Sega Dev Reveals Why Sonic Mania 2 Didn’t Happen

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Ever since the release of 2017’s Sonic Mania fans 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 more Sonic the Hedgehog reboots and remakes.

Released for PC and consoles in 2017, Sonic Mania was a love letter to Sonic’s Sega Genesis roots. The development team, headed by programmer Christian Whitehead, brought together members of the Sonic ROM 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 Mania was widely praised for bringing the series back to its roots. While games like the open-world Sonic Frontiers have kept Sonic in the spotlight in recent years, the Sonic Mania sequel that many players were hoping for never arrived.

In a new interview with Game Informer, Sonic Mania developer Christian Whitehead and Sonic Team producer Takashi Iizuka explained why a Sonic Mania sequel never happened. The interview covers several factors that played a role in Sonic Mania 2 ultimately failing to come together, but the largest stumbling block in the way of a potential sequel appears to have been that both the Sonic Mania developers 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 of Sonic Mania and exploring new styles, Whitehead states that Sonic Mania 2 never 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 a Sonic prototype to Sonic Team at one point, both parties decided not to continue with development. Though Sonic Mania 2 was apparently not meant to be, developer Headcannon assisted on Sonic Origins in subsequent years, where it helped remaster several classic Sonic titles.

Even though fans never got Sonic Mania 2 as they’d hoped, the 2017 title still stands as one of the best entries in the franchise in recent memory. And with Sega asking Sonic fans what genre the series should tackle next, maybe another 2D pixel art project could still be in Sonic’s future.

Sonic Mania is out now for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.