Team Sonic Racing

Team Sonic Racing is a shadow of the All-Stars Racing Franchise, losing more than just a fun cast of racers in the transition. There's still some fun to be had in this derivative kart racer, but you're better off seeking two other racers to join you on the track.

The team mechanics put an interesting and unique spin on kart-racing, making Team Sonic Racing undoubtedly fun, but it’s missing the magic that made Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed a firm favourite.

Surprisingly for a kart racer, Team Sonic Racing succeeds in bringing something new to the conversation, though it loses some of the spark Transformed had in the process. Mileage may vary. [Issue#163, p.84]

Team Sonic Racing is a decent kart racing game. It’s very unfortunate that Sumo Digital decided to fixate solely on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. The lack of SEGA’s wide variety of franchises makes the game feel very samey throughout, and only fans of Sonic will get a kick out of the use of the IP. On the plus side, the team elements of the game works really well and that offers a unique way to play a kart game. It’s not the best or most interesting racing experience out there, but there’s some entertainment to be found in Team Sonic Racing, particularly for younger fans of the blue hedgehog.

With its third Sonic racing game Sumo Digital stayed true to the overall formula and quality of the franchise, by delivering a solid and fun experience. On the other hand the lack of various vehicles from the previous game feels like a step back.

When you and your two pals are sharing item pick-ups, driving in each other’s racing lines, and skimming past one another for a boost, Team Sonic Racing shines. It offers something different in the kart racing genre.

Team Sonic Racing is a solid kart racer that suffers from some unfortunate drawbacks. The team-based racing works well and mixes up the usual kart formula. However, the game is marred by game modes that lack fun, missing polish and an inescapable feeling that this is a downgrade of what has come before.

We will still advise giving Team Sonic Racing as it proposes some nice gameplay ideas.

Team Sonic Racing is a decent kart racing game, however plagued by too much similarities with Mario Kart.

Team Sonic Racing is fun, but it isn't special. The game never really gets to be as exciting or spectacular as its predecessor.

Team Sonic Racing is a fun and intelligently designed, albeit content-light, kart racer. The game’s central focus on teamwork gives the experience a unique and engaging flavor and its sense of speed kept me dialed in. But, that isn’t enough to assuage the title’s evident flaws. From an unimpressive roster of stages to lacking modes outside of Team Sonic Racing’s great single-player campaign, I’d be hard pressed to see this game lasting more than a dozen hours for many fans. While the fundamentals are fun, this racer could’ve used a tune-up before coming to market.

While Team Sonic Racing maintains the core kart racing gameplay you know and love intertwined with fun new team-based mechanics, a laundry list of the best race types are left entirely out of local play with friends, instead being only available in Team Adventure and online modes, which partially ruins what is still a good game off the track before the finish line.

The essence of Team Sonic Racing is good; its handling feels tight and smooth, drifting has a good flow to it, and the items are fun to use, as are the tracks to race on. It doesn’t bring much new to the genre, but it delivers where it counts. The racing is fast and fun, and the team aspects offer enough of a change to the formula to make Team Sonic Racing the endearing arcade racer it is.

Plenty of folks will enjoy the Sonic focus and many of the tracks would have been fantastic as Transformed DLC. I just wish it wasn't as limited in scope out of the gate.

Team Sonic Racing gives players a whole new take on the "Kart Racer" genre thanks to its team gameplay mechanic. It works and it allows less skilled players to enjoy competing against other human players. It's just too bad that SUMO got rid of the transformations and the SEGA All-Stars.

We don't want to drag Team Sonic Racing down for ultimately quite trivial points. At the end of the day, Sumo Digital has served up a solid kart racer that succeeds in bringing something new to the table. It won't be to everyone's tastes, but the cooperative racing adds a nice layer of rapid fire strategy. It's implemented well, to the point where standard races feel distinctly secondary. It might be lacking the wow factor SEGA's other IPs brought to Sumo's other racers, and it's a shame performance is a little rocky, but this is a good option for PS4 players who want some arcadey thrills.

Team Sonic Racing is a solid enough karting experience, but it feels like a major step back from the brilliant Transformed, and doesn't offer enough to present itself as a valid competitor to Mario Kart 8.

Team Sonic Racing ends up in the middle of the table when compared to its competition, and while it suffers from some serious technical issues, it still manages to entertain due to its diverse gameplay and different multiplayer modes.

Overall, Team Sonic Racing is... fun. I wouldn’t say it’s a top-of-the-line title by any means, but little tweaks to the formula give it an edge over others in the same field.

A slightly muddled gimmick and dilute sense of identity mean Sonic is unlikely to outpace the competition. [Issue#334, p.114]

Team Sonic Racing isn’t the fastest thing alive, but it moves at a decent pace. It won’t convert those who hate the kart racing genre, but it offers a decent twist on the formula for existing fans. That in itself is enough to justify its existence at a budget price, and it thankfully isn’t an embarrassing mess like Sonic Forces.

Team Sonic Racing offers a hopeful glimpse at how compelling a team-based kart racer can be. However, inadequate AI, limited loot box progression, and a poorly-polished multiplayer suite make this seem more like a stepping stone that'll hopefully lead to something more well-realized.

Sega has really tried to do something new with Team Sonic Racing. Despite the great entertainment value, we are quickly bored due to the limited selection of tracks and frustrated by our teammates. Combined with unclear difficulty, we suspect that few players will have the patience and desire to play Team Sonic Racing as many hours as we have done.

There are still moments when you unfairly plummet from first to sixth in three seconds, but that frustration is as much a part of this genre as cartoonish platforming heroes looking for a lucrative side gig. Just go with the flow.

A spirited attempt at innovation and some competent driving mechanics are not enough to escape the shadow of either Mario Kart or the previous Sonic & Sega racers.

Team Sonic Racing is fun yet ultimately underwhelming kart racer. It’s innovative team-based mechanics can make the solo campaign a joy, but aren’t fleshed out enough to prevent things becoming repetitive. Combine that with finicky handling alongside performance issues and you’ve a package that fails to live up to what came before it. Although, given its budget launch price, hardcore Sonic fans could find something to love here.

While Team Sonic Racing makes a statement with its collaborative squads of racers, its identity is lost in the amorphous complexion of a conventional kart racer. Worse, its gorgeous locales and myriad customization options aren't quite enough to support a despairing imbalance between luck and skill. Silver the Hedgehog's presence is one of many indications Team Sonic Racing is burdened with deadweight and light on inspiration.

Produced by SEGA and developed by Sumo Digital, Team Sonic Racing is the third installment in the kart racing series with Sonic and his friends as stars of the show. This time it is all about Sonic: characters and location are restricted to the series and there is a new vehicle customization system. Even if the graphics are improved, game contents and experience see a step forward and even if the game can be enjoyable at times, it will not match the greatness of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Team Sonic Racing is a technically sound karting game, but really only sells its central mechanic well enough in multiplayer to convince you that it needs to be there. It’s not helped by only featuring the mostly bland Sonic family of characters and locations, leaving it feeling like an overall downgrade from the fantastic Sonic & All-Star Racing games.

Fast, colourful, robustly made... but Team Sonic Racing’s seven-year-old predecessor was more transformative in every sense.

Team Sonic Racing brings an interesting dynamic to the kart racing genre. While its team-based gameplay offers a new dimension of tactics to players, it lacks refinement and ultimately doesn’t do enough to escape the shadows cast by other prolific kart racers.

The best thing I can say about Team Sonic Racing is that kids will probably love it, although that’s damning praise considering its predecessor. Sonic All Stars Racing Transformed was a wonderful title offering both nostalgia and gameplay, easily giving Nintendo’s efforts a run for their money. Sadly, while Team Sonic Racing can boast improved driving physics and a solid team element, nearly every other aspect of the experience is a step backwards.

Team Sonic Racing is still one of the weaker kart racers we’ve played.