New Mario Kart Teased For Switch 2 – Nintendo Life

GuestGuestLogin | Sign UpNintendo Life Mario Kart 9 Guides GuestLogin or Sign UpIt’s looking good!Folks, the Nintendo Switch 2 has been officially revealed, and alongside that, we also know we’re getting a brand new Mario Kart game.Okay, we probably could have predicted that — and presumably this is Mario Kart 9, though that’s not confirmed yet — but we did get a little bit of footage during today’s Switch 2 reveal video. It’s only a glimpse, but you can clearly see the graphical updates on display here.If you want to comb over every little detail, the Mario Kart footage starts at around 1:40. There’s not much to glean from the footage, but many of the characters look a little different — Mario looks a bit squashed, and Donkey Kong appears to be closer to his Mario Movie design.One thing that many have been pointing out is it looks like there’s room for 24 karts on the track, as there are 24 spots behind the starting line. The course shown off in the trailer also looks pretty wide, meaning there’s even more room for chaos.It’s been over a decade since Mario Kart 8 first launched on the Wii U, with the expanded Switch release in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe going on to be the best-selling Switch game. Whether this is Mario Kart 9, or something else, we’re excited to see what fresh take Nintendo brings to our favourite race kart series.Are you excited for a new Mario Kart game? Let us know in the comments.The wait is over!Start your enginesAbout Alana HaguesAlana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022, and while RPGs are her first love, Nintendo is a close second. She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies, characters, and stories. She also wishes she was a Sega air pirate.Comments 128loving that the characters look more like their 2d art/retro counter parts! that’s so exciting! luigi and donkey kong stood out immediately. they look fantastic!Finally a new Mario Kart, i can’t believe it’s been over a decade since the last new entryYou can definitely see how its built upon 8’s foundations, just like how 8 was off of 7, but it still looks like its going to be its own thing.That’s either just a tech demo or Mario Kart 8 Deluxe HD Remaster 2025.Of course they had to show at least one game even if the trailer did focus mostly on the hardware and I’m so glad it’s the next Mario Kart – definitely like the little we’ve seen and I can’t wait to see/hear more about it!These graphics look awesome, I just wish DK looked like the DKC model instead of arcade model.April and then later? Mario Kart and not Mario 3D new episode? Sad. Let’s hope we can learn what other games are coming.Physical backwards for Switch 1 games confirmed! Thats all I needed, Bravo, bar they should have beat the leaks 2 weeks ago!4th Feb 2025, Nintendo Direct!EDIT: 2nd April!! USA Dating Nintendo Direct is dedicated to the Nintendo Switch 2 and will air on April 2This is an easy no-brainer launch titleStop acting like this looks good when it looks awful, those graphics are somehow worse than the graphics of Tour. ESPECIALLY the character modelsThere’s at least 24 starting spots on the track so it looks like 12 racers isn’t going to be the max anymore.This pretty much confirms Mario Kart 9 as the launch title.Edit: Which I’m totally okay with. We’ve been waiting for a new Mario Kart for 10 years now.Kinda surreal to see a proper new Mario Kart after all this time (MK8 alone was with me for my entire teenage existence XD) and it seems like the visual style is pulling from Wonder’s more ‘official artwork accurate’ look too. Way too early to really say much else as of now but yeah: wild to finally see the first brand new Mario Kart in over a decade XDWith the amount the last Mario kart sold it makes sense.Is it me or do the karts look like they’ll slot in to the front and back of each other. Double dash 2???? I man can dream.I don’t think this looks good, I’m so young that Wii onwards were my games, and mario kart feels like it should be a bit more realistic, I don’t like how they are using the chibi style from RPG, which is a game that even on switch feels old to me.@hyperion31 Mario Kart is more popular.That last shot feels like it’s confirming open worlds to explore. So much land! And that highway doesn’t seem very closed track-like.I like the disney Cars inspiration for the track environment. Keep the game footy coming, nintendo!@Zaczumba you want realism, in Mario Kart? Isn’t that like adding machine guns in Gran Turrismo.It looks like it will be more a long form rally type game from the footage.@Jireland92 No, I don’t wanna see Mario’s Pores, what I mean is that I don’t like the Chibi style, and that due to the games I’ve played, I’ve seen Mario kart in the new super games style more so then this. It doesn’t look like Mario to me, it looks like he got flattened and never unflattened himselfIt just looked like Mariokart 8 😂What a rubbish reveal, oh here, you can play Mariokart again, zero reason to upgrade. No info on specs, no demo of the mouse functionality with a game, no 3rd party surprises, no show off of its power.You know what? Genki did the reveal better xDI’m just happy that Mario Kart 9 will exist and that we could still play Mario Kart 8 Deluxe until it does.Mario Kart 8 Deluxe II: 365.59 Days % Crystal Warriors ~ Phantom ReFluX: Galactic Edition confirmed!Is it just me, or doesn’t this look like a next gen title at all? It honestly feels like I’m looking at a regular Switch game.Not really the grand first impression you like to make with a new console…Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Battle Royale.They look so charming!! Love this style. Very excited for it!And now the 9 vs 10 war can truly reach its fever pitch@Zaczumba would you rather they keep the bland Wii era aesthetic? I mean if you don’t like it fair enough but I’m glad they’re at least trying something new.Peach notably not in her biker outfit when on a bike.Also lmao some of you are blind as a bat if you think that looks remotely anything like MK8/Tour.Also it has begun: People unrealistically expecting PS5 level tech jumps for the Switch 2 lol. Have a feeling we are gonna see A LOT of that in the future.Early days, but can scarcely imagine a duller track than the one they’ve shown so far.@YunoboCo I’m not impressed with the graphics either, but that doesn’t mean that people are “acting”. They might feel genuinely different to you about them.@PikminMarioKirby I’m almost certain this is a tease for different character skins from different eras.i could be wrong but that would be awesome.That’s Mario Kart 8 deluxe from one of the videos that’s playing. We may well get 9 but that wasn’t it.@8bit-Man That’s because you are looking at an OG Switch games! It’s a video from MK8 Deluxe. It’s not a new game.I’m surprised anyone is thinking otherwise other than for click bait.That was 100% a new Mario Kart. I can’t wait to see more!I can barely make a thing out? Maybe I need new glasses? Not sure how people are seeing so much..Looks a little cheap looking. Hope I’m wrong. I’m just glad though that MK8 is deadSo excited about a new Mario Kart… but I really couldn’t see any improvement over 8. Early days though, and I’m getting old. Switch 2 woo hoo!!!Lol. I just clocked that I watched the trailer set to 360p for some reason. I was looking at it thinking ‘this is nice, but is it THAT much better looking?’. Just changed settings and better looking now!@AlanaHagues Are we for sure it’s called Mario Kart 9?Maybe I need them side by side, but this did NOT look like Mario Kart 9. I was sure it was just 8 shown to be running on Switch 2.@BaldB3lper78 Thanks for pointing that out! I thought it was supposed to be a new Mario Kart game.Weird move of them to show an old game in the reveal trailer of a new console, though.A Smash Bros Kart would be interesting to diversify the franchiseSo the jokes were true, they really will release Mario Kart 8 Super Deluxe for the successor. Seriously the reveal itself starts to feel like a joke. Please Nintendo release the device on april 1st to make the joke complete.@BaldB3lper78 It’s not though. The characters look much different than they do in MK8 (and in my opinion worse).This Mario Kart doesn’t look like a next gen title at all.I did not like it.”more of the same” feeling.
“generic” feeling.Finally, I love 8 but it’s time for a nice spruce up and new style!!! 🥰🥰🥰Can’t wait for christmas! 🤣🤎That Mario kart looked very dull. I thought I was looking at a 8 deluxe at first.@8bit-Man Don’t listen to him, he’s trolling. It’s not Mario Kart 8. It looks different to 8 in almost every way. Different character models, different kart designs, completely new track, different boost pad design etc. @BaldB3lper78 Stop trolling. Or have you not even taken a single closer look at it?@YunoboCo Stop acting like it looks awful.Is it still possible it could be a new expansion pass for MK8? Otherwise I do agree that it looks like a new Mario Kart.Could it be a Double Dash remake perchance?@BaldB3lper78It doesn’t look like MK8 to me, but I’m hoping it is just a tech demo filler video. I was really hoping for Double Dash 2’can’t wait for more details on the next Mario Kart! Is this the game that we will be playing this coming Christmas?@YunoboCo YOU HAVEN’T EVEN PLAYED ITDoesn’t look much different to 8 does it, graphics-wise?”That’s a funny looking art direction” I thought to myself but then again, I said the exact same thing about Mario Wonder and look where we are.I am super excited to see more the next Mario Kart!!Based on the starting lines shown before the goal line, Famitsu and Japanese twitter are wondering if it means this Mario Kart will support 24 players at a time. Seems a bit of a stretch since we only saw ~11 characters in each scene but would be a cool change!I’ll be honest that at first, I thought this was Mario Kart 8 Deluxe being shown, until I realized it wasn’t. Might be a potential issue, but we only got a tiny preview of it and likely has something to keep itself different, even if visually it might be similar. Regardless, I’m glad to see a new Mario Kart after a very long time, and looking forward to seeing what’ll be introduced in this game!Hate the new Donkey Kong design.Mario kart 9? I honestly thought that was a DLC track from 8.Was hoping for more of a surprise/something newer looking…it looks so dissapointing! MK9 looks like MK8 deluxe extra. Nintendo plays it way to save these days. so boring..@BTB20 compare it to mario kart double dash. this looks so boring. generic mario 3d style.Of course there’s Mario Kart. It’s like scampi at Bubba Gump’s “Of course we have scampi.” Of course we have Mario Kart! Though, tbh, I’m still kinda hoping this ends up being something like “Smash Kart,” and they start inviting more than just the Mario crew to play. I know they did that with 8, but, let’s expand. Samus in a Gunship kart. Nell from Advance Wars in a tank. Pit in a chariot.Heck, go third party while you’re at it! Cloud on Fenrir. Tifa in the buggy. Travis Touchdown on his motorcycle. Dr. Eggman in the Egg Mobile. Have a blast with that kinda thing!ANYWAYS.Unlike everyone else here, I’m not one to judge an entire game’s visual style on one snippet. Until the full game comes out though, I’ll say it looks fine right now. Character design-wise, it seems like they continuing to lean more into the 2D art of Yoichi Kotabe and Shigehisa Nakaue when it comes to stylizing the characters in 3D, which I don’t really mind at all.Is it just me or does that shot where they zoom the camera out give off open world wipes?Geez, finally …with new Mario Kart as well as predicted! Only took a decade for both lol
Time to watch this 100 times and then get spammed with analysis, reaction and commentary videos all over my YouTube feed for the next few months.@Jireland92 it looks weird, it looks like it’s from Mario RPG remake, which looked ok there, but looks off in a KartNot really a good look like they want people to get excited because another Mario Kart exists for the sake of it so we get some very bland footage that you could easily trick people into thinking that as MK8. It doesn’t help that MK8 already hit the peak of what the series can look like visually so it’s not surprising that we’re seeing the diminishing returns. Going with that is very safe instead of giving a hint of something that would make people freak out seems a bit telling but maybe it’s the only thing they’d budge on showing for a reveal trailer they were forced into releasing now.Graphics don’t look great… hopefully gameplay is nice, bit this doesn’t look like a real upgrade from 8 graphically.I’m not convinced this is taken direct from a new game. It could just be something they cobbled together for this reveal as it’s highlighting switching from dock to tv mode, so they needed something on screen, and what better than MK.I’m happy just to get a new Mario Kart. period. It’s refreshing for that alone. Surely this is a launch title?@BTB20 Thanks for letting me know, I appreciate it!A lot of opinoins on a 10 second clip here…Liked the characters’ Wonder-style! And I hope all the new Mario Kart Tour characters will be available here (Nabbit, Monty Mole, Hammer Bro, Poochy, Dixie…)It’s going to be called Mario Kart 10 (or X) as Tour is classed as 9Alright, alright, ALRIGHT ok? New Mario Kart on launch and I’m getting Switch 2. SheeeeshIt doesn’t necessarily look like a generational leap forward from MK8 graphically. But that doesn’t really bother me, because I think the base tracks in 8 Deluxe already look fantastic. We still don’t have official confirmation of what the Switch 2’s specs are, but even if the Switch 2 is significantly more powerful, there could be a couple of reasons they aren’t focused on graphical fidelity for this game. Keeping a similar detail level and style would make it much easier to port tracks forward from MK8, if that’s part of the plan. It would also allow the game to allocate more resources to having more characters on the track, if the speculation is correct that it might support up to 24 racers.Imagine they showed Metroid Prime 4 instead of Mario KartMakes me appreciate the WiiU even more, that first Mario Kart 8 trailer was an unforgettable experience. I’m excited for this game nonetheless!@PikminMarioKirby It might not be, and I do say “presumably”, but it’s all subject to change at this point I’ll put a little extra disclaimerIt looks so good at 1:57. Look at how open it is! These tracks could be massive!@AlanaHagues Thanks! Yeah I missed that part. It SHOULD be 9, but it could be 10 or have a subtitle.Sharper shadows! This is the one thing that bothered me about most Switch games. It’s a minor technical detail but it’s a clue to a more modern 3D architecture which hopefully means easier development.The puffs coming out from the wheels looks really nice too!The item box in the gas station looks intriguing! It seems to stay gold — or maybe that’s just a standard box and the design has been updated.And the camera pull away at the end revealing how big the tracks will be!Looks fun!!It was a really weird choice to tease it with such an ugly track and zero “wow” moments. It looks like it could be Mario Kart Wii, easily.this is not what i expected from a first look at MK9 or whatever it’s called. we’re two generations on from MK8…i thought this was more MK8 DLC initially before taking a closer look. 24 players is why it’s more basic looking, i guess? dissapointing either way…Doesn’t look that much different from Mario Kart 8DX if I’m being honest.
Then again there will probably be more technically impressive looking reveals in the Switch 2 direct so it’s not that big of a deal.I don’t get all the negativity and rants. It’s a fricking new console with a brand new Mario Kart. Are we seriously going back to the visuals conversation on a Nintendo game?Just be excited and pretend you didn’t know anything about this before and didn’t saw all those leaks in the past 6 months.I definitely am excited for this. And for sure the graphics will look better on my hands and tv. Be pacient. OG Switch is IMO the best Nintendo console ever and they kept the concept, it’s amazing for my kids and I’ll buy it day one. Long live Nintendo!!Wait a minute! They gave Donkey kong his OG look back, same as the mario movie love it.Im in tears im so happy. we did it yallOnly thing that would make me interested in Mario Kart again, is if it’s done like Forza Horizon. Open world, with lots of different kind of races and missions.Ooof those bezelsImagine they add a story mode to Mario Kart.@BTB20 it’s just a concept video. Chill out. MK9 will come but I doubt that was itIT LOOKS SO GOOD IM SO HYPED@Steel76 I was actually thinking that as I watched the trailer. It kinda looks like an interconnected world similar to Lego 2K Drive. I just hope track design doesn’t suffer if they go this route.whats the powerup at Yoshi’s Burger joint? yellow cube?@Steel76 this translates to ‘i lost all my friends playing Mario kart’Why that sideways tilt of the right joycon in the final shot? Is it hinting at a new functionality?Can the number of racers (24 instead of 12) tell us something about Switch 2’s hardware specs? Is it twice as powerful?What if they actually call it 10 though, with the addition of Mario Kart on mobile?The sensible business choice to show off Mario Kart first buuuuuut…..I wish we could have seen something a bit more demanding. Love to see what Metroid Prime 4 is going to look like on this thing or even a 3rd party game.That would have lifted the hype a bit.Can’t say I’m thrilled about the way it looks. It look graphically identical to MK8 and Donkey Kong’s design was ruined despite being perfect ever since his DKC redesign. The Mario Movie already affecting the franchise in ways I feared it would…Also not sure how I feel about 24 racers. MK was already chaotic enough with just 12. 24 feels like an unnecessary change. Hopefully the Direct in April can change my mind and bring my hype up but right now I’m not feeling much excitement at all tbh.I’m wondering if this new Mario Kart doesn’t look that much different from MK8 because it’s possible it’s actually cross-gen?The tracks look much more vast. The long stretch at the end of the teaser looked crazy long. Mario Kart getting it’s BotW moment lol?@Ulysses I’m thinking because it looks much bigger in scale. What if those rocky backgrounds aren’t backgrounds but part of the track! (It goes off well into the distance at the end!)@GrailUK Oh wow you’re right, I wasn’t paying attention to the very end of the trailer! The borders are no longer there and it does look a little too vast for just a background render. Exciting implications! As others have said, Forza Horizons has already offered a blueprint for an open-world racer.Ah, so a new one after all. Granted, so far I don’t see anything that would set my wallet in motion before finishing SMK/MK7, getting MK8DX and beating three more remaining entries inbetween (DS and Super Circuit wrapped up years ago). Although if they really were to add a campaign and freeroam akin to DKR…Ohhhh no… and I thought 12 was chaotic…I still curious to see what is the New feature will be introduced. I have experienced with other features from 3rd party racing games, from Power Up meter in Chocobo Racing, 3 different type vehicles in Skylanders SuperChargers, Track editor from ModNation Racer (1st party Sony), etc so I hope the new features in new Mario Kart game give something never before played.@Ulysses Nintendo fans have an eye for gameplay On first look it doesn’t seem too different, but the size and scale intrigues me. Is it open world? Why is it so big? This could be really good depending on what they do with that tremendous size.@beartown…Go look at some footage for Mario Kart Wii again and tell me it’s even remotely like this. Wii was not a looker even for a SD gameMy idea for the next Mario Kart 9 gimmick: wonder effects a la SMBW for the final lap.@Dinglehopper Yeah, going from 8 to 12 meant more blue shells, more lightning bolts, etc. Some on here are calling this “chaotic”; I think of it as annoying. But I think I’m just a kartmudgeon regarding some of the gimmicks that have forcibly accrued over the generations.Races would be closer, so I hope they bring back the stopwatch on modes other than time trial.@PikaPhantom yeah, I exaggerated. But you won’t tell me this MK9 looks any better than MK8 Deluxe.@Thomystic Yea, I agree that “annoying” is the better term lol. My hope overall is that 24 racers is a separate mode because I don’t see a good reason for the change. If not, then I hope at least item distribution will be balanced differently to fit the new gameplay.I’m also now wondering if courses will be much longer/larger as well? You’d think with that many racers that people would start getting lapped pretty easily.Either way, I can get over DK’s design change, but the gameplay is what worries me. Here’s hoping that the proper showcase will do it all justiceA new Mario Kart? I would have assumed they could’ve shown a new 3D Mario Game as a first-timer, but anyway, I don’t know what to think I mean, years of DLC support for Mario Kart 8 for them to come with something that should be different enough I guess?The visuals look to be running on what appears to be a modified Mario Kart 8 engine, which is fine I guess, but in a world of modern rendering techniques, there are some questions here about the quality of the visuals, unsurprisingly given this is the first Switch 2 title seen running on an actual console, maybe it’s an early look?Can we get alt. costumes for characters instead of it taking another character slot? please and thank youHas Mario caught the Death Glare from Luigi…?Love what I see here, but the Mario Kart screenshots make something obvious to me, the bezels feel odd. Like someone forgot to “zoom the actual display” all the way outwards to hit the physical edges of the screen. It looks odd.Other than that I just hope those triggers are ANALOGUE for proper racing game support!I find it hilarious how people flat out refuse to accept that Mario Kart Tour could actual be THE Mario Kart 9 and that this next one could possibly be Mario Kart 10.
You gotta admit though, Mario Kart X is actually a pretty cool new name for this entry.@Chibi_Manny Nah, Mario Kart Live is Mario Kart 10 then. This is Mario Kart 11.Genuinely I think Tour is just a spin off.I’ve been saying it would be neat if they introduced the Wonder Seed to Mario Kart. Would be cool to see tracks get completely warped during sections. Could add some unique twists and strategy to the gameIt looks exactly the same as Mario kart 8 other than the different donkey kong. This is two systems after the wii u so it should look better at this point. Oh, nintendo.@BTB20 nope. Mario Kart Tour is considered mainline by Nintendo whereas the Home one isn’t. It’s definitely going to be called Mario Kart X.I would love it if it were called Mario Kart X-Road, since it is normally the tenth installement (and why X-road, ’cause it could be said like Crossroad, but that’s only a wish, nothing more). Show CommentsLeave A CommentHold on there, you need to login to post a comment…Nintendo Switch 2 Reveal Trailer Gives First Official Look At The New ConsoleThe wait is over!Feature: Everything You Missed In The Switch 2 Mario Kart Reveal – Characters, Features, Easter EggsStart your enginesSwitch 2 Will Be Backwards Compatible With Physical And Digital Games, With Some ExceptionsCart in the right placeNew Mario Kart 9 Teased For Switch 2It’s looking good!Switch 2: Hardware Gallery – Take A Closer Look At Nintendo’s Lovely New SwitchSwitch Inspection Mario Kart 9 GuidesPopular Right NowShow More Join 1,469,674 people following Nintendo Life:© 2025 Hookshot Media, partner of IGN Entertainment | Hosted by 44 Bytes | AdChoices | Do Not Sell My Personal Information

Source: https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2025/01/new-mario-kart-9-teased-for-switch-2