Mario Kart World is one of the year’s most anticipated games, and today’s Nintendo Direct shed some light on how its gameplay will differ from past entries. There are new modes and integration with the Switch 2 camera, but Mario Kart wouldn’t be Mario Kart without its items and tricks, and this game is iterating on both fronts.
Mario Kart World will see the return of plenty of classic items, like shells, mushrooms, and bullet bills, but we’re also getting some returning favorites and fresh twists. The coin shell is an example of the latter, spawning coins when thrown. It doesn’t have the red or green shells’ enemy locking or ricochet features, respectively, but instead centers itself on the track, creating a line of coins behind it. We also saw the ice flower, an item seen in mainline Mario games, which can be used to stun enemies similarly to the fire flower. Outside of the aesthetics, the two items’ effects are fairly similar, and it’s not immediately clear what the difference, if any, is.
This game also includes the Koopa wizard Kamek as a new item. Footage in the Direct showed all the racers turning into Chargin’ Chuck, but also teased the idea of other potential effects. This is also, notably, the first time a character has been downgraded from playable to an item – sorry, Kamek fans.
Meanwhile, three series items that did not appear in Mario Kart 8 are returning. The hammer, seen in Mario Kart Tour, sprinkles an arc of hammers on the track. They can hit enemies upon landing, but they also remain in the ground, creating a temporary hazard. The Mega Mushroom makes you huge, flattening other racers in your path, while the Feather blasts you into the air, potentially avoiding obstacles or incoming red shells.
The other major new item only appears in Mario Kart World’s Free Roam mode, which allows players to explore the world to their heart’s content. Along the way, you can grab Dash Food, little bags of to-go orders, from restaurants to change your character’s outfit. Each outfit matches the locale the food is found in, and remains permanently unlocked in every mode, so you’re incentivized to take your favorite character on a road trip and explore as much as you can.
The Direct also showed off the new tricks your characters will be able to do. In addition to drifting, which has been the standard in Mario Kart for years and years, World will add a Charge Jump. By holding the drift button while driving straight ahead, your kart will squat down and jump up once the button is released. It allows you to get a small boost of speed forward, leap over some obstacles (like oncoming cars), and reach walls and grind rails. Rails provide an alternate path to drive on, often adjacent to the track, but also give you a boost of speed when dismounting. Meanwhile, certain walls allow you to drive on vertical surfaces, and you can also jump between walls in the right circumstances.
If you miss a jump, Mario Kart World also introduces a Rewind system, allowing you to travel back in time and attempt a section of the course again. The catch is that other racers keep moving, so it should be used sparingly if you still hope to win the race. It can also be used in Free Roam to help solve tricky puzzles or determine how to approach certain obstacles.
For more Mario Kart World, check out how Nintendo is justifying its $80 price tag.
