Shaxster gets a hands-on preview with the Wii U version of the game.

When it comes to karting games, Mario Kart has always remained at the top. No matter how hard Modnation Racers or LBP Karting try, Mario Kart will always be top. Now, however, Sonic &All-Stars Racing Transformed is the first karting game for the Wii U, launching before Mario Kart can even be announced. And you know what? It’s pretty damn good.

At a recent preview event, I got an extended hands on preview with the Wii U version of the game. For a start, the controls are brilliant. I’ve already talked about how much I love the Wii U, and that love hasn’t died here. The triggers are responsive, the face buttons are easily accessible, and the joysticks have just the right amount of resistance. Controlling the karts is very easy, clearly designed with children in mind. Having said that, there’s an added layer of depth when you take into account drifting, which is pretty challenging, but a very useful skill to develop. The key feature of the game is that your cars transform between planes, cars and boats, and all three control pretty well. Having said that, the boats were a little awkward to use, although planes were designed beautifully: possibly the easiest controls for a plane I’ve ever used. Adding to this is a guided flight mode, where your plane almost controls itself, whilst still giving you total freedom of movement. Providing an almost-but-not-quite on-rails experience, this is a pretty awesome feature for younger players.

For Sega fans, you won’t be disappointed – the game has over 20 characters, ranging from Sonic to Knuckles, Ai Ai to even Amigo. Whilst the character roster isn’t as instantly recognisable as that of Mario Kart, it’s still pretty nice to see this much recognition of so many titles. Adding to this is the complete unique design of each character’s vehicles: each one has its own plane, boat and car, all of which have a very unique and distinct style. Unfortunately, all characters do control pretty much the same, with no real change of feel between them. There’s also only one car, boat and plane for each character, unlike in Mario Kart, but instead the developers have added in unlockable presets that give you a certain increase in a particular skill area, such as speed or handling. These are unlocked through the experience system – at the end of each race, you collect XP, allowing your character to level up.

There are a variety of game modes to try out and experience, the most notable of which is the World Tour mode. The primary single-player ‘career’ mode, this features a variety of races and challenges, and presents the only way in which to unlock new characters. It’s a nice objective to have, and I’m sure players will be kept entertained by the races here. There are also some great multiplayer mini-games, such as the Wii U exclusive Monkey Ball game. Here, one player uses the gamepad to crush other players. These mini-games are fun, but require quite a large number of players to really shine. The game does support 5-player local multiplayer on the Wii U, and up to 10 players online, so you never have to worry about a sparse race – although the AI does a pretty good job.

As for the races themselves,  they play out pretty much exactly as you’d expect. A nice addition is the evolving tracks. As you play through a level, the track will change – on your first lap, you may have to go over a bridge. On your seco

nd, you may be forced into a river. On your third, a huge chunk of the track may collapse altogether, so you fly over the chasm instead. This adds a really nice dynamic to the game, preventing each lap from getting too repetitive. There are about 20 tracks in the game, each with its own unique feel, and each based on a certain game – the Panzer Dragoon one stood out as my favourite from what I played, providing players with a dusty canyon that evolves fantastically as the race goes on. The tracks also look really nice graphically, possibly thanks to the increased horsepower from the Wii U.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkjB1clcVX8

The game is also spiced up by a range of power ups: fireworks, heat seeking missiles and even a blowfish. These are very useful, and well balanced…but they don’t have the same charm that power ups in Mario Kart have. And that’s a feeling that resonates throughout the entire game. It’s a great, fun game…but it’s not Mario Kart. It has the potential to be every bit as good as the Mario Kart franchise – indeed, in many ways it’s better – but Sega just don’t have the same huge brands that Nintendo do. Which is sad.

Until a Mario Kart game launches on the Wii U however, this is more than good enough to keep the karting part of your brain satisfied. A very solid title with some really unique features and a surprising amount of depth, this is an extremely strong addition to the Wii U launch lineup, and looks like it will be well worth a purchase.

Sonic &  All Stars Racing Transformed is out November 16th for PS3 and 360, and November 30th for Wii U (previewed).

This game was previewed at a PR organised event.