Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Features Extreme Gear, Transforming, and Cream the Rabbit

SEGA has officially revealed the first gameplay trailer for Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds during Sony’s State of Play presentation on February 12, 2024. The new footage showcased transforming land, sea, and air vehicles, well as the long-overdue return of Cream the Rabbit and Extreme Gear from the Sonic Riders series.

While gameplay appears familiar to Team Sonic Racing, the primary new gameplay mechanic involves “Travel Rings,” which transport players to a new world on the second lap. According to the official PlayStation Blog, the lead racer will choose the “CrossWorld” all players will teleport to.

Extreme Gear, the hoverboards featured in Sonic Riders, are officially returning after a 14-year absence from the series. SEGA describes the gameplay style of Extreme Gear as “boost-based,” though extensive details have yet to be revealed.

Characters will not be tied to a single vehicle but can choose from various customization options, including vehicle parts, colors, decals, textures, mods, and even the interior. Rouge, Charmy, Espio, Storm, and Wave appear briefly appear on billboards, though it’s unclear whether they will be playable.

The Transform feature from Sonic & Sega: All-Stars Racing also returns, automatically transforming vehicles across different terrains. During one segment of the trailer, Sonic can be spotted transforming his sports car into a rugged monster truck while driving between the legs of a dinosaur from Sonic and the Secret Rings. You know, the usual.

Before a race, players can equip “Gadgets,” which are described as “RPG-like…feature.” These are slotted into “Gadget Slots,” which increase as you progress the game and provide unique gameplay advantages, such as boosts.

Characters confirmed to appear in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds include:

• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Shadow the Hedgehog
• Tails
• Knuckles
• Amy Rose
• Dr. Eggman
• Metal Sonic
• Sage
• Silver
• Vector
• Big the Cat
• Cream and Cheese
• E-123 Omega
• Rouge (featured on billboard)

PlayStation 5 users can sign up to the Closed Network test later this month, which sadly won’t feature Extreme Gear this time around.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is set to release in 2025 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.