Leaks about the nextMario Kartgame are starting to come hard and fast, making it seem more and more likely that the new installation in Nintendo’s beloved racing franchise really is around the corner. Perhaps more importantly, though, leakers seem certain that the game will be a departure from the rest of the franchise in that it won’t focus solely onSuper Mario’s characters. Instead, the newMario Karttitle, which may be calledMario Kart 9orMario Kart Crossroads,will focus on uniting a long list of Nintendo franchises in the style ofSuper Smash Bros.Mario Kart 9could feature playable characters hailing fromZelda, Splatoon, Animal Crossing,and many more.
Introducing so many guests is certainly a major departure, not simply because of the introduction of guests, but also the sheer volume of guest drivers.Mario Kartusually sees a few playable drivers come and go between games, but a crossoverMario Kartgame has many more characters to introduce. In that case, it wouldn’t be surprising if Nintendo made a bigger deal out ofMario Kart 9’s new drivers than usual. Nintendo fans might start seeing individual trailers revealingthe guest characters inMario Kart 9,much in the style of new character reveals forSuper Smash Bros.
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Unveiling the Mario Kart Guests
For years now,Super Smash Bros.has drummed up hype for new playable characters by announcing them very slowly, with Nintendo creating individual trailers to announce each character and give fans a peek at their moveset. With the help of these steady announcements, both for the base game’s newcomers and for DLC fighters,Smashstays in the public consciousness. AlthoughMario Kart 9might not have fighting game kits to show off in a trailer, it could raise its own visibility with the help of similar trailers.
IfMario Kart 9really is a guest-focused game, then Nintendo probably won’t confirm all of the guests at once. It wouldn’t be surprising to see a few core franchises likeThe Legend of Zeldaconfirmed in the game’s reveal trailer, but Nintendo might save a few guests to reveal afterward in individual trailers. While characters may not be entirely distinct enough to all get individual trailers, each Nintendo franchise joiningMario Kart 9could get its own trailer. For instance, a trailer announcingSplatooncontent could reveal Callie and Marie as two distinct drivers,aStar Foxtrailercould focus on Fox, Falco, and Wolf at the same time, and so on.
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The Value of Multiple Mario Kart Trailers
SplittingMario Kart 9’s guest roster up into multiple trailers is particularly valuable because the arrival of guests implies a ton of other new content aside from drivers. Odds are thatMario Kart 9will feature lots of new vehiclesand courses inspired by other Nintendo IPs if the game is a crossover. Trailers focusing on each franchise would give Nintendo the opportunity to not only unveil the characters but to spotlight their courses and vehicles as well.
Mario Kart 9will be a big deal no matter what form it takes since there hasn’t been a wholly new game inthe coreMario Kartseriesfor consoles since 2014’sMario Kart 8.Branching out into other Nintendo franchises could makeMario Kartgrow to proportions that the series has never seen before, however, adding vastly more characters, vehicles, and racecourses than the series has ever seen. If Nintendo has this amount of new content to cover, then it only makes sense if it doesn’t try to explain all the content at once. On the contrary, the newMario Kartgame might be better off if Nintendo takes its time unveiling the guests, building as much anticipation as possible on top of the existing demand for moreMario Kart.
Mario Kart 9is rumored to be in development.
MORE:The Rumored Mario Kart Crossroads Seems Like the Logical Next Step
