Sega has announced that a Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds single player demo is coming on 17th September, letting you check out the arcade kart racer ahead of its full release on 25th September.
The demo will be available across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Nintendo Switch, but while the game is coming to PS4 and Xbox One, those platforms are being left out of the fun for now. This single player demo is following on from the Open Network Test that took place at the end of August – which had similar platform restrictions.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is Sega’s latest crack at the kart racer, bringing an interdimensional twist to the familiar racing game formula. Each race will warp you to a zone known as a CrossWorld for the second of its three laps, while there’s an influx of non-Sega characters, including Hatsune Miku, Ichiban Kasuga from Like A Dragon, Joker from Persona 5. and even Pac-Man.
Perhaps more impactful, though, is the depth of customisation available to players through the Gadget Plates system.These let you equip a whole bunch of car-modifying Gadgets with two rows of three slots to fill up how you see fit. Gadgets take up a number of slots and then modifying everything from the vehicle speed and acceleration, to letting you carry three items, doubling boost, increasing the chances of particular item types, and making certain items more powerful.
We’ve been hands on with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds a couple times, most recently experiencing the Race Park modes at Gamescom. I said in our preview, “Is Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds going to be able to shine as brightly as a certain plumber’s karting escapades? You’d doubt it, but I certainly appreciate how different it looks and feels. This game is trying to put its own stamp on the genre, the visuals are right out of the classic blue sky Sega arcade game style, the racing is fast and snappy, and the customisation potential for the Gadget Plate is crazily broad. Adding various twists and spins on the core racing is just the icing on the Sonic-shaped cake.”
Source: Sonic’s socials
