5 Things I Want To See From This Week’s Mario Kart World Direct

After a strong showing at the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, Mario Kart World will get a Direct of its own on April 17tg. We already have a clear idea regarding the game’s main hook (an interconnected open-world of tracks) and other features like its large roster, rail-grinding and wall-riding mechanics, photo mode, and Knockout Tour mode. Still, there are some more specific details about Mario Kart World that we don’t know as much about yet.

As Mario Kart World will launch alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5th, I suspect this Direct will contain a blowout of information. Hopefully, after watching it, someone will know everything they need to about Mario Kart World before deciding whether to pick it up. After all, it will be $80, which is quite the investment for a single game.



Personally, there are five things that I want to see from this Mario Kart World Direct when it airs later this week.1. More Activities in the Open WorldThe main gimmick of Mario Kart World is that all of its stages are part of one interconnected world.

In Free Roam mode, players won’t be confined to the paths of the race tracks and can drive around alone or with friends. That’s neat, but from what Nintendo has shown so far, I’m worried that there won’t actually be a lot to do in Free Roam mode. Having some Forza Horizon-style open-world activities would make Free Roam much more enjoyable, and raise the open-world from being a gimmick to truly game-defining.

2. Mission Mode ReturnsThe open-world structure also gives Nintendo the best opportunity yet to bring back Mission Mode. This mode provided some excellent single-player challenges in Mario Kart DS, but hasn’t been seen since.

Now that Nintendo isn’t locked to the confines of an open world anymore, it could reintroduce Mission Mode and use different parts of the open world for each challenge’s backdrop. There’s some overlap with my open-world activities request, but that reinforces that I generally want hefty open-world challenge content in Mario Kart World.3.

What Does That Costume-Changing Mechanic Do?From the wave of previews for Mario Kart World, we learned that players can pick up food during races, transforming characters after using it like an item. This only seems to work on some characters, like Princess Peach, and not others like the Cow. I hope the Mario Kart World Direct clarifies what the point of this mechanic is, as I’d assume it’s more meaningful than just a cosmetic shift for a few characters in its large roster.

The idea of having multiple styles of the same racer intrigues me, especially if it’s tied to character-specific abilities or stats.4. Classic Tracks Make a ComebackAlthough I like the open-world concept, it worries me that this track concept will make it harder for Mario Kart World to incorporate tracks from previous Mario Kart games.

Classic courses have been one of my favorite parts of each Mario Kart since their inception, so their absence will absolutely be felt in Mario Kart World. I suspect Nintendo will try to incorporate parts of retro tracks into the open world rather than recreate them entirely. While that feels like a bit of a half-measure, I’d just be content with confirmation from this game-focused Direct either way.

5. Free Post-Launch SupportI don’t love the $80 price tag Mario Kart World is retailing for, but one thing could justify it for me: lots of free post-launch support. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe famously got the Booster Course Pass as paid DLC.

If Mario Kart World is getting something like that, it needs to be free if the game retails for $80. Mario Kart is one of Nintendo’s franchises best primed to be a live service, and I wouldn’t mind Nintendo embracing that with World. And while I don’t expect them to bring the game’s price down, getting some substantial DLC and updates for free would do some work to make up for it.

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