Game review: Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (PS5)

I'm not sure what the first kart racing game ever was, but I do know Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo popularised the genre. I was too young to play Super Mario Kart, but I did enjoy playing Mario Kart 64 back in the day for the N64. 

However, my favourite kart racing game of all time has to be CTR: Crash Team Racing for the PSOne. While CTR borrows a lot of elements from the Mario Kart series, the game stands above the rest in my opinion because it actually features a campaign mode with boss fights/races too. 

Fast forward to 2025, and the kart racing genre is going strong. From the top of my head, we already received Garfield Kart 2 and Mario Kart World this year. The latter introduced an all-new open world environment with all the tracks being connected in some way. 

While Mario Kart is without a doubt the most popular kart racing series, Sega is not too far behind with its Sonic Racing franchise. Sega and Sonic Team have released a new game in the franchise with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, out now for all major platforms. 

Sonic Racing: Crossworlds might be the first kart racing game ever to include a new feature where racers are transported onto a different track midway through a race. All racers start on the same default track, but after the first lap is completed, the leading racer activates a travel ring to transport everyone to a different track in the second lap. 

The leading racer has two choices to make when choosing a different track. On the left side is a set location, but on the right side, they can choose a random location. The latter option is unpredictable because nobody knows where the next location will be, making races very chaotic and fun. 

To keep the multiverse theme of the game, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds features a ton of different characters outside of the Sonic franchise. The launch roster only has 24 playable characters, but more will be added in the future as DLC. 

Some of the guest characters that will be in the game include SpongeBob, Steve and Creeper from Minecraft, Pac-Man, Mega Man, Hatsune Miku, and tons more. Coming in November will also be a Minecraft track and a Bikini Bottom track, too!

In terms of vehicle selection, Sonic and his characters can drive a car or ride on a hoverboard to race. The cool thing about this game is that every character can use any vehicle they want, so they're not tied to any machine. For example, I like playing as Amy Rose, and I was able to make her use Sonic or Shadow's cars. 

On the select menu, you can also see the stats for each character and the vehicle you choose. You can check out the top speed, acceleration, handling, and more. Sonic is good at speed, but I have to admit, his car isn't the best when it comes to handling. 

Gameplay-wise, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds features a drift system that is similar to the Mario Kart games. You press the X button to accelerate, but you can hold down the R2 button on PlayStation consoles to drift. By letting go of the R2 button, you will get a boost in power. The longer you hold the drift, the faster your boost will be. 

To make races even more unpredictable, different types of terrain are added to the track as well. If you see a body of water, your vehicle will turn into some sort of speedboat that has different handling. If the track disappears completely, this means your vehicle can turn into an airplane. 

However, the biggest thing that can turn the tide of races is the items that you can collect along the way. The most useful item in the game is the 'boost' that allows you to go faster for a small amount of time. Some of the items you can use to sabotage other racers are the homing punch, the rocket punch and even a bomb. 

If you are in the lead, you can press down to leave items on the track for other racers to crash into. You can also collect golden rings during a race, which helps you go a little bit faster than normal. Shields are also available in the game to protect you from other racers' weapons. 

In terms of game modes, the main single-player portion of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is Grand Prix. It is here that you compete in races to win a series of championships. The other mode in the game is Race Park, which is recommended for multiplayer races. 

This mode includes some races where you can compete in a team. You can still compete in these modes by yourself, but they're more fun to play with friends. There is also an online mode where you can compete with 11 other players.

Lastly, there is a time trial where you try and set the best time for the tracks in the game. I'm not good enough to top the leaderboards, but it's a fun mode to play through if you can get the best times.

Graphically, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds runs and looks immaculate on the PS5. The game runs at 60fps, and the visuals are all bright and vibrant. Not to mention, the loading times are seamless whenever the track location changes midway through a race. 

While Sonic Racing CrossWorlds is a fun game, I still think the game could have benefitted from a story mode like CTR: Crash Team Racing. This is because the Grand Prix mode is quite short, as I finished every championship in around three hours. 

Aside from the lack of a story mode, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is an excellent racing game. The CrossWorlds gimmick works really well, and it seems the game will have a lot of support in the near future with more characters and new tracks. 

Verdict: 8.5/10