Mario Kart is one of Nintendo's most beloved franchises, serving as an entry point to a lifelong gaming passion for many. A day after its launch on June 5 2025, Mario Kart World's critical reviews are pouring in, and most of them are quite positive. Let's explore everything publications and players say about the Switch 2 exclusive title and their thoughts on Free Roam, new racing mechanics and other features.
- Open World Format: Free Roam
- Racing Mechanics
- High-Quality Graphics
- The Price
- The Community Consensus
- Esports Impact
Mario Kart World is the first game in its franchise to offer open-world driving. Players can enter a "Free Roam" mode, where they cruise through several tracks and locations on an interconnected map. The landscape includes vast oceans, winding city alleyways, optional missions and even scenic photo landmarks.
This Free Roam upgrade has largely attracted notice. Game Informer's Matt Miller calls it the "most significant innovation from prior entries" and says he "[likes] dropping into free roam and getting to navigate a vast Mario-themed landscape while trying to find hidden pick-ups and take on scattered challenge missions." Scott Duwe on Destructoid shares this sentiment and appreciates how the mode places Mario Kart's iconic locations in a tangible in-game world, saying "exploration is encouraged."
Free Roam isn't only for late-night drives and trendy photo ops: its P Switch missions and unlockables offer players a free way to collect cosmetics. This incentive keeps drivers interested and coming back for more gameplay.
Reviewers' opinions do differ on the collectible process. Rollin Bishop was "absolutely compelled" by the missions on GamesRadar, but IGN's Logan Plant felt it became repetitive and says Free Roam "feels decidedly like a side dish rather than the meaty, transformative open-world experience many are hoping for." However, Plant clarifies, "I’m confident Mario Kart World’s thrilling racing will kick off Nintendo’s eighth generation with a rocket start, even if I’m still not completely sold on its open-world exploration."
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Racing Mechanics
Mario Kart World racing is more intense than ever before. The game's maximum player count has doubled from 12 to 24, adding to the high-stakes ambience around the racetrack. While classic items (including the terrifying Blue Shell) remain, new additions like the Ice Flower (which freezes any players it hits) add extra dimension to the competition.
Players can also experience new driving techniques like Wall Riding. There's also Rail Riding for those who feel particularly Tony-Hawk-esque on the racetrack. Rewind even lets competitors go back in time (though the race around them will keep going, and sometimes those extra seconds make all the difference). Plenty of modes, from the classic multi-course Grand Prix to the new non-stop Knockout Tour spanning the entire map, keep things varied. Scott Duwe particularly enjoyed Knockout Tour, saying, "I’m expecting it to be a top mode in the game once players get their hands on it, even with the typical and classic suite of multiplayer modes also in the game."
Many reviewers applauded Mario Kart World's strong graphics. Scott Duwe noted:
"Mario Kart World is the same Mario Kart we’ve all grown up with and love, but evolved, and more gorgeous than ever, especially when played at 4K with HDR enabled. Everything shines and glows with glorious fidelity at a level that Nintendo has never previously been capable of. That changes with the Switch 2."
Matt Miller shared Duwe's sentiment, pointing out the game's "visual splendour," realistic environmental light interactions and "rich variance to the color palette", ultimately calling it an "interesting game to look at." Indeed, Mario Kart World's graphics look different than ever before, maintaining a dreamlike atmosphere but upping its effects and overall design. The Nintendo Switch 2's higher visual specs could have contributed to this noticable improvement.
The Price
One aspect of Mario Kart World has sparked debate among critics and players. The game currently sits at a 79.99 USD price tag, higher than any of its previous iterations. Youtuber @TheDreamcastGuy, who has over 244,000 subscribers, says, "The fact that this is the most expensive Nintendo game of all time, I would have expected more."
However, Scott Duwe's Destructoid review believes Mario Kart World's cost is deserved and will not detract from its success:
"Even after all of the hullabaloo about Mario Kart World becoming the first game to enter the bold new territory of the $80 price tag (deservedly so), I wouldn’t be surprised to see it near the top of the list of the highest-selling games of all time in just a few years."
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Overall, Mario Kart World reviews are quite strong. Rollin Bishop says on GamesRadar, "What I've seen of Mario Kart World is certainly good." In a video with over 440,000 views, YouTuber @Shortcat said the title is "really fun," and Mario Kart franchise expert @TWD98 called the game "a dream come true."
While this roundup only contains initial reviews, and there is still plenty of time for fans in the Nintendo community to test the title out, it seems Mario Kart World is off to the races with a strong start. The esports community will be watching in the upcoming weeks as its critical consensus builds.
Esports Impact
With no new Smash game, Mario sports sequel, or new ARMS or Splatoon-like franchise, the Switch 2 is very limited in early esports options. Mario Kart World's success will open the door for a new wave of players looking to prove their the best kart racer in their local scene or online.
We don't know how long players will want to compete in a series that has historically struggled to have players take it seriously (outside of the highly competitive Mario Kart Wii niche). However, Mario Kart World appears to be starting from as strong a position as gamers could hope for if they want to build a competitive scene.
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