Sonic Racing: Crossworld, a new racing title launching on the 25th, has made a smooth start with an 83-point critic score on Metacritic based on early reviews. With its direct competitor, Mario Kart World, holding an 86-point score, the gap is narrow, setting the stage for an intense showdown between the two games.

Currently, the 53 reviews logged on Metacritic are exclusively for the PS5 version. The consensus is that the game successfully captures the signature sense of speed of the Sonic series and offers a robust amount of content, including various game modes, tracks, characters, vehicles, and customization options, making it highly replayable. Additionally, the 'Crossworld' mechanic, which changes the track layout mid-race, is being praised for adding unpredictable fun and freshness.

Furthermore, critics noted that the game balances accessibility and depth, with easy controls that reward mastery of techniques like drifting. Voxel, which gave Sonic Racing: Crossworld a 95, remarked, 'This game has reignited the friendly rivalry between Sega and Nintendo. This time, it is neck and neck.'

However, some drawbacks were pointed out. Critics mentioned that item boxes appear too infrequently, and the high level of randomness can sometimes disrupt the racing balance. Additionally, the grind for tickets to acquire machines feels repetitive, and some single-player content and modes, such as online rankings, feel somewhat unfinished. There were also comments that the launch roster and track count are slightly lacking, and that the impact of collisions feels underwhelming.

Sonic Racing: Crossworld is a Sega All-Stars racing game developed by the Sega racing team. It features racing across land, sea, and air, with courses that change every lap. It boasts the largest roster in the series with 23 characters, and future content updates will add cameos from Hatsune Miku, Joker (Persona 5 Royal), Ichiban Kasuga (Yakuza), Minecraft, and SpongeBob SquarePants.

Meanwhile, ahead of the launch, Sega drew attention with a promotional video that seems to target Mario Kart World. While it portrayed Mario Kart World as an old, slow vehicle, it highlighted the speed and diverse vehicle customization of Sonic Racing: Crossworld. As the highest-rated title in the Sonic Racing series on Metacritic, the industry is watching to see if it can achieve commercial success comparable to Mario Kart World.