Though different from the Chaos Emeralds, the reading is remarkably powerful, so he convinces Sonic the Hedgehog to take the Tornado and investigate. The game's story goes as follows: sometime after the events of Sonic 3 & Knuckles, note Which itself took place after Sonic Generations in the Classic Sonic dimension Miles 'Tails' Prower picks up a mysterious energy reading. note Which includes former members of the Sonic 2 HD Fan Remake, including the game's composer Tee Lopes. Simon 'Stealth' Thomley of Headcannon, note The lead developer of the Sonic 1 Game Mod Sonic the Hedgehog Megamix he also collaborated with Whitehead on the Sonic 1 and 2 remakes.

Rather than being developed by Sonic Team, it was spearheaded by a collaborative team comprising Christian 'The Taxman' Whitehead, note The man responsible for the 2011 re-release of Sonic CD and the 2013 mobile remasters of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

Sonic Mania is a Retraux successor to the Genesis-era Sonic the Hedgehog titles, re-imagining classic elements and zones along with new, original ones.