To unlock Super Sonic in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, you need to beat all 23 rivals in the base roster at least once. A rival counts as beaten when you finish a four-race Grand Prix with more total points than they do, so you don't need to win the cup or take first in every race.
Each Grand Prix comes with a rival racer who is tougher to beat than the others and taunts you through the race. Super Sonic is the only secret character in the base game, and he's the speediest character around.
| Requirement | What you need |
|---|---|
| Rivals to beat | All 23 rivals in the base roster, each at least once |
| Grand Prix runs | At least 23, if each run takes on a rival you haven't beaten |
| How a rival is beaten | Finish the Grand Prix with more total points than the rival |
| Race placement | No need to finish first overall or first in every race |
| Cups and speed classes | Any cup and any speed class |
| Difficulty | Optional. You can lower a rival to one flame, the easiest setting |
Choose an Unbeaten Rival Before Each Grand Prix
Each Grand Prix assigns you a rival at random, but you can swap in a different one. A random pick can hand you a rival you've already beaten, which uses up a run without moving you closer to 23. Choosing your own keeps every run aimed at someone new.
- Open Grand Prix mode and pick any available cup.
- Press the button shown in the top-right corner of the screen to open the rival-selection screen. On PS5, that's R1.
- Choose a rival who doesn't have a yellow tick yet.
- If that rival keeps pulling ahead, press L1 on PS5 to lower their flame count. One flame is the easiest setting. Other platforms show their own button prompts on screen, so follow those.
- Start the Grand Prix.
The selection screen keeps track of your progress. Each rival you've beaten gets a yellow tick or checkmark beside their portrait, so you can see what's left without keeping a list yourself.
How Beating a Rival Counts in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds
A rival is decided at the end of the full four-race Grand Prix, not after each race. Your total points across all four races have to be higher than the rival's total. Finishing first overall isn't required, and neither is first place in every race.
Rivals are usually among the most aggressive racers in a Grand Prix, so a strong finish in each race helps keep your total ahead. Since only the final total matters, one weaker race won't end the attempt as long as your points still come out ahead.
Work Through All 23 Rivals to Unlock Super Sonic
A single Grand Prix can only clear one rival, so the list shrinks by one per run at most. Keep picking unbeaten rivals until all 23 show a yellow tick. Super Sonic then unlocks on his own, and you can select him from the Grand Prix character roster.
What Super Sonic Can Do and Where He Falls Short
Super Sonic has his own stats, separate from regular Sonic, and he's built for speed. He gets his power from the seven Chaos Emeralds, the same way he does in the Sonic universe. Two things set him apart from the rest of the field:
- Item attacks can't damage him.
- He keeps his rings when he bumps into walls or other racers.
He still has limits. Grass and other off-road terrain slow him down, and he's playable only in Grand Prix. He can't be used in online public matches.
