According to the official manual, the Heavy Rider's Motobug is named Jimmy. You're right on the money. It's quite touching, having a tribute to him.
It's quite a shame forces is getting a physical release and this isn't :/ The collector's edition doesn't even come with the manual!
Yes, I would love a physical release as well. From all the positive acclaim Mania has been getting, I hope that one would come in the near future.
I would consider double dipping for a physical release. Especially if it included a manual! That'd be awesome.
^I've already double dipped, but if a sequel were to come out and it would come bundled with this I'd buy it for sure. I can see that, but it's not like it's stages are that weird. Press Garden Act 1 is no stranger than Carnival Night while Press Garden Act 2 seems to be somewhat grounded in reality, Studiopolis is like the Sonic CD version of Spring Yard Zone, Mirage Saloon is a western desert stage, that's not that odd. Only really weird one is Titanic Monarch, which has a kinda Carnival Cathedral look going on that seems right up Robotnik's alley. I suppose they're a little more out there, but no more than Sonic CD's stages were.
Alternate take on it then :v: I feel like Studiopolis is much closer to Spring Yard than Collision Chaos was though.
I find Studiopolis quite close to Gigalopolis Zone and Star light zone. Spring Yard doesn't even have loops! And it also has a bottomless pits + spikes + crushing blocks combo I always hated.
I was thinking that they're both in cities and some of the foreground seems reminiscent of Spring Yard, also the plethora of bumpers. You have those U shaped areas where you can gain speed. Plus you have the CPU and COPE trains in Studiopolis :v: I never liked Spring Yard either. Like it seems like it wants to be a speed level, but then nope, have this elevator section for fun times. It is kinda close to Gigalopolis zone though, and they do both have opolis in the name (I wouldn't be sad if I never say "opolis" in a Sonic level name ever again).
Yesterday finished it with all the emeralds and overall I loved it. The only things I didn't like were Titanic Monarch art and a few bugs that forced me to restart the levels a few times: -In CPZ, in the section with the rotating cubes (where the water rises): I got killed by running into one from the left side. -As Super Sonic, the CPZ mini boss can hurt you if it is covered in the blue liquid and you make contact with it when it begins to explode (Sonic loses its SS form too soon). -In Titanic Monarch one of these red nets was chasing me, I transformed in the last second but got hurt anyway. Sonic turned into a blue SS, the music changed and all the object collisions (spikes, monitors, enemies...) stopped working. -In the first last boss, Eggman grabbed Tails with both hands and the game soft-locked.
Really random: I wish we had a Mania take on Marble Zone. Ignore the lava level already included for a sec and just imagine how awesome it would be to make one of the most hated levels (I love it) into an amazing huge level. I can dream.
I feel like Marble Zone wouldn't really work though. I think there's a reason why future Sonic games never really followed the Marble zone approach to slow platforming and switch puzzles (if you want that play Sonic Colors :v A large Marble Zone would have either broken the flow of the rest of the game or it would have been changed so much that it wouldn't really be Marble Zone any more, and I don't think either of those are good things.
My mind sees a Marble Zone with large inside areas and slopes, with the typical slower paced sections (with ways to do it quickly if you're good). I'm sure that there'd be a way to make 'puzzles' fun... I agree it's an outcast which is why I personally really want to see it shine somehow haha. But I know it's not that easy. I'm definitely not hoping for more redone levels in any Mania style game in the future though so it's all academic at this point.
Just completed two special stages backwards. That was a fun and hectic thing to do, and it's a nice touch that there's no huge "WRONG WAY" text flashing in the middle of the screen. The UFO even reverses its direction! That would explain why I couldn't catch up to it after having passed the UFO on Special Stage 3 using a shortcut the other day. I'll have to find out if all the special stages can be done backwards, though somehow I doubt that certain tracks (Like no. 7) would be completable. Also, did anyone realise those medium-sized blocks in Lava Reef Act 1 can be pushed, like the block puzzles in Marble Zone? Seems a funny trait for the objects to have, all things considered.
I was thinking about something and I think Mania team originally opted for Icecap and it had to be removed, the level order would be: Green Hill Zone Chemical Plant Zone Studiopolis Zone Flying Battery Zone Ice Cap Zone (Makes sense to have it here because it was planned like this in the original Sonic 3) Press Garden Zone (Act 2 BG would be used in Act 1 and vice versa) Stardust Speedway Zone Mirage Saloon Zone (Outerspace portals in Deserts are not really uncommon in literature and Sonic & Tails could have used their plane to get out of from Little Planet after finishing Stardust Speedway) Little planet is also seen hanging above a deserted area in the ending (it has a lake in the background, though). Oil Ocean Zone Lava Reef Zone Metallic Madness Zone Titanic Monarch Zone Egg Reverie Zone The reason I'd think about Hidrocity being a late addition would be because it has the less 'updated' look from the zone selection and Act 2 doesn't depart completely from the original level as the others Act 2's. It'd be a good reason for the original release delay (having to remove Ice Cap and rework the game probably added a lot of bugs and the transitions had to be removed in some cases). It's also worth noting no Ice Cap gimmicks are ever used anyway. (except for the Penguin badniks that were repurposed in Mirage Saloon).
I very much doubt it because the phantom ruby by the looks of things twists space time hence why everything is remixed. Legacy locations don't mean anything anymore.
But not every transition happened because of the ruby, though (Mirage Saloon > Oil Ocean comes to mind). And Ice Cap was never next to Flying battery officially, and the original door Sonic destroys on the original exit would be an awesome snowboard haha
What makes you think I'm basing this just off transitions. The acts themselves are remixed, take Mania's Green Hill Zone Act 1 which is a mixture of the original act 1 and act 2 then a bunch of new stuff. Bascially all the classic games have literally been put in a blender, the zones locations making sense doesn't mean anything in this universe.
