Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is a kart racing video game developed by Sumo Digital and published by Sega. It was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii U in November 2012; for PlayStation Vita in December 2012; for Windows in January 2013; for Nintendo 3DS in February 2013; and for Android and iOS devices in January 2014. The PS3 and Wii U versions of the game were released in Japan on May 15, 2014. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is a kart racing game in which players race against each other using over 20 characters from various Sega franchises, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Jet Set Radio and Space Channel 5.

It features new mechanics and improvements from the previous game. At certain points in a race, vehicles can alternate between car, boat and plane modes. The car mode handles similarly to the previous game, in which players can earn boost by drifting around corners or performing tricks whilst in the air. Boat mode features boating physics, requiring players to consider their vehicle’s turbulence. They may be affected by waves made in the water, some of which can be used to leap into the air and perform stunts.

Plane mode, the fastest of the three forms, gives players the freedom to move both vertically and horizontally. Like the other modes, players can ‘air-drift’ around corners to earn boost and can perform rolls to quickly adjust their position, earning boost for narrowly dodging obstacles. Players alternate between these modes by driving through blue transformation gates. Certain tracks in the game terraform as players proceed through them, offering different playstyles between each lap.

The main campaign is the Career Mode which, along with returning features such as Grand Prix, Time Attack and Single Race, mainly revolves around the World Tour mode. This mode involves going through a branching series of events, ranging from standard races to various challenges, including earning time by drifting, maneuvering through traffic or fighting against large tanks. Completing these challenges on various difficulties earn stars which are used to open up new branches and unlock new characters and mods.

Racing with each character in any mode earns XP which unlock modifications that alter the stats of each vehicle. The game features 16 new tracks inspired by games like Nights into Dreams, Super Monkey Ball, Panzer Dragoon, Golden Axe, After Burner and Burning Rangers, as well as four returning locations from the first game and mirror versions of each track. The game features online multiplayer on all versions and four player split-screen multiplayer for the consoles. Some of the career modes can be played in split-screen multiplayer.