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Mario Kart World

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Mario Kart World
The game's cast of playable racers drive towards the camera, led by Mario. Multiple environments are depicted around them. The game's logo, featuring a globe, is in the top middle.
Key artwork
Developer(s)Nintendo EPD
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)
  • Kenta Sato
  • Masaaki Ishikawa
  • Shintaro Jikumaru
Producer(s)Kosuke Yabuki
Designer(s)Shintaro Jikumaru
Programmer(s)Kenta Sato
Artist(s)Masaaki Ishikawa
Composer(s)Atsuko Asahi
SeriesMario Kart
Platform(s)Nintendo Switch 2
ReleaseJune 5, 2025
Genre(s)Kart racing
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Mario Kart World[a] is an upcoming kart racing game developed by Nintendo EPD for the Nintendo Switch 2. As in previous Mario Kart games, players control Mario characters as they race against opponents. World introduces an open-world design, an elimination mode, and unlockable costumes for the playable characters. Races support up to 24 players, twice as many as previous Mario Kart games.

Nintendo began developing World in 2017 as a Nintendo Switch game, shortly before the release of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. They chose the title Mario Kart World over Mario Kart 9 to signify that it was a new approach. The development shifted to the Switch 2 in 2020 due to optimization difficulties. Nintendo revealed footage alongside the announcement of the Switch 2 in January 2025 before formally announcing World that April.

Mario Kart World is scheduled for release on June 5, 2025, as a launch game for the Nintendo Switch 2.

Gameplay

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See also: Gameplay of Mario Kart
One of the many new additions to Mario Kart World includes racing on the surface of water without going underwater.

Mario Kart World is a kart racing game. As in previous Mario Kart games, players race as characters from the Mario series in one of many selectable go-karts. The game features 50 playable characters; 24 of the playable characters have alternate unlockable costumes accessed by eating snacks during races, while most of the remaining characters additionally exist as obstacles on the game's tracks.[1][2][3] It supports up to 24 players, twice as many compared to previous Mario Kart games,[4] and includes features such as an open-world design, a free-roaming mode, off-roading segments, boat racing, rail grinding and wall jumping.[5][6]

Unlike prior Mario Kart titles, the Grand Prix mode does not consist of four separate races, but rather racers must drive to each course,[7] though it is believed that there will be an option to turn off these intermissions.[8] Mario Kart World features some past courses from the series that have been reimagined to fit the game's open world design and to include a shift from day to night.[9] In addition, a mode called "Knockout Tour" will be introduced in the game; the 24 racers will compete in one much longer race spanning the game's world, with four eliminations at each of the six intermittent checkpoints.[10][11]

Battle Mode returns from previous titles; players compete against one another to pop each other's balloons in Balloon Battle or collecting the most coins in Coin Runners.[12]

Another new mode called "Free Roam" is introduced in World; players are permitted to drive to any location, including those that are off-road or outside of race tracks. Numerous missions, such as finding collectibles, are present in this mode. In addition, players can also take photos of their chosen driver.[12] Rebekah Valentine, writing for IGN, noted the mode's likeness to Forza Horizon (2012).[13]

Development

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Mario Kart World began prototyping as a title for the Nintendo Switch in March 2017, just before the release of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. At the end of that year, Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development officially began development on the game. Kosuke Yabuki, series producer, wanted the new entry to innovate on the series' gameplay formula with an open world, as he thought the traditional gameplay formula had been perfected with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The game was titled Mario Kart World instead of Mario Kart 9 since early stages of development; the developers intended for it to be a completely new approach.[14] Most of the new playable characters also exist as obstacles on the game's tracks; according to art director Masaaki Ishikawa, one of the designers made a sketch of a Cow from the Moo Moo Meadows track driving a truck, leading to many of the course's other obstacles becoming "NPC drivers."[15]

In 2020, the game was retooled for the Nintendo Switch 2 after difficulties arose when trying to optimize an open world racing game with 24 players on the original Switch hardware. Compromises to the vision for the game would have been necessary, whereas the Switch 2's hardware specifications were beginning to take shape and gave the developers room to expand on their ideas for the game.[16][17] The "Booster Course Pass" downloadable content for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was also conceived around this time, as a stopgap release that allowed for development on World to be prolonged.[16]

On January 16, 2025, Nintendo announced the Nintendo Switch 2 with footage of a new Mario Kart game. Critics likened the art style to Super Mario Bros. Wonder and The Super Mario Bros. Movie, both released in 2023.[18]

Release

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In a Nintendo Direct presentation on April 2, 2025, Nintendo announced the title Mario Kart World and revealed the first trailer.[19] Nintendo will sell Mario Kart World for US$79.99, $20 more than the standard price for games on the original Nintendo Switch and more than most standard editions of AAA games, which has led to controversy.[20][21][22] A Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct presentation was held on April 17, 2025.[23]

Notes

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  1. ^ Japanese: マリオカートワールド, Hepburn: Mario Kāto Wārudo

References

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  1. ^ Cardy, Simon (April 3, 2025). "Nintendo Switch 2 Exclusive Mario Kart World: Every Playable Character and Outfit Revealed". IGN. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  2. ^ Watts, Steve (April 3, 2025). "Mario Kart World Hands-On: The Conservative Switch 2 Gets A Bold Sequel". GameSpot. Archived from the original on April 4, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  3. ^ Wood, Dashiell (April 17, 2025). "Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct: new free roam details confirmed and everything announced about the Switch 2 game". TechRadar. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
  4. ^ Kennedy, Victoria (April 2, 2025). "Mario Kart World announced as Switch 2 launch title, complete with 24 player races, new modes and more". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  5. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (April 2, 2025). "Nintendo Switch 2 Mario Kart Game Officially Revealed as Mario Kart World". IGN. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  6. ^ Tassi, Paul (April 2, 2025). "Nintendo Reveals 'Mario Kart World' For Switch 2, Here's The Trailer". Forbes. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  7. ^ Nightingale, Ed (April 3, 2025). "Here's how Mario Kart World's Grand Prix and Free Roam modes work". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on April 5, 2025. Retrieved April 9, 2025.
  8. ^ Stenhouse, Henry (April 4, 2025). "Mario Kart World's Open World, Knockout Mode, and More Major Changes on Switch 2". Restart. Archived from the original on April 10, 2025. Retrieved April 9, 2025.
  9. ^ Lewis, Catherine (April 17, 2025). "Mario Kart World's retro courses have been "reimagined," so don't expect your muscle memory to carry you through the Switch 2 racing game". GamesRadar+. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
  10. ^ Shea, Brian (June 5, 2025). "Mario Kart World Modes And Courses Detailed, Free Roam Features Missions And Collectibles". Game Informer. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
  11. ^ "Battle Mode Is Back In Mario Kart World, Two Minigames Confirmed". GameSpot. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Mario Kart World Direct Revs up New Details on the Biggest Mario Kart Ever, Coming to Nintendo Switch 2 at Launch". Business Wire (Press release). Nintendo. April 17, 2025. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
  13. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (April 17, 2025). "Mario Kart World's Free Roam Mode Is an Open World Road Trip You Can Take With Friends". Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  14. ^ "Ask the Developer Vol. 18: Mario Kart World — Part 1 - News - Nintendo Official Site". www.nintendo.com. Retrieved May 22, 2025.[non-primary source needed]
  15. ^ "Ask the Developer Vol. 18: Mario Kart World — Part 3 - News - Nintendo Official Site". www.nintendo.com. Retrieved May 22, 2025.[non-primary source needed]
  16. ^ a b Phillips, Tom (May 21, 2025). "Mario Kart World Began Development on Switch 1 and Suffered Performance Struggles, Until Switch 2 Delay Offered 'Ray of Hope'". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  17. ^ Serin, Kaan (May 21, 2025). "Mario Kart World started development as an OG Switch game in 2017, but went open-world because MK 8 Deluxe perfected "the formula that we'd been following" for 25 years". GamesRadar+. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  18. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (January 16, 2025). "A New Mario Kart Game Is Seemingly Coming to Nintendo Switch 2". IGN. Archived from the original on April 1, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  19. ^ Welsh, Oli (April 2, 2025). "Mario Kart World goes open-world and off-road on Nintendo Switch 2". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  20. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (April 3, 2025). "Here's Why the Nintendo Switch 2, Mario Kart World, and Everything Around Them Is So Expensive". IGN. Archived from the original on April 4, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  21. ^ Cunningham, Andrew (April 2, 2025). "First-party Switch 2 games—including re-releases—all run either $70 or $80". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on April 3, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  22. ^ Redmond, Wash (April 2, 2025). "Nintendo Switch 2 Launches June 5 at $449.99, Bringing New Forms of Game Communication to Life". Business Wire. Archived from the original on April 4, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  23. ^ McWhertor, Michael (April 2, 2025). "They're just letting anyone drive in Mario Kart World". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
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