Sonic Mania

THE BEST SONIC GAME EVER !!!

Sonic Mania is a game that I remember fondly but every time I try to play it again I hate it. I enjoy blasting through these incredibly replayable levels until I reach some bullshit, die repeatedly until I've lost all my lives, and then I don't touch the game for several months. It's a shame too because the game has a lot to love but it also has a lot of stupid difficulty spikes where you will instantly die either without warning or due to some nonsense that's beyond your control. To be fair that's how I remember the original Sonic games so I guess that's intentional?
Look, I think with a few small changes this game could become a near-perfect platformer that rivals the likes of Rayman Legends and Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze. I think that:

a) Limited lives in video games have been an outdated mechanic since games first moved from arcades to consoles. There is nothing more disheartening than dying to some bullshit that feels like it's out of your control and having to replay an entire level you already beat.

b) There should be no time limit on a game like this, or any game really unless it's in a specific time trial mode. The levels in this game are expansive with multiple pathways, hidden items and secret stages that are just begging to be found, yet sometimes you're punished for taking your time to explore and are sent back to the last checkpoint for no discernible reason.

c) It is way too easy to get squished in this game. Even if you are clearly not touching the wall or the moving platform, it feels like the game will instantly kill you anyway. I can not count how many times I've died to those stupid underwater stairs in Chemical Plant Act 1. There are many other obstacles similar to this that felt like a massive fuck you to any fun I was having. This wouldn't be so bad if, again, you didn't have limited lives. 

d) I will never collect all of the chaos emeralds because when you find a secret stage you only get one chance to beat the mini game and the mini games get freaking hard. Adding an option to replay those stages would make completing this game much more enjoyable.

This game could've been a masterpiece but unfortunately it decided to double down on nostalgic/outdated game mechanics. Don't get me wrong; I really like this game, but I think the experience could've been a lot less frustrating.

The best sonic game ever, I wonder why they didn’t take this team as the main sonic developers

Not my type of game despite being so beautiful and blasting such good bangers

Best platform game in the world.
If you didn't play this you're missing on your entire life

such a tight and impressive sonic experience