The World Wide Road What We Expect - Mario Kart World Direct Predictions Image: Nintendo We've already seen so much more than revealed in the initial teaser, and we discussed our broad hopes back when we were calling it 'Mario Kart 9' and DK's redesign was fresh news - back when we didn't know it was an open-world game! But with Nintendo pinning its Switch 2 launch-day hopes on this one, we get the feeling there's an awful lot more to be revealed. Over to Team Nintendo Life for their considered, expert predictions, plus their wildest of wild-card dreams... Collectibles, courses, cows (Alana Hagues, deputy editor) Even after playing a good few rounds of Mario Kart World last week, I still have a ton of questions. It's a huge game, so I want to know what I can get lost in, and why this is the Mario Kart to pick up. One thing I saw from other previews were a variety of things I had no idea could happen. UFOs can capture you? Collectibles can be found on maps? I'd love a tease for these things. I don't want to know everything, just a teaser. Beyond that, I'd actually like to know how that seamless structure works. Are those in-between courses actual courses, or will they not be selectable in other modes? Do you need to unlock access to certain cups and tracks? Is there a mode where you can literally just race through every single track (Free Roam notwithstanding)? I'm sure we'll also discover why you can play as the Moo Moo Meadows Cow, too. Image: Nintendo Mobility montage (Gavin Lane, editor) After going hands-on with the game, I can confirm that there's absolutely zero learning curve for anyone who's spent a few hours with Mario Kart 8 - and most people reading this will have spent much more than 'a few' hours with MK8! Which means Nintendo has to show everyone what's new and different here compared to the game they've been playing for 10 years. I'm anxious to find out more about traversal. Nobody wants to be stuck in a soupy kart in the middle of a field, and the addition of wall-jumping suggests Nintendo is injecting platforming-style mobility to maximise and make pleasurable the open-world exploration. The locomotive freedom will never be the same as BOTW or Odyssey, but avoiding the frustrations of slow turns, hitting dead ends, and having to reverse will be key to keeping the wonder (heh) alive. Characters and costumes, sure, but that's the stuff I want to hear more about. Image: Nintendo The sweat, the tears, the evil babies More Free Roam chat, less GameChat...chat (Jim Norman, staff writer) Much like Gavin, the Free Roam stuff is the feature that I'm really keen to hear more about. Getting to drive around the world at your own speed is one thing, but I want to be told that there's a point to it. Show me that there are missions, unlockables, or collectibles out there, and I'll be happy! The Nintendo Treehouse hosts were pretty cagey with what can be achieved in Free Roam, only really showcasing the ability to... drive around tracks again, only slower. There has to be more to it than that. Honestly, the only thing that I don't want to see is another surface-level rundown of the game's three main modes and how GameChat is integrated into them. We've seen all that fun stuff already, so here's hoping that the Direct can bring something new to the table. Image: Nintendo Rainbow roadmap (Ollie Reynolds, staff writer) It feels like we’ve already been shown quite a lot, but the fact that we’re getting a dedicated Direct indicates that Nintendo is keeping a few big surprises under wraps. Will there be proper aircraft vehicles with full airborne races? Is that how we reach the inevitable Rainbow Road track? Otherwise, I hope to see some sort of roadmap in terms of DLC (perhaps keep it to smaller, free updates for the foreseeable future though – sheesh!). Nintendo dipped its toes in the water with the Booster Course Pack for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but I suspect it’ll want to ensure there’s a steady flow of new content available over the coming months (and years). How this works and, perhaps more crucially, how new tracks will be implemented into the open-world structure will be very interesting to see. You can’t just slap a bunch of new courses into the main menu – not this time. Image: Nintendo Karteristics and boss battles (PJ O'Reilly, staff writer) I'm very excited to see what further details we get from Nintendo on the open-world and free-roam exploring aspects. Just how much freedom will we have whilst moving between race locations? Will they tie the new grinding and wall-jumping mechanics into the world to make traversal more varied and involving? All that sort of stuff, but also what will they bring to the table in terms of the game's collectibles? How will they tempt us to dig in and grab them all? With snazzy new kart parts or outfits? Will there be rarities involved? Other than this, I'm gonna need more vehicle details. I wanna know if I can expect cool transformations like those found in the sublime Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, and how any changes to vehicles might then play out in terms of track design. What tricks have they devised to aid us in boosting and shortcutting deviously to glory? Oh, and bosses and challenges? Nintendo, give us some Mario Kart boss fights. Races to the death. The good stuff. Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube806k Looking forward to finding out more about this Mario Kart World? Let us know your predictions, hopes, and wishes in the comments below! Racing to find the best deals Related Games See Also Share:0 1 Gavin first wrote for Nintendo Life in 2018 before joining the site full-time the following year, rising through the ranks to become Editor. He can currently be found squashed beneath a Switch backlog the size of Normandy. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment... Related Articles Where To Pre-Order Nintendo Switch 2 Update: Nintendo pre-orders live in Europe today (with an invite!) Nintendo Switch 2 Direct: Time, Where To Watch, What To Expect It's time for Switch 2 GameCube Games Confirmed For Nintendo Switch Online On Switch 2 Including Zelda: Wind Waker! Title: Mario Kart World System: Nintendo Switch 2 Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Nintendo Genre: Driving, Racing Players: 4 (12 Online) Release Date: Nintendo Switch 2 5th Jun 2025 5th Jun 2025 Series: Mario Kart Also Known As: Mario Kart 9 Where to buy: Pre Order on Amazon