This is what works excellent in this game, this silly but amazing fun things like Ryo driving arcade caninets, and AGES. Sumo is doing a great job, the game is only missing Segata Sanshiro and some House of the Dead/Virtua Cop representatives. History of Sega made in a fun way, this is Sega's smash.
I still dont think is the best kart racing out there like some people are claiming (some design choices, characters choices like Danica Patric and some random guy from a podcast and numerous bugs that IMO take it down a notch), but is an amazing game nontheless.
Just to be clear
The first game in the series is called
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
The second game in the series is called:
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
They dialed back the sega nostalgia stuff by design.
I have the two games, the first one is cleary more sonic and then some than the second one, which has more sega characters and tracks (I think right now is only missing the 2 japanese house of the dead zombies, while they have add a lot more variety and taken out some shitty sonic friends), and then some random characters of various things.
So the name change doesnt make any sense.