Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds director hints at big surprise crossovers for 2026
Sega plans to continue adding new characters to the racer throughout this year
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds’ director has said the game’s development team is planning big surprises this year as part of the game’s post-launch content.
Since its release in September, Sega has released regular free crossover characters for the CrossWorlds, including Hatsune Miku, Joker from Persona, Ichiban Kasuga from Like a Dragon, and most recently, NiGHTS.
In addition, paid Season Pass content has added SpongeBob SquarePants and content based on Minecraft, with more due this year based on Pac-Man, Mega Man, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, and Avatar Legends.
Sega has already confirmed that more free characters will be released in 2026, and speaking to Famitsu, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds director Masaru Kohayakawa has hinted at big surprises for players.
“We plan to deliver content throughout the 2026 season, but we’ve also prepared even more surprises than at launch,” he said, adding that Sega wants to make this “a year that surprises you all!”
The Nintendo Switch 2 version of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds was released last month, with a paid upgrade path for owners of the standard Switch version.
VGC’s Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds review calls the game “a great alternative to Mario Kart’s new open-world focus”, noting that Nintendo‘s decision to tweak its formula for Mario Kart World makes Sega’s offering the best option for those seeking a ‘traditional’ karting game.
“CrossWorlds is a brilliant karting game with satisfying handling, a fun portal mechanic and useful customisation options,” we wrote. “Its weapons aren’t as punchy as we’d like and it’s unclear how it’s going to keep players’ attention long-term but it’s a genuine, more traditional alternative to Mario Kart now that Nintendo’s pointed its series in new direction.”
