According to a new report, Nintendo is working on a new Mario Kart game, called Mario Kart X, and it is supposedly one of the most expensive projects in the history of the company.
Mario Kart is Nintendo’s best-selling franchise of all time. The latest entry, Mario Kart 8, which was originally released on the Wii U in 2013, and then enhanced with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Nintendo Switch in 2017, is Nintendo’s best-selling game of all time.
Nintendo released a major DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, known as the Booster Course Pass, which includes up to 48 new tracks for the game. These tracks are available in both single-player and multi-player, as long as you have the new content.
Given how monumental of a series Mario Kart is to audiences around the world, it only makes sense that Nintendo would dole out a huge budget for it.
The report comes from Zippo, a reputable leaker, who said the game is being worked on by Nintendo EPD, with Bandai Namco co-developing. What’s more, Zippo revealed that “the game’s visual fidelity is said to be a very high priority for them, meaning the game is gonna look good, damn good.”
This new title is set to release in 2025 via the rumored successor to Nintendo Switch, tentatively named Nintendo Switch 2 by fans. If this is the case, there is a good chance it could be shown off during a Direct presentation next year. Whatever the case may be, Nintendo will want to get it out near the launch of the next-generation console.
There is a high probability that Mario Kart X will feature some type of live-service content, seeing as how Nintendo has made an effort to preserve the tracks from the mobile spin-off Mario Kart Tour, which is no longer receiving new content updates.
Of course, everything is still yet to be confirmed and is always subject to change over time.