News

Sonic Rivals racing towards PSP

SEGA's star turn makes peace with Sony's handheld

Sonic Rivals racing towards PSP
|
PSP
| Sonic Rivals

Spiky haired hero Sonic is on a roll. Already topping the charts on mobile, the blue mover is next to get a PSP release in racing game Sonic Rivals.

Appropriately, given the marriage of SEGA's mascot with Sony's widescreen marvel, Sonic Rivals promises to blend old and new, offering 2D racing against true 3D backdrops and a single-player mode backed up by a host of multiplayer options, including gamer-to-gamer card trading.

Sonic didn't get his name for his snoring, and Sonic Rivals is all about racing at breakneck speed. Sonic, Knuckles and his other old-time mates will hurtle around twisting 3D tracks assisted by power-ups and boosts, tripping and barging each other aside – or vaulting right over the head of the mammal in front – while avoiding the traps laid down by the nefarious Dr. Eggman.

You'll be able to play as one of four of the different characters from the Sega universe; only Sonic and Knuckles are confirmed so far, and we'd expect secret characters too. Each will have their own strengths and weaknesses (that's as in 'good at accelerating' rather than 'prone to over-eating and groping at weddings').

You'll also be able to customise your chosen character thanks a rewards system based on trading cards. And when racing against friends using the PSP's wi-fi link, you'll be able to wager the cards you've already won.

SEGA says the game has been built from scratch to take advantage of Sony's hardware, rather than being a conversion from older versions.

"Sonic Rivals brings back the classic 2D platform gameplay that started it all, and douses it with vibrant three-dimensional environments," said SEGA of America's Scott A. Steinberg, controlling the urge to use an exclamation mark. "In this heated rivalry, gamers are tested to prove not only who's the fastest, but who has the best head-to-head gameplay strategy."

Sonic The Hedgehog's arrival on a Sony machine will be a poignant moment for hardcore fans: when SEGA made its own games consoles, Sonic was its top character, an edgier equivalent of Nintendo's Mario (well, as much as a hedgehog can be edgy). Since debuting on the SEGA Megadrive in 1991, over 44 million copies of Sonic-starring games have been sold.

Sonic Rivals will take on all-comers this autumn. Click 'Track It!' to be alerted when we hear more.