#SONIC MANIA LEVELS PLUS#
#SONIC MANIA LEVELS SERIES#

Sonic Mania is the culmination of a huge amount of work, from people peerlessly passionate about SonicвЂ™s 2D games. Sonic Mania is utterly packed with reasons to play over and over. You can play through the game with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles who each have their own Super form to unlock as well. Success here nets you a Chaos Emerald and amassing all seven of these lets you transform into a Super-Sonic form вЂ“ super speedy and invincible for a short time.

Much harder to find are the giant rings which take you to UFO Chase special stages. These unlock fun extra modes and features. First appearing in Sonic 3, these levels challenge you to collect blue spheres while avoiding red, and completing these nets you a silver or gold coin. On top of the many paths through the level I mentioned before, every checkpoint is an opportunity to try the Blue Spheres bonus level.

Regardless of whether the levels are retro or new, they provide a whole pile of reasons to replay them over and over again. The retro levels are still fantastic to play, donвЂ™t get me wrong, but I would have loved the ratio to lean more to original levels. I do think there are too many remixed stages from earlier games, but even these stages introduce completely new elements over their inspirations. Some adhere to the chunky Mega Drive synth sound, while others take on the eclectic style of Sonic CD. The music compositions and stages feel like theyвЂ™d be exactly what youвЂ™d find in a sequel to the Mega Drive Sonics вЂ“ if Sega hadnвЂ™t been trying to chase the 3D dream back then.

Each of the retro-inspired stages features remade music, similar to the originals but with a little more вЂoomphвЂ™, and the music for new levels is similarly fantastic. They all feature myriad paths to discover through skillful control or considered experimentation. Each of the zones is a visual treat with colours beyond what was possible on the Mega Drive and their own distinct vibe. IвЂ™ll admit that maybe Lava Reef Zone wasnвЂ™t the best choice of levels to bring back for Mania but itвЂ™s still only the weakest of an impressive pack. ThereвЂ™s a mixture of retro-remix stages and entirely new ones and I canвЂ™t think of a single zone IвЂ™d remove if given the choice. Speaking of those levels, theyвЂ™re all pretty dang wonderful. Your first time through is really mostly a dry run for the future, knowledge of the level layouts and combining this with mastery of character control make your future playthroughs all the more exciting. You have plenty of opportunities to ascend to higher paths again if you choose to, and these multiple paths give Mania a whole pile of replay value. ItвЂ™s simple to choose an easier path, theyвЂ™re usually at the bottom of a level layout and theyвЂ™re where youвЂ™ll fall if you mess up on a higher path. Through smart level design, Sonic Mania lets you choose your own difficulty just through playing. High speeds are exhilarating by themselves but Mania rewards you with different paths to explore based on your skill and knowledge of its levels. Sonic Mania understands that Sonic was not only about going fast but going fast to aid exploration. More than any game in the last 15 years Mania truly understands why people enjoyed Sonics 1, 2 and 3. I do want to say though that if you are someone who had given up on trying to understand why the heck people like Sonic games вЂ“ you should try Mania.

I donвЂ™t want to do a too much direct comparison to other Sonic games, as just comparing to the past doesnвЂ™t do justice to what has been achieved here.

#SONIC MANIA LEVELS SERIES#

With Sonic Mania things have changed вЂ“ by using developers with a deep understanding of retro SonicвЂ™s mechanics and appeal along with a clear passion for the series we have the best Sonic game in decades. There were some gems among the pile (I have fond memories of Sonic Rush and Colours, for sure) but their quality was so inconsistent that many had given up on the series altogether. There seemed to be a mass misunderstanding of what people enjoyed about the early Sonic games, in that the pursuit of a вЂSonic is fast!вЂ™ goal we lost focus on anything else. Really since the late nineties, Sonic has starred in what have been mostly mediocre games. Sega has tried so many times to recapture just what was right about the Mega Drive trilogy of Sonic games, but never really succeeded.

#SONIC MANIA LEVELS PLUS#

Review has been updated to included to cover Sonic Mania Plus content.

Sonic mania levels