Introduction
Today we are going to look at a Sonic game, luckily he is not dead yet in this game. What kind of trouble will Sonic find himself in this time? There is only one way to find out. The first thing I thought was that this game looked a lot like the older Sonic games. That is at least good, since some of the newer Sonic games are not as good as older games. I wonder how this game will throw us through the levels of Sonic!
What did I think before playing Sonic Mania?
I was in the mood for some old school Sonic fun, back when there were not a lot of gadgets or features. Get the emeralds and make your way through the intricate levels that have multiple ways to get through. I do dislike any level that has water in it. Then the music starts that you almost drown, and Sonic is extremely slow in the water. There is also some kind of encore mode? It is time to check out the Steam page to see what this game is all about!
The Steam Page
https://store.steampowered.com/app/584400/Sonic_Mania/
It is all very clunky and uninformative, but it seems to be a new adventure for Sonic and his friends. The steam page seem to take pride in the fact it runs on sixty frames per second. I am more interested in the gameplay, and how the levels roll while you fly through them at top speed! Off course, Green Hill Zone will be back, that is a given.
Rating
I rate Sonic Mania with a 6.4 before playing.
It looks more or less like a clone of an old Sonic game, but you can be blown away when you least expect it.
Story
To be honest, I have no clue what exactly is going on. Doctor Eggman takes a ruby, perhaps the phantom ruby and used it to teleport Sonic and Tails to another island. Where they gather the emeralds while chasing Doctor Eggman’s robots to steal back the phantom ruby?
Rating
I rate the Sonic Mania with a 4.6
I am not sure what is going on, like, I have totally no clue at all. It is vague, hard to understand, there were plenty of ways to easily get across what is happening.
Gameplay
The gameplay of Sonic Mania is pretty simple, you take control of Sonic and you have to make your way through the levels, these are more intricate and better designed than the levels I remember from the earlier games I played, Sonic games from a very long time ago. It does invoke nostalgia, quite a lot, actually.
In each zone, you will be able to find a chaos emerald, these are not easy to get. First you will need to look through the zone thoroughly. If you do find the giant ring that holds this secret. You will have to play a mini-game, there will be rings to gather in this mini-game. They will make you go faster to catch the UFO that has the chaos emerald.
In each level there are multiple paths to take and at the end of each level you will encounter a boss. Either Doctor Eggman, or one of his robots will await you. As long as you have some rings with you, these boss battles will not be very hard, if you lose all your rings however, then one more hit is going to do you in.
Rating
I rate the gameplay of Sonic Mania with a 6.1
The gameplay is very simple and I rather replay Sonic 1. The idea is fun, but, it just feels, as if the mechanics don’t mash well together.
Sound and Graphics
Graphics
The graphics of Sonic Mania are mostly remixed graphics from older games, but changed and spruced up. It does have this new feel to the game, as there are also deleted levels, for example the desert zone was not in the older Sonic games if I remember correctly. I did enjoy the graphics, it is clear, and there is quite some variety.
Sound
The soundtracks are fun to listen to, and they are different for each zone. The sound effects are welcome as well, that sound effect when you start to drown, along with the sped up soundtrack, it can drive you nuts!
Rating
I rate the sound and graphics of Sonic Mania with a 7.5
I thoroughly enjoyed the graphics of Sonic Mania!
What did I think after playing Sonic Mania?
I enjoyed the new elements that have been introduced in this game. The first act will get you squinted with the game while the second one will show you some new mechanics. Likes sticking to the ceiling, some new enemies, those kinds of things. All in all, if you are a sonic fan, then this is not a game you can miss!
The level progression works the same, you make your way through a level where you keep wondering, am I going the right way? Should I take the upper path, or the lower path? If you find television you can break them for extra bonuses, just don’t break your own television, that will deduct your bonus.
Rating
I rate Sonic Mania with a 6.7 after playing.
All in all, this is a fun Sonic game.
What are my personal thoughts about Sonic Mania?
This was not a perfect Sonic game but I did enjoy it, there are many more better and worse Sonic games out there.
Rating
My personal Rating of Sonic Mania is a 5.8
I don’t have any extra personal words about this game.
Last Words
Pros
- Explore many zones as you try to find the chaos emeralds
- Collect many rings while listening to great soundtracks
- Fight bosses at the end of each act
- Try to find your way through the intricate levels
- There are a lot of game modes to unlock
- time to invoke nostalgia
Cons
- I have no clue what the story is about
- Some of the graphics are remixed
- that damned underwater soundtrack
If you want to unlock the secret ending, you will need to collect all chaos emeralds!
Final Rating
6.3
Let me know what you think of Sonic Mania in the comments!
I hope you enjoyed reading this review, I hope to see you in the next review!
If you liked reading this review, maybe you would like to share this review with your friends!
Alex M
Amazing thank you!
supersven
You are welcome!
Jaromir Krzyszczak
seems to be a mediocre game, but still, I like Sonic 🙂
Wonder
It's interesting to hear your take on this game, as you are someone who I presume isn't a huge Sonic fan. I remember when this game came out it was heaped with praise from both fans and critics alike.
supersven
It depends on the Sonic game, I am not somebody that would jump up and down for a new game!
This was an okay game!
Ángel Romero Yuste
I'm interes in this game, and i agree the worst part of the sony saga is the story. Might be a mid game but definitively is a enjoyable one.
supersven
It is indeed a mediocre game!
noone
i don't really understand why the cons are there, since non of them are actually bad...
supersven
More of the mediocre points, since there is a mediocre section, they fall into cons.
Valky
Lol @ that underwater soundtrack, I'm not a fan of it either!
supersven
Who is?
EMPERORU
Sonic is nostalgia, but to be honest i would not play it today
jon doe
crazy runner game
TallyTheHawk
Have not played it then, will not play it now ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
supersven
Now you know not to waste your time!
MonteCheveaux
I started playing this recently and it's...above average.
The controls need to get using too, but the gameplay is fast-paced and good for your adrenaline.
The artwork is very appealing and the soundtrack is very leaning on the nostalgia factor.
I am not sure it is so much a proper game as a retro tech demo and level compilation which somehow turned into a full game, which what the Sonic Team may have intended, explaining the apparent lack of story..
supersven
It is, indeed, a huge nostalgia bomb!
DonCarlos
That race to get back to the water surface brought back so many traumatic memories.
supersven
They were horrible as a child!
Pawel K.
fair review
Silentrets
"Try to find your way through the intricate levels" its cons for me 😛
supersven
It all depends on your view!
metalhead8489
nice
fano23
Not the best Sonic game but seems fun to play
Javier del Ríos
The graphics look great to me, remixed or not.
supersven
Yeah, they could have worked more new graphics into the game!
Francisco O.
Thanks for the review. It looks more nostalgic than amazing.