I finally got around to getting Mania Plus, and that means I sat down and played Encore Mode for the first time. The reasons why it took so long are extensive but I'll simply say that I think a rerelease of this nature was an incredibly scummy move and I didnt want to support SEGA directly for it. Hence, I got it second-hand once it was low enough, mainly just for the collection. But like I said, it gave me about as good of an opportunity as any to replay Mania, so I figured I might as well. One 2 hour sitting later and here I am.
I think I need to make it clear that I dont really...enjoy the Classic Sonic games, despite being a huge Sonic nut. I could break it down in far more nuance but I want to get a move-on, so I'll instead try to detail what it is that I want out of platformers, and mainly just action games in general:
-Difficulty. I want a game to present me with its mechanics and then task me with using those mechanics in interesting, engaging and challenging ways to overcome that which I wouldn't be able to otherwise. Beyond understanding them, I want using them well to be challenging. Bloodstained: COTM, Mega Man Zero, etc.
-Fun movement. If the game isn't the most challenging to just get through, I can often still be drawn to it if the simple act of moving around is satisfying and fun to experiment with on its own. Even easy sections can be a blast if I can clear them with creative expression of my mechanics. A Hat in Time, Sonic Rush, Ori 1&2, etc.
-Some sort of atmosphere. There are games I still love that only really go halfway with both of the points above, where I'm able to look past it due to the pleasant feeling of just being in the world. The original Mario Galaxy or Super Metroid are the prime examples here.
The action games that I adore the most are the ones that can, through whatever means, bulls-eye all three at once: Gunvolt, Hollow Knight, Sonic Unleashed, Halo CE, DKC Tropical Freeze. Even a game like Specter of Torment can ride so hard on only two points that it becomes a Top 10. So my issues with the Classic Sonic formula, then, is that it doesn't really...fulfill any of them.
They're games that aren't really designed to challenge, aren't really made for you to move around with fun, controllable movement freely, and...don't try too hard at atmosphere. Sure, there's "danger" in Sonic Mania's levels: Spikes, enemies, pits...but none of them really require a degree of skill to overcome, and are mostly there to slow the player down: The appeal of the series, obviously, is getting good enough at levels to the point where you won't need to slow down. Of course I understand that appeal. I'm a lunatic. I've S-ranked every level in Sonic Rivals for the PSP, I know what this series is supposed to be about. But it doesnt feel alluring to master a game where the movement simply isn't fun to play around with.
Yes, you CAN do cool things with Classic Sonic movement, especially Mania's highly-refined version of it. But its a movement system that is entirely reliant on level design.
You're not a hero darting through an obstacle course, but a sled waiting for the next downhill slope. Compared to a game like Sonic Rush, where at all times the player can hit top speed and pull off crazy stunts, and its up to the player to use these stunts to their fullest to truly master the game, this system of needing to DEPEND on the terrain to progress feels...restrictive. Its a dilemma for me then: The game only becomes challenging if you try to master its movement, but its movement is built on a foundation that I just fundamentally do not enjoy. It'd work fine if it was the gameplay threading the player along some engaging world and story but in Mania's case, not really.
Mania's a game that tries to take cues from Sonic 3&K the absolute most, which is a game with a very rigid design formula. The automated speed section goes here, and then the more rudimentary platforming section goes here. Alternate, rinse, repeat. For a lax playthrough, its a great way to keep the player engaged and keeping the variety fresh. Your brain is rewarded with delicious dopamine for doing a platforming section, in the form of a cool-looking speed section. But when I'm trying to mine more enjoyment out of the game than just a lax, empty playthrough, I notice just how formulaic it becomes. Its why Sonic CD is my favorite of the 6 Classic games: It abandons traditional game design to make a world with more atmosphere and, funny enough, environments that are more fun to move around in.
Encore Mode has its little quirks, but really it mainly feels like you're replaying Mania with a new color palette. And for the sake of replaying the game, its neat enough. Mighty and Ray aren't great additions but fill the void well, adding variety to a laid-back playthrough. I just don't have enough...meat to dig into, yknow? The bosses are all easy to steamroll and don't make use of the Classic Sonic physics at all, the levels are paced out well enough but dont offer much of any interesting challenges that test your knowledge of the moveset...Like Sonic 3&K before it, its a basic platformer where if you truly want to dedicate yourself to how the terrain physics manipulation work, you can make it look and feel cool. That is just not the kind of game I am willing to learn: Its far too reliant on learning levels over mechanics.
There's a lot of small things I could cover too that aren't really as important to my opinion. The game near completely lacks the kind of narrative and world-building throughline that both CD and 3K attempted making it a much less interesting game to want to progress in, the music style of obviously synthesized instruments pretending to be real instruments is not one I particularly enjoy, and the allure of 100%ing is completely gone with how poorly paced out that aspect of the game is. (tl:dr I don't think Mania/3Ks Special Stage system lends itself well to the pace of the game at all as it just interrupts the main gameplay with something completely unrelated at extremely irregular intervals)
Sonic is a favorite series of mine for many reasons, but most important to me is movement. And the movement in Classic Sonic specifically is the exact kind I would rather not bother with.
[Playtime: 2 hours] (+85 on the original Sonic Mania)
[Keyword: Uninterested]
I think I need to make it clear that I dont really...enjoy the Classic Sonic games, despite being a huge Sonic nut. I could break it down in far more nuance but I want to get a move-on, so I'll instead try to detail what it is that I want out of platformers, and mainly just action games in general:
-Difficulty. I want a game to present me with its mechanics and then task me with using those mechanics in interesting, engaging and challenging ways to overcome that which I wouldn't be able to otherwise. Beyond understanding them, I want using them well to be challenging. Bloodstained: COTM, Mega Man Zero, etc.
-Fun movement. If the game isn't the most challenging to just get through, I can often still be drawn to it if the simple act of moving around is satisfying and fun to experiment with on its own. Even easy sections can be a blast if I can clear them with creative expression of my mechanics. A Hat in Time, Sonic Rush, Ori 1&2, etc.
-Some sort of atmosphere. There are games I still love that only really go halfway with both of the points above, where I'm able to look past it due to the pleasant feeling of just being in the world. The original Mario Galaxy or Super Metroid are the prime examples here.
The action games that I adore the most are the ones that can, through whatever means, bulls-eye all three at once: Gunvolt, Hollow Knight, Sonic Unleashed, Halo CE, DKC Tropical Freeze. Even a game like Specter of Torment can ride so hard on only two points that it becomes a Top 10. So my issues with the Classic Sonic formula, then, is that it doesn't really...fulfill any of them.
They're games that aren't really designed to challenge, aren't really made for you to move around with fun, controllable movement freely, and...don't try too hard at atmosphere. Sure, there's "danger" in Sonic Mania's levels: Spikes, enemies, pits...but none of them really require a degree of skill to overcome, and are mostly there to slow the player down: The appeal of the series, obviously, is getting good enough at levels to the point where you won't need to slow down. Of course I understand that appeal. I'm a lunatic. I've S-ranked every level in Sonic Rivals for the PSP, I know what this series is supposed to be about. But it doesnt feel alluring to master a game where the movement simply isn't fun to play around with.
Yes, you CAN do cool things with Classic Sonic movement, especially Mania's highly-refined version of it. But its a movement system that is entirely reliant on level design.
You're not a hero darting through an obstacle course, but a sled waiting for the next downhill slope. Compared to a game like Sonic Rush, where at all times the player can hit top speed and pull off crazy stunts, and its up to the player to use these stunts to their fullest to truly master the game, this system of needing to DEPEND on the terrain to progress feels...restrictive. Its a dilemma for me then: The game only becomes challenging if you try to master its movement, but its movement is built on a foundation that I just fundamentally do not enjoy. It'd work fine if it was the gameplay threading the player along some engaging world and story but in Mania's case, not really.
Mania's a game that tries to take cues from Sonic 3&K the absolute most, which is a game with a very rigid design formula. The automated speed section goes here, and then the more rudimentary platforming section goes here. Alternate, rinse, repeat. For a lax playthrough, its a great way to keep the player engaged and keeping the variety fresh. Your brain is rewarded with delicious dopamine for doing a platforming section, in the form of a cool-looking speed section. But when I'm trying to mine more enjoyment out of the game than just a lax, empty playthrough, I notice just how formulaic it becomes. Its why Sonic CD is my favorite of the 6 Classic games: It abandons traditional game design to make a world with more atmosphere and, funny enough, environments that are more fun to move around in.
Encore Mode has its little quirks, but really it mainly feels like you're replaying Mania with a new color palette. And for the sake of replaying the game, its neat enough. Mighty and Ray aren't great additions but fill the void well, adding variety to a laid-back playthrough. I just don't have enough...meat to dig into, yknow? The bosses are all easy to steamroll and don't make use of the Classic Sonic physics at all, the levels are paced out well enough but dont offer much of any interesting challenges that test your knowledge of the moveset...Like Sonic 3&K before it, its a basic platformer where if you truly want to dedicate yourself to how the terrain physics manipulation work, you can make it look and feel cool. That is just not the kind of game I am willing to learn: Its far too reliant on learning levels over mechanics.
There's a lot of small things I could cover too that aren't really as important to my opinion. The game near completely lacks the kind of narrative and world-building throughline that both CD and 3K attempted making it a much less interesting game to want to progress in, the music style of obviously synthesized instruments pretending to be real instruments is not one I particularly enjoy, and the allure of 100%ing is completely gone with how poorly paced out that aspect of the game is. (tl:dr I don't think Mania/3Ks Special Stage system lends itself well to the pace of the game at all as it just interrupts the main gameplay with something completely unrelated at extremely irregular intervals)
Sonic is a favorite series of mine for many reasons, but most important to me is movement. And the movement in Classic Sonic specifically is the exact kind I would rather not bother with.
[Playtime: 2 hours] (+85 on the original Sonic Mania)
[Keyword: Uninterested]