Mario Kart World review roundup: 'indisputably the best game for Switch 2'
Mario Kart World lives up to its predecessor, according to the critics
Update: See our in-depth Nintendo Switch 2 review, which is now live. Check out our other Switch 2 news stories, too.
👍 Mario Kart World has a Metacritic score of 87 after 66 critic reviews
🤩 The game has 97% positive reviews, 3% mixed and 0% negative
🤷♂️ It’s scored a little lower than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
📆 Mario Kart World is out now, exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2
It’s been nine years since Mario Kart 8 released on the Wii U and was later ported to the Nintendo Switch as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Nintendo has had plenty of time to cook up a worthy successor, then, and it seems like it’s done exactly that with Mario Kart World.
Mario Kart World at Best Buy - $79.99
Mario Kart World at GameStop - $79.99
The highlight of Nintendo Switch 2’s launch lineup, and a pack-in game no less if you opt for the $499.99 bundle, Mario Kart World has received strong reviews, with the game achieving a Metacritic score of 87 after 66 critic reviews.
That’s a few points lower than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which scored 92. But it’s worth noting that Mario Kart World is a brand-new game, while Deluxe was simply a slightly enhanced port of the Wii U title with DLC included. Here’s what critics made of Mario Kart World.
The Guardian gave Mario Kart World a perfect score, saying: “It really is an impressively welcoming game, this, generous and detailed and unfailingly fun, different but with the same spirit. It feels like the culmination of something, a synthesis of different philosophies of fun that still nonetheless comes together. The Switch 2 itself does feel like a swish upgrade rather than an all-new console, so it’s a relief that its headline game shows that Nintendo still has a talent for reinvention.”
Forbes also enjoyed Mario’s karting return and gave the game 9/10: “Mario Kart World is a huge undertaking, but it still offers the classic Mario Kart progression we’ve all grown up with. Whether this will sell as much as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe remains to be seen, but from the off, Mario Kart World definitely has an enormous amount of content to wrap your head around, and the multiplayer will likely keep it an evergreen release for years to come, much like the other games in the series have been.”
GameSpot awarded Mario Kart World another 9/10, and said: “Mario Kart World is a massive, sprawling sequel that playfully expands and iterates on the qualities that made Mario Kart 8 Deluxe such an enduring success. It's an incredibly fun and rewarding kart racing experience that's easy to understand, with enough mechanical nuance to reward veteran kart racers, all presented beautifully as a Switch 2 showpiece. It will be shocking if this game doesn't enjoy the same long-term success of its predecessor, because it's among the best in the series and a worthy marquee title for the launch of a new Nintendo console.”
However, some critics lamented the game’s new open-world mechanics, which led to a few more 8/10 reviews than we saw with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Eurogamer said: “Mario Kart World offers neat twists on the classic Mario Kart formula, but its open-world ambitions are somewhat let down by some classic Nintendo quirkiness.”
IGN felt similar, saying: “Mario Kart World may not make the most convincing case that going open-world was the boost the series needed, but excellent multiplayer racing, incredible polish, and the thrilling new Knockout Tour mode still more than live up to its legacy.”
Of course, not everyone enjoyed Mario Kart World, with WellPlayed giving the game a 6/10. The reviewer said: “Mario Kart World stands in stark contrast to the original Switch’s franchise re-evaluation, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Where Link’s first foray into true open world design made for a generation-defining experience, Mario Kart World’s shift is uneven and chaotic, often producing frustrations alongside innovation and fun.
“A massive leap in fidelity and a lengthy development cycle have shaped a gorgeously realised world and roster of racers to barrel down impressive tracks with a small bag of new tricks. But the time spent between these breathless bouts is unrefined and clumsy, a world built for a console’s lifetime worth of updates that, for now, offers you little more than a freshly paved highway to nowhere. Mind the toll.”
Personally, while I’m not quite ready to give a final verdict on Mario Kart World, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed what I’ve played. It’s certainly different to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which takes a bit of getting used to. However, as you learn the game’s mechanics and explore the new modes, there’s no doubt this is fantastic way to kick off the Switch 2 generation and I feel like I love Mario Kart World more and more each time I play it.
You can see the rest of the Nintendo Switch 2 launch games, and our upcoming PS5 games and upcoming Xbox games lists to see what’s up next for Sony and Microsoft’s consoles.
Up next: Best Switch 2 games 2025: 10 titles you need to buy
Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.