Sega kart racer with transforming vehicles (car/boat/plane). Inventive level design drawing from Sega history. Generous content, fun in multiplayer. A quality Mario Kart 8 alternative for Sega fans on WiiU.
Your verdict
Category
Racing4 players3+
Split screen
Description
Sonic, characters from Mario Kart, and dozens of Sega characters race on circuits that transform into flying, marine, and land platforms. Published by Sega, released in 2012 in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Wii U launch title featuring a Transformed mode that changes vehicles based on the race section, up to 10 players online, Wii U exclusive characters, and the GamePad for the mini-map.
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Each vehicle exists in three configurations, land, water and air, and the transformation plays out on screen in a second, wheels folding away, wings deploying, the hull widening, an animation drawn in full for every driver. The circuits change shape from one lap to the next, a road collapsing to become a river, which presupposes two complete versions of the same setting.
Each circuit takes up the theme of the game it comes from, rearranged in a racing register, and the piece changes instrumentation at the exact moment of transformation, more percussive on the ground, more airy in flight. That continuous variation turns a compilation of familiar themes into a coherent soundtrack, where the change of environment is heard before it is even seen.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Watching your vehicle morph into a speedster, a boat then a plane over a single track: this constant transformation shakes up the race and makes it unpredictable. Dropping items, grazing the edge and snatching victory in a group trigger shouts of joy. Colourful, snappy and fiercely convivial, a kart racer as spectacular as it is addictive.
Is Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed still worth playing in 2026?
A racing game from Sumo Digital, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed gathers Sega's mascots on tracks that morph mid race, alternating driving, sailing and aerial flying thanks to transforming vehicles. The variety of layouts, the sense of spectacle and the joyful multiplayer make it one of the best kart racers outside Mario. The sometimes harsh solo difficulty shows. An excellent racing game for Sega fans and lovers of snappy multiplayer karting on Wii U.
