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On Friday, Nintendo hosted one of its Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events at CBS’s Television City in Los Angeles. We got a chance to go hands-on with multiple Nintendo Switch 2 titles and will be discussing them in detail. For this installment, we’ll be looking at launch title Mario Kart World.
UPDATE 04.17.25
We’ve amended this preview to include the name of what had previously been referred to as “the glowing lunch bag.” This item is called Dash Food and there is a blurb now included noting that. Original article below.
It might not be all that surprising to hear, but Mario Kart World has a lot riding on it. No, we’re not taking about drivers on karts, we’re talking about the future of Nintendo Switch 2. The console has been a lightning rod of both conversation and controversy since it was shown off in detail during the April 2 Nintendo Direct broadcast. While a lot of talk has been focused on the games coming to the system, just as much has been focused on things like cost. Cost of the console ($450) and cost of games, but in particular Mario Kart World which will be releasing with a $79.99 price tag.
That new $80 price point is something that has rankled with a lot of consumers, many of whom are already being pushed to the brink with real world costs being so out of control, already. Word of games on Switch 2 getting such a hefty price hike means that for many consumers, the games better darned well be worth the cost of admission. Mario Kart World is going to be the premier title at launch, leading the way in terms of luring current and new users to the platform, as well as helping to drive Nintendo Switch Online subscriptions. The question that many fans have, as I did going in, is will Mario Kart World be able to live up to the lofty expectations for it?
After going hands-on with the game for multiple races, I believe Mario Kart World will do exactly that.
I got to sample Grand Prix races, Knockout Tour, and Free Roam mode during my time at the event. Grand Prix is exactly as one would expect from the series, with four-race cups, but things play out a little differently as there are now 24 racers on the field and traditional laps seem to be gone. As introduced back in Mario Kart 7, instead of looping around a track three times, players instead race through three sections or heats on a given course. This means that terrain is constantly evolving and changing throughout a race as players barrel through heats. It’s not a bad touch, but I do enjoy seeing certain elements on a track repeat, so having those sights limited to once per race can be a tad disappointing.
That said, all of the tracks I experienced were a joy. The gorgeous lighting system introduced a decade ago in Mario Kart 8 has returned improved, along with a greater draw distance and tons more detail on-screen. Mario Kart 8 really set the standard for visuals on Wii U back in the day, and with Mario Kart World the sense of grandeur it elicits has my hopes high for other games on Switch 2. From rolling waves to glowing magma, everything was crisp, clear, and vivid. Characters are similarly more detailed and emotive than ever thanks to the processing power of the console.
Design-wise, the courses are over-the-top and intricate, but they somehow feel a little less “Mario” than anything that’s come before. It’s the extra realism that gave me this sensation, I suspect, but it’s not a bad thing. It’s different, and after a decade of roaming the same tracks (well, mostly the same) in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, different is just what the doctor ordered for this series. However, different means changes, and those changes apply to things beyond the visuals of the game’s tracks. Gone is underwater racing, for instance, now replaced with skimming across the surface of bodies of water. Rail grinding has also been introduced, along with wall jumping. As a result, courses are now designed with these features in mind, and what I sampled was wildly creative and engaging.
Taking a page from Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, the karts in World all instantaneously change during a race. Vehicles seamlessly transition from road to sea to air depending on what terrain is being driven upon. Once a kart hits water, for example, the tires will transform into large balloons in order to float across the surface. It was a blast bouncing across the waves—it honestly made me misty for a new Wave Race installment. Grinding was something I couldn’t quite wrap my head around just yet. It’s something that happens without prompting the second a kart touches a rail, but the mechanics of hopping up to higher surfaces, to other rails, was something I’m looking forward to mastering later.
One change I wasn’t expecting was a tweak to how items are deployed. Normally, if a player wants to drag an item behind a kart, the throw button has to be pressed and held. In World, items automatically spawn behind a racer and remain their until the player presses the button to use them. Years of muscle memory meant that I was initially inadvertently firing off items, as a result, which is… less than optimal in a Mario Kart race. I’m not sure if it’s something that can be adjusted, but I hope that it is. As for something that is coming back in World, Smart Steering is making a comeback for those who enjoy or need it; we were made to play with this drive assist feature for the duration of the demo.
Speaking of items, there are multiple new and returning ones to try out in World (players of Mario Kart Tour, in particular, will be familiar with some of these):
- Coin Shell: Functionally identical to a Red Shell, except this gold variant will leave a trail of coins in its wake as it chases down an opponent.
- Feather: Launches a kart into the sky, which can help with reaching new paths or avoiding incoming attacks.
- Kamek/Magikoopa: The little wizard appears and swaps drivers with different characters.
- Hammer: Hurl hammers at your foes
- Ice Flower: Much like the Fire Flower, except, well, with ice!
- Mega Mushroom: Become temporarily gigantic and steamroll over other players.
There’s one additional item that I want to touch upon, which also has a function beyond the confines of a single race: a glowing lunch bag (update: this item is called Dash Food). Okay, that’s likely not the actual name for the item, but the rep I spoke with didn’t give me the name as I was playing. What I was told, and saw for myself in-game, was that rolling into one of these glowing, paper sacks with a smiley face on the front will give the player a quick speed boost (like hitting a Super Mushroom) as well as put the driver into a new costume.
Now, it’s not guaranteed that a new costume will be unlocked if you snag this pickup, and if you’re racing in a specific costume that you like, you could potentially lose it for the rest of the race. My understanding that this, as well as unlocks made in Free Roam, are how new costumes will be accessed throughout World. There are other things to discover in Free Roam, but alas, we didn’t really get to delve much into that portion of the game. Knockout Tour was a mode that we got to more thoroughly partake in, and if the concept of frantically driving from one race track to the next sounds like something that can get pretty frenzied… well, it absolutely can. And it’s great.
Overall, World is shaping up to be one heck of a game. Will it be able to claim the throne from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as (in this writer’s opinion) the best entry in the series? That will remain to be seen. But if the $450 and $80 price tags are giving some players pause in locking in for a purchase, I can at least offer this: Mario Kart World is likely going to be a fantastic game, and one that players will be returning to for the lifetime of Nintendo Switch 2. It drops on June 7, 2025 along with the console, and there will be a special Nintendo Direct dedicated to the game this Thursday, April 17, 2025. Keep it tuned to Nintendojo for all the latest as we approach launch.
