Mario Kart World

Mario Kart World arrived on the exact launch day of the Nintendo Switch 2 in June 2025 and became the title most players picture when they think of the new console. This time, Nintendo didn't just link the individual tracks through a menu screen — it set them into a single continuous map that can be freely driven across. Highways, country roads, beaches, and snowy slopes connect the circuits, the racing field has grown to twenty-four drivers, and the classic cups are joined by an elimination Knockout Tour, where the last racers drop out at every checkpoint. The free-roam mode functions as a huge playground full of tasks, hidden panels, and collectibles, rewarding even players who just want to wander the landscape.

The driving model still feels distinctly Mario Kart, but a layer of acrobatics has been added. The kart can climb onto railings and grind along them, bounce off walls, chain jumps across bodies of water, and maintain speed even off the marked track. Items keep the familiar rubber-banding logic, but there are now foods that change the characters' outfits, along with changeable weather and a day cycle, so the same track looks a little different at dusk and in the rain each time. The online component is built around large races with twenty-four players and randomly assembled routes, split-screen for local play has been kept, and you can even race two-to-a-kart as a crew.

Technically, it's a showcase for the new console: the game runs on TV in high resolution and smooth frame rates, supports a high-refresh-rate mode, and loading between areas is practically invisible thanks to faster storage. The music relies on live-recorded big-band arrangements that change with the environment, giving the whole game a surprisingly cinematic feel. Reception was very positive, though some players argued over the price and how much the open world changes the pacing of the classic cups. Today, Mario Kart World stands as the series' most ambitious entry and a game that's just as fun in short races as during an hour of aimless wandering.