Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing

[GameboyHero]

It might be playing off of an expression 'Like a cat that got the cream' as in: If someone looks very pleased with themselves and happy, they look like a cat that got the cream.

I always saw it as some sort of pun with Big and Cream (they seem to have a good friendship in Heroes). Or something silly like this:

Your way makes a bit more sense though.

[Guest Jordan4K6]

I'm getting this game for Wii tommorow (If I get it for 360 then I cant vs online since no gold account) but ill get it for PS3 in May.

[Detective Shadzter]

Picked up PS3 version today and my younger brother's copy too. I traded in Full Auto and COD World at War against mine at GAME and used £2.50 on my reward card. First time I've bought something from GAME in ages as I really really really hate their returns policy.

Got my bro's copy from ASDA for £32.71 which is the cheapest price I saw in my area, they had to go get it out of the back as they hadnt brought them out to the customer service desk where you collect them. They had the display boxes out on the games shelves though with no price tickets. This was at mid-day, they open at something like 7am and they are the cheapest price in the area. Get it together ASDA or else you wont get customers for it. WE WANT THIS GAME TO SELL WELL!!!

[Barry the Nomad]

Currently uploading gameplay footage of Big racing to "Lazy Days!", B.D.Joe racing to some Offspring and the Bonanza Bros. racing to "Living in the City" with bonus Mobo & Robo All-Star Move™.

Will probably have them up by tonight

Edited February 26, 2010 by Doctor Eggman

[KS8_Wiiloveit]

I REALLY wish the Wii version had DLC....

It almost reminds me of how SST didn't get online play due to time constraints. It's quite disappointing, IMO, especially when it is possible to execute.

[Detective Shadzter]

I forgot to say, further to my question yesterday now I have all 4 console versions.

Xbox 360 back cover says "22 favourite characters" which is correct with the last 2 being Avatar and Banjo & Kazooie.

PS3 back cover says "20 favourite characters" which is correct.

Wii back cover says "19 favourite characters".

DS back cover says "19 favourite characters"

I was looking at PC version in GAME earlier but forgot to check for this how many characters thing, if someone has here has the PC on disc version could they please confirm how many characters it says on the back cover "Number here favourite characters".

So anyway, is there a character missing from the Wii and DS versions then? or is it simply a typo? Its hard to believe a typo would be made on 2 versions back covers though.

The Wii version should say 21 including Mii and the DS version should say 20 right?

[Iceman Etika]

So this game is for the DS too huh... I might just purchase it so I can actually contribute something to this topic and feel important. XD Although I did see some footage before, looks fun, like a different Sonic Riders.

[SykoTech]

Is there supposed to be trophies in this game? Because it's not listed in my Trophy Collection.

Okay now I'm starting to get worried (coupled with the above post of course).

Mine are in my trophy collection on my PS3, but when I go on my labtop and check my trophy status they aren't there.

Hopefully this will be sorted out soon.

Not going to get my hopes up over the DLC just yet, but if it's Ristar, TJ&E, and/or new tracks (with new IP themes) I'd go out and buy another PSN card right now.

[GameboyHero]

So anyway, is there a character missing from the Wii and DS versions then? or is it simply a typo? Its hard to believe a typo would be made on 2 versions back covers though.

The Wii version should say 21 including Mii and the DS version should say 20 right?

Character screen from DS version.

Seems to be a typo. From the shop in the wii version, everyone that was announced is there. Odd how they made that blunder with the character numbers.

Edited February 26, 2010 by gameboyhero

[Lucky]

I've already done everything in the 360 version (minus the online achievements; those are on the back burner until I get a new Gold account), and I must say I found it a bit easy. Few of the missions gave me gyp at first, but once I got the hang of them I clocked it pretty fast. Easy or not though, it's an amazing game. Can't wait for DLC!

Just have little problem, though...

On the 360 version I seem to be missing an achievement and I'm wondering if it happened to anyone else. It's the Ghost Master achievement (which you get for defeating all the staff ghosts on time trial), and whilst it's showing up if I check the achievement list in the game itself, it's not there on my actual Xbox profile, nor did an the bubble pop up to tell me I was awarded it. It's no biggie of course, just a little niggle and it bemused me somewhat.

I did beat the last staff ghost at the same time as earning the Clock Work achievement (for setting a personal best on all the Time Trial courses), so I have no idea if that had anything to do with it or not. Wouldn't imagine so, but...

[Detective Shadzter]

Character screen from DS version.

Seems to be a typo. From the shop in the wii version, everyone that was announced is there. Odd how they made that blunder with the character numbers.

Thanks, it's weird that they'd make a typo on 2 versions but not the others. Hope no-one changes their mind about buying those versions feeling they've been ripped off when they havent

I did beat the last staff ghost at the same time as earning the Clock Work achievement (for setting a personal best on all the Time Trial courses), so I have no idea if that had anything to do with it or not. Wouldn't imagine so, but...

When you earn more than 1 achievement at the same time they normally pop up one at a time or (I dont know if they still do this) pop up as x2, x3, x4 etc achievements unlocked.

[The Tenth Doctor]

Just wondering, on the DS version, have we heard of this Crush 40 rumour? I remember people said it got an exclusive track.

[Glenn]

Hey everybody... bit of a newbie, first post and all, but I've been reading and commenting on the Sonic Statium for a while now and thought I'd share my review of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing with some people that'd appreciate it (ie, Sonic fans) rather than just general interweb people! I promise to introduce myself properly in a tick!

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SONIC & SEGA ALL-STARS RACING

PlayStation3 - 2010

The war is over, okay?

We no longer live in the early 1990s and you know they've managed to patch up their differences. Hell, they even compete in the Olympic Games together! And yet despite this, you wouldn't be blamed for thinking that we'd all slipped back in time and hostilities had resumed. Y'see, that's always what happens whenever a new videogame featuring Sonic the Hedgehog is released: the Mario and Nintendo fanbase storm in with both barrels and cry foul. If you don't believe me, just look at some of the pre-release "debates" (term used lightly) from this particular game, Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, and all of a sudden Sonic is a dirty rotten thief.

Not so. Indeed, Sonic himself made his first foray into kart racing back in 1994 with Sonic Drift on the SEGA GameGear. The ill-fated SEGA Saturn also lasted perhaps a bit longer than it should have, thanks to the rather unique and experimental Sonic R (best remembered for being, basically, a running race). But, as has been established, we no longer live in the early 1990s and so that detail is unimportant. What matters now, is that Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing has been released under a barrage of complains, attacks and accusations. Thankfully, as this review will demonstrate, none of them are founded in truth or reality and, perhaps more importantly, there now exists a spectacular kart racing game for all modern consoles and systems. So don't worry: put down that Argos catalogue, because you dont need to buy a Wii for that family get-together after all!

This is a unique rivalry, the one between Sonic and Mario. Whenever a new first-person shooter is released, nobody chuckles and says "Oh look, another one copying Doom then!" Yet apparently Sonic is allowed nowhere near a kart racer, simply because Mario happens to have a successful kart racer out. Why drag all this up, I hear you ask? Well, simple: the real question everybody wants to know about Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing goes something like "Is it as good as Mario Kart Wii, then?" That's thanks to this franchise pissing contest that has been simmering away for over a decade, in corners of the internet you probably wouldn't want to visit. And now, thanks to this review, you will finally have an answer: "Yes, it is!" But is it better? That probably depends on your gaming history. If you were brought up on Nintendo breakfast cereal, you know where your allegiance lies. If, however, you wore red sneakers as a child to see if they'd make you run faster, then you've been foaming at the mouth since Christmas for Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing. It's also important to note, however, that this isn't simply Sonic's game. He's on the cover because he's the most famous of SEGA's characters (and, rightly so, their mascot), but this game plays host to a plethora of characters from the SEGA back-catalogue. The most noteworthy of racers include Ai-Ai from Super Monkey Ball, the eternally-grinning Amigo from Samba de Amigo, funky graffiti artist Beat from Jet Set Radio, the dancing news reporter Ulala from Space Channel 5, a swarm of mind-bending ChuChus from ChuChu Rocket and everybody's favourite, back on our screens once more, Ryo Hazuki from Shenmue. Yes, he still sounds as deadpan as ever, folks!

These all join the seven Sonic-verse characters and a host of others to create an impressive roster of twenty playable characters on the PlayStation3 version. Other versions benefit from additional bonus characters, too, such as your Xbox360 Avatar or your Wii's personalised Mii. They do battle across twenty-four different courses, each one based on an aspect of SEGA's most popular levels or worlds. So, one minute you're trading paint with a vicious Dr. Eggman in his Final Fortress, and the next bouncing around corners of the Jumble Jungle with Ai-Ai. From a purely childish perspective, it is wonderful to imagine the crossover potential of seeing Akira and Jacky from Virtua Fighter appear midway through a loop-the-loop in Sonic's Seaside Hill, and youll have no end of joy experimenting with the different characters. They are each truly unique, thanks in no small part to Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing's trump card: the awesome, all-powerful All-Star Move.

In certain other karting franchises (naming no names), those unlucky enough to find themselves in last place pray to transform into a gigantic grinning bullet and soar to pole position. In Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, each individual character has an individual All-Star Move which can take them from the back to the front in a blaze of glory. Sonic, predictably, transforms into Super Sonic and smashes through the competition, and if you're feeling really brutal you can target other racers as you pass, with a blast of Chaos Emerald energy. Ryo Hazuki summons a forklift truck to flip others aside (apologies to all Shenmue fans, who've probably just feinted with nostalgic joy). Amigo might just have the most infectious of the All-Star Moves, when he unleashes his maracas and forces anybody he passes to stop and dance to a Mexican beat. It truly adds excitement to a race whenever the commentator, a wonderfully over-the-top Americanised voice who knows more in-jokes than an entire season of QI, bellows that somebody's picked up an All-Star Move: you simply don't know what to expect, and panic ensues.

Of course, there are other weapons and power-ups to obtain. This being a kart racer, and kart racers all sticking to a tried-and-tested routine of comedy attacks, you can expect to see all your expectations fulfilled. Gigantic boxing gloves punch unsuspecting hedgehogs in the face, shields protect you from environmental hazards, nasty little mines spread themselves across your path and rainbows blind your view. A personal favourite will quickly become the excellent Confusion Star, which flips anybody's screen upside-down (in a move deliberately reminiscent of the Death Egg Zone from Sonic & Knuckles). If it happens to you during a race, you'll certainly know about it!

There's every chance to recover, though. Upon playing the PlayStation3 version for the first time (the version this review is based on: other versions'll probably be the same, too) you'll be introduced to a Driving Test with Sonic. Within a single lap of Seaside Hill's Whale Lagoon, even the most unfamiliar of gamers will master the basics. Handling is fluid and natural. Corners are where the uninitiated kart racers amongst you will experience trouble, but only slightly: the Drift/Boost system is key to surviving some of the more difficult of bends and curves. Basically, holding down L1 will throw your vehicle into a sliding drift, and the longer you manage it, the more speed you gain upon straightening up. It feels great to use, but the later courses demand mastery of the technique and balance. Basically, if you're playing multiplayer splitscreen against your parents or grandparents, start 'em off on some of the easier courses, okay? It's only fair! But for the rest of us gamers, put it this way: I'm no experienced racing driver (especially when it comes to videogames: I think I used to own Gran Turismo 4 but then, didn't everybody?) and only one race out of what must be fifty saw me finish in anything but first. And that was only because Amigo is a cheeky little so-and-so when he gets his maracas out... but enough of my bitterness.

Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing looks absolutely gorgeous, by the way. Half the time you'll rue pressing the accelerator because you'll feel as though you're missing all the detail in your environment. Seriously, if you're a visual gamer, this is the most beautiful kart racer money can buy. Worlds come alive with tiny characters cheering you on, traps manned by famous SEGA enemies, shortcuts available to only some of the local residents and spectacular use of geography. And, as has been noted, all the courses come from the SEGA back-catalogue and more often than not, you'll be doing a double-take as you see an element from your childhood memories of the MegaDrive peeking over a hill. Or even the arcade: three courses based on The House of the Dead provide some suitably creepy (and also hilarious) thrills and spills. This is where nobody in their right mind can deny an edge over the other kart racer on the market: with all due respect to the Wii, it could never hope to achieve this level of precision and beauty. But then again, there's a Wii version of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing available, so perhaps this is a discussion best reserved for a comparison of those two games. One is left wondering the point, though, when the PlayStation3 version supports SIXAXIS motion sensor technology out of the box and is presented in stunning high-definition.

The detail isn't simply limited to the track, either. During one memorable race, Sonic overtook Dr. Eggman. It was nothing special; no attack was made or anything. He just simply swerved and passed by. The nefarious scientist glanced over, shook his fist in the air and growled "Why you little...!" with obvious disdain. Each character is fleshed out to perfection with neat little touches and personalised stunts, tricks you can pull off in mid-air to earn boost upon landing. Everybody at Sumo Digital (the developers behind this game, which is the third in the SEGA Superstars series of titles being released of late) should earn high praise for creating a fully-realised world. There's no need to imagine what Knuckles would yell at BD Joe from Crazy Taxi during a race anymore.

And there are further details to come, too. A handful of trophies on the PlayStation3 version are shaded out with question marks, hinting at the future downloadable content and promising it'll be more than just a new character and a new track. Because there's a lorry-load of modes to expand upon: multiplayer (whether splitscreen or online) benefits from a host of gameplay options, from your standard Capture the Flag and Elimination rounds to the more inventive Treasure Hunt and King of the Hill race. When playing single player, there are sixty-four objectivised missions to clear, as well as three different levels of Grand Prix and various Time Trial rounds. The best part, though, comes upon successful completion of anything and your SEGA Miles rack up. These can be taken to the in-game shop where new tracks and characters are available, a possible hint at an online version to come. Oh, that's nothing new? Fair enough. So what about the incredible collection of historical SEGA music that's available to play during your races? Got your attention now? Or is it just me who's a massive videogame music nutjob?

Probably just me. Look, this started with a bit of a war briefing, so it'll have to end with one too... apologies. But the overriding factor that'll decide the fate of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing will be the rivalry with Mario Kart Wii, and so if there's one thing you take away from this review, let it be this: has Sonic the Hedgehog come close to knocking the Italian plumber's crown off? Yes. Has he actually succeeded in stealing it? Well, that depends entirely on you. The chances are, however, that you're reading this because you're interested in Sonic anyway... and in that case, you'll be interested in Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing, too. Trust me.

Final Score

TEN OUT OF TEN

With a lifespan unlimited thanks to the promise of downloadable content, and a variety of characters unparalleled in modern kart racers, you won't be finished with this game in a weekend. It will forever make you laugh, make you smile, make you sink into peaceful nostalgia and, most importantly, forever make you say "Oh, just one more race!" An instant family classic and an unquestionably polished game: nice one, Sonic!

[Lucky]

When you earn more than 1 achievement at the same time they normally pop up one at a time or (I dont know if they still do this) pop up as x2, x3, x4 etc achievements unlocked.

Yeah, two did pop up as I earned my Silver SEGA License at the same time. Just not the Ghost Master one. It's not a that big a deal really as I said, I just found it strange. It's the first it's happened to me with any of my 360 games.

When I check my achievements from the console menu, it says I still have to earn it, and I've tried replaying the Time Trials again to no avail :S The only place it's showing up is the game's achievement list.

Edited February 26, 2010 by Lucky

[SykoTech]

Nice to hear you enjoyed it so much Glenn. I'm lovin it myself. Not so sure if I like it more than CTR, but it's definitely on that game's level.

Now to get more practice at Sandy Drifts.

[CNash]

Yeah, two did pop up as I earned my Silver SEGA License at the same time. Just not the Ghost Master one. It's not a that big a deal really as I said, I just found it strange. It's the first it's happened to me with any of my 360 games.

When I check my achievements from the console menu, it says I still have to earn it, and I've tried replaying the Time Trials again to no avail :S The only place it's showing up is the game's achievement list.

I've heard of other people not getting this to unlock properly too. I'll try it myself and see how it goes.

[Detective Shadzter]

PS3 users are having trouble with a trophy too -

http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?t=317455

[Glenn]

PS3 users are having trouble with a trophy too -

http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?t=317455

Uh-oh...

[Clisp]

Is the PS3 patch still on its way? I know Sony can be slow with these things sometimes, but it better not be only for the 360...

And I hope that DLC isn't just a Banjo track as well.

[Detective Shadzter]

6/10 from Eurogamer

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/sonic-and-sega-all-stars-racing-review

EDIT: 8/10 from Videogamer -

http://www.videogamer.com/ps3/sonic_sega_allstars_racing/review.html

EDIT 2:

Meristation 8/10 -

http://www.meristation.com/v3/des_analisis.php?pic=360&idj=cw4a1ec77da6064&id=cw4b8594dbaa1c7

EDIT 3:

News just in, PC player says he hates Sumo Digital and that the game is gay because he has no second Xbox 360 controller for a second player to use -

ok i got it

"This game is designed for use with the Xbox 360 Controller for Windows. If you wish to play with 2-4 players please ensure that multiple Xbox 360 Controllers for Windows are connected."

this is gay...i hate you sumo digital

http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5616828&postcount=4

Looks like you can use keyboard but only in single player -

That not strictly true, if you've got a pad with the required number of inputs, it;ll work.

All you need do is press the primary button on it when you hit the title screen. It's there where it decides if you want to use pad or keyboard for player 1, as otherwise you wouldn't be able to use one player on pad, and one on keyboard...!

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S0L

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http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5616609&postcount=7

[Doctor MK]

I picked up the Wii version earlier today and have had a little while playing it now... my verdict? EPIC WIN.

I've won the first two cups so far and I'm thoroughly enjoying it all. I haven't quite decided whether I think it's better than Mario Kart or not, but it's certainly a lot of fun nonetheless.

As I've only really just started I've only had the chance to buy a couple of extra character, namely Knuckles (who is pretty darn good!) and Ulala... oh, and the Can You Feel The Sunshine music for Seaside Hill - I just couldn't resist that!

Congratulations to S0L and Sumo Digital for creating a fun and enjoyable racer - your hard work has paid off!

[Detective Shadzter]

A deeper explanation regarding the no All-Star Moves online -

http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5616632&postcount=114

Right I'm back.

I was down in London for two days, attending a Microsoft Dev conference. Only access I had to the web was my iPhone. Have you tried posting a long and complicated forum post on one of those? Trust me, it's not easy

Also remember I do this in my free time, I don't get paid for it, I don't get thanked for it, and I do have to spend time with my family now and again!

Anyway, on this topic. As with all decisions, don't think we made this one lightly.

The first point is that all the All-Star moves work differently, so we'd effectively have to code each one with specific network code. With all the differences in characters, that's 23 different bits of code to write there.

Then lets look at what we have to work with. Whilst most of you have super fast download speed, what you don't realise if you don't have superfast upload speed. Our target for game communications is 64 kilobits. Note bits not bytes. In that very small amount of data we have to send everyones current position, projected vector, all weapon fire as well as voice chat. Not everyone is on fiber optic broadband you know!

So we're already sending lots of data, and the ASM's mean that we'd have to compress this down even further for extra weapon fire.

Of course a lot of the All-Star moves also include increased speed, so in cases with high latency where we've already got to be sure we're not jumping cars around all over the place, we then would have even more extremes of movement -which under high lag would result in false positives for ASM hits. I.e. you maybe nowhere near Super Sonic - but you get blatted off the track as someone has dropped packets and the dead reckoning *thinks* you might have been hit.

Finally, when it comes to network games, you have to be sure that all the systems are deterministic. Basically that if you fire a weapon on one machine, it will fire the same way on another. If this isn't the case you wind up with synchronisation issues, quite simply what you see on your screen, won't be what other player see on theres. Not all the ASM are deteministic as they're all different, the best example is length of use. Depending on where you are in the pack, they last for varying amounts of time. So if we've got any latency causing the positions to be out of sync - even for a millisecond - on one machine it may last for 4 seconds, on the other 10. That happens, and oh oh, we're really out of sync. Cue everyone gets booted back to the lobby.

So with much reluctance, we conceeded that rather than ship it with things that could go wrong down to latency, especially with cross continent play, it would be a better experience to ship it with the ASM disabled during on-line play.

So that is why it's not available, as we didn't want to ruin the online experience with All-Star moves that didn't work consistantly and fairly. I think when you understand this - the decision makes a lot more sense.

Will we add it back in the future? I think it's unlikely. In the future when everyone has an internet connection that runs at LAN speeds, it'll be doable, but not for a few years.

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S0L

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[GameboyHero]

A deeper explanation regarding the no All-Star Moves online -

http://forums.sega.com/showpost.php?p=5616632&postcount=114

Lots of techno babble aside, I see it as a fair compromise and why everything ran so smoothly. I have no problem without ASM in the online mode.

Though on the subject, how random do you get the ASM in the single player? I got lucky and was able to get 2 over the last 3-4 cups in advanced. Are they rare to get or is there someway to determine?

[Barry the Nomad]

What grinds my gears is reading a bad review online, and then checking the comments section to see all the sheep who write "5/10 eh? seems my predictions were right! sounds like an bad game". Clearly the readers only follow one gaming website and do not play demos themselves or read other reviews to create a more rounded opinion.

OH! So while recording Big racing to his theme song (thanks to custom soundtracks) I made this epic leap over the second little lake in the "Whale Lagoon" course. Its a great shortcut! I'll have the video uploaded tonight

[S0L]

LOL - you're stalking me again

Glenn, would you like a job at Eurogamer, I think they need some review help!

If you want to hear the Crush 40 track on DS, watch the credits. As for the box art, we're not sure how that happened, I think it's 19 Favourite characters and... Big? (delete as applicable!)

For those saying it's too easy - you have played all the cups and 1st placed on Expert right. Right?

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S0L

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