Mario Kart World draws scorn from an unexpected corner as Sega markets Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds

The rivalry between Nintendo’s Italian plumber and Sega’s Blue Blur lives on as Sega’s Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds took a jab at Nintendo’s Mario Kart: World in a fashion similar to the companies’ heated rivalry in the 90s when Sega poked Nintendo in ads with the slogan “Genesis does what Nintendon’t.”

While Sega has long departed from console hardware, the company still lives on through video games and software. In its bold new ad, Sega used the classic trope of Sonic and his games being cooler than Mario titles.

In a recent post on X, the Sonic the Hedgehog official account posted a 30-second ad spot stating, “Leave the open road behind and come race at our level.” This is a jab at Mario Kart World’s open-world levels while Sega touts interdimensional levels in Sonic Racing CrossWorlds.

The ad featured Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds on an LED TV mounted to the back of a 10,000 hp top fuel dragster, while Nintendo’s Mario Kart: World was blurred out and mounted to an RV that stalled and blew white smoke trying to make it past the starting line, as a turtle already made its move on the drag strip.

Sega also mentioned Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds’ cross-platform availability, allowing gamers to compete against each other on different platforms, while Nintendo’s Mario Kart: World is a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive title, meaning only Switch 2 players can play the game with each other via co-op or online.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is trying to position itself as the “Super Smash Bros. of kart racers” by featuring an extensive roster of characters from and beyond Sega’s multiple subsidiaries and IPs, including Joker from Persona 5, Ichiban Kasuga from Like a Dragon, Cypton's Hatsune Miku, Steve from Minecraft, SpongeBob and Patrick from SpongeBob SquarePants, Pac-Man and Ghosts.

But that’s just a few characters making their way to the game, as Sega is yet to announce eight Season Pass characters and ten free post-launch DLC racers with NiGHTS already leaked.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds will also enjoy an “Early Unlock” period on September 23 for Digital Deluxe Edition buyers on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. However, Nintendo Switch owners won’t get to access the game’s early unlock due to the platform’s policy against early access windows. 

While the game is currently a digital download for the Switch 2, Sega announced that Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds will receive a full cartridge release in early 2026.