At least the minigames in Generations had variety. Sure, you had time trial and and racing for every level, but all the others were at least unique to that specific level, and if you didn't like the selection for one Sonic, you could switch to the other Sonic and get another, totally different set of mini-games with just as much variety. You're not revisiting the same levels, you're doing new challenges in the backdrop of those levels. I don't see what your deal is.
Back on topic, MadeMan, your opinion of arcade kart racers having no place in this day and age is just flat out false. People have different tastes, I myself don't really like realistic racing games, I can never get a hold of their handling for very long. The only one I've invested very much time into was Sega GT 2002, and even then I don't really like it that much. I'm all over arcade-style racers though, I just think they're a lot more fun, and of course there's bad ones, but saying they have no place in this world is just flat-out uncalled for.