Sonic Mania continues to build levels of excitement in our senior staffers not seen since the nineties; we’ve adored every little element and reveal of what is set to be a fitting homage to Saturn/Genesis/Megadrive-era Sonic, lovingly crafted by the Mania team.

Among many speculations, fans have suggested that Sonic Mania may include animations akin to those book-ending Sonic CD. Last week, our eagle-eyed SSMB members spotted this WIP short animation above, posted and then quickly removed from the tumblr of Max Collins. The scene depicts an exchange between Sonic and one of the yet-to-be-seen Hard Boiled Heavies (the character having only been partially revealed in Mirage Saloon’s background). Collins resume includes work for Studio Yotta and Cartoon Network, leading to the postulation that they may have been recruited to develop animations for the game.

While the animation could easily be dismissed as a fan tribute, IndyCotton on the Sonic Retro forums gives even more compelling evidence, by drawing a comparison to the HBH model and the Heavy Gunner silhouette reveal from SXSW, as seen below. This would seem to suggest the artist has heavily inferred the model from this silhouette (including features such as the cape and head crest), or more likely has access to the final character model of this particular HBH (“His Boiled Highness”, perhaps?).

While this is all purely hype and hearsay, we certainly hope there is truth, even if just elements, as this would be a wonderful addition to the game.

As always, Sonic Stadium will keep you up to date on all Mania updates as they happen!

Props to Maxtiis (SSMB) and IndyCotton (Sonic Retro) for their evidence!