Summary
Ever since the release of 2017’sSonic Maniafans of the Blue Blur have been asking for a follow-up to the throwback sidescroller, and now some of the game’s developers have finally shared why the much sought-after sequel ultimately never materialized. These new insights come on the heels of recent statements by Sega president Yukio Sugino expressing interest in creating moreSonic the Hedgehogreboots and remakes.
Released for PC and consoles in 2017,Sonic Maniawas a love letter to Sonic’s Sega Genesis roots. The development team, headed by programmer Christian Whitehead, brought together members of theSonicROM hacking community alongside studios PagodaWest Games and Headcannon to create an homage to the original games. With a mix of classic and original levels featuring the series’ signature speedy side-scrolling,Sonic Maniawas widely praised for bringing the series back to its roots. While games like theopen-worldSonic Frontiershave kept Sonic in the spotlight in recent years, theSonic Maniasequel that many players were hoping for never arrived.
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In a new interview with Game Informer,Sonic Maniadeveloper Christian Whitehead and Sonic Team producer Takashi Iizuka explained why aSonic Maniasequel never happened. The interview covers several factors that played a role inSonic Mania 2ultimately failing to come together, but the largest stumbling block in the way of a potential sequel appears to have been that both theSonic Maniadevelopers and Team Sonic were interested in moving beyond pixel art graphics. Whereas fans were hoping for another 2D pixel art game in the franchise, Sonic Team was worried this could limit the game’s appeal, with Iizuka stating that “When you make a 2D game using pixel art, you kind of end up targeting a very specific core audience.”
Showing just how intent both parties were in stepping away from the 2D pixel art ofSonic Maniaand exploring new styles, Whitehead states thatSonic Mania 2never even entered development because “we actually agreed early on that we should try to make something fresh.” Although Whitehead’s studio, Evening Star, did pitch aSonicprototype to Sonic Team at one point, both parties decided not to continue with development. ThoughSonic Mania 2was apparently not meant to be,developer Headcannon assisted onSonic Originsin subsequent years, where it helped remaster several classicSonictitles.
Even though fans never gotSonic Mania 2as they’d hoped, the 2017 title still stands as one of the best entries in the franchise in recent memory. And withSega askingSonicfans what genre the series should tackle next, maybe another 2D pixel art project could still be in Sonic’s future.
Sonic Maniais out now for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
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