10 Video Games With Genuinely Impressive Level Design

Why was Sonic Mania a one-off? The classic, 2D side-scrolling Sega game, developed by hardcore fans turned pro, is arguably the best Sonic game ever made. After years of disappointing 3D Sonic titles, Mania's familiar, retro design was, paradoxically, a breath of fresh air.

That's because it faithfully recreated a core element that many of the 3D entries have failed to recapture: exploration. Classic Sonic may have been sold to edgy tweens on the strength of its lightning-fast platforming and 'tude, but it certainly wasn't designed that way.

Sonic Mania faithfully iterated on the broad verticality and branching paths of those old Sonic levels, and did so better than ever. It's levels only play out the same way if you choose to play them out the same way. And the difficulty of its various paths and secrets depends on your chosen character. Playing as Knuckles, you'll likely experience the same level much differently from Sonic, for example.

It's almost like Sonic Team were taken in by their own marketing over the years. It took true fans to remember Sonic as it once was and bring it back - and the magic is all in its level design.