Mario Kart World discussion thread

[Mario & Sonic Guy]

Weirdly enough, Bowser is the only character at 8 so maybe it means something or maybe not?

Well, the people at Reddit seem to think that Bowser will end up being the meta character, as they're quick to dismiss the importance of anything outside of the speed stat.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Haven't weighed in on MKW yet.

I think the rail grinding and wall riding is really cool.

I didn't need any of the open world stuff...

 

[Borskaboska]

I don't like all the people I see saying the metal variations should be costumes instead of their own characters - while I don't think they are that interesting, the point of them is that people can pick heavyweight characters while still playing their favorites (Mario/Peach). If they didn't have different stats there would be a point in adding them in the first place.

 

[Mario & Sonic Guy]

Anyway, back on the subject of what I read at Reddit, some of the people there seem to think that Bowser will end up being the meta character, and the best vehicles will end up being the ones that have bad acceleration and bad handling statistics (such as the Tiny Titan, Bowser Bruiser, and Chargin' Truck).

The only problem, however, is that there doesn't appear to be an invincibility statistic in Mario Kart World. And there might be some additional factors that we might have to take into consideration as well. For one example, could there be a hidden mini-turbo stat, which would favor higher accelerating vehicles?

 

[Mushroomguy12]

The fact that Karts now have wings instead of gliders and can drive on top of water instead of underneath gives me Diddy Kong Racing vibes.

Add the open world aspect of the game in.... and I'm having more hope for a full adventure mode than ever before.

It does make me wonder what they have hidden that they feel they need to dedicate a full Direct for the game.... a story mode could be big enough to warrant it...

 

[Borskaboska]

Anyway, back on the subject of what I read at Reddit, some of the people there seem to think that Bowser will end up being the meta character, and the best vehicles will end up being the ones that have bad acceleration and bad handling statistics (such as the Tiny Titan, Bowser Bruiser, and Chargin' Truck).

As someone unfamiliar with the technical side of mario kart, how did they figure that?

 

[Mario & Sonic Guy]

As someone unfamiliar with the technical side of mario kart, how did they figure that?

Well, when you look back at the past Mario Kart installments, the most abused combinations in online play tend to end up being the ones that excel at speed, but are lousy with acceleration. In other words...

Mario Kart Wii: Funky Kong + Flame Runner
Mario Kart 7: Metal Mario + B Dasher + Red Monster
Mario Kart 8: Morton + Blue Falcon/Streetle + Slick/Cyber Slick

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was the exception to the rule though, where the characters with the worst invincibility stats were the most abused.

 

[Guynamednelson]

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was the exception to the rule though, where the characters with the worst invincibility stats were the most abused.

That and Waluigi was popular despite his stats not being unique to him because he took up less screen space than DK and Roy.

 

[MBRedboy31]

I wonder if top speed will matter a lot due just to how much of MK World consists of relatively straight-line “intermission“ sections.

 

[Mario & Sonic Guy]

After reviewing the stats for 30 characters and 21 vehicles, I have two new tables all set up. There could still be a margin for error though.

In terms of how the math works, I'll use the following example...

Mario + Standard Kart

Speed: 4 + 6 = 10 / 5 = 2.0
Acceleration: 4 + 7 = 11 / 5 = 2.2
Weight: 5 + 4 = 9 / 5 = 1.8
Handling: 4 + 6 = 10 / 5 = 2.0

 

[Thegameandwatch]

That and Waluigi was popular despite his stats not being unique to him because he took up less screen space than DK and Roy.

Another example is Peach, Daisy, Birdo and Peachette who have the same stats as Yoshi but the latter is more popular as a Meta pick.

I think it’s the color options and the fact that Yoshi is more popular even if he wasn’t a meta option. Birdo is a less popular character and is DLC despite having multiple colors.

 

[Louie G.]

I've got a question for you guys, where is your mind at with the roster right now? I've never been as compelled about Mario Kart's roster the way I am with Smash, but with the floodgates wide open here I'm on the edge of my seat seeing how much further they'll go. Do we think that the roster is limited to what we've seen? Or are they hiding a bunch of secrets from us?

The Koopalings are eerily absent right now, but still have sponsorships that have been spotted around several tracks. Same can be said of a few enemies / summons like Bully, Chain Chomp and Thwomp. And we've seen a Whomp... or at least, some kind of Whomp looking character, exclusively in free roam. I suspect most of the next Direct will discuss whatever they're hiding about free roam, since we've seen so little of it thus far.

I'm happy with the way this roster was cultivated, just going as silly as possible and utilizing many models they had scattered about. But it'd be a little confusing to me if they just stopped here. Why Pianta and Penguin without like... Luma, who we've seen in the audience already? Why wouldn't Bully and Boom Boom be playable if they are existing models / summons? So my main hope with this current format is simply that we go big or go home.

 

[Thegameandwatch]

I've got a question for you guys, where is your mind at with the roster right now? I've never been as compelled about Mario Kart's roster the way I am with Smash, but with the floodgates wide open here I'm on the edge of my seat seeing how much further they'll go. Do we think that the roster is limited to what we've seen? Or are they hiding a bunch of secrets from us?

The Koopalings are eerily absent right now, but still have sponsorships that have been spotted around several tracks. Same can be said of a few enemies / summons like Bully, Chain Chomp and Thwomp. And we've seen a Whomp... or at least, some kind of Whomp looking character, exclusively in free roam. I suspect most of the next Direct will discuss whatever they're hiding about free roam, since we've seen so little of it thus far.

View attachment 401352

I'm happy with the way this roster was cultivated, just going as silly as possible and utilizing many models they had scattered about. But it'd be a little confusing to me if they just stopped here. Why Pianta and Penguin without like... Luma, who we've seen in the audience already? Why wouldn't Bully and Boom Boom be playable if they are existing models / summons? So my main hope with this current format is simply that we go big or go home.

My prediction is that the direct will reveal the final remaining characters that are considered unconventional, characters like Luma and older characters like Diddy Kong, Koopalings and Petey Piranha.

I think guest characters such as Link, Villager and Inkling are going to be saved for DLC.

 

[Perkilator]

I've got a question for you guys, where is your mind at with the roster right now?

Kinda mixed upon reflection. The idea of unlocking enemies and NPC’s through Kamek’s magic is a pretty funny one, since it kinda reminds me of the way LEGO Star Wars handles unlockable characters. But I’m also not sure if it’s worth getting rid of staples like Kamek himself, Diddy Kong, and Petey Piranha (especially in favor of the five babies who are already not even relevant nowadays). I’m hoping the Mario Kart Direct has some characters that we haven’t seen at all, in the last Direct or the subsequent demos.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

Personally I'm a fan of huge rosters. I'm actually in love with this Mario Kart's roster so far.

 

[MartianSnake]

I'm glad this roster is testing out a bunch of random enemies and stuff

 

[chocolatejr9]

I've got a question for you guys, where is your mind at with the roster right now? I've never been as compelled about Mario Kart's roster the way I am with Smash, but with the floodgates wide open here I'm on the edge of my seat seeing how much further they'll go. Do we think that the roster is limited to what we've seen? Or are they hiding a bunch of secrets from us?

The Koopalings are eerily absent right now, but still have sponsorships that have been spotted around several tracks. Same can be said of a few enemies / summons like Bully, Chain Chomp and Thwomp. And we've seen a Whomp... or at least, some kind of Whomp looking character, exclusively in free roam. I suspect most of the next Direct will discuss whatever they're hiding about free roam, since we've seen so little of it thus far.

View attachment 401352

I'm happy with the way this roster was cultivated, just going as silly as possible and utilizing many models they had scattered about. But it'd be a little confusing to me if they just stopped here. Why Pianta and Penguin without like... Luma, who we've seen in the audience already? Why wouldn't Bully and Boom Boom be playable if they are existing models / summons? So my main hope with this current format is simply that we go big or go home.

Right now, I'm waiting for the Direct to give us a better idea of just how far they'll go. That being said, I've been thinking about something that I highly doubt they'll, but would be fun if they did: essentially, they could do free mini-updates between the big updates that could add characters already in the game as racers. Think stuff like Bully, Chill Bully, Luma, etc. Then the big DLC updates could add brand new stuff to the game that wasn't there before. Again, not likely, but it was something on my mind.

 

[Thegameandwatch]

Personally I'm a fan of huge rosters. I'm actually in love with this Mario Kart's roster so far.

At least the non-conventional characters get the chance in the spotlight.

Especially since it’s generally just Koopa, Shy Guy, a version of Boo or Dry Bones that are more or less consistant in Mario spin-offs if there is any generic enemies.

 

[YeppersPeppers]

I'm pretty comfortable believing that we haven't seen all there is to see with the roster, even if the rest is still just a bunch of mooks and the like (which I'm totally here for). It definitely feels like there's a "if it has a 3D model and can be reasonably scaled then its playable" approach going on.

 

[Laniv]

I'm still holding out hope for some Odyssey NPCs

 

[Mushroomguy12]

Glad we're getting a big roster, though something tells me some of the racers will be a little uncomfortable...

 

[Thegameandwatch]

I'm still holding out hope for some Odyssey NPCs

It’s kinda weird that Odyssey isn’t really referenced as much compared to other 3D Mario games. Basically just Metro Kingdom/New Donk City if it’s anything significant.

At least there was the Captain Toad’s game which had bonus levels but that was reusing assets.

 

[~ Valkyrie ~]

Glad we're getting a big roster, though something tells me some of the racers will be a little uncomfortable...

View attachment 401355

View attachment 401356

That burger could be made of [REDACTED]-meat for all we know!

 

[LimeTH]

Mario Kart roster discussion really feels like this these days and it's actually starting to get exhausting.

 

[chocolatejr9]

View attachment 401364

Mario Kart roster discussion really feels like this these days and it's actually starting to get exhausting.

(TBF, K. Rool and Fawful would warrant human resources...)

But yeah, it would be nice to see Nintendo be more open with the other spinoffs. Granted, MKW is definitely heading in a good direction, but with a series like Mario there's a LOT of stuff to cover and no guarantee it ever will be.

 

[WeirdAlFan101]

View attachment 401364

Mario Kart roster discussion really feels like this these days and it's actually starting to get exhausting.

Honestly, if anything, the unfiltered madness that is most of the current choices has me convinced that literally ****ing anything should be fair game at this point. These sorts of different picks shouldn't be mutually exclusive, they can both coexist.

 

[Ze Diglett]

I've got a question for you guys, where is your mind at with the roster right now?

So far, not a big fan. Cataquack and Pianta are based, and picks like Pokey and Cheep Cheep are very funny, but man... I miss Petey and Dry Bowser. They were my GOATs in 8 Deluxe, and from the returning cast I'm left with... I dunno, Bowser Jr.? Not nice. Kamek being reduced to an item one game after finally getting his license is super rude, and frankly, I'll never get over how E. Gadd still isn't here yet. We're at least doing better than 7's tiny roster and 8 launching with the bare essentials + variants + Koopalings, but even ignoring spinoffs and sister series, it really wouldn't be hard to fill out the roster with actual, established characters. Foreman Spike's a no-brainer at this point, as has E. Gadd been for decades now. Hell, I'm not big on Cappy, but he comes off as an easy add as well. Basically, I really hope this isn't it, but I ain't holding my breath. I'll main Cataquack if that's what it comes to, but like... can I at LEAST get Dry Bowser back as a costume?

Also, if we're scraping the bottom of the barrel for generic enemies, could we not have taken the opportunity to axe the lamest item in Mario Kart? I like Blooper, I'd play as him in a heartbeat, but for some reason he's been consigned to Item Hell when ****ing Conkdor got an invitation.

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

The lack of Kongs beyond DK is starting to annoy me a little bit, and especially after seeing it take 10 years to get Diddy/Funky (and no Dixie) in 8 I'm really not interested in playing the waiting game for them again while Mario mook #238 gets to be shown off right off the bat.

 

[LimeTH]

Mario spinoff rosters never feel interesting to me anymore because along with the same eight-to-ten characters that have been in everything since the N64. we get like one new actually interesting mainstay every ten or so years (and there's never a guarantee they'll actually stick around), and then the rest of it is always either cheap variants or random baddie detritus.

Some of the new additions in MKWorld are genuinely funny. Cataquack is hilarious and I'm so happy he's there, and I can forgive the Cow because the Moo Moo cows have been a Mario Kart staple for years, so it feels like a fun and fitting pick for a wild out there choice. Pinata and Goomba feel like they were a long time coming, but like the bee, the crab, the bat, the dolphin, not only do these reek of padding, they aren't even animated to drive the karts.

And yet no Kongs besides DK again. Kamek has been reduced to an item, Poochy and King Bob-Omb aren't back from Tour, they still aren't using King Boo's Luigi's Mansion design, Wario's biker costume is NOT the one from WarioWare, and the "Boshi costume" feels like it only resembles Boshi by coincidence.

I'm gonna hold off on really tearing into this roster until we know for sure what the final one is going to look like, but aw man, once the novelty of seeing Coin Coffer in a car wears off, this roster is pretty dire. Not digging into the extended Mario franchise or anything Mario-adjacent is really starting to feel like an actual detriment.

 

[chocolatejr9]

Feel like this is relevant to the thread (particularly the ending bit):

 

[MartianSnake]

Ysee I'm not too perturbed with not getting too many "proper characters". Mario spinoffs are never gonna stop being made, there's always ALWAYS a next time

 

[Ze Diglett]

Frankly, if they're insisting upon padding out the roster with nameless mooks, there was one correct choice they would NEVER be cool enough to add.

I would main the **** out of Shroob and that's not even a joke.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

I will say we should probably wait on complaints regarding the roster. I'm willing to bet we haven't seen everyone yet.

 

[Guynamednelson]

I will say we should probably wait on complaints regarding the roster. I'm willing to bet we haven't seen everyone yet.

Like I've said before

I want to believe what they're trying to do is add every Mario character and creature with a model that's good enough to the roster.

That would basically entail getting non-Donkey Kongs, Kamek, E. Gadd, etc. Not sure about Ashley and K. Rool since their models would come from Smash and that's made by Namco, but on the other hand, Namco did help out with MK8 and they now have two studios devoted to Nintendo games so maybe they're helping out with this one too and thus they could use Smash models?

 

[ajshadowssb]

Well, all I can say is that the game is called Mario Kart World for a reason, it has a literal cow in the game, a cow lol. But the game has some overall decent gameplay for sure. And what Swamp Sensei said about the roster is true, we haven't seen everyone yet, but later on when the game comes out, were gonna be seeing everyone for sure in my opinion.

 

[Mario & Sonic Guy]

Since it's likely that not all vehicles will be available right away, I would like to think that collecting coins will play a factor in unlocking them. However, Mario Kart World should probably take a page from Sonic Riders in that you could use your coins to purchase vehicles of your choice.

 

[Thegameandwatch]

Since it's likely that not all vehicles will be available right away, I would like to think that collecting coins will play a factor in unlocking them. However, Mario Kart World should probably take a page from Sonic Riders in that you could use your coins to purchase vehicles of your choice.

Same with characters although I would imagine that Free Roam feature will be the mode for unlocking characters.

 

[Laniv]

If Mario Kart... 9? 10? ends up doing its own EiH I'm gonna laugh so hard

There is a nonzero chance of this actually happening lol

 

[Ze Diglett]

There is a nonzero chance of this actually happening lol

Cool as that'd be, I sadly don't see them adding ROB back when even Tour forgot he exists. That's to say nothing of the elephantine honeybee in the room, who I think they know is better left as a one-time joke pick.

 

[Thegameandwatch]

Cool as that'd be, I sadly don't see them adding ROB back when even Tour forgot he exists. That's to say nothing of the elephantine honeybee in the room, who I think they know is better left as a one-time joke pick.

Another one is Donkey Kong Jr. who is kinda retired outside of direct references to older games like being a sprite in Mario Kart Tour when he was playable.