Have you ever wanted to just go fast? Like really, really fast? Well Sonic Racing: Crossworlds has got you covered. During the Sony State of Play on Wednesday, Feb 12th 2025, SEGA announced a new entry in the increasing popular kart-racing series, Sonic Racing. Now, I've been a Sonic fan since as far back as I can remember, but have yet to touch a Sonic Racing title. This announcement boasted a slew of new features, including new ways to race, the most expansive character roster in years (with many more additions on the way!) and crossover with other SEGA titles.
This new entry in the series has a unique focus, and that's traversing new and exciting worlds. You are able to seamlessly speed into new dimensions using the travel rings. For those unfamiliar with the Sonic series, these are essentially giant portals created by the gold rings that Sonic and his pals collect. According to the trailer, these portals are also going to be used to introduce "Iconic characters from the Sonic and SEGA Universes". Now, which characters and series will be featured is still a mystery, although SEGA has confirmed characters from the Sonic Prime Netflix series will make an appearance. Personally, I would love to see Kazuma Kiryu or Goro Majima from the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series racing down the track next to Sonic and his pals, but we shall see who they include!
With this being the 5th entry in the Sonic Racing series, SEGA seems to have perfected the formula with new transformative mechanics - you can drive, fly, and dive into the depths of the sea with your vehicle of choice. This installment will also include the "Extreme Gear" feature present in previous Sonic games, with the ability to use a hoverboard rather than a kart. EXTREME!! That's not all though, each race seems to have added giant monsters, various track changes, and "gadgets" to enhance your vehicle to ensure you cross that finish line before your rival racers. As SEGA has noted, the gadgets feature is akin to some RPG elements - an experience truly tailormade to your personal preferences. Guess you've just gotta "Live and Learn" huh? (See what I did there?)
As of this article, SEGA has not provided a concrete release date, but they have advised that the game is in development, and more updates will be provided as the game progresses. However, as of now, SEGA has allowed those curious about the game (with a PS5) to sign up for a Closed Network Test to check out these new racetracks before the full release! You can sign up for this test below if you're interested.
Sonic Racing: Crossworlds is coming to the PS5/PS4, Xbox One/Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, and Steam. Here's hoping I see you out on the track, and remember to keep rollin' around at the speed of sound!
The music in the trailer went kind of HARD ngl. I didn't even know until this article that Sonic had a racing series. My initial reaction though is that this one looks like a fun, different take on the "Mario Kart" formula (which I'm terrible at but still love).