Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Year Two Guide: Duel Mode and Season Pass 2

Buying Season Pass 2 to get Duel Mode would spend $29.99 on content you do not need for those races. The new one-on-one format belongs to the free Year Two update, alongside 15 gadgets and the Grand Master Gadget Plate. Start with that distinction: pay for the crossover content you want, rather than assuming the new competitive mode sits behind the pass.

Table of Contents (6)

When Year Two and Season 2 start

The Western launch date for Year Two and Season Pass 2 is November 3, 2026. Godzilla opens the premium roadmap, while Bayonetta joins the free character lineup that day. The Japanese schedule lists Season 2 and the Godzilla Pack for November 4, so the date differs between the regional schedules.

Keep the free update and the paid release schedule separate. Year Two begins with new racing systems, but the crossover packs roll out over the following months.

• October 9, 2026: The SEGA Controllers Decal Pack becomes available as part of Season Pass 2.
• November 3, 2026: The Western Year Two launch adds Duel Mode, 15 gadgets, the Grand Master Gadget Plate and Bayonetta. Season Pass 2 opens with Godzilla, and its SEGA Consoles Pack also arrives.
• Later in November 2026: Sonic (McLaren Racing) and the Speed-type McLaren Racing Car join the free lineup.
• January 2027: The EVANGELION Pack arrives with its racers, machines and Third New Tokyo City course.
• Early 2027: Aigis joins the free character lineup with the Acceleration-type Palladion Dressy machine.

CrossWorlds Festivals also expand to 10-day events during Year Two. That gives each Festival a longer participation window, although individual event dates still need to be checked against its schedule.

How Duel Mode works — and which format to choose

Duel Mode puts you in a 1v1 race against a single opponent. You can see their items, gadgets and race position, giving you information to work with before committing to an attack or speed burst.

The central mechanic is the Duel Boost gauge. It fills over time and through item use. Once full, you can activate a high-speed burst that continues until the gauge empties. Items therefore influence both the immediate exchange and your access to extra speed.

A full gauge is worth checking against your opponent’s visible items before you spend it. If they are holding something that could disrupt your run, factor that threat into your decision rather than activating the boost automatically. The visible gadget loadout also helps explain what advantages they have brought into the duel.

Format	Opponent and rules	Best reason to play
Rival Duel	Offline races against CPU rivals, including free characters and paid-DLC racers you own.	Character unlocks and rival rewards, including special machines.
Duel Match — Free Match	Online matchmaking against random opponents.	Head-to-head racing without waiting for a limited-time competitive event.
Duel Match — Best-of-10	Limited-time online events with special rules, Duel Class rankings and medal rewards.	Competitive progression and event rewards.
Friend Match	Online races against friends with configurable rules and item settings.	Custom duels where you control the rules.

Rival Duel is the route to Bayonetta’s free unlock. It also supports owned paid-DLC racers, but that does not give you access to crossover characters you have not purchased. If Bayonetta is your immediate goal, focus on her Rival Duel matches rather than the online Duel Class events.

For Best-of-10, read the event’s special rules before carrying over your approach from Free Match. In Friend Match, agree on the item settings first: item use contributes to Duel Boost, so those settings affect a central part of the duel.

What the new gadgets change

The day-one update adds 15 gadgets and the Grand Master Gadget Plate. The plate introduces a seventh Super Slot for a one-slot gadget, increasing that gadget’s effect further.

The important restriction is the slot size. When considering the new Super Slot, look at your one-slot gadgets rather than assuming any gadget will fit. Duel Mode’s visible opponent loadouts also make these choices easier to read during a race: you can see the opposing setup instead of having to infer every advantage from their driving.

Season Pass 2 lineup and the SpongeBob caveat

Season Pass 2 is planned around six premium crossover packs. Five names are consistent across the roadmap material: Godzilla, EVANGELION, Virtual Sanrio Puroland, Final Fantasy VII Remake and Persona.

The sixth-pack listing conflicts: one roadmap names SEGALAND, while the research dossier names SpongeBob SquarePants. That leaves SpongeBob’s inclusion in Season Pass 2 uncertain. If SpongeBob is your reason to buy, check that the storefront’s included-content list explicitly names the SpongeBob SquarePants Pack before paying. It is not the opening November crossover.

The most detailed release information concerns the first two major packs:

• Godzilla Pack — November 3 in the Western schedule, November 4 in the Japanese schedule: Godzilla Escape uses City Escape as its setting, with Godzilla attacking from the start and firing atomic breath. Its machines are Godzilla Cruiser, King Ghidorah Coupe and Mothra Surf.
• EVANGELION Pack — January 2027: Racers Rei Ayanami and Asuka Shikinami Langley arrive alongside Third New Tokyo City. The machine lineup comprises EVA-01 (TEST TYPE), EVA-00 (PROTO TYPE) and EVA-02 (PRODUCTION MODEL).

Release dates are not supplied for Final Fantasy VII Remake, Persona or Virtual Sanrio Puroland. Buying the pass at launch therefore means committing to later releases as well as the initial Godzilla content.

The pass also includes the SEGA Controllers Decal Pack and SEGA Consoles Pack. The console-themed machines are Genesis Tower US, SegaSaturn JP and Dreamcast EU. Owners of both Season Pass 1 and Season Pass 2 receive Super Shadow and the Super Dark Flare machine as bonus content; Season Pass 2 alone does not meet that ownership requirement.

Base game, Season Pass 2 or Year Two Digital Deluxe

The base game’s permanent US price drops from $69.99 to $39.99, a $30 reduction. Season Pass 2 costs $29.99, while the $59.99 Year Two Digital Deluxe Edition combines the base game with Season Pass 2.

Purchase	US price	What it covers	Who it suits
Base game	$39.99	The core game and free Year Two additions, including Duel Mode.	New players interested mainly in racing and the free update.
Season Pass 2	$29.99	The premium Year Two packs and included extras; requires the base game.	Existing owners who want the crossover lineup.
Year Two Digital Deluxe Edition	$59.99	The base game plus Season Pass 2.	New players who already want the paid Year Two content.

The bundle costs $20 more than the standard game. Buying the $39.99 base game and $29.99 pass separately totals $69.98, making the $59.99 bundle $9.99 cheaper than those two purchases together.

The existing Digital Deluxe Edition also drops from $89.99 to $59.99. Because it shares a price with the Year Two edition, check the edition name and its included pass carefully. For this roadmap, the listing needs to specify Season Pass 2.

There is no individual-pack pricing here to calculate whether the pass saves money against buying only Godzilla or EVANGELION. Existing owners interested in just one crossover should compare that pack’s standalone price when available instead of treating the six-pack pass as an automatic bargain.

These are US-dollar prices; regional prices, taxes and platform storefront adjustments can differ. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is available on Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC.

The clean buying decision

For Duel Mode, Bayonetta and the new gadgets, keep your money on the base game — or download the free update if you already own it. Choose Year Two Digital Deluxe as a new buyer only when the paid crossover lineup is part of the appeal. If SpongeBob is the deciding factor, wait for an included-content listing that resolves the sixth-pack conflict; that detail matters more than the bundle saving.