Team Sonic Racing

Team Sonic Racing is a Sonic the Hedgehog-themed kart racing game featuring single-player and multiplayer modes. After selecting one of 15 characters from the series' cast, players participate in races using sports cars on courses thematically based on locations from the franchise. There are three types of racing classes: speed, technique, and power. Each type has its own unique abilities; for example, technique racers like Tails can drive over rough surfaces like grass without slowing down.

The player views gameplay from a third-person perspective and runs over panels to get speed boosts, performs tricks in midair, and drifts to make sharp turns. Power-ups called Wisps can be collected from canisters with "?" marks and grant players temporary offensive and defensive advantages.

An alien tanuki named Dodon Pa sends invitations to Sonic the Hedgehog and several of his friends, inviting them to compete in a series of team-based races. He builds cars outfitted with advanced technology for each of the racers, offering them as a prize for the winning team. Though they are skeptical of Dodon Pa's motivations, Sonic and the others agree. The competition takes them across the world, with Dodon Pa pitting them against increasingly difficult challenges.

The racers remain suspicious of Dodon Pa, believing he may be working with Sonic's longtime nemesis Doctor Eggman. Investigating further, they discover he is king of the planet Donpa Kingdom and the president of the Donpa Motors automotive corporation. The company is constructing an Ultimate Energy Engine, which gains power from teamwork. Intending it for philanthropic use, Dodon Pa has been using the races to gather research data for the engine and generate energy to power it.

The British video game developer Sumo Digital developed Team Sonic Racing for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. It was Sumo Digital's third racing game featuring the Sonic intellectual property (IP), following Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. Sega chose Sumo Digital to develop the game because of its experience with the Sonic IP. Development began before the completion of Sonic Mania and Sonic Forces in 2017.

Unlike those games, which featured action-oriented gameplay, Team Sonic Racing was aimed at casual gamers. The majority of the staff did not work on the previous games, although some who did were contacted for advice. The lead designer of the game was Richard Acherki, while Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka served as producer. Team Sonic Racing was Acherki's first game at Sumo Digital.

According to review aggregator website Metacritic, Team Sonic Racing received "mixed or average reviews". Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received fair approval, being recommended by 60% of critics. Screen Rant observed that critics generally deemed it fun but inferior to the Sega All-Stars titles and Mario Kart 8, which they felt were presented better.

Many critics of the game praised the team-based game play and the track designs as well. IGN stated, "Team Sonic Racing nails what matters most: speed and finesse on the racetrack. The new team system is a fantastic evolution of the arcade racing formula that gives you a real reason to work together, and there's a litany of customization options to keep you coming back to these excellent tracks to earn more." Brian Shia of Game Informer stated, "Team Sonic Racing delivers a fun, easy-to-play experience that bolsters its adequate gameplay with distinct flavors to help it stand out from the rest of the genre."