Summary
Statements from Sega have revealed thatSonic Racing: CrossWorldsis being developed by an “elite” team of racing game developers. The developer ofSonic Racing: CrossWorldsis currently unknown, as the game was recently revealed at The Game Awards 2024 earlier this December. Discerning fans believe the upcoming racing game is being developed in Japan by members of Sega AM2 who have experience in the genre.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorldsis a new racing game by Segaset to release in 2025, based on a comment from Geoff Keigley at The Game Awards. The game will be a kart racer, similar toMario Kart, as revealed in the brief teaser trailer at The Game Awards. In this trailer, Shadow the Hedgehog is seen driving his car through a realistic city, going through a dimensional portal created by a Warp Ring. While the trailer was bereft of gameplay, this didn’t stop fans from speculating on what to expect. Some recent comments from Sega have added fuel to the fire about the speculation, with many fans commenting on the possible developer behind this upcoming title.
As detailed ina post by Jasonvsfreddyvson the r/GamingLeaksAndRumors subreddit, they went over various tweets that have been posted by the official Japanese Sega andSonic the Hedgehogaccounts since the reveal ofSonic Racing: CrossWorlds, with one mentioning how the game was being created by “the elite team of Sega’s racing games.” At first, they believed that Sega HARDlight,developer ofSonic Dream Team, was developing the game, but that appears less likely now. Sumo Digital, the developer ofSonic and Sega All-Stars Racing, doesn’t appear to be the developer either, based on a celebratory tweet from the studio about the movie that didn’t mentionSonic Racing: CrossWorlds.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds' Potential Developers and Gameplay Theories, Explained
As such, the running theory is that Sega is developing the game in Japan, created by an elite team of developers with experience in racing games. Many ofSega’s classic racing gamessuch asOutRun,Daytona USA,Sega Rally, andCrazy Taxiwere originally developed by Sega AM2 and AM3. As such, former members of both subsidiary studios could potentially be working onSonic Racing: CrossWorlds.
There’s also speculation aboutSonic Racing: CrossWorlds' potential multi-vehicle gameplay. Data from Sega itself indicates how the game will have players racing across “land, sea, air, space and time,” similar to the transforming vehicles ofSonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. Jasonvsfreddyvs' post also discusses the theory about Extreme Gear from theSonic Ridersspin-offs being in the game, pointing out how a reflection of Sonic’s sunglasses from the series can supposedly be seen in the teaser trailer. Time will tell ifSonic Racing: CrossWorlds, its development team, and its features align with these theories.
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog is a prolific game franchise that started life on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. Covering both 2D and 3D iterations through the generations, Sonic is known for speedy movements and interesting platforming mechanics.
