Nintendo announces 'Mario Kart World' during Switch 2 stream

Start your engines, we're going off-road!
By
Shannon Connellan
 on 
Mario is shown racing on a track in the game "Mario Kart World."
LET'S GO. Credit: Screenshot: Nintendo

After months of hype, predictions, and sneaky glimpses, Nintendo has confirmed a brand new Mario Kart game: Mario Kart World.

Announced at the company's Nintendo Direct event on Wednesday, along with the Switch 2, the latest instalment of the Mario Kart franchise will launch exclusively on the console on the same day. The news comes months after Nintendo gave us a brief glimpse of the upcoming game in January's Switch teaser.

The marketing art for "Mario Kart World" featuring all the characters.
Credit: Screenshot: Nintendo

Mario Kart World will feature 24 drivers (the most in Mario Kart history) including the cream of the crop: one of the cows from Moo Moo Farm, a track from the original Mario Kart.

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In one of the best features, you'll also the option to drive off-course like the Canyonero you are, in order to explore the map and discover new areas. There's also a Knockout Tour option, in which you race non-stop from one corner of the world to another. And there'll be changing weather conditions for each course.

A screenshot from "Mario Kart World" showing a street race.
Credit: Screenshot: Nintendo

It's the official follow-up to 2014's Mario Kart 8. Between then and now, Nintendo released its mobile game Mario Kart Tour in 2019 and augmented reality/remote-controlled car hybrid Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit in 2020, but no proper Mario Kart sequel.

For everything Nintendo announced today, including the Switch 2, Mashable's got you covered.

A black and white image of a person with a long braid and thick framed glasses.
Shannon Connellan

Shannon Connellan is Mashable's UK Editor based in London, formerly Mashable's Australia Editor, but emotionally, she lives in the Creel House. A Tomatometer-approved critic, Shannon writes about everything (but not anything) across entertainment, tech, social good, science, and culture. Especially Australian horror.


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