Sonic Mania Plus - Nintendo Switch

Alright, so Sonic Mania by itself is a gloriously great title. It's got 3 characters and a lot of really well designed levels that are both inspired and new from old levels (no, Green Hill from Sonic 1 doesn't have anywhere near the same layout as it does in Mania) . It has a lot of charm and a lot of obvious passion put into it. It's a must have as is this game for sure. I have both the PC and Switch versions and have played both a ton. (Filled all the character slots, with emeralds on every save slot) So, Sonic Mania Plus then. It adds 2 new characters, a 4 way competition mode and an encore mode as well as some other extras. Short: Is it worth it? Yes. As good as Mania? Yes but needs a patch. Okay so if you have the digital version already and were thinking about this? Don't bother. It's not worth the money vs the upgrade cost. The artbook is nice, there's no manual and it's nice n' all to have a physical cart but...I'll get to it. There's a good amount of content as an expansion but it's not perfect. The Encore mode is a remix of Mania mode, levels have slightly different layouts and way harder special stages and a new bonus stage that replaces Blue Sphere. The mechanics are different in that, you have no lives and instead you have the characters you've rescued. You find them in TVs or the bonus stages and can ONLY switch between characters via TV's with a ? on it or a switch icon....or if you die with a character. While this is interesting, this does leave you in a bit of a pickle since all of the characters have different perks so it can be hard to mentally adjust but also some paths are specifically made for Knuckles and if you die you get kicked back to a checkpoint. Rescuing the characters is a bit of a pain, the boxes to rescue them are a bit rare in later levels and the new bonus game? Needs a patch at the time of this review. Badly. The hit detection is really, really janky. It's a pinball table but it doesn't seem to work as intended in a lot of ways, there's rescue bumper between the flippers and I've shot straight through it 4/5 times and when playing the 'rescue mini game' I've been way off and succeeded and close and missed when trying to get characters/power ups. Hopefully that'll be patched. Encore mode as a whole I'm not super into, it's good but I'd rather stick to Mania mode- thankfully the new characters work in that 100%. The short: -Do you like Sonic games from the Genesis / Mega Drive? You'll really enjoy this, it's accurate to the old games but improves upon them in many ways. -Do you have the digital version of Mania and were thinking about this? Unless you're an avid collector I'd say avoid. The digital version is much cheaper and the extras aren't worth the cost even when discounted by the GCU. -Are you new to Sonic but like platformers? Grab this, it's a really good platformer with a lot of variety and it's easy to learn and has a lot of tricks to master.

For $30, getting the entirety of Sonic Mania, the new Encore Mode, and the artbook is a great value. However, I would recommend against the purchase if you already have the original Sonic Mania on your system. The Encore Mode is priced at $5 separately, so you're essentially paying $25 for the physical version and the artbook (and although it's a neat addition, it's just a small paper book, not something that will look great on a shelf). I honestly wouldn't recommend Encore Mode for even the $5 asking price individually. It is extremely similar to the main game, so much so that you'll just feel like you played the same game a second time rather than a new experience. It changes things up a bit, so you might as well try it if just want to play the game again anyway, but it really feels like it should be part of the base game rather than paid DLC. So in short; an excellent purchase if you do not have Sonic Mania, but not so much if you do (and if you really, really want Encore Mode, it would be a better idea to simply pay the $5 digitally rather than paying for the entire game all over again, and then some). I took off a star because of how disappointing the new Encore Mode was (which is the only real "new" feature of Plus aside from the four-player competitive mode), but the game altogether definitely gets a solid five from me.

After years of mediocre Sonic games, the blue hedgehog has been downgraded to meme status these days, with most people expecting each release to get worse and worse. Some people even question if older sonic games were even good in the first place. Let me tell you, this game proves that the old formula still works better than ever. Sonic and friends return to their 2D roots and it' glorious. Blast through well designed classic stages at sonic speed, find hidden bonus levels to collect Chaos emeralds, and unravel the mystery of the Phantom Ruby. Sonic isn't alone in this endeavor. Knuckles and Tails return, their classic gameplay intact, along with old retro throwbacks of Mighy the Armadillo and Ray the flying squirrel. All five character control wonderfully and are quite fun. After you beat the main game? You have a Encore mode to playthrough with revised levels and even harder bonus stages. This mode has a added feature of being able to switch between characters during levels to change up how you progress. The only downside, the boss's are kinda easy and your able to spam them. But the levels more then make up for this. Now if only we could get 3D Sonic games to this caliber.

Sonic the Hedgehog games has had a mix of good and bad titles over the years. Most the Sonic games have deviated from the formula that made Sonic the Hedgehog a fan favorite in the past. Sonic Mania brings back classic levels and new ones to the mix. It is an easy game to pick up and play with no real learning curve, just run as fast as you can, collect rings, avoid dangerous obstacles and bosses (the real challenge is finding and collecting all of the chaos emeralds). Sonic Mania Plus adds a little bit more of replay value with new playable characters, and a few other modes like time attack, and mirror mode. The switch version runs great, and the advantage it has over the other console versions is that you can play it on the go.

Sonic Mania Plus is an enhanced version of the Sonic Mania game that released digitally last year. For this release not only have they made the game physical with an old school Genesis reversible cover but they have included an art book with characters and designs from the game. The game now has Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel as playable characters and a new Encore mode which can be played with any character and they added Angel Island Zone to the game. There are several improvements and other features added to the game including new bonus levels. Overall Sonic Mania Plus is the type of game I wish the 3D Sonic games would take notes from. If you are an old school Sonic Fan you will love this game. It is a love letter to all things 2D Sonic.

Sonic games have been hit or miss (mostly miss) over the last 15 years or so. Sega hasn't been treating their blue mascot all that well. But look what happens when they let a fan studio take a crack at it! This is a return to classic Sonic. This game is as good, and often better than the best Sonic games from his old Sega Genesis days. With classic zones from the original games, to brand new imaginative levels. The music is great, the controls spot on, and the level design fantastic. If you think Sonic "got bad" when he went 3D, this is the game for you. And this version has additional characters and modes, plus, if you're a collector, it has a physical edition. Grab it now.

Overall great game, especially if you like the classic games. My only gripes are I don't like having to go back if you die, meaning if you lose all of your lives at the end of zone 2 or at a boss, you have to start back at the beginning of zone 1. Now, I know that it's better than going all the way back to the beginning of the game like the olden day's, still I would have preferred starting at the zone you were in. Also other minor gripe is, the music felt alot like Sonic CD music, which I would have preferred more of a 16 bit soundtrack, just my opinion and I am sure many people love the music. Overall great game and fun. Classic Sonic is back!

Until the real Sonic Team can figure out how to make a Sonic game, we've got this excellent fan made game! These fans know how classic Sonic gameplay is supposed to work and every character feels so fun to control. While we mostly got levels that we're basically ripped from other Sonic games, I'm not complaining as the few new zones we have are fantastic. Every time I boot up this game, I go straight to Studiopolis Zone; so much fun! Also this launch version of the physical package is fantastic as well. DLC is included on the cartridge, you get a shiny slip on cover, the reversible box art is amazing and the art book is filled with fun doodles and other art to see.