8.5

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed

Developed by Sumo Digital, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is a very unique and fun karting game that although is reminiscent of Mario Kart, the developers have added enough twists and changes for this game to truly stand on its own with races taking place on land, water and air. Not only does it contain some lush graphics but the physics used in the game create this really entertaining racing title that gamers of all ages can easily engage in.

Another highlight of the game are the various gaming environments taken from different SEGA games such as Afterburner, Golden Axe, Samba De Amigo and even Panzer General. There's plenty of colourful Sonic levels as well. When you race in these stages, it's almost like you are part of the aforementioned game but it's all about karting here.

Environments are not just one surface either as you race on an assortment of places from land, water and air. I love how your kart transforms just as about you are to reach another area. The "Karts" or vehicles that you race even handle quite differently, depending on where you are racing. As a result, you need to tweak your racing skills.

The water areas in the game remind of Waverace as the waves influence on which direction you are headed. Whereas, racing on land is totally different and you need to implement drifting to win the race. Then you have air where you need to perform barrel roles and flips to avoid obstacles and weapons from your opponents. All these three diverse environments flawlessly join together.

However a kart game would not be the same without any power-ups/weapons and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed has all this and more. Nothing is more fun than unleashing fireworks or whirlwinds on your opponent to sneak pass them. You also have more offensive weapons such as a raw fish to help your opponents slide and even a globe to catch weapons fired at you.

There are plenty of gameplay modes, including online but where this title does stand apart from its competitors is the intensive career mode. These include World Tour, Grand Prix, Time Attack and Single Race. The more races or tasks you win in something like World Tour, this increases your XP which can then be used to upgrade your character's vehicle.

However, before jumping into the race, you first need to select your characters that includes lots of SEGA characters such as Sonic, Knuckles, Ulala and even Disney's Wreck-it Ralph. There are around 20 characters to unlock. Racing is also not just the only object in the game as you need to complete certain tasks such as drifting or an elimination round.

I must admit that drifting is a little hard but once mastered, it gives you a great edge. Apart from the various tricks for all the vehicles, there are times when you get a racing transformed boost that displays this really cool animation of your character such as Ulala from Space Channel 5 and her backup dancers as you race along. The game also contains 3 different modes of difficulty and by completing races to get XP, you are also awarded stickers to decal your vehicles.

Online or local multiplayer is just as good as you take on real opponents which gives gamers some great modes and awesome replay value. Another fun mode is the Battle Arena that creates virtual mayhem as you race around trying to destroy your opponents.

Graphics & Audio

Graphically, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is a thoroughly impressive game on the XBox 360 with some amazing environments. I love how the developers have faithfully recreated the level designs from a variety of SEGA games that are not only quite detailed but are silky smooth when you race on them.

The draw distance of the game is also quite impressive. The characters are just as detailed and all look like they have been directly taken from their perspective games. Add in vibrant colours, great special effects and the graphics and gameplay go hand-in-hand. The music is oozing with SEGA love as is the over the top commentator.

Final Level

If you're looking for a karting game that seriously goes beyond Mario Kart than Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed ticks all the right boxes and enhances the genre considerably. It's just a fun game that contains a strong single-player mode and some great online options. The levelling system works but more importantly, the gameplay is almost flawless.