Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed

Whether you're travelling across land or sea, or through the air, there's a robust and convincing physics model that generates a sense of weight all too rare among racers of this kind. Handling is still that same blend of Mario Kart and OutRun, but with a little more heft to it – perhaps down to the involvement of lead designer Gareth Wilson, who worked on Blur and Project Gotham Racing during his time at Bizarre Creations. The water may not cause you as many problems as in something like Wave Race – in fact, occasionally you'll be able to trick off waves for a boost - but you'll still need to watch out for whirlpools that can slow you down or drag you under.

Indeed, it isn't just the vehicles to which the Transformed of the title refers, as roads you raced on in the first lap may have crumbled into the water by the second, while elsewhere terrain steepens to form ramps that send you skyward. These scripted events aren't a match for the explosive destruction of something like Split/Second, but they help keep you on your toes, and the effect further invigorates the already smartly-designed tracks.

The two stages we played through were packed with shortcuts and alternative routes. A Panzer Dragoon-themed course naturally has you spending a fair bit of time in the air, while the Monkey Ball track allows you the choice of winding, narrow, barrier-free strips of track up above, or the wider stretches below that are slower but easier to negotiate. One particularly neat touch is a shortcut which sends you leaping onto a numbered target lifted from the Monkey Target mini-game. Sumo has been careful to ensure that the tracks fit the IP, though in the case of Monkey Ball, the studio had to get special permission from SEGA Japan to include water, before then entering into discussions about how water should behave in the Monkey Ball universe. It's heartening to witness that kind of meticulous focus on fine detail, and Sumo's near-fanboyish enthusiasm for the characters and worlds featured here show that these SEGA favourites are in safe hands.

If the track design is easy to admire, the graphical overhaul is even more attention-grabbing. Sumo is using a bespoke engine for Transformed, and the improvements over its predecessor are startling. It still has those same glorious SEGA blue skies, but there's much more detail in both environments and vehicles, while the whole thing runs at an exhilarating pace. Even in its unfinished state, this demonstrates surprisingly strong production values for a kart racer, and the graphics can only improve between now and its autumn release.

As for the soundtrack, popular composer Richard Jacques has contributed a number of tracks that remix classic SEGA tunes from yesteryear, while some players will be delighted to learn that the polarising commentator from the first game has been removed. Instead, an announcer only occasionally interjects to relay the most important race information, while crowds clap, cheer and chant the name of their favourite racer.