Something else that annoys me is the one-hit kills when stuck between two moving items. In Mario, in 99% of cases, this would just damage you and bounce you back. There's some areas in World where it's easier to die this way but it's still pretty rare.
In this game it feels like there's more of these objects rubbing against each other in levels, and in addition to that Sonic's physics don't make it easy to maneuver around these obstacles. When you encounter these hazards, you're usually at a standstill as you make your way through it. Jump on one, wait for the next one, etc. And to be frank, controlling Sonic sucks most coming out of a dead stop. The point is you're punished for a lack of momentum, but this makes precision platforming mostly a chore.
My two thoughts. Haven't been able to crystalize why I never cared for Sonic until now. Mania is easily the best of the ones I've played, but the core mechanics just don't work for me. Maybe that Mario/Mega Man/Castlevania muscle memory runs too deep.