Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds came for Mario Kart’s throne last year. Where Mario Kart World disappointed some with its underbaked open world and long straightaways, CrossWorlds was a tight, traditional kart racer whose races, ya know, went fast. In a year full of great kart racers, it was the one I returned to again and again, and its steady influx of new racers was certainly a factor. Several were added for free, and that strategy will continue in the game’s second year of updates.
Bayonetta, the star of Sega’s fantasy action franchise, is coming to Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds as a free character. She’ll be the first free character added for Year Two, though a specific release date hasn’t been stated at this time. In a new trailer, she’s seen riding her signature Butterfly Witch boost-type machine, but also drives Godzilla and King Ghidorah’s machines, because why not? More details about Bayonetta, the paid Godzilla pack, and more Year Two content are expected during the World Championship Finals and Year Two Showcase livestream on Oct. 9.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is packed with free characters
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds debuted with a roster full of characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog games, but has gradually grown with crossovers and free characters from other Sega properties. Here’s everyone who’s been added for free so far:
- AiAi (from Super Monkey Ball)
- Amigo (from Samba de Amigo)
- Arle (from Sorcery Saga)
- Axel (from Crazy Taxi)
- Classic Sonic
- Goro Majima (from Yakuza)
- Hatsune Miku
- Ichiban Kasuga (from Yakuza)
- Joker (from Persona 5)
- Nights (from Nights into Dreams)
- Red (from Angry Birds)
- Tangle (from Sonic)
- Whisper (from Sonic)
We’re big fans of Sonic’s latest racing game. “Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a bright, digital spectacle, an intoxicating rush of pure, uncut video gaming,” Polygon’s Oli Welsh wrote in his review.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is now available on Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.