Sonic is the first game I have any memory of playing. My mom had a Sega Genesis when I was a very young kid. There were plenty of times where my mom handed me the second controller to help me feel included. I know she left it plugged in for Sonic 2 and 3, as I know I was in control of Tails, though I obviously didn’t contribute much.
As has been said many times already, Sonic Mania is a wonderful recreation of Genesis Era Sonic games. The art style is very reminiscent of what I remember Sonic and Knuckles to be, but with all the polish of modern indie titles like Shovel Knight, Celeste, or Tunic.
Sonic Mania is a great game for any kids that enjoy platforms. The levels are fun to run through, with interesting ideas and set pieces that make you feel fast. Younger kids will likely struggle with the controls and the later levels start to slow down a lot as the difficulty ramps up a lot. However, there’s nothing in the game that I wouldn’t be willing to let my four-year-old or younger see. Your older kids will enjoy the challenge of mastery over the game.
The main gameplay loop involves old school running, jumping from platform to platform, and clearing out enemies in your way. Sonic contrasts with most platformers in that the levels are designed to go as fast as possible and to maintain that speed as much as possible. By mastering the levels, you’ll be able to make huge jumps, reach secret areas, and rack up rings and extra lives.
Sonic has always been a series about mastering levels by finding new routes and secrets to get the highest scores. Sonic Mania maintains that same infinite relatability by trying to reach faster times and by using different characters each of which opens up different routes and ways to fight the boss at the end of each stage. Then once you finally get bored of them, the DLC opens two new characters and a whole new game mode to spice things up even further.
With it being on every platform, and pretty consistently being on sale, Sonic Mania is absolutely worth a try for the whole family. Given it’s high quality, well-established franchise, and wide availability, there’s absolutely no reason to avoid it.
Oh wow, it’s also on iOS and Android if you’re paying for netflix.
