REVIEW: Mario Kart World is fun, but it doesn't accelerate as much as it can

The first trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 brought a surprise: a new Mario Kart, 11 years after the release of MK 8. During the Nintendo Direct dedicated to the console, it was revealed that it is Mario Kart World, the title that will take center stage at the launch (pun intended). On June 5th, the Nintendo launched the successor to the Switch, accompanied by a new racing adventure with Mario and the gang — now speeding along with new companions. Check out our review of the Mario Kart World and everything about the latest chapter of one of the company's biggest franchises.

Gameplay

World (World) is, without a doubt, the ideal name for the new game in the series. Not only because of the free exploration mode, and we'll talk more about that soon, but because of the way the tracks are built and explored. There is a logical connection between all 32 circuits in the game. They are connected to each other in a way that has never been done before. During the course of a Cup, which consists of 4 pre-defined tracks, when you finish a new race, there is a course to finish the previous one, showing an environmental connection between them. But they decided to go further.

In online mode, no matter which track you play, and also no matter which one comes next, this connection also exists. So, all the 32 tracks are connected to each other, and you will always go through the end of the previous one to get to the new one, through a totally connected path, and you will always be surprised at how you left, for example, a farm, and ended up in a volcano, or how you left a ship, and ended up at Rosalina's intergalactic base, and so on.

tracks

Are 32 tracks in the new game. New worlds, new routes, new references. But there is a nostalgia factor in each of them. In all of them, without exception, there are parts of the route that are recreations and homages to classic parts of the series. Long-time players will recognize specific points that were made to increase this familiarity with a series that has already navigated so many points and moments of the Mario series.

Now, with the first game in the franchise officially localized into Brazilian Portuguese, we have classic tracks with new names, such as Bowser's Castle and Rainbow Road. In addition to being able to go through the Acorn ForestBy Dino Dino Jungle, fur Boreal Peak, and so on. Being able to play a game in your native language, in addition to bringing familiarity with the linguistic richness of our language, offers material for all audiences, regardless of age.

Characters

One of the biggest new features of the game is in the 24 competitors that can participate in the same match. Making the races even more chaotic, and making it difficult for you to maintain the first place position, even in 100cc mode, which has always been particularly easy to stay in front with a considerable distance.

Mario Kart World has gone back to being a Mario-only game, at least for now. Characters from other franchises (Link, Isabelle, Villager and Inkling Girl) were left out, and were replaced by characters from the series. But since basically everyone was already there, this time the choice list was expanded with the addition of enemies and extras from the games, such as a skeleton fish, Ledrão, the coin purse, Goomba, and, of course, the best addition of all, the Cow. Among others, many others.

Link and his allies are expected to return in future updates and paid DLC. But in the meantime, you can have fun collecting alternate costumes for Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toadette, Rosalina, Daisy (The “enemy” racers and cows do not have alternative outfits). These outfits can be purchased with food delivery packages that are found throughout the tracks. And, once collected, they are permanently unlocked for choice in future races. Each outfit variation also changes the colors of many vehicles and gives a lot of personality to the already beloved characters.

Items

The item system repeats the success of the version Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, allowing the player to collect up to 2 at a time. The classics are back: mushroom, green shell, red shell, blue shell, rocket, lightning bolt, boo. And there are new ones, of course. The giant mushroom from New Super Mario Bros. allows you to run over opponents by increasing in size.

Kamek's crystal ball is also an item and allows you to transform all racers into the same enemy for a short period of time, leaving a surprise for them on the track. The feather makes you jump, making it easier to dodge shells (if your timing is good). And in addition to the additions, some items have been fixed. The lightning bolt, for example, now doesn't make you tiny for as long, making your car less vulnerable, but it still obliterates your items when it hits you.

Game Modes

Mario Kart is a series rich in mechanics and ways to play. And World does not disappoint in this sense, taking the experience beyond what we are already used to, and also leaving something to be desired in some aspects. But since we are in the era of online and updatable games, it is only a matter of time before it can reach the full potential of the promised material.

Big prize

The traditional way of any Mario Kart. 4-track circuits divided into 8 cups, totaling 32. The goal is to be the points champion on all four tracks. Up to four people can play on the same console. Races can be held in 50cc, 100cc, 150cc and in Mirror mode, with tracks mirrored in 150cc. This mode needs to be unlocked, but it is an achievement worth achieving. The classic structure remains, with races on four tracks per cup. The novelty is the transition between races, done in real time across long stretches of the interconnected map.

This change aims to make the championship a continuous experience, although it doesn't always manage to maintain the same pace as traditional tracks. Although it is an interesting change, it is not very well implemented, as these intermissions - which are the paths between the Grand Prix tracks - are not very interesting. Furthermore, in most of the following tracks, the game changes the structure from 3 laps to just 1 lap, which makes the races on these tracks less engaging and more rushed.

playoff

Not so playoff, you will race through 6 tracks, non-stop, passing through checkpoints at the end of each one, with a specific position that you must maintain if you want to continue. If you do not meet the requirement, you will be eliminated before you can continue. In addition to the other 23 opponents, in this mode there are cars on the track that shoot game items, making your route more difficult, and also making it easier in other cases, such as cars that drop turbo mushrooms or stars. It is the most innovative and exciting mode.

Here, 24 racers compete for position in consecutive segments, being eliminated in waves until only the best remain. The constant pressure and unpredictability of the races make this mode addictive, even with the occasional frustration generated by random items that can completely reverse a race in seconds. The combination of endurance, strategy and luck makes each attempt unique, keeping the player alert and engaged from start to finish.

Time trial

Here you race against a clock that measures your time, and this time can be used to create a “ghost” that other players can use to compete against. You can also race against other players’ ghosts. Create times for all characters, with different vehicles, and try to beat them yourself. You can also see your ranking, analyze your best times and try to beat them. A game mode for the chronically competitive, ideal for those looking to perfect techniques and map out the best routes.

Solo races against time, complete with ghosts of developers and rivals, are suitable for both training and personal competition. With the new movement mechanics, the mode becomes more complex and encourages the exploration of creative shortcuts, requiring total control of the track and precision in the smallest details. It is the perfect space for those who want to master every curve and millisecond.

Comparison

The way Comparison is the versus race with customized rules. Instead of racing the 4 predefined tracks of a cup, you can choose, for example, to race all the tracks in the game randomly. The customizations are diverse and allow you to have fun with friends (or alone, if you prefer) for hours, without having to interrupt the races to make new choices.

This is a highly customizable mode where players define rules, items, and race conditions. It’s the ideal mode for creating unique tournaments with friends, tailoring the experience to suit your group’s style. Whether it’s chaotic races with all items activated or technical challenges with strict rules, Showdown gives you complete freedom to shape the fun your way.

Batalha

The game's arena mode, where the goal is to collect coins or balloons within a pre-defined time, is an alternative to traditional races. Here, the focus shifts from the finish line to direct confrontation between characters. With options like Balloon Battle and Coin Grab, the mode offers casual and chaotic fun, ideal for quick and relaxed matches.

However, this mode has lost some of its shine over time, especially in Mario Kart 8, where the arenas were replaced by adapted sections of the regular tracks and were only added to the game long after its release. The lack of dedicated and more elaborate maps compromises the experience, making the mode disposable and uninteresting for many players. Although it has potential, it lacks attention and innovation to become a highlight of the series again.

Book

The way Book is the biggest news of Mario Kart In general. The game world is really an open world made up of tracks. And in free mode you can navigate, well, freely, through them and outside them. Walking on the pre-defined roads in each of the routes, but also in any other area around. And you will find challenges to be completed, you can find friends who are also circulating there, talk to them in the chat.

There is always the impression that this mode could offer more. A more Forza Horizon, some destination missions, deliveries, etc. Maybe this will be the main focus of future updates and/or DLCs, because the possibilities are endless. And in what was delivered in the final material, they were not fully explored.

It is, without a shadow of a doubt, unexpected that the one who went for the open world was Mario Kart. In this mode, everything seems a bit clumsy due to the speed at which you are forced to move, and exploration ends up becoming boring after a while. We can only hope that Nintendo understands this potential, and starts to fill the world with resources and things to do, to the point where it becomes an unmissable ride every time you turn on the game. Because until then, it is very easy for it to simply go unnoticed.

Online

A Nintendo is a unique company when it comes to creating playful, fun, unforgettable material, different from anything that has ever been seen or done. But it is also unique and peculiar when working with online resources. Everything seems rudimentary and made by a team lacking resources and/or skills.

Online works and is competent. But we are in 2025, and we are talking about Nintendo, a pioneer in any concept about video games. It needed to be more than competent. It needed to be exceptional, revolutionary, it needed to be more and bigger.

At the same time, features that already work in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe are back. For example, you can create a room with friends to play with pre-defined rules; choose which game mode you want to play online; play with racers from all over the world in matches where everyone can vote for their favorite track; and other customization options. The absence of a mix of these features is also back.

You can't, for example, create a room with friends, and allow the rest of the slots to be filled by random real players, only NPCs. You can't, for example, enter races with random racers, and pull a friend along. If you find yourself in the same race, it will be pure luck. You can't, for example, decide that the tracks will be random or in order when playing online in a closed room with friends. There is only the system of choosing the track in each race (or the cup if it is in Elimination mode).

There are a lot of no's in a game that needed more freedom, more ease. Mainly because, nowadays, playing online is the best way to socialize with friends, acquaintances and, I don't know, strangers too, why not. At least there is still the possibility of two people playing online in the same game, on the same console.

But Nintendo It's no joke, and all of these problems are easily overshadowed by the fact that online matches now have a native chat feature and the ability to use a camera. An extra layer of fun that will make the difficult decisions of a match less painful, and transform it into a more welcoming and warm experience, even from a distance. Especially from a distance.

Performance

The technical performance of Mario Kart World is, without a doubt, one of the pillars that support its excellence as a launch title for Nintendo Switch 2. From the first moment the player takes control, it is clear that Nintendo has taken care to ensure a fluid, responsive and visually pleasing experience, regardless of the game mode chosen.

In terms of frame rate, the game impresses by maintaining a constant 60 frames per second, even in the most demanding situations. Races with 24 simultaneous racers, multiple active items, dynamic weather effects and transitions between biomes do not affect the stability of the frame rate. This consistency is crucial for a racing game, where every millisecond can define the outcome of a dispute. The absence of noticeable drops in performance directly contributes to the feeling of precise control and immediate response, something essential for competitiveness and the pleasure of playing.

Another highlight is the almost total elimination of loading screens. The transition between tracks, biomes and even game modes occurs fluidly, reinforcing the proposal of campaign continuity and total immersion in the game's universe. This is especially noticeable in the mode Grand Prix, where races are linked by playable sections of the map, without interruptions or technical pauses.

As far as image quality is concerned, Mario Kart World presents significant improvements over its predecessor. In portable mode, the game runs at native 1080p, while in docked mode it reaches 1440p, with a slight post-processing image treatment that smooths out jaggies and improves overall sharpness.

Although it does not use dynamic resolution scaling, the game maintains visual clarity even in moments of high graphic complexity. The stylized art, with vibrant colors and exaggerated lines, adapts well to both the desktop screen and the Switch 2 as for 4K televisions, ensuring a cohesive and pleasant visual presentation.

The lack of anti-aliasing in handheld mode can be noticed in finer details, but the direct mapping of 1080p to the console screen compensates for this limitation, delivering a clean and well-defined image. In docked mode, light post-processing helps to smooth out imperfections, making the visual experience more polished. Compared to Mario barth 8, which operated at 1080p docked and 720p portable, World represents a considerable technical leap, even if not revolutionary.

Location

With the still timid performance of Nintendo Brazil in the country, many series are receiving the “it's the first time we have PT-BR in this franchise”, and now it's time for Mario Kart. So it's cool to see the names of the tracks, cups, and characters. Let's hope that this is a constant in the Switch 2, and not just for a few select games like it was in the 1. And that it extends to remasters and remakes so that we can increasingly enjoy impeccable localizations like the ones we saw in Pikmin 4, in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and, recently, much delayed, in Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.

Because there is a lot of care taken with the localizations, they are all impeccable. And now we want to see the same care taken in the curation of which games will receive this work. In this case, we hope that this will be the case for all upcoming Nintendo games.

Price and availability

The price is scary, and it is becoming increasingly unhealthy to keep a console in Brazil, under the current conditions. But if your budget allows this luxury, Mario Kart World is nothing less than indispensable in the library of Nintendo Switch 2, regardless of how many games are released between now and the end of the console's lifespan.

Mario Kart World can be purchased at eShop of Nintendo Switch 2 in digital format or on physical media in official stores for R$499,90.

Conclusion

Anyway, Mario Kart World worth it? Ultimately, the game may not have been the best choice to represent the Nintendo Switch 2 at launch, but Mario Kart will always be a great choice to purchase, no matter what console it's on. The game is complete as expected, even if it seems a little shy with the new features. But the Nintendo I knew how to transform Mario barth 8 in a “game as a service”, and this has left the possibilities of World practically infinite. With an entire generation ahead, this has everything to be the biggest and best Mario Kart, in every possible way.

And you, what did you think of our analysis of Mario Kart World? Tell us what you think of Nintendo's new game in the comments!

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Text revised by Alexandre Marques in 28 / 06 / 2025.