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| Developer(s) | Sega Sonic Team |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Director(s) | Makoto Tase |
| Producer(s) | Takashi Iizuka |
| Series | Sonic the Hedgehog |
| Engine | Unity |
| Platform(s) | |
| Release | November 5, 2025 |
| Genre(s) | Party, battle royale |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer, single-player |
Sonic Rumble is a 2025 party battle royale game in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, developed and published by Sega with Sonic Team. It features players as toy versions of Sonic characters competing in various challenges and minigames.[1]
Initially announced in May 2024, Sonic Rumble released for Windows, iOS, and Android on November 5, 2025, after multiple delays.
Gameplay[]
Gameplay screenshot, in which Sonic is seen running away from a giant chopper
Sonic Rumble is an online party game in which numerous players compete against each other in various mini-games and challenges, with the goal of collecting the most rings. The game supports up to 32 players[2] in the first round, with half of the players being eliminated afterwards. The second round features the remaining 16 players, and again, half of them are eliminated. The final round then consists of the remaining 8 players, who compete in a final round to determine the winner.[citation needed]
The game features multiple game modes, which consist of the following:
- In 'Ring Survival', players compete to collect the most rings while surviving against challenges and other players. This is the game's main multiplayer mode.[3]
- In 'Co-Op Battles', players team up as a group of 32 to fight the Death Egg Robot, working together to defeat it and earn rewards.
- 'Special Rumble' features a variety of competitions, including Run Battles and Survival Battles, where players race through three consecutive rounds with fixed rules. It includes challenges like Hyper Boost Battles and Low Gravity Battles, allowing players to race in alternate ways.[citation needed]
The game also supports custom matches; players can host their own lobbies in this mode, allowing them to compete against CPUs, friends, or other players.[citation needed]
Development[]
Sonic Rumble was developed primarily by Sega, with input from Sonic Team.[4] Rovio Entertainment was in charge of marketing and community relations for the game.[5]
Program optimization was a major concern during development, as many mobile devices do not have powerful hardware.[5] Hiromitsu Soto, the game's lead programmer, stated "On mobile, we prioritized lightweight performance to support a broad spectrum of hardware, including low-end devices. On PC, our focus shifted toward high-fidelity visuals and low-latency responsiveness. Balancing these needs required iterative testing and fine-tuning across platforms."[6]
Rumble was designed as a community-focused game, and player feedback from the closed beta testing was considered essential. The "Quick Rumble" gameplay mode was conceived from such feedback; the game was initially composed exclusively of three-round matches, but upon realizing how many players play mobile games without a lot of time to spare, the developers implemented Quick Rumble so players could engage in a single round.[5] To utilize such feedback, the game was delayed multiple times, providing the developers more time to improve balancing leading up to the global release.[5]
Release[]
Sonic Rumble was released for Windows, iOS, and Android on November 5, 2025.[7] It was first made available to play via a closed beta from May 24–26, 2024,[8][9] and was initially expected for a full release between late 2024 and early 2025, using the date of February 28, 2025, as a placeholder.[10] However, it was revealed in March 2025 that the game was pushed back to the second quarter of the year.[11][12]
On April 8, 2025, Sega had announced that the game would launch worldwide on May 8.[13] However, on April 30, 2025, the release date was postponed indefinitely in order to address quality-related issues.[14] Pocket Gamer reported in May that Sega intended to release Rumble later in 2025.[15] In October, the final release date was reported by Engadget.[7]
Reception[]
![[icon]](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ultimatepopculture/images/0/01/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png/revision/latest?cb=20211122062953){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2025) |
Pre-release[]
Giovanni Colantonio's pre-release review on Digital Trends praised the gameplay as fun, but criticized its slow pace, considering the game's presence in the fast-paced Sonic the Hedgehog series. Colantonio compared the game to Fall Guys and felt it was like "an unrelated game that's been reskinned to look like the franchise," and that it was missing what "make[s] Sonic games fun".[16]
During the extended pre-release period, updates and adjustments were tested with more than 8 million soft-launch players, while an additional 1.4 million users pre-registered in regions not included in the soft launch.[17]
Post-release[]
Sonic Rumble, upon its global release, was review bombed by users on Steam.[18][19]
Sonic Rumble earned about $228,000 in global mobile revenue during its initial ten days on the market.[20] By November 2025, total player count had surpassed 15 million.[21][22][23]
Awards[]
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | The Game Awards | Best Mobile Game | Pending | [24] |
References[]
- ↑ Dean, Takashi (5 October 2024). "How Sonic Rumble is taking Sega into mobile games: Interview". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on October 9, 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Shirey, J Brodie (8 October 2024). "Free to Play Sonic Game Removing Controversial Feature". Game Rant. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ "TSS Hands-On Preview: Sonic Rumble Beta". Sonic Stadium. 3 October 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Inamoto, Tetsuya (30 September 2024). "「Sonic Rumble」合同インタビュー。バトルロイヤルというソニックシリーズの新たな試みについて詳しく聞いた［TGS2024］" [Sonic Rumble Group Interview. We Learned More About the Sonic Series' New Venture into the Battle Royale Genre [TGS2024]]. 4Gamer . Archived from the original on 9 November 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Astle, Aaron (13 March 2025). "Behind the scenes of Sonic Rumble's delay, development and the Rovio x Sega partnership". Pocket Gamer. Archived from the original on 9 November 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Axler, Adam. "How SEGA and Rovio built Sonic Rumble for speed, scale, and stability". Unity. Archived from the original on 9 November 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
{{cite web}}: [better source needed] - ↑ 7.0 7.1 Moon, Mariella (22 October 2025). "Sonic Rumble is coming out November 5". Engadget. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Cardy, Simon (1 October 2024). "Sonic Rumble is a New Platformer Battle Royale Game for iOS and Android". IGN. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ "Sonic Rumble officially announced: new details and screenshot". Tails Channel. 28 September 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Schomer, Matthew (December 5, 2024). "Sonic Rumble Pre-Registrations Live". GameRant. Retrieved December 9, 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Deschamps, Marc (5 March 2025). "Sega Shares Update on Sonic Rumble and Sonic the Hedgehog Studios". Comicbook.com. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Nightingale, Ed (26 February 2025). "Sonic Rumble, Sega's mobile party game from Angry Birds studio, delayed into spring". Eurogamer. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Romano, Sal (April 8, 2025). "Sonic Rumble launches May 8". Gematsu. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Kennedy, Victoria (April 30, 2025). "Angry Birds maker and Sega delay Sonic Rumble release once again". Eurogamer. Retrieved 30 April 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Astle, Aaron (14 May 2025). "Sega still aiming for Sonic Rumble 2025 release after last-minute delay". Pocket Gamer. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Colantonio, Giovanni (November 14, 2024). "Sonic Rumble is a fun battle royale, but an oddly slow Sonic spinoff". Digital Trends. Digital Trends Media Group. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Astle, Aaron (2025-11-06). "Sonic Rumble launches globally with 10m "early Rumblers"". www.pocketgamer.biz. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Kantor, Jonathan H. (November 5, 2025). "New Sonic Game Gets Review Bombed at Launch Following Several Delays". ComicBook.com. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ McGlynn, Anthony (November 5, 2025). "The latest Sonic game is getting ripped apart on Steam: "In what world can you get a whole, fully featured, actually fun racing game for less than the price of 2 skins here"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Astle, Aaron (2025-11-17). "Sonic Rumble earns just $228,000 in first 10 days, with "a future major update" in the works". www.pocketgamer.biz. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ "Sonic Rumble's Major Milestone; New Rewards and Addressing Player Feedback | Sonic Rumble | SEGA". sonicrumble.sega.com. 2025-11-14. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Martin, Greg (2025-11-14). "Sonic Rumble Reaches 15 Million Players as Developers Plan Major Updates". TwistedVoxel. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Kiwami, Soul (2025-11-14). "Sonic Rumble Surpasses 15 Million Players, Major Improvements in the Works". Final Weapon. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ McWhertor, Michael (November 17, 2025). "The Game Awards announces Game of the Year 2025 nominees". Polygon. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
{{cite web}}:
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