There’s a distinct whiff of hedgehog over in the world of mobile gaming today; not only has Sega just unveiled the Fall Guys-like Sonic Rumble, the very excellent Sonic Mania Plus is now available on iOS and Android via a Netflix subscription.
Starting with Sonic Rumble, it’s being developed in conjunction with Angry Birds studio Rovio and promises “32-player battle royale challenges” that’ll see competitors thundering across elaborate toybox-themed, Fall Guys-esque obstacle courses in a bid to collect the most rings.
It’ll feature “iconic characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog universe” – albeit presented in toy form – which players can customise to create their own unique avatars. If that appeals, Sonic Rumble will be available for iOS and Android this “winter” – and a (currently US-only, unfortunately) closed beta test is set to run from 24th-26th May if you fancy signing up.
And if you’re looking for some more immediate Sonic action, Sonic Mania Plus – the expanded, enhanced version of 2017’s superb nostalgia-tweaking side-scrolling platfomer – is finally available on iOS and Android, but only to Netflix subscribers.
Plus added two new playable character to Sonic Mania in the form of Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel, as well as a new “Encore Mode” – remixing existing levels – alongside an expanded four-player Competition Mode. It is, then, a decent update to a title Eurogamer called a “beautiful rewrite of the 16-bit Sonic games” back in 2017.