Feature: Everything You Missed In The Switch 2 Mario Kart Reveal - Characters, Features, Easter Eggs

"we're going to simply refer to as Mario Kart 9 until Nintendo says otherwise" why? There's no reason to go with something so divisive over like Mario Kart (2025) or Mario Kart (Tentative) or Mario Kart (Nintendo Switch 2) or something. Just feels like argument bait.

Mario Bros. Circuit looks like a promising track. I'm digging DK's movie design. I think the graphics will look better. I blame YouTube compression.

I really hope there is a Track editor mode which you can make your own track circuit like ModNation Racer.

I did not like DK's redesign in the mario movie, and I do not like this one here. I am holding out hope that is actually DK Jr. rather than DK we know today.

Waaaaaaahooooooo

Gosh, I’m just not that excited about Mario Kart in general, and this certainly didn’t change that.

From what I could see, I'm very certain that I saw atleast one, if not two, of the koopalings whom was driving near Bowser jr. in the trailer.
As someone who loves the koopalings (especially Larry) I hope they will be playable here too!

I actually thought it was just 8 being played as it really lacked the wow factor here’s a new game!

@Polley001

""we're going to simply refer to as Mario Kart 9 until Nintendo says otherwise" why? There's no reason to go with something so divisive over like Mario Kart (2025) or Mario Kart (Tentative) or Mario Kart (Nintendo Switch 2) or something. Just feels like argument bait."

I don't see the problem at all. "Mario Kart 9" is short and to the point. Everybody knows what it means, it's the Mario Kart game after 8. And whatever it will end up beeing called, it will still be the 9th Mario Kart game.

"It looks a little... current gen?"

Really? I thought it was a clear upgreade from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in detail, size and number of players.

I don't mind the current gen looks. It will run at a flawless 60fps (and probably with 24 players), that's more important to me. Really hoping for some good online modes this time! Hopefully they take a lot from F Zero 99.

MK9, which is the obvious choice. Also, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Plus 2 is a bit of a mouthful.

Aside from the potential 24 cart races / battles, why not incorporate a 'build your own course' function into the game? After this number of releases, there's fewer new features / gimmicks one can add that make them meaningful inclusions. So why not Mario Kart Maker?

for sure it's cross gen.. you need stupid money before you can act stupid.

I think Nintendo feels you should buy a switch 2 whenever you feel like it, not push it on people. But keep buying new games please.

@Lofoten 8deluxe could be considered the 9th title and then Tour (albeit presumably not considered mainline) could be considered 10. This could be MK11 and the two 1s turn into the lanes on a dead straight highway leading to the vast openess of an open world MK.

There is no circuit map. Current gen? If the tracks are going to be vast, there is no way the Switch could have done it. (Or maybe it could and it's going to be cross platform. Lol, no idea!)

So looking forward to this game already.

And I want to eat at that Yoshi burger joint. I'll even eat the pickles if they want me to. Just TAKE ME THERE!!

I hope they went all out with this game. So much potential....

I’m liking the artstyle. Unless that’s a different donkey Kong he has a very classic look to him.

Showcasing Mario Motors in the reveal makes me feel like we could have more robust customization perhaps?

And an open world concept would definitely make me excited again about Mario Kart! Even if it's more Mario Odyssey than BOTW, the implication of 24 players all roaming around together in the same area sounds like lots of fun.

Actually, I kinda like DK's new, cartoony look here

The thing that stands out to me most is the softness of the image. It may be designed that way or it may just be the video but I was expecting something a bit sharper in quality.

Maybe this is the effect of the Ai upscaling causing this or maybe there just isn't that much power there.

24 karts on track sounds great though. I hope Nintendo are beefing up servers to make it work really well.

Hi. Dave from Digital Floundering here. I've just broken off from counting pixels to weigh in on Mario Kart. After careful analysis, we can safely say it looks like Mario Kar-AAAH I've lost count. Gotta start again. One, two, three, four...

How can you post 9 articles about a 2:22 video? This a bit overwhelming.

I love that Donkey kong has his OG look back.

Should be a fun game just like the other games. 24 players would be great and definitely unique.

It will probably have few graphical upgrades and maybe 1440p or 1800p or some sort of upscaling.
The extra power will probably go into the game mechanics and having 24 racers instead of 12 and wider tracks and further draw distance.
That suits me.

One thing though they definitely have to have online racing like it is now with the points system giving us something to aim for.
Will be interesting if that stays at 12 or increases to 24 on line.
MK long game is online racing once the single player is done, so it needs to be there.

Toad`s kart looks the same as car in 3D HOT RALLY !

@Polley001 it's the 9th Mario Kart game and calling it Mario Kart 9 is shorter than any of the "less divisive" options you've laid out.

@ChakraStomps good point. Many did, and still do, enjoy games on their PS4. Sony often let you have a free PS5 upgrade when you are ready to move to the new console, so Ninty are likely following that same model with their upscaling tech. I suspect Metroid will be a showcase for that

Hardware might look very much the same, but there is still time for them to show their trademark innovations in the software and OS.

@cvrator Actually it's the 11th MarioKart game. Since we also have MarioKart Tour (mobile) and Mario Kart Live Home Circuit (Switch).

@WheresWaveRace

"8deluxe could be considered the 9th title and then Tour (albeit presumably not considered mainline) could be considered 10. This could be MK11 and the two 1s turn into the lanes on a dead straight highway leading to the vast openess of an open world MK."

Well, then we also have:
Mario Kart Arcade GP (Arcade 2005)
Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 (Arcade 2007)
Mario Kart Arcade GP DX (Arcade 2013)
Mario Kart Arcade GP VR (Arcade 2017)
Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit (Switch 2020)

So Mario Kart on Switch 2 is really Mario Kart 16?

I would argue the Switch 2 entry is the 9th mainline Mario Kart.

(Perhaps Wave Race 4 will come to Switch 2.)

@Ade117,

Art style as well. Astrobot does look better than Mario odyssey, but it's not as noticanble because it's more cartoom style visuals.

@premko1
Wow! Very observant! It does look like the HOT RALLY cover car. Perhaps we'll see more easter eggs and historic vehicles in the game? I was kind of hoping we would get "Nintendo Kart" this time, but never thought Nintendo would risk abandoning the "Mario Kart" branding. I'd be happy enough with the usual Mario focus, but hopefully we'll get more cameos from other IPs like Zelda, Metroid, Animal Crossing, etc.

I'll be most interested to hear more about this new MK game and what else we can expect to play before Holidays 2025. It's going to be a long wait till April 2nd!

I still think the characters look awful, but there is a light in the darkness.

I think I saw King Boo

The problem with comparing 9 to 8 is that 8 still looks fantastic. They'll probably smooth out the geometry a bit more, but unless every Nintendo studio suddenly gains Next Level's animation chops, it'll be hard for Mario games' visuals to improve dramatically.

Can we just have Yoshi's Burger Station be a real thing?

Imo, after playing a PS5 as my main console for two years now, I think the graphics are quite a step up from the original switch. Not quite ps5, but better than I expected. I think people who can't tell the difference need to go see Mario Kart 8 in motion, then come back. I will have to see in motion on my tv to have the final verdict there, but the difference is pretty apparent to me.

"It looks a little... current gen?"

Well, if you want Mario Kart with PS6 graphics, you know where to look.

@Medic_alert I'm with you. Looks awfully fuzzy to me. Hopefully it's not a design choice but more an early doors, this ain't the game reveal thing

I personally think the reason it looks a bit underwhelming is because it might be pushing a truly massive open world behind the scenes with all the tracks integrated into it, not unlike Forza Horizon, where you can play online whether you are free roaming or racing, take part in quests or missions, upgrade your load outs all while keeping separate cup and versus modes for pick up and play stuff. They're just hiding all that, obviously, but I can definitely see plenty of signs of it in even the tiny glimpses we got. Pushing such a potentially huge, seamless open world with all the typical potential variety would explain the relatively minor graphical leap yet still showcase the Switch 2's huge leap in power.

I also highly doubt it'll be called 9 as I've definitely heard Nintendo considers Tour the ninth entry no matter how little I care about that game. Mario Kart X, or 10, or simply 'Super Mario Kart ...something' is a way safer bet from me personally.

What more can they do with Mario Kart at this point? Like Smash they have kinda painted themselves into a corner as those games were the best of everything the genre had to offer. 24 racers is different, but it is unlikely to make any real difference to the game. I am struggling to see what rabbit they can pull out of the hat for me to say, yeah this is a step up from MK 8.

Really not at all a fan of that DK design. Also really hope that there isn't an open world component, can't see that doing anything but making the experience far worse.

Here we go, more moaning about the track textures not being as sharp as they could be like with all the DLC tracks 😂

I really hope that DK design is just an optional skin and you can still play as the original design. Because why only him and not Mario and Luigi? Either have all or none available. Movie designs should stay in the movie and video game designs in the games imo

24 players playing together = blue sheel each 2 seconds?
Hmmm

Strongly doubt this is cross-gen, this is their golden goose to sell Switch 2s. It’s scaled down footage (not fullscreen) that’s in development still. The scale of the track and background details would not have been in MK8D.

That said I question the choice of using a desert track for our first look at the game, much like Splatoon 3 - like the western audience must all love deserts or something? And I agree they didn’t show any eye-catching new mechanic or scenery in this clip to really differentiate it.

@MS7000 I couldn’t agree more. I’m especially surprised considering the release of Donkey Kong Country returns HD. I’m hoping you can change the style of the characters. Kind of like smash Bros.

Not expecting a massive leap in graphics TBH.

Mario Kart 8 & Deluxe already felt like it was pushing the WiiU and Switch to PS4 levels of quality so I don’t really think the jump across here is going to be massive (plus as others have said - could likely be the platforms Cross Gen Title)

Knowing Nintendo - they’ll probably call this iteration “Mario Kart Twenty Four” or something 🤣

There are definitely a lot of graphical improvements that are going unnoticed. I think this is just because MK8D just looked so good.

But full resolution shadows without noticeable variable resolution AND the lighting makes me think it's finally capable of deferred rendering at decent framerates!

The boost pad speckle effect is interesting but might just be a fun shader... either way. I like it!

I think Nintendo Switch 2 is going to impress the most with short to no load times and high frame rates. There are games on Switch 1 that look stunning (heck even Wii U games look pretty modern).

I'm curious at what the new gimmick in the Mario Kart game will be. I hope its not the '24 players' thing spotted in the trailer because while it sounds fun its not that exciting of a gimmick. It does sounds more fitting for a Battle Royale mode akin to F-Zero 99 as pointed out by the article.

@RupeeClock possibly battle royale mario kart?

@Antray1984 well, I look at SMB: Wonder and think there's room for innovation in unexpected places.

They've gotta get rid of these baby characters eventually. They violate time travel paradoxes and aren't old enough to be driving. Use the various suits from the various Mario games to fill out the roster like Frog Mario or Hammer Bros Mario.

I don't know about open world, but imagine a grand prix where the times are cumulative and you race from the end of one track to the start of the next. Mario Kart games have always lacked a sense of space and world building but could rectify that with something like an overworld with consistent and rational geography. Thus, cups would be regional and would have more internal biome consistency.

@Coolmusic I like the Battle Royale hypothesis much better for the 24 karts. Hopefully it would be 24-kart gold. 😆

Why would you hope it's not cross gen? The more the merrier, not everyone will be able to pick up a switch 2 at launch. It turned out fine for BOTW.

Also, i don't think the graphical style of Mario Kart is one that benefits from visual fidelity significantly greater than what we see here.

Looks like my dreams of Mario Kart: Double Dash 2 are crushed. Would've even been a perfect tie in with the console theme...

Can't wait for Pink Gold Peach to return as a character, culminating in Nathaniel Bandy having a 4-hour mental breakdown.

Firstly, that font is an amazing call back and spot! Only thing here I hadn’t noticed!

Secondly, DK’s new design is perfection. I will be sad if this isn’t him in everything going forward now!

Thirdly, current gen? It’s looking like DK has full fur rendering! This looks way smoother and higher poly count to me. It’s a highly stylised game so it can be hard to judge but to me it looks like a clear upgrade. Plus we’re maybe looking at 24 karts, MK8 would not look as good as it does with that many racers. The big open shot at the end is probably also a showing off the graphical upgrade, they can have environments like that now!

I hope it’s not open world though. I want those well designed, tight tracks MK is so good for. I am surprised it still seems to be just Mario though. With so many guest characters in 8 I assumed 9 would be a straight up Nintendo-Kart out of the gate.

@demacho I get 'the more the merrier' view, but honestly I hope it's not cross-gen because I hope they're capitalizing on the new system's power in a way that's not possible on the current hardware.

Not next gen look? For me, enjoying game is not about 4K graphic, reflection in the water or mirror. I am sure the majority don't need them to enjoy a game. All I want is good gameplay, story and decent graphics. Don't expect a jump like from 480p to HD/ Full HD. Technology is stagnant or rather it is already near to our eyes can appreciate?

Im getting a Mario Wonder vibe

First: I've been wanting a back-to-basics Mario Kart for ages, because 'ages' is how long Mario Kart 8 has been out. The character/vehicle/stats balance was always a headache for me to figure out. I hope this entry reclaims 64 and Double Dash's level of accessibility.

Second: To everyone hating on the look... why? Not the tech, mind you, but the style.

The lack of antialiasing is a red flag, sure. It doesn't raise my hopes for the Sw2tch beyond a smoother fps on most games. Hell, this system might be two Switches duct-taped together like the Wii's 'upgrade' from GameCube, and if that's the case, it's gonna go bad real fast for Nintendo.

But if this clip is anything to go by, I actually like the art direction a lot. It's a good blend of cartoony and tactile. The characters look like they belong in this environment, much more than in 8. I'm not sure why Mario seems to have acorns in his cheeks, but the primal, more exaggerated DK design is perfect — and even as a fan of the DKC series, I hope they stick with it.

The new DK model kinda reminds me of the original arcade art. I’d rather Nintendo lean in that direction if they won’t make a DKC game in the next millennia.

If the end of the clip implies more open gameplay, does everyone think it will be Mario Odyssey-esque with interconnected open areas, or a full-BOTW open world?

Ugh.... just reading "open-world" made me feel nauseous.
Stop trying to convert everything to open-world.... its a genre killer.

@Polley001 nah, they didn't, mang, but you did just out your own comment as a self-fulfilling prophecy... but feel free to respond to prove my point 😏

Torn on it being cross Gen.

Good b/c it saves me $400 for awhile.

Bad b/c it would certainly limit the scope. Probably. Depending on what Nintendo wants it to look like.

PS5 had a lot of dual releases with PS4 and Xbox Series had a lot with One. I think Nintendo could probably downgrade it enough to get it to run on Switch at 720p and 30fps, but would they want to?

Switch never got it's own MK, just a Wii U port. It's time for a next Gen Mario, it's been 10 years. Max it out.

I honest to god thought it was MK8. I just realized it wasn't when people were talking about it afterwards. It just didn't stand out to me at all as something new or particularly exciting

@Polley001

"You guys are literally proving my point here but sure, let's pretend like you don't understand why this is not the defacto 9th game because you're scared of the spooky mobile live service game (mobile point aside, Final Fantasy 14 says hi)."

The Mario Kart game for Switch 2 is the forthcoming Mario Kart in the mainline series for console. It will be the 9th mainline Mario kart game for Nintendo consoles.

Mobile games, arcade games and ports will not change this.

Look for example here:
https://www.mariowiki.com/Mario_Kart_(series)

The real question: Why is Peach racing in a dress? I liked her biker outfit.

@Polley001 it is instantly clear with a 9. way easier than any of your options

Maybe it’s Mario Kart 8: Triple Deluxe. 😉

This is would be a great launch title and we are so long due for something new but I just wonder how they’ll change up the formula. More racers is exciting. Dunno how in the world they’ll make it bigger and better than 8 tho. I just hope we can at least get the same amount of tracks from 8 it’s just a lot. They will probably fill things out with dlc I guess. I did feel 8 could’ve used some more stages in battle mode, I’d like some more done with it. I’m glad they’re sticking with Mario kart but I am suprised we weren’t getting a Nintendo racer here with the few inclusions of Nintendo characters we got in the last one.

Watch this:

GameXplain: "Mario Kart Switch 2 - Full-Screen Zoom Version (Switch 2 Reveal Gameplay)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgkucKEfkXs

Its shown both at normal speed and slow motion.

Because of the upscaling it will ofcourse not do justice to the actual image quality of the game, but still interesting.

The way can show us some Next gen diffrent i think will be Zelda botw Remaster

I really dislike the DK redesign, it's a major step back imo. The Rare design made him look cunning and cool. He just looks like a dumb goon with those eyes and facial expression in the pic above. Seems like we're going back to the 'DK is just a stupid lumbering ape' era rather than the modernized DK we've enjoyed since DKC.

Between the apparent player bump and the apparent scale of that road, I wouldn't be surprised if they keep the graphics "current gen" to allow those other two bits.

All the character designs invoke some sort of SNES era nostalgia I can't quite place. For example Peach's silhouette kinda "boxy" like it was in the SNES games

What if this isn’t Mario Kart at all and it’s just the next open world Mario game that you could drive karts in. 🤔

@Lofoten I'm calling it...M9rio Kart. The 9/a will be spinning on its x-axis (aka vertically).

@Lofoten "It will be the 9th mainline Mario kart game" and this is decided by who exactly? Nintendo themselves has only ever placed Tour alongside the other "mainline" titles, and it both features a large amount of "mainline" content and was featured prominently in a "mainline" game through the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - Booster Course Pass.

Your and others' preconceived notion that a mobile game can't be "mainline" has no bearing on anything.

@Olliemar28
Mario
Luigi
Bowser
Donkey Kong
Peach
Daisy
Wario
Waluigi
Yoshi
Rosalina
Pauline
Toad
Toadette
Baby Mario
Baby Luigi
Baby Peach
Baby Daisy
Baby Rosalina (?)
Bowser Jr. (??)
Koopa Troopa
Birdo
King Boo (?)
Lakitu (???)
Shy Guy (?)

I put an amount of '?' depending on how certain I am about them being here. If I didn't put a question mark, I am nearly 100% certain about it.

I think there are 24 players in a race, and I believe these are the 24 in the race shown!

@Olliemar28 What makes ya'll think it will be cross-gen? That's highly unlikely.

The narrative of the Mario Kart footage was basically starting off on a Mario Kart track (with 24 players - the roster must be huge, maybe with guest stars?), immediately going off road as the rest of the traditional track goes to the left, thenthey all head off in the distance. Now if that doesn't shout open road Mario Kart, I have no idea what does. Hmm...wonder if the triggers are analogue...

I’m more than happy with things looking “current gen”, as long as they run smoother and look sharper. When it comes to Nintendo, I want gameplay. If I want photo realism and next gen graphics, I go PC or PS5.

One big reason I often don’t play some Nintendo games is because they look extremely blurry on my TV. Just more game, which is also what I hope from the new Mario kart. Having a sharper smoother Mario kart in 4 player mode would be enough for me for “next gen graphics”.

Pauline from day one, let's gooo!
Seeing those neat nods to older games, with the fonts and the kart designs is really cool. As well as more in-universe things like the Yoshi's burger joint.
Something I did wonder though is that if this is a launch title, will it be constantly updated with new content over the course of the system's lifespan?
If so, what the pricing structure would be.

@Anti-Matter using the mouse functionality of the Joy-Con. You just draw the curves on the table. I can dream, can't I

I hope that this is DK Jr. and that Nintendo hasn't got rid of Rare's DK, because then goodbye also to Diddy, Funky and Dixie, that were not shown in the video.

@bronZfonZ
@Polley001

People can of course call the upcoming Mario Kart game whatever they want. But not all names will be easily understood by others.

I just find it somewhat peculiar to complain that a gaming news site chooses to call it Mario Kart 9 while we wait for an offcial confirmation of the name.
The shortest and easiest way to describe it as of now is Mario Kart 9.

What will Nintendo call the game?
Based on Mario Karts previous console games I think the upcoming Mario Kart will probably either be called "Mario Kart 9" - as the two previous games for console was Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, or Nintendo might call it "Mario Kart" + some new name.

If you think the new game will be called Mario Kart 10 or Mario Kart X, that is of course fine. But I doubt this will be the case.

If there ever comes a new Mario Kart for mobile phones it might be called Mario Kart Tour 2.
If there ever comes a new Super Mario for mobile phones it might be called Super Mario Run 2.

The resolution even seems to be the same as Mario Kart 8 without anti-aliasing, but at least Donkey Kong has fur, seemingly at least

Unless this is early footage, I have a feeling Nintendo will pull a Tears of the Kingdom with this game and instead of using the new horsepower to boost the visuals, they will use it to expand the gameplay itself, in this case, allowing 24 racers or so on a single track.
Still, considering those are Wii U-class visuals (that still ran at 59-60fps there no less), the rumoured specs and tech, as well as Nintendo's track record on in-house polish, you would assume they can do both things, especially because racing games tend to be the best ways to showcase your new tech.

I don't think it will be cross-gen, Nintendo seems to be implying "you want this all-new Mario Kart with all its new features? Buy the new console or stick with good old MK8 and its DLC lol"

Oh and open-world? Maybe, but I don't find it necessary to be honest, why not make an open world 3D Mario instead?

@MS7000 Jr. has a t-shirt and you can see DK's signature tie in this preview. Unfortunately Miyamoto doesn't seem to care for Rare's contributions to Mario-verse and it seems they're sticking with this redesign for good, at least in Mario games.

@Lofoten I don't expect it to be called Mario Kart 10, and they've said themselves in the past they don't think they'll do numbers again, that's part of the point. Most other games with tentative titles are called Game (Year). Kirby Star Allies and Yoshi's Crafted World were called Kirby (2018) and Yoshi (2018) by the media when they were first announced, so I don't see why Mario Kart (2025) should be any different just because the last two games that weren't on the spooky mobile phones used numbers over a decade ago.

A news site should stick to the facts, and frankly Mario Kart (2025) being the 9th Nintendo-developed Mario Kart game is flat-out incorrect.

I’m guessing Mario Kart 9 looks last gen because there’s probably going to be a higher number of karts on screen

@Polley001

"I don't expect it to be called Mario Kart 10, and they've said themselves in the past they don't think they'll do numbers again, that's part of the point."

When and where did Nintendo say this?

Well, we'll see if Nintendo are truly done with numbers in names or not.
They did annonuce a console just some hours ago called "Switch 2".
Also, the Mario Party mainline games for home console went all the way up to 10 before they started calling it something else.

"Mario Kart (2025) being the 9th Nintendo-developed Mario Kart game is flat-out incorrect"

Sure.

But "Mario Kart (2025)" still is the 9th Nintendo-developed Mario Kart game for consoles.

@Teksette Who knows about Nintendo Kart - with 24 karts on circuit everything is possible !

@swoose Yet !

Of course it looks "current gen." The fidelity arc plateaued more than a decade ago. The only real benefit left from new hardware is better performance with less optimization. That's it.

How good a game looks now, much like it has been since 2015, is down entirely to how much time and money the developers have, and the overall art direction they go with.

@Oracles_fanboi I know it probably isn't, just holding out regardless.

@Lofoten I guess I somewhat misremembered the quote, they didn't outright say "the next game won't use it" but they did make it pretty clear the numbering system wasn't meant to be a series standard and was only repeated in Mario Kart 8 because it coincidentally fit the anti-gravity gimmick. I've included the quote below, I won't link to the article since it's not by Nintendo Life and I dunno what the rules are.

On the note of series standards, the Mario Party comparison doesn't make sense to do because numbering was a series standard up until Super Mario Party, and there was a deliberate distinction between the home console and handheld entries. Mario Kart doesn't have such a distinction, and the only games Nintendo tends to seperate from the widely agreed on "mainline" games are ones mainly developed by Bandai Namco (Arcade GP) and Velan Studios (Home Circuit). Tour on the other hand is not only generally a lot closer to the other "mainline" games, but is only ever separated by fans such as on the Super Mario Wiki as you've shown. It's honestly kind of disappointing that this line of thinking didn't dissappear when the Booster Course Pass had a huge focus on Mario Kart Tour, going as far as having courses that are considered new in both Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Tour in which case it's a little ridiculous that only the former is considered "mainline". Some have used the fact that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe now has content from Tour as proof that it can't be Mario Kart 9, but Final Fantasy 14 has content from Final Fantasy 15 and 16 so I really don't see the issue.

The quote from a Nintendo Everything article:

Mr. Konno: This is a little more abstract, but when we had “Mario Kart 7,” we had the idea of calling it just “7,” because it was something actually unique to the series – we hadn’t used numbers before in any of the previous games, although the N64 had numbers. Mr. Iwata also like the idea of “7” being in the title. Then we started working on this project, and had the idea for this to be “Mario Kart 8” and there were some people who were opposed. They were like “Mr. Konno, didn’t you promise that we would only used the number 7, and that would be it for the numbering thing?”

So then what we did was grab those people, the staff members that were opposed to another numbered game, showed them the idea for the course, the Möbius strip, and how we twisted it into the number eight, and everyone was completely satisfied. “Oh, now we get it.”

I've said it before (not here) and I'll say it again! Mario Kart Horizon!! I have a good feeling they might make this one with a semi-open world, doing quests and racing around with friends and players around the world! (with an offline toggle of course)

I'm surprised they did not notice the extra bounce mario's kart tires had in the video.

Apart from Donkey Kong using his movie design, is it me or Mario is using his Mario Wonder design?

Also, notice how Peach is riding a bike but wearing her usual dress.

If using ‘Mario Kart 9’ as a placeholder name for the next Mario Kart is ‘bait’ then it’s the least spicy bait I’ve ever taken.

It’s like trying to catch a polar bear in the antarctic by dangling an ice cube from a stick.

There’s no shortage of ice and there aren’t any polar bears there to begin with.

I can't say I like the new DK look, I mean yeah it's cool that they went the retro way but I don't find him appealing more than the current look.

And what's up with Mario's cheeks? Is he chewing tobacco or something?

@premko1
I agree - 24 racer slots would be a lot to fill! It would be so lame if it's mostly yoshi's and shy guys! Here's hoping for a really wide variety of characters.

Emio will look so rad driving around the new courses! ^_^

@MS7000 To be honest, this isn't a bad design. It kinda looks more neat than the one we've seen in the games. Not saying that one is bad by the way. I swear people hate the movie designs WAY too much.

@Teksette Captain Toad or WaveRace crew will look radder !

I’m looking forward to Mario Kart: Offroads

Same graphics as the previous installment released 11 years ago? This was supposed to be the big selling point to "UPGRADE" to a switch 2? This is a big yikes.

@Lord "I actually thought it was just 8 being played as it really lacked the wow factor here’s a new game!"

lol, same. And I've not played the Switch port, I know it has a ton of extra tracks from that...other game...?

9 would be nice. I was starting to think the 8 in Mario Kart 8 stood for Infinity

I don't know, this entire thing feels very much like it was made for the sole purpose of having something to show.
They of course chose Mario, because they have all their numbers about character recognition and the Mario movie. Then they made Mario really legible by making his head huge, so it could still be visible on an external shot of a small Switch screen.
Donkey is even more exaggerated because he's in the background. The style doesn't fit with the rest, so it's clearly a choice made just for this shot. That's it. No Mario Kart 9.

Mario Kart RPG official!

It looks like a bunch of new tracks to be added into a Mario Kart 8 Ultimate on launch. 🤣

It's difficult to tell if current generation or not because of the cartoon appearance leads to flat colours and shading. I suspect it is MK9 and likely released a few months after launch. Why? Because Nintendo always hold MK back little.

pretty underwhelmed. I was expecting the graphics to look something like arcade gp dx, which was released a decade ago but still has the best look of the whole series. also not a fan of the new dk look. 24 racers is an interesting concept tho.

I don't think that last character in the far back is King Boo, it looks a lot more like Diddy Kong to me, which would make more sense than King Boo anyways if you think about it.

The small amount of footage of this looks awesome, but Nintendo still shows that it is allergic to anti-aliasing.

I do wonder if Nintendo does that to save on frame times for buttery smooth performance.

"Nintendo also revealed a brand-new Mario Kart title, which we're going to simply refer to as Mario Kart 9 until Nintendo says otherwise.'

I would call It Mario Kart X, because there's been a ninth Mario Kart already, and yes even MK8D recognizes Tour as its own game.

@ChakraStomps I would not be surprised if it was cross-gen. And honestly I think that would be the right thing to do.

people complaining about the article tentatively calling it "mario kart 9" when they only started numbering them at mk7... like yeah mk9 is simple and instantly understood to refer to this game lmao its not that deep.
but anyway this game looks great, the character designs feel like such a throwback. at this point my only clear hope for the game is speed selection for random online play😩 nintendo please dont lock us into 100 and 150cc just bc theres someone who hasnt grinded points in the room

@Paulo That's actually a good point and would allow for an X/Cross-pun in the title.

There is absolute no doubt it will be a cross-gen title.
Nintendo would be crazy to ignore the current user base of over 150M !!
It is a pity but I understandable one.
I wish they would add the feature from Split Second game, where you can change the tracks by destroying them, THAT would be ultimate chaos in a MK game!
Hopefully, they will have some exclusives to show off the power of the new console (please be a Wave Race!)

For quite a while now I'm convinced the next Mario Kart will be an open-world game, called Super Mario Kart World. And with that bias, I do think that the wide shot in the beginning showed us parts of different courses left and right, that were locked off from this particular course, but there may be a mode, where you can freely roam and race through the game world.
I know there are already courses in MK8D who lock certain ways per round. But to me an open-world Mario Kart game could be the next logical step. The current game has nearly 100 race tracks. How do you want to top that? The next game most certainly won't come out of the box with over a hundred.
The gameplay is already a perfect "racification" of the Mario-platformer mechanics. So with all the items and different movement types, you could create something of a Mario Kart adventure single-player mode, a little bit like Diddy Kong Racing did it, but much more elaborate. Would give solo players something worthwhile again.
Or it could be a "get from point a to point B however you want, just be the
first"-type of Multiplayer-mode.
That would also explain, that the game looks somewhat "current gen" (though I do think it's more due to the slick art design, that's already pretty timeless even in much older Nintendo/Mario games), because you would need the new hardware power to run that open-world in 60fps at a high tempo, additionally in split-screen-multiplayer, mind you.
To further support my theory, the vehicles of Rosalina and Daisy grabbed my attention. Rosalina drives a genuine snowmobile, while Daisy's has propellers attached on the back end and a front part that looks like a boat or jetski, though I think it has a wheel in the middle.
MK8 also had some imaginative (f.i. shiplike) designs, but they all have wheels and these here don't look very out there. So, could it be, that we can maybe customise the karts in the front and back half individually to make them more suitable for even more specific conditions like skids to give you an advantage on snow and ice or a hull to allow you to glide over water? Not a feature that would demand an open-world, but one an open-world Mario Kart game could profit from.
Or may be it's just a bog-standard Mario Kart game with new courses, three to five classes, eight circuit at four tracks and frustrating single-player balance.
I'll buy it anyway.

No power-ups to be seen?

I think the game looks great and is a clear step up from MK8 - these upgrades will be much more visible once we see the game running full screen and and now artificially squished to fit a fake Switch 2 screen, as was the case in the trailer. A more dynamic and colorful level choice will also help, but for reasons I won't get into here, I think Nintendo purposefully opted for something as lowkey as possible - I think all of it will make more sense later.

In any case, why does a MK9 need to look like a massive next gen upgrade anyway? Many or even most PS5 games look only slightly better than PS4, if that. The industry has long since reached the point of diminishing returns in graphics. It is what it is.

@B3RTAY Clearly, it wasn't a real match - just a scenario mode custom programmed for making a reveal teaser. There was also no UI of any kind. Nintendo most likely decided to save the meat of the game for April, and took nearly everything else out until then.

Every MK has a gimmick, this one is BUMPER KARTS..

@Lofoten oh I forgot about MarioKart Live!! Arcade games don’t count in my mind as they are developed by Namco. Anyway who cares we’re getting a new one finally!!!! Plus WaveRace4 (hopefully/never gonna happen).

@Andy_Witmyer I know it’s just an arcade style attract mode, fella.

Just felt odd that not one shell was flung, nor a mushroom inhaled. Gran Turismo Sunday Cup vibes.

@GamingFan4Lyf Every new console since Wii, I've hoped it would be the one that gets rid of jaggies and flickering lines. I never used to know it was called aliasing till a few years ago. But it's bothered me since GameCube..It takes away a little immersion. I assumed Switch 2, would surely be the one, and all 1st party games will look clean and flicker free. This trailer doesn't inspire confidence.

@OorWullie At this point, it's almost like a signature style of Nintendo - it favors pixel precision over the softened look of TAA, I guess.

The thing is, if this thing has DLSS capabilities like it's rumored to have (being an Nvidia chipset), Nintendo doesn't even need to implement any common software-based anti-aliasing solution - just leverage Tensor cores to handle it (since DLSS is a form of anti-aliasing).

DLAA in PC looks incredible for games that can run native resolutions at 60+fps. For games that need to run at lower resolutions, DLSS also does an incredible job at anti-aliasing over TAA.

I feel like a lot of people here have some unrealistic expectations for a device that is portable for a kart game that always focused on being stylizied cartoony over high detail realism. Have a feeling this is gonna be a running theme going forward with every new Switch 2 game with constant “this could have been on Switch 1!”.

Some of these people make it sound like they expected Forza. I compared MK8D + Tour with this game and they don’t look the same at all lol. Both the Kart racers and the tracks themselves are better detailed.

It’s an upgrade for sure, but it’s not gonna be a night and day difference let’s be real. If you thought it was gonna be then you set yourself up for disappointment from the start.

I personally dislike this trailer. I don't think this sort of environment looks visually appealing (at least to me). Also, I really hate how mario's nose is ridiculously large compared to Mario kart 8. And don't get me started on DK. This is ridiculous. Fix this immediately, Nintendo.

12 racers on a track was already too much for me.

@GamingFan4Lyf I hope that's not the case, that it's their signature style. I always assumed they sacrifice it because AA is memory intensive and the hardware isn't up to it. Although Alien Isolation proves otherwise. If they don't make use of it on Switch 2, though with the capabilities it has, then it would seem you're right and it is their style.

@Ulysses Open-world Mario Kart would be interesting.

Also didn’t notice the art style for most of the characters (other than Donkey Kong) looking different from the common designs today. Can’t wait to see more on what the new models look like.

It seems noone noticed that the speakers are now at the bottom of the switch.

Mostly the "holes" are acclaimed to be for ventilation, but they are for sure also used as speaker openings.

Where is the light sensor located? Is there any?

It is fun that so many people still think the "third" button on the back of the switch is another trigger. The original switch has its release button at the exact same position. The new one is just more prominent as force needs to be generated by the lever.

@MrCarlos46 Yeah I'm interested in seeing whether it really is more of a Mario Wonder resemblance as others have theorized. Even the animations resemble Wonder, appearing more squishy and bubbly at first glance.

Another big part I keep wondering about is the new gameplay hook. On one hand, the track at the end of the reveal very heavily implied a big open space.

But on the other hand, I'm wondering if that could still be accomplished with a build-your-own track mechanic. Perhaps it could be like Mario Odyssey, where at the start of building your own track, you first pick a biome, or zone. You have a list of big, open zones to choose before laying down tracks. And perhaps you have a lot of license to choose just how open and wild to make the track.

@Ulysses Now why haven’t they considered this yet: Mario Kart Maker