the Sonic 4 you have all been waiting for. The hope now is that it does not prove to be a one-off; a sequel with even more original zones and ideas needs to happen down the line. For now, though, it is a time to appreciate Sonic Mania and the incredible work Christian Whitehead and his fellow developers have done.

A game that was made by fans, but has the word “Professional” written all over it. Sonic Mania is the best 2D Sonic game ever made and a crowning achievement in both platforming games and video game music. Everything in this game was made with love and care that Sonic fans desperately needed after Sonic 4. The old levels feel fresh and new, the new levels are absolutely amazing, the music is one of the best things in this game and there is just so much to do it feels overwhelming at times. Sonic Mania is a must have for Sonic The Hedgehog fans, fans of the platforming genre and anyone who grew up in the early 90's and just wants to feel like a kid again.

After many years it finally happens that the Sonic series gets a tribute fitting of the legacy of its original games. Sonic Mania positions itself as a sequel to the 16-bit titles and makes a wonderful use of a game engine that delivers the experience of the early Sonic games through contemporary technology. With its exquisite creativity and game design and content for all occasions and moments, Sonic Mania gives the blue hedgehog something to be proud of.

Sonic Mania is a love letter to fans of the franchise, who will no doubt lap it up. But it also feels like a missed opportunity to be what Sega has never achieved before: a truly great Sonic game.

Sonic Mania is a delightful return to the 2D platforming style that first made the hedgehog a star. The love from the development team for 16-bit Sonic is evident in every moment of the game. Fans of classic Sonic must buy this game, but the excellent level design, music, and graphics will please all people who enjoy a well-thought-out sidescroller.

Sonic Mania captures what made us fall in love with this series during the 16-bit golden age, but some annoying problems prevent it from truly being a masterpiece.

This is a game that will thrill long-time fans and introduce brand new ones to what Sonic is like at its very best. Far from the tone-deaf reinventions and cynical cash-ins of Sonic at its worst, this is a love-filled celebration that also proves there is life in the 25-year-old original concept yet.

The game is bursting at the seams full of smart nostalgic references that hardcore fans would pick up on, while also managing to feel like a genuine new entry. Sonic Mania is not only everything fans of the classic Genesis games could have wanted and more, but it’s one of the best 2D platformers of this generation, and of all-time. It has taken awhile, but with Sonic Mania, the series is finally back in the club of truly remarkable and exemplary games.

Sonic Mania is a true return to form for the mascot, in his 2D 'Classic' guise at least. It celebrates the glory days of the original games while also enhancing their qualities and taking on new ideas. From new areas, imaginative second acts and some delightful boss encounters, the development team has poured a lot of passion and talent into the project. The occasional bug and a couple of brief and cheap areas deprive it of Sonic-style perfection, but it's pretty darn close. Is it the best Sonic game ever? It's in the conversation, though the classics it's honouring may stake a claim for slightly greater 'flow' in the campaigns. Frankly, it's better just to call it a dead heat and skip the argument - Sonic Mania belongs in the company of the games to which it pays tribute - the Blue Blur is back.

Sonic Mania methodically uses its sentimental appeal to great effect, but in the process, it heals the wounds inflicted by its most disappointing predecessors and surpasses the series' best with its smart and interpretive design.

With Sonic Mania, Christian Whitehead and his team have done exactly what fans have wanted for years: start with the old and incorporate the new, keeping great level design, heart-pounding music and charming art direction. Sonic’s back.