Nintendo Announces Mario Kart World as Switch 2 Launch Game
Nintendo officially announced during its Nintendo Switch 2 Direct livestream on Wednesday the new Mario Kart World game. Nintendo will release the game for Switch 2 on June 5, the same day that the console launches. The game features a full world. Kart races take place throughout various regions around the globe. Time of day and weather conditions affect the tracks' atmosphere. A new Free Roam mode allows players to drive anywhere in the world, alone or with friends, including off the tracks. There is also a photo mode.The standard Grand Prix mode supports 24 drivers for the first time. The video teased seven cups, with four tracks each. Tracks include a mix of new and retro tracks. Unlike previous games in the series, racers must now drive from one track to another. In the new Knockout Tour, players race across the world and must reach certain placement thresholds at each checkpoint to continue racing.There will be a bundle for Switch 2 and Mario Kart World.Nintendo initially teased the game when it first unveiled the Switch 2.Mario Kart 8 shipped for the Nintendo Wii U in 2014. The game sold over 1.2 million copies during its opening weekend. The game received a Nintendo Switch version titled Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in April 2017. The Switch version got six waves of DLC as part of a "Booster Course Pass." The DLC includes courses from other Mario Kart games, including Mario Kart Tour. Nintendo released the first wave of eight courses in March 2022, and the sixth and final wave in November 2023.Source: Nintendo Switch 2 Direct livestream
