Sega Reacts to Mario Kart World Reveal

Sega recently reacted to the Mario Kart World announcement by promoting its own upcoming mascot racing game, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds. A new Mario Kart game was teased when the Nintendo Switch 2 was first shown off back in January, but it wouldn’t be until this week’s Nintendo Direct that gamers got to see what Mario Kart World has to offer.

Mario Kart World is adding an open-world format to the long-running kart racer series, featuring massive courses with alternate routes and a new Free Roam mode that lets players explore the game’s colorful environments at their leisure. Mario’s longtime platforming mascot Sonic the Hedgehog also has a new kart racer on the way, with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds set to launch on multiple platforms at some point in 2025. Like Mario Kart Worlds, Sonic Racing CrossWorlds has a few new gimmicks of its own, namely the special portals that allow players to explore different routes while racing.

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The recent unveiling of Mario Kart World has triggered a massive response from gamers all around the world, and even Sega has decided to weigh in on Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds’ biggest competition. A new post on the official Sonic the Hedgehog Twitter account describes April 2 as “a big day for worldly racing games” and tells fans to get ready for “the ONLY upcoming kart racer you can play with your friends around the world across all your favorite platforms” in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds.

Sega Pokes Fun at Mario Kart World Reveal in New Social Media Post

This comment is a subtle dig at how Mario Kart Worlds is exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2, while Sonic Racing CrossWorlds will be available on all current gaming systems. Limited platform availability might not be the only roadblock for Mario Kart World either, as the announcement of the game’s hefty $80 price tag quickly sparked backlash after it was initially shown during this week’s Nintendo Switch 2-centric Nintendo Direct, with much of the controversy fueled by concerns that these high prices could become an industry standard.

In any case, Mario Kart World will launch alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 console itself on June 5, while there is still no exact release date for Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds. Another Nintendo Direct is scheduled for April 17 which will shed even more light on Mario Kart World. In the meantime, it appears that the classic rivalry between Nintendo and Sega has been reignited in the form of new kart-racing games featuring their respective flagship characters, and only time will tell which upcoming game will take the lead later this year.

Systems

Released

June 2, 2025

ESRB

Everyone // Mild Fantasy Violence, Users Interact

Developer(s)

Nintendo

Publisher(s)

Nintendo