MarioKart World: A Globetrotter In The Making
Let's get one thing straight right from the starting line. MarioKart World is not the best MarioKart title as of it's release. What MarioKart 8 Deluxe offers players in terms of a fuller package outweighs what MarioKart World has on offer from when you first boot up the game. What is here however is a sprawling open world, fun and adrenaline filled interconnected maps, and a new mode in the form of Knockout Tour. With these and future updates, MarioKart World may become the best title in the franchise.
Beauty On All-Terrain
From when your four wheels (or two for you Bike users) touch the tarmac, dirt road or water, or when you soar to the skies, MK:W treats you to what I can comfortably say is the most stylistic, beautiful game in the franchise. The Switch 2’s new graphical capabilities are in full display here. On my 4K monitor, the game runs at a smooth 60FPS and I have yet to experience any drops. The environment glows with vibrant colours, from dusty oranges and browns in Mario Bros. Circuit, to the familiar green fields of Moo Moo Meadows, now with a fresh coat of paint. This goes even further, the particle effects of the Blue Shell pop with an explosive blue and a comic book esque ‘KABOOM’, water foams around your vehicle as you dash through it, and with the Switch 2’s HDR feature, saying the game ‘pops’ doesn't do it justice.
MarioKart Pro Skater
As always the core gameplay loop for the linear tracks remains the same, with some new added elements. Players can choose from seven cups (eight after completing the first seven and unlocking the ‘Special Cup’), each with ‘four’ races. I say four in quotation marks as each cup technically has seven tracks. As was the focus point in the game's marketing, MK:W introduces racing to the next track in the cup. Players will complete the first map (consisting of three laps as per usual), before racing to the next map and completing one full lap of said map, so on and so forth, with lap amounts differing for the final tracks in cups, such as DK Spaceport in the Mushroom Cup. It's a change which took a lot of getting used too. The drive to the next map felt time consuming at first, as I was itching to play the next track, only to arrive there, do one lap, and move straight to the next. It can be jarring, but in time, driving between maps, watching one fade behind you as the next appeared over the horizon, gave me an excited, awe-filled feeling I wasn't expecting.
The maps here as well provide a lot of variation and great set dressing. Returning maps like Moo Moo Meadows, and Peach Beach from Double Dash,, have also been given new routes as the laps progress, providing a bigger incentive for the maps to be included. This for me is a very exciting precedent that Nintendo has set, as with past maps returning and being reworked with alternative routes which fit the MK:W playstyle, upcoming updates and potential DLC can provide the return of fan favourites in a new fashion, already improving on the DLC provided for MK8. I wish not to spoil anymore than this however, as the joy of a new MK title is experiencing each map for the first time. I will say however that as the game progressed, the feeling of excitement in discovery never left me, especially with the all brand new, fantastic Rainbow Road.
The game introduces new ways to traverse as well, now adding a ‘jump’ which can be done by holding the drift button whilst moving straight. This can allow for extra boosts on straight roads, as well as the ability to jump and grind in rails, rope, electrical wires and so forth. Chained together, this can also allow for a wall riding ability, allowing for fun experimentation and trial and error. I found however that executing these jumps proved difficult whilst racing, especially in the higher CC’s. Trying to angle oneself to a wall or rail to jump can instead activate drifting, causing a lot of bumping into walls or simply falling off the track. Perhaps this is a skill that must be mastered, and as a video game journalist, it's ironic that I struggled with something that on paper looks ridiculously easy. Outside of this however, the game is the most responsive a MK title has been.
A World Of…Some Possibilities
This cannot be said for the free roam mode however. I know many will be looking for a dedicated section for the Free Roam section. I am afraid that whilst it offers a new way to traverse the maps and world, it is an overall lackluster experience, and probably the least fun I had with the game so far. Driving around, players can find P Blocks to complete challenges ranging from time trials, to completing an impromptu race on the old Cheep Cheep Beach. Whilst charming at first, this quickly becomes repetitive and overall, the rewards for these challenges, that being stickers, I found myself completing a few before deciding it to not be worth the hassle. As for the mysterious ? Pads scattered across the map, I have yet to see the fruits of my pad pressing labour, however with how large of a map MK:W provides with little variation in challenges, I am unsure if I will look to return to find them all.
Knockout Tour on the other hand, provides an addicting experience that many MK players will look to return to time and again. What could be termed a ‘Mario Kart Battle Royale’, the idea is simple, race until you are either knocked out, or win. Checkpoints show a placement on them that, if you are under this placement, you will be knocked out of the race. A simple premise that provides a more competitive experience. I have yet to win a game however. I am unsure what that says about me as a gamer, but I will look to rectify this in the coming days.
MarioKart World also provides a plethora of cosmetic skins to unlock for its cast of characters, ranging from Pro Racer outfits to Swimsuits, a dapper looking King Boo, and a Vampire Waluigi. This is a super fun addition, however the selection of how many costumes a character has is confusing. Whilst the main cast of characters, Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy and so forth look to have 5-6 costumes, mainstay characters arguably as big like DK, Pauline and Bowser Jr only have 1-2, with many characters like Cow and Snowman having zero. I cannot tell you the disappointment I felt playing through each cup as cow only to come to the realisation that there are no variants. Hopefully in the future, more costumes will look to be added.
Finishing The Race
What MarioKart World offers here is not as solid as the previous title yet, but it is already incredibly close, and given that all of the content stated is available from launch, I can only imagine that this title will become the world's number one MarioKart in the coming months and years. Whilst not the best yet, I believe that, given the love and attention that MK8 was provided, MarioKart World will leave its predecessors in the dust, and be a truly special kart racer.
