Mario Kart World Review -- Nintendo's Wildest, Most Ambitious Kart Racer Yet

I’ve spent over 35 hours with Mario Kart World since launch on the Nintendo Switch 2. As someone who’s been playing Mario Kart since the SNES days, I was both excited and a little nervous going into this one. It’s the first brand-new entry in the series in more than ten years. After everything Mario Kart 8 Deluxe accomplished—even as a Wii U port—I wasn’t sure if Nintendo could top it. But after dozens of Grand Prix races, online Knockout Tours, and hours of exploring the open world, I can say Mario Kart World is a blast, unassuming, and occasionally frustrating in ways I didn’t expect.

The biggest change and the one that immediately defines the entire game is that every course now exists inside a single massive open world. You don’t select Moo Moo Meadows or Bowser’s Castle from the menu anymore; you drive to them. Grand Prix races are no longer isolated lap-based events. Now, each cup begins with one full track and then sends you across the world on highways and roads before reaching the next course, which plays out as a single lap.

For example, one Grand Prix had me racing through a savannah dodging zebras, then rolling through desert roads past giant Tokotoko statues (straight out of Super Mario Land), and finally reaching a seaside village where the course transformed into an aquatic race. Perhaps the most satisfying part of this game is that there are no loading screens between tracks; you move from one part of the world to the next in real-time, with up to 24 racers filling the road. The only track that’s not physically connected to the world is Rainbow Road—and it absolutely earns that spotlight. It’s long, intense, and packed with visual callbacks to the rest of the game. I’ve raced it several times now, and every single time, it gave me that "final level" feeling.

Not all parts of the world are equally exciting, though. Many of the roads that connect tracks are wide and straight, and on repeat runs, they can feel empty. Some highways do include traffic, item-spewing cars, or side ramps, but overall, they lack the same energy and creativity found in the main courses. The fun really kicks in once you arrive at tracks like Great? Block Ruins, where you’re flying between floating ruins in the sky, or Wario Stadium, which launches you into mid-air stunts like a motocross circuit.

Speaking of movement, this is where Mario Kart World really surprised me. The game adds a new Charge Jump ability, which works on straightaways like a drift works on turns. You hold the button, charge up a boost, and release to launch forward and hop over hazards. This can be the difference between getting hit by a red shell and narrowly escaping. It pairs nicely with two other mechanics: rail grinding and wall riding, which give you a boost if you hit the entry points at the right angle, and they open up new shortcuts throughout the courses. It took me a few hours to get used to these mechanics, but now they’re second nature, and I’ve found Time Trial ghosts that show just how far these systems can be pushed.

Item use has also evolved. Green Shells and Bananas now automatically trail behind your kart once you get them—no need to manually hold a button. That sounds simple, but it really changes how you play defense. You lose the ability to hold off a hit at will, and timing becomes even more critical. New items like the Hammer, which throws out a straight line of projectiles, and the returning Feather add to the strategy. The Kamek power-up causes Bowser’s minions to flood the track and disrupt the lead pack, and it also ties into character unlocks, which I’ll get into in a second.

The character roster in Mario Kart World is big, weird, and very Mario. You’ve got the expected crew, Mario, Peach, Bowser, and Toad, but also deep cuts like Para-Biddybud, Coin Coffer, Swoop, and Cow. Cow, by the way, has become my surprise favorite. I didn’t expect to laugh out loud seeing her in action, but it happened. Every character moves differently, and while heavier racers still feel sluggish to me, I found myself using them more because of the costume system.

Unlocking characters and costumes is where things get messy. Outside of a few racers you unlock by completing Grand Prix cups, the rest show up randomly. During races, if someone uses a Kamek item and you get transformed, there’s a chance that the character becomes unlocked. There’s no clear pattern or progress tracker, just a hope that you’ll get someone new. Costumes are tied to Dash Snacks, which you collect during races. But again, there’s no indication which snack unlocks what. I’ve collected the same snack multiple times and gotten duplicates. There’s no in-game guide for this. The character select screen tells you who still has outfits left to unlock, but not how to get them.

It’s a similar story with stickers, which act as kart decorations. There are over 1,000 of them, and you earn them by completing challenges and missions in the open world. But you can only equip one at a time, and they don’t impact gameplay. After a while, it stopped feeling rewarding to collect them.

The game’s Free Roam mode gives you full access to the world map and lets you drive around at your own pace. This is where you find P Switch missions—small challenges like reaching a certain point before time runs out, collecting coins, or surviving falling rocks. The problem is there’s no good way to track which ones you’ve done or where you still need to go. The map only tells you the total number you’ve completed. That’s it. No region markers, no mission list.

And Free Roam doesn’t work in local split-screen. You can only explore the map with friends if you're in an online lobby or waiting for matchmaking. Even then, the P Switch missions are disabled. So, unless you're playing solo, this mode is pretty limited.

The real highlight of Mario Kart World is the new Knockout Tour. It’s a five-part race across open-world routes with checkpoints. After each segment, the bottom four racers are eliminated. The final stretch is a single-lap race on a full course. This mode really makes the most of the open world. The tension builds after each elimination, and you’re always fighting to stay out of the bottom. Item balance here gets intense. I've gone from 20th to 1st in seconds with a well-timed Mushroom or Star. But I’ve also been knocked out early from a bad item draw. That’s the risk, but the payoff is worth it—winning a Knockout Tour online was one of the most satisfying moments I’ve had in any Mario Kart game.

But there are limitations. You can’t join public Knockout Tour lobbies with friends. The only way to play with others is through private lobbies, which means you’re racing against bots unless you fill the room yourself. There’s no ranked mode, no tournament system, and no way to change item settings like in 8 Deluxe. Also, the 200cc mode is completely missing, which is surprising for players who prefer high-speed races.

The graphics are impressive. The game runs at 60fps in single-player and online, even in handheld mode. Courses are colorful and detailed, with little things like facial expressions during tricks or rain effects during storms. Water reacts to items, like when a Blue Shell hits and causes waves. The soundtrack features over 200 new arrangements, with remixes from games like Donkey Kong Country and Yoshi’s Island. But you can’t pick your favorite tracks to listen to. The in-game Jukebox plays songs randomly, and there’s no music player like in Smash Bros. or Mario Odyssey.

After all this time with the game, I can say Mario Kart World is a strong new entry that tries to reinvent the series in big ways. A few of the changes work really well, like the new movement systems, the expanded racer count, and the Knockout Tour mode. Others, like the open-world Free Roam and the unclear unlock systems, don’t land as cleanly.

Still, the races are exciting, the controls feel great, and the course design is among the best the series has seen. There’s plenty of room to improve, and I hope Nintendo adds features over time.