Sonic goes 2D again in the classic sprite re-imagining of the beloved SEGA franchise. In Sonic Mania you have three classic characters to play as in Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles who face off against Dr. Robotnick and his evil robotic monstrosities once more.

Sonic Mania is a 2017 side-scrolling platforming game, it is developed by Headcannon and published by SEGA, and is available on PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

The past and the present mesh in an all new original Sonic adventure.

After a rather hit and miss run in the 2000s, Sonic the Hedgehog has come back with a vengeance in Sonic Mania, a classic vibe inspired side-scrolling platformer with three(ish) playable characters, which include core leads Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles. Featuring updated 2D graphics and textures, Sonic Mania will have players remember why Sonic was once a fond platformer king during the days of old for years to come.

A boss fight in Sonic Mania.

THE GOOD: In a return to form, Sonic Mania is back on console with 2D animation and classic side-scrolling, platforming adventures. Like in the initial Sonic games you travel across a stage with three or four zones, make it to the end of each zone, and then face the boss of the final zone to make it to the next stage. Sonic Mania is a fantastic love letter to fans as well as an excellent introduction piece to the new generation of Sonic fans. In fact if it wasn’t for the player coming to the realization of whatever machine they had booted Sonic Mania on, you could easily mistake for one of the Genesis games because it’s that close to its predecessors in detail, polish, and overall shear enjoyment.

Gotta go fast!

THE BAD: The controls can be rather annoying and even frustrating at times, probably even more so to those who aren’t quit used to playing the initial Sonic releases.

Sonic also got his groove back.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Sonic Mania is a near perfect love letter to gaming of old for modern and classic Sonic fans. Almost every asset from top to bottom feels like you’re playing a Genesis cartridge again, and that’s a fantastic feeling to have. Controls however, aren’t necessarily too welcoming to some newcomers.