Mario Kart World is shaping up to be a breathtaking upgrade from Mario Kart 8.
This week, Nintendo held a Mario Kart World Direct to reveal more details on Mario Kart World’s open-world gameplay, multiple game modes, characters, and racers. The game, which is planned for release on Nintendo Switch 2, will support up to 24 players and a vast open-world that features many interconnected courses.
Watch the Mario Kart World Direct below:
All of the courses confirmed for Mario Kart World:
This week’s Mario Kart World Direct began with a first look at the many courses included in its wide-open map. During free roam, players will be able to wander from one course into the open world, and into other courses and zones, without encountering a single loading screen. They’ll also be able to drive off-course and carve out new pathways for themselves at any point in-game.
Here are all the courses that were shown off during the presentation:
- Mario Bros. Circuit
- Crown City
- Salty Salty Speedway
- Starview Peak
- Boo Cinema
- Toad's Factory
- Peach Beach
- Wario Shipyard
- Desert Hills
- Shy Guy Bazaar
- Wario Stadium
- Airship Fortress
- DK Pass
- Sky-High Sundae
- Koopa Troopa Beach
- Whistlestop Summit
- DK Spaceport
- Faraway Oasis
- Peach Stadium
At this point, you may be asking yourself: “But wait! Where’s Rainbow Road?” In the Mario Kart World Direct, Nintendo stopped just short of confirming the iconic course’s return in this game, but it did confirm that “"if you conquer all Grand Prix cups, rumor has it that a certain colorful course will appear."
It sounds like Rainbow Road will only make an appearance as a Grand Prix reward in this game, which makes sense, considering that the cosmic map might be difficult to tie into the game’s seamless open world.
All of the racers confirmed for Mario Kart World
Mario Kart World sees the franchise aim for a much larger scope than ever before, particularly in the size of its matches. Up to 24 racers compete in racers with up to four teams (and up to four-player local splitscreen). The Mario Kart World Direct also showed off an absolute bevy of racers for players to choose from, ranging from returning favourites like Yoshi and Wario, to more atypical choices like Cow, Goomba, and Pokey. Here are all of the racers we spotted in the Direct:
- Mario
- Luigi
- Peach
- Daisy
- Yoshi
- Baby Peach
- Baby Daisy
- Baby Rosalina
- Rosalina
- Koopa
- Rocky Wrench
- Conkdor
- Goomba
- Spike
- Cow
- King Boo
- Bowser
- Donkey Kong
- Waluigi
- Baby Mario
- Baby Luigi
- Birdo
- Bowser Jr.
- Lakitu
- Toad
- Wario
- Pauline
- Toadette
- Shy Guy
- Nabbit
- Piranha Plant
- Para-Biddybud
- Swoop
- Pianta
- Peepa
- Pokey
- Hammer Bro
- Monty Mole
- Dry Bones
- Wiggler
- Cataquack
- Pianta
- Sidestepper
- Cheep Cheep
- Coin Coffer
- Chargin’ Chuck
- Snowman
- Fish Bone
- Dolphin
- Penguin
- Stingby
Phew. Did we miss anyone? These racers are also getting new abilities to use during races (think more along the lines of drifting techniques, rather than throwing Bob-ombs at people). You can use a Charge Jump to gain some airtime now, whether to avoid a banana peel or to wall-run using your vehicles.
All game modes confirmed for Mario Kart World
Mario Kart World will have four game modes available at launch: Grand Prix, Knockout Tour, Free Roam, and Battle Mode. In Grand Prix, players will compete in a familiar series of races to win different Cups. Unlike previous games, however, commuting from one course to the next in the game’s open world will count as a race of its own. Each Cup will consist of four races.
Knockout Tour is a slightly different race format. Instead of going to designated courses, players will race across the entire world map in extended rallies. Checkpoints will be included so players can Rewind back to safety, but other obstacles will also throw a wrench into your plans for a victory lap. This is a more survival-oriented take on Mario Kart’s standard races.
Battle Mode is a favourite for many Mario Kart players like myself, who eschew the game’s competitive racing for arcade-y gameplay revolving around balloons and coins. In this PvP mode, players can compete against one another in Coin Runners or Balloon Battle. In one mode, they’ll strive to collect as many coins as possible. In the other, they’ll want to pop all of the other players’ balloons.
Finally, there’s Free Roam. In Free Roam, players can simply explore the world of Mario Kart World at their leisure. There’s plenty to see, even if you’re not just taking in the sights. Secrets lie in every corner of this world, enticing the player to find hidden coins, click on hidden panels, or hit P Switches. Free Roam is also available in multiplayer.
The game also has a few other smaller modes to take advantage of, like Time Trials, for more speedrun-like gameplay.
Mario Kart World’s April Direct only scratched the surface
Nintendo’s Mario Kart World Direct showed off a ton of new features that we haven’t gone in-depth with here, as well. For example, players can also pick up Dash Food to gain buffs and themed cosmetics, and use GameChat compatibility to see other players’ faces in-game. New items are also available, like Hammers, to impede the progress of competitors.
Mario Kart World launches on 5 June, 2025, the same day as the Nintendo Switch 2’s global release.
