Nintendo reveals exciting details about the new "Mario Kart"

Domagoj Belancic

17-4-2025

Translation: machine translated

In a "Mario Kart Direct" presentation, Nintendo unveils previously secret details about the new fun racer.

For the launch of the Switch 2 on 5 June, Nintendo fans can plunge into a new «Mario Kart» adventure. To shorten the wait until the launch, Nintendo is showing new footage of the hotly anticipated fun racer in a «Mario Kart Direct» livestream.

You can watch the entire presentation in the video embedded below. I have summarised all the important information below.

Tracks: Rainbow Road confirmed!

«Mario Kart World» offers an open, freely accessible game world for the first time in the history of the game series. The race tracks are spread throughout the open world. Nintendo introduced the following new tracks in the presentation:

Mario Bros. Circuit

A relatively simple beginners' track in the desert.

Crown City

A track in a big city - including many opportunities to fly through the air.

Salty Salty Speedway

Venice as a «Mario Kart» track. Lots of water, lots of bends.

Starview Peak

A vertical race track with lots of inclines and plenty of opportunities to fall off.

Boo Cinema

On this track you drive into a horror film.

As in every «Mario Kart», there will also be retro tracks. However, these have been heavily revised for «World». They are also located in the open game world and, like the new tracks, are also affected by changing weather conditions and the day and night cycle. Nintendo has presented the following retro tracks:

Toads Factory (Wii)

The track will be recognisable to fans of «Mario Kart Wii» (2008)

Peach Beach (Gamecube)

The first time I raced around on Peach Beach was in «Mario Kart: Double Dash!!» (2003).

Wario Shipyard (3DS)

«Mario Kart 7» is represented with the Wario track.

Nintendo also confirms that Rainbow Road is returning. The track will be unlocked as soon as you have successfully completed all Cups in the game (more on this below). You can also see a small visual teaser in the video:

A total of 28 routes can be recognised on the overview map. Rainbow Road is yet another one. It is not known whether there are any other land masses away from the large island.

Apart from the tracks presented in detail, the following courses can be seen in the video (these have also been discovered in preview events and other materials about the game):

• Airship Fortress
• Desert Hills
• Dino Dino Jungle
• DK Pass
• DK Spaceport
• Faraway Oasis
• Great ? Block Ruins
• Koopa Troopa Beach
• Peach Stadium
• Shy Guy Bazaar
• Sky-High Sundae
• Wario Stadium
• Whistletop Summit

Characters & Karts: More choice, less freedom

In addition to familiar characters such as Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser and Yoshi, there are more new additions in «Mario Kart World» than ever before.

The following new drivers can be seen in the video (sorted alphabetically, with English names - I have linked the entries for each character from the Mario Wiki in case you don't recognise a name):

• Baby Daisy
• Baby Luigi
• Baby Mario
• Baby Peach
• Baby Rosalina
• Birdo
• Bowser
• Bowser Jr.
• Cataquack
• Chargin' Chuck
• Cheep Cheep
• Coin Coffer
• Conkdor
• Cow
• Daisy
• Dolphin
• Donkey Kong
• Dry Bones
• Fish Bone
• Goomba
• Hammer Bro
• King Boo
• Koopa Troopa
• Lakitu
• Luigi
• Mario
• Monty Mole
• Nabbit
• Para-Biddybud
• Peach
• Peepa
• Penguin
• Pianta
• Pirahna Plant
• Pokey
• Pauline
• Rocky Wrench
• Rosalina
• Shy Guy
• Sidestepper
• Snowman
• Spike
• Stingby
• Swoop
• Toad
• Toadette
• Waluigi
• Wario
• Wiggler
• Yoshi

The karts can no longer be customised, as was the case in «Mario Kart 8». Instead, you choose from predefined karts or motorbikes:

Game modes: a solid package

The two main game modes in «Mario Kart World» are the Grand Prix mode and the «Knockout Tour».

In the Grand Prix you compete against 23 other drivers in four consecutive tracks. Unlike previous «Mario Kart» games, you are not interrupted by menus between tracks, but drive straight to the start of the next track yourself.

Nintendo has confirmed seven cups for the game: Mushroom, Flower, Star, Tank, Banana, Leaf and Lightning. If you win all the cups, you will unlock Rainbow Road.

In the Knockout Tour, you race through six (!) consecutive tracks - without a breather in between. After each course, the last four riders are eliminated. Nintendo confirms eight Knockout Tours: Golden Turbo Mushroom, Ice Plant, Power Moon, Blue Tank, Cherry, Acorn, Cloud Flower and Heart:

Furthermore, there are once again Time Trials, in which you can beat your own best times and compete against ghost data from other online players.

In the «VS Race» mode you put together your own race packs. You can create your own Grand Prix with your own rules. You can even define open-world track sections as race tracks that do not appear in the regular Grand Prix and the Knockout Tour. As part of the introduction of this game mode, Nintendo confirms that 150cc is back as the game speed.

There are also two game modes for battle fans. In the classic «Baloon Battle» you have to destroy the balloons of the opposing drivers and defend your balloons at the same time.

In «Coin Runners», the aim is to collect as many coins as possible. Nintendo has not revealed whether the two battle modes will also take place in the open game world or in separate battle arenas.

In «Free Roam» mode, you can explore the entire game world completely freely. You can go anywhere - even on the water. Use the photo mode to capture your discoveries at any time.

Of course, there are also many secrets to discover in the open world. For example, hundreds of P-buttons that trigger small missions when pressed. In the video, for example, Waluigi has to master a mini course with obstacles in a set time.

Hidden items are also waiting to be discovered - including collectable special coins and ?-switches. You can also see that you can climb into larger vehicles and control them in Free Roam. For example, Mario races into a gigantic truck and chugs along the desert highway:

The vehicles also appear to be available in races. At the end of the Direct presentation, Luigi hops into a helicopter and flies over the heads of his opponents:

Of course, you can play «Mario Kart World» not only on your own, but above all in multiplayer mode. Four players can play at the same time via splitscreen. If you connect your Switch 2 wirelessly to other consoles, up to 8 players can compete simultaneously in local multiplayer. Online, 24 drivers race against each other or explore the world in Free Roam.

«Mario Kart World» makes use of the new online functions of the Switch 2 - including voice chat and screen sharing function. The Switch 2 camera is also supported. This allows the faces of your friends to be displayed next to the karts during races. The function is also available in the local split screen - one camera is sufficient to recognise up to four faces and display them in the game.

Items: old acquaintances and new annoyances

In addition to familiar items such as the lightning bolt, rocket and tanks, there are also some new items in «Mario Kart World» that have the potential to be a real pain in the arse.

The «Coin Shell» is a practical 2-in-1 item. Not only can you shoot down enemies with it, but you can also collect coins that the tank loses on its way. Coins are used, as in «Mario Kart 8», to become faster.

With the «Ice Flower» you freeze enemy characters for a short time.

Once you have picked up a hammer item, you can shoot lots of hammers forwards in a high arc. They will also get stuck in the track for a short time so that they become another obstacle for all drivers behind you.

With the «Mega Mushroom» you become gigantic for a short time and flatten your opponents.

With the spring you can jump into the air and avoid tanks. You can also use the item for shortcuts.

If you use the Kamek item, Bowser's Court Wizard transforms enemies into other characters. The video shows how the entire field of riders transforms into «Charging Chucks».

There are also «Turbo Snacks» scattered around the tracks and in the open game world. If you collect a delicacy, you will be served a delicacy from the respective region in which your kart driver is currently located. If you eat these, you unlock new costumes for your characters, which are also based on the respective part of the game world. For example, Mario gets a Japanese outfit when he eats sushi. Nintendo does not reveal whether the costumes affect the driving behaviour or bring other effects with them.

Help for inexperienced kart drivers

Nintendo confirms that the driving assistance functions from «Mario Kart 8» will also be integrated into «Mario Kart World». With «Smart Steering» you stay on course automatically, with «Auto Accelerate» your character accelerates by itself and with «Tilt Controls» you control the game with movements of the controller. A new addition is «Auto-Use Item», which automatically controls the use of items. Camera settings can now also be optimised.

New tricks for old hands

Experienced «Mario Kart» pros will be pleased to hear that the characters in «World» have some new tricks up their sleeves that could really shake up the gameplay.

If you press the drift button while your character is driving straight ahead, you activate the new «Charge Jump». The longer you press, the higher the driver jumps as soon as you let go. This allows you to avoid obstacles and tanks. You can also use the jump to get to higher railings where you can grind.

If you jump towards a wall, you can ride along the wall for a short time.

If you miss a trick or take a wrong turn somewhere, you can now activate a Rewind function with which you can rewind your kart driver «» . This is useful if you are experimenting in «Free Roam» mode. However, the function can also be used in regular races.

But beware: unlike rewind functions in other racing games, only your driver is rewound, while the rest continue as normal.

You can read our first impressions of the Nintendo Switch 2 and «Mario Kart World» in this article:

Here you can see our review as a video:

After the first presentation of «Mario Kart World», our editorial colleague Debora has compiled all further information in this article:

Domagoj Belancic

Senior Editor

Domagoj.Belancic@digitecgalaxus.ch

My love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.

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