Team Sonic Racing PS4 ( 2019 )
Team Sonic Racing is a 2019 kart racing game developed by Sumo Digital and published by Sega. A spin-off of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, it was released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in May 2019. A simplified version for iOS developed by Hardlight, Sonic Racing, was released via Apple Arcade in September 2019. The game was later released on Amazon Luna in March 2021.
Controlling one of 15 characters from the series' cast, players compete in races using sports cars. Gameplay is from a third-person perspective, with players performing tricks, drifting, and collecting power-ups. Team Sonic Racing differs from traditional kart racers because of its focus on cooperative gameplay, similar to the kind featured in Splatoon (2015) and Overwatch (2016)—players are part of a team of racers and win races through efficiency rather than speed. Game modes include competing to earn points, time trials, customizing the racing rules, and a story-driven tutorial campaign.
Sumo Digital, which had previously worked on Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (2010) and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (2012), developed Team Sonic Racing. Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka conceived the cooperative gameplay, and Sumo Digital used the team-based Sonic Heroes (2003) as a point of reference. Unlike Sumo Digital's previous racing games, Team Sonic Racing only features Sonic characters, as the team wanted to expand the series' world and character roster. They aimed to make the game stand out compared to other racing games and developed it using a modified version of the All-Stars game engine. Musician Jun Senoue, who had not contributed to a major Sonic game since Generations (2011), composed the soundtrack.
Team Sonic Racing's existence came to light when a Sumo Digital memo leaked in January 2018, with Sega confirming it the following May. Its marketing campaign included appearances at trade shows, a one-shot comic from IDW Publishing, and a two-part animated series. The game received mixed reviews from critics; while its team-based gameplay, track designs, and music were praised, both the story mode and voice acting were criticized. Many critics also considered it inferior to its predecessors, the Sega-All Stars games.
An alien tanuki named Dodon Pa sends invitations to Sonic the Hedgehog and several of his friends, inviting them to compete in a series of team-based races. He builds cars outfitted with advanced technology for each of the racers, offering them as a prize for the winning team. Though they are skeptical of Dodon Pa's motivations, Sonic and the others agree. The competition takes them across the world, with Dodon Pa pitting them against increasingly difficult challenges.
The racers remain suspicious of Dodon Pa, believing he may be working with Sonic's longtime nemesis Doctor Eggman. Investigating further, they discover he is king of the planet Donpa Kingdom and the president of the Donpa Motors automotive corporation. The company is constructing an Ultimate Energy Engine, which gains power from teamwork. Intending it for philanthropic use, Dodon Pa has been using the races to gather research data for the engine and generate energy to power it.
After unsuccessfully attempting to steal the engine, Eggman and his henchmen kidnap Dodon Pa and hold him hostage on their battleship. Eggman deceives Dodon Pa into finishing the engine for him, forcing Sonic and the others to continue racing to power it. Eggman installs the engine into a doomsday robot, but it goes haywire and destroys the battleship. Sonic and his friends manage to rescue Dodon Pa as the ship explodes, though the cars are destroyed in the process. A grateful Dodon Pa builds everyone new cars, and they prepare to race again.