Sonic Mania/Revisional Differences

This is a sub-page of Sonic Mania.

To do: Document all the versions, including the accidentally uploaded then quickly delisted v1.04 PS4 version.

Version 1.03

Dunkey Mode

Prior to v1.03.0919, there was an Easter egg activated by grabbing onto a chain in Hydrocity Zone Act 1 and pressing Left (×3), Right (×3), Up (×3) (the Level Select code from Sonic 3 & Knuckles). If done correctly, a ring chime would play.

From then on, whenever a speed booster was activated, a sound clip of YouTuber Jason Gastrow (aka VideoGameDunkey) shouting "See... YEH!" would play instead of the usual sound effect until the player entered a Special Stage. This change carried over to Act 2. The Easter egg was a reference to the video "Dunkey's Best of 2016", in which he named Sonic the Hedgehog 3 one of the ten best games he played in 2016; the "See... YEH!" clip is heard at 3:44.

Patch v1.03.0919 removed both the check for the old Level Select code and the sound effect itself, HCZ/Dunkey.wav. The Easter egg was not removed in the equivalent patch for the Switch version, but was eventually ousted in v1.05. It's believed that the developers snuck in the Easter egg without Sega's knowledge (although Dunkey didn't seem to have a problem with it), and had to remove it as a result.

(Source: EyeKey)

Languages

Patch v1.03.0919 added support for Korean, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese. The graphics and text for these languages were already in the game prior to this, but some of the Korean and Traditional Chinese graphics and text were changed/added in the patch (Simplified Chinese had no changes).

Korean

To do: Both "아이하기" and "아어하기" are incorrect spelling in Korean. Are there any graphics containing the correct spelling "이어하기" in this game?

Early	Final	English	Context
		Continue	Pause menu
		New	New save file
		Controls	Options menu
		Confirm	General menus
		Go!!	Final confirmation for Time Attack / Competition
N/A		Apply	Video menu
		Clean	Screen filter option, Video menu
		Clean	Screen filter option, Video menu
		On	Video menu
		Off	Video menu
		Volume Adjust	Sound menu

The only translation difference is that "신규" (New) was changed into "새게임" (New game). Spellings of other graphics weren't changed, but the final graphics can be read more clearly and distinguishable. According to the Korean translations, they mean slightly different to English. For example, "출발" means "Start" and "해상도" means "(Screen) resolution".

Early Korean	Final Korean	English equivalent
이 키은 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	이 키는 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	THIS KEY IS ALREADY BOUND TO ANOTHER ACTION. MOVE KEY TO THIS ACTION?
이 키은 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다 ⌨1. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	이 키는 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다 ⌨1. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	THIS KEY IS ALREADY BOUND TO ANOTHER ACTION ON ⌨1. MOVE KEY TO THIS ACTION?
이 키은 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다 ⌨2. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	이 키는 다른 액션을 위해 이미 등록되어 있습니다 ⌨2. 이 액션을 위해 키를 이동합니까?	THIS KEY IS ALREADY BOUND TO ANOTHER ACTION ON ⌨2. MOVE KEY TO THIS ACTION?

These messages were just changed to be grammatically correct.

Traditional Chinese

Early	Final	English	Context
		Time Attack	Main menu
N/A		Unused	Extras menu (similar to "1P VS 2P" string for Mean Bean mode)

Early Chinese	Final Chinese	English equivalent
總計對戰	統計對戰	COMPETITION TOTAL
Sonic CD中 的索尼克技能超級加速現在已解鎖啦！	Sonic CD中 的索尼克技能—超級加速現在已解鎖啦！	SUPER PEEL-OUT, SONIC'S ABILITY FROM SONIC CD, IS NOW UNLOCKED!
Sonic 3&K中 的索尼克技能速生護盾現在已解鎖啦！	Sonic 3&K中 的索尼克技能—速生護盾現在已解鎖啦！	INSTA-SHIELD, SONIC'S ABILITY FROM SONIC 3&K, IS NOW UNLOCKED!
沒門兒！ 藍球關卡現在已解鎖！	天吶！ 藍球關卡現在已解鎖！	NO WAY! BLUE SPHERES IS NOW UNLOCKED!
STEAM控制器顯示 不可用。請確認 您已在大熒幕模式中。	STEAM控制器顯示 不可用。請確認 您已在大螢幕模式中。	THE STEAM CONTROLLER OVERLAY IS UNAVAILABLE. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU ARE IN BIG PICTURE MODE.
在導航選單	正在瀏覽選單	Navigating Menu

• '總計' moreso means "the total number of" a singular item, ex. total time spent, total rings collected, etc., while '統計' has the meaning of logging, which makes more sense for whole pages of analytics.
• "NO WAY" appears to have been interpreted as something like a forceful no for the early translation; the final translation corrects it to an exclamation of surprise ("My god!").
• 在導航選單 is more like "at + a noun" while 正在瀏覽選單 is more like "verb + -ing + noun;" '瀏覽' is much more frequently used than '導航' in this context and is better wording.

Steam DRM

In the initial release of the PC version, the Steam DRM did not allow the game to be played offline, despite Denuvo allowing such gameplay. One day after launch, a patch was released that allows the game to run offline after it has been run online at least once, bringing it in line with most other games using Denuvo Anti-Tamper.

Denuvo was removed completely with an update on March 8, 2019, which also reduced the executable's size from 117 MB to 3 MB. However, Steam DRM is still used.

Super Transformation Button

A dedicated Super button was added to the initial PC release, allowing the player to transform by pressing the W key when jumping. The addition of this button allows the player to use abilities like the Drop Dash and flying without having to transform, which was previously a problem in Knuckles' Lava Reef Act 2. This was eventually added to the console versions in the v1.03 patch, with Super transformations engaged using the △ (PS4) / X (Switch) / Y (XB1) button.

Bugfixes

v1.03 made the following bugfixes:

• A crash that occurs when accessing the leaderboards in the PS4 version was fixed.
• The HOME and POWER buttons' actions are no longer delayed in the Switch version, and the Switch’s quick action menu no longer randomly blocks access to the Switch's UI entirely, forcing a hard restart.
• Sonic and Tails can no longer glitch their way into Knuckles' path of Green Hill Act 1.
• A camera lock issue in Green Hill Act 2 of the Switch version has been corrected.
• Press Garden Act 2 had a path with a row of four ice cubes that you couldn't get past without the Fire Shield. If you had Super Sonic without Tails, you were locked in there until the Super form wore off. That row of ice cubes has been cut down to two to compensate for that situation should it occur.
• The level design for the Stardust Speedway Act 2 boss area has been altered to prevent Tails from flying over the Silver Sonic-spawning machine and bypassing it.
• Using the Drop Dash on the Tornado as Super Sonic in Mirage Saloon Act 1 no longer crashes the game. (occurred only on Switch)
• Tails (or Knuckles if "& Knuckles" Mode is active) as a partner now changes size when respawning in areas where a size change is necessary for Metallic Madness Act 2.
• Reaching the boss area of Titanic Monarch Act 2 no longer cancels your Super form, but now causes a bug with the palette. This palette bug occurs to Sonic shortly before fixing itself. The palette bug will remain the same for Tails and Knuckles, as Super Sonic changes between two Super palettes whereas Tails and Knuckles change between the normal and Super palettes.

Miscellaneous

v1.03 also made the following changes, primarily to Debug Mode:

• When recording game footage on the PS4 version, a Sega copyright logo would be plastered onto the bottom-right corner of the screen. It's now been removed.
• The game no longer saves your score after finishing a game file. Starting on any level from a finished game file resets the score to 0.
• Due to the addition of the Super transformation button, accessing object placement is now done with ◻ (PS4) / Y (Switch) / X (XB1), and placing objects is now done with △ (PS4) / X (Switch) / Y (XB1).
• It is no longer possible to place Teleport and Random Monitors.
• Giant Rings placed with Debug Mode now only give the player 50 rings rather than send them to the Special Stage.
• It is no longer possible to access the Level Select via the title screen in the Switch version. This cheat was intended for testing and was left in on accident; it affects logging in on consoles.

(Source: Christian Whitehead on Twitter [1])

Version 1.04/1.05

On April 17, 2018, an unfinished update was accidentally pushed to the PlayStation Network. It was taken down a short while after, but people were still able to download it. The update was later released on July 17 as Version 1.05 across all systems, finishing up the few incomplete parts as well as adding the Plus DLC.

To do: Add screenshot and/or video comparisons showcasing the various visual changes.

Menu and Interface Changes

• Hyperkinetic Studios, a co-developer of the Plus DLC, has been added to the splash screen.
• The "Mania" portion of the title screen graphic has been redrawn with a smaller zig-zag shape on the bottom, in order to accommodate the added "Plus" graphic connecting to it which appears when the Encore DLC Pack is installed.
• The main menu has been altered. All the menu options are now in a scrolling list at the right, and the left is now occupied by a preview of the selected option.
• The Time Attack menu has been redesigned, and a new in-game results screen has been added.
• A Sonic Mania Plus development team section has been added to the credits.
• Options to erase save data have been added to the Options menu. The player can choose to delete everything, or only specific types of data such as Time Attack data.

Level Transitions

At release, some of Sonic Mania's levels oddly didn't have transitions. This update adds them to the levels that lacked them. Some minor level design changes were implemented to accommodate these.

• Flying Battery to Press Garden: The player takes a waiting hang glider to escape the Flying Battery. After making their escape, the player jumps off and falls through the roof of Press Garden, upsetting stacked newspapers and causing a shower of loose pages.
• Stardust Speedway to Hydrocity: After defeating Metal Sonic, the Phantom Ruby is briefly left unguarded, only to be knocked offscreen by a rolling Dango badnik. After the score tally, the player progresses to the right where Eggman has regained the Ruby, with a wireframe schematic of the Titanic Monarch visible in the background. Eggman then uses the Ruby to warp the player to Hydrocity.
• Hydrocity to Mirage Saloon: A water jet bursts through the rightmost wall of the boss arena, creating a tunnel for the player to exit through.
• Oil Ocean to Lava Reef: The Capsule now sits atop a submarine which lifts off out of the oil and flies away, eventually crashing into a pool of magma in Lava Reef.
• Lava Reef to Metallic Madness (Non-Knuckles Area): Before the fight with Heavy Rider, the rocket the boss arena is located on now blasts off into the sky. After the boss has been defeated, the player turns to look at Little Planet in the background as the lights on its mechanised surface begin to glow.
• Metallic Madness to Titanic Monarch: A hole in the wall allows the player to view the Titanic Monarch under construction, beneath a stormy sky.

Stardust Speedway Zone Boss

The Metal Sonic boss in Stardust Speedway has been altered.

• Metal Sonic now gives off 32X-style spark effects when he is charging a shot in Phase Two.
• The mini Silver Sonics now shoot out energy balls that can damage the player and Metal Sonic and additionally release energy balls when destroyed. The phase itself takes three hits to defeat instead of four.
• Phase Three has been completely overhauled:
  • The chase sequence before it has been shortened significantly, and a checkpoint has been added.
  • Eggman tosses the Phantom Ruby to Metal Sonic, who uses it to transform into a giant form similar in appearance to Metal Sonic's transformation from Knuckles' Chaotix. He can be damaged by attacking his core, containing the Phantom Ruby. He has several new attacks in this form:
    • Walks forward, destroying any terrain it touches.
    • Charges up, then fires a pink laser beam that spans the entire floor.
    • Fires three bouncing bombs toward the player.

Encore in Mania Mode

To do: Someone managed to get past the Game Over barrier in this video. Look into how to get past it.

In v1.04, it's possible to play through Encore Mode levels without owning the Plus DLC by placing a signpost during the Angel Island cutscene in Debug Mode. Doing so will send you to Encore Angel Island. The background behaves strangely if the level is accessed this way, but entering a Bonus Stage should fix it. After clearing the Act and watching the end cutscene, you should appear in Encore Green Hill.

In v1.05+, this glitch still exists and will still send you to Encore Angel Island in Mania Mode, but activating the cutscene after saving Mighty and Ray will either cause a Game Over before the cutscene has a chance to play, or the game will revert back to Mania Mode as Green Hill begins.

Miscellaneous

• A new DLC option has been added to the main menu, advertising the Plus DLC. Choosing this option will bring you to the Plus DLC purchase page. This option only appears on digital releases, however, and will disappear after the player buys it.
• Special game options can now be enabled on save files instead of only being allowed in No-Save mode, and a new option has been added to disable the timer limit. Continues also have been enabled on save files.
• Competition Mode can now be played at a non-stretched aspect ratio with black bars on the sides. Additionally, Competition Mode can be played with up to 4 players if the player has purchased the Plus DLC.
• The drowning theme now plays when the countdown reaches 12 seconds in Competition Mode.
• Tails now has a Chemical Plant intro similar to Sonic and Knuckles. Notably, it's not the same as the unused one found in the game's files in older versions.

To do: Add a visual comparison of the old unused version and the new version.

• In Press Garden Zone, the previously-unused frozen animations for Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles have been implemented.
• The graphics for the Shiversaw boss in Press Garden Act 1 no longer use colors reserved for the level tiles in the level's color palette - this has presumably been done to stop it changing color in Encore Mode, and means it's now colored the same gold as the rings instead of the copper color seen throughout the Zone itself.

To do: Add a visual comparison of the old and new graphics for this boss.

• The ice blocks in Press Garden Act 2 are slightly more opaque and blue-tinted.
• In Stardust Speedway, the previously-unused bungee animations for Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles have been implemented.
• The player can no longer run down the water slides in Hydrocity; instead they slide.
• The graphics for the Roller enemy in Mirage Saloon no longer use colors reserved for the level tiles in the level's color palette - this has presumably been done to stop them changing color in Encore Mode, and means their lightest color is now a peach shade rather than red.

To do: Add a visual comparison of the old and new graphics for this enemy.

• The Knuckles Lava Reef boss cutscene no longer uses its specific Knuckles animations when the player uses Debug Mode to enter the room as another character.
• When the player reaches the Metallic Madness boss room, there's a scripted event that locks the player's input to prevent getting crushed by the entrance or exit doors that close up.
• Sonic is given a complete set of animations specifically for Super Sonic.
• The previously blank Heavies3.gif file was filled in and used for the transition from Angel Island to Green Hill in Encore Mode.
• The "Try Again" screen now plays the sample heard at the end of the bad ending from Sonic CD. Leaving the screen makes the screen flash while playing a Phantom Ruby sound effect.
• Video capture support has been added to the Switch version.

Version 1.06

On March 8, 2019, v1.06.0503 was released on Steam.

General Changes

• Denuvo was removed from the game.
• A glitch where the controller didn't always get detected was fixed.
• The amount of storage size a user could access for replay data was increased.
• An issue where the check for compatible shaders would not perform correctly was fixed.

Version 1.07.0033

On July 30, 2020, Sonic Mania was released on the Origin platform with the version number 1.07.0033.

• Origin port-related credits have been added.
• There are unfinished in-game achievement files. The only remnants of the feature are graphics (all of which are the icon of the "Triple Trouble" achievement) and an animation file.
• The debug key in Special Stages that instantly boosted the user's Mach Speed by 1 was removed.
• Epic Games Store strings are included in the Strings files (this is due to the Epic Games Store version, which was created before the Origin release).

Version 1.07.0022

On June 25, 2021, Sonic Mania released on the Epic Games Store with the version number 1.07.0022, which suggests it was made before the Origin release but released after.

• Epic Games port-related credits have been added.
• Other changes are the same as the Origin release.