Sonic Mania Plus – Encore Mode!

If you’ve never played Sonic Mania before today, then there is a whole new package for you to purchase that includes the base game, and the all new Encore Mode. Welcome to Sonic Mania Plus, the most up to date Sonic Mania experience on the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. For the purpose of this review and impressions article, we played the game on Nintendo Switch. You can read our full review here! We scored the game 8.5/10, and had this to say about it:

I have very little to complain about in regards to Sonic Mania. Sure, some of the new and interesting ideas present in this title that are missing from the originals don’t pan out as well as SEGA might have liked, but the overall package is just short of fantastic. For those who remember playing Sonic 1-3 on the SEGA Genesis back in the day will definitely feel right at home. For myself, Sonic Mania was the perfect outlet for me to pass along my love of Sonic to my seven year old son. Now he’s enjoying a bit of what I played so many years ago!

The instant update most fans of the franchise will notice is the inclusion of two characters form the arcade version of Sonic the Hedgehog, namely Mighty the Armadillo – who has a ground pound move that will destroy obstacles – and Ray the Flying Squirrel, who understandably can glide like a flying squirrel over large portions of each level. While both are unique and interesting, they didn’t change the game enough for me to really enjoy having them around.

Encore mode is a nice addition that I have thoroughly enjoyed, forcing players to cycle through the available Sonic the Hedgehog characters each time they die. Other additions are added as well, including a pinball minigame that will allow you to get more characters back into your party, amongst other things. The pinball physics don’t seem up to snuff, however, and I’ve often lost a ball that probably shouldn’t have gone where it did.

Another great addition is competition mode, that will have you and up to 3 friends attempting to clear the levels faster than your opponents. For those with a competitive streak in them, it’s a great way to enjoy what is normally a single player experience, with friends.

Overall, Sonic Mania Plus is adding enough content to justify a new purchase for some, and a DLC upgrade for others. At a fairly inexpensive price tag, there really isn’t a reason to pass this up, especially for hardcore Sonic fans!