After many years of horrible 3D titles like Sonic Boom, or Shadow the Hedgehog, Sega finally returned to it’s roots by creating Sonic Mania, a 2D side-scrolling Sonic game that replicates the old gameplay of classic Sonic titles. Players can take on the role of Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails, to jump, glide, fly, and spin dash to the goal as fast as you can through 12 zones.

Some of the zones are classics that have new features that make them feel new and exciting. And the new stages added are so well made, they could’ve been made for the classic games on the Genesis.

The visuals are gorgeous with its extremely bright and colorful sprites and backgrounds, and even throwing in some subtle references here and there. And in the main menu, there is an amazing animation that gets you excited to run through stages trying to collect rings (see attached video).

One of the best things about the game is it’s soundtrack. Each song feels like it fits perfectly with the zone they are in. And the old music has been remixed in a way where when you are playing you can barely notice anything is different, but once you listen to it closely you can tell that there are a lot of things making the music sound more stunning than before.

But even with all of the good things about the game, there are some bad things. In some zones characters can get stuck for no apparent reason, forcing a restart through the level. And some of the mini-bosses are just too easy to beat.

Although there are some bugs in this game, this game is definitely worth a try if you are interested in a new 2D Sonic game.