{"id":52078,"date":"2025-04-04T11:01:36","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T11:01:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/i-played-the-75-mario-kart-world-on-switch-2\/"},"modified":"2025-04-04T11:01:38","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T11:01:38","slug":"i-played-the-75-mario-kart-world-on-switch-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/i-played-the-75-mario-kart-world-on-switch-2\/","title":{"rendered":"I played the \u00a375 Mario Kart World on Switch 2"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Tom Gerken<\/span><\/p>\n

Technology reporter<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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After months of speculation, Nintendo has confirmed<\/a> the successor to its wildly popular Switch console will be released on 5 June, when it will cost \u00a3395.99 to buy in the UK.<\/p>\n

But it’s not so much the price of the Switch 2 but its games that have been raising eyebrows, with the new Mario Kart World that is being released alongside it coming in at a whopping \u00a374.99 for a physical copy.<\/p>\n

Fans will have to wait weeks before seeing what the new console and game are like – and whether they are worth that sort of money – but here’s what I found when Nintendo gave me a chance to try them both out.<\/p>\n

When I first got my hands on the Switch 2, one thing became very clear to me – like the name suggests, Nintendo wants you to know this is a direct sequel to the Switch.<\/p>\n

This isn’t like the jump from the Wii to the confusingly named Wii U, swapping motion controllers for a tablet that looked dated even back when the console released.<\/p>\n

Instead, the Switch 2 looks and feels just like its predecessor, with buttons in the places you’d expect – and a much larger (and nicer) screen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

What’s it like to play?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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It’s fair to say Mario Kart World makes a fantastic first impression, thanks to the console having more power under the hood.<\/p>\n

It looks spectacular compared to previous Switch titles, though we’re still talking about cartoony graphics – make no mistake, the console is more powerful but it’s no match for the higher spec PlayStation 5, let alone PS5 Pro.<\/p>\n

And in my three races the standout feature wasn’t the swishy new graphics or the controller, it was a trick that is becoming Nintendo’s hallmark: making the new feel familiar.<\/p>\n

Despite having never picked up a Switch 2, I stormed my way to consecutive first place finishes, much to the chagrin of those around me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Switch 2’s LCD screen, which displays crisp, vivid colours<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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But it doesn’t come cheap.<\/p>\n

The digital version of the game costs \u00a366.99, it’s another \u00a38 on top of that for a physical copy – or pay an an extra \u00a335 for a version of the Switch 2 with it built-in, something which pushes the console price to \u00a3429.99.<\/p>\n

According to industry expert Christopher Dring, these wallet-emptying prices are down to the costs involved in manufacturing – and President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese cartridges are exclusively made in Japan, which is a country that’s just been hit with a 24% tariff from the US Government, and the threat of those tariffs may have impacted Nintendo’s pricing decisions globally,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In the US, Mario Kart World will be priced at $79.99, with the console selling for $449.99 (or $499.99 with Mario Kart bundled in).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Mouse control and Donkey Kong destruction<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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But there\u2019s more to the Switch 2 than Mario Kart.<\/p>\n

Fans will no doubt have been excited to see the hotly anticipated Metroid Prime 4, the first game in the series in 18 years. <\/p>\n

But while they will be familiar with the typical way of playing – moving and aiming with joysticks and shooting with the “A” button – there\u2019s a significant new feature too.<\/p>\n

At any point in the game you can rotate the controller, put it on a surface and use it like a mouse. Fans of PC games will immediately feel at home with this, and it’s a neat bit of engineering to be able to switch up on-the-fly without having to enter any menus.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The mouse controls were intuitive – with my thumb oddly feeling quite natural on the thumbstick while moving the mouse around<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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The optical mouse controls pop up elsewhere too, with PC strategy game Civilization VII a game that massively benefits.<\/p>\n

But in both cases, I do wonder how long you can play with the controller like this before the ergonomics become an issue. I have to admit I found myself wondering why I wasn’t just playing on my PC with mouse controls and a comfortable resting position.<\/p>\n

Still, the fact that this is built in to the hardware means we may see the Switch 2 as the obvious home of future PC ports to home consoles.<\/p>\n

And there is another trick up Nintendo\u2019s sleeve – both controllers can be held like this and used as mice, opening up some interesting possibilities. In particular, futuristic wheelchair basketball game Drag x Drive, where both “mice” are pushed to mimic moving wheels.<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, Donkey Kong Bananza will be the first time the ape mascot has had a 3D platforming game of his own in 25 years, so there was some pressure on Nintendo to deliver a game which justified the wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Keen-eyed Nintendo fans will notice Donkey Kong has had a makeover, with a much friendlier face and softened eyebrows<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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For lack of a better term it\u2019s a destruct-em-up – you can destroy much of the floor and scenery in each level.<\/p>\n

But there’s that dreaded price news again. A digital copy will cost \u00a358.99, while a physical copy retails at \u00a366.99.<\/p>\n

It seems Nintendo has a lot to offer Switch fans – but it will be taking a fair bit from them too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Rivals and originals<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Some other titles I got to see in action were updated versions of Cyberpunk 2077 and Yakuza 0 – both of which big hitters on rival consoles which were deemed too complex to run on the original Switch.<\/p>\n

Like the other Switch 2 games, they looked good – and of course they will benefit as the new console, like the original, can play games on the go.<\/p>\n

The original Switch created the genre of the hybrid console – one which works on a TV and as a portable system.<\/p>\n

But since that launch in 2017, things have changed a bit.<\/p>\n

Now, it has a rival in the Steam Deck, a hybrid machine with the power to play most PC games.<\/p>\n

Nintendo would say something its rivals don\u2019t have is that long list of exclusive titles.<\/p>\n

But there is a bit of a theme here: Nintendo has consciously gone for continuity.<\/p>\n

The console is the Switch 2, rather than having a completely new name. Many of those exclusives Nintendo is so proud of are new games in established series, while others are remasters of modern classics.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The “Nintendo Switch 2 Edition” of 2023’s smash hit Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom looks better than ever with higher resolution and frame rates – but will people buy the upgrade so soon after it first came out?<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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I had great experiences with these games in the 20 minutes I had with them.<\/p>\n

But for fans to get value for those high prices they will want something that holds up over weeks and months of gameplay.<\/p>\n

Will the Switch 2’s slick nostalgia hit provide that? We’ll start to find out in June.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n


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Tom Gerken Technology reporter BBC After months of speculation, Nintendo has confirmed the successor to its wildly popular Switch console will be released on 5 June, when it will cost \u00a3395.99 to buy in the UK. But it’s not so much the price of the Switch 2 but its games that have been raising eyebrows, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":52079,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[62],"tags":[16740,14004,4716,2438,510],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52078"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52078"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52078\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":52080,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52078\/revisions\/52080"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}