Earlier this month, Sega confirmed Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds guest characters such as Hatsune Miku, Ichiban Kasuga (Yakuza), Joker (Persona 5), and even Steve, Alex, and Creeper from Minecraft. But the guest characters do not stop there. Sega has now announced a Nickelodeon collaboration that brings SpongeBob SquarePants to the track — and teased Avatar and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters down the line.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a kart racer packed with Sega characters and as such celebrates the company’s history. In addition, big-name guest characters are helping to flesh out the roster of racers. As part of that, those who buy the Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Digital Deluxe Edition get the Season Pass, which includes the Nickelodeon content as well as the recently announced Minecraft characters, vehicles, and tracks, characters from the Netflix series, Sonic Prime, and two more yet-to-be-announced collaborations.
The trailer below shows off SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star racing the Patty Wagon, a vehicle shaped like a Krabby Patty from the SpongeBob SquarePants series, across the Bikini Bottom track (Bikini Bottom is the main setting in the SpongeBob SquarePants series).
Sega has said CrossWorlds will feature a huge roster of over playable characters, if you include DLC. Characters you’d expect to see, such as Sonic, Dr. Eggman, Knuckles, Shadow, and Tails are present and correct, but now you can add the likes of SpongeBob SquarePants into the mix.
CrossWorlds is of course going up against Switch 2 exclusive kart game Mario Kart World, which has so far resisted adding guest characters from outside the Nintendo pantheon. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is set for release on both the Switch and the Switch 2, so it looks like we’ll be set for some old-fashioned Mario vs. Sonic kart racing rivalry when Sega's effort launches in September.
IGN recently went hands-on with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and came away impressed. “It’s a vibe,” we said, “and one that I’ve enjoyed and will look forward to drifting through.”
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
