Sonic Mania (Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC...Netflix?)

"I must confess that I specifically aimed to make older Sonic fans feel like they're kids again"

This is exactly what Sonic Mania as a whole has done for me. You did good

 

Yes hello, i hacked into the teams computerss and found this unlockable, unbelivablel!!!

I totally didn't waste a few minutes of my life to do thsi crap... not at all


Anyway, for those who had steam for a while, does steam offer pre-downloads for all games or just specific ones?
Wanna play mania as soon as it's out because i have nothing better to do :p

 

Only a handful, unfortunately. Sonic Mania probably isn't big (in size) or high-profile enough.

 

Isn't it < 200MB? It won't be that bad of a wait.

 

Hopefully.
My internet turns into a snail every night, download drops from 5 mb to a few kb for whatever reason.
I really should call them about this

 

That happens to me sometimes too, but for whatever reason it almost never affects steam downloads.
Maybe net neutrality never really existed in the first place.

 

Line up, line up, we must fill this topic with praise and not discuss anything!

I think Studiopolis and the mini boss theme also have this problem, although I take some comfort in knowing they were probably some of the first songs composed and more recent ones have been better. Then again, most of the others are derived from classic tunes.


p.s. I'm not sure what "context" we're expecting from video game music. We've heard these tracks on their own, we've seen them used in the game itself - why is that not sufficient to develop an opinion on them? Sonic responding to my button presses isn't going to make the game sound much different - in the context of Sonic Mania music being used in Sonic Mania, I agree that it's the weakest part of a nice looking package.

 

Since we're only 5 days away, what controllers are you guys gonna play this on?
I plan to use the same Genesis pad I used to beat the originals when I was 7 with this thing.

 

(Drowning jingle, this time for good)
5...

 

I might be the most blasphemous one here wanting to use a SNES controller for Mania. (Or the iBuffalo USB clone controller, anyway.)

Something tells me I'm a fringe case. :specialed:

Mayflash gets a lot of praise, right? If I stumble across some real three-button Genesis pads again, I'd like to get this adapter. Not having an original controller is the main reason I don't enjoy emulating Genesis stuff on PC. And now Sonic CD exists on Steam, with Mania in tow. Hmm. :think-emoji:

 

You posted, ad-verbatim, "And then you kind-of think about gameplay science - from my experience, most people don't last 50 seconds in a special stage" and I linked you game footage uploaded by SEGA showcasing the special stage with the exact part of the music you implied might not ever be heard, being heard.

I'm not sure how to break this down even more.

 

I've been thinking of using an actual Genesis controller. Does this game require more than 4 available buttons and a d-pad at any point? Or would I be better off using a 6 button pad or a Saturn pad?

On another note, I have a PC with an ArcadeVGA card hooked up to an NTSC CRT TV. Will I be able to play the PC version at a native 320x240? If Mania can't already do that, I beg of you to add support for that resolution. I know mine is an unusual use case, but it does seem worth supporting for the sake of an authentic retro experience, no? I'm sure I'm not the only person that is interested in doing stuff like this.

 

The genesis controller should be fine. Idk about the resolution thing. All the footage I've seen has been widescreen.

 

If Mania ever happens on my hard drive, I'm streaming it to my PSPgo. Like any game that can't be played on it.

I'm pretty sure that line was directed to me, as I was the one who brought up the "context" issue (by which I meant fitting to what's happening on the screen).

Well, unless you manage to run it on the older hardware from the times when Pentiums were relevant...
I'm not sure when the drop happened (IIRC around WinXP times or a bit earlier), but nowadays Windows don't allow you to use a screen resolution lower than 640x480

 

Incorrect. Windows doesn't expose it in its menu, but you can force it quite easily.

Also, I have one of these and intend to use it with Mania if I can force the game to run in 240p.

 

I'd appreciate some elaboration on the matter.

 

Oh sorry - I got lost in the sea of human calendars.

That was really more of an off-the-cuff remark about the idea that special stage music shouldn't take 50 seconds to get started. I assumed Retro had gone down that "you've not played the game yet how do you know" route (which it's done several times in this topic alone), and I was responding to that - i.e. we don't need more of a "context" to the game's music because the context is there, and I still think the music is a little off in places.


There's half a dozen conversations in this topic - it's hard to keep track :v:

 

While I generally agree with "Music shouldn't take 50 seconds to get started," assuming these special stages work like they do in Knuckles Chaotix (where rings govern time), then the average Special Stage run will be just at about 60 seconds (slightly lower when you factor in things that might make you lose rings, like spikes). I mean, you start with at least 60 seconds when you enter a stage anyways.

 

Plus, more challenging stages will take a bit longer, even when you are running a "Perfect" so the music is bound to be heard.

I don't think the monstrosity of what happened with the "Tribute" song will ever happen again. So sad that it too suffered from Sonic 2 Death Egg syndrome for those that never bother with the sound test.

 

I seriously doubt that's possible, because a change in aspect ratio would affect camera locking and/or cause framing issues.