Racing game Sonic And All-Stars Racing Transformed is now available for mobile users. You can purchase it for iOS or Android devices for $4.99.

In Racing Transformed, Sonic and his pals drive cars, planes and boats through courses filled with power-ups, hazards and shortcuts. The game's cast includes Tails, AiAi and Shenmue's Ryo Hazuki. Hazuki, interestingly enough, drives a vehicle with a built-in arcade cabinet. I guess he wants to squeeze in one last game of Space Harrier before dying in a head-on collision. Additional All-Stars will be added soon.

Sega initially released Racing Transformed on Xbox 360 and PS3 in November 2012. The game then spread to Wii U, 3DS, PlayStation Vita and PC. While the game seems like a knock-off of Mario Kart - and I guess it kind of is - the previous versions received favorable reviews. The consensus was that the game's a pretty good mixture of ideas from several kart titles. It's also proof that Sega isn't doomed to make terrible Sonic games for the rest of their days.

The mobile versions of Racing Transformed supports local and online multiplayer with up to four friends. You can hook the game up to Facebook if you wish so you can see your friends' ugly, ugly faces in the game. Touch, tilt, and gamepad controls are all available. The game also presents daily and weekly challenges to give your play session a little more structure.

Racing Transformed is $19.99 on PC and around twice that much on consoles. The $4.99 price tag for the mobile version is much cheaper but there are additional costs to consider. The game's Boss Characters Pack and Rival Characters Pack each cost $4.99. The Character Booster, which I guess gives you a leg up in progression, is another $9.99. If you want Racing Transformed's full content or you don't plan on playing on the go, you're better off getting one of the previously released versions of the game.

If you're interested in buying the mobile edition, you can find it on iTunes and Google Play.

If you're looking for cheap entertainment this weekend, Steam's got a couple options for you. Left 4 Dead 2 and Sonic And All-Stars Racing Transformed are both free to play through the digital games platform for the next couple days.

In Left 4 Dead 2, players take on the role of four survivors attempting to escape the zombie apocalypse. The five campaigns take players to locations throughout the zombie-infested Deep South, including a swamp and amusement park. L4D2 improved upon the formula of its predecessor by introducing melee weapons like frying pans and axes, as well as three new Special Infected. The game also included a new Scavenge mode, in which a team of survivors try to gather fuel to power a generator while another team of Infected try to stop them.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, meanwhile, is a racing game in which Sonic and friends race alongside other characters from Sega franchises like Shinobi and Jet Set Radio. The most recent addition to the roster was General Winter from Company of Heroes 2. Players will drive vehicles that switch between car, boat and plane modes throughout the race, with each mode requiring different tactics. They can use power-ups and weapons in order to edge out their competition.

There's no intended theme tying these two free-play weekends together. However, I like to think of this as a "Unfairly Crapped On Weekend." Left 4 Dead 2 was the subject of a facepalm-worthy boycott. Sonic & All-Stars Racing, meanwhile, has been constantly been dogged with "lol Mario Kart clone" jokes. In spite of all the slings and arrows these games have suffered, though, they're actually quite fun. If nothing else, they're worth a weekend of free experimentation.

Both L4D2 and Sonic are free to download and play in their entirety from now until 1 PM PDT on Sunday. During these free weekends, they can be purchased at a 75% discount as well. The discounts, which also apply to the 4-Packs for each game, will expire L4D2 at 10am PDT on July 8th.

Valve is also offering sales on Left 4 Dead and the rest of the Sonic games. The Sonic titles on sale range from last year's Sonic the Hedgehog 4 - Episode II to the platformer that started it all, Sonic the Hedgehog. The 75% discount on all those games will run until July 8th as well.

While it has certainly taken the PC a lot longer to finally get its hands on Sega's Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed, that extra wait doesn't come without its rewards. The publisher announced today that, when the game launches for PC on Jan. 31, it will be with five exclusive racers in tow.

We get that it's no fun to be the last person to show up to the party. Many console gamers have been enjoying Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed since late last year and, in the meantime, PC gamers could only twiddle their thumbs and fantasize about how awesome it would be to launch a jeep off a cliff and squeal with glee as it transforms into a fighter jet in order to continue the race.

But while PC gamers still have nearly two weeks to wait before they can enjoy the racing goodness of All-Stars Transformed they can at least sleep peacefully at night knowing that an additional handful of characters will be added to their game, exclusive to the PC version and hailing from such titles as Team Fortress 2.

All of these additional characters will be available from the moment you boot up Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed on Jan. 31, starting with Shogun from the Total War series. Shogun will be accompanied by the bizarre “Manager Man” from the Football Manager series, which is actually “soccer” for you Yanks in the audience.

But what mascot racing game ported to the PC would be complete without a veritable team of racers from the highly successful Team Fortress 2? You'll have access to three such hitmen, including the Pyro, the Heavy and the Spy.

Jan. 31 is still a little ways off, so here's an action-packed trailer showing off all of those free extra characters in action.

This time of year is always slow for big game releases at retail, but developers are making up for that slowdown with a handful of digital titles to keep everyone busy into the New Year. And that's exactly what you'll find in this week's PlayStation Network update.

For those who have enjoyed Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed on their home consoles but have desired to take their newest kart driving game on the road, this is your week. Racing Transformed will be hitting physical store shelves for the PS Vita this week, but it'll also be available in a digital format when the PSN update goes live Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier this week we told you that Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath would be making its way to the PS Vita and, according to an update from the PlayStation Blog, that's exactly what's happening. Now you can take Stranger out on the go and enjoy a zany first-person shooter experience no matter where you are.

Along with digital versions of Batman: Arkham Asylum for the PS3, Lego Lord of the Rings and the mission-based top-down car combat game Zombie Driver HD, PSN will see a a small collection of downloadable titles added to its library after this week's update.

A remake of the PC classic Karateka will have you trying to save the day as multiple character classes, each stronger than the next. Labyrinth Legends is exactly what it sounds like, offering lots of twisty dungeons to dive into with fun loot and puzzles to solve.

The beautiful Knytt Underground will make its way to the PS3 and Vita, providing a light Metroidvania adventure in a dark and mysterious world. Finally, mobile game Burn the Rope will be made available on the Vita, alongside new mini, Hotel Mogul.

Check out the above link to the PS Blog for more details on these games and additional information about this week's PlayStation Network update, which will go live Tuesday afternoon.

By purchasing Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed, you can get a limited edition Hot Wheels car. GameStop is giving out toy cars inspired by Danica Patrick's vehicle to everyone who picks up the kart racer.

So that’s GameStop, Sega, NASCAR and Hot Wheels all getting in on this action. That’s a promotion within a promotion within a promotion within a promotion. That’s right, folks, we’ve just been promoceptioned. BRAWM! (That’s the crazy loud noise from the Inception movie trailer, one of the few multimedia properties left out of this crazy cluster of promotions).

Sega of America Inc. and Mattel, Inc., makers of the iconic Hot Wheels toy cars, today announced that GameStop will be handing out a “Danicar” with every purchase of Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed, whether said purchase be made in-store or online. The promoception kicked off yesterday and will continue until they run out of the Hot Wheels cars.

In All-Stars Transformed, Danica Patrick races an electric green Hot Wheels car that’s themed after the car she actually drives for NASCAR. Just like the rest of the vehicles in Sega’s new karting game, the Danicar transforms on the fly in order to tackle the various courses’ shift from land, to air, to sea and back again. The game is available right this second and, if you choose to make your purchase at GameStop, you’ll net yourself a free Hot Wheels car in the process. So now you can play with your Hot Wheels car while driving the same car in the game. It’s a playception!

It may be hard to believe, but not every game that released this holiday season has players shooting, stabbing or blowing stuff up. Take Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed, for instance. In Sega's latest mascot racer, adorable characters pilot transforming crafts in a mad dash around colorful tracks to reach the finish line. What's that you say? They can pick up weapons and blow each other to smithereens? Yeah, well, I bet they at least look really cute doing it.

Sega's newest kart racing titles drops it's own name from the title of the first game of the series, trading “and Sega All-Stars” for just “and All-Stars,” making room for non-family titles like movie mascot Wreck-it Ralph and human mascot Danica Patrick.

Along with new karts that seamlessly transform into boats and flying contraptions to keep the races fresh, Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed also features more than 20 racers and a big 25 tracks and arenas in which to race and do battle. Check out the official launch trailer, which shows off everything I just mentioned, as well as some kids looking kind of creepy in a slow motion air tunnel kind of way.

Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed is available now for just about every console imaginable, including the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii U, PC, PS Vita and Nintendo 3DS. Despite being a brand-spanking-new title, Sega's newest kart racer is available from day one at a discounted price of just $29.99 for portables and $39.99 on the home consoles.

It may be hard to believe, but the Nintendo Wii U is launching in just over a week. If you're quick enough to snag one of the consoles for yourself, then you'll likely be wanting a few games to actually play on the thing. Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed is one such title, which just so happens to have a new trailer ready for release day.

Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed will be launching day and date with the Wii U on Nov. 18. That's also when you'll be able to pick up the game for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with portable consoles getting in on the action a few weeks later on Dec. 11. If you're having trouble deciding which version of the game to pick up, then you might want to check out the latest Wii U trailer.

One of the big questions surround Wii U games are how they will be utilizing the console's unique touch-screen gamepad. Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed certainly looks to be taking advantage of the technology. For starters, the screen defaults as a level map and a rearview mirror. You can also track your fired weapons on the screen or, even cooler, add a fifth player to couch play. There's also a Wii U exclusive multiplayer mode that puts the person with the gamepad in control of a giant ball, trying to squash the other players who will be controlling their carts on the television screen.

And, of course, there's the ability to instantly beam the gameplay from the television screen to the controller, meaning you can keep your game going while another family member watches, um, the news?

Look for Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed to transform the way you race and, if you get the Wii U version, how you play the game on Nov. 18.

Sega announced an unusual addition to the roster for Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed. The titular character from upcoming animated film Wreck-It Ralph will be playable in the kart racer.

Ralph, like other characters, has a vehicle that transforms in the middle of races. In its land form, it looks like a tow truck. When racing on water or in the air, it becomes a fan boat or helicopter.

Most of the game's cast is made up of characters from the Sonic series or other Sega properties. Ralph does feel a bit out of place there. However, Danica Patrick's inclusion makes him merely the second most ill-fitting character.

Ultimately, though, this is a kart racing game. The normal rules of game design don't apply. There's no place for things like story or thematic unity.