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Mario Kart World is the perfect Switch 2 launch title and I will be playing for months

Between its open world exploration, array of secrets and incredible Knockout Tour mode, we no longer have any doubts that Mario Kart World is going to sell consoles by the bucketload

[Mario Kart World]

Expect plenty of vehicle options(Image: Nintendo)

If theres one franchise Nintendo has that needs little to no introduction, its probably Mario Kart. The series has been around for decades, and its only gotten better with age, with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe selling millions of units.

So, why do some people seem a little concerned that Switch 2s big launch title, Mario Kart World, isnt enough? The Game Business Christopher Dring recently opined that the series is successful because its everyones second game, the title new console owners pick up after the killer game they want, like Zelda or a mainline Mario game.

Its a fair hypothesis, and certainly rings true from my own personal experience, but having now spent more time with Mario Kart World, Im convinced that its going to be huge.

Open Road

[Mario Kart World]

Powerslides will be even smoother(Image: Nintendo)

As part of a recent preview session at Nintendo HQ, I was able to spend some time with the latest racer alongside a veritable whos who of industry journalists, and while we got to play some of the games fiendish new tracks (one homage to Donkey Kongs barrel-hurling origins was particularly brilliant), we also got to explore the open world and take part in some multiplayer.

If youve ever played Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (and statistically, theres a good chance you have) and never had any hankering to go off-track and explore the road network of the Mushroom Kingdom then youre not aloneitd be fair to say most of us go to Mario Kart for its frantic on-track action, and I was worried the games open world would feel a little hollow and, dare I say it, gimmicky.

Oh, how wrong I was. Mario Kart Worlds open-ended structure means you can find something to inspire curiosity around almost every corner, like collecting items before a timer expires, dodging Wigglers en route to an objective, and much, much more.

Many of these are found with the P button. These blue devices can be found just about anywhere, and triggering one starts a challenge. Retrying is easily done, and you dont know what youre going to get until you hit one, making each one feel like a little treat.

It remains to be seen what the end goal is for completing them all, but for now, Im just desperate to see them all.

Go your own way

[Mario Kart World]

Each track certainly looks colourful(Image: Nintendo)

While Mario Kart World will be packed with course options, its the way in which these circuits gel together thats perhaps most interesting.

You can play a Grand Prix that just encompasses a series of tracks, as you could in prior games, but you can also select a series of tracks that are linked together.

That means that races where laps 1 and 2 barely matter are a thing of the past, as you find yourself essentially engaged in a sprint across the map. One minute youre dodging lava, the next youre flying into a stormy sea, duking it out among the wreckage of pirate ships.

Its the most dynamic Mario Kart has ever been, and essentially means the track selection is increased considerably with so many permutations.

Last Kart Standing

[Mario Kart World]

Fans have gone wild for the arrival of the Cow as a playable racer(Image: Nintendo)

Despite the positivity throughout this preview, Im actually saving the best for last. One of the modes I didnt get to try at my prior Switch 2 hands-on was Knockout Tour, which pits 24 racers in a Battle Royale-style competition where, if you dont place high enough when you get to a checkpoint, youre eliminated.

We played with 12 racers, 12 CPU opponents, and a series of tracks, and because the course is constantly shifting, you can never feel quite comfortable even when youre riding high in the pack.

Despite being a work event, the amount of raucous cheering, taunting, and almost pleading to make it through each stage of a race has me convinced that Knockout Tour will be a dream for content creators and busy households alike.

Final Thoughts

Any doubts that Mario Kart World wouldnt be a big enough title to launch a console with were completely washed away within minutes of poking around its massive world, or as I gripped the Joy-Con ever tighter as I approached the next checkpoint of Knockout Tour.

With such a vast amount of content, I truly believe itll end up being a game my family and I will be playing for months on end.

For more on Switch 2, be sure to check out our preview of Welcome Tour and the console itself.

Previewed on Nintendo Switch 2. Preview event held by the publisher.

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