Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing (DS)

SEGA have been loose with their licenses lately, lending popular characters out to Nintendo while finding their own way to revitalize their history of gaming icons in mash-ups such as SEGA Superstars Tennis. In the same theme comes Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, a kart racer similar to Mario Kart, starring a collection of classic SEGA characters and iconic locations.

When playing SEGA’s kart racer it’s impossible to not think of Mario Kart, as the premises are practically identical. Players pick from a variety of classic video gaming characters to race across courses set in the worlds of past games and tracks littered with boost pads, weapon pickups and even the drift boost mechanic.

A good collection of characters are available right from the start, with many still left to be unlocked. There are some well known heroes to pick from including seven characters from the Sonic series, Ulala from Space Channel 5 and Aiai the monkey from Super Monkey Ball. Then there are the lesser-known older characters, like the Bonanza Bros, Alex Kidd and one who hits a particular nostalgic nerve for me – Opa-Opa from Fantasy Zone. There are 20 characters in total, each with their own animations, sounds, and racing stats, so it’s nice to have a variety of familiar characters that actually affect the gameplay as well as paying homage to the SEGA legacy.

The courses are also a treat for any longtime SEGA fan, featuring locations such as casino stages from Sonic, city landscapes from Jet Set Radio Future and even the Curien Mansion from House of the Dead, albeit renamed to avoid censorship issues. The graphics are decent enough; it’s 3D graphics on the DS, so there’s a good amount of jagged edges, but it’s impressive how much detail and vivid life each course manages to pack in.

SEGA All-Stars Racing is quite a competent racer that definitely benefits from its appropriation of mechanics seen in Mario Kart. The action is both fast and fun, while the frame rate manages to do a good job at keeping up with a lot of the on-screen chaos. The d-pad also does at great job for tight and responsive controls. There’s some variety in the game modes and a clean presentation, but after extended play a few annoying elements begin to tarnish an otherwise exemplary experience.

The weapon pickups work just as in Mario Kart, being picked up when a player races over one and held until activated with the left shoulder button or the touch screen. They play a very big part in the game; while it’s possible to turn them off in the menu, doing so would be taking out a large part of what makes this a dynamic experience, so it’s a shame to see them so unfairly balanced. A few weapons require skill such as the projectile explosives or mines, but the homing missile is a devastating force that appears far too often – sometimes in sets of 3 – and can easily turn any race around in a matter of seconds. It’s impossible to dodge homing missiles no matter how fast you go or how many corners you take, so when you’re in first place it’s nothing but a mess of on-screen incoming damage indicators. Considering you also get more powerful weapons when you’re losing, it creates a desire to actually sit back from first place until the last half of the last lap. This is no proper way to approach a racing game, not to mention the incredible frustration of receiving about five missiles up the rear after just getting into first position.

The physics are also a mess, with clipping issues being the worst. A few times I’ve hit a corner or wall at an odd angle and been sent flying off into the void. Making matters worse, the reset mechanic can also be a bit hasty in sending a racer back before giving them a feasible chance of landing back on course. There’s a few giant jumps added in for effect which just look ridiculous, as a player gets a random boost to go flying out into air where the physics completely break down as players get hit by homing missiles mid-air and keep cruising back on-course.

It’s a shame how these niggling mechanical flaws can significantly affect the gameplay experience, as otherwise Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing would be a great kart racer on the DS. There’s a few hours of single player content with 6 Grand Prix’s, Time Trials, Mini-Games and bonuses to unlock and the multiplayer extends to both local and online via Nintendo WFC. If you’re a diehard SEGA or Mario Kart fan there’s fun to be had in picking this up, especially if you’ve got some friends for multiplayer. Otherwise, Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing just tries too hard to be like Mario Kart and falls a bit short in the process.