Sonic Mania (Xbox) Review

Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the most recognisable video game characters. In 2017 he celebrated his 25^th Anniversary with Sonic Mania and the expanded version, Sonic Mania Plus was released in 2018, bringing 2D platforming goodness to fans young and old.

Sonic and his friend’s lives are disrupted once again by Doctor Robotnik after the mad scientist finds the Phantom Ruby and turns five of his Eggrobos into the Hard Boiled Heavies. Sonic and pals must traverse old and new zones to find and stop Robotnik.

I was a Mega Drive kid and grew up loving all things Sonic. I played the games, watched the animated shows, and read Fleetway’s Sonic the Comic. Sonic 3 & Knuckles is one of my favourite games of all time. Sonic Mania was a game made for people like me. A fan made this game since it was developed by Christian Whitehead who started in the video game industry by making Sonic the Hedgehog fan games and was hired by Sega to port some of the classic games to mobile devices.

The game was made to be a love letter to all things Sonic. The gameplay and 16-bit art style were a blast from the past, bringing back childhood memories and frustrations as it mixed old and new levels. It was a game filled with references, by bringing back Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel as playable characters, giving Nack the Weasel, Bean the Dynamite and Bark the Polar Bear cameos, one of the bosses was a game of Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, and so much more. The fan references ran so deep with Knuckles’ game being slightly different and the Special Stages were a mix of elements from Sonic 2, Sonic 3 & Knuckles, and Sonic CD.

Sonic Mania was a great pick-and-play game. It was easy to play the early levels to let off some steam, and then twist the controller in anger as it got more difficult. Sonic Mania was a game that required practice and there was a great sense of achievement after passing a difficult boss or Special Stage. I was so happy when I passed the fifth and sixth Special Stages since they were the most difficult. The game felt like Sonic 3 & Knuckles with its platforming and bringing back the characters’ special abilities and the elemental shields. Sonic could use the shields’ extra abilities, Tails could fly, Knuckles could climb and glide, Mighty could perform a powerslam and was immune to spikes, and Ray could glide. Some characters were better than others – I didn’t play as much as Ray since his ability was the most difficult to use. Some of the bosses were harder than others to the point where I had to accept taking damage and use the temporary invincibility to make an attack possible.

Whitehead and his team were mandated to use some levels due to Sonic Mania being an anniversary game, yet they were still to put a new spin on them. In Chemical Plant Zone the player has a chance to play chemist and create bouncy gels in Act Two, and in Oil Ocean Zone toxic air fills the atmosphere and slowly drains the character’s rings. Maybe it’s the pyromaniac in me but I gleefully enjoy watching the spiky vine and oil ocean going up in flames.

Sonic Mania does have some challenges which I haven’t been able to complete yet. Playing the Bonus Stages felt like I needed the reflexes of a cat to complete, or maybe being older has made my reaction speed slow over time. Encore Mode is a nice bonus as it changes the level layout in ways, but it makes it harder to find the entrances to the Special Stages, and when I found them the Special Stages were crushingly hard.

I have been playing Sonic Mania with my nephews and it has been a great bonding experience. They have gradually been getting better and my older nephew has even discovered secrets I didn’t know about. They were like me as a child since they enjoyed the earlier stages and have grown to enjoy the other media in the franchise. Sonic Mania is a simple game to play but it does take time to master, making it a great game for younger players. Most of my playthrough was on the Xbox, yet I did get to play a little bit on my nephew’s Switch and the gameplay was the same, so it doesn’t really matter which platform you play the game on.

Sonic Mania was a fantastic game that would delight fans, bring in new ones, and entertain for hours. Hopefully, Whiteland can make a follow-up and be allowed to create more original levels.