When Sonic Mania arrived in 2017, it was an enormous success for the franchise. A lot in order that it appeared inevitable {that a} sequel developed along with Christian Whitehead, PagodaWest Video games, and Headcannon could be subsequent for the Blue Blur. Sadly, it by no means occurred. We requested each Takashi Iizuka and Christian Whitehead what occurred to Sonic Mania 2.
Headcannon continued working with the Sonic model by way of 2022’s Sonic Origins and its 2023 replace Sonic Origins Plus, whereas Whitehead based his personal studio, Night Star, alongside fellow Sonic Mania builders in 2018. This previous June, Night Star introduced its first recreation, titled Penny’s Massive Breakaway, coming in early 2024.
Sonic Mania
As a substitute of the anticipated Sonic Mania 2, in June 2023, Sega, Sonic Staff, and growth studio Arzest (headed up by Sonic co-creator Naoto Ohshima) introduced Sonic Superstars. The sport seems like a continuation of what Sonic Mania achieved in 2017, however with fashionable visuals, particular Emerald Powers, cooperative gameplay, and solely all-new zones. Nevertheless, many questioned why Sonic Mania 2, which looks as if it could have been an final slam-dunk hit, by no means got here to fruition.
In 2021, reviews from a gaming insider named Zippo surfaced that inner plans to create a real successor to Sonic Mania had been scrapped on account of variations between Sonic Mania’s exterior builders and Sega. Whereas in a roundabout way confirming or commenting on that individual report, Iizuka confirms that he had talks with Whitehead following the discharge of Mania.
“There was a interval after the event of Sonic Mania after we labored with them to contemplate ideas for the following technology of Basic Sonic,” Iizuka says. “It is too unhealthy that it did not change into a completed recreation. Nonetheless, I am happy that the following technology of Basic Sonic that we talked about with them has been achieved with Superstars.”
Sonic Superstars
One main hurdle to offering a real successor to Sonic Mania is that Iizuka and Sonic Staff needed to maneuver away from the pixel-art graphics with the following new title within the Basic Sonic collection. “Once you make a 2D recreation utilizing pixel artwork, you form of find yourself concentrating on a really particular core viewers,” he says. “We needed to deliver this recreation to as many individuals as doable and with a view to actually make it appear and feel as interesting to a wider viewers, we wanted to make use of the 3D property to actually give it that present look. However we do know that core followers need that outdated Basic Sonic look, they need that outdated traditional Sonic really feel, so we targeted on ensuring the controls have been stable and the look and the texture was actually consultant of a traditional Sonic recreation.”
Whitehead backs up this story together with his personal recounting of the occasions. “Once we began Night Star, it was at all times our purpose to maneuver past 2D pixel artwork into 3D video games, and develop all-new, unique IP,” he says. “Night Star did work with Sega to discover doable instructions Basic Sonic might go after the success of Sonic Mania. Sonic Mania 2 was by no means in growth, although, as a result of we truly agreed early on that we should always attempt to make one thing contemporary, like hand-drawn 2D or 2.5D. On the similar time, Night Star was creating our new Star Engine, so we additionally ended up making a cool Sonic prototype that performed with depth in 2.5D, and another gameplay concepts.”
Following these preliminary planning periods and a mutual choice to not proceed with growth, Night Star started work on Penny’s Massive Breakaway. “As Iizuka-san mentioned, although, [Evening Star] didn’t proceed to full manufacturing on the sport, at which level Arzest took the helm and made Superstars alongside Sonic Staff,” Whitehead says. “We moved ahead with our plans to develop an unique 3D title, which is, in fact, Penny’s Massive Breakaway! Superstars appears to be like superior and our workforce is basically excited to play it when it comes out.”
Penny’s Massive Breakaway
Whitehead additionally dashed away one of many large factors of hypothesis amongst Sonic followers: that Sonic Mania 2 falling by way of was the results of unhealthy blood between Sega and members of Night Star. “Opposite to any rumors, we preserve a pleasant relationship with Sega and hope followers are pumped to play each video games as soon as they launch,” he says.
Although Whitehead and his workforce aren’t concerned with Sonic Superstars, the affect of their work and concepts is clear. “Quite a lot of the issues that we talked about with Christian, , ‘Let’s make it a visually wealthy recreation that is not primarily based in pixel. Let’s not do the Mania factor of reusing stuff. Let’s make one thing model new with all-new ranges,’ that is the place the beginning of the concepting occurred after Mania, however every thing got here to a cease,” Iizuka says. “Once we kicked off Sonic Superstars with Ohshima-san’s workforce, a variety of the conversations that we had with Christian have been already in our heads, and we did begin creating a brand new recreation already in an identical vein of, ‘Let’s make one thing new’ and ‘Let’s make one thing not pixel.'”
Even past some ideas seemingly making the bounce from the early Sonic Mania 2 ideas to Sonic Superstars, Sonic Mania’s success was instrumental within the creation of Sonic Superstars. “Throughout Sonic Mania’s growth, I did not count on this degree of fan response or success,” Iizuka says. “That success created the chance to consider the following technology of Basic Sonic and led to Sonic Superstars. Sonic Mania helped us notice that followers nonetheless needed and loved the Basic collection.”
Sonic Superstars
On Twitter, Whitehead has supplied additional affirmation that he approves of the work being achieved on Sonic Superstars, with one retweet concerning the recreation’s physics engine merely containing the thumbs-up emoji, and one other tweet stating, “May have extra to say on this when it is applicable, however the Mania physics have been certainly absolutely translated to fashionable 3D.”
Regardless of Whitehead’s affirmation that this work was achieved, Iizuka says the programming is totally distinctive to Sonic Superstars, created from the ground-up by Arzest. “The workforce referenced not solely Mania, however we referenced Sonic 1, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, and Mania after we have been creating Sonic Superstars,” Iizuka says. “The sport was created from zero – from completely nothing – however we have been nonetheless taking a look at all these 4 Basic video games and creating physics which can be going to match and really feel like what the Basic collection must be, from scratch. Once we’re speaking concerning the Basic collection and the way we’re referencing the physics, these are the 4 titles we have been taking a look at.”
Due to all that, Sonic Superstars appears to be like to not be the Sonic Mania 2 that many envisioned or anticipated, however as a substitute a religious successor. The physics play very similar to followers of Sonic Mania and the opposite beloved Basic Sonic video games play, however with fashionable visuals and different numerous options. Sonic Superstars is ready to reach on PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Swap, and PC this fall. For extra on Sonic Superstars, make sure you go to our unique content material hub by clicking the banner beneath.