Mario Kart World tips everyone needs to know
By Dave Aubrey
Mario Kart World is the first entirely new Nintendo kart racer in over a decade, and it takes on a brand new open world formula. This has changed track layout, in addition to physics, items, characters, handling, and much more. It’s a distinctly new and different game to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and that might come as a shock after spending so much time with that game.
But Mario Kart World is great, and once you get to grips with the new mechanics, you’re sure to agree. In this guide we’re breaking down everything you need to know as a new Mario Kart World player, including rail grinding, wallriding, the Charge Jump, new items, and more. You can even play multiplayer in Mario Kart World with Switch 1 controllers, so there's no excuse not to jump in with friends.
Drifting is different
The weight of characters and karts is radically different here than in Mario Kart 8, and it makes each driver feel distinct, with very different drifting arcs. If you want an experience similar to MK8, then you should go with a small kart and driver, but there are advantages to being heavier, such as not getting shunted around the track in busy sections.
Grind time
There are rails added everywhere in Mario Kart World, and you can grind on them for clean corners, shortcuts, and speed boosts. When grinding on a rail you can hop to rails on your left and right, granting access to new areas. If your rail is a bit more linear, you can jump off the end for a speed boost when landing.
The Charge Jump and dodge
If you do not turn at all and hold the hop button, your kart will charge up a jump. While charging your turning movement is limited, but once you release the button you’ll launch into the air. You can use this to hop on rails, get ready for a wallride, hop short grassy segments for a cheeky shortcut, and even dodge. That’s right, if you’re holding left or right when you release the charged jump, you can actually “side step” with a barrel roll-style jump. This is useful for not allowing foes to draft behind you or throwing projectiles at you.
Wallride everywhere
If you jump at a wall, you can wallride, allowing you to drive along walls with a neat speed boost. It looks flashy, and can be done in a surprising number of places, like alongside a bus on the highway. You can even side dodge into walls – or buses – to get a quick burst of speed when riding past. When riding through courses you might not initially notice good wallride opportunities, but you will learn to notice them in time.
Don’t underestimate Dash Food
Dash Food is a unique item in Mario Kart World that grants many of the characters with new outfits and transformations to add to the roster. That’s cool by itself, but even if you ignore that fact, Dash Food can actually grant a speed boost. It’s not quite as powerful as a Turbo Mushroom, but you can still save it and use it to take shortcuts, even when you’re already in 1st place.
Mirror Mode is hidden in Free Roam
If you want to play Mirror Mode, you can’t earn it just by playing through the Grand Prix mode like you might expect. There are a bunch of things to complete before Mirror Mode is unlocked, and one of them is 10 Peach Medallions, which can only be found in the open world in Free Roam mode. Once you’ve got 10 Peach Medallions, try beating the Special Cup and see if you unlock Mirror Mode for yourself.
“Wave Dashing”
Wave dashing is a fighting game term, but you can quite literally wave dash in certain situations in Mario Kart World. Some water racing segments feature heavy waves, and you can trick and boost off of these waves like any other ramp in the game. If you get lucky, you can chain a series of wave tricks together for some seriously long and fast boost chains. If you’re already in 1st place, you can use these chains to propel yourself into the lead.
Dodge Blue Shells
There are several items that will allow you to dodge Blue Shells in Mario Kart World, and the opportunities to use them are far more plentiful here than ever before. You can still time a perfect Turbo Mushroom to dodge them, and Mega Mushrooms will grant you invincibility too. The Super Horn works just as it ever did, but the Blue Shell gives you even more time to use it now. You can also use a Boo, Bullet Bill, or Super Star for invincibility, but the latter two are incredibly unlikely to have while in 1st.
Look for shortcuts
Shortcuts are more plentiful in this game than ever before, you just need to look out for them. Tracks often have distinct high-low routes, and by the time you notice them, it might already be too late. The fact that most tracks don’t loop the exact same laps make them even harder to spot and then effectively use. Still, this just means that holding onto those Turbo Mushrooms and looking out for the best spots to use them is more important than ever.
Rewind wins
If you’re playing offline by yourself, you can press down on the D-pad to rewind the race you’re playing. This is very useful for learning tracks, identifying the best lines to take, and can even be used to avoid Blue Shells. It’s very cheeky, but if you want to get three stars on each Grand Prix and Knockout Tour at any cost, the Rewind function is here for you.