Mario Kart 8 Speeds onto Nintendo Switch With New Characters, Tracks, and Battle Mode

The reveal video for the Nintendo Switch contained footage of what appeared to be Mario Kart 8 – but hang on, King Boo wasn’t in that game!? Well it turns out that yes, Mario Kart 8 will be coming to Switch – but not as you know it. It’s an enhanced port called Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which contains a bunch of new content as well as being portable thanks to the Switch’s hybrid design.

All characters and tracks from Mario Kart 8 on Wii U will return (including the DLC ones!), but there’s some new additions as well – Inkling Boy and Girl from Splatoon join the crossover crew of Link, Isabelle and Villager, while series veterans King Boo, Dry Bones and Bowser Jr. will be making a comeback.

The game’s battle mode will be overhauled after the… less than positive reception granted to the changes Mario Kart 8 made, and it sounds like it’s reverting to how it has been in previous games. New courses will be added to this mode like Urchin Underpass from Splatoon, and Battle Stadium, as well as some classics from previous games like Luigi’s Mansion and Battle Course 1. You can carry two items at a time now, and there’s two new items added to the game’s arsenal – the item-stealing Boo and the Feather that gives you a high jump in Battle Mode.

The game is also getting a new Smart Steering feature to help novice players and children drive and stay on the track regardless of whether they’re playing 50cc or 200cc. Nothing has been said about amiibo support yet, but given that the Switch has amiibo capabilities and the original game supported them, I’d be surprised if there were no amiibo features in Deluxe.

You can view the game’s reveal trailer below, which shows off the new content in glorious 1080p 60fps. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will launch April 28th in Australia for Nintendo Switch.