nintendo switch 2 – Trekking with Dennis

The Next Animal Crossing: A Wishlist

Let’s do something we haven’t done for a long time: talk about Animal Crossing!

For some context, Animal Crossing: New Horizons briefly became my most-played Nintendo Switch game… before being overtaken by Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. I enjoyed the game in 2020 and into 2021, but I felt it was far more limited than it should’ve been and I burned out on it more quickly than I expected. When I compare New Horizons to its predecessor – a game I was still playing from time to time when New Horizons was released – I think it comes up short.

Nintendo also didn’t give New Horizons the level of support and updates I would’ve hoped for. In true Nintendo fashion, they abandoned the best-selling Switch-exclusive title after little more than a year, giving a handful of free updates (some of which re-introduced items and features that had been added for one holiday season, then removed), and one piece of paid-for DLC. Neither the free updates nor the paid DLC addressed what I considered to be New Horizons’ most egregious flaws and missing features.

Concept art for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing five different character designs. — Concept art for some of the villagers in *New Horizons*.

It was a real shame to see some of New Leaf’s best elements – things which gave that game genuine longevity and kept me returning to it – stripped out of New Horizons. And while some of the things New Horizons added did improve the overall Animal Crossing experience… the trade-off wasn’t really worth it. Losing minigames and Tortimer’s island basically meant multiplayer wasn’t fun and offered very little to do besides having a wander around… and honestly, that got boring pretty quickly. Some players have crafted great islands, don’t get me wrong, but if all I can do is look around… let’s just say it reminds me of being dragged around stately homes and botanical gardens by my parents when I was a kid. And no, that is not a compliment!

So with New Horizons and New Leaf in mind… what should the next Animal Crossing look like? The tl;dr? The best of both worlds – while also learning from other recent games in the casual life-sim space. That’s what I’d want to see from the next game in the series, which is surely already in development for the Nintendo Switch 2.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing a player character snoozing in a decorated room. — Could a new Animal Crossing game be imminent?

There are rumours flitting around that a new Animal Crossing game might be teased as early as this month, with 2026 being talked about as a potential release year. I think it makes sense for Nintendo to line up a new Animal Crossing relatively early in the life of the Switch 2, especially if the more expensive system isn’t selling quite as well as its predecessor. Attracting that large “cozy game,” casual playerbase would make a lot of sense, so 2026 sounds plausible to me.

With all that being said, my usual caveats apply! I have no “insider information” about the Animal Crossing series. I’m not claiming to know when the game will be released or what new features might be included. Everything we’re going to discuss today is a wishlist from a fan, and nothing more. It also goes without saying that all of this is the subjective, not objective, opinion of just one person. If I recommend a new feature that you think sounds awful, or I miss out something you believe should be obvious… that’s okay. There ought to be enough room in the Animal Crossing community for polite discussion and respectful disagreement.

With all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at my Animal Crossing wishlist.

Wish #1:
More options in the character creator.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing various hairstyle options. — Hairstyles in *New Horizons*.

New Leaf and New Horizons don’t exactly have a ton of character creation options. There are a handful of eyes, noses, mouths, and hairstyles… but a modern title on more powerful hardware could expand this by a lot. We could see dozens of hairstyles, new hair and eye colours, and facial features, all of which would help us create unique and personalised characters. The new game will almost certainly stick with the familiar Animal Crossing art style, but even within that framework there’s a ton of room to do more.

I’d like to see different body types – villagers of different heights and weights. There could also be new facial hair and makeup options, too. I felt New Leaf’s customisation options were solid enough on the 3DS – but I gotta be honest: I expected more from New Horizons coming more than half a decade later on a much more powerful system. The Switch 2 really ought to be able to handle many more character creation options, and isn’t the point of a life simulator to, y’know, simulate your life? A lot of folks want to be able to put themselves into the game – so Nintendo really ought to make that happen!

Wish #2:
Learn from the successes (and shortcomings) of similar games.

Still frame from the Disney Dreamlight Valley Skull Rock Update trailer showing the player taking a selfie. — Taking a selfie in *Disney Dreamlight Valley*.

One of my favourite games of the last few years has been Disney Dreamlight Valley – despite its monetisation issues. Dreamlight Valley is itself inspired by Animal Crossing – but it’s also a game that took the life-sim formula and did more with it than any Animal Crossing title so far. In particular, being able to easily move buildings around by hopping into an editor mode on the fly is something the next Animal Crossing series could really use. Imagine if, instead of having to go to Tom Nook, wade through dialogue, wait 24 hours, and only be able to move one house at a time… you could just move any of them any time you wanted? And imagine if, instead of being permanently stuck with wherever you happened to site the museum or the shop… you could pick them up and move them around as your town expands. That would be neat, huh?

Then there are things like unique villager quests that could be a lot of fun. Other cozy life-sim titles, like this year’s Locomoto, also have better editing and customisation tools that I think Nintendo should take a serious look at. I don’t play a ton of these types of games, so I don’t know every new feature that might be kicking around out there, but there are bound to be others that I haven’t seen or can’t call to mind right now! The long and short of it is that Nintendo shouldn’t just look inwards at New Leaf and New Horizons, but outwards at other games in the genre. There are plenty of games on the market in a similar space – and some are a whole lot better than Animal Crossing right now.

Wish #3:
Proper menu/inventory icons.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing the player's inventory. — Pockets in *New Horizons*.

When I played New Leaf on the 3DS, I didn’t really mind that there was only one inventory icon for furniture, and one for clothes. But on the Switch? You’d have thought each individual item could’ve gotten its own unique icon. At the very least, it should’ve been possible to see at a glance whether I’m carrying a wardrobe or a teacup. These are pretty basic quality-of-life things that would make navigating menus, storage, and inventories so much smoother. It would be way easier to find crafted items, gifts, tools, and the like if each item had its own icon.

There’s no real reason why each item can’t be given its own inventory icon. It would’ve been possible on the Switch, so it’s certainly going to be achievable on the new system. It’s a pain the arse to scroll through storage and inventories, trying to find a particular item of clothing or piece of furniture – and there’s just no need for it any more. On older hardware? Sure. But now? It’s time to have a proper, well-organised inventory!

Wish #4:
Item durability needs to piss off.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing a broken watering can. — Ugh.

I don’t think I’ve ever played a single game – not one, ever – where I’ve thought to myself “gosh, I’m glad my tools/weapons break. That just makes this game so much more fun!” And I’ve definitely never been playing a game and thought “you know what would make this better? If my tools and guns randomly stopped working while I’m trying to use them!” I can’t think of any game where item durability is implemented well and actually makes sense – except, perhaps, for Minecraft.

New Horizons had pathetically awful item durability. I get that maybe your bottom-tier, basic tools wouldn’t work as well or last as long as proper ones. But come on… even the top-tier golden tools break after a handful of uses. And it’s such a pain in the arse to be halfway through a big task – like watering a flowerbed or breaking a money rock – only for your tool to break. And with no status indicators nor any way to keep track, tools seemed to break completely at random. I get the idea behind it… but it wasn’t fun. I don’t play a game like Animal Crossing for realism, and I definitely don’t play it to get frustrated when my pissing watering can breaks.

Wish #5:
Either use announcements properly or don’t include them.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing Isabelle's morning announcements. — No, Isabelle. No, it fucking doesn’t.

Isabelle’s morning announcements were absolutely useless most of the time. She’d let you know about big things, like events, but she’d also not let you know about everything… with her stupid little “oh, that doesn’t count as news” really pissing me off more and more as time went on. The town noticeboard wasn’t much better, with even basic things not being posted there. If you’re going to include a feature – or two – in a game like this specifically to make announcements about important events and things going on… use them. Otherwise they’re just a waste of time.

I’d like to start my play session with a proper announcement of what’s going on. But Isabelle wouldn’t tell you if a special character was visiting, or if it was the last day to see a certain event. And the noticeboard hardly got anything added to it. I’m pretty sure I missed seeing characters like Gulliver and Redd a few times because their visits weren’t made obvious. If you don’t have a lot of time to play, getting a roundup of what’s happening that day can be really important, and when there are built-in features especially created for this purpose, it just seems ridiculous not to take advantage of them.

Wish #6:
A proper third-person camera.
(As a togglable option)

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing a villager walking through fruit trees, with a tent in the background. — The standard camera angle.

This one might be controversial! Animal Crossing games have all had the same kind of top-down/isometric camera angle. But having played Dreamlight Valley, as discussed above, one thing I believe would really add to the immersion would be a proper over-the-shoulder third-person camera. Being able to explore the world from that perspective would be a game-changer – literally – and I think it would add a lot to the Animal Crossing experience.

However, because this would undoubtedly be controversial, I think it should be included as an option, not as something mandatory. The standard Animal Crossing camera could also be present for folks who want the more “traditional” experience. The rest of us can have fun exploring our villages a bit more up close and personal!

Wish #7:
Multiplayer mini-games.

Screenshot of Animal Crossing: New Leaf showing a player shooting balloons on Tortimer's Island. — Balloon hunting on Tortimer’s Island in *New Leaf*.

The reason I was still playing New Leaf years after its release – and the reason I don’t play New Horizons any more – is the multiplayer mini-games on Tortimer’s island. Being able to fire up New Leaf and play those games with friends was a ton of fun, and it kept me engaged with the game for way longer than I otherwise would’ve been. The mini-games were a blast, too, with plenty of different options on Tortimer’s “tours.”

It was such a shame that New Horizons didn’t include any of that. It meant multiplayer got boring really quickly, and while you can “make your own fun,” at least in a limited way… that doesn’t make up for it. Proper, structured games to play with friends made a world of difference to New Leaf, and I really felt their absence harmed New Horizons. I bought Switch Online entirely because a friend wanted to play New Horizons together… but both of us bounced off pretty quickly after we’d visited each other’s islands and realised that there wasn’t actually a lot to do there.

Wish #8:
Mini-games that can be played at will.
(No randomness/waiting)

Screenshot of Animal Crossing: New Leaf showing a game of hide-and-seek. — Playing hide-and-seek in *New Leaf*.

I’d like to be able to go up to my favourite villager and invite them to play a game. I don’t want to have to go up to everyone over and over again and hope that someone will ask me to play hide-and-seek! As the player, I should be able to choose when to start these mini-games, and pick from the list of available options. Maybe certain characters can refuse my request if they’re in a bad mood or something… sure. That could add to the immersion. But I should be able to start these mini-games at will to give me something to do when I’m not weeding or fishing!

This would also be present in multiplayer. After arriving at a friend’s town, we could choose to start a game of something like hide-and-seek with some of the villagers from their town, and that could add to the fun. But instead of approaching characters and hoping to get the right dialogue prompts, this should be a permanent fixture; something we can always ask our villagers to do.

Wish #9:
Support the game for 6+ years instead of just 18 months.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing Happy Home Paradise and its pricing. — *Happy Home Paradise* and its associated update were the last major content additions to *New Horizons* – barely eighteen months after the game launched.

Nintendo dropped the ball by abandoning New Horizons so quickly. Look around at the cozy life-sim genre and what do you see? Ongoing support for multiple years from all of the big developers. New items, events, and gameplay features are frequently added, often for free but sometimes as paid DLC. Nintendo did this for the game’s first year, but a lot of that was really spent on patches and on adding features that, frankly, should’ve been present from day one. The next game in the series should get continuing support really for the life of the Switch 2, but at least for five or six years instead of one or two.

This should also include listening and responding to community feedback. If players ask for, say, more vegetables to plant… then add them in the next update. The best long-running titles have devs who engage with and listen to players, and while Animal Crossing has done some of this, sometimes – like reducing the scope of the Easter event – there’s a lot more that Nintendo could do on that front. I’d love to see the next Animal Crossing given years’ worth of free updates. If the game’s gonna sell tens of millions of copies, it’s not like adding new items every now and then is gonna break the bank!

Wish #10:
More shops.
(All of which can be placed anywhere, and all of which can expand.)

Screenshot of Animal Crossing: New Leaf showing a player on the shopping street. — The shopping street in *New Leaf* – with construction underway to expand Nook’s Cranny.

After New Leaf had an entire shopping street, it was kinda pathetic that New Horizons only got two shops. And after New Leaf’s main shop got five or six expansions, taking it from a tin hut to a full-blown multi-storey department store, it was pretty lame that Nook’s Cranny only got one solitary upgrade in New Horizons. Even when Nintendo relented to pressure and added Brewster’s coffee shop back into the game, it wasn’t able to be placed in the world and could only be a new room in the museum. That just made me sad.

So the next game should have, at a minimum, all of the shops from New Leaf, and all of them should be able to be placed in the world. There could be options to place two shops in the same space, or to put the coffee shop inside the museum – but these should be optional, not mandatory! If I want to place the coffee shop in its own dedicated building out in the game world, I should have that freedom. And all of these – including the coffee shop – should get at least one level of expansion. The main shop should get half a dozen.

Wish #11:
Massively expanded villager dialogue.
(And more villager personality types than there are available slots)

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing a villager crafting in their home. — Dialogue got pretty repetitive…

New Horizons gave you ten slots on your island for villagers to move into. But there are only eight villager personality types! What that meant in practice is you’d get at least two villagers who were word-for-word identical to one another. Combine that with some pretty lazy and sparse dialogue, and you’ve got a recipe for boring, repetitive character interactions. Some common events – like walking into a villager’s home while they’re crafting – literally only had one possible line of dialogue, meaning even if you didn’t have two of the same personality type you’d still always see the same text every single time that event triggered.

Given that every Animal Crossing game just uses text for dialogue, adding a huge amount of additional text wouldn’t inflate the size of the game or really have any noticeable impact whatsoever. That goes double for the Switch 2, so I really hope that the next game in the series can have… oh, let’s say quadruple the amount of dialogue, with new villager personality types to further mix things up. And there should be more personality types than there are housing slots available in your town – so you’re always going to have a reason to mix things up and bring in new villagers.

Wish #12:
Farming and cooking from day 1.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing cooking recipes. — Recipes after one of the final *New Horizons* updates.

By the time New Horizons introduced crops other than pumpkins, I’d already given up on the game. Some of the new farming and cooking things looked neat – but not neat enough to warrant starting a brand-new island or returning to my old one! It would be great if the next game could include these pretty basic features from day one, and not strip out gameplay elements to “add” later while expecting praise! Farming crops and cooking recipes are bog-standard life-sim features and should be present from the beginning.

I love how Dreamlight Valley handles these things, though. Crops can be farmed for cash if you have enough space, but they need watering and attention. And also crops are ingredients in all of your recipes. Food in that game can be consumed for extra energy, given to villagers to boost your friendship, sold for cash, or even used for decoration. New Horizons had some of that, but I think it could be massively expanded to make farming and cooking integral parts of the experience.

Wish #13:
Some kind of drivable vehicle.

Promo image for Mario Kart 8 showing the Animal Crossing Villager character in a kart. — Yep, exactly like this!

If we assume that New Horizons’ successor is going to have a larger map, it would be neat if we could get some kind of bike or kart to make traversing the game world a little faster. This could be a late-game item, meaning you’d need to invest a lot of time and money into acquiring or crafting it, and it could be limited to only being drivable on paths/roads, not just everywhere. But it could make doing your chores a lot more fun – and it would feel like there was something to work towards beyond house expansions, new furniture, and so on.

Depending on what kind of setting the new game goes for – it could be a return to the forest, a city, or another island of some kind – then different vehicle options could be found to fit the game. Perhaps an even bigger project for your new village could see you build your own railway line, with a train and different buildable stations around the village. That could be a ton of fun, too, and a great way to include the Animal Crossing train, which was absent from New Horizons.

Wish #14:
New special characters and events.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing Zipper in the Roost. — Maybe not this guy, though…

New Horizons introduced a couple of new special characters to run things like the fishing tourney and the bug-off. But these events weren’t new, and they played out pretty much the same as in previous entries in the series. I’d like to see brand-new special characters tied to new events – maybe a hide-and-seek championship or a scavenger hunt. Either of those could introduce a new character to organise and manage the event, mixing things up and giving players something new to do at least once a week.

This could also expand to include new annual holidays or seasonal events; we got things like the wedding and the fireworks nights in New Horizons, but I’m sure there are others and different ones that a new game could include. I don’t think Animal Crossing should go overboard here; we don’t need a special character and event every single day! But having new ones in the mix, helmed by new characters, would be a lot of fun.

Wish #15:
Go easy on the monetisation.

Still frame of the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Welcome Tour. — *Welcome Tour* – and the Switch 2’s launch overall – doesn’t leave me feeling optimistic for this one.

New Horizons, despite its limitations, was priced fairly. Given recent behaviour from Nintendo – jacking up prices left, right, and centre, and going all-in on microtransactions in mobile games like Mario Kart Tour – I don’t want to see the next Animal Crossing game monetised to death. We don’t need “season passes,” paid-for skins, or dozens of tiny “item packs” to add content to the game for a fee. The game should be reasonably-priced, with plenty of free updates throughout its life, and one or perhaps two expansion packs – provided they’re sizable and not overpriced.

This is a source of concern, I’ll be honest with you. I can absolutely see Nintendo trying to cash in on the Animal Crossing series, charging for items, features, characters, currency, and all sorts of things that should be included with the game. I was disappointed when Dreamlight Valley’s monetisation got out of hand, and you don’t need to look far to see life-sim games with ridiculous price tags. The Sims 4, for instance, costs over £1,300 if you were to buy all of its various content packs and DLC.

So that’s it.

Promo screenshot for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showing a player character standing outside a house with decorative items and fencing. — What will come next for Animal Crossing?

We’ve taken a look at a whole bunch of things that I’d like to see from the next Animal Crossing game!

This series has a lot of potential – but for me, at least, New Horizons didn’t live up to it. Most of what we’ve discussed today could – and I would argue should – have been part of New Horizons or added to it later. So in that sense, I don’t think I’m being unreasonable or asking for anything totally crazy from the next game in the series.

I’m not sure what the developers have in store, though. Could we get a new game set in an urban environment, for instance, or are we going to stick with the deserted island? Will characters like Tortimer and Kappn have bigger roles this time, after being effectively absent in New Horizons? What will be the new game’s biggest addition or transformation? Those are all open questions!

If Nintendo gets this right, the next Animal Crossing could be the game that convinces me to save up for a Switch 2. But if it looks like it’s going to be drowning in microtransactions and monetisation… maybe I won’t bother.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is out now for Nintendo Switch. The next Animal Crossing game is presumably in development, but no release date has been announced at time of writing. The Animal Crossing series – including all titles and properties discussed above – is the copyright of Nintendo. Some screenshots and artwork courtesy of IGDB and Nookipedia. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Uh-Oh: The Nintendo Switch 2 Is Still In Stock

Thu 05.06.25Dennis

When the Nintendo Wii launched here in the UK in late 2006, pre-orders sold out well in advance. I was on a waiting list that was months long, and it wasn’t until almost half a year later that I managed to finally get my hands on a console. In 2017, though I wasn’t on a waiting list and didn’t buy a Switch right away, I was well aware that there were waiting lists and some folks found it difficult to get their hands on a console on launch day. That’s to say nothing of the problems Sony and Microsoft had when the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles launched a few years ago. Those machines were out of stock everywhere for basically an entire year – at least here in the UK.

Nintendo emailed me shortly after the Switch 2 was announced; a marketing circular hyping up the new console and inviting pre-orders. I didn’t actually meet Nintendo’s stringent pre-order requirements, having cancelled my Switch Online membership for lack of use a while ago! But Nintendo has been pushing hard for pre-orders, and there was even a minor controversy a few weeks ago when it seemed that Game, the UK’s only remaining chain of video game shops, had messed up some folks’ pre-orders. The Switch 2 was all set to be the hottest piece of tech of 2025 and looked like it’d be hard to find!

Which makes it feel profoundly odd that today, on launch day, consoles are available everywhere I look.

Screenshot of Amazon UK showing a Nintendo Switch 2 console. — The Nintendo Switch 2 hasn’t sold out… at least here in the UK at time of writing.

I don’t think it’s necessarily a damning indictment of the Switch 2 that it hasn’t sold out. In fact, if you remember my criticisms of Microsoft and Sony back in 2020, you’ll know that I argued then that companies needed to do more to ensure they had enough stock to go around before launch. Playing into the hands of touts and scalpers was really poor from both Xbox and PlayStation, and on the one hand I’m glad that Nintendo seems to have been better-prepared.

But on the other… I can’t shake a funny feeling. Nintendo has never been well-prepared for… well, anything. Go back twenty years and you’ll find jokes and memes doing the rounds about Nintendo machines and games being unavailable or out of stock, and I think I’m right in saying that even the beleaguered Wii U had stock issues when it was released back in 2012. So… has Nintendo finally got it right? Did the company, for what could be the first time ever, manage to gauge public interest perfectly, and successfully manufacture and ship enough units all across the world?

Promo image of the Nintendo Wii and a Wii Remote. — The Wii was out of stock everywhere for months after its launch.

Or could there be another explanation?

Is the Switch 2 still in stock today because… well, there just isn’t as much interest in the console as Nintendo had hoped? Even if you’re the hardest of hard-core Nintendo fanatics, you can’t deny that the Switch 2’s marketing campaign has been dominated by the high price of games, as well as the increased price of the system itself. I warned that pitching the Switch 2 at a comparable price to Xbox and PlayStation consoles would invite potentially unfavourable comparisons, and for gamers interested in a handheld, there are cheaper and more versatile handheld PCs on the market.

Then there’s the launch lineup. As I said last time, the only game I’d really call a “system seller” or “killer app” is Mario Kart World – the game which has attracted a ton of criticism for its price tag. Donkey Kong Bananza isn’t a launch title, and as a game in a second-tier franchise I doubt it would be a huge mover of Switch 2s on its own anyway. What other games are there at launch that are going to attract players? Enhanced ports of a handful of Switch 1 titles and underwhelming versions of games that look and run better on other consoles? I don’t mean to be unkind, but I doubt many folks are buying a £400 console to play Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess or the paid-for demo Welcome Tour.

Promo still of Mario Kart World showing Mario on a snowmobile wearing a cowboy hat. — Nintendo is clearly banking on *Mario Kart World* to shift a lot of consoles.

Maybe this is a weird quirk of the UK market, and perhaps gamers in the United States, Europe, and Japan are going to be waiting a while to get a chance to play on Nintendo’s latest machine. But I’m not so sure, and I’ll be very curious to see the Switch 2 sales figures – if Nintendo announces them – sometime in the autumn when the company talks about the current financial quarter.

There are issues in the UK with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, inflation, and a government that seems hell-bent on punishing the poorest and least-well off in society. So that could absolutely be a contributing factor to why people aren’t confident in investing in a brand-new, relatively expensive, luxury item like a games console. But if that were true, I’d have expected to see sales of Xbox, PlayStation, PC, smartphones, and other gadgets in decline – which is something that hasn’t happened.

Screenshot of UK retailer Game, showing a Nintendo Switch 2 console. — Another UK retailer (Game) has Switch 2 consoles in stock.

So what’s going on? Maybe I’ll check back in a couple of days’ time and find that Switch 2 consoles are out of stock. Or maybe Nintendo finally got one right and managed to produce enough consoles to meet launch demand. There’s a first time for everything, after all. But I can’t shake the feeling at this very early stage that something isn’t quite going to plan, and that the Switch 2 might not be reaching the sales targets Nintendo and their corporate investors had in mind. But I’m not going to write the console’s obituary just yet! There’s still plenty of time for things to change; it’s literally the machine’s first day on sale. However, the simple fact that consoles haven’t already sold out has definitely caught me off guard.

If you put a gun to my head and told me to predict, right now, how well the Switch 2 would perform across its lifespan… I’d say that I still expect it to do well with Nintendo’s core fanbase, but that it might struggle to reach the same number of units sold as the original Switch. The price tag is a big part of that… but so is the console’s uninspired design. For decades, Nintendo consoles were new, innovative, and fresh. Sometimes that worked, and sometimes it didn’t work quite so well, but what you could never say about Nintendo was that they were stagnant. The company built a reputation around innovative, fun, family-friendly games. The Switch 2 is the company’s first console to feel repetitive and samey… and maybe, just maybe, that could be another contributing factor.

Or I could be totally wrong and by Saturday, it’ll be a six-month wait to get a Switch 2! Still… strange times.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is available to purchase now. The Switch, Switch 2, Super Mario, and other properties discussed above are the copyright of Nintendo. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Mario Kart World: Sky High Price, Unmet Expectations?

Sun 20.04.25Dennis

I’ve been looking forward to the game I’d been tentatively calling “Mario Kart 9” for years. Seriously, check out the dedicated Mario Kart page here on the website; five years ago, I was already putting together fantasy retro cups and talking about which characters could be included. I first played Super Mario Kart when I had a Super Nintendo in the early ’90s, and one of my favourite memories from my time spent working in the games industry is getting to play Mario Kart 8 in 2013 – a full year before it launched – at an official Nintendo press event. I’ve played every mainline game in the series on their original consoles (and maybe on a cheeky emulator, too) and I’ve had so much fun playing by myself and with friends. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is my most-played Switch game by quite a long way, and I still go back to it to play my favourite tracks every now and then.

So let’s re-emphasise that for the record: I am a Mario Kart fan!

Why do I feel the need to start this piece with such a big disclaimer? Well, having sat down to watch the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast with pretty high expectations… I’m left feeling a little disappointed. Usually I don’t like to criticise a game before it’s even been released, but the way Nintendo is pitching Mario Kart World – and particularly how the corporation is pricing the game – hasn’t left a good first impression.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Luigi racing on a desert track. — How do you feel about *Mario Kart World*?

I knew and understood that Mario Kart World would have fewer racetracks than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has. That seemed blindingly obvious to me years ago, even before the Booster Course Pass doubled the number of tracks, so I don’t necessarily think it’s a problem or a bad thing that the new game will launch with what looks to be 32 race courses instead of 96. But… there’s no getting away from the fact that with fewer tracks comes less replayability and less diversity of environments. I can fire up Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and play a racetrack I haven’t seen in months; Mario Kart World’s roster – at one-third the size – will wear out its welcome relatively quickly in comparison.

And that comparison matters because, according to Nintendo, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (and presumably the Booster Course Pass, too) will be playable on the Switch 2. Not only that, but it’ll be slightly less expensive for way more racetracks: copies of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe retail for less than £40 here in the UK, with the Booster Course Pass as a downloadable add-on for an additional £22.50. The price of Mario Kart World is going to be £67 digitally or £75 for a physical copy.

The store listing for Mario Kart World. — *Mario Kart World’*s official Nintendo Store listing.

Some of the new and re-imagined racetracks look good, don’t get me wrong. Boo Cinema looks especially creative, DK Spaceport looks new and retro at the same time, and I really liked the new look at Wario Stadium from the N64 – which, in its original form, was one of my least-favourite tracks from that game.

There are a couple of oddities, however, among the roster of tracks. Firstly, even if you put a gun to my head I wouldn’t have included Sky High Sundae; that bland track is one of the worst from the Booster Course Pass and when there were so many better options, I don’t know why a boring food-themed oval would be included here! DS Desert Hills was also fairly uninspired in its original form, though at least there’s a bit more room for improvement there, perhaps. I’m also a little concerned about the Crown City racetrack being part of two different cups; not sure what’s going on there or how those tracks will be different, but I guess we’ll find out.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Boo Cinema. — Boo Cinema looks like a very creative racetrack.

On the character roster, my main of Dry Bones is included, which was important for me personally! And obviously the cute cow is going to be a fan favourite, as will new additions like the Hammer Bro and Monty Mole. But again… Mario Kart 8 Deluxe still comes out on top here, and there are going to be some pretty disappointed players whose favourite drivers aren’t coming back this time. The likes of Isabelle and the Villager from the Animal Crossing series, Link from Zelda, Diddy and Funky Kong, and most of the Koopalings from the Super Mario series don’t seem to be included. There are also noteworthy omissions from Mario Kart Tour – the phone game that has proven to be quite popular. King Bob-Omb, Donkey Kong Jr., and Peachette are all missing. And where oh where is Pink Gold Peach?!

There also appear to be no Mii characters or other user-created characters. Again, this could be a bit of a blow to players who liked to put themselves into the Mario Kart experience.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Cow. — I can’t be the only one who thought this character would have a different name, right?

I’m not especially disappointed that underwater driving seems to have been removed. In most cases in Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, underwater sections felt pretty samey, especially in tracks that weren’t really designed with that in mind. Amsterdam Drift is a case in point; its bland concrete channels filled with crystal-clear water felt nothing like the city they were supposed to represent. Having said that, removing a feature is something rare for the Mario Kart series… and Mario Kart World seems to have sacrificed several popular features and ways of racing.

In addition to underwater racing, we’re losing the glider and anti-gravity, too. This is going to be more of a limitation than you realise, as it’s going to impact which tracks can be brought into the new game in future. Courses like Mario Kart 8′s Mario Circuit, which used anti-gravity in a big way, or Piranha Plant Cove, which was almost entirely underwater, seem to be ruled out as future inclusions due to these changes.

Screenshot of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe + Booster Course Pass showing Dry Bones racing on Piranha Plant Cove. — Dry Bones racing on Piranha Plant Cove.

And we’re still just getting started with removed features. Battle Mode seems to have gotten a significant downgrade, not only in terms of there being fewer battle types available, but also with a lack of dedicated battle arenas. The Direct didn’t focus on Battle Mode for long, as it’s seemingly an afterthought in Mario Kart World, but from what we did see, all of the battle mode footage seems to be taking place on regular racetracks. Some of the tracks may have areas cordoned off to turn them into makeshift arenas, but that’s hardly the same thing has creating dedicated, hand-crafted ones. Fans of Battle Mode (a category into which I do not fall) may not be thrilled with these changes.

Then we come to the vehicles themselves. Kart customisation has been entirely removed. Instead of choosing wheels, bodies, and gliders separately – as we did in Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8 – karts now come as complete units. There are different models to choose from, sure, but again the lack of customisation means there’s less choice than in previous titles. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe had literally hundreds of possible combinations, but Mario Kart World is narrowing this down with pre-made karts and bikes.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing the vehicle select screen. — There are no customisation options for vehicles this time.

200cc mode has been present in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Mario Kart Tour, but again it was noticeably absent from the Nintendo Direct. Is it possible that this mode is locked by default and needs to be unlocked through gameplay? Sure… but then why hasn’t Nintendo said so? Is it possible that this mode is locked and needs to be paid for to unlock it? That was the case in Tour, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the reason for Nintendo’s radio silence. I’m gonna level with you – I’m a 150cc racer! 200cc has always been a bit too fast for my taste, but again it’s not just about what I want or what I’d miss. The fact that this mode – which is popular with some of Mario Kart’s biggest fans – is missing is significant.

So let’s recap. There are fewer battle modes with seemingly no dedicated battle areas. One-third as many racetracks as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Missing drivers, including some fan-favourites from the most recent game in the series. No vehicle customisation. No underwater or anti-gravity racing. And possibly no 200cc mode. If that’s the sum total of what’s been removed, it begs the question… what’s going to take the place of all of these missing features?

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Mario in Battle Mode. — Battle Mode appears to have received a downgrade.

Mario Kart World’s marketing thus far has really hyped up its open world. That’s the main new feature; an inclusion so big it’s literally in the game’s title.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: an open world is not the right choice for a lot of games. Too many franchises and series that try to emulate this popular style not only don’t do a good job, but they lose what made their earlier iterations so successful and/or unique in the process. There are plenty of examples of bland open worlds that are just too empty and too devoid of meaningful gameplay to be fun… and parts of the Mario Kart World Direct and marketing material are making me feel nervous in that respect.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing the game's map. — *Mario Kart World’*s map.

If the free roam mode were an entirely optional thing, I guess I’d say it wasn’t a huge deal. It would still be frustrating in some ways that Nintendo chose to add this open world area at the expense of some of the features, characters, and gameplay components we talked about above, but if it’s an optional thing that I can turn off and not engage with… that’s tolerable, right? But Mario Kart World is being built from the ground up around this open world mechanic… and I’m concerned that it’s going to have a negative impact on the main thing I want out of a Mario Kart game: fun, arcadey racing.

Driving from one racetrack to the next, either in Grand Prix mode or in one of the Knockout Rallies, could be a lot of fun, but that’ll depend on how interesting the in-between areas actually are. Some of the free roam highways and roads looked pretty straightforward, with not many twists or turns and no noticeable obstacles aside from a few cars. But what really concerns me the most is that in this mode – which is apparently the default – races are knocked down from the usual three laps to just one.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing the free roam title card. — How interesting will this free roam mode actually be?

To reiterate that: instead of racing three laps of each racetrack, the default option in Mario Kart World will be to race one lap, with these in-between sections taking up the rest of your time. Even if the open world is bigger, more interesting, and laid out better than I’m expecting based on what I’ve seen so far… that can’t be right, can it? The whole point of a Mario Kart game is to race around fun, well-constructed, cleverly-designed racetracks. To cut back on the main aspect of gameplay for this open world aspect just strikes me as being wrong; it’s as if Nintendo’s own developers and producers don’t realise what people want, expect, and enjoy the most in a Mario Kart game.

There have been open world racing games before. Forza Horizon 5 is one – and that’s a game I happen to really enjoy. But games like that are designed in such a way that every road and off-road track can be raced on, and I just don’t get that impression from Nintendo’s marketing material so far. If you’ve played Forza Horizon 5, for example, you’ll know that basically every road in the game is included in at least one race, and there are all kinds of different vehicles, different races to get involved in, and different challenges out in the open world. There’s no distinction between the racetrack and the open world; every road can be driven on in free roam mode and raced on in a variety of different races. That doesn’t appear to be true of Mario Kart World, which seems to have 32 racetracks separated by open world areas.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing four different free roam scenes. — Four examples of the game’s open world away from the racetrack.

The Nintendo Direct was the best opportunity to sell Mario Kart World and to show off how dense and full of stuff to do its open world is. Based on what was on display, I’m just not feeling very confident in this aspect of the game. And when the open world is so important to Mario Kart World that Nintendo is even willing to cut out laps of the main racetracks in Grand Prix mode, that isn’t great.

As far as I could see, there are four things to do in the open world. Firstly, you can drive from one racetrack to another in either the Rally or GP modes. Secondly, there are switches to hit which allow you to collect blue coins. What these coins do or whether there’s any point to them beyond a collect-a-thon wasn’t clear. Third, there’s a second kind of coin referred to as a “Peach Medallion” to collect. Again, what these do isn’t clear. Finally, there are question-mark panels to hit – but what these do, and what the point of hitting them is, wasn’t explained.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing a challenge/mission in free roam mode. — Do these challenges and collect-a-thons serve a greater purpose… or are they just filler?

Mario Kart isn’t a big, deep narrative experience. I don’t care about “spoilers” in a game like this, because there really isn’t anything substantial to spoil. So to me, this feels like a pretty big marketing fail on Nintendo’s part. By not explaining these open-world features in a bit more detail, Nintendo has left me with the impression that the blue coins, medallions, and question-blocks are basically going to be akin to the pigeons in Grand Theft Auto IV insofar as they don’t do anything, add nothing of substance to the game, and just serve to pad things out with unnecessary busywork for players. They could be an attempt to compensate for the lesser number of racetracks while offering a half-hearted justification for the open world format.

I could be wrong about that – and if so, I’ll definitely make a note of that if and when I play the game for myself. But speaking as someone who used to work in video games marketing, the fact that I’m coming out of this presentation with such a poor impression of the game’s biggest new feature and key selling-point? That’s not good, and Nintendo needs to do more in the weeks before Mario Kart World launches to clarify what some of these semi-hidden collectables will actually do, and if there’s going to be more to the open world than has been revealed so far.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Yoshi finding a coin. — Yoshi closes in on a hidden coin.

In theory, an open world Mario Kart game is not a bad idea. But the open world side of the game – if it’s going to be implemented in this way as a core feature around which basically the entire rest of the game is being built – needs to have more to offer than we’ve seen so far. A few random collectables doesn’t, in my view, justify sacrificing a dozen or more dedicated racetracks that could’ve been added to the game, and driving in between races doesn’t seem like it’s gonna feel all that special if all there is to drive on are straight highways or empty off-road fields and patches of dirt. This free roam mode could be a fun idea if it were just a little additional area for players to muck about in while waiting in a multiplayer lobby, or to kill time with a friend on the couch. But when the entire game is built around an open world like this… let’s just say I hope it’s better than it looks and has much more going on than we’ve seen so far.

Art styles are a subjective thing, and there’s no denying that Mario Kart World looks better than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe did. But I’ll be blunt: I don’t think it looks a lot better. The art style is basically the same as it was in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and while there’s more texture to some parts of the game – like tyres, for example, or the metal on a Bullet Bill – I’m just having a hard time seeing the graphics as being a significant upgrade given the price hike.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Bullet Bill. — This is definitely the best Bullet Bill has ever looked.

Mario Kart World will be, at launch, the most expensive racing game on the market. Heck, it’s technically the most expensive video game of all-time as no other Switch 2 titles are launching at £75/$80. But when you take even a cursory look around at other racing games, even in the arcade racing space, Mario Kart World looks positively last-gen. Again, this isn’t a criticism of the graphics or art style on their own, but rather how the game is priced relative to its competitors and how the price is seen in relation to the most recent entry in the series.

After more than eleven years and two entire console generations, Mario Kart World ought to be a massive step up in visual terms. But it isn’t. It’s a step up, sure, I won’t try to deny that. But it doesn’t feel like a game that can really push the Switch 2 to its limits. Even if we compare the Switch 2 to the previous-generation Xbox One and PlayStation 4, there are games on those consoles which looked better and did more with graphical fidelity than Mario Kart World is seemingly aiming for.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing photo mode (and the main characters from Super Mario Kart on a billboard). — Is *Mario Kart World* a significant enough visual and graphical upgrade given its high price?

In this respect, I feel like Nintendo is cheaping out. The corporation knows it has a winner in the Mario Kart series (Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sold something like 60 million copies on the Switch) so there’s less of a need to push the boat out. Resources that could’ve been spent on improving the game’s overall visual style and graphical fidelity have been reallocated, because Nintendo feels confident that the new game will sell incredibly well no matter what.

There was a moment in the Mario Kart World direct where my favourite racer, Dry Bones, does a little spin and momentarily faces the camera. That animation seems practically unchanged from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (and trust me, I’ve spent hundreds of hours with Dry Bones in that game, so I know what his trick animations look like!) Neither the animation nor the character model itself look or feel noticeably different to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and I’m left underwhelmed by that. Nintendo has had years to work on improving the way Mario Kart looks… this new entry in the series feels like the least-impressive upgrade so far, at least in graphical terms.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Dry Bones performing a trick. — This animation is lifted directly from *Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*.

Nintendo isn’t the only company to be graphically stuck, of course. I noted before the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 launched that this console generation was likely to be the least-impressive so far in terms of graphical upgrades, and I think four-and-a-bit years of cross-generational games have more than born that out! But Nintendo has been years behind Xbox and PlayStation in terms of graphical fidelity, so there was an opportunity with the Switch 2 and Mario Kart World to get closer to what current-gen (or even just last-gen) consoles were capable of. That opportunity doesn’t appear to have been taken, at least not fully.

So Mario Kart World looks better, but only iteratively so. Its deliberately cartoony style and bright colours covers some of that up, and I wouldn’t say anything about the game looks bad. But from my perspective, nothing about it blew me away, either – and again, this comes back to the price point. For $80, and as the most expensive racing game of all-time, does Mario Kart World look good enough? Is the graphical upgrade significant enough to justify a $20 price hike from a mere one generation ago?

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Mario racing on a snowmobile. — This is the best Mario Kart has ever looked… but not the best it *could* have looked with a bit more effort.

Mario Kart World is going to add some new features that look like a lot of fun. I noted above that anti-gravity racing is gone, but replacing it will be grinding on rails and hopping on vertical surfaces. These look like they have some potential to open up different ways to race, and I’m in favour of that. Gliders may be gone, but racing in the air isn’t, with karts seemingly transforming into planes at different points. Again, this looks like it could be a lot of fun, and while it’s not exactly ground-breaking in the way the introduction of gliders was in Mario Kart 7, I’m at least pleased to see it remains a part of the Mario Kart experience.

Then we have a feature that I can already tell is gonna be controversial: re-winding gameplay! Speaking for myself, I can see this having a very specific use: practicing particularly difficult jumps or shortcuts. Think about it: how many times have you played a track with a very precise shortcut, only to fail it and have to re-start? This re-wind feature seems like it’ll help players who want to practice certain parts of racetracks, and I don’t really have an issue with that. I don’t see it being especially useful in actual races, though, but it almost feels like an accessibility feature in some respects, which if you know me you’ll know I’m keen on in games in general.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing the rewind feature. — There’s a use for this feature. A limited use, sure, but still a use.

After proving to be a big hit in Mario Kart Tour (and Super Mario Odyssey, too) character costumes are coming to Mario Kart World. I like this – and I like the idea of unlockables! I just hope that Nintendo isn’t planning on selling skins like they did in Tour, trying to pretend like the most expensive racing game of all-time is a free-to-play mobile title. As I won’t be buying a Switch 2 at launch, I’ll be able to keep an eye on this from afar, and if it seems like a crappy skin marketplace is going to be added, that’ll be a huge red flag against Mario Kart World for me.

I gotta say, though, the way some of these costumes are unlocked feels a bit… weird. I mean, the way it was explained is that you visit some kind of roadside food truck, acquire a dish, and then your character is transformed. When I watched the Switch 2 Direct, I thought it was funny that Mario ate a cheeseburger then was wearing a stereotypically “American” outfit. That couldn’t be on purpose, I thought! But no, that’s literally how this mechanic works. Eat sushi and you get a Japanese costume. Eat a burger and your character turns into an American. I guess if you want to get a Spanish outfit you eat paella? Or if you eat fish and chips you turn British? It’s funny in some ways… I guess. But it also feels like it’s kind of stereotyping whole countries and cultures, boiling them down to one dish and one type of outfit. It also wasn’t made clear how many alternate outfits are present in the game – and whether characters like Dry Bones will have any. It seems like every character should have alternate appearances if this consuming food mechanic is a universal thing, but again this wasn’t explained in any of the marketing material.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Luigi with a pizza. — Mamma mia! That’s-a one spicy pizza pie!

There are things I like in Mario Kart World. Some of the new items look interesting, like the coin shell and the ice flower. Kamek’s magic could be interesting, too, though I suspect it’ll be somewhat limited. I like the idea of character costumes even if I’m not entirely sold on how they’re unlocked and implemented. And there are some fun looking racetracks – both brand-new ones and reimagined retro courses. If Santa Claus gave me Mario Kart World for free, I would play it, I’d enjoy at least parts of it, and it would probably end the generation among my most-played Switch 2 games.

But a game can be good and still underwhelming, delivering a fun experience while failing to live up to the expectations that have been set for it. By pricing the game so high, Nintendo has set expectations that its marketing material strongly suggests Mario Kart World will not reach. Given the corporation’s penchant for monetisation and microtransactions, I’m also concerned that things like new tracks, new drivers, new costumes, and even items might be sold separately, driving up that sky high price even further.

Still frame from the Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct broadcast showing Bowser's Castle. — It’s Nintendo headquarters… I mean Bowser’s Castle!

So that’s how I feel coming out of the Mario Kart World Direct.

Nintendo has, in my view, not handled this situation particularly well. Mario Kart World’s marketing campaign is overwhelmingly dominated by its record-setting price point, meaning everything is being viewed through that lens. The sky high price comes with sky high expectations, and Mario Kart World may struggle to meet them for some players – such as myself. Of particular concern is the open world – will there be enough to do and enough variety of driving experiences in between the racetracks to make it a worthwhile addition to Mario Kart? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

I hope this has been interesting – and not too depressing. If you’re beyond hyped for Mario Kart World, please keep in mind that all of this is just one player’s entirely subjective opinion, and I’m not trying to tell anyone how to feel or that they shouldn’t be excited for this game. In many ways, I’m still excited to play a new Mario Kart game. I’m just a little concerned that it won’t be as spectacular as it arguably should be given its price point, and as someone who used to work in games marketing, I’m left decidedly underwhelmed by the campaign Nintendo has created for its new console’s flagship launch title.

Mario Kart World will release alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 on the 5th of June 2025. Mario Kart World (and other titled mentioned above) is the copyright of Nintendo. Some promotional art courtesy of IGDB and/or the Mario Wiki. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Nintendo Switch 2: The Price Problem

Fri 11.04.25Dennis

When I took a look at Nintendo’s Switch 2 broadcast earlier this month, I noted that the price for games has gone up – and that could be offputting for some players and families. It turns out that Nintendo’s self-inflicted price problem has blown up and quickly became one of the biggest talking points coming out of the presentation… so today I thought we could look at the issue in a bit more detail. We’re also going to answer a deceptively simple question: will it matter? Or by the time the console launches, will most people simply brush off the price hike and buy one anyway?

First of all, let’s separate the price of the Switch 2 console itself from the price of at least some of its flagship games. £400/$450 – which is the current price at time of writing, prior to any tariff-related adjustments – didn’t strike me as being terrible. It’s more or less in line with the current-gen Xbox and PlayStation consoles, sitting somewhere in between those consoles’ cheaper and more expensive variants. But is that the right price point for a Nintendo console – particularly one which is a hybrid, and far less powerful than its competitors?

Screenshot of Smyth's UK website showing the Switch 2 listing. — The Switch 2 will sell for £430 here in the UK.
*Image Credit: Smyth’s UK*

In 2018, I paid £280 for my Nintendo Switch. That’s just seven years ago, yet the price of a Nintendo console has gone up by 42% in that short span of time. That doesn’t feel right the more I think about it – and going back to earlier console generations, this is Nintendo’s biggest price jump… ever. In the ’90s, the price of Nintendo’s consoles stayed at $199 in the United States, even as inflation set in. The GameCube in 2002 cost the same $199 at launch as the Super NES had in 1991. From there, Nintendo consoles jumped up an average of 22% each generation from the GameCube to the original Switch. You can check out the numbers and do the sums for yourself if you like – all this information is publically available online.

All of this leads to a reasonable question. What is the Switch 2 offering to justify a 42% price hike over its predecessor?

It isn’t innovation. As we discussed last time, Nintendo seems content to double-down on the Switch format, not doing anything radically different. The Wii U, Wii, Nintendo 64, DS, 3DS, and other Nintendo machines all offered some kind of new or innovative way to play when they launched, but the company seems to have thrown in the towel on that front – at least for this current generation.

Still frame from the Nintendo Direct: Switch 2 broadcast showing Elden Ring. — *Elden Ring* – as it will appear on Switch 2.

It isn’t better graphics, either. The Switch 2, as I noted in my response to the Nintendo Direct, looks okay, but nothing blew me away in graphical terms. Some titles – like Elden Ring, Cyberpunk 2077, and Hogwarts Legacy – look noticeably worse on the Switch 2 than they do on other consoles or PC. Look at the trees in the screenshot above – see how flat and two-dimensional they look? Compare that screenshot from the Switch 2 to a comparable one from Elden Ring running on a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series console and see how there’s a significant downgrade.

So the Switch 2 is, in essence, an iterative improvement on the original Switch format. It retains the branding, the same colour scheme, the same cartridge format, the same hybrid nature, and the same controls, too. Graphically, it may be an incremental improvement – but it’s going to be running cutting-edge titles in a noticeably worse way than its two similarly-priced competitors. Some of the biggest games around – Grand Theft Auto VI most noticeably – won’t run or even attempt to run on the system, too.

Still frame from the Nintendo Direct: Switch 2 broadcast showing Mario Kart World. — *Mario Kart World* running on a Switch 2 in handheld mode.

But people don’t buy a Nintendo console to play Elden Ring, right? Not as their primary console, anyway. Most folks I’ve spoken to have enjoyed the Switch’s portability, and have commented on the novelty of playing full AAA games like The Witcher 3, Monster Hunter, or Minecraft on a portable device. But those same people have, almost universally, owned a PC or another console which they’ve used as their “primary” gaming machine.

Look at the best-selling Switch games: they’re almost all Nintendo originals. Super Mario Odyssey, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Breath of the Wild, the Pokémon series… these are the games people buy a Switch for. And in comparison to the current Switch, there’s no doubt that the likes of Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, and Pokémon are going to look better on the new machine. Nintendo has even shown off “enhanced editions” of some popular Switch games that will get visual upgrades on Switch 2.

Is the $450 price point too high for a console like that, though?

A stock photo of a hand holding a stack of $100 bills. — Is the Switch 2 overpriced?

Speaking for myself, I won’t be buying a Switch 2 this year. My original Switch felt like a good deal at under £300, but I’ve only seriously played four games on it in the seven years I’ve owned it: Luigi’s Mansion 3, Super Mario Odyssey, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. I’ve tried my hand at a few other games, but that’s it. Four games in seven years. And I won’t be the only person in that position… the reality is that Nintendo consoles have a pretty specific use, and the days of people choosing a Nintendo console instead of an Xbox or PlayStation are pretty much gone. So… who’s gonna pay $450 for a secondary console? Or a console that their kid is asking for?

By pitching the Switch 2 at the same price point as an Xbox, a PlayStation, and more importantly, handheld PCs like the Steam Deck, Nintendo is inviting comparisons to those devices. A Steam Deck, which starts at $349 in the United States, would be a much more versatile machine in many ways, and arguably a better purchase than a Switch 2 for someone looking to play games on the go. Can Nintendo really win over players and parents at this price point?

Promo photo of a Steam Deck. — The Switch 2 will be more expensive than a base model Steam Deck – and almost the same price as an Xbox Series X.

Really, the only thing the Switch 2 has going for it are its exclusives. And I gotta be honest here: the Nintendo Direct really only showed one which I could see being a system seller. Donkey Kong Bananza is the kind of game you buy when you’ve already got the console and you’re shopping for things to play. There’s no new Mario game or Mario spin-off. And there’s no Animal Crossing title, either, which could’ve taken advantage of the casual audience that showed up in droves for New Horizons. The Switch 2’s “killer app,” at least at launch, is Mario Kart World. That’s it. Everything else has either much more of a niche audience or just… won’t shift consoles on their own.

I don’t want to undervalue Mario Kart World. The game does look good, no question. Nintendo has always had the premiere kart-racer, and that shows no signs of changing! But as I said in my look at the Switch 2 Direct… I can’t justify £430 (which is the bundle price for the Switch 2 + Mario Kart World here in the UK) to play one game. And this is where the next problem comes in, because for a lot of people… one game might be all they can afford.

£75 ($80 in the US) for Mario Kart World is just obscene. Not only is it a ridiculous price for a simple kart racing game, but it’s a massive jump from the price of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – and other games on the current-gen Switch.

I paid £41 for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the Switch, a similar price for Mario Kart 8 when I was one of about seven people who owned a Wii U, and I paid £32 for Mario Kart Wii in early 2009. Even allowing for inflation – which has punched all of us in the face in the last few years – we’re talking about game prices almost doubling from the Switch to the Switch 2 in some cases. I don’t have receipts for every Switch game I’ve bought, but the ones I could find average out at around £45. At the high end I’d pay £50, at the lower end closer to £30 or £35 for a brand-new Switch game. Even going from £50 – the RRP for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – to £75 is a jump of 50% from one generation to the next; if a new Animal Crossing game is similarly-priced it’ll have basically doubled. These are massive increases, there’s no two ways about it.

Still frame from the Nintendo Direct: Animal Crossing broadcast showing an animal villager being surprised. — The next Animal Crossing game could easily be £75/$80 too.

There does seem to be some flexibility with pricing, as Donkey Kong Bananza will be less costly than Mario Kart World. So perhaps Nintendo is aiming to use the highest price only for its flagship titles, with “lesser” games in second-tier franchises coming in at the slightly lower price point. That’s not a bad idea in theory – and it’s something that the games industry has always done. But if the “lower” price for titles like Donkey Kong Bananza is still north of £60/$70… that’s not gonna feel like much of a saving.

There was talk earlier in the year of Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar potentially pricing Grand Theft Auto VI at $80, $90, or even $100 when it launches, and Nintendo’s price hike may well have cemented that – if it wasn’t guaranteed already. And this is another area where players are rightly concerned: if Nintendo gets away with jacking up its prices, what’s to stop everyone else in the industry from following suit? Gaming could be about to get a lot more expensive – less than five years after the basic price of many titles already leapt up by $10.

Still frame from the Grand Theft Auto VI trailer showing a character waving her arms in celebration while riding in a car. — Take-Two and Rockstar must feel like celebrating right now!

This is not entirely Nintendo’s fault, of course. And there’s truth to the argument that these price rises were going to happen sooner or later anyway, if not with the Switch 2 then with Grand Theft Auto VI, and if not then then at the very latest by 2028 or 2029 when new Xbox and PlayStation consoles launch. But I don’t think that absolves Nintendo of blame; despite what the corporation’s mega-fans might want to tell you, it’s a greedy, money-grubbing company that will do anything to make an extra buck or two. Look at the Pokémon series as a prime example: two nearly-identical versions of most games are released. Why? To wring extra money out of Pokémon’s biggest fans. Nintendo, unlike most other gaming powerhouses, rarely puts its titles on sale – and if it does, the discounts are far less generous than those you’d see elsewhere. Despite its attempt to cultivate a family-friendly image, Nintendo is as ruthless and greedy as every other big corporation out there – something hammered home by this price hike.

So the question players will have to wrangle with is this: no matter how good a game like Mario Kart World might look, could it possibly be worth $80? Is any game worth that much? And given that at least one DLC or “season pass” seems like a guarantee, is Mario Kart World going to be worth the $110-140 that the complete version will cost? I’m a Mario Kart fan and have been for decades, but when you start talking about the next entry in the series hitting triple figures like that… I mean, it’s pretty offputting.

There are die-hards who turn up for every Nintendo game and every console – and the company knows it has those people in the bag. But where Nintendo has found success over the past twenty years has been with a more casual audience. People who don’t play a lot of games might pick up a Switch to play one or two party games or cozy titles like Animal Crossing. Folks who already have a PlayStation or Xbox might pick up a Switch as a secondary console to play some first-party Nintendo games or to play their favourite titles on the move. The price point of Switch 2 games really gets in the way of that casual approach. It transforms the way folks will think about the console and its games from a secondary machine or a casual multiplayer experience into a bigger investment. And that could be seriously detrimental to its prospects. If Nintendo has mis-read where the bulk of its audience is, and misunderstood the reasons for the Switch’s success, this unashamed greed could prove the Switch 2’s downfall.

With all that being said, my gut feeling at this point is that the Switch 2 will find an audience. It may not launch to the unparalleled success of its predecessor right away, and it might never catch the Switch’s incredibly impressive 150 million sales. But I don’t think we’re looking at the next Virtual Boy or even another Wii U situation; there are enough players invested in Nintendo’s core titles to make the Switch 2 at least somewhat profitable. And, despite what we’ve talked about, there’s evidence from players already that price rises are acceptable. There will be complaints, no question – but at the end of the day, there are plenty of examples of players being vocal and upset about the price of a new game, only for that game to sell really well. It happened at the start of this current generation when prices went up, it’s happened incrementally with premium special editions and the like, and I see no reason why it won’t happen for Nintendo this time.

Still frame from Nintendo's website showing the price of Donkey Kong Bananza. — *Donkey Kong Banaza* will cost more than most other big releases this year, like *Assassin’s Creed Shadows* and *Kingdom Come Deliverance II*.

What all this means, then, is that gaming is about to get even more expensive. If you think PlayStation and Xbox will sit idly by and let Nintendo raise its prices while they don’t… I’m afraid you’re going to be proven wrong. It might not happen on the day the Switch 2 launches, but as we’ve already seen from Xbox and PlayStation this generation, if they can get away with it they will. And if there was any lingering fear at Take-Two headquarters about jacking up the price of Grand Theft Auto VI, I think we can safely say that’s gone, too. If GTA 6 launches later this year as scheduled, we might be looking at $90 or even $100 for AAA games across the board by this time next year.

Inflation has impacted games companies. But when they’re also making record profits… I really don’t have a lot of sympathy. Nintendo’s share price recently dropped a little due to tariff-related shenanigans that have impacted basically every publically-traded corporation, but the company made record profits across the Switch’s lifespan. “Game development is too expensive” doesn’t really fly as an excuse when Nintendo made $3.25 billion in profit last year.

Still frame from the Nintendo Direct: Switch 2 broadcast showing three Nintendo developers holding a Switch 2 console. — Three of Nintendo’s senior developers.

Most of us in the real world haven’t seen our incomes rise with inflation, and even in the games industry that’s true for developers and other employees. As Nintendo jacks up prices by 40% for its consoles and 33% for games, do you really think that money is going into the pockets of the folks who work there? Is anyone at Nintendo – aside from the executives, naturally – getting a 40% pay rise? I doubt it.

Food for thought, anyway, if you’re considering buying a Switch 2.

Gaming is getting more and more expensive, that’s for sure. With Nintendo pitching the Switch 2 at a comparable price point to Xbox and PlayStation consoles, as well as portable PCs, while jacking up the prices of its games beyond the current industry standard… all I can really forsee at this stage is comparable price hikes from other corporations. But maybe Nintendo’s gamble won’t pay off. Maybe we’ll look back on this decision in a couple of years’ time and say that the hefty price tag doomed the Switch 2 before it could even get out of the gate. I’m not rooting for it to fail, but I will be keeping an eye on the situation!

The Nintendo Switch 2 launches on the 5th of June. Pre-orders for the Nintendo Switch 2 are available now. The Switch 2, Super Mario, Mario Kart World, and other properties discussed above are the copyright of Nintendo. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Nintendo Switch 2 Direct: Thoughts and Impressions

Thu 03.04.25Dennis

Yesterday was a big day for the entire world. No, not because of Trump’s tariffs… there was a Nintendo Direct all about the upcoming Switch 2! I thought it could be interesting to break down what was revealed (and talk about a few things that weren’t, too) so that’s what we’re going to get into today.

First of all, I have to admit that I’m surprised about the name and branding, as well as the overall look of the console. Last year, I said that I felt pretty sure that Nintendo wouldn’t use the name “Switch 2,” and that the console would likely come with a new colour scheme to distinguish itself. I was wrong on both counts… and I hope that won’t lead to any confusion. Switch 2 game cards are going to be the same size and come in similar packaging, with the same red colour. There could be some disappointed kids on Christmas morning unwrapping a Switch 2 game when they only have an original Switch – and I’m a little surprised that Nintendo didn’t do more to help the console differentiate itself from its predecessor.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing three Nintendo executives and the Switch 2 console. — Nintendo executives Kouchi Kawamoto, Tetsuya Sasaki, and Takuhiro Dota presented the Switch 2 broadcast.

The same is true of the name. Every Nintendo console so far has had a unique name, even if those names were similar. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System followed the Nintendo Entertainment System, for example, but where a lot of folks seemed to get confused was with the Wii U. “Switch 2” is much more straightforward, so I don’t think there’ll be anywhere near the same level of confusion from the general public! But I am a bit surprised that the new console retains the Switch name, colour scheme, branding, and even really the same design. There are changes, particularly with the new Joy-Cons, but on a superficial level it’s hard to tell the consoles apart.

And I guess Nintendo is playing it safe. The Switch has been a massive success, so why risk doing something new and innovative when there’s clearly still a huge demand for this kind of hybrid system? The drawback, as a player, is that Nintendo has been the last of the massive game companies to really invest in innovation, and if they’re stepping back from that… it kind of leaves the gaming landscape feeling pretty static going into the second half of the 2020s. I mean, no one really expects a new Xbox or PlayStation to do something wild and unexpected; Nintendo has been the only game in town when it comes to inventing new control schemes and new ways to play. Not all of those have worked, of course, and playing it relatively safe is probably the smart move from a business point of view. But there was nothing earth-shattering in the Switch 2 Direct in the same way as there was when the original Switch, Wii U, Wii, or even GameCube were announced.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing the Switch 2 console. — The Nintendo Switch 2.

Even though my platform of choice these days is PC, I confess that I really only use the mouse for strategy games; I generally prefer to use a control pad most of the time. But if there’s one thing I could say about the Switch 2 that feels different and interesting, it’s using a Joy-Con like a computer mouse. Nintendo isn’t new to this, by the way – there was a SNES mouse in the 1990s that was used in titles like Mario Paint. But it’s a first for a home console in the current generation, and Nintendo seems to be leaning into the mouse idea in a big way. I can see it being phenomenally useful in games like Civilization VII, which will be coming to the Switch 2, and I’m sure fans of first-person shooters will appreciate the idea of using it in titles like Metroid Prime 4, too.

What most intrigues me, though, is the idea of using both Joy-Cons at the same time – basically like having two mice. I’ve never seen a game which played that way, yet if you think about it, the possibilities for dual-mouse gameplay seem almost limitless! It’s something quite simple, yet it’s never been tried before (or if it has, it never caught on). Nintendo showed off a basketball-inspired game called Drag X Drive which seems to use the two Joy-Cons in this way – but I hope it won’t be the only game to offer that kind of control scheme. Drag x Drive looks great, and it’s wonderful to see some disability representation in a presentation like this, too. I’d really like to see what other developers might be able to do with this way of controlling a game.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing the Joy Con controllers and Drag x Drive. — Using two Joy-Cons like this could be a really creative way to play games.

We’ll talk more about games in a moment, but if we stick with hardware for now… I was a bit surprised that Nintendo didn’t go into more detail about the Switch 2’s specs. We got a bit of information about the built-in screen, which will now be 1080p (full HD) instead of 720p, and that the Switch 2 can also scale up to 4K when docked. But there wasn’t a lot of meat on the bones; what kind of processor does the system have, how much VRAM, and pretty basic things like that weren’t mentioned.

I have to assume that this was a deliberate choice – that Nintendo knows the internals aren’t spectacular, so opted to talk about cameras and voice chat instead. From a totally unscientific look at the Switch 2 Direct – with the obvious caveat that a video presentation compressed for YouTube isn’t going to look its absolute best – I was underwhelmed with the graphics. It didn’t help that most games shown off aren’t brand-new, but nothing about the graphics on display really impressed me. If I had to guess, I’d say the Switch 2 is probably about on par with something like an Xbox Series S, which in turn was comparable to the previous generation of home consoles. So we’re talking about graphical fidelity that might’ve looked great in 2012… but is nothing special in 2025. That’s nothing new for Nintendo, of course, and it isn’t to say that (most of) the games on display didn’t look good! But it is notable that there doesn’t seem to be a significant graphical leap considering the price of the console and its games.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Welcome Tour. — We didn’t get much of a look at the Switch 2’s internals this time.

One part of the Switch 2 that has me nervous is the magnetic Joy-Con connection. Despite Nintendo’s promises, the dual magnets to hold the controller in place when in handheld mode just don’t seem as sturdy as they would need to be to keep the console safe. The way it was explained in the Direct also made it seem like something that could be accidentally knocked, so even if the magnets are as strong as advertised, the mechanism to keep them working might be vulnerable to bumps, drops, and knocks. If you want to screw with your friend when they have a Switch 2, flicking the little magnet button might be a naughty way to mess up their gameplay!

Alright, let’s talk about price. The console itself doesn’t feel over-priced. It’s an increase from the Switch, but after eight years (and an inflation problem in the interim) that’s to be expected. But the price of games has jumped up quite a lot, too, with Mario Kart World seeming to retail at £66 for a digital-only version and a whopping £75 for a physical game cart in a box. That’s more than the so-called “standard price” of most other video games on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series consoles, at least here in the UK. Assuming other titles will be similarly-priced, the Switch 2 seems like an expensive proposition right now.

Screenshot from Smyth's showing the Switch 2 pre-order page. — The Switch 2 – with *Mario Kart World* included – retails for £430 here in the UK.
*Image: Smyth’s UK*

There are other gripes with the way things are priced, and a lot of this is the typical and expected anti-consumer shite from Nintendo that the company’s fans always try to pretend doesn’t exist! Selling the Switch 2 camera separately is fine; not everyone is going to want one. But charging £50 for what looked like a cheap, crappy webcam that, even in Nintendo’s own marketing broadcast, didn’t seem to output a particularly high-quality image? That feels like highway robbery.

Why on earth is Switch 2 – Welcome Tour something to pay for? Nintendo bundled Wii Sports with the Wii when that console launched, introducing players to the Wii remotes and motion controls. If there are things I need to know about my new Switch 2, and Nintendo has created an interactive presentation for the express purpose of explaining those things… it’s not unreasonable to expect that to be included in the price, is it? The console is going to be £400 ($450 in the United States) at a minimum, so why be so stingy with this Welcome Tour thing? It also feels like an exceptionally bone-headed move… who’s really going to buy Welcome Tour, even if it’s only like £5? I can’t see it being a popular item.

I can’t help but feel Nintendo missed a trick with its Game Chat feature, at least based on the way it was marketed in the Direct. Being “alone together” would’ve been great… five years ago when it was lockdown! But now? I know online gaming is huge and it’s gonna find an audience, but the choice of marketing language just strikes me as odd. It’s as if Nintendo thinks people are still stuck at home, desperate to find ways to connect. There were other ways to show off this feature without harkening back to the covid era which, quite frankly, a lot of people want to forget.

Game Chat, on its own, is nothing new or revolutionary. People have been using voice chat while gaming for literally decades at this point, so Nintendo is unusually late to the party. I do, however, like the promise of a microphone that can isolate a voice and cut out background noise, and a camera that can crop out the background. Neither of these things are new; streamers have been using green screens to appear in their live streams for years. But to have it work smoothly, in real-time, with several people at once… that’s impressive. If it works as advertised!

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing a gamer using the Switch 2 Camera. — The Switch 2 will have a camera accessory.

Let’s get into the games! After all, what good is a console without any games?

I’ll do the third-party titles first, because I don’t really have that much to say about them. As I said above when we were talking graphics, none of the third-party games blew me away. In fact, Elden Ring in particular seemed to have gotten a noticeable downgrade, at least based on gameplay and screenshots that I’ve seen. The trees in particular looked exceptionally flat and two-dimensional, and I just didn’t think the game looked its best. The same was true of Cyberpunk 2077, which looks and runs great on my PC but seemed downgraded and less visually impressive on the Switch 2.

On the one hand, these are large, demanding games, so the fact that they’ll run at all on Switch 2 is impressive in itself. But… Cyberpunk 2077 is a game approaching its fifth anniversary and that launched on last-gen hardware (albeit in a poor state). So, the fact that it doesn’t look great on the Switch 2 seems to suggest that the internal hardware is lacking, which could have a knock-on effect for games later in the console’s lifespan. Maybe Switch 2 games in 2025 will look pretty good, but by the time we get to 2029 and a new PlayStation and Xbox are in the offing… what will players make of the Switch 2’s capabilities by then?

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Elden Ring. — *Elden Ring’*s open world has never looked… flatter.

I’ve been intrigued by IO’s Project 007 since it was announced, and I’m a tad disappointed that we didn’t get so much as a whiff of gameplay. The game was teased… but that’s all! It’s not a bad thing necessarily, and it’s great for Nintendo fans to know a new Bond game is coming to Switch 2. But given that the game was prominently included in the Switch 2 Direct, I would’ve liked to have seen something more!

Onward to Nintendo’s own games!

So… the Switch 2 is launching with two cartoony racing games? Did I get that right? In addition to Mario Kart World, there’s also going to be Kirby Air Riders, which is the sequel to a GameCube title that I think I might’ve played once. As with so many things Nintendo does… this has confused me. By all means, have both games on the Switch 2. But should they both be releasing in the same year, perhaps just weeks apart? And should they have both been shown off as part of the new console’s marketing campaign? Really, Nintendo… you couldn’t have prioritised another game for 2025 and pushed Kirby Air Riders to next year? It just seems… repetitive.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Kirby Air Riders. — Did the Switch 2’s launch announcement really need *two* cartoony racing games?

When the Mario Kart World broadcast arrives later this month I might have more to say! But for now, I like the look of the new game. I’m not sold on the “free roam” idea necessarily, but it could be a fun addition and a way to shake things up. Games like Forza Horizon have done fun things with more of an open world design, and as long as there’s content and not just empty roads and fields, it should be okay. The Mario Kart series has always given players options, so adding new modes like “free roam” and the knockout race should be fun. I’m not sure how much I’d personally play either, but I can see them both becoming beloved by some Mario Kart players.

There seem to be character costumes in Mario Kart World, which is fantastic. And new mechanics seem to include transforming vehicles (I saw a boat, a plane, and a snowmobile), bouncing off walls, and even grinding on rails and cables. I’m not sure how big all of these new features will be, or whether they’ll only be available at certain places in certain racetracks – that’s almost certainly gonna be the case for the big articulated lorry that we saw! But these features all look like a lot of fun. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has been great on the Switch, and I’m hopeful for Mario Kart World’s prospects on the Switch 2. I just hope Nintendo won’t ruin the game by overly monetising features like alternate costumes.

Mario Kart World is getting its own dedicated Direct in a couple of weeks, so there might be more to add then. Be sure to check back!

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Mario Kart World. — *Mario Kart World* is the Switch 2’s big launch title.

The final game to talk about is Donkey Kong Bananza. I was hoping for a new 3D Donkey Kong title – the first since Donkey Kong 64 a quarter of a century ago – and Bananza looks… well, it looks okay. I was kind of getting more of a Yooka-Laylee vibe than an Astro Bot vibe from the reveal, if that makes sense. I’m not sure it’ll be the first game I buy for the Switch 2, but if it reviews well I’ll definitely give it a try. I enjoyed Donkey Kong 64 on the Nintendo 64, and it’s definitely a treat to welcome back DK for another 3D adventure.

There were a couple of absences from the game lineup, though. There was a tiny glimpse of what looked like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, but other than that there was no mention of the series. Given that New Horizons is the best-selling Switch-exclusive title, that’s a bit of an oddity in my opinion! I guess that means a new Animal Crossing game isn’t imminent. There was also no new 3D Mario game – nor a 2D Mario game or a Mario sports title, come to that. A new 3D Mario title is unlikely to be too far away, and Donkey Kong Bananza is clearly intended to be in the same space for players. But I was a little surprised to see absolutely nothing from either of these big titles which I assume are in development.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing Donkey Kong Bananza. — Donkey Kong is back for his first 3D adventure in a quarter of a century!

The final thing to talk about is pre-ordering. If you’re a massive Nintendo fan, you pay for Switch Online, and you play a ton of games… you still might not be able to pre-order a console. Why? Because even if you’re a paid Switch Online member and have been for years, if you haven’t opted in to marketing emails from Nintendo, you can’t pre-order from the Nintendo shop. What utter dog shite is that?

I had hoped Nintendo would’ve learned from the Wii and Switch about ensuring there’ll be enough consoles to meet demand, but apparently not. Nintendo seems to be deliberately setting up pre-orders in such a way as to assume there won’t be enough to go around… or, if I put my cynical hat on for a moment, to create an artificial and forced sense of scarcity. An attempt to drive up sales by playing on fans’ fears of missing out is just scummy, and I really hope that there will be enough Switch 2 consoles for everyone who wants one on launch day – and especially later in the year as Christmas approaches.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showing the console and its release date. — Given the weird pre-order requirements, will there be enough Switch 2 consoles for everyone who wants one on launch day?

So I think that’s everything from my notes!

Will I buy a Switch 2? Probably… but it’s unlikely to be in 2025. I really do like the look of Mario Kart World, and as someone who’s been playing Mario Kart since the first game back in the SNES days, I’m definitely excited to try it out for myself. On its own, though, Mario Kart World is a big ask when you’re talking about spending £430! Maybe when there’s news of a new 3D Mario game and/or the next Animal Crossing title, the Switch 2 will feel more like a “must-buy!”

So if you’re planning on pre-ordering a Switch 2, I guess you’re glad to hear that there’s at least one fewer competitor out there for what could be a limited number of consoles at launch!

The Switch 2 Direct was interesting, but I think it’s too early to really judge how successful the console will be. On the one hand, the original Switch has been a resounding win for Nintendo. But on the other, the high price of games on Switch 2 could be a hindrance, and while I could be alone in this, I feel that the new console’s design and marketing haven’t given it a strong identity of its own. Piggybacking on the Switch’s success could prove to be a masterstroke for Nintendo… but someone at the company said the same thing about the Wii U drawing on the popularity of the original Wii, and look how that turned out!

After the Mario Kart World Direct later this month, I may have more to say about that title. And as the year rolls on and the Switch 2 launches, I’ll definitely be checking out the reviews. I daresay I’ll have more to add before too long – so be sure to check back from time to time for more coverage of Mario Kart, the Switch 2, and Nintendo in general. I hope this look at the Switch 2 Direct has been interesting!

The Nintendo Switch 2 launches on the 5th of June. Pre-orders for the Nintendo Switch 2 go live on the 8th of April. The Switch 2, Super Mario, Mario Kart World, and other properties discussed above are the copyright of Nintendo. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Switch 2: Five Games Nintendo Should Learn From

Tue 04.02.25Sat 08.02.25Dennis

Now that we have a bit more information about the Nintendo Switch 2, I thought it could be interesting to look ahead. My first-ever home console was a Super Nintendo, and I’ve also owned an N64, Wii, 3DS, Switch – and I was even one of about seven people who owned a Wii U ten or so years ago. So I like to think I have a tiny bit of a track record when it comes to Nintendo!

I gotta admit that I’m surprised about the Switch 2. Nintendo are the kings of innovation in gaming, with each of the company’s consoles having something different to entice players. The Switch 2 will be the first console in several generations (since either the GameCube or the Super Nintendo, depending on how we think about it) to play it so exceptionally safe. If I were being deliberately unkind, I might even suggest that the Switch 2 looks underwhelming and repetitive.

Still frame from the Nintendo Switch 2 trailer. — The Switch 2 in docked mode.

Until we’ve got a better look at the internals of the Switch 2, though, we won’t know for sure how different the machine really is and what its capabilities will be. I’m hoping to put a Switch 2 on my list of things to buy this year (or in 2026, if it won’t be launching in time for Christmas) but that will depend to a great degree on what games the console launches with – and how much better they might look compared to the current iteration of the Switch.

The Switch has some great games, that isn’t even a remotely controversial statement! And I’ve definitely been surprised to see that some very big, demanding games have survived being ported to the platform in a playable state. I’m thinking of titles like Hogwarts Legacy and The Witcher 3 in particular, but I’m sure there are others.

When it comes to Nintendo’s first-party titles, the Switch has excelled, too. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Odyssey, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons ought to be in anyone’s top ten, with all three games taking established series and putting a new spin on them.

And it’s games I’d like to talk about today.

For all the innovation and advances that Nintendo has made, there are other companies in the gaming space that have gone beyond what Nintendo and the Switch have been capable of. As technology has improved, I don’t think it’s unfair to say that the Switch has, in some respects, held back Nintendo’s developers. Over the past few years, there have been quite a few games released in genres that Nintendo used to dominate… titles that have gone above and beyond the company’s recent output.

The Switch 2 will be Nintendo’s first console since 2017.

Today, we’re going to look at five games from the last few years that Nintendo needs to learn from in order to make their games on the Switch 2 the best they can be. Some fans will always be satisfied with more of the same – and that’s great! If you’re in that camp, that’s okay and I don’t intend any of this as some kind of attack. Speaking for myself, though, I’ve played several games in recent years (and watched gameplay from other titles, too) that genuinely eclipse anything Nintendo has created. Partly that might be down to the limitations of the Switch – but it’s also down to the inescapable fact that other companies and developers are innovating and pushing the boundaries in a way that Nintendo hasn’t been.

If Nintendo is to make the Switch 2 a success, then the company will need to read the room! Player expectations are always changing, and Nintendo can’t afford to remain stagnant and try to coast on past successes. A new console – with new, more powerful hardware at its heart – is an opportunity to catch up on a decade-plus of evolution and enhancements in game development, bringing at least some of Nintendo’s flagship series and franchises into the 2020s for the first time.

So let’s take a look at five games that I think Nintendo can learn from.

As always, a couple of caveats. Firstly, please keep in mind that all of this is the subjective opinion of just one person. If I make a point you disagree with, highlight a game you hate, or recommend a change that you think doesn’t need to be made… that’s okay! Nintendo fans are a passionate bunch, but there ought to be enough room in the fan community for civil discussion and polite disagreement.

I’ve also tried to be realistic in my selections. I’m not going to try and argue that Nintendo should turn the next Mario game into a gritty Red Dead Redemption II open-world, or that the next Animal Crossing ought to be an L.A. Noire-style murder mystery. I’ve chosen titles in either the same genre or a similar space that I believe Nintendo can learn from as the first few Switch 2 games are being worked on.

With all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at the list!

Game #1:
Palworld
Pokémon franchise

Promo screenshot of Palworld showing a yellow monster with a large gun. — A gun-toting monster from *Palworld.*

This is the game that really inspired me to put this list together! Last year, Palworld was a surprise hit. It took the monster-battling sub-genre and put its own spin on it, bringing in huge numbers of players in the process. I know several die-hard Pokémon fans who absolutely adore Palworld, and even looking in from the outside, I can see many ways in which the game goes beyond anything the Pokémon series has ever done.

Recent Pokémon titles have been pretty stale and stagnant – if they even worked at all. Sure, they might add new monsters to the roster or be set in a different region of the franchise’s world, but Pokémon’s basic gameplay hasn’t changed in years. The series needs a good shake-up, and Palworld’s success should be the kick in the backside that Nintendo, Game Freak, and the Pokémon Company need.

Promo screenshot of Pokemon Scarlet or Pokemon Violet showing the three starter Pokemon. — The starter Pokémon from *Pokémon Scarlet/Violet.*

Unfortunately, things aren’t looking great on this front. Nintendo has inexplicably chosen to try to sue Palworld and its developer out of existence with a frivolous lawsuit, something that shames Furukawa, Miyamoto, and all of the other cowardly executives. As I wrote last year: the history of gaming is one of piecemeal innovation, with companies from all across the industry seeing what works and building on it. Pokémon wouldn’t exist without the role-playing games, deck-building games, and top-down fantasy titles that came before it, and Nintendo doesn’t have the right to claim ownership of an entire genre.

So I hope, once the dust settles and the lawsuit is inevitably dismissed, Nintendo can do what it should’ve done from day one: learn what worked in Palworld and what players liked, and apply those findings to the next Pokémon game. That doesn’t mean copy Palworld beat-for-beat, but taking the best bits and the things players loved the most and using that knowledge to make Pokémon better.

Game #2:
Sonic Mania
2D Mario

Promo screenshot of Sonic Mania. — Sonic and Tails.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder has been very well-received by Nintendo fans – and that’s great! Ever since 2D Mario games returned from a decade-long hiatus almost twenty years ago, though, they’ve more or less retained the same art style. Wonder definitely added a lot of new things to the mix, and there have been new power-ups and levels with different settings… but maybe it’s time to take a step back and really go back to Mario’s roots.

Sonic Mania is a fantastic title that has a really interesting development history. It was originally a fan project, but Sega saw the potential in the game and swooped in, licensing it as an official entry in the Sonic series. And I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that Sonic Mania is one of the best Sonic games since the Mega Drive days.

Promo screenshot of Super Mario Bros. Wonder. — Mario in *Super Mario Bros. Wonder*.

I’d love to see Nintendo really lean into the NES or SNES visual style with their next 2D Mario game. It could be a side-project rather than a full mainline game, and I wouldn’t necessarily expect an “old-school” 2D Mario as the Switch 2’s big launch title. But as a love letter to fans in Super Mario’s 40th anniversary year… what could be better?

Sonic Mania genuinely feels like a 16-bit Mega Drive game, bringing back not only the visual and art style of that era, but gameplay mechanics, too. After all the talk of doing better and pushing the boat out, maybe this seems like a bit of an oddity – and I fully accept that. But as someone who really got into gaming in the early 1990s, I would love nothing more than to return to that style of 2D platformer. Sonic Mania could be the template for how to do that – and do it right.

Game #3:
Disney Dreamlight Valley
Animal Crossing series

Promo screenshot of Disney Dreamlight Valley showing the furniture placement screen and a custom character. — A player showing off their home in *Disney Dreamlight Valley*.

If you read my review of Disney Dreamlight Valley a couple of years ago, you might remember me saying that the game took basically all of my complaints about Animal Crossing: New Horizons and fixed them, while also adding in compelling characters and story missions to boot. I’m not sure that the next Animal Crossing needs a “main quest” of sorts… but there are so many other things that Dreamlight Valley does well.

Firstly, Dreamlight Valley has much more freedom in terms of decorating – both inside and out. With a simple button press, everything from small items of furniture to houses and trees can be moved, placed, and deleted, and there’s a near-unlimited amount of free choice in where things are placed and how many things can be placed. New Horizons, thanks to the Switch’s limited processing power, is notoriously laggy when too many items are placed outdoors – but the next game in the series should, at least, not suffer from that limitation.

Still frame from the Animal Crossing: New Horizons expansion pack trailer. — Even with its expansion pack, *New Horizons* wasn’t all it could’ve been.

Dreamlight Valley’s characters also feel more compelling and unique. Partly that’s because everyone gets a quest or series of quests, but it’s also because each character has a distinct personality – reflected not only in their choice of outfit and decoration, but dialogue, too. One of my biggest criticisms of New Horizons was how awfully repetitive the dialogue got after only a short amount of time – and without mini-games or other events to spice things up, as well as such a small number of villager “types” – I found I was getting the exact same line of dialogue over and over and over again from different characters.

In terms of design, customisation, character interactions, and more, Dreamlight Valley not only eclipses Animal Crossing… it blows it out of the water. There are pitfalls to be avoided, sure – Dreamlight Valley is too heavily-monetised for my taste – but it should be seen as a template for how to improve the Animal Crossing formula.

Game #4:
Doom Eternal
Metroid Prime series

Promo screenshot of Doom Eternal showing a first-person viewpoint. — *Doom Eternal* is fast-paced and fun.

With Metroid Prime 4 due for release on the Switch this year – presumably before the Switch 2 launches – there’s limited room for serious improvements. But if the Metroid Prime series continues and will get a new entry in the years ahead, the fast-paced combat of Doom Eternal should be the high bar that the series aims for.

I haven’t played a Metroid Prime game since the GameCube days, so maybe I’m not the best person to offer advice on this series! But I know what I look for in a single-player first-person shooter, and of all the games in that genre I’ve played over the years, none felt as energetic and exciting as Doom Eternal. With the Switch 2 offering the chance for a serious upgrade, the next Metroid Prime game could have more enemies on screen at the same time, a wider range of enemy types, more weapons, and so on.

Promo screenshot of Metroid Prime 4 showing the HUD, a weapon, and several enemies. — *Metroid Prime 4* is due for release this year on the Switch.

Doom Eternal’s grappling hook mechanic also worked exceptionally well, and something like that could be a fine addition to the Metroid Prime series, too. Adding in some platforming and puzzle-solving elements along with fast-paced combat could be a ton of fun.

I’d also be remiss not to mention the fantastic soundtrack that the modern Doom titles have had. A hard rock/heavy metal soundtrack was pitch-perfect for those games, and added so much to the wild action and thrill of gunning down hordes of demons. Metroid Prime doesn’t need to go down the heavy metal route, of course, but a soundtrack that helps bring the game to life and fits with its design philosophy will be essential.

Game #5:
Astro Bot
3D Mario

Promo artwork for Astro Bot. — *Astro Bot* is everything a 3D platformer should aim to be in 2025.

A moment ago, we talked about the next 2D Mario game and how I’d like to see the series go back to its roots – both in terms of gameplay and visual style. But 3D Mario should really aim to go above and beyond, pushing the Switch 2’s hardware to its limits while retaining the charm of titles like Super Mario 64 and Odyssey. PlayStation’s Astro Bot – which was in the running for game of the year on many publications’ lists in 2024 – is exactly the kind of game Nintendo should be paying attention to.

I have to admit that I haven’t played Astro Bot for myself; I don’t own a PS5 and, as much as I might want to, I can’t justify the expense of buying one just to play one game! But I’ve seen a lot of gameplay online, and Astro Bot looks like the kind of game that knows what it’s trying to be… and absolutely nails it.

Screenshot of Super Mario 64 showing Mario in the castle lobby. — *Super Mario 64* is still one of my favourite games.

Many critics have noted – quite correctly – that Astro Bot is drawing inspiration from Nintendo’s 3D platformers. But graphically and in terms of level design, it seems to go beyond them, too. Super Mario Odyssey, arguably the best and certainly the biggest 3D Mario game, is now almost eight years old, so fans are absolutely right to expect to see significant improvements when the next entry in the series is ready. Astro Bot shows how beautiful a 3D platformer can look with modern hardware, and it’s also a masterclass in level design.

I’m pretty sure that Nintendo will be hard at work on the next 3D Mario already. We’ve caught a glimpse of a new Mario Kart in the recent Switch 2 teaser, so that could well be the console’s big launch title. But a new 3D Mario is unlikely to be far behind. I hope some of the developers and producers have played Astro Bot to get a feel for how that game works and to see what it does well.

So that’s it!

We’ve taken a look at five games that I think Nintendo needs to examine closely and learn from as the Switch 2 and its games are in development.

The Switch 2 is definitely on my wishlist – if for no other reason than a brand-new Mario Kart game is always gonna be something I’ll want to play! But I’m curious to see how much more powerful the console can be, and whether Nintendo (and other third-party developers, too) are going to be able to fully take advantage of that. Better graphics and shinier-looking games should be a guarantee – but I’d love to see Nintendo also paying attention to the improvements and evolution in some of these genres. Although there’s been less of that in the last ten years than there was from, say, 1995 to 2005, there are still plenty of areas where Nintendo can improve.

When we learn more about the Switch 2 in April, I’ll definitely be sharing my thoughts on how the console is shaping up. I’ll be keeping my ear to the ground for news on launch titles, too! So when we have more news about Nintendo and the Switch 2, I hope you’ll join me here on the website. Until then, I hope this has been a fun and interesting look ahead.

The Nintendo Switch 2 will be officially shown off in April and will launch in 2025 or early 2026. All titles discussed above are the copyright of their respective publisher, developer, studio, and/or corporation. Some promotional art and images courtesy of Nintendo and IGDB. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Mario Kart 9: Let’s Predict the Retro Racetracks!

Wed 04.09.24Dennis

Last year, I put all ninety-six of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s racetracks into a tier list! Since then, I’ve kind of taken a break from writing about Nintendo’s premiere kart racing series; with no new tracks being added and with Mario Kart Tour also on its last legs, there hasn’t been a lot to say. But with Nintendo planning to launch its next console within the next year-ish, it’s quite possible that a new Mario Kart game could be closer than we think! With that in mind, I thought it could be a bit of fun to predict which racetracks from previous games might be in Mario Kart 9 at launch.

Those last two words – “at launch” – are critical here, because I believe that Nintendo will see Mario Kart 9 as a kind of live-service title, building on what was accomplished with Mario Kart 8′s DLC, Tour, and finally the Booster Course Pass. Across Mario Kart 9′s lifetime, I expect to see new racetracks added periodically – and perhaps new and different variants of tracks as well. So I guess that’s my first prediction about Mario Kart 9: the game will be an ongoing “live-service” type of experience, perhaps with some kind of additional charge to download all of the new racetracks as they’re created… or god forbid, a monthly subscription and microtransactions!

A tier list showing all the racetracks in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. — This is my full *Mario Kart 8 Deluxe + Booster Course Pass* tier list, in case you missed it last year!

For this list, I’m going to assume that Mario Kart 9 will launch with the same number of racetracks as Mario Kart 8 did in 2014. I was one of about seventeen people who owned a Wii U at the time, so in case you weren’t – or in case you’ve forgotten because it was literally a decade ago – Mario Kart 8 arrived with 32 racetracks. Sixteen were brand-new and sixteen retro tracks returned from earlier games in the series. I’ll be picking sixteen retro tracks today that either seem very likely to be part of the next Mario Kart game or that I’d really like to see included.

As always, an important caveat: this list is the entirely subjective opinion of one Mario Kart fan. Nothing I say is in any way “objective,” so if you hate all of my choices or I exclude a racetrack that seems blindingly obvious to you… that’s okay! There’s enough room in the Nintendo fan community for polite discussion and differences of opinion. Secondly, I don’t have any “insider information,” and I’m not trying to claim that any of these racetracks will be part of the next Mario Kart game. I’m not even certain that Mario Kart 9 is in development – and a port of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe + The Booster Course Pass could be just as likely to be part of the launch lineup for Nintendo’s next console.

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing Dry Bones on a racetrack. — Dry Bones racing on SNES Mario Circuit 3.

I’ve placed my sixteen retro racetracks in four “cups” – just like they would appear in a real Mario Kart game. I’ve tried not to pick too many tracks from the same game, nor exclude any of the games in the Mario Kart series. While I’ve prioritised racetracks that didn’t appear in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and the Booster Course Pass, there will undoubtedly be some retro racetracks from that game and its expansion pack, so I haven’t excluded them.

Phew! With all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at my predictions!

The Dennis Cup

Track #1:
SNES Vanilla Lake 1

Screenshot from Mario Kart Tour showing Vanilla Lake 1.

I genuinely thought we’d get a Vanilla Lake track in the Booster Course Pass – but we didn’t! This snow and ice track was part of Super Mario Kart way back when, and it provided a bit of variety thanks to its slippery surface and wintery theme. Of the two Vanilla Lake tracks in Super Mario Kart, the first one actually has a little more variety with a narrow section near the finish line and a couple of patches of melted/broken ice as hazards to avoid. I think there’s a lot that Nintendo could do with this track, in spite of its pretty boring circular layout, as we’ve seen with other recreated SNES and GBA tracks.

Track #2:
3DS Wuhu Mountain Loop/Maka Wuhu

Screenshot from Mario Kart 7 showing Maka Wuhu.

Mario Kart 7 was the first game in the series to have racetracks split into sections instead of laps – and Wuhu Mountain Loop was an incredibly fun and diverse racetrack as a result! Based on the island setting of Wii Sports Resort, Wuhu Mountain Loop takes racers on a real journey right across the island, and includes beach scenes, a road, a town, a cave, an underwater section, and a long glide to the finish line. Unlike most racetracks – which only use one or two themes – Wuhu Mountain Loop has basically everything that Mario Kart 7 had to offer.

Track #3
Wii Toad’s Factory

Screenshot from Mario Kart Wii showing Toad's Factory.

I know this is a minority opinion… but I really don’t enjoy Toad’s Factory. Its layout isn’t anything special, there are a couple of awkward pinch points, and its musical accompaniment is one of the worst in Mario Kart Wii in my opinion. All that being said, Toad’s Factory is probably the most memorable and unique Wii racetrack that hasn’t yet made a return. Speculation was rife that it would be part of the Booster Course Pass, and it feels all but certain to join the roster of the next Mario Kart game… even if I wish it wouldn’t!

Track #4:
Tour Piranha Plant Pipeline

Screenshot from Mario Kart Tour showing Piranha Plant Pipeline.

Not to be confused with the 3DS track Piranha Plant Pipeway, this Tour track is the only one from the game not to have been brought into the Booster Course Pass. As such, I feel it’s a dead cert to join the next Mario Kart game. I haven’t played this one for myself, but from the gameplay I’ve seen online it looks like a fun romp through some of the Mushroom Kingdom’s famous warp pipes. There are a couple of different variants, so this could be one that has a different layout for each lap as we’ve seen with other Tour tracks.

The Chris Pratt Cup

Track #1:
N64 Luigi Raceway

Crop from the Mario Kart 64 guidebook showing Luigi Raceway.

Every Mario Kart game needs one or two relatively straightforward racetracks to ease newbies into the experience, and Luigi Raceway from Mario Kart 64 fits the bill. When I first played it on the N64 I remember being blown away by the big screen above the tunnel that showed my driver in action – that was an incredibly cool feature at the time! This racetrack returned in Mario Kart 7 and Tour, so I think it’s a pretty good candidate for a full-scale remake.

Track #2:
DS Luigi’s Mansion

There have been plenty of dark, spooky, ghostly racetracks across the Mario Kart series… but none are as unique as Luigi’s Mansion. Based on the GameCube game of the same name, this racetrack takes the haunted house theme in a really fun direction. There’s a swamp and part of a forest outside, and the race through the mansion passes by several locations from the first game in a series that’s now established itself as one of Nintendo’s best-sellers. If a fourth Luigi’s Mansion game is in the offing, bringing this racetrack back could be a great decision.

Track #3:
Wii U Animal Crossing

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing Dry Bones on Animal Crossing.

I just adore this racetrack. I love how there are four different versions for different times of year, the music is beautiful, and the racetrack is overstuffed with characters, buildings, and other references from the Animal Crossing series. New Horizons is the second-best-selling Switch game, and a new entry in the series is surely coming, so adding this racetrack into the next Mario Kart game is a great way to keep the series in players’ minds. The only reason I could see Nintendo opting not to include this racetrack is if the developers of Mario Kart 9 wanted to create a four-track Animal Crossing cup, with different racetracks based on different parts of the Animal Crossing island.

Track #4:
Tour New York Minute

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing Dry Bones on New York Minute.

I would argue that there were probably too many Mario Kart Tour city racetracks in the Booster Course Pass, and by the end the novelty of racing through real-life locations had begun to wear off. With that in mind, I doubt that all or even most of the cities will return when Mario Kart 9 launches – though they may be added later, if my theory of regular racetrack additions proves accurate! If Nintendo picks only one of these to bring back at the beginning, though, I hope it’s New York Minute. I adore the jazz soundtrack, the city and its locations feel really great, and I even recognised some of the places from my own visit to New York City some years ago.

The “Why Does Pink Gold Peach Exist?” Cup

Track #1:
GBA Lakeside Park

Screenshot from Mario Kart Super Circuit showing Wario on Lakeside Park.

I love this track’s primaeval feel, with a jungle and volcanoes in the background. The volcanoes also begin to erupt once the race reaches lap 2 – something pretty creative for the Game Boy Advance! Though it doesn’t have a ton of Mario or Nintendo theming, there’s a lot to love about this track’s aesthetic and design. It’s also been brought back in Tour – but a proper remake, perhaps incorporating new features like gliding or underwater racing, could be an absolute blast.

Track #2:
Switch Squeaky Clean Sprint

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing Dry Bones on Squeaky Clean Sprint.

Shrinking down Mario and the gang for a race around a bathroom was a surprising amount of fun in the Booster Course Pass! The race down the plughole, complete with muck and grime, felt truly icky the first few times I raced on this track, and there’s just something humourous about a bathroom setting that makes Squeaky Clean Sprint feel… well, fun! There are a few ways that I could see it being adapted for new styles of play, too, perhaps with some way of shrinking and growing racers through different sections of the track, for example.

Track #3:
N64 Bowser’s Castle

Crop from the Mario Kart 64 guidebook showing Bowser's Castle.

Every Mario Kart needs at least one retro Bowser’s Castle track… right? For me, the Nintendo 64 version of this Mario Kart staple is still the high-water mark that others have yet to reach. Giving it a full remake, perhaps adding in a couple of new features or places where gliding or anti-gravity are present, could work wonders. This track’s theming, music, obstacles, and layout are damn near perfect, though, so I hope the developers don’t change it too much!

Track #4:
GCN Mushroom City

Screenshot from Mario Kart Double Dash showing Mushroom City.

Mushroom City is one of a handful of racetracks from the GameCube to have never returned – and I think it’s time to change that! Moving vehicles always make for interesting obstacles in Mario Kart, keeping races on the same track feeling different and perhaps a bit more tense! Mushroom City is certainly a good example of how well this can work, and its night time setting in an urban cityscape is something a bit different for the series, too.

The Mario’s Moustache Cup

Track #1:
Switch/Tour Merry Mountain

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing Dry Bones on Merry Mountain.

I adore Merry Mountain’s Christmas village theming, and the musical accompaniment is perfect, too. Maybe the final downhill portion could be worked on to make it a bit more interesting, but I really can’t fault this wonderful Christmassy track. Both Mario Kart Tour and the Booster Course Pass can lay claim to this one; it was released for both games at about the same time. It’s always a blast to see Mario and the crew racing through Santa’s village, past a flying Christmas train, and down the mountain to the finish line!

Track #2:
3DS Shy Guy Bazaar

Screenshot from Mario Kart 7 showing Shy Guy Bazaar.

Desert racetracks in Mario Kart are seldom my favourites. They tend to be a bit too one-note and bland – but Shy Guy Bazaar put a totally different spin on the theme. Set at an Arabian Knights-style marketplace after sunset, the track just has a really nice vibe to it that’s totally different from any other desert track in the series. I hoped it would come back in the Booster Course Pass – but maybe Nintendo has been saving this one for Mario Kart 9!

Track #3:
SNES Ghost Valley 1

Screenshot from Mario Kart Tour showing Ghost Valley 1.

Boo Lake’s remake in the Booster Course Pass showed what Nintendo can do with a retro ghost-themed track, and I think we need to see more racetracks from the first game in the series! Ghost Valley 1 has a fun shortcut that, with a little bit of work, could be adapted in all sorts of fun and interesting ways. I like the boardwalk and the creepy yet understated music as well as a fun layout. Ghost Valley 1 could be the perfect track to race through next Halloween!

Track #4:
GCN Rainbow Road

Screenshot from Mario Kart Double Dash showing Rainbow Road.

My heart says that Nintendo should take another crack at recreating N64’s Rainbow Road because that’s my favourite, and my head says that SNES Rainbow Road will be back for the fifth game in a row because of how popular it is – but this time I hope Nintendo revisits one of the only Rainbow Road tracks that has never been recreated. This version, from the GameCube, has some really fun features in its own right, as well as a cool design and a great soundtrack. Bringing back tracks that haven’t been seen in a while should be part of the next game – and there’s room for at least one Rainbow Road in the lineup!

So that’s it!

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing a racer reversing. — Did your favourite make the list?

Those are my totally-not-official predictions for the racetracks that Nintendo could choose to include in the launch version of Mario Kart 9 – or whatever the next game in the series will be called!

I’m in two minds about when we could see a new Mario Kart game. On the one hand, the upcoming launch of a new Nintendo console and the fact that Mario Kart 8 is now more than ten years old should surely mean that a new entry in the series is imminent – perhaps even as a launch title for the new console. On the other, the Booster Course Pass only wrapped up a few months back, and there’s a case to be made that porting Mario Kart 8 Deluxe to the new console instead of creating a brand-new game is the way to go. Players are still enjoying the Booster Course Pass – and I’ve only played some of the tracks in the final couple of waves a few times apiece. So… I genuinely couldn’t tell you whether Mario Kart 9 is going to arrive next year or not for several years!

Screenshot from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe showing two racers. — Dry Bones using a super horn to overtake Baby Daisy at Sunshine Airport.

That being said, I hope this has been a bit of fun. I tried to concentrate on racetracks that haven’t had a lot of attention in recent years, as well as a few of my personal favourites. It’s amazing how often those two categories overlap, now that I come to think of it! I had a blast going back to revisit some of these racetracks while putting together this list, at any rate.

Whether we get a brand-new Mario Kart game in the next few months or whether we’ll have to make do with a port, I hope you’ll stay tuned here on the website. When we eventually get news about Nintendo’s next console and its launch lineup, I’ll do my best to take a look and share my thoughts.

Until then… see you on the racetrack!

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and the Booster Course Pass DLC are available now for Nintendo Switch. Mario Kart Tour is available for iOS and Android devices. The Mario Kart series – including all titles and properties discussed above – is the copyright of Nintendo. Some screenshots courtesy of the Super Mario Wiki. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Thoughts on Nintendo’s New Console

Sat 31.08.24Sat 31.08.24Dennis

A few weeks ago, Nintendo broke the news that we’ve all been waiting for: they plan to release a new console sometime in the next fiscal year. The company did so in an incredibly barebones, investor-focused Twitter/X post, but that was enough to get the rumour mill going and to send Nintendo fans into a frenzy! It’s gotten to the point where Nintendo had to say that it won’t be talking about its new console ahead of the latest Nintendo Direct broadcast just to avoid fans and spectators getting upset.

Although no details about the console have been announced – and its release window is any time from April 2025 to March 2026 – today I thought it could be interesting to look ahead and speculate about what the console might be… as well as what it might not be! My usual caveat applies: I have no “insider information.” All I’m doing is speculating and perhaps taking a look at a couple of prominent rumours.

This Tweet/X post officially confirmed that a new Nintendo console is in the works.

First of all, let’s talk about the name. Thus far, when communicating in English, Nintendo has referred to its next machine as “the Nintendo Switch successor console.” Some fans have taken to using the names “Switch 2” or “Switch Pro” basically as placeholder titles whenever the console is being discussed – but I’m confident that Nintendo won’t use either of those names! In fact, I doubt very much whether Nintendo will re-use the “Switch” branding at all, and I expect the new console to have a brand-new monicker.

Although the Switch has been a successful console that has sold incredibly well for Nintendo, it’s not the company’s core identity. Sony has PlayStation and Microsoft has Xbox – and those gaming brands have become well-known for those corporations. But Nintendo is Nintendo – and its consoles have always been known by their names or nicknames. Furthermore, the only time Nintendo has tried to capitalise on the well-known branding of a console to help popularise its successor, it failed spectacularly!

The Wii U did not succeed at replicating the Wii’s success.

The Wii U tried to recycle or retain the “Wii” branding, with Nintendo incorrectly assuming that it would be a selling-point. It turned out not to be, in part because the confused naming and branding led many casual players and parents – a core part of Nintendo’s audience over the past couple of decades – not to fully understand what the Wii U was. Even as late as 2014, two full years after the console’s underwhelming launch, I was still encountering players who believed that the Wii U was nothing more than an accessory for the original Wii.

Nintendo will have learned a lesson from that, and that leads me to beleive the new console will have a new name, and that the company will fully break with the “Switch” branding. As Nintendo has done in the past, a new colour is even likely to come along to help visually brand the new machine. The GameCube had indigo, the Wii had white, the Wii U had a kind of aqua-blue, and the Switch has had bright red. I don’t know what the new colour will be – but I think we can safely assume it won’t be Xbox green or PlayStation blue!

Every Nintendo console (of the past twenty years, at least) has had its own distinct colour scheme.

As for the console itself… I’m in two minds at this point. Will Nintendo stick with the handheld-home console hybrid format that has worked so well for them with the Switch? That seems to be the prevailing wisdom; why change something that’s clearly working and that gamers clearly want, after all? But on the other hand, for the past twenty years Nintendo has been focused on innovating and trying out new and different ways to play. We saw that with the Wii’s motion controls, with the Wii U’s gamepad and asymmetrical multiplayer, and with the Switch’s hybrid system. Will the company be content to simply build a more powerful version of the Switch… or will this desire to innovate mean that Nintendo’s new console will look completely different?

We’ve seen in recent years other companies trying to replicate Nintendo’s hybrid success. PlayStation has a handheld accessory for the PlayStation 5, allowing players to take their favourite PS5 games on the go… at least within their own house. And handheld PCs like the Steam Deck and the ROG Ally are taking the handheld gaming console to new heights of performance. These devices and others are all, I would argue, firmly inspired by Nintendo… but they also surpass what the Switch is capable of in different ways. They also offer players who were unimpressed with the Switch a more powerful handheld experience.

Other companies have jumped on the hybrid model that the Nintendo Switch pioneered.

Perhaps the next Nintendo console might look more like the PlayStation 5 and less like the Switch, with a home console for players who want to play on the couch and a handheld accessory for gaming on the go. If the two systems were linked, sharing a single account, players could have both and get the “best of both worlds.” Or maybe it will look like a beefier, more powerful Switch – a handheld console with a dock to connect it to a TV or bigger screen. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nintendo follow Xbox and PlayStation in releasing two models – one that has a slot for game cartridges and one that’s digital/download only.

Beyond those ideas, though, I really do wonder whether Nintendo’s desire for innovation will lead to a very unpredictable console! Having experimented with motion controls, could the new Nintendo machine have a more refined and accurate motion controller, for example? Or could it ditch the controller altogether, opting for a gesture-based interface like Microsoft tried to achieve with Kinect? Maybe Nintendo will ditch physical buttons and analogue sticks in favour of a touch-screen interface, reaching out to players who are used to gaming on phones and tablets. Any of these things – and many more that I can’t even think of – seem plausible right now!

Nintendo has never been afraid of innovating – like when they released the bazooka-looking Super Scope for the SNES!

Then there’s the question of games. Nintendo is already working with other companies in the games industry to bring third-party titles to the new console. Development kits have been sent out to some of the industry’s biggest names, so we can expect to see some popular titles and upcoming games join the system on release. As for first-party games, though… I’m not sure what to expect.

There has only just been a new Zelda title – Tears of the Kingdom was released in mid-2023. And Mario just got his latest 2D platformer a few months ago, too. Both of those games could be ported to the new console – and I expect they will be if for no other reason than to pad out the launch lineup. But Nintendo will have to do more than that; the company needs a “killer app” to really get players excited on launch day.

Mario has just had another 2D adventure on the Switch.

There are a couple of games that I think Nintendo might be planning on releasing alongside the new console. The first is a new 3D Mario game – Odyssey was almost seven years ago already, so surely the next game in that series has to be in development. As with the name “Switch 2,” don’t expect to see Mario Odyssey 2 – I’m confident that Nintendo will have a new adventure planned for its mascot! But a new 3D Mario title could build on the success of Odyssey in many ways, and take 3D platforming to new heights.

The second game that I increasingly feel Nintendo will be planning to launch either alongside the new console or within its first few months is Animal Crossing. Now, I’ve been critical of Animal Crossing: New Horizons on the Switch… but the game sold incredibly well, and is the best-selling Switch-exclusive game. No, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe doesn’t count: that’s a port! So with Animal Crossing having exploded in popularity, Nintendo would be well-advised to get the next entry in the series ready in time to launch alongside its new console!

A new Animal Crossing game could be on the cards.

I mentioned Mario Kart 8 Deluxe there… and while I truly believe a new Mario Kart game is coming some time soon, I wouldn’t be shocked at all if Mario Kart 8 Deluxe ended up being ported to the new console, too. Perhaps it would be bundled with the Booster Course Pass – as Mario Kart 8 was bundled with its Wii U DLC packs when it was ported to the Switch. But in lieu of Mario Kart 9 and with the Booster Course Pass having only recently finished adding new racetracks and characters, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Nintendo choosing to double- or triple-down on that game as a relatively easy money-maker on its new console.

So that’s where we’re at, at least as I see it. The name “Switch” is almost certainly going away, and I fully expect to see a brand-new console with a new name, new design, new colour scheme, and so on. Nintendo will surely seek to take advantage of more online features, more live-service/recurring revenue ideas, and the like… but I still believe we’ll get a machine that can be used like a regular old home console. I’m not convinced we won’t see some brand-new gimmick, too – perhaps something that’s not on anyone’s radar right now!

If Nintendo plans to launch its new console next spring – say in April or May – then we could see a full announcement as soon as next month. Regardless, as and when that happens I’ll do my best to take a look at it here on the website – so I hope you’ll check in for that! Until then, I hope this has been an interesting look ahead.

The new Nintendo console is currently scheduled for release between April 2025 and March 2026 to coincide with Nintendo’s next fiscal year. All properties, games, and other titles discussed above are the copyright of Nintendo. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.

Eight Ideas for the Next Mario Kart

Wed 18.10.23Wed 18.10.23Dennis

With the Booster Course Pass dumping new racetracks, characters, and content onto Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, it’s been a while since we looked ahead to what might come next for Nintendo’s flagship racing series. Although it seems pretty clear that the opportunity for Nintendo to launch a brand-new Mario Kart game on the Switch has come and gone, a new Nintendo console might be right around the corner. That can only mean one thing: Mario Kart 9 is on the way!

Okay, maybe I’m getting a little too excited. But with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe being the Switch’s top-selling game, and the Booster Course Pass giving it a bit of a refresh, I’m absolutely convinced that Nintendo will want to get a new title in the series onto the Switch’s successor console as quickly as possible – perhaps in time for the new machine’s first holiday season. If, as has been rumoured, a new Nintendo console might launch next year… we could be a mere twelve months away from Mario Kart 9!

A screenshot from Mario Kart DS. — Can you spot the mistake in this beta version of *Mario Kart DS*?

Or not. But either way, today we’re celebrating my dedicated Mario Kart webpage going live by considering five ideas that I think could make for neat inclusions in the next Mario Kart game – or in any game after that, if Nintendo doesn’t see fit to include them this time! If you missed the Mario Kart page, you can find it using the drop-down menu above… or just click or tap here to head there directly! All of my Mario Kart content will be available there – including my tier lists of all the racetracks in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which is something I’m currently working on! So check back for that at some point soon.

Before we go any further, I’ll give my usual caveat: I have no “insider information.” I’m not claiming that Nintendo is planning to include anything we’re going to discuss today in Mario Kart 9 – and I don’t even know for certain that Mario Kart 9 even exists or is in development! Also, everything we’re going to consider today is the entirely subjective opinion of one person – so if you hate all of my ideas or I don’t include something that seems obvious to you, that’s okay! We’re all entitled to our opinions on this wonderful racing series.

With all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at my ideas!

Idea #1:
A first-person mode.

A screenshot of Mario Kart 7's first-person perspective. — First-person racing in *Mario Kart 7*.

The first and only time that the Mario Kart series has offered a first-person view came in Mario Kart 7. In that game, it was possible to see the race from a first-person perspective – but only when also using the 3DS’ gyroscope to steer. It was a bit of a gimmick on the 3DS, and I didn’t use it extensively – but there’s something about racing in first-person that’s just fun.

I’d love to see Mario Kart 9 bring this back, using the more powerful hardware of Nintendo’s next console to allow us to get up close and personal with some great-looking karts and bikes. It would be a blast to be able to race in first-person mode using a standard control pad, without having to be tied to a gyroscope or motion controls, too.

A screenshot of Forza Motorsport (2023). — First-person racing in *Forza Motorsport*.

A first-person perspective is something offered by many racing games on other platforms, and is something most driving and racing titles have done for a long time. The Mario Kart series has long stood apart from racers that take themselves more seriously… but that doesn’t mean Nintendo can’t take inspiration from other titles in the racing space!

Racing in first-person puts you in the middle of the action, and it would also be a great excuse for Nintendo to design different steering wheels, handlebars, and kart interiors. There’s a lot of fun to be had here – and I hope Nintendo’s sole experience with a first-person mode in Mario Kart 7 won’t shoot down this idea.

Idea #2:
A logo maker (like in Mario Kart DS).

Recreating the website’s logo in *Mario Kart DS*!

Mario Kart DS allowed players to draw their own custom logos using a pretty basic in-game logo maker. Making a personal icon instead of using the generic ones made for each character adds a bit of customisation and personality to the game – and that’s always something fun to see!

Again, with more powerful hardware on the way, there’s the potential to expand this feature far beyond the capabilities of the Nintendo DS. Players could even get the option to give karts and bikes custom liveries – something seen in games like Forza Horizon 5, for example. But even if that’s not practical, making custom logos and taking them online would be a ton of fun.

The logo as it appears on a standard kart.

There’s obviously the potential for abuse here, unfortunately. And as we’ve seen in the past, some players will draw rude, offensive, or just plain silly things. But as we’ve seen with custom designs in the Animal Crossing series, for instance, it’s possible to give players these options in a way that’s safe and appropriate for sensitive eyes. Nintendo wouldn’t need to have a whole team of content monitors checking everyone’s logos… just make sure that it’s easy to report anyone with an inappropriate logo so they can be sanctioned.

I’m a big fan of customisation in games – even though I have the imagination of a sleep-deprived pigeon and the artistic skills to match. This could be a whole mini-game in itself… and I’d love to see some of the wonderful and creative ideas that other racers come up with!

Idea #3:
Identical stats for every racer and vehicle.

This is a subject I’ve covered already – and you can find that article by clicking or tapping here. But to summarise: Mario Kart is unbalanced. What that has meant is that there’s one “ideal” combination of driver + kart that, in many races, everyone online is using. It’s not a lot of fun to race online against eleven Waluigis all riding the same Wiggler kart!

Recent tweaks to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe haven’t actually helped this issue – they’ve just shifted the ideal combo to another character and another kart. So my proposal is simple: dump the stats and make every racer and vehicle behave the same way. This would completely negate the problem and open up the next Mario Kart game to allow players to choose who they want to race with and how they want to race.

Complicated stats in *Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*.

I find it disheartening, sometimes, to join an online race only to see almost everyone has picked the same kart and driver. Part of the fun of Mario Kart is mixing it up and trying out different combos. With such cosmetic variety, it seems a shame that, in order to remain competitive online or in time trials, there’s really only one (or at the most two) options that are viable.

Mario Kart isn’t a racing simulation, so things like tinkering with stats to get more horsepower… it just seems unnecessary. It would simplify Mario Kart in one way, but it would also open it up and diversify it in another.

Idea #4:
Racetracks with different variants.

The *Booster Course Pass* version of Kalimari Desert has different routes for each lap.

Mario Kart Tour introduced racetracks with different layouts and variants – and I think this is something that could be carried into the next main Mario Kart title. In the Booster Course Pass, several racetracks have different layouts for each lap, which is neat – but I’m thinking of racetracks with completely different layouts that could either be chosen or selected at random.

This could be a relatively easy way to add variety to the next game’s roster of tracks without having to create wholly new tracks with new assets. One variant of a track could be a simple loop, but a second could add additional twists and turns, for example. Both variants could use the same background, textures, and even some parts of the racetrack – like the start/finish line – as well as music. But there’d be something different for players to get stuck into each time.

It would be nice to get some varied tracks in the next game.

Mario Kart 8 launched in 2014 – and it looks set to reach its tenth anniversary before a brand-new mainline Mario Kart game will be ready. If Nintendo hopes to keep Mario Kart 9 around for even half as long, finding ways to keep the game varied and interesting to players will be essential. If the game came with 32 racetracks, but some of those had two, three, or even four different variants, that would go some way to accomplishing that objective.

I expect that the next Mario Kart title will be a kind of live-service experience, with Nintendo making changes and updates on the fly. Some of these updates could add new racetrack variants, which is something Nintendo has already done in Tour. That would be a possibility, too.

Idea #5:
Character costumes and outfits!

Mario in swimwear from *Mario Kart Tour*.

It would be great if every character could have different costumes to choose from. In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, for example, there are different colours for Yoshi – but I’d love to extend this to every character in the game. And not just different colours, either, but costumes and hats that transform the look of our favourite drivers.

This could also be a way to simplify the roster. Mario variants (like Metal Mario or Tanooki Mario) could be merged into one, with those outfits being available to players who choose Mario. That doesn’t have to happen, but it could open up the driver list to new and exciting characters!

Princess Peach in a blue dress in *The Super Mario Bros. Movie*.

For other characters, different colour variants, costumes, and hats could all be included. I think Tour has done something like this, so clearly it’s something Nintendo has already been toying with. I think there’s a ton of potential to really mix it up – and it would be great fun to see what outfits people would choose when racing online!

At the end of the day, this is another point about customisation and personalisation. Without having to create entirely new character models, Nintendo could add a whole lot of variety to Mario Kart 9 and allow us to really get a tailored, personal experience from the game.

Idea #6:
Designs from The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Kart racing in *The Super Mario Bros. Movie*.

After spending a lot of money on it, I’m surprised that Nintendo has made no effort so far to cash in on the wild success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie. There’s a ton of potential in bringing elements from the film into the next Mario and Mario Kart games… and the sooner the better!

The Super Mario Bros. Movie included a kart-racing sequence, and it was one of the most exciting and entertaining in the entire film! The sequence included several designs based on vehicles from the Mario Kart series – but also some brand-new designs, too. It would be great to see even one of these make its way to the next Mario Kart game.

There were also characters from the movie who could be included. Mario’s parents, for instance, or the penguin king from the opening act. Even including some of these designs as alternate costumes for characters like Luigi, Peach, and Donkey Kong would be a great way to connect with the success of the film.

Creating a racetrack – or better yet, four racetracks in the “Movie Cup” – would also be a fantastic idea. New tracks could draw on the film’s locations in both the real world and the Mushroom Kingdom, taking advantage of the new designs and adaptations that were created. Obviously a game will never be able to completely recreate the art style of a big-budget animated picture… but it could certainly take those designs as a starting point.

Idea #7:
Crossover characters from other franchises and properties.

“More characters” is always going to be a request when we’re talking about a new Mario Kart game – but that’s not really what I’m suggesting here! I think it’s a given that Mario Kart 9 will have an expanded driver roster, bringing in old favourites like Diddy Kong and newcomers to the Mario universe like Cappy.

Instead, what I’m hoping to see are licensed characters from other games and franchises. We’ve already seen Link from the Zelda games, characters from Splatoon, and Isabelle from Animal Crossing… but Nintendo can do better than that, surely!

Although it seemed unfathomable in the ’90s, when Sega and Nintendo were fierce competitors, we’ve seen Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog team up on several occasions over the past few years. Sonic is absolutely the kind of character I’m thinking of – but it needn’t stop there! Characters from games that have been popular on the Switch, like Minecraft or Fall Guys, could be great inclusions, too.

If Nintendo could strike deals with some of the gaming world’s big studios and publishers, there’s almost no limit to the character possibilities for the next Mario Kart game. Even just within the Nintendo extended family, though, there are literally dozens if not hundreds of possibilities.

Idea #8:
More real-world vehicles.

Mario Kart 8 launched in 2014 with a surprising merchandising tie-in: Mercedes! Three Mercedes cars were reimagined as karts in Mario Kart 8, and have been retained in the Switch version, too. Although it was definitely a bit of a surprise to see the likes of Dry Bones and Wario driving scaled-down versions of real-life cars… it was a ton of fun, too!

I don’t pretend to be an expert on merchandising and product placement, so I have no idea how easy or difficult it might be for Nintendo to license real-world vehicles. But the success of the Mercedes tie-in surely makes it something worth considering!

Car manufacturers are clearly open to this idea – otherwise why would they license their vehicles for games like Forza Motorsport? I’m not saying that Nintendo could necessarily get the likes of Lamborghini or Koenigsegg to sign on… but then again, why not? Scaled-down supercars could be an absolute blast… and maybe there could be something like a Tesla or other electric vehicle, too.

The possibilities are limitless, really – there could be classic cars, modern racing cars, and more. If we really branch out, we could look at monster trucks, lorries… even trains!

So that’s it!

We’ve considered eight possibilities for the next Mario Kart game. I’d love to see everything we’ve discussed above when the next game launches… but I’m not sure how likely all of these things are! Still, it was a bit of fun to speculate and fantasise about what Mario Kart 9 might look like.

So I hope this has been an interesting look ahead. As I said at the beginning, I have no “insider information,” and it’s likely that none of the things we’ve been talking about today will make it into any future Mario Kart game. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to consider what the next Mario Kart game might look like! With the series being a mainstay of Nintendo consoles, and a new console potentially launching in the next eighteen months… we might be closer to a new Mario Kart game than it seems!

Remember to check out my dedicated Mario Kart webpage for more speculation and discussion. You can find it by clicking or tapping here.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is out now for Nintendo Switch. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the Booster Course Pass, and the Super Mario series are the copyright of Nintendo. Some images used above courtesy of the Super Mario Wiki. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.