Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is the Sonic R 2 I’ve been waiting for

If you grew up in the 1990s, playing some games from Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog series, you likely know about Sonic R. Released in 1997 by developer Travellers’ Tales, it answered the question of how Sonic and friends would fare in a racing game. The reception was divided, based on its stiff controls, but much praise was given to its soundtrack.

Now, almost 30 years on, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is out for PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PC, and it’s been well received already. This time developed by Sonic Team, also responsible for the mainline Sonic games, it’s a fantastically fun game. For someone who had wished for a Sonic R 2, here’s why CrossWorlds fills that void perfectly for me.

The Escapist recaps

• Since Sonic’s debut in 1991, there have been over 150 games released starring the Blue Blur.
• Sonic R came out on the Sega Saturn and PC in 1997, letting players control various characters across several tracks, but it wasn’t well-received.
• Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds came out on September 25 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
• For recent 3D Sonic games, Sonic X Shadow Generations came out in 2024, as a remaster of 2011’s Sonic Generations, which features new levels starring Shadow the Hedgehog.

Livin’ in the City

Towards the end of the 1990s, my childhood home was granted a PC, complete with Windows 98, a floppy disk drive, a 4X CD Drive, and the most vibrant CRT Monitor that could display up to 16,000 colors. But one positive for me was to buy bargain-bin Sega games like Sonic R, and see how they fared.

Yes, controlling Sonic or the other characters felt like I was turning a ship at breakneck speed, but the tracks, the music, and the hidden characters kept me coming back to the game. Even now, I have the soundtrack playing on loop. If you’ve played the game, you’ll know tracks like Livin’ in the City and Super Sonic Racing: instantly.

As Sega is focusing on the classic Sonic games that most remember, Sonic R is instead being left to the community to make it run on modern PC systems. Using the Sonic R Updater with the PC version lets players run the game in widescreen, fixed bugs, and more. It’s a treat, but after playing Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds on my Switch 2 for the past few weeks, it’s scratched my itch for a Sonic R 2.

Everybody’s Super Switch 2 Sonic Racing

This time, characters are in their own vehicles, rather than running about the place, which is very welcome to me, and my Joy-Con 2’s, compared to Sonic R’s controls. Across 24 tracks and more via DLC packs, you can use a variety of weapons inspired by past Sonic games, as well as ‘warp’ to completely different places via the Crossworld portals.

Yet it’s also the ability to play music tracks from previous Sonic games on certain laps via the Jukebox. Despite music from the first three Sonic games and Sonic R not being present at the time of writing, you can set Sonic CD’s Stardust Speedway, or a bunch from the two Sonic Adventure games, to a lap if you wish.

But that’s only the start of what Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds offers. You can customize a vehicle in many ways — want to place a decal of Sonic’s face somewhere? How about painting a car in Shadow’s color-scheme? Or even change the horn sound? It’s all possible, and it adds to the depth of what CrossWorlds is capable of.

So far, I’ve been impressed with the game. It feels like another title from Sonic Team where they’re focusing on a quality, fun Sonic game that doesn’t much deviate from the blue blur’s roots, while offering some modern features in a racing game that can easily rival others in the genre.

Indeed, some have mentioned how CrossWorlds has replaced Mario Kart World as their go-to Switch 2 racing game, and I get that. But to me, both games can co-exist with one another. Nintendo’s long-standing Mario Kart series offers its own charm, especially with the new Knockout Tour and open-world mechanic in World.

For CrossWorlds, it feels like the title implies a crossover of different characters and brands, all in one game that’s simply fun to play. With its season pass offering SpongeBob SquarePants, Minecraft, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and more coming, it looks like we’ll be seeing an even bigger game in a year’s time, with plenty more tracks, characters, and more to use.

With all this combined, I’m now playing the best of both worlds on my Switch 2 — Mario Kart World and Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds. If I want, I can play Sonic R on my Steam Deck. But right now, playing these games on my Switch 2 is a great time, and finally gives me the Sonic R 2 game I’ve been hoping to see since 1997.

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References

1. Super Sonic Racing – Sonic R [OST] (YouTube)
2. cheatfreak47/SRUpdater (GitHub)