History MythologyGag / SonicMania

** The [[spoiler:final boss takes place inside of a giant Eggman robot, ala [[VideoGame/Sonic3DFlickiesIsland Panic Puppet Act 2]]. The final boss itself is a round machine with Eggman inside, and every hit removes a piece of the machine, like ''Sonic CD's'' final boss. The boss is the "heart" of the arena, shielded by a golden shield, like ''Sonic 4: Episode 2's'' final boss, and when it's destroyed, the protagonists run from an encroaching explosion, like the end of ''Sonic 2''.]]

* [[spoiler: The entire good ending of this game paying homage to [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Sonic CD]]'s good ending with an addition of Sonic's silhouette winking to both Tails & Knuckles.]]

** Act 1 can aptly be described as [[spoiler:[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2 Sky Chase]]: Desert Edition]].

* If you lose more rings than you're allowed to pick up, some of them fall towards the screen, like in ''VideoGame/KnucklesChaotix''.
* The Combi-Ring item from ''Chaotix'' is back too, though somewhat {{nerf}}ed so instead of releasing a single large ring worth all the rings you had upon getting hurt, it releases a few that are worth fractions instead.
* The {{fist pump}} VictoryPose cut from ''Sonic 1'' is part of Sonic's victory animation in this game.
* The save screen and first few seconds are heavily reminiscent of Videogame/SonicTheHedgehog3, except with the Egg Robos replacing entirely Knuckles.

* The game proper opens almost identically to ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic 3]]'', with Sonic and Tails arriving on Angel Island in the Tornado before being warped to [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Green Hill Zone]] by the game's {{Macguffin}}.
* When Tails is steering the Tornado, he appeared to wearing an aviator hat with googles, which is just like in [[Anime/SonicTheHedgehogTheMovie Sonic OVA]].
* [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles EggRobo]] makes its return, with a series of modified versions serving as a QuirkyMinibossSquad.
* Sonic's animations mostly take inspiration from many of his classic era games, such as his spinning spring jump animation from ''Sonic CD''. Some of Sonic's new sprite animations, such as his signature WheelOFeet, are based on some DummiedOut animations from the original Genesis games.
* The goal sign behaves differently depending on how it appears at the end of an Act. At the end of Green Hill Zone's Act 1 boss, it falls from the sky and can be juggled for points and unearth hidden monitors, just like in ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''. At the end of Studiopolis Zone Act 1, which is after a GetBackHereBoss sequence against the Heavy Gunner, it leaps into the air and lands when Sonic passes by it, much like the 8-bit ''Sonic'' games (though it can also be juggled for points if the player wishes).
* Similar to ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' before it, the [[http://www.seganerds.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/sonic-mania-collectors-edition-1024x877.jpg box art for the game's Collector's Edition]] references ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1''[='=]s box art. The background behind Sonic is Green Hill once again, just like ''Sonic 1''[='=]s [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_1_Genesis_box_art.jpg American]] box art, while Sonic himself is drawn in the same style he had in ''Sonic 1''[='=]s [[http://soniczone0.com/games/sonic1/backgroundinfo/full/s1-bginfo-detailsimg5full.jpg Japanese]] and [[http://www.soniczone0.com/games/sonic1/backgroundinfo/full/s1-bginfo-detailsimg1full.jpg European]] box art.
* The online [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtqgkPCEIP8 "infomercial" for the Collector's Edition]] is an extended call back to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uC_a4kxL8NI an earlier commercial]] for ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', complete with {{Retraux}} VHS filters.
* Special Stages are accessed by giant rings in hidden rooms, just like in ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''.[[note]]Though there are only two per Act, likely to prevent players from gaining access to Super Sonic too early.[[/note]]
* Mirage Saloon Zone is basically the long scrapped Dust Hill Zone from ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'' mixed with its also scrapped Desert Dazzle interpretation from the 2011 version of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'', minus the TimeTravel gimmick. It also features elements from Collision Chaos (the design of the flippers and bumpers) and Palmtree Panic[=/=]Wacky Workbench (the saloon seats behave the same as certain platforms from those levels).

* Splats, an unused badnik from ''Sonic 1'', is seen discarded on Flying Battery's trash heaps. The setpiece based on the boss fight from Wing Fortress reappears with the wall crushers redesigned as a trash compactor.
* The beginning of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvD8NZN9Zsg the pre-order trailer]] features a simple doodle of Sonic, dubbed "Sonic the Sketchhog", that was prominently featured in the manuals of the classic games. He's also briefly drawn with bunny ears, a reference to his prototype ''Feel'', who would later evolve into ''VideoGame/{{Ristar}}''.

* The [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Blue Sphere special stages]] return as bonus stages, with at least one of them being [[NostalgiaLevel a direct copy]] of one of the old stages.

* [[spoiler: As the little planet is free once again in the good ending, a silhouette of Sonic could be seen just like in [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Sonic CD]] with an addition of him winking to both Tails & Knuckles.]]

** The transition from Act 1 to Act 2 involves Sonic going through the complete time travel process from Sonic CD (including passing a Future sign, getting to a sustained high speed, and then going through a modernized version of the warping cutscene).

* The prelude to the Act 1 boss fight for [[spoiler:[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Hydrocity]]]] plays almost identically to the prelude to the Act 2 boss fight from Marble Garden, with Eggman causing the ground to start rising and Sonic having to climb up rapidly to avoid getting crushed into the ceiling. The boss fight proper has you [[HoistByHisOwnPetar turning Eggman's machine from the original game against him]]. Meanwhile, the second half of the Act 2 boss is literally a carbon copy of the Act 1 boss from the original [[spoiler:Hydrocity]].

* [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Stardust Speedway]] Act 1 takes heavy design cues from [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Marble Garden]], with the pull cords, spin dash discs, and double-sided loop exits from the latter stage all present in the former. The unfurling vine ledges from Mushroom Hill and the diagonal slingshots from Sandopolis also make appearances

* The loops in [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Stardust Speedway]] have double-sided exits that the player spins around on the way down, virtually identical to the ones found in [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Marble Garden]]. A particular kind of vine platform from Mushroom Hill is also present.

* The save screen and first few seconds are heavily reminiscent of Videogame/SonicTheHedgehog3, except with the EggRobos replacing entirely Knuckles.

* One of the boss fights consists of [[http://www.tssznews.com/2017/06/14/sonic-mania-boss-details-leaked/ playing]] ''VideoGame/DoctorRobotniksMeanBeanMachine''.

* The Special Stages play like a combination of those from ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD CD]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/KnucklesChaotix Chaotix]]'', with Sonic having to chase down a single UFO on a Mode 7-style track while having to gather blue spheres to increase his running speed and rings in order to stay in the stage longer.

** A level gimmick used in the zone is a ''[=SegaSonic=] Popcorn Shop''. It is based on an old vending machine whose minigame ROM had finally been dumped in 2015.

* Studiopolis Zone has a fair number of these too:

** Another gimmick occurs when you enter the Hornet news van [[note]]One of Sonic's earliest cameos was on a mountain in ''VideoGame/DaytonaUSA'''s Three-Seven Speedway. The Hornet news van in Studiopolis seems to be returning the favor[[/note]], which beams Sonic to other satellite dishes throughout the level as a teleport. The rings that make up the "signal" are reminiscent of the ring shooters in the Death Egg Zone from ''Sonic 3 & Knuckles'' and serve a similar purpose (carrying Sonic to another location). The sound said news van makes when Sonic enters it is the same sound used for passing through certain doors in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogSpinball''.

Being a MilestoneCelebration, ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' has a LOT of nods to previous games in the series.

* The goal sign behaves differently depending on how it appears at the end of an Act. At the end of Green Hill Zone's Act 1 boss, it falls from the sky and can be juggled for points and unearth hidden monitors, just like in ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''. At the end of Studiopolis Zone Act 1, where there's no boss, it leaps into the air and lands when Sonic passes by it, much like the 8-bit ''Sonic'' games (though it can also be juggled for points if the player wishes).

** There's a secret room containing a Special Stage ring towards the end of Act 1. The way you get to it? You push a rock out of the way and drop through the floor, in almost identical fashion to a well-known secret room in [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Angel Island Zone]]. Flying Battery Zone from the same game also has objects that need to be moved so Sonic can drop down to a Special Stage ring.

* The badnik Splats that was unused in ''Sonic 1'' is seen discarded on Flying Battery's trash heaps. The setpiece based on the boss fight from Wing Fortress reappears with the wall crushers redesigned as a trash compactor.

** If you lose more rings than you're allowed to pick up, some of them fall towards the screen, like in ''VideoGame/KnucklesChaotix''.
** The Combi-Ring item from ''Chaotix'' is back too, though somewhat {{nerf}}ed so instead of releasing a single large ring worth all the rings you had upon getting hurt, it releases a few that are worth fractions instead.
** The {{fist pump}} VictoryPose cut from ''Sonic 1'' is part of Sonic's victory animation in this game.
** Green Hill Zone has these in spades:
*** The original Green Hill Zone's background had misplaced some of the mountain peaks. The redrawn background in this game keeps them there but also fills the gaps with running water so they don't look like they're floating.
*** The lower sections of the stage feature an underground lake as the background, similar to both Act 2 of its 8-bit counterpart and its ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'' incarnation.
*** An astute player will notice that Act 1 splits into three distinct paths about halfway through, with each route taking inspiration from similar stages from the Genesis games. To elaborate: the central route is a near pixel-perfect replication of Acts 1 and 2 of the original [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Green Hill Zone]], the upper route bears a heavy resemblance to [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2 Emerald Hill Zone]] (with loops ending in downward slopes and the signature corkscrew roads), and the lower route uses [[VideoGame/SonicCD Palmtree Panic]] as its main inspiration (with complex, multi-layered ledges and twisting underground passages).
*** There's a secret room containing a Special Stage ring towards the end of Act 1. The way you get to it? You push a rock out of the way and drop through the floor, in almost identical fashion to a well-known secret room in [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Angel Island Zone]]. Flying Battery Zone from the same game also has objects that need to be moved so Sonic can drop down to a Special Stage ring.
*** Act 2 is the original Act 3 mixed with new content. The background is based on the one Green Hill originally had in the mythical Tokyo Toy Show prototype.
*** The zip lines in Act 2 are similar to the ones seen in Angel Island Zone, but are also affected by momentum.
*** The latter half of Act 2 features shallow, underground pools of water, much like the 8-bit version of ''Sonic the Hedgehog'', as well as long, multi-segmented bridges similar to those found in Bridge Zone.
** Studiopolis Zone has a fair number of these too:
*** The post lights look like the UFO objects that had been cut from ''Sonic 1''[='=]s Marble Zone.
*** The CPU and COPE neon signs from Spring Yard Zone are seen on trains in the background.
*** A level gimmick used in the zone is a ''[=SegaSonic=] Popcorn Shop''. It is based on an old vending machine whose minigame ROM had finally been dumped in 2015.
*** Another gimmick occurs when you enter the Hornet news van [[note]]One of Sonic's earliest cameos was on a mountain in ''VideoGame/DaytonaUSA'''s Three-Seven Speedway. The Hornet news van in Studiopolis seems to be returning the favor[[/note]], which beams Sonic to other satellite dishes throughout the level as a teleport. The rings that make up the "signal" are reminiscent of the ring shooters in the Death Egg Zone from ''Sonic 3 & Knuckles'' and serve a similar purpose (carrying Sonic to another location). The sound said news van makes when Sonic enters it is the same sound used for passing through certain doors in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogSpinball''.
** [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles EggRobo]] makes its return, with a series of modified versions serving as a QuirkyMinibossSquad.
** Sonic's animations mostly take inspiration from many of his classic era games, such as his spinning spring jump animation from ''Sonic CD''. Some of Sonic's new sprite animations, such as his signature WheelOFeet, are based on some DummiedOut animations from the original Genesis games.
** The goal sign behaves differently depending on how it appears at the end of an Act. At the end of Green Hill Zone's Act 1 boss, it falls from the sky and can be juggled for points and unearth hidden monitors, just like in ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''. At the end of Studiopolis Zone Act 1, where there's no boss, it leaps into the air and lands when Sonic passes by it, much like the 8-bit ''Sonic'' games (though it can also be juggled for points if the player wishes).
** Similar to ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' before it, the [[http://www.seganerds.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/sonic-mania-collectors-edition-1024x877.jpg box art for the game's Collector's Edition]] references ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1''[='=]s box art. The background behind Sonic is Green Hill once again, just like ''Sonic 1''[='=]s [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_1_Genesis_box_art.jpg American]] box art, while Sonic himself is drawn in the same style he had in ''Sonic 1''[='=]s [[http://soniczone0.com/games/sonic1/backgroundinfo/full/s1-bginfo-detailsimg5full.jpg Japanese]] and [[http://www.soniczone0.com/games/sonic1/backgroundinfo/full/s1-bginfo-detailsimg1full.jpg European]] box art.
** The online [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtqgkPCEIP8 "infomercial" for the Collector's Edition]] is an extended call back to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uC_a4kxL8NI an earlier commercial]] for ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', complete with {{Retraux}} VHS filters.
** Special Stages are accessed by giant rings in hidden rooms, just like in ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''.[[note]]Though there are only two per Act, likely to prevent players from gaining access to Super Sonic too early.[[/note]]
** Mirage Saloon Zone is basically the long scrapped Dust Hill Zone from ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'' mixed with its also scrapped Desert Dazzle interpretation from the 2011 version of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'', minus the TimeTravel gimmick. It also features elements from Collision Chaos (the design of the flippers and bumpers) and Palmtree Panic[=/=]Wacky Workbench (the saloon seats behave the same as certain platforms from those levels).

** The red Roller badniks use the filtered jump sound effect from ''Sonic CD''. Those armadillo bots have also been recolored from blue to red, bringing Mighty from ''[=SegaSonic=] the Hedgehog'' and ''Chaotix'' to mind.
** The badnik Splats that was unused in ''Sonic 1'' is seen discarded on Flying Battery's trash heaps. The setpiece based on the boss fight from Wing Fortress reappears with the wall crushers redesigned as a trash compactor.
** The beginning of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvD8NZN9Zsg the pre-order trailer]] features a simple doodle of Sonic, dubbed "Sonic the Sketchhog", that was prominently featured in the manuals of the classic games. He's also briefly drawn with bunny ears, a reference to his prototype ''Feel'', who would later evolve into ''VideoGame/{{Ristar}}''.
** The loops in [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Stardust Speedway]] have double-sided exits that the player spins around on the way down, virtually identical to the ones found in [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Marble Garden]]. A particular kind of vine platform from Mushroom Hill is also present.
** Chemical Plant uses a hybrid of the coiled tubes from both Quartz Quadrant and Carnival Night, as well as the tubes from Metallic Madness that let you choose a path. The Catakiller, Jr. badniks from Angel Island are here, too. Although the [[GelatinousTrampoline bouncy slime pools]] are original enough ideas, they can be compared, amusingly enough, to those from ''VideoGame/SonicRoboBlast2'''s own {{expy}} of Chemical Plant. Or alternatively, to the bouncy floors from Wacky Workbench (and on this note, the soundbyte that plays when you bounce on a blue pool is the soundbyte that occurs from using a bouncy mushroom in Mushroom Hill while bouncing on a green pool overlays this soundbyte with the sound that plays when you hit a bounce floor in Wacky Workbench).
** One of the boss fights consists of [[http://www.tssznews.com/2017/06/14/sonic-mania-boss-details-leaked/ playing]] ''VideoGame/DoctorRobotniksMeanBeanMachine''.

** One of the boss fights consists of [[http://www.tssznews.com/2017/06/14/sonic-mania-boss-details-leaked/ playing]] ''VideoGame/DoctorRobotniksMeanBeanMachine''.