LogFAQs > #934112828

14th: Sonic & Knuckles - Lava Reef Zone Act 1
Composer: Tatsuyuki Maeda, Sachio Ogawa, Masanori Hikichi
Score: 84/100 (8.0), Sonic & Knuckles (3/12)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyNzyyxmAwM

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13th: Sonic Mania - Lava Reef Zone Act 1
Composer: Tee Lopes
Score: 84/100 (8.0), Sonic Mania (4/28)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoM9ML6RqTg

Doing another two-in-one ranking because honestly I can barely decide that I like the Mania version more than the original anyway and a lot of things I will say are composition based anyway so yeah!!!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the classic Maeda (probably) melody layering so much like god damn so much going on at any given moment that you can focus on, as it adds the melody on top of the intro ostinatos (PLURAL) at 0:07, and then adds in the countermelody at 0:23 without most of the other stuff ending and suddenly you have four things you can focus on at once and it all creates this ACTUAL SYMPHONY like holy god crap grilled cheese it's so much fun to listen to and pick apart augh. The extra little Mania bridge at 0:53 is also very cool and I like how such a small addition can still make an impact on the arrangement and feel so natural.

So what do each version have over each other? It all comes down to reverb, and I'm not even joking. The big slappy snare hits that echo into infinity in the Mania version are SO GOOD they have so much weight to them that each one punches you right in the face with the beat and it's so cool. But then the melody is ALSO big reverb hitty and I like it more when this nice melody is more buttery smooth so the FM version wins out there.

Insane song.