Mario Kart World answers the question, “How do you follow Mario Kart 8?” While the previous entry became fully stuffed with new and throwback racetracks, playing Mario Kart World at Nintendo’s hands-on Switch 2 preview event blew up all my assumptions of what a Mario Kart track can be — and what the future could hold for the franchise.
The arcade racer hasn’t yet strayed from its format, but that’s about to change when Mario Kart World is released alongside the Switch 2 on June 5. In the time I spent with Mario Kart World during the preview event, I most enjoyed all the times I wasn’t strictly racing. I was just driving and vibing.
We loaded up for a massive game of Knock-out Tour, where 24 folks compete in a marathon-style race across ever-changing terrain. But because I happened to be one of the first to pick up a console, I spent a long time waiting for everyone else — but not idly. Instead, I was able to drive wherever I wanted across the landscape.
First, I drifted down a snowy road, feeling how my heavy car’s tires dug in the deeper snow off the track. I vaulted across a ramp, soaring longer and farther than I ever had in a Mario Kart game before. I weaved through busy highways, which were a mix of normal vehicles and some extra-large Nintendo variants, some spewing gold coins in their wake. I even whipped around quickly and drove against traffic to get a closer look at a mushroom diner sign that I had missed on my last pass by.
As an aside: Mario Kart World seems packed with Nintendo nostalgia, and primed for poring over by superfans. The world is full of small Easter eggs you might not see while racing by, or other drivers you may pass on the road. (I yelled in delight when I got passed by the penguin from Mario 64!) But in Knock-out Tour, I had the option to take roads at my own pace, which feels luxurious, instead of throwing a race for the sake of seeing some detail.
Comparisons to Forza Horizon 5 seem apt, as it feels like I’m just cruising around until the event starts. While there may not be as robust driving options — Mario Kart is still an arcadey game! — I enjoyed the drive. I wanted to see what was around the next bend, with so many terrain and track types merging together seamlessly.
It also takes off the pressure of responding to items or dealing with the actual race. One of my longstanding criticisms of Mario Kart is how it isn’t always your fault if you lose, and that’s still true on the extremely long Knock-out Tour. I was knocked out pretty early — partially my fault for picking a character based on aesthetics. (Sorry to the beefcake biker version of Bowser; you’re very heavy!)
But it did make me curious and excited to try out the Free Roam mode advertised in Wednesday’s Direct, which seems to offer a lot more variety in driving. (You’ll also drive between courses in a cup, but the hands-on demos only rotated me through single tracks.)
There are so many other things to appreciate: the weird new items, which I haven’t seen all of yet; the surprisingly deep bench of characters available as drivers. But I can’t wait to cruise around uninhibited and take them in at my own pace.
