Team Sonic Racing was an enjoyable game. The team-based gameplay provided something a bit different to other kart racers. As time went on, though, I was hoping for something a lot meatier. A variety of tracks and going all out with the character roster. So, in comes Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, delivering just that. A racing game that feels a great celebration of the franchise, developed by Sonic Team and the Initial D team.

Firstly, the characters on offer here. The entire Heroes majority is here, making characters such as Cream, Espio, and Charmy playable for the first time in forever. Then there’s the Babylon Rogues also here, letting Jet, Wave, and Storm race for the first time since Sonic Free Riders. In total, there’s 23 racers here, not counting the additional free and paid extras, all with their own personal kart. With the Rogues getting their Extreme Gear to use.

Just because each character has their own personal kart doesn’t mean they’re restricted to just that one, however. Split across five types of speed, acceleration, handling, power, and boost, any character can use any vehicle. And even mix up parts that belong to the same type. When customising vehicles, there’s even a lot of personalisation that can be applied, with various colours that represent each character and a decal editor.

Naturally, when it came to choose, I went straight for Espio with an Extreme Gear board. Into the first of the Grand Prix cups, I had a rival to fight against along with ten other racers on the track. The rival system is a fun one, offering up various exchanges depending on the combination. Even here, there’s something of a celebration going on, with characters recognising each other from the depths of history. Such as with Espio and Knuckles recognising each other as old friends.

Many of the tracks also celebrate the franchise. Whether that be through direct connection (such as Market Street and Metal Harbour) or recreate a theme of the past (such as Pumpkin Mansion and Eggman Expo). As I progressed through the Grand Prix cups, it was a joy to see what these tracks held, along with those of the CrossWorlds. 24 main tracks and 15 CrossWorlds provide a lot of variety in the locations that will be raced through.

I like the structure of the Grand Prix, and racing in general. Starting out with one lap of a track, the player in first has the choice of which CrossWorld will be visited from a known or unknown location. Where the main tracks are all lap-based, these CrossWorlds are all marathon tracks. At the end of a CrossWorld, the race returns to the main track, which has seen some changes from that first lap. Even in the music that plays. Each final race of a Grand Prix sees a lap of each previous track completed.

Driving feels great. Drifts might take a bit of getting used to, but soon I was able to execute them well. Even utilising swapping direction to take an opposite corner while retaining the drift boost built up. At certain points, flying and boat sections appear. Flying is easy enough to perform, feeling floatier than when on the ground. The same can be said for boats, which forgo drifting to instead build up jump power. Which, when used well, can make for some nice shortcuts.

As the Grand Prix cups are completed, new things start unlocking. The first being the gadget plate, which at first only has two slots and a few gadgets that can be placed on it. These gadgets have various affects, such as increasing the speed certain levels of boost fill up or offering items at the start of a race. There’s numerous tabs, too, allowing for six different builds. I’ve got one that suits my acceleration-based style, and one for time trials.

Speaking of the different modes, the Grand Prix is obviously the main one. But time trials is where those wanting a focused drive play. Across all lap tracks and CrossWorlds, there’s four ranks to aim for. S rank being the hardest of the lot. There is a racing line that appears on all tracks, but that line isn’t usually the fastest. As such, it’s a fun time experimenting to find the best route through them.

Then there’s the Race Park, offering various modes to play. Team matches with special conditions, such as three teams battling it out to collect the most rings, are among the more regular racing offered with custom or quick matches. These can offer something different from the regular racing of Grand Prix mode, especially with team rivals being part of the mix.

The online options are the standard fare, with public lobbies quickly getting people racing after a track selection from three options. There’s a world ranking, that sees the position a player finishes earning points to progress through the ranks. Each ranking stage passed unlocks something new. Unlocks are something CrossWorlds has plenty of, with every mode offering up something for even just competing.

Donpa Tickets are the main way of unlocking something. These are given no matter what mode is played. New vehicles options, including auras and horns. The Friendship Pass accepts these tickets, though requires a lot of them, with the starting progress being 100 tickets. There’s rankings to unlock through various challenges, soundtracks for the jukebox from time trials wins, and even additional vehicle options from the Race Park.

And I have to mention that music. There’s so many great remixes included here. Metal Harbour sounds so triumphant as it reaches it peak. Apotos’ take on Windmill Isle makes some interesting changes while still sounding familiar. The original music for tracks also have a lot of energy to them. Even the very cheese-tastic Cross The Worlds vocal theme, which I just adore. The lyrics read like a description of what happens on track so much to the point you’ll either love them or hate them.

Honestly, I’ve got to say, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is the best Sonic racer of the lot. There’s so much celebration of the franchise, with a great racing feel across tracks that feel built with them in mind. There’s not really any flaws I can see with this one, so I have to give Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds an easy recommendation. Not only is it the best Sonic racer, it is very much one of the best kart racers not platform exclusive.

Images Taken From:
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds | Xbox Series S