Sonic Mania (August 15th 2017, Christian Whitehead, PS4, Xbox One, PC, Switch) - The New Classic

[Chris Knopps]

Hey... Hey guys... Get a load of this...

You know how awesome Green Hill Zone sounds in Act 1, and even MORE incredible in Act 2...?

Now, imagine how generic it will sound in Forces, and how bad it will be if it's on par with the graphics/detail of Forces version of Green Hill...

lol

Tee and Whitehead hyping us up, while Sonic Team will rip us a new one right after.

[Maxtiis]

8 hours ago, Depression Kong said:

Stop reminding me that there will never be a full series based on CD's cutscenes.

Never!!

But really I'm right there with you. It is rather interesting that Max Collins removed it from his blog but who knows what that indicates besides him? 

[Stasis]

8 minutes ago, Chris Knopps said:

Hey... Hey guys... Get a load of this...

You know how awesome Green Hill Zone sounds in Act 1, and even MORE incredible in Act 2...?

Now, imagine how generic it will sound in Forces, and how bad it will be if it's on par with the graphics/detail of Forces version of Green Hill...

lol

Tee and Whitehead hyping us up, while Sonic Team will rip us a new one right after.

A version of Green Hill in the style of Sonic Runners? I'd say that'd be pretty awesome.

Act 2 is sounding great!

[Sonikko]

1 hour ago, Sonikko said:

I ripped the art from the website and made a little something!  

By the way, that Green Hill act 2 sounds great. Very nice music, I love Tee!

 

I ripped the renders from the website, they are different images composed by the website itself. For the backdrop objects, I had to recreate the rectangles and the circles! It was fun! 

EDIT: Just uploaded the lossless versions on MEGA, since imgur was doing some compression, have fun!

https://mega.nz/#!p0ojQA4K!-MDvy28kzJBcAIka4xw5fIQof0KxuIG-sQycIHRbPJg

Updated the post with 3 more backgrounds:

https://mega.nz/#!p0ojQA4K!-MDvy28kzJBcAIka4xw5fIQof0KxuIG-sQycIHRbPJg

Lossless versions in the MEGA link! These come from a piece of merchandise that only exists in Japan.  Unfortunately I have no access to higher res artworks, so I'm stuck at a 1080p resolution.

[D.K.]

1 hour ago, Chris Knopps said:

You know how awesome Green Hill Zone sounds in Act 1, and even MORE incredible in Act 2...?

Now, imagine how generic it will sound in Forces, and how bad it will be if it's on par with the graphics/detail of Forces version of Green Hill...

The main theme and the level track from Modern Sonic's gameplay are indication enough that Ohtani's going with the same style and effort as Runners. He's not taking the piss like he was in Lost World. Even if Green Hill itself is as abysmally designed as it appears, I'm 99% sure the music will be as good as ever.

Tee Lopes and Tomoya Ohtani are both talented and unique composers but for completely different reasons. Both of their songs have elements that make them immediately stand out from other Sonic composers of similar styles (Ohtani's guitar is less prevalent than Senoe's (unless you're Lost World in which case you're only in the blandest song in the game), Lopes uses trumpets more than Hataya, etc.)

[Tracker_TD]

Sonic Forces could be the most putrid shitstain of a game ever made, but it's a Sonic game. Good music is the one thing that's practically guaranteed. 

Anyway, GHZ Act 2 gives me 3D Blast Saturn vibes, and to a lesser extent NiGHTS vibes. Those are the best kind of vibes I could possibly get from Sonic music. 

[-Ace-]

1 hour ago, Chris Knopps said:

Now, imagine how generic it will sound in Forces, and how bad it will be if it's on par with the graphics/detail of Forces version of Green Hill...

With Ohtani doing the music? I don't think so, graphics wise is still up in the air.

[Cyrus]

I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid with that screeching saw synth this time

 

[Sonikko]

5 minutes ago, Cyrus said:

I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid with that screeching sine synth this time

 

Man, does that sound bad, I never heard it before! I wish I could unhear it.

[Stasis]

21 minutes ago, Cyrus said:

I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid with that screeching saw synth this time

 

Reminds me of olden day carnival organ music. Not the best, but different in a good way.

[Sonikko]

I just noticed this on the jap website

Is anybody able to translate that? Are they confirming those zones too? Why are they even there in the first place. You could say they're all first levels from Sonic games, but then how do you explain Chemical Plant?

[Gemster312]

1 minute ago, Sonikko said:

I just noticed this on the jap website

Is anybody able to translate that? Are they confirming those zones too? Why are they even there in the first place. You could say they're all first levels from Sonic games, but then how do you explain Chemical Plant?

I can't translate, but I am MORE than certain that they would not include:

Green Hill, Palmtree Panic, Angel Island, AND Mushroom Hill Zone.

Too many green zones. Also, they are all too easy of zones.

Not sure why they chose Chemical Plant zone there, maybe it's the most iconic sonic 2 zone that even casual fans could recognize?

[D.K.]

They're just descriptions of the games they accompany. They don't say anything about the level next to the boxart, which just begs even more questions about Chemical Plant.

Let's take a look at more clues.

[kadybat]

10 hours ago, -Ace- said:

From what I can hear GHZ act 2 is sounding cleeeeeean!

Did y'all spot the sparkles????

 

[HywelAtTheMoon]

Looks like a retrospective. We already have Flying Battery from Sonic and Knuckles. 

[Gemster312]

3 minutes ago, kadybat said:

Did y'all spot the sparkles????

 

Already covered.

[FReaK]

I bet the special stage rings work in this build.

[Sega DogTagz]

1 hour ago, Gemster312 said:

 Also, they are all too easy of zones.

Just out of curiosity... should that even matter? If Mania is re-doing the content of each of its reused stages, there is noting to say that they can't build a Palmtree Panic with a difficulty spike x 100.

 

... that being said, what if Palmtree Panic ends up as the final stage for this game? Its proximity to Never Lake might help explain some of the shenanigans with the past stages returning and it would scratch that "make GHZ the final stage" itch that I see crop up every now and then. 

[Auroxen]

1 minute ago, Sega DogTagz said:

Just out of curiosity... should that even matter? If Mania is re-doing the content of each of its reused stages, there is noting to say that they can't build a Palmtree Panic with a difficulty spike x 100.

From what we have seen it appears that the original stage layout greatly influences the act one layout of the Mania version, so I guess that the original's difficulty is somewhat relevant to the difficulty of the Mania version.

[Gemster312]

Just now, Sega DogTagz said:

Just out of curiosity... should that even matter? If Mania is re-doing the content of each of its reused stages, there is noting to say that they can't build a Palmtree Panic with a difficulty spike x 100.

 

... that being said, what if Palmtree Panic ends up as the final stage for this game? Its proximity to Never Lake might help explain some of the shenanigans with the past stages returning and it would scratch that "make GHZ the final stage" itch that I see crop up every now and then. 

Honestly never thought of it like that haha

Regardless, I do feel like a "light-hearted" happy sunshine palmtree-like stage would be an awful setting for a final stage.

Like, I get it, it would be funny to have the "happiest looking stage be the hardest", but it wouldn't fit well with the whole aspect of the game having to lead up to something more intense. Like Sonic 1, it starts at Green Hill (happy), end in Scrap Brain (dark/evil). Sonic 2, it starts in Emerald Hill (happy), end in Metropolis/Death Egg (dark/evil). Sonic 3, it starts in Angel Island (happy), end in Death Egg (dark/evil). It's like a progression towards Eggman.

In my opinion it should have the same build up, to a final epic boss battle in the death egg or someplace Eggman built. Not a little summer resort.

But its a cute idea

[BubbleButt TV]

I don't know why but this translation physically brought a smile to my face

[Salamander]

I don't think it's going to happen, but I could see the last level - one immediately following the typical Eggman base finale - being like a standard first zone, but with Eggman's fleeing mech soaring over it, constantly spewing smoke and firing missiles which leave destruction in their wake.  The high stakes between Sonic and Eggman are right there for you to see on-screen.  It might even be more like Doomsday Zone, gameplay-wise; a sort of epilogue or coda.

[Sega DogTagz]

12 minutes ago, Auroxen said:

From what we have seen it appears that the original stage layout greatly influences the act one layout of the Mania version, so I guess that the original's difficulty is somewhat relevant to the difficulty of the Mania version.

Ah, good point.

 

10 minutes ago, Gemster312 said:

In my opinion it should have the same build up, to a final epic boss battle in the death egg or someplace Eggman built. Not a little summer resort.

But its a cute idea

 

Problem Solved?

Seriously though. I think a GHZ stage where you race through the fallout of some kind of doomsday weapon that you just shot down from orbit would be a blast. That or you could go right for the feels and have the lead up to the final showdown be a jog through the smoking crater of the remains of the most iconic stage in the series.

Now THAT would be a GHZ to remember.

[Chris Knopps]

How about this?

The final zone is actually Scrap Brain, the final boss taking place where it all began...

With the Whitehead teams creativity, it makes me shudder in excitement thinking what they could do with the concept of the original final boss mixed with whatever original/new things included.

Perhaps chasing Robotnik down a corridor full of crushing pillars while he fires at you?

I dunno... Either way I'm up for Scrap Brain being the final stage.

[Wraith]

12 hours ago, -Ace- said:

From what I can hear GHZ act 2 is sounding cleeeeeean!

It's weird to say this is my favorite level shown so far but damn, they've added so much new shit it feels like a different zone, and that REMIX holy shit. Can't wait to hear it in HQ