CONKDOR, AN OSTRICH-LIKE enemy that made its debut in Super Mario 3D World, should not be able to drive. First, it is a bird. Second, it has no hands. But in Mario Kart World, Conkdor can race alongside Mario on bikes, cars, and magic carpets, just like everyone else.
This newfound ability of dozens of new characters to compete in the game is a first for the series, and a change that required the developers to rethink how they approached playable characters.
“I have to say that in previous Mario Kart titles, we had to consider whether or not that character would be able to drive,” producer Kosuke Yabuki told WIRED during a translated interview. “My old way of thinking was, well, surely they would need to have hands and feet to be able to drive.”
As a Switch 2 launch title, Mario Kart World heralds the next generation of the series, and it does so with a huge cast of playable racers. At least 50 characters have been confirmed so far, and many variations of those characters exist with costume changes. Yabuki says that when deciding on the game’s cast, the team first had to consider if players would like new characters and, more importantly, if they’d use them. Nintendo wants players to be surprised by who they can play as, but that’s not all: “If you're playing a match, would it be fun to see that character alongside you,” Yabuki says.
