Sonic Team Works on Roadmaps to Decide Which Game to Make in Which Year

In the wake of the recent successful launch of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, head of Sonic Team Takashi Iizuka spoke about the development team’s process in figuring out what to make next. As caught by Genki_JPN, Iizuka spoke about how Sonic Team has a roadmap with a variety of potential Sonic projects at the recent Brasil Game Show 2025.

As part of the process, the team first makes the roadmap, and then figures out which game it wants to work on next. Once that decision has been made, resources are then allocated accordingly. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds was developed in a similar manner, since Sonic Team wanted to focus on reviving the racing side of things for the franchise.

“First we create a roadmap of Sonic titles and think about which game to release in which year, said Iizuka. “We then allocate the development resources needed to develop those titles. So this year we’ve strengthened the racing genre, and we’re currently planning what to do next on the roadmap.”

However, Iizuka didn’t provide more details about these roadmaps, such as how far into the future it makes plans for when it comes to making new Sonic titles. The roadmaps also likely take into account other projects in the Sonic franchise that might already be under development.

In the meantime, Sega has confirmed that Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds has sold more than a million copies since its launch back in September across PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. The announcement was made alongside the release of Joker from Persona 5 as a playable character for the kart racer, including the addition of three new songs from the turn-based RPG – Take Over, Wake Up, Get Up, Get Out There, and Victory.

As its name might imply, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is the newest entry in the kart racing mini-series under the larger Sonic franchise. The title launched with 24 regular tracks and 23 characters from across the Sonic franchise, as well as a host of guest characters, including vocaloid music store Hatsune Miku. Alongside its fast-paced arcade-styled racing, the core gameplay of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds revolves around the titular mechanic that allows players to change the track in the middle of a race thanks to portals that take racers to different locations.

A Nintendo Switch 2 version of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is also planned for release. In the meantime, the title is also slated to get a variety of different DLC releases, which will include characters from franchises outside of Sega. These franchises include Mega Man, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Minecraft. Check out more details about the kart racing game in our review, where we gave it a score of 9 out of 10 thanks to its performance and fun gameplay.

The Sonic franchise has been seeing general success as well. Back in January, Sega had confirmed that Sonic X Shadow Generations had sold more than 2 million copies. The announcement came after its launch day back in October 2024 already saw more than a million sales.