A Critique on Sonic Mania

Released in August of 2017, Sonic Mania was my most anticipated THING of last year. As someone who claims Sonic 3 & Knuckles to be their favourite game of all time, how does Mania live up to that legacy?
Mod links:
Sonic 3 Checkpoints - gamebanana.com/skins/159464
Sonic 3XP - gamebanana.com/skins/157845
Dab Mania 2 & Knuckles - gamebanana.com/skins/157221
True Blue/Rad Red - • Video
Sonic 3 Colour Palette - • Video
Sonic 3 Sound Effects - • Video
Oh No - • A Sonic Mania mod but ...
There’s also this Sonic 3 Monitors mod gamebanana.com/skins/157502
And this Classic Checkpoints (4 Pack) mod that features ALL of the past checkpoints gamebanana.com/skins/157431
TIMESTAMPS:
Prologue - 00:00
Introduction and Context - 01:22
Narrative Summary - 05:55
Controls - 10:33
Full Zone Analysis Begins - 15:24
Green Hill Zone - 16:12
Chemical Plant Zone - 18:20
Studiopolis Zone - 20:38
Flying Battery Zone - 22:58
Press Garden Zone - 25:31
Stardust Speedway Zone - 28:44
Hydro City Zone - 33:16
Mirage Saloon Zone - 35:26
Oil Ocean Zone - 39:22
Lava Reef Zone - 42:14
Metallic Madness Zone - 45:26
Titanic Monarch Zone - 48:43
Egg Reverie - 56:05
All Main Zones Finished - 59:38
Special Stages and Bonus Stages - 1:00:46
Aesthetics - 1:06:13
Conclusion - 1:12:01
All Footage, Images, Music and Sounds are from:
Sonic Mania (2017)
Sonic Forces (2017)
Sonic 3 Complete (fan hack of Sonic 3 & Knuckles - 1994, 1997, 2013)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992 - Mega Drive)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992 - Game Gear/Master System)
Sonic CD (1993-2011)
Sonic the Hedgehog (1991 - Beta)
Sonic R (1997)
Knuckles Chaotix (1995)
Sonic Triple Trouble (1994)
Sonic Chaos (1993)
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 (2010)
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 (2012)
Sonic Advance 3 (2004)
Sonic Generations (2011 - PC/Consoles and 3DS)
Sonic Adventure DX (1998-2003)
Sonic Lost World (2013)
Mega Man 9 (2008)
Shovel Knight (2014)
Sonic the Hedgehog comic book series (Archie, 1992-2016)
The Simpsons (1989-)
Twitter: / telekinesticman
Discord Group: / discord

[@telekinesticman]

Hey everyone, I just released a follow-up to this video where I critique the new elements of Mania Plus! Check it out here - kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZnbRY5R_qKyGqMU

[@mlgpapas1319]

bruh doesn't angel island have a beach area?

[@lorenzorafael4600]

I’ve Been Thinking Of Crictising Sonic Mania,Then I Started My Plan…Like You Did,Then I Thought And Thought Again Until I Realized………. THE LEVEL DESIGN IS WAY TOO SAFE! The Game Is Way Too Easy,As A Cuphead Enjoyer I Can Confirm The Difficulty Here Is Nothing Compared To Cuphead’s Difficulty. I Really Want Frontiers To Be Hard,Sonic Forces Is Too Hard In The First Time,Origins And Mania Have CHAOS EMERALDS! Then I Thought Again…It Gets Easy To Collect Once You Get The Hang Of It. That’s It:The Difficulty Is The Perfect Critiscm,But That’s One Of The Only Ones I Could Think Of. Edit: Encore Mode SUCKS,It Is Mania Mode But With Color Palletes Changed,And More Lives That Change Your Charater. No New Zones,If They Got Scrap Brain Instead Of Chemical Plant Then I Would Feel The Sense Of Freedom After Labyrinth…Even Without One. Just…New Zones For The Game…!

[@f.l.infinite8444]

Top 6 Hard-Boiled Heavies according to strength 6. Heavy Gunner 5. Heavy Shinobi 4. Heavy Magician 3. Heavy Rider 2. Heavy King 1. *Heavy Weapons Guy*

[@spiderninja8779]

6:15 just like in Sonic 1 the guys from the mania team are geniouses

[@telekinesticman]

Ah yes, must be some kind of "nostalgic callback"...or maybe they were just lazy. Haha I'm not sure, it bothers me either way.

[@jamietaljaard]

lol

[@telekinesticman]

Beautiful.

[@lewis9950]

Love it ❤️

[@sonic1st1st1st]

Living in the city

[@helpfulapple3125]

NTA at all, she violated your rights

[@ApocHedgie]

I do disagree on some points here, but overall you've done a great job explaining your thoughts here. Though I may not agree with everything, I respect your opinion. Nice work on the video!

[@telekinesticman]

How dare you disagree with my points?!?! I HATE YOU TED just kidding keep being epic and ripping those models (you know you gotta get Pauline next if you want that SFM fame)

[@xXSpongeBroBrownPantzXx]

TelekinesticMan great video watched the whole thing. I knew I was going to. Love this game, love you

[@wellsshady]

People will literally list factual things they noticed about the game they played and someone will say "I don't agree" 💀💀💀

[@Susseton]

@@telekinesticman but why didn't you respect my opinion on choosing tidal tempest over hydrocity? I agree with how you pronouce it but isnt that disrespectfully disagreeing with the other pronouncement?

[@Scroteydada]

I think Oil Ocean was chosen basd on what they could do with it and not poularity, while also keeping in mind how many zones per game (1 sonic 1 stage, 2 sonic 2 stages etc). They wanted to reintroduce at least one account of every sonic stage gimmick and OO provided them an opportunity to use Sandopolis, Marina Madness and the sinking in goop idea. The essence of Mystic cave can be found in Lava Reef and Press Garden act 2. I don't think it would've been a good choice, personally. Endless Mine tho.........

[@melad5926]

I love this so much! It explains everything that I've kinda thought about Mania as well. I feel like the plot should have involved egg man using the time stones (from the returning little planet) to warp sonic around, then later on the heavies would try to rebel and take the time stones but accidentally send Sonic to forces at the end. INSTEAD OF HAVING INFINITE AS A VILLAIN WHY NOT HAVE THE HEAVIES WHICH ARE NOW EQUIPPED WITH TIME STONES??!!!

[@telekinesticman]

Thanks for the praise, and your idea sounds pretty cool! Unfortunately that's more of a Sonic Team issue than something that the Mania devs could have handled themselves, but anyone replacing Infinite is some kind of improvement, haha.

[@SydeLeaderRay]

37:16 - "I just really like trains." Aiiii a proud Railfan Enthusiast! Nice! I like Sonic and trains too.

[@TheStoryBlueprint]

I still hope we get the S3&K iOS port someday. Really not sure why SEGA seem to disregard what is one of their best games, and probably THE best Sonic game.

[@rlinders9972]

Rights issues.

[@TheStoryBlueprint]

R Linders I just don't believe a few music tracks is a big enough reason for SEGA not to cash in on an entire game. They even swapped them for new ones in the PC version.

[@Scroteydada]

I'd like a heavier remake to be honest. Use the same engine but have the camera pulled back slightly, sprites redone as a sort of oil painted style with a Rayman quality to them idk, the ability to swap out songs from a selection of fan remixes (aka the best idea ever as there are 20 years worth of content there), do the sonic 3 complete details and you're good to go. Mania proved that Sega wants to -milk- make the most of the past before we move on. This seems like some great work for the Mania team - classic Sonic's audience is a lot bigger now, they have a chance to make a great remake of an already wonderful game.

[@TheStoryBlueprint]

Harry Willmore I'm certainly interested to see where Classic Sonic's art style goes from here. I feel like the novelty of returning to pixel art will wear off for a lot of people with more releases, and given that some members of PagodaWest were on the Sonic 2 HD team, I'd be surprised if they didn't try to evolve it in some way. I personally would love to see hand-drawn sprites in the style of the CD and Mania animations, and Rayman has proven how good that sort of thing could look.

[@Scroteydada]

Comfortably Dumb UNPOPULAR OPINION ALERT: Sonic 2 HD looks like plastic and plays like porridge. The original sonic sprites were built around the limitations of the size of the pixels and how big sonic was to be on the screen. The pixels aren't just an ugly sign of age, they were an art device in their own right- like a brush stroke. Without these limitations, sonic would've looked probably more like a toei version. It's like ordering a small couch for a small room, but then realising it's actually for a bigger room, but keeping it anyway. Change everything or it looks wrong. Sorry Sonic 2 HD, but you are not replacing the mobile version. The project should've been cancelled after the mobile remake came out. Their talent would be best suited to something more experimental and original, as it wouldn't carry the same consequences as a flop with the official series. Why is it so impossible to remake a game while retaining all the qualities of the original? Because it's hard to tell what (graphically) needs changing and how. -N Sane trilogy -New and Tasty -Shadow of the Colossus -Live and Reloaded Fuck 'em.

[@bigbadbyrnes]

I remember swapping chats with you when it launched making sure you knew it was live - cheers from a fellow Brisneyland resident. Great content m8

[@JPGH_Extras]

I just got done watching the whole thing and man, let me tell ya... You deserve ALLOT of props for this! An 1 hour long video filled with very valid points and arguments is such a nice treat for me! :D

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you so much! The only thing that I sort of want to ask is that people try to share this around just a tiny bit. I never like asking people for stuff like that (rate, comment subscribe and whatever), but I know my audience reach isn't too large and would love to see more people watching this video. But anyway, thank you so much again! Glad you enjoyed the analysis.

[@clarku4]

Paused the video and realised an hour had gone by. Didn't feel that long. Fantastic video. Really great critique. I'm playing through the game right now and was great to hear your thoughts and analysis. Just subbed and look forward to watching more stuff. Cheers!

[@EnnZedder]

I feel like your idea of having the HBH's have individual fights in Titanic Monarch Act 2 was actually meant to happen, but I believe it was cut either due to it being too long or too rush. The only Sonic Mania mod I really want to see is one where there are actual zone transitions between the ones that don't have them, though I don't know how hard that would be to program in. I really wish the story was a lot clearer and if the team was given another month or two I reckon they could've completed these transitions, though I think people were already mad that they were behind release schedule and any more delay might've harmed sales. An awesome analysis overall and I do agree with basically everything you've mentioned. Imo, Sonic 3K and Sonic Mania are on par with one another; where Sonic 3K falls flat Sonic Mania excels and vice versa. You've got a new sub!

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you! I pretty much agree with your comparison of 3&K and Mania, I just feel 3&K will always have that slight edge over it. That's not to say that a future Sonic game couldn't be even better than 3&K, however. I am totally in favour of that happening one day!

[@EnnZedder]

Me too! I'm sure the next classic-styled Sonic game will have more original stages, or at least it should have original stages. The modern games should also take this into consideration too. The enjoyment of exploring new locations is what makes the Sonic series so enjoyable in my opinion, and the constant need for nostalgia is what holds it back. Fingers crossed!

[@Iamwolf134]

Though technically, they did have them in 1.04, what with the hang gliders from flying battery to press garden.

[@tylerd1297]

In Mania Plus\the most recent version of Mania all have transitions now. Though some are still pretty vague

[@magma1264]

I perfectly agree with your opinions on the story. Sonic 3 & Knuckles felt like a big grand adventure. It felt like I was watching a movie about Sonic and Tails traveling across the world just to defeat Robotnik. I think the zone transitions, the music and even the story helped give the game a sense of scale (the story was much bigger than anything from the previous games). The final boss even felt like a much greater threat than any previous final boss due to it's size and intimidating music (the game was really good at setting a tone thanks to it's music). I also get this same feeling from playing Sonic Unleashed. Sonic Mania is great but I don't get that same feeling that S3&K delivers. It feels like Sonic and Tails are just going through random levels and nothing about it really feels epic.

[@a_y8932]

This was a roller coaster from start to finish. Amazing video on sonic mania! I've been waiting for a video to go in depth about the game. You have my subscription and a like.

[@mikeshoe4779]

that intro is really great

[@telekinesticman]

Thanks! I put a lot of work into making that bit, glad you enjoyed it.

[@coolcamera6265]

Jesus this was longer than I thought. Great vid thought, and bold move to! Now we wait for the comments counteracting everything you say..

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it, hopefully the comments aren't that bad, haha.

[@OtakuNewsSource]

Really good video. I quite enjoyed how indepth you was about your likes and dislikes with each of the levels, and even going as far as to add in nitpicks about the game itself. I mean, yeah, in general nitpicks aren't seen as things people care to hear, but I found it quite amusing to hear things such as you preferring Sonic's darker blue color over the more light blue color. I definitely appreciate you pointing out a lot of the throwbacks in the levels to previous Sonic games. The majority I knew, but things like the Knuckles boss in Mirage Saloon being taken from Sonic Chaos went over my head because while I've completed that game before, it's not one I go back and play multiple times, or the Metallic Madness gacha machine boss being a reference to the Knuckles Chaotix boss is one that I had no idea since...I own the game but never played it before. I want to play Knuckles Chaotix...some day. I understood everything you had to say and quite frankly felt the same way about a lot of things. There were some moments that I disagreed with you on, such as Metallic Madness I thought was a great stage in Mania, but then again I love CD and Metallic Madness is my favorite Eggman base in all of the classics. Also still feel that Tee Lopes best original zone music goes to Studiopolis and not Mirage Saloon. Though, you completely nailed it in regards to Mania and its story, and it's such a shame that Mania dropped the ball in terms of telling a coherent story because the classics done a fine job of telling coherent stories. I know there was the added challenge for Mania since it was jumping across South Island, to Westside Island, to Little Planet, and Angel Island, but that's why stage transitions are so important. Mania lacking stage transitions for majority of the levels badly hurt the story itself and was a shame because for the levels that did receive them were quite nice to watch. I practically was screaming when I saw the Stardust Speedway Act 1 to Act 2 transition because when Mania was announced I just KNEW Stardust Speedway would be the level that represented CD in the game and not Quartz Quadrant, and when it was revealed that was true, but act 1 took place in the Past, it was a big twist I didn't see coming which level me wanting to know would the entirety of Stardust Speedway take place in the Past? Would we go to the Present? Maybe Good Future or Bad Future? So having that big question that the Sonic CD fanboy in me finally get answered with a nice stage transition was great. Goodness is Stardust Speedway Act 2 my favorite act in the game, while the zone itself is my favorite in the game (with best music, too!) But I digress. Anyways, crazy that Mania didn't reach the levels it could in story, and Sonic3&K blows it away in story and it was released 20+ years ago. For me... Mania currently sits at being my second favorite classic Sonic game of all time (right behind Sonic CD), but my second favorite Sonic game of all time (1. Sonic CD, 2. Sonic Mania, 3. Sonic Adventure 2). For the whole Sonic3&K vs Mania thing that I know many fans like to discuss, I just simply prefer Mania selection of levels more than 3&K, and just find it to be a more fun game for me to pick up and play. Yeah, its story pales in comparison, but things like having a better level selection, making Blue Spheres still something playable in the game while having the best special stages in the entire franchise, and having one of the greatest soundtracks made by Tee Lopes makes me still prefer Mania in the end. I can see Mania becoming my absolute favorite Sonic game of all time in due time as the years go on. It honestly doesn't even feel that great for me to go back to the classics because I miss the drop dash a lot and it just feels like a staple move that was stripped away from Sonic in 1, 2, CD, and 3&K... And it's weird to kinda feel this way because it was literally just introduced not even six months ago and already it got me like this. Mania still is my 2017 GOTY. A true love letter to those that wanted an actual good 2D Sonic game to follow after 3&K. Anyways, great video!

[@JP-GH_Animations]

"Who the hell was asking for Metallic Madness to come back?!" Me who considers it one of my favorite levels: o n o ' '

[@Scroteydada]

One of the best of these on YT. Subbed.

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you very much! Glad to see this video is already getting around a bit and that people are enjoying it.

[@majestic3992]

This was actually an extremely good video. I've liked and subbed!

[@bigfishafro6343]

Yep

[@cloud4908]

I only stuck around because everything you has to say was extremely informational and interesting!

[@JakeG246]

I think I agreed with pretty much all of your points (Australian minds must think alike). S3&K will always be my favourite, and I think if it's ever re-released in Mania's engine (and perhaps with Tee Lopes doing arrangements of each track) it would be the definitive 2D Sonic experience.

[@telekinesticman]

Ohh you bet. I am hoping that the March SXSW panel reveals a PC and console release of the Retro Engine Sonic ports of 1 and 2, along with 3&K. That would be incredible.

[@JakeG246]

That and actually letting the Mania team create an entirely original game with cohesive story between levels. By the way, I have to agree with your opinion on the Sonic 3 sprite. I think it's the best one too. A lot of people seem to say the Sonic 2's sprite is best but I disagree. Thanks for replying!

[@telekinesticman]

No problemo! A brand new Classic Sonic title is right up my alley, and yes, Sonic 3 has the best damn sprites.

[@stephenobrien6983]

This video is great, it's the best one I've seen on Mania. It's a damn shame the view count is so low though....it definitely deserves more. Are you going to do a follow up on your thoughts on the Encore mode?

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you! And yes, I completely intend to critique Mania Plus at some point in future. It definitely won't be as long as this video, but I'll cover all of the new features and changes at some point down the line. Currently I have a critique in the works for Jurassic World Evolution, but my university semester has just started so I can't guarantee the video will be done any time soon. Script is still in the works. But once that's done, Mania Plus is *planned* to be next. Thanks again!

[@elmonextbot]

You actually changed my mind with all of your points here.

[@Sydney_Angelyt]

I like Sandopolis. The art style reflects the challenge of the zone.

[@Zayelion]

The Real TelekinesticFan is real TelekinesticWaifu material.

[@slob5041]

Mania feels like a great compromise for being unfinished

[@fun-epersonnproductions4002]

Telekman: "Sonic Mania is the best Sonic game in 20 years." SA1/2 fans: No

[@Segagens]

Anybody else noticed the "Pink Bot"-sign in Studiopolis is a reference to Streets of Rage Stage 1 "Pine Pot"-sign?

[@MrAWulff]

I have an explanation for the spider boss. The hitbox is on the yellow fangs and he can only get hit when the fangs touches the spikes, when you try to hit him when he's on the ground, the fangs cannot reach the spikes because they're still under the ground, the best way to hit the fangs is when the spider is half way above the ground.

[@reputis8225]

Nice video keep up the good work man

[@doritorancho4735]

This video was made on my birthday ;-; But nice video btw, a great opinion as always.

[@raideurng2508]

For Oil Ocean, people may say "Oh god not this zone" but there's your answer why it's included: It's burnt into our minds when we think of Sonic. Who could forget Sandopolis Act 2. No one, and that's why it's rearing it's ugly head.

[@tinyguy9398]

I think my biggest complaint in Sonic Mania versus S3&K is just how busy each zone is as far as visual aesthetic and gimmicks. I think Mania took too much from Sonic CD (a game whose visual aesthetic I find way too cluttered) and would have liked more of a balanced aesthetic instead. Even the non Sonic CD stages seemed to drift too close to Sonic CD's design philosophy which was a disappointment.

[@MariaCurry]

I honestly didn’t like sonic mania much and was very disappointed with my purchase. Although I’m the biggest fan of sonic 3K and couldn’t wait for a sequel. Not saying it’s bad but it still uses too many old levels and I really loved the „journey feeling“ of sonic 3K and the level transitions were part of that. Compared to the older games it’s also too packed with animations. There’s just too much happening on screen. But I’m rather unusual anyway. My favorite levels were Marble Garden and Hydrocity… (and mania did a damn good job on improving the already near perfect level design) Good video👍👍

[@cheezeebuttervods]

Watching this I was also starting to play sonic mania and as soon as you played the intro cutscene, the intro music in Sonic Mania played.

[@N0rlight]

This really a great review. I thought for a second that would have been a badly informed video, but boy was I wrong. All these points you've mentioned really stands out. Like the level design for both acts of Hydrocity. Hydrocity is my favorite zone of hystory but when I played it, I felt it was too short and nothing to add to it. :/ I would of love it if they would of mix Aquatic Ruins with Hydro into it. Or use the scrapped background for act 1. You've really brought up good points that even I didn't noticed. Also, I laughed whenever I saw Tails glitch in the video lol. Some things never changes.

[@Scroteydada]

Totally! The best water level in sonic (which was chosen because of that) was infected with a load of others. Now it's just another water level in a sonic game with jarring level design and duller colours.(;ﾟ︵ﾟ;) New fans coming from mania will be surprised when they get to play all the way through Angel Island and find that Hydrocity is actually great.

[@N0rlight]

Harry Willmore Exactly, not just that but act 1 really felt like a generic Labyrinth zone but with Hydrocity looks slap on it and there was no way to even avoid being in the water. Which really is upsetting since there was always a way. And the remixes of both acts are bland. They just sound like an hd version. Tee lopes made better remixes.

[@tylerd1297]

Just to retort a few points: the bumper walls in the special stages are actually marked, if there is a stripe there's a bumper, but if there are no lines marked, then you can fall out there. And while I agree somewhat about the hazard placement slowing things down, I've come to find almost every stage has a route of two that just let you fly through the stage. Metallic Madness Act 1 is one of my favorite stages to time attack now that I know the way to go. I thought the difficulty curve in Titanic Monarch was just right aside from the spike area you showed, although your act 2 suggestion is pretty cool The story behind this game is that CW and Stealth pitched their idea for a new Sonic game that would play like the old ones with all original levels. Yizuka (the sort of loopy head of Sonic Team) made them wait an hour before telling them yes we're doing you're game but it's going to be called Sonic Mania and it will have zones from every classic sonic game..so its possible many choices were made beyond their control. Supposedly CW wanted hyper emeralds in the game and Yizuka said they aren't coming back

[@aprilstegall6002]

Thank you for being truthful about this game. And ive watched the whole video.

[@Yuti640]

6:11 Well in the first sonic game the title screen and logo was also not centred so i think it was done on purpose

[@CrownRock1]

36:35 Damn that works so well! Too bad I've got a console version!

[@tearlach47]

While the game has some really cool bosses, the quality of the bosses seem inconsistent. When it comes to the Spider rig at the end of Flying Battery, the mechanics do feel sort of sloppy even though I have gotten used to it and know how to deal with it at this point, and it ended up making for my second out of three game overs I had playing the game. When you hit the spider rig from the poles, the rig makes a circular motion, slightly dipping downwards, which is why if you hit it too quickly from it being off the ground, it'll hit the ground and stop itself, and then it has its own collision inconsistencies that I've gotten used to by now, but shouldn't have been a thing to just pass right through. As for the worst boss, I'd have to say Press Garden Act 1. The concept of how you open your opportunity for attack properly is very sluggish and vague at first, so I always opt for hitting it directly and taking the damage just to get it over with faster.

[@ZLGNF]

Bro what a fantastic fucking video, you've raised a lot of points I've never considered before, thank you so much for this.

[@telekinesticman]

No problem! Thank you very much for your kind words.

[@vizuren]

I real enjoyed watching this video. However, I still disagree that hydrocity zone is called hydro-city. I’m looking forward to actually playing this game for the first time tonight.

[@nintony2994]

what are you on about it was always Hydro-city 😎

[@nintony2994]

also have fun I've been playing this game a ton lately too out of hype for Superstars ;)

[@vizuren]

@@nintony2994 ok hydro-city fam. Btw I can’t wait for superstars too lol :-)

[@magma1264]

The Phantom Ruby/Forces tie-in thing was definitely a last minute addition, I mean look at how rushed the ending cutscenes look. If Sonic team forced the Mania team to include that Forces tie-in, then we can probably say that Sonic Team should have no involvement in the sequel whatsoever

[@telekinesticman]

I disagree that there should be NO involvement, Sonic Team are still the lead directors of the brand and deserve to have some level of input. But, if the Mania team has better ideas (which they probably often do) then they should be able to achieve them without being shut down.

[@Gnidel]

I think the involvement should be at the planning stage. Connection to Forces is in my opinion the only good thing about the mess of a story that is this game. It's beyond my imagination how they could screw up such simple story so much.

[@BlueflagAlpha]

Since Forces is a bad game, the true ending for Mania feels like the bad ending

[@RunningWithScissors19]

In terms of the story stuff, sonic mania plus is gonna add in cutscenes into the zones with no transitions, that help build up the titanic monarch robot as well as robotniks plan. I do disagree with some points but overall this is a great video! You’ve earned a sub! I think it might be interesting if you could make a video on mania plus to see if any of the additions will change your opinion or not, or just to see your thoughts on them.

[@Gnidel]

RunningWithScissors Hydrocity -> Mirage Saloon still makes no sense.

[@anniepentapls9294]

I really liked the video! :3

[@telekinesticman]

Thanks! I'm planning on doing a critique on Mania Plus in a few months as a follow-up to this video. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@nintony2994]

You got your precious zone transitions now. Stardust Speedway being the best one in the game

[@JohnTK]

It always makes me sad when people mention how much they disliked MSZ act 1. I really loved the callback, and the increased variety in obstacles and screen movement, combined with the awesome train section, make it a real stand out level for me, and I often find myself wishing it was longer.

[@Icalasari]

I still think the Super Boss should have given Eggman and Heavy King 16 hit points each... But they wail on each other Or rather, the two losers wail on the one in the lead. So you could let them wail on each other and finish them off, but after a few hits they'll turn on you Or you help one and avoid hurting them, so they actually ignore trying to hit you and help you with the other Or you take the occasional hit on either of them and make them change if they see you as a temporary ally or as a current threat throughout the fight Would have been FAR more interesting

[@Ghaleonh41]

I have to say that this is probably your best video! I wonder about your playthrough of Complete on Steam though. I used a flash cart to do a playthrough on my CDX & didn't have any lag or anything... As for the plot, I'm thinking that Egghead's main idea was to recapture the Little Planet to make up for 3 & CD, & throw ST&K off his trail. The lack of transitions & the returning Zones definitely hurts the story. I'd say the only two that make sense are SS & Hydrocity because Little Planet is right near Angel Island or chained right on the island (BTW, the Ruby caused the island to fall into the ocean). As for Hydro into Mirage, maybe they left Hydrocity & went back to Angel Island, met up with Knuckles & took off in the Tornado. I can't think of anything else. Here's hoping that Plus will fix these issues. For me, the biggest problem was moving from Oil Ocean to Lava Reef... Could have been worse, though. At least they didn't go with the original idea of putting Scrap Brain in the game. Personally, it's my favorite level from Sonic 1, but it would have caused a big problem with the story, I think. Looking forward to your later videos!

[@telekinesticman]

Thanks so much for the kind words! I put a lot of time into this video so I'm always happy to hear people enjoyed it. I definitely think Mania Plus is going to address some of the issues I mentioned in this video (especially since I know at least one member of the development team watched the whole thing), so I will certainly try and do "A Critique on Sonic Mania Plus" or something like that when it's out. I can't say I've got anything planned too soon, since I have lots of university work at the moment, but I'm hoping that I can get a couple videos out in June/July when I'm on holidays again. Thanks again!

[@Ghaleonh41]

Take your time, we’ll wait!

[@chickenflavor9880]

Sandopolis is one of the best stages in sonic 3&knuckles.

[@flariz4824]

@Genocide Shell yes

[@wiktorcokolwiek521]

@@flariz4824 no

[@wiktorcokolwiek521]

@@michaelg4981 no

[@folgadorosa5675]

i think the history is effective, the ruby is a mystery power source who nobody understand yet (not only in the game, but the sonic mania team itself) but it got obvious why sonic realize dr. eggman can't take the ruby. Is only question of time for he conquer the world.

[@typreegamingtpg2198]

23:49 this is probably going to be my favorite bit in this whole video

[@Everik-ct6pg]

Great video, but you forgot to mention that Titanic Monarch is actually a reference to a Sonic 3 multiplayer stage called Chrome Gadget. Still, no one never mentions this anyways

[@EnnZedder]

I feel what's mentioned even less is that "Titanic Monarch" is literally a synonym of "Heavy King". Didn't catch the Chrome Gadget reference though.

[@thegreathambino9561]

You should try the misfits pack, it's a sonic mania mod that add 5 levels, hill top, labyrinth, wacky workbench and a halloween level forgot the name and forgot the last level

[@getpranked70]

With the Egg man boss in green hill, if you sneak behind him you can kill him with ease, and my biggest gripes were the flying battery boss and hydrocity

[@Vivigreeny25]

Wait, "Spiked wall" was the second stage of the boss in Stardust Speedway??? I don't remember that, and while I haven't finished the game, I have beaten that zone. I remember the second part was Robotnik giving Metal Sonic the phantom ruby, turning him into the giant version of him. You had to hit the ruby while running. To do so, you had to dogde bombs and a big lazer beam. Metal was then vulnerable, an you could hit him.

[@telekinesticman]

That was added in Mania Plus. This video was made before Plus was announced and released.

[@Vivigreeny25]

@@telekinesticman OH, yeah, I got the game after the update I think. That makes a lot more sense lol

[@Brabbs]

For the spider boss, you need to let him rise enough. Because he hits the ground, thats what stops him from hitting the spikes.

[@boticbolt2953]

I know sonic mania plus came out a long time ago with an actual bonus stage but I am going to say this anyway. What I would do for the bonus stages is keep the blue sphere concept. If you beat a blue sphere level with out collecting some rings, you would earn a random shield,extra lives,rings ect. If you collected all the rings in a blue sphere game you would not only earn a random power up, you would earn a medal to help you unlock the unlock able features in the game. Now that’s my idea. Tell me if you have ideas on how to fix some parts of mania plus in the replays.

[@Stitchlips2000]

According to the wiki. The ruby drove eggman insane. So perhaps it's like LOTR and the one ring. So he just wants it to have it?

[@hotspicywings]

6:15 nah the title being off has to be a reference to how the sonic 1 title screen sprite was slightly off center (im losing my mind)

[@niemand7811]

Sonic 2 remains the true champion out of the classic Sega Genesis titles. The level design is flawless once you figure out what is going on, something they almost misjudged when developing Sonic 3. Only with the Knuckles add-on it got weird. Sonic 3 on its own is right behind Sonic 2. Sonic Mania, whoever the guys are doing the programming and all, they had no idea how great level design works. And bringing back old levels from previous games didn't help to trick me in either. When there was a fan game project online years ago I gothyped. But compared to what Mania turned out to be, I'm still hyped to see this "other" fan game to come alive. Yes, Mania is NOT the game I was expecting at all. With all the hype and Sega even pushing it on I thought it got to be better than that. Yet it isn't.

[@andyirwin4228]

I disagree with the notion everything after oil ocean isn't as good as the stages before because lava reef and metallic madness zone are my favorite zones in mania. Great Video though. :)

[@mrxbx9002]

Most of the plot related nitpicks can be explained by the Forces explanation of the Ruby. Sadly it looks like what was experienced is a complete illusion.

[@telekinesticman]

Ehhh I don't like to believe that, because that's so damn lame. It's also technically not Mania's fault either, so I dunno.

[@mrxbx9002]

TelekinesticMan Forces pretty much spits in Mania’s face. However even this doesn’t explain why Angel Island is in the sea rather than the air. Unless the Ruby’s power extend over miles, which wouldn’t be too hard to believe considering Forces. Likely this has to do with Sonic Team meddling and fixing what wasn’t broken.

[@Kyonne25]

Forces says the Ruby creates holograms with mass, so it's not that Mania is an illusion inside Sonic's head, but that most of Mania's stages aren't the real stages, but Sonic's still physically running through them

[@Scroteydada]

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

[@Scroteydada]

They kinda made up the story as they went; Studiopolis 2 was the first zone to be made- before the Hard Boiled Heavies or even the name Sonic Mania.

[@mlgpapas1319]

I honestly thought the final eggamn fight was lame and btw I never noticed the giant eggman robot that appears in the back months after I replayed the game

[@HeyFella]

Honeslty I love the lighter blue look of Sonic

[@Hynotama]

I blame Izuka and his idiotic ideas about reusing the zones for the lack of build-up and the decrease in quality for the narrative. Seriously, that man's boner for Green Hill came close to ruining the game. It definitely puts me off replaying the game too much and it lessens my interest in full playthroughs. And all that despite the team's willingness to design all new zones for the game. Oh and I don't know about the other viewers but I stuck around until the end because YOU deserve praise, not me. And by that I mean you made the video interesting.

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you! And I definitely agree about the nostalgia, it's the game's biggest problem by far.

[@levlev4048]

The little thing boss inside the titanic monarche is the big death egg robot. And Instead of fighting the robot you fight the brain of it. You see?

[@EddieGGames]

That's actually Sand Shower Zone. The name that fans mistakenly give this Zone implies that there are dust storms in it.

[@tax_fraud3030]

For spider eggman you have to hit him while he's above u

[@BlueflagAlpha]

Im kinda surprised you managed to beat Oil Ocean boss without game over. I got 4 game over because of that damn Act 2 boss

[@Scroteydada]

Hey, watch a speedrun of the death egg robot fight and tell me it's not broken then.

[@Dankyjabo]

I guess since coopercastille isn't gonna release a review anytime soon, I can just watch this equally overly long review, and it was great.

[@telekinesticman]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.

[@Icalasari]

26:15 - ...Ok, how did you miss the press component and think those newspapers were trains?

[@buenosleche6575]

I just realized the elevator in the opening says "1 2 3 K M." Sonic 1, 2, 3&K, and Mania!

[@tearlach47]

No Sonic 4 to be seen there. But then again, Sonic 4 isn't a continuation of the classic storyline anyways.

[@Gnidel]

RyanTM 1, 2, 3, Knuckles Chaotix, Mania.

[@drrockstar4040]

I think mania's final boss should have been the titanic monarch used as a giant mech instead of eggman in the control room? of the mech

[@mikeshoe4779]

mania is hands down one of my favorite gam3s ever and th3 only game that got me s3rious into speedrunin, i actually l3nt my switch to my little neph3w just so he can play sonic mania as he r3ally likes sonic

[@austinreed7343]

Did you know the fireworks are possibly a reference to freaking Generations 3DS?

[@telekinesticman]

Oh yeah, I honestly completely forgot about those, especially since I've never played the 3DS version myself. Really hard to find a copy for a decent price.

[@cheezeebuttervods]

The reason sonic 3 was split between two cartridges was because of a time crunch

[@lukeschmidt7136]

Had no idea the Heavies had their own genders. A bit strange, but, okay.

[@rjbraca]

50:08 thats called the titanic monarch robot i think and you are climbing up it to get inside it

[@75JUNAKI]

Clearly the game isn’t trying to be a narrative driven game like CD and S3&K. This game story just exist to explain why the characters are in different zones and referencing some moments from those games like the beginning for both Sonic & Knuckles are reference to S3&K beginning and the end of CD animated cutscene. I actually prefer the color pallets for the Mania Plus sprites for Sonic, Tails & Knuckles but wish there’s an option to have an S3&K style sprite or have some elements into Mania Plus sprites like the mouths from S3&K and bulky shoes from Sonic’s S3&K sprite. Edit: Also wish the game is more S3&K style

[@charliekahn4205]

Chemical Plant Zone: We do what we must, because we can. Also, why does Knuckles have the Super Peel-Out? I thought that was supposed to be a Sonic-only move. Oh and I also like the Shinobi reference. SEGA needs to at least give those old series the Mania treatment, at most bring them back to broaden their American portfolio.

[@telekinesticman]

I think by enabling Max Control in the mod options it must have also given it to Knuckles and I accidentally did it a few times.

[@charliekahn4205]

@@telekinesticman Knuckes the Echidna is the new Fastest Thing Alive.

[@nataliecurare]

Excellent review/critique except of course for the fact it is HydrOcity

[@louiepikmin3184]

There are 2 big things I don't like about the game: 1. It doesn't really tell you how to control. It's understandable not telling you how to spindash because you should figure it out easily if you've never played a classic game, but it doesn't tell you anywhere how to use the drop dash. If you're like me and just got the game, there would be no way to know that it exists. I got through half the game before someone told me how to do it 2. It takes it so safe and relies on nostalgia too much. Out of the 12 zones in the game, there's only 4 new ones. And those new stages are amazing, but I just wish they could've added some new ones in and put in more recognizable stages in instead of some of the picks they made. Like oil ocean zone. I've played through almost all of cd, what people say has the worst level designs, and I still hate oil ocean zone more then anything in that game.

[@Mixa_User26]

I can definitely agree with your comment. The main reason why I disliked this game is because it was concentrated mostly on nostalgia. The trailers promised us "all-new levels", but instead of the brand-new adventure we got a simple compilation of old levels with addition of some new ones (most of which were simple re-imaginations of unused content). The drop dash was a useless move, cause I've managed to beat the game without it. In my opinion, it would have been much better, if they made super peel-out as the default Sonic ability. As for the Oil Ocean... I simply don't understand, why they decided to bring it back. Like, why not to put a completely new stage instead? Or, if they so badly wanted to bring back the stage from Sonic 2, then why not to put smth more enjoyable instead of the most annoying level from this game? Just nonsense. And despite all of these reasons, people keep ignore all the cons of this game and praise it as the best in the franchise, but ofcourse they won't forget to give a stupid claim about some old 90's game, such as Sonic CD or Knuckles' Chaotix. I'll never understand the majority of the people in this fanbase.

[@cocman4532]

since mania is an anniversary title, i dont feel like you should criticize the nostalgia too much

[@telekinesticman]

Nah, I love Mania, but Sonic Adventure 2 and 06 are also anniversary games, and didn't rely on nostalgia-bait stuff. I wish Mania was all new levels, even if the old ones are still fantastic.

[@Mixa_User26]

Yes, that's what I was writing about. In fact, if Mania had all new levels, or atleast less reusage of old ones, then I would rate it much higher. But since Sega considers re-imaginations of old stuff as smth new and original, and fans keep enjoy it, then we can be totally sure, that next anniversary Sonic game won't have any innovations and a lot of new content. You know, I simply don't want to accept the fact, that Sega took the lamest direction of "let's remember our incredible past and yet absolutely ignore, that the franchise you liked before now became a simple nostalgia conveyor to get money from naive fans".

[@cocman4532]

@@telekinesticmanthe nostalgia is cool, but on the next anniversary title they should have maybe 2 old zones that (aren't green hill or chemical plant) have barely seen the light of day from their old genesis games. maybe a re-imagined starlight zone and maybe something from cd, because it's the ignored middle child of the classic sonic games with the only notable things coming out of there being amy and metal sonic.

[@thejonbrownshow8470]

36:32 ... We're talking non modded right? Never did knuckles' campaigns in the sonic games lol, if they had that and the official "oh no" thing, I'd start a knuckles playthrough post haste lol

[@Lukz243]

#boyscotttelekinestibot!!! seriously though, great video! This game reminded me why I like the Sonic series in the first place

[@jarno8764]

32:00 about killing the metal sonic, I didn't know you could bounce it with spindash, I killed him jumping on the spinning robot and then kept bouncing it on my head until it hit the metal sonic

[@luma9285]

I've never seen this boss before isn't he supposed to be a giant robot

[@JordiumZ]

@@luma9285 the giant robot is the second phase

[@Segagens]

The first thing I wasn't a fan of, was the light shade of Sonic.

[@Mixa_User26]

Oh, I've finally found someone with simillar opinion about light shaders in this game

[@CommunityNetwork]

Maybe something for the next very long video, please add a Too Long Didn't Watch/Read Section at the end or the description

[@EpochPho3nix]

Or you could see the videos time length before clicking on it?

[@CommunityNetwork]

Maybe i want to hear the critque he is having but not having to watch an hour long video

[@user-kc6sr4hx8q]

Watching this at 4 AM... What the fuck is wrong with my life? PS: I watched the whole thing. Give me all of your praise.

[@supersonicstyleatsonicspeed]

There were other great Sonic games before Mania and after 3 and Knuckles.

[@tylerd1297]

Not trying to be a dick but which ones?

[@supersonicstyleatsonicspeed]

Tyler D Generations, Colors, Unleashed, the Adventure Series, Heroes, Sonic 1, CD, and 2, Lost World to a certain extent, the Advance Series, Rush, and Rush Adventure.

[@tylerd1297]

Are you talking about the Whitehead ports? Sonic Advance 1 is the only great game in that list. Adventure 1 and Unleashed are ok but the rest suck

[@supersonicstyleatsonicspeed]

Tyler D How do they suck? They all got great reviews(aside from Lost World) and loved by many including myself. Your comment implies that the series has little to no great games. 3D Sonic has a lot of good games. However there are some bad ones in there for sure.

[@tylerd1297]

I'm just playing, and I'm not a Sonic hater I've been playing Sonic since I was in PJ's lol. But now that I'm older I've just realized a lot of the games I liked back then aren't as good as I thought they were. Some of them are good but the only ones I have fun playing repeatedly are Sonic 1-3K, Advance, Heroes, and Mania. I prefer games with lots of platforming and not just going fast

[@MrFusion]

36:35 Is this actually in the game? I honestly can't tell.

[@telekinesticman]

The music is from the mod that I just mentioned in the video (the "Oh No" mod).

[@JD-xz1mx]

You seem to think the end of level ring count special stage mechanic is objectively bad. You are incorrect.

[@telekinesticman]

And you don't seem to know what an opinion is.

[@3mar00ss6]

damn. I watched the whole video

[@osvaldoisaac88]

This video felt like a 10 min vid

[@tylerboothman4496]

This might be controversial, but I hate the special stages in Mania. Even Sonic 1's was better.

[@Hitlercumslurper]

Agreed

[@nintony2994]

gasp

[@tetermc]

Just say you're bad.

[@nintony2994]

@@tetermc yeah this lmao