Sonic Racing CrossWorlds has overtaken Mario Kart World

✓ VideoGamer Summary

• Sonic Racing CrossWorlds has brought Sonic back to the racing scene.
• Sonic’s foray into karting brings a greater feeling of speed, at the cost of some overall polish.
• The game also brings a unique rival system and heaps of customisation to keep you playing.
• While Sonic Racing CrossWorlds takes a lot of cues from Mario Kart, it stands apart on its own merits.
• Sonic has an edge over Mario when it comes to the structure of its three-lap races.

The idea of Sonic and Mario’s rivalry is passe these days. They’re more likely to be found warmly competing together in the Olympics than they are to be warring for the same gaming spaces. However, the blue blur has brought a surprise attack with Sonic Racing CrossWorlds that has shaken the unassailable hold that the mustachioed plumber once had on the genre. 

Other kart games have come and gone, but Mario Kart has always reigned supreme. The latest release, Mario Kart World, may have accidentally left a gap for Sonic to rush through. Sonic’s latest is poised to steal longtime fans, including myself, as it threatens to take the lead.

CrossWorlds is the name, speed is the game

With the formula for kart racing games set so long ago, Sonic Racing CrossWorlds can’t help but feel familiar. It does bring something that Sonic has always had over Mario, and that’s speed. The game brings that speed in buckets, often feeling more like a spiritual successor to F-Zero than an arcade karting game. 

Vehicles in Sonic Racing CrossWorlds still have the same core stats as most kart racers, with each character and kart altering how you play in some way. Speed, Acceleration, Handling, Power, and Boost all feel self-explanatory and comfortable to seasoned Mario Kart players, but what is interesting is how newbie-friendly Sonic Racing CrossWorlds wants to be.

Before anything else, the game opens up into a video tutorial before forcing you into your first grand prix. It’s almost afraid to let you get anything wrong, because the chaotic races could easily overwhelm new players. Once you’re in the race, it all comes together. You’re thrown into the deep end with just enough guidance to make sense of the high-speed action. 

This battle is heating up

Sonic Racing CrossWorlds’ presentation is quite outdated, with a static splash screen and graphics clearly limited by needing to release on last-gen consoles. However, it doesn’t matter that the background audience is just looping 2D images when you’re hurtling past them so quickly.

What Sonic Racing CrossWorlds lacks in presentation, it makes up for in its unique selling features. The gadget system allows you to bring different starting items or abilities, which you can change between courses. The game also emphasises characters with its rival system, assigning a particular racer in each grand prix to put you through your paces. Both of these mechanics help the title stand apart from Mario Kart, allowing Sonic Racing CrossWorlds to distinguish itself on its own terms.  

The rivals come with a taunting introduction, and you can change their difficulty independent of the grand prix. Giving your rival more power also gives you more spendable rewards in the comprehensive unlock system once you beat them. This adds a sense of personality to races, ensuring that your victories feel meaningful and dramatic. 

Custom ride

Sonic Racing CrossWorlds is also more user-friendly than Mario Kart World’s comparatively esoteric layout. Both games give each character their own base stat line, but Sonic Racing is very upfront about who has what speciality. Mario Kart is only clear if you’re already a long-standing player. Nothing about Mario Kart World’s characters could tell you that Rosalina is in the same weight category as Bowser; you’re just supposed to intuit this. By contrast, Sonic Racing CrossWorlds keeps very few secrets.  

Mario Kart World’s unlocks and customisations feel stilted next to Sonic Racing CrossWorlds. You can collect coins in races to slowly unlock new karts, and in the overworld, you can complete challenges to unlock decals to put on your kart. Sonic Racing CrossWorlds, however, incentivises skilled play by giving more rewards during races for hitting certain collectables or encouraging you to challenge your rival. This feels more focused and directed than Mario Kart World’s offerings. 

Jockeying for first place

Sonic Racing CrossWorlds doubles down on chaotic novelty with its three-lap races. The first lap sets out a basic setting, before taking the second lap to a bombastically different world. These entertaining and visually distinct laps mean that you can’t be too comfortable, doubly so when you return to the original circuit on the third lap and find it’s boasting brand new challenges.

Between the crossplay functionality allowing for a wider range of players to compete against and all of its customisability, Sonic Racing CrossWorlds is bringing so much more to the table than just another Mario Kart clone. Thanks to its meaningful innovations, when Sonic Racing CrossWorlds comes to Switch 2, Mario Kart World will be much, much harder for me to pick up again. 

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