Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Review – Chaotic Kart Racing with Deep Customization
I spent dozens of frantic races in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds — a fast, loud kart racer that mixes travel-ring world-hopping, deep vehicle builds and goofy crossovers. Great soundtrack and customization, but watch out for server hiccups, DLC oddities and a stubborn 60 FPS cap.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is the kind of mascot kart racer that actually surprised me — it doesn’t just ape Mario Kart, it leans into Sonic speed, ring tricks and a build system that rewards tinkering. If you like chaotic multiplayer, colorful tracks and a ridiculous roster of guests, this one scratches an itch.
Core gameplay is classic arcade karting with some neat twists: 24 base tracks that jump between 15 CrossWorlds via Travel Rings, so a race can literally change landscape mid‑lap. You pick from a big roster (23+ characters at launch), mix and match 45 vehicles and about 70 gadgets to tune a playstyle — boost, handling, defense or ring‑steal builds all feel viable. Drifting, mid‑air tricks and ring collection add skill ceilings beyond pure item chaos; there’s also an ‘ultimate charge’ that can decide a race if someone times it right. Modes range from local split‑screen Grand Prix to 12‑player World Match online, Time Trials and Festival events with rotating rewards. The Season Pass brings big crossovers (Minecraft, SpongeBob, Pac‑Man, Mega Man, etc.), which are delightfully silly, but many DLC characters ship without voiced lines and some cosmetics feel pricey. Technical notes: the PC port is well optimized but locked to 60 FPS and plagued by occasional server disconnects and DRM complaints (Denuvo) — that can sour online play. In short: fast, build‑heavy arcade racing with a brilliant soundtrack and a couple of rough edges.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a brilliant, chaotic kart racer that hooks you with its speed, gadgets and crossworld gimmick — but don’t ignore the multiplayer quirks, DLC costs and PC limitations. Buy it for the gameplay; wait for patches or a sale if you want a cleaner online experience.
Pros
- Super satisfying customization — vehicles, gadgets and builds actually matter.
- CrossWorlds travel rings keep races unpredictable and mash up great visuals.
- Fantastic soundtrack and a joyful, meme‑friendly guest roster.
Cons
- PC is locked to 60 FPS and some players report DRM/offline issues.
- Online can be flaky (disconnects, latency) and many DLC chars lack voices.
Player Opinion
Players mostly praise how fun and fresh the races feel, the deep vehicle/gadget customization and the soundtrack. Common gripes: the price point and DLC model, missing voice lines for guest characters, server disconnects and the locked 60 FPS on PC. If you loved Mario Kart but want more build variety and crossovers, you’ll probably enjoy CrossWorlds — just consider waiting for a sale if the base price hurts.