The Nintendo Switch 2 has seen a journey of announce to release similar to that of its predecessor. The official announcement in January, with three months until an event that revealed all. With a two month wait until the system launch date, 5/June is just a month away now. Not just for the console, but the first open world Mario Kart experience. And it is Mario Kart World I want to focus on with this article.

Just as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild greatly expanded what Zelda can be on the Switch (though it was originally a Wii U title), so is Mario Kart World doing the same for Nintendo’s flagship racing series. By going open world, new types of racing are available. As was highlighted by the full reveal that opened the Switch 2 Direct. Grand Prix has changed, and Knockout Tour is now a thing.

Both modes see tracks being connected via routes across the world. The first race of each Grand Prix is the standard three laps, with the second and onward seeing a start at that previous track, racing across roads to another, then completing a lap of that next track. It feels an odd change to not have every race of a GP still be three laps, though that can still be done via Versus mode.

Personally, I was expecting the connecting routes to be their own section of the Grand Prix cups, allowing for seven opportunities for points rather than just four. At the same time, I can understand why it works as is. Grand Prix is meant to be the easy jump in and play mode, with the four races never taking more than ten minutes to complete. These connecting routes would almost double that time if things were done my way.

For Knockout Tour, the connecting routes become the focus. One continuous race between six tracks, with the last four passing through each checkpoint being knocked out of the race. From what’s been seen across the Treehouse footage and people at the events, this is looking to be a fun mode to play. And is likely to be where I start my journey on Mario Kart World.

That is, if I don’t jump straight into free roam. After all, what good is an open world if you can’t explore it? The free roam has a load of missions to find and complete. Plenty of collectibles to hunt down. And a photo mode for those who want to snap some interesting shots. Such as me. Whether there is anything else to free roam, other than the ability to do so with friends, remains to be seen.

I can easily see myself just driving around all the biomes, marvelling at how these tracks have been made to fit into a seamless, connected world. With all the off-track sections that are now more than just set dressing. In looking at the map, there’s a few areas I know I want to check out first. And yes, that does include the snowy mountain purely because it will be hot in real life. Nothing beats enjoying a cold area during a hot summer’s day, wishing you could really be there.

Battle mode is also here, returning Balloon Battle to elimination-based rather than points-based. The other mode here is Coin Runners. Just two might feel a downgrade from the five of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but with 24 karts on the arenas, it makes sense to start things simple. While I would hope new modes get added over time, I could see the focus staying strictly with the racing, as it was with the Booster Course Pass.

What’s interesting is that battle mode is no longer restricted to purpose-made arenas. The Direct showcased battles taking place across locations of the open world, with areas such as a tram station or a jungle being fenced off. Many of these are also set around the tracks of Mario Kart World, with Moo Moo Meadows seeing a battle arena across a part of the track. It’s still not the sort of battle mode I’m hoping for, but it will do for a different form of vehicular combat.

Speaking of the tracks, there’s some excellent new ones in this lineup. DK Spaceport being an interesting one, recreating the original Donkey Kong game with a climb up scaffolding. Cheep Cheep Falls has such a lovely autumnal look, with many Japanese-inspired scenery objects. There’s also the urban expanses of Peach Stadium and Crown City to enjoy, each with a different theme that makes each unique.

Naturally, there’s also returning tracks, with many given a huge visual upgrade. Dino Dino Jungle is looking fantastic with its Jurassic Park inspired facilities now integrated into the track. Wario Stadium from N64 is making a long awaited return, though part of the track has now been removed, making it shorter. Though it does look so full of life, now. An interesting addition is the SNES tracks that share a theme being joined together. Such as the Mario Circuits (except 4) being joined together through connecting roads around a central hub.

With all the tracks, the open world, and even small stuff I haven’t talked about (such as outfits for the racers), there is a lot to explore with Mario Kart World. It’s a game I’m sure I will be super invested in come 5/June. One I’m sure I’ll also be enjoying some online racing on, whether that be just on global, or with GRcade. This is definitely the game I will be giving a play first, though there’s others I’ll likely play across the first week, too.

Fast Fusion is a futuristic high-speed racer, from a series I am familiar with thanks to Fast RMX. Which released at launch of the Switch. Fusion looks to be expanding on what RMX provided, and with a cheaper price, too! I guess Shin’en want to attract people with that cheaper price. I’ll certainly be giving Fusion a play, as I enjoyed RMX even if the higher speeds were too fast for me.

As for games that I own on other platforms, the big one is Hitman: World of Assassination. Yes, I’ve played nearly everything the game has to offer on Xbox. And yes, I could just buy the content I’m missing on the Xbox version. But I know that I’ll get so much playtime on the Switch 2 version that it makes sense to just buy it again. Handheld Hitman will be such a great time.

The other will be Fortnite, though depending on how much fun I’m having with everything else, this one might fall outside of the first week. The Star Wars event currently running in Fortnite across this month has proven once again how invested I get with this battle royale. So putting it on a handheld makes perfect sense. Whenever I want some time fighting on the island, or perhaps some racing or LEGO fun, I can easily jump on with this Switch 2 version.

At launch, there’s also the GameCube Classics app, bringing some great games from the past onto the console. Classics such as F-Zero GX and Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. It’s so much to play right at launch. So much that I doubt a week will be enough to play through it all. Then again, I’ll likely still be enjoying all of it come Donkey Kong Bananza’s release in July.

Images Taken From:
Mario Kart World Direct 4.17.2025 | Nintendo of America
Fortnite (2018) | Switch eShop Game | Nintendo Life
–Fast Fusion (2025) | Switch 2 Game | Nintendo Life