My first video game console back in 1991, the Sega Genesis. Bundled with one of the best video games of all time, Sonic the Hedgehog. I had no idea who or what Sega or Sonic was at the time, but the second I started playing Sonic, I quickly realised that this game was far superior compared to Mario. The 16-bit graphics, the colorful environments, and of course the fast paced gameplay. Sonic to me, will and always be one of the greatest video games of all time. I pre-ordered my Sonic Mania Collector's edition, I didn't know what to expect, I didn't even follow much of the gameplay shown at E3 and what not, but when I started playing this game, I had an epiphany. The moment I started playing the first zone, from the music to the art, and the gameplay. This game is what the fans should have been given since the last great release, Sonic the Hedgehog 3. If you like Sonic in any way shape or form, even if you don't, if you like platform games or anything of that nature, you will love this game. I've seen some YouTubers play this game and mention it is somewhat difficult. For newcomers I will agree with that, but I've been playing Sonic since the 90's and Sonic Mania isn't too harsh with the difficulty, it's basically as hard as Sonic 2 or 3 was. I've beaten every Sonic game, every last one, so for me Sonic Mania is enjoyable. Not too hard, not too easy, just right. Overall, for $19.99 for the base game, Sonic Mania is a steal. I've put in 6 hrs on release date, and didn't complete the main game yet. The replay value is extremely high there are the chaos emeralds and also coins you need to collect from bonus levels for extras and unlockable modes. The graphics are perfect and just the way I remember it on my Genesis, you get full HD at 60fps with some 3D effects thrown in some backrounds, and you'll notice it immediately. The music in Sonic Mania brings you back to the 90s instantly and is reworked from older levels with a twist for the newer levels in Sonic Mania. The zones (levels) are more in depth, take longer to complete and there is a lot of boss battles, all cleverly put together. Each level contains multiple routes and secret rings that enable you to play bonus levels just like in Sonic 3. There are also the bonus levels you get from the checkpoints which bring back the blue/red sphere 3d mazes, only this time they're more random and of course even more difficult. The other bonus level which enables you chaos emeralds upon completion is more of a race style, collect blue orbs to get to mach 3 speeds and capture the emerald. The graphics and even the controls are straight from Sonic R. Yup I told you I beat and have every Sonic game made :-). So if I were to rate Sonic Mania, I'd give it a 9/10, the team did a great job on this project and the game is fantastic. I did not expect this game to be as good as it is. Yet somewhere deep down I feel, only us true Sonic fans will enjoy this game to the fullest extent, and most newcomers might not even bother, thanks to the Madden's, call of duty's and GTA games. It's sad, I feel this game deserves millions of sales. Either way don't think, buy it now, buy it for every console you own.