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

[Chris Knopps]

10 hours ago, Mayor D said:

Because Nintendo are known for their work and experience with CryEngine 3...

Even if the game wasn't on the Wii U it would still suffer from the boring combat, boring level design, utterly terrible dialogue, crap story and the fact that Lyric is a stupid name for a snake. 

Well... The combat is lacking, granted, but the level design really isn't too bad to me. It's kind of a Heroes thing going on in a... I suppose kind of slower way? The whole game reminds me of that city stage where you have slow sections with enemy blockades, then fast sections featuring those digital roads that launch you forward at crazy speeds, so level design wise, I liked what I saw.

(Also loved the realism as a whole, a great break from the recent Lost World stuff)

Regarding the plot... I don't think the plot was too terrible. Kind of on par with all the other stuff we've got out of Sonic as of late. The issue was the IN-STAGE dialogue really, not so much the plot itself.

Regarding the name of a villain... I dunno, I find it catchy. I'm one of those "Robotnik Forever!!" types and find the name Lyric better than Eggman, but that's just a personal nitpick going on.

(Loved the idea of a snake villain though, that concept was awesome, just poorly executed!)

(Edit)

As far as evidence to back up old stages being SEGA of Japan and/or Sonic Team's idea it was Christian himself who stated it was their idea, not his own. Although again I have stated "If I'm not mistaken" so I'm not positive on the specifics, but given SEGA of America's entire direction with BOOM it's almost impossible to see them wanting to throw out another nostalgia package so soon after Generations since "new" seems to be their forte, "old" and "remake" is more SEGA of Japan/Sonic Team.

[Ajavalo]

10 hours ago, EllieBot said:

The only sticking point with SoJ might have been the inclusion of Sonic 3 stages due to the music legal issues:

SoA; "Hi SoJ, can we include Sonic 3 stages in Mania..."

SoJ;  "No!"

SoA; "But..."

SoJ; "No!"

SoA; "But fans really love Sonic 3 and it's music and they will pay money for..."

SoJ; "NO!"

SoA  "But this is a celebration of the classics and Sonic 3 is the favorite game of the hardcore fanbase...."

SoJ; "No...........oh await, did you say money? WE LIKE MONEY! Still....................no!"

SoA; "What if the music and level design is changed/re-imagined so as not to cause any further legal issues, so we don't end up losing more money?"

SoJ;  "There's that word again, MONEY. Alright, fine! ...but Iizuka and Hoshino are going to make sure you don't fuck this up so we don't end up getting our ass sued...........again!"

What do the Sonic 3 music issues have to do with the bad communication between SoJ and SoA? Stealth has already made clear that there must be serious legal issues and that, if they indeed can't use that music, then they CAN'T use that music, and whining about it just makes things continue to stall. I remember him saying in one of his blog posts about Sonic 3 remastered that showing acceptance towards changes in the music would increase the chances of it coming finally.

I've been watching videos and reading about the story of MJ and his team joining SEGA, and we still have no idea about who made what track and who or what company/association owns the copyrights. I really hope we get to know someday.

[Psychicmoose103]

What new tropes would you guys like to see for original zones?

I think a zone called Sunset Shipyard would be cool. Like the name says, its a dock and shipyard with a sunset over the horizon. It would be a water level probably.

[Polkadi~☆]

38 minutes ago, Psychicmoose103 said:

What new tropes would you guys like to see for original zones?

I think a zone called Sunset Shipyard would be cool. Like the name says, its a dock and shipyard with a sunset over the horizon. It would be a water level probably.

A science lab, See Sonic run through all kinds of odd and weird experiments, with a clean and slick design.

[Kintor]

1 hour ago, Psychicmoose103 said:

What new tropes would you guys like to see for original zones?

I think a zone called Sunset Shipyard would be cool. Like the name says, its a dock and shipyard with a sunset over the horizon. It would be a water level probably.

It would be interesting to see a level inspired by Ancient Rome.

I remember how the Sonic 2 manual described the Aquatic Ruin Zone as being left behind by 'roaming Romans'. So, maybe this is something that belongs more in Sonic CD but I think it'd be cool to see a version of Aquatic Ruin Zone before the ruin. Instead of lakes filled with broken marble there would comparatively few underwater sections, thanks to the aqueducts you could use for high-speed access between different parts of the level.

Like this:

[The Tenth Doctor]

14 minutes ago, Kintor said:

It would be interesting to see a level inspired by Ancient Rome.

I remember how the Sonic 2 manual described the Aquatic Ruin Zone as being left behind by 'roaming Romans'. So, maybe this is something that belongs more in Sonic CD but I think it'd be cool to see a version of Aquatic Ruin Zone before the ruin. Instead of lakes filled with broken marble there would comparatively few underwater sections, thanks to the aqueducts you could use for high-speed access between different parts of the level.

Like this:

We did get a Roman Colosseum stage once. Sonic Rivals Colosseum Highway. That game series did have some very interesting level tropes. Roman, Junkyard, Wild West and Haunted House really stand out.

[Sonicfan7]

1 hour ago, Psychicmoose103 said:

What new tropes would you guys like to see for original zones?

I think a zone called Sunset Shipyard would be cool. Like the name says, its a dock and shipyard with a sunset over the horizon. It would be a water level probably.

I'd love a horror/halloween-ish themed zone.

Set at night, lightening outside, Dracula's castle in the background with zombie, ghouls, ghosts, and bat badniks.

Act 2 can take place in the castle.

[Kintor]

31 minutes ago, The Tenth Doctor said:

We did get a Roman Colosseum stage once. Sonic Rivals Colosseum Highway. That game series did have some very interesting level tropes. Roman, Junkyard, Wild West and Haunted House really stand out.

Good point; I'd honestly forgotten all about that level.

Which perhaps isn't surprising, since I own Sonic Rivals 2 but not the first game. I suppose that I'd better track down a copy Sonic Rivals 1 if I ever get a replacement battery for my PSP.

Anyway, I still think that a new 'Ancient Rome Zone' would be a good idea. The decidedly linear design of Sonic Rivals compared to the 16-bit games means that Colosseum Highway had a lot of unrealised potential.

[Zippo]

And here we go.  Sonic News blowout in the Lone Star State next month.

http://schedule.sxsw.com/2017/events/PP96507

I'll definitely be in attendance for this one.

[TheOcelot]

"Showcase a new reveal"

Sounds like they'll show off another zone and hopefully confirm the release date.

[expansivelovestories]

11 hours ago, Sonicfan7 said:

I'd love a horror/halloween-ish themed zone.

!! A version of Pumpkin Hill as DLC, or maybe accessible though a special route similar to Hidden Palace after download (so you would know it was in the game somewhere, but would still have to locate the entrypoint!!) would definitely be incredible and loved by many!

Adventure series zones are not mentioned as being considered for the main game, but I feel like it is not fully out of the question should any zones be available later! 

[molul]

Secret zones, either to be found or unlockable, would be so awesome.

[mikeblastdude]

Sweet, I can't wait to see what gets shown. I'm hoping that we'll get a peek at another reimagined zone (preferably from Sonic 3 or Sonic & Knuckles), but I'd be happy with pretty much anything. (Come on Ice Cap...)

I'm also curious to see what the "other surprises" are, but I won't get my hopes up too high for that part.

March 16th seems so far away now... but hey, at least I'll have Breath of the Wild to hold me over by that point.

[FriendBot]

Nothing related to Mania at all but this has to be the best picture of Whitehead I have ever seen.

He's straight up pimpin'!

 

[Psychicmoose103]

22 minutes ago, mikeblastdude said:

Sweet, I can't wait to see what gets shown. I'm hoping that we'll get a peek at another reimagined zone (preferably from Sonic 3 or Sonic & Knuckles), but I'd be happy with pretty much anything. (Come on Ice Cap...)

I'm also curious to see what the "other surprises" are, but I won't get my hopes up too high for that part.

March 16th seems so far away now... but hey, at least I'll have Breath of the Wild to hold me over by that point.

I think we will get a release date too. March 16 seems pretty close to a release date.

[Knuggles]

16 hours ago, Sonicfan7 said:

I'd love a horror/halloween-ish themed zone.

Set at night, lightening outside, Dracula's castle in the background with zombie, ghouls, ghosts, and bat badniks.

Act 2 can take place in the castle.

Pumpkin Avenue Zone is the best "halloween-ish" name I could come up with

[Psychicmoose103]

9 hours ago, molul said:

Secret zones, either to be found or unlockable, would be so awesome.

Ala Hidden Palace? That would be awesome!

[Psychicmoose103]

By the way for those who do not know, we are getting new news updates on Mania and 2017 March 16!

http://gematsu.com/2017/02/project-sonic-2017-sonic-mania-reveals-set-march-16

[CleverSonicUsername]

March 16 is quite a ways out for new information, especially when you consider how long it's been since we last got anything major concerning Mania. I hope they'll drop a release date at the event, though I'm not sure I want to see any other major reveals outside of like GH act 2 or something.

I'll probably go on a media blackout around that time, but I might pop in and just ask some general questions to see if any of the things I do care about were revealed.

[Spooky Mulder]

The statement hints there could be other surprises...Mania is a digital title. What if we get a surprise same/next-day release for Mania?

[SonicComicFanboy]

I look forward to hopefully getting a solid release date for mania.  And maybe info on DLC!?  Not gonna lie, if SEGA actually allowed characters like say Nack, Mighty & Ray to be in the game as playable DLC that would make my century!

[molul]

6 hours ago, SonicComicFanboy said:

I look forward to hopefully getting a solid release date for mania.  And maybe info on DLC!?  Not gonna lie, if SEGA actually allowed characters like say Nack, Mighty & Ray to be in the game as playable DLC that would make my century!

I prefer no DLCs, honestly. If anything, updates with new stuff.

[Hero of Legend]

I think BlueParadox tweeted this. Nintendo Dream in Japan has a small bit on Mania and 2017, and this is our first ever platform confirmed for Mania in Japan IIRC:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C4ocdVxWQAQm30Y.jpg:orig

[Tracker_TD]

6 minutes ago, Hero of Legend said:

I think BlueParadox tweeted this. Nintendo Dream in Japan has a small bit on Mania and 2017, and this is our first ever platform confirmed for Mania in Japan IIRC:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C4ocdVxWQAQm30Y.jpg:orig

...what?

Mania was confirmed for Japan ages ago, where have you been? It's been played repeatedly on JP streams too, I assume on either PC or PS4. 

[Hero of Legend]

1 minute ago, Tracker_TD said:

...what?

Mania was confirmed for Japan ages ago, where have you been? It's been played repeatedly on JP streams too, I assume on either PC or PS4. 

"and this is our first ever platform confirmed for Mania in Japan IIRC:"

As in, we never heard of a system it's coming out for in Japan until now.