At tonight's "Mario Kart: World" direct-to-view event, Nintendo announced some of the tracks for this Switch 2 launch game, including the retro-themed Mario Brothers track, the urban-style Crown City, the canal-themed Salty Salty Speedway, the snow-themed Starview Peak, and the new ghost-themed track - Boo Cinema.
face-to-face meetingvideo:
New items coming to the game include: Coin Shell (fires forward, leaving coins behind), Ice Flower (freezes enemies), Hammer (flies in an arc and wedges into the ground for a period of time), and Kamek (transforms the opponent). The Super Mushroom and Feather power-ups will also return.
Nintendo also detailed the clothing mechanics in the game. Dash Food will appear in the game. By collecting and eating these foods, the character will transform into clothing related to the food. For example, eating sushi causes the character to dress up in Japanese-style clothing. Once a piece of clothing is unlocked, players can use it on the character selection screen.
Newly confirmed stunts include Charge Jump, which can be used to jump over obstacles, jump onto rails, over obstacles and perform wall jumps, as well as a replay feature that allows players to rewind the game if they miss a stunt or shortcut (but other racers will continue to progress normally).
The "Free Roam" option is also shown in more detail. Players can drive freely on the game map, or press the P key to start missions, as well as find hidden gold coins, panels, etc. Players can also "free roam" with other online players and use photo mode.
The game will support 4-player split-screen mode on a single Switch 2 console, as well as local wireless play for up to 8 players (up to two players per console - for example, four consoles with two players per console). Online matches support up to 24 players.
Driving assistance controls will also return for younger players, including Smart Steering and Tilt Controls. Nintendo will also launch a new Joy-Con 2 steering wheel accessory for players who prefer to use a steering wheel.
"Mario Kart: World" is the first new console title in the "Mario Kart" series in more than a decade. The previous one was "Mario Kart 8" released on Wii U in 2014, and was later re-released as a deluxe version on Switch.
The series has since spawned the mobile game Mario Kart: Circuit and the augmented reality (AR) game Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, but only now has a new console game been released.
"Mario Kart World" will be released simultaneously with the Switch 2 console on June 5. The game is available on its own for $80/£75, or as part of a bundle with a Switch 2 console and a game download code.
