I don't think they'll ever make a Mania 2 :(

[J.R.]

It believe that Sonic Mania was mostly likely a one time thing. Made for the 25th and down with the 25th. Now that people are sick of Classic Sonic. 

 

 

[MetalSkulkBane]

I cannot even begin to describe how many people want and would buy Mania 2.

The only reason I'm not dismissing this option, is because Mania is FOUR YEARS OLD now and chimpanzees leading Sega still didn't announced the sequel. IDK, can Whitehead be that busy with Freedom Planet 2?

[TheOcelot]

As logical as would be to make a sequel/new 2d game in a similar style in light of Mania's success, I have to admit I always had the impression this was a one-off and was never expecting SEGA to greenlight another game because they often miss the boat when it comes to taking advantage of good opportunities. With EveningStar & Whitehead busy making their own brand-new game the chances of getting another 2d game that could reach similar success to Mania seems even less likely. 

At least we've got Origins on the way and hope whoever's developing this collection puts some real effort into it to try and bring it to a similar standard to Mania. Although, I'd prefer a Mania 2 over yet another collection.

[Wraith]

The whole "we're tired of classic sonic" thing was mostly a sentiment within the fanbase, which is a very small percentage of the people who buy Sonic games. It also didn't really make sense, considering Sonic Mania is the first time we've had that style of game in a while and will probably also be the last time. The team has also said that they're not opposed to working with SEGA again.

What actually happened is probably what always happens. SEGA failed to hold onto key talent due to bad management, so everyone has to suffer as a result.
 

4 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

I cannot even begin to describe how many people want and would buy Mania 2.

The only reason I'm not dismissing this option, is because Mania is FOUR YEARS OLD now and chimpanzees leading Sega still didn't announced the sequel. IDK, can Whitehead be that busy with Freedom Planet 2?

Whitehead is working on an original 3D platformer with his team.

[MH MD]

Original developers are busy making their own original game that they always dreamed of

which honestly? is the better outcome, as they get to be free doing what they want, and also don't risk getting burned out from making sonic games for eternity, SEGA is also smart enough to not make Mania 2 with different developers for a quick cash and call it a day.

Quote

 

 they often miss the boat when it comes to taking advantage of good opportunities

 

Did they tho?

-They actually made an expansion for Mania after a year, making more content for it, how many Sonic games get supported like that? very rare, and not even to this extent.

-They made Sonic Mania Adventures, great animation series from the staff of the game opening, possibly certainly the best official animated sonic content out there,this also set precedent for later games to get the animated shorts treatment, even Colors remaster.

-Speaking again of animated shorts, they made an animated launch trailer for Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania in the same style from the same staff, that tells you they had good relationship with SEGA, that they worked on something other than Sonic.

-Related to the point above, Tyson Hesse, the director and character designer of those animated shorts, got hired and went to fix the movie's Sonic design, and while i don't know if it is SEGA or paramount that did hire them, it's unquestionable that this was a direct effect from his name being recognized from Mania

-Tee Lopes, the composer of the game, still works with SEGA and make official music like remixes and some TSR music, and lastly he was even credited for making music for the trailer of Frontiers , which is amazing if you think about it.

-Even after years of release, they still use Mania stuff in some marketing.

 

all of this tells you a couple of things:

-SEGA actually recognize the game success, they took advantage of it immediately and to this day, even with absence of a sequel.

-How Mania was actually really influential for this series as a whole, in ways you don't immediately realize, how possibly it influenced SEGA as a whole -with the recent Super Monkey Ball trailer as an example-

[PaddyFancy]

I dunno if people are sick of classic Sonic as a whole. Maybe classic Sonic sticking its nose alongside modern Sonic again like Forces when really it should have stayed in Generations.

[expansivelovestories]

i think the fully new 2D Sonic game is coming someday, but now it is clearer that, for it to have happened too soon, it would have overcomplicated releasing both Frontiers and Origins. 

Sonic 3 & Knuckles were released in 1994, so 2024 or 2025 would be a unique time period to fully return to that world!!     

 

[King Conne]

If I'm right, Takasj=hi Iizuki told there was no plan for a sequel of MANIA in 2017... but I'm sure one day Classic Sonic (or even Sonic when he was younger) will come out!!...

[Kuzu]

Sega never make business decisions that would actually earn them goodwill...at least when it comes to Sonic, so I'm not too shocked tbh.

Whether they make something good or bad, Sega just do their own thing and march forward regardless of how anybody feels about it.

[Razule]

Maybe for the 35th or 40th anniversary.

[VO.SUPER]

I think a Mania 2 was initially being tossed around after the success of the first game completely overshadowed Forces. 

But there's a lot of Red tape and corporate politics preventing a full sequel getting made. Just a lot of conflicting visions I imagine that are just getting in the way of a vision. 

Just me assuming of course. Its the only thing I can rationalize that would stop a sequel. 

[MetalSkulkBane]

8 minutes ago, Razule said:

Maybe for the 35th or 40th anniversary.

We can't wait that long! Unlike that blue spikehead most of us are mortals

[Indigo Rush]

The fact that Sonic Mania itself even happened at all is good enough for me, personally. A sequel or follow-up of some sort would absolutely be dope, but I have my closure through Mania and that's more than I would have ever expected from SEGA these days.

As for people being tired of Classic Sonic, that's really more of an internal fandom gripe. Once you leave the Sonic circles you'll realize that very few people actually care. While forcing him into games like Forces is a detriment to their game design, the character and interpretation itself is just a neutral variable, like Toon Link or Paper Mario. Sometimes he just looks like that.

 

[Kuzu]

One of the Zippo leaks did mention that Sega just considered a Mania a one-off event and had no intentions of making a series revolving around Classic. 

They'd rather just march forward with their own ideas instead of relying on the past.

 

 

So it reads like Classic and Mania were just a publicity stunt for the Anniversary and nothing more.

 

And even Tyson Hesse made a post on retro more or less agreeing with that mindset. That Sonic needs to move forward and not back and focus more on just making the modern branch the best it can be.

[MH MD]

47 minutes ago, Kuzu said:

So it reads like Classic and Mania were just a publicity stunt for the Anniversary and nothing more.

 

One does not simply make a whole game for a "publicity stunt" 

We know how this game got pitched/developed, back when it was "Sonic Discovery" , it's nothing like that

[Razule]

Didn't they make a whole separate brand for Classic Sonic? Was that all just for merchandising?

Iizuka said Classic Sonic was a one-time thing in Generations, so I wouldn't say a Mania sequel is impossible, even if it won't be anytime soon. Mario can have multiple games featuring different styles, so not sure why Sonic can't.

[MH MD]

26 minutes ago, Razule said:

Didn't they make a whole separate brand for Classic Sonic? Was that all just for merchandising?

Now that you mention it, i DO recall that they said something to that effect after Mania, that more classic things will come in the future

 

found something even more recent than what i had in mind, as recent as 4 months ago

https://www.sonicstadium.org/2021/08/classic-sonic-may-be-here-to-stay-according-to-interview/

[Kuzu]

1 hour ago, MH MD said:

One does not simply make a whole game for a "publicity stunt" 

We know how this game got pitched/developed, back when it was "Sonic Discovery" , it's nothing like that

Yea because Whitehead and his team wanted to make it.

Iizuka had to go out of his way of downplaying the project as much as possible when it was pitched to Sega in order for it to be approved.

[MH MD]

5 minutes ago, Kuzu said:

Yea because Whitehead and his team wanted to make it.

Iizuka had to go out of his way of downplaying the project as much as possible when it was pitched to Sega in order for it to be approved.

It's the other way around, the project started small as some small levels that could be included in a collection or something, but Iizuka actually suggested to remix and include old stages, so they could sell it as a separate complete package, his suggestion made the project bigger if anything, and they approved it no problem 

[Kuzu]

13 minutes ago, MH MD said:

It's the other way around, the project started small as some small levels that could be included in a collection or something, but Iizuka actually suggested to remix and include old stages, so they could sell it as a separate complete package, his suggestion made the project bigger if anything, and they approved it no problem 

That still says that Sega just doesn't see value in a Classic exclusive series despite its reception 

[MH MD]

16 minutes ago, Kuzu said:

That still says that Sega just doesn't see value in a Classic exclusive series despite its reception 

.....how exactly? when they just said otherwise and continue to promote classic sonic in various forms, they even supported Mania itself longer than Forces or any other Sonic game, you don't just support a game you don't see a value in it.

 

Or would people rather want SEGA to just hire DIMPS to produce another "Sonic 4" instead of waiting for Evening Star to get free to make another classic sonic game in the future

[Rabbitearsblog]

I would love to see a Sonic Mania 2 and one that actually has original levels this time around.  But, if Whitehead and his crew are too busy working on another project at the moment, I doubt we are going to get a Sonic Mania 2 anytime soon, unless SEGA actually asks them to make another Sonic Mania 2.

[Razule]

29 minutes ago, MH MD said:

Or would people rather want SEGA to just hire DIMPS to produce another "Sonic 4" instead of waiting for Evening Star to get free to make another classic sonic game in the future

It isn't about what the people want. The question is if Sega would want it even if the Mania team was free.

[Kuzu]

42 minutes ago, MH MD said:

.....how exactly? when they just said otherwise and continue to promote classic sonic in various forms, they even supported Mania itself longer than Forces or any other Sonic game, you don't just support a game you don't see a value in it.

 

Or would people rather want SEGA to just hire DIMPS to produce another "Sonic 4" instead of waiting for Evening Star to get free to make another classic sonic game in the future

Outside of them marketing Classic Sonic merchandise, animations, and comics there's literally been no word of a new game on that front.

None of the recent classic merch is being used as a launching point for a new sub series, its just that...stuff to sell.

If Sega had any plans of establishing Classic Sonic as a pillar alongside the modern branch they would have done it already. Yet we're at the end of 2021 with no word on anything and the people who worked on the game are moving on to another project entirely.

 

Sonic Mania was just a drop in the bucket as far as Sega were concerned. Something on the side to sell, but by no means reflects what they want Sonic to be.

[MH MD]

14 minutes ago, Kuzu said:

Outside of them marketing Classic Sonic merchandise, animations, and comics there's literally been no word of a new game on that front.

None of the recent classic merch is being used as a launching point for a new sub series, its just that...stuff to sell.

If Sega had any plans of establishing Classic Sonic as a pillar alongside the modern branch they would have done it already. Yet we're at the end of 2021 with no word on anything and the people who worked on the game are moving on to another project entirely.

 

Sonic Mania was just a drop in the bucket as far as Sega were concerned. Something on the side to sell, but by no means reflects what they want Sonic to be.

Are we forgetting Sonic Origins collection on purpose? If they really didn't care about establishing Classic Sonic, they wouldn't even bother with it, especially with mobile remasters out there.

No word yet doesn't mean no plans, that's like saying oh...SEGA abandoned Modern Sonic main games cause they didn't say anything about a new game for him for 4 years -until Frontiers unveiling - ,or that SEGA didn't plan a new Sonic racing game after Transformed cause they didn't announce anything for 6 years, or that Nintendo abandoned main Mario games cause they didn't announce anything for 5 years, you get the point .

Dismissing other Classic Sonic appearances is silly, companies usually don't market an iteration if they didn't plan on using it for something, you don't see Boom present for example, or something like Riders iteration, if anything, if they really didn't plan for Classic sonic to comeback anymore, they would just not make him appear anywhere anymore, as simple as that.

and we do have their word on classic sonic not too long ago:

 

Quote

“Even before that, in addition to the main 3D series, there was a high demand for the 2D action games such as the Sonic Advance series, so we revived the old Sonic as Classic Sonic for the 20th-anniversary title, Sonic Generations. We initially thought that it would be a 20th Anniversary project only, however after that we had a strong demand for a new classic Sonic standalone title, that became 2017’s Sonic Mania. We would like to take good care of these two very popular iterations of Sonic’s in the future.”

They wouldn't bother saying those thing if they didn't have plans, usually they would do the opposite-like they actually did with classic sonic in generations-

 

40 minutes ago, Razule said:

It isn't about what the people want. The question is if Sega would want it even if the Mania team was free.

And i have no reason to believe that they wouldn't want to do that, for reasons i stated above, they wouldn't deny more games for more sales, especially how they already capitalize on Classic Sonic appearance for all those years even with no game on that time.