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Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds isn't just a mascot kart racer, it's shaping up to be the mascot kart racer. Is roadmap plans show it's ready to welcome just about every franchise, gaming or otherwise, to compete. While launch content is extremely Sonic-heavy, there's not just room to grow but planned space already fenced off and ready for imminent construction. What we've seen so far manages to avoid feeling too Fortnite-ified, but it's always a risk.
So far, you've got gaming crossovers such as Minecraft, Pac-Man, and Mega Man, and even cartoons in SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Avatar making up the upcoming paid DLC for Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds that's planned to rollout through to Q3 2026. But what's interesting is that Sega have split up content drops between these season pass packs that include multiple racers and tracks, and free updates that simply throw new racers (with their own vehicle) into the mix.
OutRun-ning the past
Much less has been revealed about these free racers so far, but some common themes point towards how these might evolve. So far we've gotten vocaloid pop star and rhythm game icon Hatsune Miku, and announced to follow are the hero of Persona 5, Joker, and the protagonist of the recent Yakuza: Like a Dragon games, Ichiban Kasuga. They might all come from different developers, but they all share a throughline with hailing from Sega published games.
So what of the following nine? There may already be some clues. For starters, this seems like the perfect avenue for folding in some returning 'Sega All-Stars' from Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, a karter so good it still may reign supreme – something we struggled to juggle in our Sonic Racing CrossWorlds review. But, rather than just reviving old reliable retro stars, there's a big reason to bring some back, and with new twists to boot. The portal-racing mechanic that wonderfully has each lap zapping racers between each world means it's a great excuse to keep more coming.
That's because Sega have already kicked off their Next Level range of retro revivals – an announced programme to revive older titles with brand new entries that both respect their source material and explore new ways for them to grow. In our Shinobi: Art of Vengeance review, the first release as part of the initiative, we loved how it evoked the '90s spirit of the Sega Genesis series with gorgeous new art design.
It'd make perfect sense for some of the stars of these announced revivals to be part of the lineup with Joe Musashi from Shinobi leading the charge, perhaps with a heavily cel-shaded look to match the block colors of his new game. Likewise, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, Jet Set Radio, and Crazy Taxi have also been shown to be getting new games in that vein.
With the exception of Streets of Rage, they've all been in previous Sonic racing games, so it would make perfect sense – though it may be the case they sport redesigns to match their upcoming releases. They might even be timed to arrive closer to news of their revamps. The only downside is none of these free tier characters have been announced to have tracks – reserved for the paid tracks only – and some of the Sega circuits in past entries have been some of my favorites. The Skies of Arcadia one where the island is blown to bits mid-race? Perfection.
There's no way I could be wrong. I refuse.
Separately, alternative versions of current Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds racers have already joined the pack – not counted as part of the roadmap. Sonic's unfairly maligned werehog form from Sonic Unleashed was a pre-order bonus, with a character pack for Netflix's Sonic Prime being a digital deluxe bonus (specifically Tails Nine, Rusty Rose, and Knuckles the Dread). We've already seen Sonic X Shadow Generations incorporate Sonic the Hedgehog 3 movie's Keanu Reeves-voiced version of Shadow the Hedgehog, so it's not outside of the realm of possibility he could also make an appearance here. But would he be considered a distinct character or not?
On the topic of expanded Sonic media, it's curious to see Sonic Prime in the mix but no representation of the still ongoing IDW-published Sonic the Hedgehog comic. Intended to be canon, there's nothing stopping that series' original characters turning up, with fan favorites already making it to character-heavy mobile games like Sonic Dash.
Tangle the Lemur and Whisper the Wolf, who have had their own mini-series, feel like shoe-ins if the door is opened to this material, with Sonic rival Surge the Tenrec another top contender. A mix of returning Sega retro characters with games to promote, and a wider Sonic universe (but not Sonic Universe – even if Eggman's El Gran Gordo wrestling persona would be epic, it seems unlikely) feel like a solid start, and what I'd personally expect.
What else could round out the roster? I'd say continue to look at what's upcoming for Sega and what's been big recently. Metaphor ReFantazio representation could fit alongside Persona 5, with protagonist Will even having obvious vehicle choices with his hoverboard sword or a miniaturized version of the Gauntlet Runner land-ship. Likewise, with Kasuga present, could we get Kazuma Kiryu as he appears in the upcoming Yakuza Kiwami 3 remake? With his colorful Hawaiian shirt, he could either ride a taxi in a nod to later games, or maybe some sort of cobbled together soapbox racer made by the kids at his orphanage?
In fact, I've just counted it up. Five retro racers. Two from IDW Sonic. And one from Yakuza Kiwami 3 and Metaphor ReFantazio each. That's a perfect match. There's no way I could be wrong. I refuse. I adore Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, and, while Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds has been off to a terrific start, I miss the Sega-wide celebration as a lapsed Dreamcast diehard. Hopefully they won't stop at nine, either. There's also Super Monkey Ball, Alex Kidd, Phantasy Star, Shenmue, Ecco the Dolphin, DeCap– wait, no, you can't stop me– let me– one more–! (The note trails off from here and becomes illegible. It'd be best to move on.)
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