Mario Kart is a franchise that has brought gamers together for decades. After the release of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and all of the DLC on Nintendo Switch, I couldn’t imagine what the next iteration would look like. Mario Kart 8 is the best Mario Kart game that has ever existed and is just brimming with content. Mario Kart World says “hold my beer” in more ways than one – with its new grinding and wall-driving abilities and the new Knockout Tour mode, World breathes new life and a fresh experience into Nintendo’s flagship kart racing series.
At the Nintendo Switch 2 Experience in Melbourne, I got to play Mario Kart World, specifically, the Grand Prix mode, and the new battle-royale style mode, Knockout Tour. Unfortunately, the new open-world aspect of the game was not accessible at the Experience, but after an hour with Mario Kart World, I am very optimistic about the game and can’t wait to explore the full game in just a few weeks’ time on June 5.
MARIO KART WORLD GRAND PRIX MODE
The Grand Prix mode works similarly to previous games in the fact that there are four maps for each cup. However, this time they are all seamlessly connected to each other. And I use the word seamlessly with no generosity, there were times when we started the second track, and I hadn’t noticed right away. It feels like one long track, but there’s still so much distinction between all of the tracks in each cup.
Long gone are the days of 12 racers per course. Now you have 23 other racers to race against, with 24 total! Going into this demo, I thought 24 racers was going to feel like too much, but instead, it brings chaotic pleasure. Yes, there were times when there were 16 racers bunched up together, but a few bombs, shells, and boomerangs can disperse that easily. Impressively, I noticed no frame rate drops or performance issues in those instances either.
Mario Kart World’s roster is massive. While there are some omissions like Animal Crossing and The Legend of Zelda characters, Mario Kart World instead gives the limelight to some of the C-grade celebrities of the Mario universe like Cow from Moo Moo Meadows, Fishbone, Nabbit, and more. I went with my mains Yoshi and Rosalina with a Mach Bike, but could not resist playing as Cow for a few races (iconic, I know). There are a few new items I want to shout out, too: the Hammer, the Mega Mushroom, and the Feather. I didn’t get to use the Ice Flower, but I did see it getting used towards me.
The new mechanics in the game are charge jumping, grinding and wall-driving. The tracks in the demo didn’t seem to have many places to utilise these new ways of driving, but it wasn’t something I was going to pick up right away, given how short a time I had with the game. I was attempting to grind and I did a few times, but most of the time I just failed and drove into a wall instead. Nonetheless, I’m excited to spend more time exploring all the new ways of racing when the game comes out.
MARIO KART WORLD KNOCKOUT TOUR MODE
I also played Knockout Tour, which is the battle royale mode of Mario Kart World, and that was definitely the grandest highlight of the day. As the name of the mode suggests, the track is split up into five checkpoints. When reaching checkpoint 1, you need to cross the line in the top 20, then at checkpoint 2, you need to cross the line in the top 16, then 12, then 8, and then finally 4 to face off in the last leg.
Knockout Tour is do or die. You need to be at the top of your game right from the start. For example, the first time I played Knockout Tour (yes, I kept going back for more), in the first round and into the second I was comfortably in the top 4 until I got blue shelled and ended up getting eliminated at the end of the second round because I went all the way back to 17th. That humbled me greatly. When I returned to play more, I was 1st until the last round where I got blue shelled just short of the finish line and ended up coming 3rd, which was heartbreaking to say the least.
I can see Knockout Tour being a fan favourite, especially with online play. Even after defeat, I felt like I needed to create a redemption arc for myself and keep playing. This will be where I spend most of my time playing Mario Kart World on release.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Mario Kart World looks to rival the likes of Mario Kart 8 when it comes to talking about the best Mario Kart title. While there is much of the game I haven’t seen yet, including Free Roam and the Party Modes, I was floored by what is being delivered.
If at all like its predecessor, Nintendo will have a pipeline of content lined up for Mario Kart World, which will no doubt increase player retention once more.
Check out all of our Nintendo Switch 2 coverage right here.
Mario Kart World launches on Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5, 2025.
