Continuing on with Sonic Mania’s 6th Anniversary, the game’s director, Christian Whitehead, has released an early story concept document for the game. This was the same document that was shown during the 2017 Sand Diego Comic Con panel talking about the game’s development.

Check it out below!

Sonic Mania

^Early Story Concept

Prologue

It is sometime after the events of Sonic 1 – 3k, and Sonic’s world finds itself in an extended period of tranquility. Having faced defeat at the hands of Sonic numerous times Dr. Eggman’s spirit for world conquest is at an all time low, and we find him holed up in his bedroom. Building a replica of ‘Eggmanland’ with toy blocks, the once menacing doctor wonders if he should consider retirement when a transmission appears on his monitors…

An Obsession with Sonic

“Listen up you organic punks! The Hard-boiled Heavies are on the scene and ready to rule with an iron fist! Unlike that has-been doctor, we’ve not gone soft in the pursuit of Sonic… we’ll put an end to his high speed antics once and for all!”

Before these mechanical mercenaries can finish their bragging, Dr. Eggman flicks the transmission off in a seething rage.

“How dare these Egg Robo rejects upstage my genius! Only I possess the talent and rugged good looks to defeat Sonic, grrrr! If only I had time to rebuild my robot army…”

Eggman’s anger soon focuses into a cunning clarity. If those “Hard-Boiled Heavies” are looking for a fight, he’ll let them have it, and what’s better, why not take advantage of his current obscurity to salvage his many great machines in secret while Sonic is distracted? With little time to spare, Dr. Eggman sets off to South Island with a renewed sense of vigor and purpose!

Story Influence on Gameplay / Game Structure

• In general, Players will face off against Eggman bosses in S1/S2/SCD/S3K levels, and Hard-Boiled Heavy (HBH) bosses in the brand new levels. This ties into the storyline, where Dr. Eggman is visiting his past locations to salvage and modify his old machines.
• In one of the later Zones, Dr. Eggman will battle the HBH himself, the resulting crossfire creating a unique challenge for the player to navigate through.

So it seems that the Phantom Ruby wasn’t even a thing initially. Instead of bending reality and turning normal Egg Robos into the Hard Boiled Heavies, they were initially drafted as alternate versions of the Robos that went rogue.

What do you think about this early concept for Sonic Mania’s story? Do you think that a depressed Eggman playing with toy blocks would have been amusing to see? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to stay tuned to Sonic City for more Sonic Mania news and updates!

Source: Christian Whitehead on Twitter