Just when everyone thought Mario Kart World would win best racing game this year, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds could be changing everyone’s minds. While we won’t know until the game is out, seeing the racer’s network test do really well with fans is inspiring, showing that there’s a place for more kart racers.
Now that Sonic’s setting the stage for more of these titles, we think Activision Blizzard should capitalize by releasing Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled on Steam. Heck, re-release this game on PS5, Xbox Series, and Switch 2 as well, because the lords of those Call of Duty mines need to be reminded how much fans love this racer.
Also, somebody needs to knock Mario off his racing throne, and who better than his PlayStation rival, Crash?
I mean, yeah, there’s Sonic, but hear me out.
WOAH! (Single-Player Content)
Confession: I don’t have that much experience with the Mario Kart franchise. I’m aware of the series’ cultural impact and how the game essentially inspired this whole mascot racer genre, but that’s about it. Admittedly, I have played Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Mario Kart 7 on 3DS, and they’re good, even great racers…
Personally, they don’t hold much of a candle to Crash Team Racing.
For one thing, CTR added a whole Adventure Mode where you can drive around cool hubs and choose which races to partake in. Even better were the boss fight races that came with each hub, with each of these enhanced opponents having unlimited weapon ammo to make things more difficult for players.
Time Trials are also really addictive, embracing one of the mechanics that made Crash Bandicoot a household name in gaming. With this mode, players need to know every shortcut in each track, which is a lot more challenging than it sounds. Players also have a ton of tracks to race through, not only playing those remade PS1 tracks but some of the remade PS2 courses as well.
Mario Kart just makes you do the Grand Prix a few times, which is fine. MK World also has those open-world missions, which do add some replayability, but this game is in need of a single-player campaign. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds looks fun as hell and adds some meat to this genre, but it also doesn’t have a cool Story Mode.
How Crash and Diddy Kong are the only platform mascots who have this mode in their kart racers is genuinely mind-boggling, considering how fun this mode can be.
GET THAT BANDICOOT!
Okay, admittedly, some things are preventing Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled from being perfect. While I do prefer CTR over the MKs of Nintendo, this game does have a serious microtransaction problem.
There are various cosmetics players can earn by playing the game in offline or online modes. However, some of the prices of these cosmetics get ridiculous, so Activision also offers to sell in-game currency to get them. It’s a pretty scummy feature, and one that almost ruins this game’s reputation.
Say what you will about Mario Kart World and its ridiculous price, but at least it doesn’t charge you after. And Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is being more decent with its extra content via paid DLC, which is still better than microtransactions.
I still think bringing Crash Team Racing to Steam would be great, because that offline content is fun, and the concept of unlockable racers through in-game grinding isn’t the worst. It’s just that Activision Blizzard owns this game, so it’s going to have some BS practices. Regardless, a re-release is needed to not only make this game readily available but also inspire others to do the same.
Just think about it: Bubsy Racing.
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